Latest UK Episode Discussion (2006-2017 Seasons)

[H&Alover]

I was calling it as I saw it, which is obviously different from the way you do. I'm not as technically minded as you.

Hunter, for once, did the right thing by walking away from the row with Mason, who calls him back and hits him!  He's obviously still needled by Olivia getting flirty with Hunter at the Formal and the impression he is just a gap filler, until she makes her mind up. So from believing it was Hunter who started it as soon as she speaks to him Olivia takes Hunter's word it was the other way round, which of course it was. Mason, as Hunter implied, does seem to have a dark side we haven't seen before. To be honest I was expecting Hunter to ignore Mason's warning, go swimming, then have to be rescued by Mason!  Like you Red, I do wish Irene would make her mind up, Hunter/Mason/no boy.

Uncomfortable moment when Leah gave Billie and VJ the cheque, btw Billie it is not charity it's a gift from Helen & Theo for their 1st (?) great grandchild, but she understandably feels awkward/guilty about taking it.  Ash should really leave it alone and he is risking losing her confidence. Her feeling more awkward around Irene as her due date is getting closer is making it tense between them. His asking Kat in, what thinks is an oblique fashion what he should do about this mythical sister of an mythical friend will only get her thinking about the dates, which he conveniently gave her.  'He', and we all know who 'he' is was around at that time so wouldn't take her long to work out. Also on Ash, so he upped the fire/flood insurance cover on the garage and soon after the place was set alight, it was going good business so not as if he was desperate for money.  He was out of town, but I guess the police will argue he got have got someone to do it, yeh right in broad daylight with Matt with there and by accident Evelyn.  There is the chance it was set by an unbanged up member of The Syndicate to get back at Justin, also the yobs that trashed Salt could be behind it. He seemed quite disappointed Kat was being so professional and not caring about him being innocent.

Good to see Heath and Bianca having a laugh about their situation after  all the angst, loved Bianca's take off of Cheryl!  I can understand Darcy's doubts that they sorted things and are going on (a belated)  honeymoon, her 'get stuffed' to them came out of the blue.  That car that followed Bianca and Heath was hardly inconspicuous, how could 'they' know they were headed out of town, their gear would have been in the car wouldn't it. Btw where did Heath pick up Cockney rhyming slang?

Course it has to end on a shocker the prison service for whatever mind boggling reason has let Mick out on licence, didn't envy Kat having to break that news to Irene, then we see him back in the bay and spotted by Billie.  Wouldn't a condition of his release be he shouldn't go anywhere near the bay?

 

[Red Ranger 1]

I couldn't quite get past Ash's utter stupidity in not having a lawyer.There's no way McCarthy should have been able to keep him there indefinitely with circumstantial evidence at most.(Wild accusations would be more accurate.)Instead, we have Kat doing the job of the defence.Ah well, I suppose it was necessary for him to have a cast-iron alibi for the fire outside the surf club...And Kat seems to have picked up Olivia's habit of giving mixed messages.

Feels like a lot happened with the Morgans but on the other hand it didn't.Shame Decker's funeral got skirted over, with us just being told that Raffy gave a really good eulogy, honest.Nice that the people who trashed Salt have been charged but now we've got someone following them around looking sinister and possibly being responsible for the van and garage being torched: One of Turner's people?I was seriously worried about Buddy given Home and Away's track record with pets, so relieved the intruder was only Nina.(Bit odd that everyone seemed to automatically assume that that meant Raffy was safe when they still don't know where she is!)Her stance was a bit more reasonable here but Justin doesn't really deserve to be kept away from Ava.

[H&Alover]

I was disappointed we didn't see more of Decker's funeral after that build up, it would have been nice to hear Raffy's eulogy and seeing all the Morgan's there for her.   Seems the Morgan's aren't as safe as they thought they were, was that not Simmo sneaking about then?  The yobs may have set light to the tyres but I think even they would draw the line at setting a van alight in a public place (and they did have an alibi for that anyway). You just know Justin keep protesting they are safe because the all Syndicate are locked up is going to back fire. Buddy was for once was acting like a guard dog, barking at the intruder, btw I'm not convinced it was Nina, she told Justin the door was open.  After what Justin told her (and if there are still people after them), I can understand why she is still reluctant for him to reunite with Ava despite him saying he'd never deliberately put her in danger. Tori is worried about Nate should it be the Syndicate and they go after people they care about, but no-one mentioned Phoebe who was even more involved.

I'm going on the assumption Ash hadn't been arrested, just asked to go to the station to answer questions about the fire. Would he in all seriousness  be as stupid as to up his insurance then  a few days later set light to the place?  Come on McCarthy you may not like the bloke but don't let that interfere with your policing duties.  Good idea of Kat about the toll cameras picking up Ash's movements on the road, though even then McCarthy had to suggest it could have been someone else driving. He also suggested she was giving Ash the benefit of the doubt because of their previous involvement. Just because Ash didn't remember anyone doesn't mean other people wouldn't remember him! One point why didn't Kat bring up the 'bloke' that Ash said he spoke to, you know the one whose 'sister' got raped when she was in the bay. Agree Kat was giving Ash mixed messages, holding his hand like that then later at the farm house seeming to imply she wanted to resume their relationship, Ash had the sense to walk away, because her job will always be between them.

So it wasn't the prison authorities (sorry guys) who has decided Mick is OK to be released it was the hospital he was in! 

[Red Ranger 1]

Well, fair play to Mason: Once he realised that he was the cause of the rift between Nate and Tori, he got in there and told the truth.This was one of many occasions where the performance may have got in the way of the intention, with Mason not seeming particularly sorry when explaining to Nate (honestly, when Kyle Pryor's the one giving most to the scene then you're in trouble), but I appreciate the intention and it again shows that he's a good brother deep down.And Tori's a good sister, putting in a compelling if not exactly logical argument for Nina.I loved that, unlike Justin, she refuses to edit their names for her, as a way of saying "Seven years have passed, we're different people now." Sadly, I get the feeling that this latest bit of trouble (the guy's called Carl according to the credits) will get back to Nina and they'll be back to square one, even with Super Cop Kat having decided that the various fires recently are random and unrelated to the Syndicate.That would be both frustrating and upsetting.What the heck was Tori doing at the end there?Carl would probably have intercepted her whatever happened, but messing about with her phone while driving means she was pretty much asking for it.

Some nice moments from Billie, who not for the first time reminded me of Nicole with her frustrated declaration to her unborn baby.While she was being unnecessarily snappy to Irene for reasons we know about but no-one else does, is it really that unreasonable for her to object to someone she doesn't know that well feeling her belly without asking?But the development with Mick is just ridiculous.How on earth can someone that violent and dangerous be released so quickly?Do the hospital knows it's finale week or something?

[Slade]

I'm glad Nina realised Justin was telling the truth about the witness protection after seeing the Morgan's on the news although he annoyed me again when he was raising his voice  when she wouldn't let him see his daughter before Tori talked her round.

I'm also glad Mason has done the right thing and told Nate that he was the one who reported him to Care Tower about his injury but I don't see why this has made any difference because Nate's problem seems to be that Tori was lying to him and this doesn't change that even though like the witness protection Nate can understand why she did it.  Nate is obviously going to let the matter drop and Mason's career will be just fine although I accept Mason's argument that he panicked.

It was interesting watching the conversation with Leah and Billie in the Diner about Irene with Billie clearly having a problem with her.  We all knew that but it was the fact that Irene has picked up on it that I noted.  Leah has too as Billie had made it so obvious particularly when she didn't want Irene to touch her baby bump.  I found it interesting because I'm often like that with people that I don't like I mean I don't try and hide the fact that I don't like them (not deliberately going out of my way to show my feelings of course) so most people I don't like know I don't like them.  I think Billie was harsh to Irene but in that particular case it was understandable.  And Billie was back to lying again although I've accepted this pretty much comes naturally to her anyway.

I think it's absolutely ridiculous that a serial rapist is released after just a few months but then again who's arguing.  In fact I think this is absolutely wonderful.  When Ash finds him he's not going to last five minutes.  Irene's face was sheer delight.  Her look of fear and total dejection made me smile!

[Red Ranger 1]

The middle of finale week and it's pretty much all set-up.Tori's storyline doesn't really move on that much, with her escape being pretty much padding and her being pretty daft to believe the bad guys have Justin without any proof.And then we have Turner escaping from her cardboard prison because who cares about the fact you've already finished that storyline if you need an OTT cliffhanger?(See also Mick's absurd liberty.)

Billie gets put through the wringer again and is still trying to control things rather than being honest with everyone, although VJ seems to be cottoning on to a few things... Nate continues to be self-absorbed, but at least it means he's written himself out for the rest of the season.Oh, and Phoebe seems to have come full circle: This is how she came in three years ago, taking over a music festival that Kyle and Tamara were organising, annoying the heck out of everyone and making it all about her.Evelyn really should have strangled her.

[Slade]

There seemed to be an awful lot happening in that episode..

If Kat was so suspicious of that guy that kidnapped Tori why didn't she search his car after checking his driving license rather than going through his files the next day?  I was surprised Tori didn't ask to speak to Justin to confirm he was actually being held captive just before that guy took her off to the warehouse but I put that down to a combination of having a head injury and the fact that she was understandably afraid.  So Turner is out of prison and we have yet another extremely dangerous person who has been able to escape from custody although why isn't this on the news?  Perhaps it was the same person who helped Andy and Josh escape that helped her.

Phoebe is absolutely annoying especially given that she muscled in on organising the festival  and wanted to take over but lets Evelyn do all the work.  I suspect if Phoebe does perform and it all goes well she will take all the credit.  I found it interesting that Justin did very little to defend her so presumably knew that Evelyn was right.

Well Billie's reaction to hearing Mick was released wasn't as good as Irene's but seems to have sent her into full panic mode to the point where she was hallucinating and becoming more and more transparent.  She came across as very suspicious when she was demanding Irene appeal against Mick being let out.  Nate was also suspicious when he Billie turned up and when he was checking her blood pressure later on in that episode - He clearly knew she was lying, just didn't know about Mick (I did actually think during Nate and Ash's conversation in Salt there was a moment where both of them knew that the other knew about Billie's rape).  VJ was also suspect to the point where I assume he's been able to piece together the timeline of Irene's kidnapping, the attacks on all the women to figure out that Mick was the one who raped Billie which has really surprised me.

[H&Alover]

Wasn't the reason Tori took the blame for informing on Nate to Care Flight because Mason's medical career would be at an end, Nate, when told the truth by Mason, didn't bring it up so I guess we are meant to assume he won't say anything.  Now of course Nate has to talk to Tori to tell her he knows the truth, but she has other things on her mind right now.  Btw couldn't believe she was daft enough even to consider answering her phone while driving at night, Nate also should have realised she'd be driving so wouldn't (or shouldn't) have been able to answer it.  I may have missed something it being dark but where did Tori's go after Carl waylaid her?  He was obviously brighter than your usual thug, reasoning she'd go back to her car eventually.  I'm with Slade about why Tori didn't ask to speak to Justin, head injury, disorientated and scared. Kat didn't have any just cause to search Carl's car other than he was being a bit hinky and she was suspicious. She did  have the sense of mind to check him out until McCarthy told her to stop.  He was right in saying she shouldn't be investigating the fire at the garage as she still had an interest in it. He also got another dig in about her ex relationship with Ash. I personally think that small fire at the caravan park was accidental and nothing to do with the other two, they were definitely deliberate. I think Turner being out and how is she out anyway is more of a worry than Mick, she has much more clout than he has. The local plod will be on the watch for him. 

I don't think Billie dislikes Irene it's because she is Mick's mum so the real grandmother to her baby and naturally feels very awkward around her and that is why she so defensive about her touching her bump. Her hallucinating seeing Mick everywhere was very real, you could see by Nate's face he knew the reason why and she knew too especially as he also knows Mick's out, he'd found out the night before when he was at Irene's and she and Leah came back from the Diner.  You could see VJ working out the dates after learning it's been nine months since Mick was last in town. Be a double shock for him as he's known Iren all his life. Billie's insisting Irene should have been able to appeal Mick's early release would have been a valid point even without us knowing the real reason. Wasn't Mick supposed to have been a serial rapist in which case his release is even more ludicrous or did he just get done for Irene's kidnap?  Nine months and he's convinced the doctors he's OK, perhaps they're the ones who should be locked up, he's obviously very clever but nothing  unusual plenty do it.

By Nina's reaction when she saw Tori/Tessa they were obviously friends back in the day, loved the way they both sent Justin/Jack out of the room so they could talk, shame that now Tori/Tessa has persuaded Nina to let Justin/Jack see Ava events have taken another turn.

Oh Phoebe once you get obsessed you get obsessed, more Matt trying and failing to get  a word in, liked the look on her face when Evelyn told her everything had been sorted for the Music Festival without her help. Back to the old values everyone pulling together to get the festival on. Who was that famous person Evie managed to get to perform? 

[Red Ranger 1]

That one was better although it still had its faults: The montage sequence didn't really work, since the events were too disconnected, and having shelled out for this musical guest star they then have to stop the plot to have her sing for a bit.Also a bit of confusion over timing:Justin tells Phoebe he's seeing Ava "tomorrow", then the next day he tells Brody and Mason it's still "tomorrow".

So, VJ finally knows everything.Interesting that it was Ash who prompted Billie to be honest, given his mistrust of VJ in recent weeks...oh, and Ash gets a blatant "Excuse me but I've got to be in the special taking place at the same time as this" exit.(Blatant if you know there's one of those, otherwise it's just weird.)I'm expecting VJ to come round, but he perhaps needs this moment of anger after Billie still hasn't been willing to be straight with him this last little while.Not sure about the ins and outs of the discussion about Phoebe:If he means when did Phoebe find out Mick was the rapist, then she actually worked it out before Billie, although she didn't find out he was the biological father until a lot more recently (and Billie did choose to tell her in the end).So, after the false start of last episode, Mick turns up for real: I initially assumed it was another hallucination and I guess Alf and co never bothered to find out what he looked like.(I think only Irene, Olivia, Billie, Nate, Kat and Chris actually saw him?)Either that or they didn't look round at the right moment.I've flogged the horse of him and Turner being out and about already, so we'll just accept it for now.

Hunter flunked his exams: So, repeating next year then?Not sure getting back with Olivia is a good idea just because he's a bit happier at the moment: We saw plenty of examples of his unpleasant side just last week and it would only be a matter of time before it came out again.Don't really get any development in the Turner situation until the last scene but it did end the episode on a knife edge.

3 hours ago, H&Alover said:

I may have missed something it being dark but where did Tori's go after Carl waylaid her? 

Tori's what? We saw him take her phone, and I assume he parked her car in that side road that we saw him coming out of.

[Slade]

Again another highly eventful episode.

So VJ is finally starting to realise Billie's true nature.  The sad thing about him figuring it out was that he gave her multiple chances to be honest when he confronted her and she still lied.  Had she just owned up there and then he probably would have supported her.  I'm glad he overheard the conversation with Phoebe.  Now hopefully he will end things although I suspect this will prove very difficult given that he is still in love with her.  Whilst I'm happy he knows now the icing on the cake will be when Leah and Irene find out the truth.

Irene was right to call Olivia out when she was texting Mason and Hunter.  It is very much coming across that despite saying that she wanted to go at it alone she's trying to keep all her options open.  I will say I found it highly amusing the way Mason was jealously looking on at Olivia and Hunter at the festival.  I'm glad she did well on her exams though.

Phoebe is driving me absolutely wild.  She's acting like she's running the show where out of her, Evelyn, Matt and Justin she's probably done the least in terms of preparing for the festival.  Remind me what she had done exactly apart from writing her new song?

I thought McCarthy told Kat to stay out of the investigation regarding the fires as it represented a conflict of interest.  I forgot to mention previously that I was completely wrong about Kat and Ash.  She does still want him.  I'm assuming her 3 month probation is up.

Really enjoyed the scene where Ranae called Justin (or should I say Jack) and started taunting him re holding Tori captive then he jumped into the car and sped of after her.

The end of season episode should be good.