Latest UK Episode Discussion (2006-2017 Seasons)

[c120701]

Maybe Jett should speak to Xavier and consider becoming a Police Officer to meet John & Maz half way.

[Red Ranger 1]

I suppose it's hard enough for writers remembering characters on the show without remembering ones that died before it started! John was new in the Bay in 2009 (although a lot of episodes seemed to forget this and act like he'd been around for decades), so he wouldn't have known Alf's first wife.

Alf's episode count this week:Three, although he wasn't credited on Wednesday.(Neither was Maddy, yet Roo, whose only scene was with the two of them, was credited.Weird.)Roo was in all five, Oscar was only in one, Brax doesn't appear again.

Despite Phoebe's disappointment, I think the baby shower was actually a qualified success.Ricky might have had her moment of reflection but it did give her a chance to relax and enjoy herself for a bit.Denny's desperate attempts to keep her distracted falling flat was a nice touch.And kudos to the show for getting most of the Bay's womenfolk there rather than the usual three friends and a bunch of extras: I can't actually think of any notable absentees.Was anyone working at Angelo's when Phoebe ordered everyone out?Looks like the baby is on the way!

I'm mostly on Zac and VJ's side with regards the surgery, although I don't think it's as super urgent as they make out and that Leah needs to check herself in straight away.I get that you don't want to take the risk but in theory she could live for years without any deterioration, giving her time to come to the decision on her own.Because Leah is kidding herself if she thinks they can "put it behind us and move on."Her chat with Nate only seemed to be about finding the worst case scenario to justify not having the surgery.But she says that she doesn't want Zac and VJ sitting by her bedside worrying, yet that's exactly what they are doing.Perhaps the real problem with Leah's approach is that the aneurysm is already showing symptoms, so best case scenario without surgery is that she has another sixty years of headaches and mood swings.I can't see her being happy living like that for long.

[c120701]

I suppose it's hard enough for writers remembering characters on the show without remembering ones that died before it started! John was new in the Bay in 2009 (although a lot of episodes seemed to forget this and act like he'd been around for decades), so he wouldn't have known Alf's first wife.

It's those episodes that forgot that which made me wonder if he grew up in the bay, left to join the Navy and then moved back in 2009, which would explain why he (sometimes) seems to have known Alf for donkeys years (only recently becoming friends of sorts) and why he didn't know Marilyn before as he'd left by 1989.

[Brian]

Leah can't have another 60 years Red!!!!!! I agree it's a tricky one for her - balancing her own health with those who love her. But in the end it must be her decision - hope the scriptwriters don't drag this medical out too long. They always seem to. Also agree that Phoebe did very well organising the baby shower for Ricky. Nice to see her smile and shout again. What about the new songs that she was going to write while she was away? Would be good to see her playing and singing and who knows- maybe even Kyle might join in. 

Noone has mentioned the music they play at different times throughout the episodes. I think that they are very apt songs and fit in well between various sketches. A nice bit of soul music while we think about what we've just seen.

Meanwhile enjoy the lovely weather everyone. 

[H&Alover]

Leah made a relevant point she said a lot of people have brain aneurisms for years without knowing it, BUT she does! Nate, of course, said those words - all procedures carry risks - but that was the worst case scenario. Depending how bad it is people do recover from strokes, she's young and otherwise healthy. Can she really expect Zac, VJ t and Irene to live with the possibility of her suddenly just keeling over, it can happen in the blink of an eye.   Plus she's going to have to put up with them worrying anytime she doesn't answer her phone right away, fretting every time she has a  headache, fussing around her.

For someone who isn't keen on babies, Phoebe put on a great baby shower and it was lovely having it an all girls thing.  Who's going to break it to Kyle the customers all got free meals?  I liked the idea of baby bottle skittles and despite her initial misgivings Ricky did enjoy herself, it's just what she needed to take her mind off other things. Denny was a rotten liar. 

Whoever is responsible for choosing the music does do a good job.

Ricky love, babies come when they want, and plus he is a Braxton so a double whammy there. Looks like poor John gets roped in to get her to hospital.

 

 

[Angelica]

In fairness to Marilyn, though she is perhaps being a bit rash in her refusal to listen to Jett, I don't feel like her reaction is discordant with her speech at the Anzac memorial. Marilyn has always been anti-violence, and her speech was partly prompted by Alf's frustration with the students' disinterest. I never got the impression that she was necessarily promoting war, but rather highlighting that the people who were involved in the war were of their age, scared, and ended up losing their life. And that sacrifice shouldn't be trivialised. I can't imagine that Alf who be encouraging Jett to join the army either.

It was nice to have Ricky's baby showers and see the females of the bay have fun together. As Denny pointed out to Ricky, it was an opportunity for Ricky to see that she is not alone. Starting to warm to Phoebe - similar to Tamara, she is starting to come into her own as a character now that she is no longer in a relationship with Kyle. Even though I like Kyle, it does seem that pairing women with him does the woman no favour in terms of her characterisation. I am sure the same will apply to Billie if her and Kyle pursue a relationship. I did wonder where Kyle was when Phoebe was giving away free meals? Haha

I think the whole medical dilemma with Leah a bit overdramatic - in reality, the decision to operate on an aneurysm is not as urgent as they are making out (and wny wasn't this picked up before while she was in hospital?) Ultimately, it would make sense to have the surgery especially as she is having symptoms. However, she has time to come to turns with the idea.

[Red Ranger 1]

I actually thought Tamara got better once they paired her with Kyle and it was a shame it was just another passing thing before she was back being touted as one in a long line of loves of Casey’s life. While I liked the stuff they did with her in her last few months, I thought it was a shame that they forgot about her relationship with Kyle towards the end, since I really liked their relationship.

 

Anyway, today’s ep, which actually had some really good stuff. John acting as Ricky’s temporary birth partner was a great idea, with his brief puncture and his rush to hand her over to Denny. Kyle’s rant might have been ill-timed but there was a point buried in there: Ash and Denny have to get back together, they’re just too cute for anything else. (I loved how instinctive that hug was.) And I’m glad Kyle was at Ricky’s side, he’s the closest thing to family she and the baby have in the Bay. I’m going to assume that was John’s phone that Ricky was using since hers didn’t work earlier. (The Braxtons don’t have a landline?) The Brax bits didn’t really work though. The prison refusing to tell an inmate that their partner’s in labour seems excessively draconian for a start but then they say “We’ll keep trying”, as if they expect the prison to change their mind. Why didn’t Ash just drive there and tell him?

 

If that’s the wrap up of the Jett storyline, it wasn’t particularly satisfactory. My sympathy for Marilyn left the building again with her reverting to an aggravating child woman at the first sign of a difficult conversation and wasn’t helped by the show reminding us she tried to take Nicole’s baby off her and acting as though that means we should feel sorry for her. (If they were after pathos, why not mention her miscarriage instead?) And the Jett/Roo scene really didn’t work: If it had been Alf it might have done, but it seemed to be treading on eggshells, too scared of offending anyone to make any real point, and having Roo imply Alf made a willing “sacrifice” by going off to war when in fact he didn’t have a choice and Jett does.

[Brian]

Surprised that such a quick chat with Roo could change Jett's mind so quickly. He'll probably regret it. Not exactly supporting parents, are they?

Lovely birth scene, especially from Kyle. Ricky just had to grunt and pull faces! Where did they get that baby from, I wonder.

[atrus]

No surprise that Leah wasn't exactly champing at the bit to get back into hospital for the operation, but she should realise that it's going to be more painful for Zac and VJ to be waiting indefinitely for the worst to happen in the long-term, than to worry about her in the short-term as she undergoes surgery.

Once again, cliché averted: someone didn't completely blow a fuse because people arranged a surprise party for them that they'd happily have done without. It was nice to see Rick interacting with some of the characters she usually has little to do with, too.

The references to Byron and Nicole's baby brought an authenticity to the Marilyn/Jett situation even if Maz's position remains somewhat contradictory, and there were some really moving scenes between the Palmer family. But I felt John and Maz were a little too jubilant about Jett's eventual decision; and the expression on Jett's face at the end suggested to me that this isn't over yet.

Kyle turning Cupid in the hospital waiting room was a bit much. He's unable to summon a modicum of emotional articulacy when his own relationship's at stake, but when it's Ash and Denny who can't make a go of it he's a veritable Cilla Black.

[Psychic Wombat]

Hmm, not impressed with Marilyn using emotional blackmail on Jet, it's not like he's going away to fight in a war and could end up learning a trade. When he told J & M he'd decided he's not going to join the army I was expecting a pause before he followed it up with 'I'm going to join the navy instead' lol. Poor Jet forever tied to Marilyn's apron strings and taking on her fears and and many anxieties.

Getting a bit fed up with Denny moping around I wish she'd get a life that wasn't just a reflection of her current boyfriend.

Good to see the new Braxton baby at last, of course Nate was their on hand, being the only doctor at the hospital, most doctors I've met would never deliver a baby themselves even if the midwives would let them! - did anyone notice the pregnant women walk by in the hospital? looked liked she had swallowed a basket ball.