Today on As the World Turns, gay icon Cyndi Lauper makes an ATWT stop on her star-studded True Colors tour  (New York, Los Angeles, Oakdale!?) and takes poor Luke under her wing. 

She dedicates her signature song to Luke and makes Noah realize that his doormat boyfriend might be a catch after all.  The two share a kiss, and Luke invites Noah back to the farm that evening, where they can be alone at last and presumably consummate their relationship. Yay!

All seems right with the world. For about 30 seconds — until Noah drops a major bomb.

What's the latest obstacle keeping our boys apart? Find out in today's Nuke video clips (there are three!) after the break...(Editor's Note: Due to technical problems the first two clips aren't available for now. Working to solve ASAP!)

After months of anticipation, today's the day that we will see Oakdale get its Pride on when Yo's is converted to a gay bar and pop legend and gay rights activist Cyndi Lauper drops by to play a benefit for Oakdale U's LGBT club. Of course, while she's there she crosses paths with on-the-outs Luke and Noah and uses some of her fairy dust to help the couple find their way back together.

Having been on set for the filming (oh, did I already mention that? Silly me!), I'm curious to see what the Dive Bar: Extra Gay Edition set looks like filled with rainbow flags and gay extras (gay-players?) and find out exactly how things fall into place. Will Cyndi help the lads see one another's "True Colors"? Will the cumulative gayness of the whole event spontaneously summon the ghost of Uncle Albert to join in on tambourine? And perhaps most importantly ... will Noah have a chance to cop a feel on Tony before he sees the error of his ways?

Grab your pride flags, click on through the jump, and refresh often to find out ... as it happens!

Today on As the World Turns, Noah has interruptions aplenty on his first day of work at the coffee shop. First Luke comes in and goes all Richie Rich offering to loan him money for school. Then Noah gets called down to the Oakdale Police Department (slash Lost and Found) where they hand him his father's dog tags. Captain Pervy has been pronounced dead.

Noah wants to mope, but Luke drags him back to the farm to remind him that they belong together. Noah isn't so sure...

Noah: Being here doesn't feel like home any more. My father died hating me because I was gay, because I couldn't be what he wanted.
Luke: But you can't help being who you are.
Noah: Yeah but the thing is, I don't think I can be who you want me to be either.

Ouch! Luke really needs to take a hint and leave mopey, ungrateful Noah alone. But will he?

Find out in today's Nuke video clip after the break...

Wheeeee! Bet you thought I'd abandoned you, eh? Actually, we're still working out some bugs (or at least the people who actually know how this thing works are), but I've been given the OK to bring you a fresh steamin'-hot cup of Oakdale ridiculousness. One lump or two?

On today's As the World Turns we learn that Noah has taken a job at Java, presumably because he needs the money to pay for his "dead" father's "funeral" or because he, like many of us, needs as much caffeine as possible to keep himself awake during his own flagging storyline.

Regardless, what happens when Noah is told by Oakdale P.D. that his dad has been declared "officially wet dead" and he's given his dog tags as a memento? How will this news affect his already strained relationship with Luke? And perhaps most importantly, does their being broken up mean that Luke won't even get to enjoy Noah's employee discount? Harsh!

Click on through and refresh (your browser, not your coffee cup) often for breaking updates!

As you may have heard by now, Van Hansis sadly did not win the Daytime Emmy Award on Friday for his portrayal of gay teen Luke Snyder on As the World Turns. But he and Jake Silbermann were on-hand at the ceremony as the handsomest couple of presenters in the house, and were fittingly tasked with presenting Ellen Degeneres with her umpteenth well-deserved Emmy for her talk show.

Today on As the World Turns, Luke and Noah bid an awkward farewell to Ameera. She's off to Los Angeles to stay with friends of her mother's. As a parting gift she's applied for an annulment.

Later, the boys meet for coffee, and Luke is surprised (and pleased) to discover that Noah is jealous of Reg. Does this mean the boys are getting back together, or should Luke be headed for Reg's hot tub after all?

Check out today's Nuke video clip after the break...

Today The Prettiest Little Plot Device This Side of Saint Olaf makes her farewell appearance, and although we shudder at the thought of the horrors that her presence has inflicted upon Luke and Noah (and us) over the past few months, we certainly don't begrudge her personally, and will be sad to see her go.

Knowing that today would be Ameera's last day on the show actually got me thinking of ways that she could have been kept in Oakdale. Here's what I came up with:

It is revealed that Captain Pervy actually IS her father, and that she is therefore a US citizen and Noah's half-sister. She gets a job at Java and continues classes at Oakdale U and eventually becomes involved again with Butters ... until Emily learns about their affair and devours her alive under a full moon.

or...

Ameera evades the feds by going undercover ... as a man. But in school she attracts the attentions of an ambitious young Hebrew Studies major played by Mandy Patinkin and she must decide whether to reveal her true self in the name of love. In the climactic scene, she pleads for the spirit of her lost father figure to guide her, belting, "Pervy, can you hear me?"

and finally...

Ameera is allowed to stay in Oakdale on the condition that she take care of Diet Juno, whose juvenile delinquency is out of hand. Will the two women from different cultures teach one another about letting go, fitting in, growing up, and being a kid again? You bet they will!

Of course, none of these things will happen, and apparently even a fairly smooth exit isn't enough to keep Luke and Noah from going at one another's throats like two housemates from the Bad Girls Club. How does it all go down? Click on through the jump and refresh to find out, as it happens! 

Today on As the World Turns, Luke gets propositioned by Oakdale U's gay student union president slash hot tub enthusiast, Reg. Meanwhile, Noah prepares to move out of the cottage and continues to push Luke away.

Will the persistent Reg convince Luke to go out with him? Or will Noah wise up and give his boyfriend some much-needed attention before it's too late?

Find out after the break...

The corpse of Luke and Noah's relationship hasn't even cooled yet (well, not that it was exactly fevered to begin with ...) and already we have some new blood sniffing around the hydrants of Maddie Alley, looking for freshly-dumped meat.

Yes, after months of wondering, "What ever happened to the Frisky Oakdale Hot Tub Party boys?" our questions are answered when Alpha Aberzombie Reg re-enters the scene as a suitor eager to scoop up Luke on the rebound. Will he succeed? Will other Hot Tubbers follow once they pick up the scent of gay singles? And perhaps most importantly, when in a turgid, cocoa-butter-scented embrace amidst the frothing waters, will Reg pull away from Luke to remove his mask and reveal that he's actually ... Captain Pervy in disguise?!

Pretty scary thought, right? Don't worry - we're here to hold your hand through all the twists and turns. Just click on through the jump and refresh often for all the invasive action!