Days Of Our Lives' Cruise Of Deception Explained
In 1990, "Days of Our Lives" aired one of its most elaborate and exciting storylines of all time: the Cruise of Deception. The event was billed as a miniseries within the soap opera and aired over the course of several weeks. The storyline included several of the show's most popular characters such as Bo Brady (Peter Reckell), Hope Brady (Kristian Alfonso), Jennifer Horton (Melissa Reeves), Jack Deveraux (Matthew Ashford), and John Black (Drake Hogestyn). The over-the-top drama all began with a character named Ernesto Toscano, a former friend to Victor Kiriakis (John Aniston) who looked to get revenge on many of his enemies in Salem after his late wife Loretta's diary went missing. Ernesto arranged the cruise and invited all those he wanted to seek vengeance on, including Isabella Toscano, the woman he had believed to be his biological daughter.
While aboard the cruise, Isabella told Ernesto that she had read Loretta's diary and knew that she was Victor's daughter. Isabella also confessed to Ernesto that she had been the person who had unintentionally killed his daughter, Marina. Ernesto was furious at Isabella and slowly began poisoning her for her actions while also looking to exact revenge on the rest of the passengers aboard the ship as well.
Hope Brady was presumed dead during the Cruise of Deception
The biggest moment from the Cruise of Deception took place when "Days of Our Lives" fans watched Ernesto Toscano enlist Hope Brady to help him perform a magic trick for the other passengers. During the trick, Hope was placed into a cage and suspended over a vat of acid. In a shocking turn of events, an explosion rocked the cave where the magic trick was taking place and the cage broke loose as Bo Brady watched his beloved wife presumably fall to her death into the acid. The bomb caused chaos among all of the passengers and after searching for Hope for hours, she was declared dead along with Ernesto.
Years later, Hope returned to Salem to reconnect with her friends and family members and it was revealed that she was switched out with a woman named Greta von Amberg at the last minute, leaving her to be kept alive. Ernesto's fate was never revealed. However, the impact that the Cruise of Deception had on many Salemites was long-lasting, especially for Bo and Hope who struggled with the fact that Bo had moved on to Billie Reed by the time Hope was revealed to be alive and well.
Other characters also had huge storylines during the Cruise of Deception
While much of the Cruise of Deception was focused around Bo and Hope Brady and Hope's seemingly untimely death, there were many other characters who were greatly impacted by the storyline as well. Jack Deveraux and Jennifer Horton were two people front and center during the miniseries event. Not only did the popular couple help Isabella Toscano find out that Victor Kiriakis was her biological father by giving her the pages of her late mother's diary, but they also had some very romantic moments during the cruise. It was there that the couple got intimate for the first time and really soared into super couple status on the soap (via Soap Hub).
Meanwhile, Victor was also a huge player in the storyline not only because of his involvement with Ernesto and Isabella but also because he and Julie Williams (Susan Seaforth Hayes) were flirting with the idea of a romance and the couple shared their very first kiss. During the cruise, John Black also realized that he was in love with Isabella, and after the storyline ended, the two went on to get married and welcome a child together.
Longtime "Days of Our Lives" fans will likely never forget the Cruise of Deception or how it affected some of the most beloved characters in Salem. The event was so iconic that nothing like it has been seen on the show since. However, there's always hope for the future.