Ryan

Were David and Frank wearing the same shirt? We've already had Alison and Carly wear the same dress this week. Either there's been a fire in wardrobe department or the show is in financial dire straights, it may not have long left.

I think to be fair to Roo here, her motives are completely different to those that she had throughout the rest of the season. I don't quite know whether to say it's selfless, but they're definitely not selfish such as the deceit and dirty tricks she played throughout the season. If I am correct, Matt is now here for the next 700 episodes, where we still can't remember a single storyline he is involved in. Bizarrely with his premature apppearnance on the credits earlier this year, it's mid-1990 by the time he gets back on them. Oh, and it did have the completely and utterly bizarre appearance of Floss and Neville at the school prom. At least though, there was a reason for them being there, unlike in later years when the entire town seemed to go along to them.

I wonder who the mystery guest is! (Actually I know, but I'll wait till Monday). So, that's goodbye to the Samuels now and Alex Petersons dodgy acting, I have to say that whole crime business was wrapped up very quickly. I have to say I'm with Sally more than the rest on the song. It's sang badly, but it's certainly better than the dirges Frank wrote. Can't believe there's only two weeks left of the season.

Gemma Ramsay, Madge' s neice, in Neighbours, oh, and it's Alan Fisher. Alan Fletcher plays Dr Karl.

Yeah, it's quite strange to think we've got just 12 episodes left now of the year, especially when it's a year you thought might have been "lost" forever and now a lot of us now have complete. Better episode today, though the crime seems to have been closed pretty quickly it feels. There still however feels a slight lack of urgency currently though.

13 more episodes.

Didn't particularly enjoy todays episode (214), it just felt a bit flat, almost as if it was winding down towards the end of the season. I believe that's the final appearance of Alyce. All that longing Steven had for her, she goes to Alan's party with him and then the story sort of disappears like this. I'd like to blame the producers of Neighbours, but that's 18 months off and where she gets together with a character whose name is scarily similiar to the name of the actor who played Steven. Yeah, so not the most exciting episode.

Also scene count and I think the 1988 workaholic is decided. Bobby 759 Frank 660 Carly 646 Tom 627 Pippa 617 Steven 519 Lance 442 Lynn 441 Ailsa 435 Alf 423 Roo 411 Martin 405 Floss 325 Celia 319 Fisher 307 Sally 294 Neville 291 Matt 100 Longest episode streaks are Bobby (17 episodes) followed by Narelle (15 episodes)

I'd heard rumours about a dummy (not Nico) being involved in these re-creations. That Philip/Gary confrontation was absolutely brilliant and a sign of a show that isn't taking itself too seriously.

Got to be the best ending of an episode so far!!

Sometimes I think the numbers begin to play with your head. When uploading the summaries to the site I'd do 50 episodes in a night and think I'd done well, and then I'd remember that was 1% of all episode aired, I still had to do that again another 50 times. I look at certain characters and think we're over halfway through their stints or so, and then I think, well that's actually next March, but then in the same time, when news of these episodes first broke around this time last year, did we ever think that we'd get to the stage where we'd have seen the whole year and it seems so long since say Sandra left and she is slowly going back to being a forgotten character of the show, rarely mentioned again.

Ah, so Inspectors Matheson and Macklin have discovered what's going on and we got our usual does of McPhee action. I had never realised they were so completely and utterly pointless by this stage. I'd imagine if BTTB had been around in 1989 we'd have struggled to find enough stuff to make a departure feature on them, and again not many opening credited characters (but Philip does 150 episodes as a guest and Stacey 275 or so) so they're really actually quite long term characters. Add to the fact the clip from the previous episode had nothing to do with todays episode.

What a bizzare episode no. 206 was, with a brief montage covering a whole week, between Bobby getting out of hospital and her first exam. And I want a suit like that male invigilator.

Please tell me we never hear that song again.

http://www.backtothebay.net/characters/horton_mr.shtml Everyones favourite District Inspector has made the site!

Roo pretends Frank is the father originally because Brett wants nothing to do with the pregnancy, but once he becomes sterile after the mumps, he changes his mind.

How did you gather Frank is Martha's mother from my post. Brett is Martha's father.

Perhaps it's knowing the outcome, but I'd picked up that Frank and Bobby were huge, and to be honest, I've been quite underwhelmed by their romance to date. Perhaps in the next 100 episodes, which are extremely Bobby-heavy, is when it really becomes "magic".

Oh, and forgot to add, Miss Fenwick character biography added today!

And to think I spent ages earlier this afternoon tip-toeing on eggshells trying to write my post. I think if out there there is a feeling that they can be brought back in some form I think it's worthwhile looking again to see if they're viable not, perhaps in redcued form. I'm always willing to upload the stuff that's been produced, because I don't find updating the site a chore and I certainly don't do to gain reputation points, I hope that it will stand out as a monument and encyclopaedia of both the present of Home and Away, but also the past, and that the information will be there for later generations. If Tachel fans want to provide a monument on the site for their favourite couple it's certainly something I'll be willing to personally at least talk about the idea with them...but not at the monet, FBI Files about to start!!!

There won't be departure features for Geoff and Aden, unfortunately, no, as there won't also be departure features for Annie, Jai, Martha or other characters leaving in the nearish future. Primarily there is two reasons. What usually happened was that we'd get to the point where a character left the show in Australia and in the staff room, we'd realise we had a week to make the whole feature. So ultimately in the staff there usually wasn't the actual drive to make the features, occasionally for characters we hated on the show and were glad to see the back of, and the time involved. The other reason is perhaps linked to the first in that we'd put some features and we'd get a handful of responses. Now, we aren't expecting every update to be thanked because even though we update nearly ever day there are usually pretty minor updates. A location update, an episode summary, a character profile etc. it's usually a page or two, sometimes not even that. However we'd occasionally put a departure feature, which in some instances are almost the size of a small site in themselves and we'd get 2 replies and ultimately if we get only a few replies to something like a departure feature, we have to imply that perhaps not that many people are intersted and it's therefore not worth the effort. Now obviously that's a disappointment for people like yourself who probably enjoyed them and discussed them, but ultimately the only way we can tell if something on the site is worthwhile is through feedback.

"her face looks like porridge running down a wall." Lance, Martin and Celia appear to be the only characters from the opening credits in that episode. Must be a record?

Ah, 200 episodes, or 201 if you include the pilot which in a way bastardises episode counts. I might be barking up the wrong tree here, but I think that was Gary's 13th appearance in a row since his debut and appears to appear in 201, 202, 204, 205, 207, 208, 209, 210, 211 and 212. Perhaps he has minor appearances in the episodes I find no note of in here as well and I think it works well. Someone coming in with a cause and not rushing the story through, but giving it pace. To get 24 appearances in todays show, you'd need 8 weeks, that's two months and the storyline will drag. A bit like this Penn story. Maybe it's supposed to be a mystery (Gary's never been a particular mystery after the cliffhanger about a week ago), but with Penn, I feel as if it's been going on for ages and nothing has happened. In this story Gary has been getting on with it. I'm not saying all guests should be played like that. I think the Alan Fisher episodes were paced well, as were the Barlow episodes (doesn't that seem an age ago).

http://www.backtothebay.net/updates/ A few more summaries from 1988 and a couple of updates in the location section.

Kim debuts at the start of October