HOLLYWOOD —This week’s leading men gold standard goes to Christian LeBlanc, who brilliantly plays Michael Baldwin on CBS’s “The Young and the Restless” and Jack Wagner, who played Nick Marone this week on “The Bold and The Beautiful” much differently than he’s ever done so before. Wagner has always been one of my favorite actors and certainly one of Hollywood’s most popular stars, but this week he showed what versatility and range he has as an actor. LeBlanc’s scenes led “Y&R” viewers to tears.

Christian LeBlanc is a multi-Emmy winner who deserves every award he’s received and then some. The dark-haired handsome actor never finds himself in a lazy acting-mode on “Y&R.” The show is written by creative genius Maria Arena Bell, who this week had Michael facing his beautiful wife Lauren and her evil doppelganger Sarah Smyth, who is the sister of the demonic villain of daytime Sheila Carter. When fans saw Sarah with Lauren’s face, many of which groaned with the idea, here we go again. Though anyone who knows Maria Bell’s style would never utter those words. The beautiful and talented scribe wrote one of the best storylines I’ve seen in decades on the show.

LeBlanc’s performance when Michael became so fed up with his wife’s psychiatrist was sensational. “If you think nothing is wrong with my wife lady, then you need the psychiatrist,” stated Michael. LeBlanc’s look of exhaustion was captivating. What would happen next? Sarah tried to murder Phyllis and Patty, pretending to be Emily came close to murdering Michael. Though LeBlanc turned it all on every scene he had. Never showing that he’s bored, the plays everything he’s given with aplomb.

By mid week Michael not only faced his wife and her tormenter Sarah, but he nearly had a nervous breakdown when his wife Lauren began shooting and refused to stop. After decades of being haunted, stalked and terrorized by Sheila, there was no way Lauren was about to allow Sheila’s baby sister to finish her off. “I didn’t survive that bitch Sheila all of these years to be killed by that sister of her,” said Lauren. However, LeBlanc knew it was his costar Tracey Bregman’s scenes, and he underplayed it with perfection. Who wouldn’t want to work opposite this man? He’s astonishing and this past week we saw him yet again in nothing short of perfection.

While “B&B’s” equally talented genius scribe Bradley Bell has Nick Marone in the dark about the paternity of his wife’s child. Nick seemed to embrace his father-in-law Owen this week; unbeknownst to Nick, Owen is the father of Nick and Bridget’s baby. Wagner is so sharp as an actor, he played the naïve Nick, without an exception, absolutely perfectly. Every mark, every line, every bit of dialogue had to be given with sincerity and fans are dying to see Nick’s reaction when he finds out his wife and his father-in-law slept together, and that the baby she’s carrying is not his own child.

Wagner blew every male costar away on “Melrose Place” and “General Hospital.” However, his intensity is put aside this week while on “B&B” he played things perfectly for the ensemble of cast members he shared a storyline with. There is no turning back the hands of time. Nick is not a fool, he’s certainly a force to be reckoned with and as an actor, so is his handsome and brilliant portrayer.

“Y&R” and “B&B” are number one and two in the daytime television ratings every single week. There is a reason for that. Brad Bell and Maria Arena Bell are the two gifts that keep on giving to viewers.

Both shows air weekdays on CBS.

Photographs Courtesy: Christian LeBlanc by CBS and “Y&R” and Jack Wagner by Gilles Toucas and Bell Phillip TV Productions