It's the reunion so many daytime viewers were waiting for.
After remaining absent from LIVE! With Kelly and Michael for nearly a week, Kelly Ripa finally returned to the ABC series where she reunited with co-host Michael Strahan.
Despite plenty of speculation as to what she would or wouldn't say, many could agree that Kelly was able to speak her peace without giving her bosses a heart attack. As to what's happening behind-the-scenes of the daytime talk-show, one expert says ABC is hoping to return to normal as soon as possible.
"ABC wants to get back to business. They hope the show can now get back to business," CNN's Brian Stelter told E! News. "ABC did a complete 180 by announcing that Michael is leaving in a couple of weeks. Clearly something dramatic has happened behind the scenes. A week ago the network was claiming that Michael would be on the show all summer."
The Top of the Morning author continued, "From the outside, it looks like Kelly won. She extracted an apology from ABC, a commitment to the future of the show, and Michael is leaving a lot sooner than planned."
Shortly after Tuesday's east and west coast airing of LIVE!, ABC confirmed that Michael's last day would be May 13. The decision would allow the athlete to integrate into Good Morning America more often this summer while also giving LIVE! more time to find a new co-host.
While the ordinary viewer may have been focused on Kelly's words during her speech this morning, Brian noticed a few smaller details that could give a glimpse into what was going on behind the cameras.
"ABC could have tried to pre-tape her comments. They could have tried to block or censor her comments. They could have asked her to go out there and pretend like nothing happened. But ABC didn't," he explained to E! News. "I think the network deserves credit for that."
If you ask today's guest Bellamy Young what the vibe was like on-set, she would offer similar remarks.
"It was a big deal, yes I was on LIVE! with Kelly and Michael and it was the first time since Kelly had been back and yeah, there was tension in the backstage area because yeah it's been a week of drama unfolding nationally," she explained to E! News at Max Mara's Whitney Bag Anniversary Edition dinner. "But I have to say, they were such professionals and it all went so smoothly and she gave a beautiful monologue."
While there's still plenty of speculation in the industry as to whether or not Kelly will stay or go once her contract ends, Brian believes that the talk-show host has a lot of leverage at this moment in time. She also appears to still have a loyal—and large—fan base.
"If anything, I think her reputation is stronger as a result of this. She's more appealing to viewership," he explained. "Of course, there's some snark about a multi-millionaire not showing up for work. I think that's been drowned out by the support for her."
Watch Brian Stelter host Reliable Sources Sunday mornings at 11 a.m. EST/8 a.m. PST only on CNN.