Latest UK Episode Discussion (2006-2017 Seasons)

[c120701]

The front side of the side door at Summer Bay House has been painted white. I'm glad as I ess never keen on the red, but the white is a bit too plain.

[atrus]

Catch-up time again. I totally missed Ricky thinking Brax was alive on Friday, so got the shock of my life when suddenly on Monday she was questioning Ash about it. Guess that shows how much attention I've been paying lately; the more I watch at the moment, the more I think the show would really benefit from a clearout of the endlessly bed-hopping twenty/thirtysomethings. Yeah: Nate, Phoebe, Ash, Kyle, Ricky, Kat, Hannah, Andy - I'm looking at you. With the exception perhaps of Chris, I actually reckon that there isn't anyone in this show over 20 and under 40 (are Zac and Leah under 40? I'm invested in them. Maybe we should say 35?) that I'm really invested in as characters. And I feel that the inevitable 'Brax lives' reveal has been spoiled a bit by Ricky even suspecting for a moment that it's true. (Well, except that a bit of her must always have suspected it was true, given that his body never washed up.)

I was initially pleased to see that Kat's investigation was progressing as Charlotte's connections to Denny began to surface - except, then she went and told Charlotte all about it again, and even waited until her back was turned so she couldn't see the priceless reaction. Her whole investigation method is abominably stupid - thank goodness we have Emerson to speak some sense. I like the quite subtle way he's portrayed as believing Kat deep down, but nonetheless having to do things by the book, because - hey, that's what police should do. As it is, Kat only has herself to blame for Charlotte's newfound hired help almost gassing her. I'm struggling to see how this can go on much longer now the cops have Charlotte's laptop and (presumably) can get her web records too. She is a suspect in an attempted murder, after all.

So obvious that Skye's mother was putting on an act, only because it was such a good one. I thought I recognised her from somewhere - has she been on the show before?

Looks-wise, Asia reminds me a lot of an April/Sasha hybrid - and by amusing coincidence, I've just realised her name is one, too.

What else to say about The Triangle? Well, Asia's the only one who's coming out of it relatively well at the moment - although if I have to pick the best-behaved of the rest, it's probably going to be Matt. I liked how he didn't immediately run to Maddy with the news of Oscar and Asia's kiss; presumably he realised it was an upshot of them seeing Matt and Maddy all but canoodling on the dancefloor, and felt guilty about it and kept quiet. Oscar was behaving just as badly, if not worse, than Matt did towards Asia a few episodes ago, basically just walking off as she told him she had feelings for him. But really the person at the centre of all this is Maddy, and it's about time she made a call. I just hope that she's not going to use this kiss as a convenient excuse to dump Oscar, blame it all on him and get with Matt the next day. But my soapy intuition tells me that's exactly what's being planned. Good to hear someone dropping a 'there is no us' in the promo for Thursday. I think H&A is the only show that can still get away with that without the slightest hint of irony.

[Red Ranger 1]

On ‎02‎/‎03‎/‎2016 at 9:35 PM, atrus said:

I thought I recognised her from somewhere - has she been on the show before?

Yep! She was in it way back in 2000 as Alicia Campbell, who fell off a cliff after her husband cheated on her with Shauna.

Okay, so it seems Charlotte is sharing henchmen with Gunno.Why Gunno would share henchmen with her remains to be explained.(Is he using her as a staking horse to find Brax or is he just doing random stuff because he's a bad guy?)That seemed like a pretty ineffective way to kill someone.The room wasn't airtight and the gas isn't poisonous so unless she had asthma or something she wasn't going to die any time soon.Whilst I'm glad Ash turned up when he did, I wasn't impressed with him just walking out of work and expecting Kyle to cope just because he's arguing with Phoebe.So Emerson displays a modicum of competence and Charlotte seems to have committed a massive own goal, giving the police a load of evidence and losing her last remaining ally with Ash delivering a stark warning.Her reaction to thinking Kat is dead shows that her humanity has long since left the building, it's heart of ice time now.

I had a mixed reaction to Josh's return.Andy and Evelyn's plan to take him to a noisy dance when he isn't used to being blind seemed like some kind of weird torture scheme so that burnt hand was probably a blessing in disguise.It did seem pretty dumb of him though (surely he knew where the cooker was and that it had just been on...and wouldn't he have felt the heat before he put his hand down?).Kyle seemed to be incredibly slow to think to put the hand under cold water, instead just standing there staring at him and waiting for the scene to end.Maybe he did it when we weren't looking?

It felt to me like Asia underwent a sudden personality transplant to a bunny boiler, presumably because someone noticed she was coming across as more likable than Maddy and Matt.I went from thinking Oscar should face facts that he can't make Maddy love him and go for the girl that actually wants him, to thinking he should get as far away from both of them as possible. Maddy's motivation seems all over the place.Last week she seemed to be treating Oscar as an irritant stopping her being with her latest crush, here we get that scene by the beach where they seemed as in love as ever, only for her to spend the rest of the episode making eyes at Matt.I can't really bring myself to be generous to Matt, who's the catalyst for a lot of things I don't like and who's drained all the enjoyment out of Maddy's scenes for me.I can't help thinking there's a touch of playing the long game here: If he goes running to Maddy and tells her about the kiss, then he looks like the bad guy and she'll probably be as angry with him as Oscar.Instead he backs off and looks like the good guy, and now Asia's done it for him Maddy will no doubt go running to him like she's been doing every other time she fights with Oscar.

[Slade]

My head dropped when Ash told Phoebe about Brax even though I can understand he felt he had to tell someone but Miss motormouth?

I can understand from Charlotte's perspective her wanting to bump Kat off.  Kat is now getting too close and has moved on from a nuisance to a threat to Charlotte's existence so everything's at stake.  She's killed two people so one more isn't going to make much difference.  Those guys should have done a proper job though.  There were so many other ways they could have iced her.  I'm assuming that Charlotte made some sort of deal with Gunno which is why 1) She is still walking after killing Trystan 2) Was able to try and get Kat dealt with so quickly.  So presumably she will try and determine Brax's whereabouts in exchange.

Asia was actually quite rude to Maddy (although I did find it slightly amusing).  She had already called Maddy and Matt out last week so I think she should have just left it and been civilised.  Well done to Matt for not running straight to Maddy about Oscar/Asia kissing.  Oscar really should have maned up and told her himself.  Although I suppose dramawise it was better coming from Asia.  Looks like the end of Maddy and Oscar is imminent.  Disappointed Oscar doesn't feel anything for Asia as they would be good together.

Can't say I'm feeling the storyline with Josh.  I only like it because it means there are scenes with Andy and Evelyn.

[H&Alover]

I can see it from Phoebe's point of view, Ricky is her friend. but what would she do if the roles were reversed.  I'm glad she sounded Ricky out about 'what if' Brax was alive without revealing anything though her putting Nate off proposing wasn't on, though Ricky put the blocks on that anyway.  She did seem to change her mind about the whole thing when she saw Nate, Ricky and Case playing on the beach. At least her knowing has taken a lot of pressure off Ash.

I think it was that question by Kat to Charlotte about Denny made Charlotte ring Gunno and I think you're right Slade she and he still have a deal going about Brax, he scratches her back she scratches his.  I see what you mean about it being a large room for the gas to fill to have a real effect on Kat, they didn't even close the door to the sitting/dining room. Just as well Ash did ignore Kyle otherwise it could have turned out a lot worse. Ash has realised just what Charlotte is capable of but not very wise of him  to go storming round there. There must be plenty of people who'd want to harm Kat but at least Emerson took her seriously and got a warrant to search her place, she did get twitchy when they opened her freezer and it certainly would have aroused my suspicions when she protested about them taking her laptop.  Btw she rang the farmhouse didn't she, was that to check if Kat was indeed out for the count, if so if someone should check the calls wouldn't her number come up, how would she get out of that?

Skye's mum certainly put on a good show and Skye fell for it mainly because she wants her mum  to love her.  John did look unconvinced at first but she put on such a good show it looked like he and Jett had fell for it. Unless Skye's bedroom has bars on it or is bolted shut she can get out can't she?  

I must say the gang looked great in their Gatsby gear, even they were reluctant because it was Asia's idea, who has turned bunny boiler/stalker.  All those snipes at Maddy which Oscar had to call her on and got Matt's antenna twitching.  Said it was a bad idea of his to ask her to keep quite by text, he may not love Maddy anymore but he's certainly not ready for a new relationship especially not with Asia who'd be far too intense and have them engaged and married within months. Usual bad soap timing for Matt to overhear Asia and Oscar talking about the kiss, but give him his due he didn't rush off and tell Maddy about it.  He may be the catalyst but he is the only one who has tried to stand back from it all, like Maddy asked but then she does all the running back to him anyway. It all blows up tonight anyway.

Bad, bad idea of Evelyn expecting Josh to turn up at the formal.  I'm guessing the hospital did a home check before letting Josh out, no trailing wires or other obstacles for him to stumble over.  The layout of the house was as normal and he was doing pretty well until he burnt his hand and as Red asked wouldn't he have felt the heat from it, it was an accident and even a sighted person could make that error. Kyle was slow off the mark by not putting Josh's hand under the tap, it did look (from what we saw briefly) a surface burn. I guess he didn't want to go back to the hospital in case they kept him in because they thought he wasn't ready.  They did mention calling in Nate but I don't think he'd go there again after last time with Kyle.

[atrus]

Mixed feelings about the teen antics in today's episode. I really did hate the way Maddy spoke to Oscar, and her reference to his "pathetic nerd-who-got-the-girl mentality." It was unduly harsh, especially in the context of her just having admitted she had feelings for someone else. Almost like a Charlotte-level putdown. No wonder it drove the poor boy to tears. I don't say it excuses all his behaviour in recent weeks, but it's very evident that he's lost without Maddy, and that was quite heartbreaking to see him crying on the beach. Not so sure about him wandering into the ocean, but hey - it's a good couple of weeks since the search and rescue jackets came out.

That said, dramatically speaking, the primary criterion of a successful love triangle is that I find myself caring about all concerned - and while Maddy hasn't behaved well, I find her difficult to dislike, and Matt too. Actually of the three of them, I'd still argue that Matt has done the least wrong in this scenario; at most stages (with a couple of lapses) he's attempted to do the decent thing, even if it's directly contrary to his own feelings. I find myself unaverse to a Matt and Maddy pairing, but I do hope it's not rushed into and that there's an attempt by both of them to heal things with Oscar first. That's if anyone ever finds him...

I liked Hannah's chat with Josh but then, rather than getting what would surely have been a strong emotional pay-off of Josh reconciling with Andy, we instead learned that this happened off-screen, only to be replaced by an awkward chemistry moment between Andy and Hannah. To be clear, this is a love triangle I don't care about. Andy's been far more effective in his brotherly scenes with Josh than he is pining after Hannah - and Hannah is better with Chris - so why not concentrate on those things for the time being, rather than teasing some kind of Handy reunion?

I was expecting Olivia to have another shout at VJ for treating her differently because of her scars, so I was pleasantly surprised to see them at least postpone that inevitability for another day. Strong stuff from Lynne McGranger again, although the impact of Irene's story was slightly lessened by the fact that she doesn't have a bedroom, and therefore has to stash the secret box in a cupboard in the lounge where anyone might come across it. Perhaps she should put a lock on the cupboard door at the same time as she finally gets round to putting one on the bathroom.

[Red Ranger 1]

I'm feeling as though I've spent years defending Maddy and now I'm wondering why I bothered.Everything that's happened this last year to mature her and turn her into a decent caring human being, gone in a flash.The only positive here was that she sent Matt packing when he inevitably turned up to "comfort" her.I don't really care that Oscar cheated and it looks like no-one else does either, much to Maddy's frustration as she tries desperately to make it look like she's the victim.Instead everyone points out that she's the one wrecking the relationship with her fickle affections, at which point she either gets defensive or changes the subject.I really believed she loved Oscar so the venom in her rant at him, where she acted as though she thinks she's too good for him and he should have been grateful she dated him, was extraordinary.Oscar's right: She's thrown away a grown-up caring relationship because of an immature crush on a boy of the kind that I thought she'd outgrown.And then we get that weird final scene: Are we meant to view Oscar as suicidal? Because he didn't act it.

So, did any of the teens actually make it to the formal?Maddy seemed to head straight home, although she told Matt to go and Oscar and Evelyn also seemed gone a long time so I'm guessing they went together.I liked Zac and Evie's little dance anyway.

Beginning of the episode I was thinking Andy was overreacting and being a bit of a bully: Josh has only been home a few hours and is still adjusting, it's a bit too soon to panic that he hasn't been out.Josh did seem to go over the top with the self-pity later on and his rant at Andy was ridiculous, but I'm not sure it warranted calling in Hannah.

It feels like Irene isn't holding up her end of the bargain with Olivia and she really needs to start dealing instead of using Chris as her whipping boy.I was with VJ: I get that the fact that Olivia often shows off far more leg than she should muddies the water, but she's obviously self-conscious about her scars, as Hunter knows from the way she hid them from him, trying to get her to wear a short dress was insensitive and implies that Hunter's trying to bury his head in his sand and pretend it isn't happening.But then that's kind of Hunter in a nutshell and I find it very disturbing the way he's suddenly part of the new teen group as if the last five months didn't happen.Anyway, a lot of the good will built up last week kind of took a beating here with the melodrama around the blanket.Irene's presumably kept it hidden for 40 years and in that house for 20, but one week after we learn of its existence VJ finds it and she has a meltdown?Has she been doing this on a regular basis all along and we just haven't seen?Or is it only now she's got PTSD that she cares about it?

[Psychic Wombat]

I think Maddie realises the relationship has simply run its course. I think Oscar was too straight and restrictive for her and the attraction of Matt too strong. It's a bit like the position Hannah is in as Chris's carer, I mean girlfriend. Maddie should have let him down gently not fabricate an argument, but she is a bit of a diva. But I can't believe Oscar would drown himself though, he's more pragmatic than that, I'm guessing he's down the coast somewhere, or maybe with Asia?

I think Olivia needs to put two and two together, what was pulled out of Irene's cupboard looked like a baby blanket to me. I think Irene was raped by a family member or friend and gave birth to a baby when she was a teenager - heavy stuff. You'd think she'd keep stuff like that in her bedroom. I'm liking Olivia's spirit, she's a toughie.

[Slade]

Really, really not happy about the Hannah Andy stuff.  And the fact Hannah isn't putting her foot down with Andy and telling him that she will help out with Josh but things between them are over and it has to stay like that leads me to believe that she possibly misses him too and she's just using Chris in an attempt to move on.

It was disappointing that the outing of Oscar's cheating didn't actually happen at the formal.  I just think it would have been fitting given that this time last year Oscar was chasing the prize, failed miserably, fortuitously wins the prize and a year on loses the prize.

I was extremely frustrated with yesterday's episode.  Maddy spoke to Oscar like he was garbage, the poor guy unable to deal with it ejects, quite understandably his relatives are worried about him and Maddy makes the whole thing all about her.  I was glad when Evelyn had a go at her and was disappointed she apologised afterwards.  And then we have Matt dismissing the severity of the whole thing.  I just hope Oscar is OK wherever he is and he realises that Maddy just isn't worth it.  I've actually been quite impressed with Evelyn.  Even though I thought she should not have backtracked with Maddy, I think she's come a long way from being up herself and self-righteous.  She's still far from perfect by any stretch (re Tank) but I've really liked her as of late.  She even claimed that Maddy cares about Oscar and she didn't mean what she said.  Note that Evelyn didn't use the word love.  I think what were are seeing with Maddy is guilt anyway.  Perhaps she realised that she should have been straight with Oscar sooner and then he might not have cheated.

Quite liked the scenes Olivia and Hunter.  I think these two gel well together.  I find I'm starting to quite like Hunter.  He has been behaving himself as of late.  And since Olivia's been getting help I've started to warm to her too.  Haven't really felt the abuse storyline with Irene but I like that her alcoholism its rearing its ugly head.  I believe in the case with problems like these they can never be cured.  Just controlled.

[Psychic Wombat]

You have to stay on the right side of Hunter or he'll burn your house down :-)