Latest UK Episode Discussion (2006-2017 Seasons)

[atrus]

I'm pleased that Ash stood up to Brax, and said it was none of his business about Denny. But not so pleased about the introduction of Dropkick From Ash's Past #17, which no doubt presages another string of kidnappings, car crashes and wanton violence. It's making me wonder just how long we're going to be accompanying Brax on his 20-year sentence, because my interest is already starting to wane.

I think I'd missed the stuff about Andy's illiteracy previously. It certainly adds a different dimension to the character, and for the first time I really sat up and took notice of a storyline in which he was central. I could empathise with the idea that he wouldn't want Hannah being the one to help him, but I found it less easy to believe that he would have been able to keep that secret from his brother for so long.

Hilarious when Chris got sent to his room by Irene! The Room Wars story was strange, though - I thought either of the boys would have jumped at the chance of the room with the double bed, but for some reason they both seemed to be attached to the downstairs one, until the window got smashed!

Not sure I quite bought Evie's sudden concern for Maddy's wellbeing. But I guess they're naturally going to try to make them friends, given the similar ages etc, and I'm happy to give her the benefit of the doubt, not least because Maddy desperately needs to stop relying on boys who fancy her for support. Meanwhile, Matt and Oscar's scenes were nicely done - they make a fairly unlikely duo but seem to bounce off one another really well as friends.

I hope Maddy and Matt's meeting of minds on the beach isn't a sign that they will be the latest on the merry-go-round of teen relationships now that Sasha's gone. I'd much rather they persevered with Maddy and Oscar in some capacity, and their scene on the pier together later gave me some hope of that. The show wrong-footed me there, because I was expecting Maddy to have the mother of all tantrums when she found out about the charity fun-run - but once again they've demonstrated a maturing of her character.

There does now seem to be a deficit of female teen characters considering how many boys we have - meaning that we're going to have to have some new ones soon if that merry-go-round is going to keep on spinning. The other option for the writers is to follow through on the evident chemistry between Matt and Spencer. But of course such storylines have been off-limits for years.

The Zac/VJ storyline was a bit odd. It was all made out as if it was all Zac's decision, when really it should have also been VJ's and to an extent, his gran's. While I was hoping Zac would say he wanted VJ to stay with him but that the choice was his, I actually don't blame him for coming to the decision he did; it's a huge ask to take on somebody else's child, and no matter how much we'd all like to think we'd do the selfless thing, I think Alf had a point when he said lots of men would have done far less than Zac has done for VJ in his shoes.

I felt from his reaction that VJ was bluffing a bit and hoping Zac would keep him on - but since they've had a very difficult relationship, that may have just been because he wanted to stay in Summer Bay. I thought they were going to start talking about the possibility of turning off Leah's life-support, because given how long it's been I'm surprised nobody has had that discussion yet - I don't know the medical/legal situation but do hospitals just keep people breathing indefinitely in those circumstances?

Anyway, it all becomes redundant with the cliffhanger, clearly. Very relieved to see Leah waking up, and a great place to leave it for a few weeks. Looking forward to the nostalgia episodes.

[H&Alover]

Typical that both Evie/Maddy and Matt/Oscar go back to the Farm House independently because everyone is out! Matt has lost his motivation now Sasha has gone and needs a male friend who as unlikely as it might appear looks like it is going to be Oscar. Sasha would be very disappointed not to mention furious with the way Matt is acting. Both Maddy and Oscar naturally felt awkward being in each other's company but I did like Oscar approached Maddy later on the pier, I can see her point of view as regards going through more treatment which has no guarantee of working. Apart from the first time she had chemo we didn't see how badly other sessions effected her, she may have been one of the lucky ones and come through them OK. They may not be a 'couple' anymore but if anyone can persuade Maddy to at least try it it is Oscar. He may or not have been right to tell her about the paint run, but Maddy can always fake surprise.

More bad luck/timing when Josh rocked up with the pizza delivery and Matt found out he'd been fired! His telling Phoebe they can stick his job sounds so like the 'old' Matt, methinks he will be persuaded to either back down or do something else. I did like Matt's line to Maddy about 'upsetting the sick chick' .

Marilyn may have been out of order telling Phoebe she needs to get back to her singing, does she know about the stalking/kidnapping, but it did seem to give Phoebe pause for thought.

It appears Stella is living in the city. Part of Zac probably felt like he didn't want to 'abandon' VJ, but part of him being feels relieved VJ has decided to live with Stella, VJ did seem disappointed that Zac had come to the decision he did. Zac had only been dating Leah a few months and as Alf said a lot of blokes would have bailed before now. Leah may have opened her eyes, but we don't know what damage has been done to her brain, her whole attitude may have changed, memory loss, short or long term. VJ did say to Zac there were patients at the hospital that had been in comas for years. Guess we will have to wait and see.

The big plus, atrus, to having the downstairs bedroom is people can arrive and leave by it and no-one else need know.

See you all on the spring break thread and on the other side!!!

[atrus]

The big plus, atrus, to having the downstairs bedroom is people can arrive and leave by it and no-one else need know.

Yes, I should've thought of that - we've certainly seen it happen enough over the last 20 years!

And speaking of 20 years, is that really how long we're going to have to endure Brax facing off in jail against a neverending series of Dropkicks of the Week with names ending in '-o'? Probably, is my guess.

Anyway, mustn't moan - it's good to be back in the present day, a very pleasant trip down memory lane notwithstanding. And lovely to see Leah back in the world of the conscious, even if she seemed remarkably well-adjusted after how many weeks in a coma? I'd have expected her to at least be a little traumatised, but until the doctor sowed the seeds of doubt in her mind she seemed pretty much A1. Guessing that won't last, though, because otherwise they wouldn't have bothered casting a random guest doctor to deliver such an ominous warning.

I enjoyed the Maddy/Oscar stuff, again. I always suspected she'd hate the idea of the charity run, but since it's happening it would be nice if she showed up for it, for all her friends if not for herself. Still though, probably a good job Oscar tipped her off - if they'd sprung it on her as planned she'd have ended up even more upset about it.

[Red Ranger 1]

Aaaaand we're back! And I'm instantly back thinking that two stupid things characters did in the previous episode are still stupid.Because if Alf had kept his mouth shut and not convinced Zac to give up on Leah and VJ, then he wouldn't be in a black pit of guilt right now and we wouldn't be facing the prospect of Leah one day finding out.Still, I'm glad VJ isn't holding it against Zac.

And Oscar shooting his mouth off has also had bad consequences, as it's looking like he's wrecked all Spencer's careful preparations with a few loose words and made Maddy not want to go to the colour run.And I was far from impressed by him saying that he'll get there, then just spouting a load of shallow platitudes and storming off.It's a shame because there were a couple of good moments in their first scene: I loved Maddy's smile on hearing about Leah and her waspish "That was subtle." I get why she doesn't fancy being treated like a freak show and why she isn't keen on being the poster girl when she's not sure the treatment's worth it, but at the end of the day, they're her friends and they mean well and I think she should grin and bear it.I loved how Chris was on top of the organising.

All of which is a lot better than Brax being given the same prison bully storyline that every character who goes to prison in soap always gets.It doesn't help that it's completely unfathomable what Gunno actually wants: Is this really all because he wants Brax to not let Ash visit him?I can understand Brax not wanting to be a prison grass but I can't see Ricky being impressed.The prison's only honest guard appeared to be transported from place to place:One minute he's with Ricky and Ash at the entrance, literally a second later he's inside quelling the riot.

[Slade]

I'd kind of gotten used to the music from the mid nineties so almost forgotten how different the opening credits were for the current episodes.

I was actually expecting Leah to suffer from some form of amnesia and whilst not expecting her to forget about VJ wasn't sure if she would remember Zac. I was glad we got to see Zac fill in the blanks with Leah - The bus driver dying, Hannah's injuries and Sasha leaving. VJ came across a lot better in this episode and I liked the talk he had with Zac. Don't think Zac should beat himself up about this too much. There was no indication Leah was going to wake up and even VJ wasn't expecting him to take on that level of responsibility.

I actually ended up feeling sorry for Brax. He's just trying to keep his head down and serve his time and I liked the fact that he stood up to that guy re Ash. And that guy needed three other henchmen to take him on. Couldn't face off against Brax himself. So the prison guards are on the take.

Unfortunately this episode emphasised exactly why I was so not looking forward to this cancer storyline when I found out several months ago and what I mentioned in another thread. Everyone is acting like she's the bee's knees now. And it just annoyed me when they were all going on about her so I was glad when the good news about Leah came through which momentarily put a halt to it. Did any other cancer suffers get treatment like this? And having to sit through the stuff with Maddy and Oscar (He loves her, he loves her not etc.) *sigh*. I'm struggling to get my head around his thought process. I was critical of her for not backing off and giving him space when she used him so objectively (assuming that she is genuinely in love with him which I seriously doubt or at least he believes that) from his perspective he should be doing the same thing rather than hanging around her and effectively giving out mixed signals. Objectively I think I get why she doesn't want to go to the fun run and has given up. If there's no light at the end of the tunnel then a lot of people will want to throw in the towel. Initially I wasn't sure about Oscar telling Maddy but after seeing the effort Spencer's gone to he has seriously messed up here.

[H&Alover]

Hi again everybody!!!

The doctor was only telling Leah what I said on here a while back, she may have escaped other serious injuries but Leah is bound to have other problems that aren't apparent at the moment. She had to be warned of possible problems so s they don't come as a nasty surprise. She could have short (or long) term memory loss, mood swings, find there are things she used to find easy to do but now might struggle with which may be very simple things, adding up, cooking. Zac definitely shouldn't punish himself and good to see VJ tell him so. I know she's only just come round but Leah has yet to find out the 'other' things VJ got up not just the good things like going back to school.

I'm kind of thinking it was a good idea of Oscar to tell Maddy about the Colour Run, if, in her present mood, she had turned up without knowing anything about it and hated it she would have just walked off leaving everyone, especially Roo, Alf and Spencer, feeling embarrassed and awkward. This way if she doesn't show it could be explained away by saying she wasn't feeling up to it. She may be 'the poster girl' but it isn't just about her it's about other cancer patients, she is just the face they all know. I liked how she stopped 'wallowing' long enough to be pleased that Leah had come round. Despite Spencer's misgivings Chris was doing a great job and seemed very organised.

How did Gunno, have we heard his name out loud at all (?), find out Ash was visiting Brax, one of his tame screws tell him? Was bad luck both Ash and Ricky rocking up at the same time, but at lest Ash was able to tell Ricky what the sirens going off and the doors coming down meant, it was a lock down and no-one was visiting anyone. Like most bullies Gunno hardly did any of the beating up himself, apart from the first blow he left it to his minnions. All we got last time we saw Gunno and Brax there was bad feeling between him and Ash, maybe Ash grassed him up and he got time added onto his sentence? Come on now people no-one grasses on another prisoner, apart from what I just said about Ash, and that was only a maybe, Brax may not have done a lot of time in stir, well hardly any, but he does know that, he's not the grassing sort anyway. Honest screw must have known he was on a hiding to nothing but I suppose he's obliged to ask. Now all Brax has to do is keep Ricky away until he heals without arousing her suspicions. I don't know why but I do have a feeling it is not going to end well.

I do hope Kyle knows what he is doing by proposing to Phoebe in public, unless you are 100% certain the person will say yes, it never ends well.

:offtopic:There was a programme on a few weeks ago on the history of French music and one of the people they spoke to was a young French singer, Zaz, who was a French version of Phoebe, lively, vocal and very passionate about music.

[Psychic Wombat]

Yes, Leah's recovery will take time, she may have difficulty walking, cognitive issues and with fatigue for a long time. She won't be back at the diner for a while. Glad she's still with us.

Does Kyle know Pheobe wants to get married, has she been dropping hints... he's got it wrong in the past.

[Brian]

Hi there again everybody. It's good to see your posts again. I didn't post one yesterday, because I didn't think there was anything interesting to write about. But today's episode was much better - lively and colourful. I wasn't so much interested in the background analyses that some of you have done leading up to the fun run. I just enjoyed seeing so many people enjoying themselves with so many extras taking part. I didn't know what a fun run was - I expected seeing people running in different colours. But the spraying from the paint cans (or whatever they were) was a great way to end the running/walking and then seeing everyone with colours all over their clothes was great.

[Brian]

It's me again. just started my second paragraph above and it went all blue on me and I could not type any more!!!!!

I wanted to say how much I enjoyed the singing at the end. Pity Matt did not make it, but it was great to hear Phoebe singing again. I'm glad Kyle managed to get her to make an exception this time. She thoroughly enjoyed herself and so did Kyle, so much so that he was able to sing again. What that a miracle or what??? But what a let down for him when he proposed and Phoebe walked away. He was leading up to it, but it was a bit sudden. I hope they don't break up over that, as they are really good together and have been for so long. Could this be a deal breaker? I hope not.

[Red Ranger 1]

Gunno, have we heard his name out loud at all (?)

The prison guard (his name's Gregory, by the way, according to the credits) mentioned his name when chatting to Brax at the end of the episode.More than once, I think.

I guess we'll never know what would have happened if Oscar hadn't ruined the surprise: Maddy might have turned round and run away, or she might have gone along with it if presented with it as a fait accompli.Either way, I guess all's well that ends well and I did smile when she turned up (looking pretty good, by the way).It was fairly bloody-minded, maybe even foolish, of her to insist on completing the course but those were sure symbolic steps:When she says she's not going to let it beat her and needs to do it on her own, everyone knows she's not just talking about the colour run.Will her latest epiphany to stop running stick?In the short term, definitely.After that...we'll have to see.I liked the little reference to her training with John and I was very glad that she thanked Spencer for organising it all, I wasn't sure it'd get an acknowledgement.Not so keen on her giving Oscar the credit for getting her there.I suppose, to be fair, he's never claimed he doesn't love her anymore, and the way he was looking at her during their chat in the surf club he definitely does.

You'd think that Kat threatening to arrest him would convince Chris to steer clear but nope.Having had to sit through a lot of bland 90s young adult couples over the last three or four weeks, I'm concluding that Nate and Kat are their spiritual successors.Ten years time, if this gets repeated, people will be going "Who are they?"Not necessarily a bad thing but it's hard to get excited about them.Kat's manipulation of Chris didn't show her in that good a light but I guess he was being a bit presumptuous.

Ash and Kyle keeping things from Ricky is potentially storing up a whole heap of trouble for when the truth eventually gets out.The attempts to shoehorn Brax into a show he's increasingly divorced from continue to get desperate, as we get a scene of him being taken to solitary even though according to Ash that happened hours ago.

I can accept Phoebe breaking her fast when it was a special occasion and Kyle wanted her to, and as it turns out Kyle can sing anyway so it doesn't matter. But...yeah.Kyle's public proposal is definitely under the banner of "Ooh, awkward" and Phoebe did not give him the reaction he wanted.

Meant to mention yesterday but I raised an eyebrow at Ricky telling Nate he can stop beating himself up over the bus crash now that Leah's all right.Well, a man's still dead but he doesn't have a name so never mind, hey?