Stewarts Point

It just seemed too much after Shane's death. It also led to the end of Pippa as a character, albeit two bitter and depressed years later. It feels like his death killed the early years. Tom was given another chance in Michael (many prefer Tom). But he played his role. But after his death was a massive end that changed Home and Away. 1995 was finally a good year (relatively) for Pippa and Michael. His death ruined what he could have been as a character.

Forgetable misfire? What's your thoughts on her time in Summer Bay? I feel the 89/90 transition of characters prooved tricky and she suffered accordingly.

His character seemed to represent this period, for good or for bad. It seems many here are slightly indifferent about the early 90s. For me the character that comes first to mind that embodies 91-94 is Nick. At one utterly forgetable, yet with another look, totemic as a central character (the love triangle/Shane's brother). Bob Barnett was the beer bellied 80's cop. Was Nick some kinda sharp minded 90s andidote, yet subtler version of Chris Hale? Did he mitigate Chris Hale, or ultimately lead to him?

He was the 'guy'. Kind, macho, sun lover, hard working, kinda goofy, without a side. The ruthless world of soaps chewed him up and spit him out far too quickly. But if one character is brought up that encapsulates 1994/95 it's Rob Storey.

Smackings of Martin's mullet and Dallas/Dynasty/Howard's Way yuppies descended on 1989 Summer Bay. Yet by 1990 it was as if it had never happened. Wouldn't the employer been useful as an ongoing post school employer? Couldn't the reality of business been better portrayed as a 'nasty capitalists give nice Tom a stroke, dump waste, slander, blackmail, behave as crooks'? Was a part of 1990's problem that Macklins had departed? Did Macklins pose too much of a threat to the concept of Summer Bay in 1990 that it was best left burried?

He was a pompous blow hard who once he got his beloved Range Rover in 1989, killed off 'edgy' Ailsa of 1988. He was judgmental and often quite nasty. How he treated Blake after he found out about his real father in 1992 and Sarah as a babysitter in 1994 was hard to justify. Yes he had the 'bants' with Marilyn and 'flaming galahs' and water bed issues of humour' but do we too over look his pompous pride and know it all arrogance? Early 1988 was very good precisely because Alf was a minor character. Alf was the 'measured know your place' police', and it was tiresome.

Carly and Andrew were a great couple. If the PTB had decided in 1989 not to give Andrew his alcoholism problem they were a couple made for each other. 1988 and 1990 Carly were hard watches (Her sister and dad made 1988 difficult, and Ben of 1990 was a 19th century Sicillian godfather mafiosi chauvinist). I tended to dislike Carly, but in 1989 she was a mature and collected likeable individual. As ever the early days had a great fault in knowing what to do with post school students (Carly repeated in 1989), but at least there was chemistry between them.

I think a schism in Frank's mind was between Bobby on 'his side', the outside rebel, something they they had in common in their growing up years and the 'I'm part of the establishment shilling for Macklins and the town royalty (Roo Stewart).' But there was no plan. Alf hated him after 1989... Ultimately, Frank wanted the curvy sexy Roo. He was a guy. Simples...

Within the scope of the show as it was, I think the 10 or so months that Haydn appeared in 90-91, was handled well and realistically. It showed a handsome, intelligent and cultured young man who had lost his bearings, presumed class position, parents, and was trying to hold it all together behind a shield of polished coldness. He could have been an Oscar Wilde character. But ultimately his complexity was wasted on his immature running mates in Blake, Karen and Sophie (who despite her obvious attraction seemed out of her comfort zone with Haydn). They seemed to bore him rather. Aside from the gambling issues which would effect his father in 1994, Fin was another who seemed to bore him. It was a pity Marilyn wasn't around at that time. Where he worked as a character, and rather like Steven with his intelligence and relative sophistication impressing an older woman, was his relationship with Marilyn. It was this which brought him alive. Did Marilyn make the better decision in choosing Donald over Haydn in 1996? That's a good question.

I couldn't see a thread for Blake, so here goes. Early 90s heart throb who appealed to teenage girls in the New Kids on the Block and Beverley Hills 90210 era. Likeable character who had two lives on the show, before and after his sister Karen's descent into crime. Before he teamed up with Sophie and Hayden, after with Simon and Finn. And then there was the Meg storyline, which is infamous in Home and Away lore. I think he faded in his final months as he was replaced by Shane in the school boy hunk role. Showing that even the new kid on the block has but a brief moment in the sun. Interestingly he had a deep relationship with Alf (more so than Curtis) which perhaps wasn't replicated in the rest of the 90s. What are your memories?

Possibly along with the original outing of Steven, Carly truly belonged to the Pippa and Tom era of the show. Maybe it was her late 80s style, I'm not sure if I can put my finger on it exactly. It just seemed that she suddenly looked out of place in the Debra Pip and Michael era. Dated in some way. The usual post school not knowing what to do with a character, let's get her married, usual stuff happened with her and the possessive passive aggressive Ben. Maybe best to have had her run away with Andrew or Martin when they left in early 1990 ?

This being moralistic Home and Away from 1993, of course for no good reason Greg admitted to Bobby about his affair with Fiona. An affair which was full of the passion which his marriage with Bobby sorely lacked. If Greg had stopped and thought about leaving Bobby for Fiona and bringing Sam with him (Bobby was not his mother and had only been his foster mum for 2 years), then Greg would have been far happier and two characters could have left in a realistic fashion. Bobby's distraught reaction of losing Sam and her marriage could have led to the death she got a month later anyway. Maybe Adam encourages her to do something reckless and he gets the blame he also subsequently got anyway. Instead Greg goes back to Bobby, is shouty and upset as he had been for the entity of his marriage, Sam is crying and storming out of every scene, Bobby goes and dies, more shouting and crying, then Greg ups and leaves forgetting about the son he'd fought so hard for for the previous 2 years.

What was good about Adam was that he represented the larrikin interest post Martin and Lance, and balanced out the young adults who were often old before their time (Ben) or righteously upstanding (Nick, Grant, Luke). It was interesting that he was generally portrayed positively (no one thought beyond his sloth that he was a baddie), and he generally managed to get on with everyone, even turning the other cheek when he had been wronged. That he was portrayed thus when he was openly workshy and lazy was quite interesting. I think being handsome and having a murcurual charm helped him and made him a likeable character. He had many an amusing set tos with Alf and Donald and was great as a pairing with Maz. Matt bringing pizza, beer and a playboy mag into his hopistal bed when Marylin wasn't looking was a humerous example.

I think she would have been the one to have been written out with Alf staying. I don't think it would have worked if they both stayed or Alf had gone. I seem to remember she got close to her classmate in Italian lessons she took perhaps in 1996. He really liked her and I think Ailsa was tempted. Alf of course didn't understand her interest in this learning or yearning for culture. So no, no character that I can think of. They would have needed to have written a new character for her much as Michael was written in for Pippa. But as I say, Pippa leaving the bay by 96/97 might have been the most realistic option if they had have split.

She was very much the continuity Lucinda character. Slighlty bland, good looking, would get the attention of all the young men in the show. Both being good looking swayed me then and sway me now. So there!