Latest UK Episode Discussion (2006-2017 Seasons)

[Slade]

Andy's being a bellend (when is he ever NOT ), This gives Hannah the out she's been crying for for a while. And besides that punch looked like Oscar or Jett could have taken it and laughed and walked on their merry way.

I laughed when Andy punched that guy.  If he was gonna hit him he should have a least done it properly.  I agree that he's an idiot and I don't think he's mature enough for a proper relationship.  I was surprised that Denny tried to mediate things between them but she actually really helped.  Three months ago she would have been saying Hannah was better off without him.  So temporary breakup over after less than an episode.

I was glad Ash spoke to Billie even though she is lousy at apologising.  Let's see if she starts acting less loopy now.  Phoebe did annoy me though when Kyle blanked her and she made a big thing about it as she was the one who wanted him to stay away.  She can't have it both ways.

Seems as though Evie, Josh, Matt and Oscar are all firmly team Maddy now.  I really like Evelyn but it was reaching the point where I wished she would just shut up about her.  That was then second episode where all she's done is go on about Maddy.  Even when she was talking to Oscar it was about Maddy (again) although I did find his immediate defense of her when Leah forgot about her condition mildly amusing.  Are they really going back there again?   And let's not forget the bouncing around.  Well I guess the writers have succeeded.  Although a plus is if she's getting better hopefully we don't have much longer of this storyline left.

Felt a bit sorry for Leah.  I thought VJ should have probably jumped in before Evie asked her to start answer questions about uni courses.  I'm confused.  Should Jett have even been there.  Thought he was in a different year to the rest of them.  I'm glad Matt put his foot down and he and VJ told Zak.  He needs to know how bad Leah's condition is ATM.

 

[CaptainHulk]

I have the urge to jump into the screen, slap Evie and jump back out. Quit meddling in others' love lives and worry about your own before Joshie boy goes sniffing round someone else...

[Red Ranger 1]

I have never been more pleased to see Maddy bouncing around and her friends were too("I think it was good news").There have been times when I've been genuinely worried that she wasn't going to get any better and she was going to have cancer until she left and then die, so Nate saying she was getting better was a big relief.I actually think Evelyn's being okay this time round, maybe she's being a bit pushy but she's right that Oscar needs to deal with this rather than trying to avoid Maddy all the time.I loved him sticking up for her when Leah snapped but I think he went a bit far in badmouthing Leah later on.I'm guessing that Maddy sensed a "Don't hug me" vibe from Oscar after hugging everyone else: Wonder what she makes of that, given that she'd just hugged Josh, who's her ex, and Matt, who was scared she liked him a week or so ago.

It was mentioned in passing that Leah's talk was for Years 11 and 12, hence the presence of Jett and VJ, who are both in Year 11.(Of course, the real reason was to have Jett in the episode, as with John and Marilyn randomly having dinner with the Stewarts.)Leah really wasn't up for the talk and can't keep pretending.Matt trying to defuse the tension with humour was well-intentioned but was never going to work with the mood Leah was in.It was past time Matt and VJ spoke to Zac, it might not make Leah happy but she can't go on working and taking it out on students, especially ones who are in a distressed state already.The ribbing Nate about having Kat in his room was a bit odd.(Hmm, notice Leah doesn't object to him doing it.Just Matt.)

I really can't bring myself to care about Andy and Hannah's latest five minute break-up.

[Psychic Wombat]

I kind of feel for killer Andy, he's a straight forward River guy who's turned his life around, I don't see why he should feel Hannah is too good for him, she's only a dizzy nurse living in a rented house. He's got his gym instructor qualification now and could make something out of his life, despite the nagging feeling that the police could knock on his door at any time.

Is Leah going to fall down a ubiquitous disused mine shaft now she's gone walkabout? We'll soon find out today.

 

[H&Alover]

Can't be that many abandoned mine shifts left can there?  Oh don't forget the obligatory hillside to slip down (VJ did it last time so surely it's got to be mum's turn).  If Matt and VJ hadn't mentioned Leah's melt down to Zac another student , one who didn't know about her condition, would have. The old Leah would have been much more on the ball about the various questions the kids asked and  not just told them to look on the internet. I liked how Matt is looking out for her and managed to talk VJ round into telling Zac about it. It was right he also mentioned her previous outburst even it was just at him, but which VJ witnessed.

Oscar broke up with Maddy because he felt the timing of them getting together was wrong, Evie has picked up on the fact he is still keen on her but he probably feels that she, Maddy, would only think he was only interested again as she has had the almost all clear. Evie does try too hard though, back off girl!  Maddy had the right instinct in thinking she'd be getting good news. 

I'm glad Denny went to talk to Andy and that he actually told her why he broke up with Hannah.  It's for Hannah to decide who she wants to be with and yes he isn't the sharpest tool in the box but they do gel together.  Look at  Bianca and Heath if they can make it work and there was really what seemed a mismatched pair and all the things they went through, so they can they but only if Andy can stop putting himself down all the time which after time would wear her down and dump him for real. You can only keep bolstering a persons confidence for so long.

 

 

 

 

[Zetti]

I've only just recently started watching again but it does not feel like the same old H&A, but I think Oscar was right to break up with Maddy. Clearly the timing was wrong. 

I'm intrigued to find out what happens next.

[Red Ranger 1]

Alf's episode count this week:Four.Making up for lost time.Roo was also in four, Chris was only in one.Brax was in two but only had dialogue in one.

Given how Leah was still in a huge state of denial, I don't think Zac had any choice but to tell her to stay away from school.It's the personal/professional debate again and he has a duty to the students as their principal as well as to Leah as her boyfriend.I just hope he doesn't get blamed for her rapid deterioration.I'd completely forgotten that Gina died of an aneurysm so it was the perfect time to bring Jett into it.Gina did have headaches in the days leading up to her death as I recall.Nice scene between John and Jett, but would he really need Marilyn to realise Jett was at Gina's bench?

I really liked Maddy and Oscar's little chat on the couch, it feels like ages since we've seen them together.I was convinced they'd been split up to put her with Matt, so I'm almost wondering if the writers had a last minute change of heart and decided they actually worked well together.Assuming that's happening, of course, but with them both admitting their feelings that seems likely...

[Slade]

I have no problem with the party.  Maddy appears to be getting better from the cancer and so understandably wants to celebrate.  That's fair enough.  I actually liked the fact that they had extras present that made it more realistic and seemed to imply there were other people outside the Evelyn/Josh/Matt/Oscar social circle or at the very least wanted to also celebrate the fact that Maddy appears to be beating this.  I can just about get my head around the fact that Maddy's former arch nemesis is now her strongest proponent and biggest fan.  What I can't take is the stuff with Oscar.  I've mentioned so many times what an idiot he's been allowing himself to be used and walked all over but at least he always has the argument that he's young, inexperienced and was (and apparently still is) in love (How many of us have been in a similar position?).  Evelyn unfortunately doesn't have that luxury.  She was present all the times when Maddy treated him like garbage.  She saw how it affected him when she used Oscar to get back at her for stealing Josh.  So after unsuccessfully trying to push Maddy and Matt together why the hell would she try and push Maddy with Oscar after everything that's happened.  It just seemed like absolute craziness.  When he initially didn't want to go to the party she should have just left him to his own devices.  Whilst I haven't particularly liked this cancer storyline, I think making the focus of yesterday on Maddy/Oscar was an extra bad move.  Better would have been to make the emphasis on her reflecting over the last few months.

So everyone knows about Leah now.  It was interesting seeing the chat with VJ and Jett with Jett sharing his experiences with both VJ and John.  I think I'm starting to like VJ as long as he continues to act like this.  Hopefully they will be able to convince Leah to have the operation.  Yes there are risks but I don't think she has any choice now.

[atrus]

Well I wasn't buying Billie's apologies/explanations on Wednesday in the slightest, and felt she deftly manipulated Kyle into inviting her stay, by guilt-tripping him into it and then making him think it was his idea. But I think it's good to have that sort of character around to mix things up - not an out-and-out villain but more of your minx archetype.

I went off Andy big-time thanks to the punch on the beach. I should have known that Gropy Dance Guy would turn up again and cause a ruckus, but characters who use their fists to resolve such issues get very short shrift from me - and especially those old enough to know better. The only pleasing moment in the entire sequence was Kat looking absolutely gutted because Gropy didn't press charges.

LEAH: You're never too sick for your HSCs!

This had me in fits of laughter for some reason, to the extent that I think I might get it printed on a T-shirt. I reckon it was the delivery in part, but it's such a Home & Away thing to say! And Matt's flippant question to Leah about schoolies seemed a little off-key, when he seemed so concerned about her in the subsequent scenes.

But apart from that, the whole Leah storyline continues to be good to watch. I sympathise with Zac, being stuck between a rock and a hard place; and there was some great interaction between Leah and Alf, which we don't get enough of these days. Bringing in the Jett/Gina parallel was a great idea by the writers, which worked really well and created some nice VJ/Jett interplay. Hopefully Leah will be found before her condition gets out of control.

Oscar showing interest in Maddy again right now, just after she's had good news on the cancer front, leaves the impression that he's only interested in her when she's in reasonable health - which is a shame because I don't think that's actually the case. Regardless, the writers could do worse than reunite Maddy and Oscar - he's probably the best match for her, and she's definitely the best match for him given that the only other female character of comparable age is Evie.

[Angelica]

 

This had me in fits of laughter for some reason, to the extent that I think I might get it printed on a T-shirt. I reckon it was the delivery in part, but it's such a Home & Away thing to say! And Matt's flippant question to Leah about schoolies seemed a little off-key, when he seemed so concerned about her in the subsequent scenes

To be fair, I thought Matt was trying to use humour to distract the class from Leah's erratic behaviour. I had forgotten that Gina had died from an aneurysm so props to the writers for that piece of continuity and having Jett talk about his experience to VJ. One of my favourite scenes was when VJ and Matt confided in Zac about Leah not coping, and they left with this sense that Zac would be able to fix it. It seems that they both really see Zac as a parental figure. Other than the presence of Nathan, the dynamics of that house really works for me and has made me really warm to all the characters involved. I respect the fact that Zac was in a hard place trying to balance his professional life and his personal life, but ultimately did the right thing by stopping Leah from working (even though he knew it would hurt her).

It was nice to see that Maddy is getting better, and to see the teens having fun. However, I can honestly say I have no desire to see Oscar and Maddy rekindle their relationship. I still don't fully understand why Oscar and Maddy broke up, but let's face it, Oscar hasn't exactly been there for Maddy for a while. So it's hard to really root for him now that Maddy is getting better.  It just feels unearned.I thought he was also being frustratingly immature in his avoidance tactics with Maddy - is living with Andy rubbing off on him? I don't really get Evie's attempts to get Oscar and Maddy back together. She may be able to get over her initial hatred of Maddy seeing as she "got" the boy, and that Maddy's illness caused her to feel empathetic to Maddy. I can believe a tentative friendship between the two of them. I just can't see why she would encourage her brother to pursue someone who persistently (though sometimes unwittingly) hurt him. Although, I did agree with her telling Oscar to grow some balls instead of using childish avoidance tactics.

While I rolled my eyes when Andy punched that guy, I did feel at least that felt more in character than the Saint Andy we have been treated to since Hannah landed in a wheelchair. While I think the writers hope that Andy/Hannah will be the new Bianca/Heath, I struggle to feel anything but disdain for their pairing. Even the teenagers seem to be better at actually communicating in relationships. Denny seemed to play a huge role in getting them back together (I never thought she would end up being Andy's biggest champion).