Latest UK Episode Discussion (2006-2017 Seasons)

[Red Ranger 1]

Alf's episode count this week:Five, for the fourth week running.For the second time in three weeks, Nicole was only in one but was credited on Tuesday for no appearance.

It was good to see Charlie and Angelo on the same page and being rather light-hearted, in fact Charlie's been uncharacteristically relaxed this week.Not sure how long it's going to last but I enjoyed it.Although Paulie was rather petulant, it's good that he and Angelo seem to be back on good terms and also Angelo with his parents.Although...given in the previous episode Angelo told Alf he could cut back on his shifts to take over John's surf club duties, why has he now left him looking after the restaurant?

I'm not sure what to make of this whole Mitzy storyline.It feels like we haven't really got to know or like her so it hasn't really had much affect on me.I suspect the fact that she's Marilyn's friend and I'm not a particularly big fan of hers either doesn't help.Again, I really liked Dexter in that episode, he came out with a few amusing comments but, as with Indigo earlier in the week, managed to do it while showing sympathy.Hopefully he'll carry on in this vein.Sid made a mess of things with Marilyn again:There are a lot of ways you can respond to the news your girlfriend's best friend is dying and "I told you so" isn't one of them.I liked Sid's scenes with John, who seems to be more humanised than ever but still has that sarcastic edge to him.

Alf's assessment of Penn seems to be spot on:He's just making it up as he goes along and you can't really trust anything he says, so his "revelation" about his father just made me shrug because I've no idea whether it's true or not.(Given his earlier comments about his father committing suicide, I suspect not.)His commentary on Miles and Marilyn's conversation shows just how paranoid and unhinged he is.

Oh-and a rare word of praise for Colleen, who for once was spot on in the advice she gave Leah about ringing Elijah.

[H&Alover]

Rather nice scenes between Dex and Mitzy in the Diner, though again they seemed to have been there for hours! He was being very understanding and then she had to spoil it by coming onto him, perhaps it was a good thing she did collapse when she did. Sid really does have a terrible habit of opening his mouth and putting both feet in it! Marilyn can only forgive him so many times.

Penn's comment about his dad not having said a word to him since his accident did throw me and I thought is he lying again? But then if his dad is dead of course he wouldn't have spoken to him since would he? Is it going to be Marilyn or Miles he is going after next (looks like I was wrong about it being Xavier).

Ruby's only friend seems to have been Nicole, we've never seen her with anyone else, apart from Xavier.

Liked those scenes between Angelo and Paulie in the car, I think maybe Paulie is relieved the truth is finally out.

I imagine John is not going to be the best patient and will try Gina's patience (sorry) to the limit. He is certainly not the type to be fussed over too much.

Agree Red, Colleen did actually give Leah good advice.

[Red Ranger 1]

Actually found myself empathising with Mitzy in that episode.I think it's because she's now the one getting the bad news rather than just delivering it.Sid...I'm torn between disagreeing with what he's doing and understanding why he's doing it.If he's right and Mitzy is only telling Marilyn she's dying so she doesn't have to go through it alone, then telling her to stop would be the right thing.But I don't really think he is right so having a go at a terminally ill woman is bang out of order.

So, about two months after she got the job, we finally see Indigo working at the Diner.She and Romeo had some rather cute banter which makes up for the nonsense they were given about a week ago.Dex is back on form still, I found his remarks genuinely amusing again.His new friend seems a bit different, even seeming to leave him wrong footed a few times.Maybe he has found someone unconventional and his own age after all.

Bianca and Vittorio...Still don't care.Don't really care about her, care even less about him.Apparently he's supposed to be famous but no-one in Summer Bay's heard of him apart from Bianca, April and a bunch of nameless journalists.It also doesn't help that he seems to be written as a suave eligible bachelor but he's being played as a comedy foreigner.

[Brian]

I'm not sure what to make of this whole Mitzy storyline.It feels like we haven't really got to know or like her so it hasn't really had much affect on me.I suspect the fact that she's Marilyn's friend and I'm not a particularly big fan of hers either doesn't help.Again, I really liked Dexter in that episode, he came out with a few amusing comments but, as with Indigo earlier in the week, managed to do it while showing sympathy.Hopefully he'll carry on in this vein.Sid made a mess of things with Marilyn again:There are a lot of ways you can respond to the news your girlfriend's best friend is dying and "I told you so" isn't one of them.I liked Sid's scenes with John, who seems to be more humanised than ever but still has that sarcastic edge to him.

Have to disagree with you on that, Red Ranger. I would have reacted the same way as Sid, especially if I liked Marilyn so much. But the conversation shouldn't have taken place in a hospital - Sid should stop her coming. I begin to wonder if Mitzy has any psychic powers at all - is she just a big con to get some sympathy from Marilyn? Could she really foretell a date of death?????

[Red Ranger 1]

Well...Penn's still wandering around being sinister without any sign of having a real plan beyond "annoy everyone."Bit confused, I thought Alf told Irene the whole story about what happened with Tulip but she didn't seem to have a clue here.Nice that Miles and Leah considered her "the big guns" though.

Bianca's...I'm trying to come up with a word that isn't an insult and floundering."Forward", shall we say.Being that willing to jump into bed with Vittorio when she was all over Liam not so long back doesn't really say much for her.

I was actually rather interested in the Romeo/Indi stuff but...I don't dislike him as much as I did a week or two back because I think he is actually trying his best.But I'm not sure offering to sleep with her instead of opening up to her in a more metaphorical sense was the right way to prove he cared. And the fact he wasn't willing to confide in her when he's seemingly done so with both Annie and Xavier doesn't say a lot.I'd like to know what exactly he said or did to make her so upset:Did he call her Annie or something?Really hope they don't now disappear for the rest of the week and leave the whole thing up in the air...

CURS: What was that clip of Irene, Colleen and Bianca doing there?It almost seemed like a recap for the recap, since Vittorio talking to the press isn't even mentioned in the episode proper.

[H&Alover]

It may be just me, but there is something about Vittorio I don't trust. Was his speech to the press for real or a cover for something? Why did Alf feel he had to tell him about Liam? Bianca got it right when she said Vittorio had no reason to complain as she and he weren't even together at the time. Is he the sort that can play away whenever he feels like it but his 'woman' can't (even if she wasn't at the time)? That clip did indeed seem a bit odd, especially as I thought Irene had banned Colleen from saying anything to the press anyway.

Penn, Alf has a point, he is only making veiled threats, nothing definite and he only makes them when he and the person he is threatening are alone so it is his word against theirs. Miles had it nailed when he called him a sociopath, I had the same thought last week. I felt for Miles when both Irene and Leah were pressurising him to do something. It should be Alf's call, but perhaps there is something Alf isn't saying. If though Miles thinks Romeo and Marilyn are in danger he should tell Charlie (are there no other police officers at Yabby Creek)? They seem to be treating Charlie as their own personal police officer.

Sid had a point about not treating Mitzy, though once again he could have put it a lot better. I think maybe, Brian, she did have psychic powers, but did you notice she told Marilyn she couldn't see the future anymore, which could be linked to her brain tumour.

I liked that scene between Dex and the girl in the pet shop, had to smile when he said he as going to call the fish Marilyn.

You could be right Red as to why Indi was so upset, calling your new girl by your ex's name is definitely a no-no. It did seem odd too that he wasn't willing to tell her the things he had told Annie and Xavier..

[Red Ranger 1]

You know, it's episodes like that that remind me that this show can often be at its best when they concentrate on the characters, even though there wasn't a lot of plot I felt there was a lot of warmth in it.It was good to see the Nicole/Ruby friendship getting an outing and they worked well together. We even got a nice scene between Ruby and Charlie that was full of warmth and humour.Xavier and April were great together once again.And Gina does finally seem to be developing into a decent character, we're actually allowed to laugh at her these days which makes her seem more human.

It's nice that Xavier does seem to be genuinely softening towards John, I liked his conversations with April on the subject and his little scene with Alf.Not sure how Xavier is going to react to that announcement at the end but he'll probably take it better than he would have done a few weeks ago...

Leah and Miles probably made the right call in telling Charlie about Penn, even though it didn't really get them anywhere.Did Alf not keep all the photos Penn sent him, twice?Something to be learnt from that.Marilyn and Sid breaking up, feels like we've been there loads of times already.They need to learn to respect each other's opinions and communicate more instead of just doing my own thing.I can't quite make my mind up about Mitzy, whether she's causing trouble by accident or whether she's being very clever.

[H&Alover]

Looks like you may have right Red about not seeing anymore about Indi and Romeo!

What exactly did Penn mean about John 'paying him back' for saving his life? It's bound to be something concerning Alf. It makes you wonder if there was an ulterior motive to him saving John's life in the first place, which knowing him there was. Miles IMO was right to make a report to Charlie against Penn, considering Romeo may be in danger. Couldn't they run a check against him to see if he has a criminal record then they would find out about his stay in the mental institution.

Shame about Sid and Marilyn, though as you say Red we have been there before. Marilyn did push Mitzy into telling her what had transpired between her and Sid, but that could have be a ruse on Mitzy's part. Liked the scene between Sid and Nicole when she was concerned about him and Marilyn.

Xavier certainly looked stunned by John's news, hope it doesn't turn him against him again just as it seems he has mellowed towards him. John being his mum's boyfriend is one thing but as his step dad is another thing.

[Red Ranger 1]

The opening scene and indeed opening line("Xavier...breathe")were just hilarious, with Xavier quietly panicking about John being his stepfather and John's complete inability to be tactful(Who else would answer "Sex" when asked what they're talking about?).Their scenes were still the best thing about the episode.Shame Xavier and April weren't in it more, they had a good scene early on then disappeared for half the episode.Not sure exactly when and how John and Alf seem to have become best mates but their exchanges worked well.("You need to do what men have always done in these situations."/"Lie to her?"/"Apologise.")And someone remembered their continuity and referenced John's father's alcoholism.

Marilyn and Sid really are just having the same conversations over and over again.Sid needs to stop doing and saying things that are just going to make him look bad, although if he really does believe Marilyn's going to make herself sick I guess that makes his determination to get rid of Mitzy more understandable.Not sure why Marilyn invited Mitzy along to their dinner, if it was just the two of them they might have worked it out.Mitzy is increasingly reminding me of John Palmer when he kept telling Gina everything Xavier did wrong, except she's less up front about it.By accident or design, she seems to know exactly what to say to inflame the situation.Liked the little scene of Nicole giving Sid advice, she talked a lot of sense, shame he didn't seem to listen.Liked the little glimpse of Nicole and Ruby's friendship as well.

First impression of Shandi:She's a bit scary, isn't she?No wonder Angelo looked worried at the end. Did wonder if his phone conversation with his father means we're going to meet him but as he wasn't credited, probably not.

[H&Alover]

Yes, that scene was hilarious, not exactly what a teen needs to know! Xavier didn't seem as horrified as he would have done a few months (or even weeks) ago. I was expecting Alf maybe to answer "grovel" and his and John's new best buddy relationship does appear to have come out of the blue. While we are talking about Gina and Xavier, has Brendan suddenly ceased to exist, neither she or he have mentioned him in months. :confused:

Nice reversal of roles with Nicole giving Sid advice, who would have thought that possible a few months back. Both Sid and Mitzy are very strong characters so perhaps that's why they clash each time they are together. Marilyn would be better seeing them separately then there would have been no need for Sid's rather silly ultimatum.

There is a lot more to Shandi than meets the eye.

She is related to a bay resident and may put a spanner in the works regarding their plans for the future.