Hollyoaks Discussion Thread

[xGlowingAngelx]

I hadn't watched any Hollyoaks since Christmas until last week. I tuned in because I wanted to watch Later. I'm quite glad I did, surprisingly.

I still think LA is lacking some sparkle that BK had with the producing, but I hope that will improve over time, given the chance.

Hollyoaks Later was a mixture of some great stuff and some awful stuff. Hannah and Jamie were as dull as watching paint dry. The whole festival stuff was. Why do they keep pairing Hannah up with these guys she has zero chemistry with? Expecting us to believe she would be naive enough to fall for him after just a few days was cringeworthy. Once he smacked her, she should have walked away. I hope this isn't the way they plan to write her out of it. I wasn't a fan of her relationship with Justin, but I'd rather those 2 went off together.

The Lydia/Sarah/Zoe stuff was brilliant. By far the best acting Lydia had pulled off since we first saw her. She was so utterly convincing in the physco role that she really put Zoe Lister (who at times just didn't pull the acting off convincingly enough) to shame. I do like Zoe, I just don't like the way they write her angst and dramatic, because I don't think either the actress or the character are strong enough for it. I do hope she proves me wrong though, espcially if we're going to see more of her after being arrested for Sarah's murder. I'd love to see a bit more of the aftermath before she leaves forever. Sarah's death was heartbreaking. I was never a HUGE fan, but I did like her and it was such a sad way to die, especially so young. I'm glad it was her and not Zoe though, because the potential for the characters connected is so much greater for her. I'd rather watch Mike deal with the afternath (Tony Hirst is such a brill actor and did superb with the scene where Mike was told about sarah's deatnh fantastically) than watch Archie grieving for Zoe. Given they didn't show much bond between Archie and Zoe in the main show, I couldn't see them going too far in the aftermath. Still be interesting to see how he copes with her being charged with the murder though. Potential EVERYWHERE.

The other storylines in Later were so overshadowed by the skydiving stuff, I could easily forget about them.

Gotta say though, if the DS spoilers are anything to go by, the upcoming stuff could be really good. Hopefully, it'll be enough to keep me watching.

[Slade]

It’s been interesting seeing Jake back this week and trying to atone for what he did. Knowing what soaps are like I’m sure people will come round eventually. I really liked the way Frankie’s love for him showed wholeheartedly that she wants to give him a second chance. It was quite amusing seeing Darren the joker’s reaction upon seeing him. He’s just worried because he was prepared to let Jake stay at the psychiatric unit indefinitely purely for financial gain.

I really dislike Nancy. In spite of everything that’s happened I didn’t feel one iota of sympathy towards her. Not a snippet. As a person I find her completely unlikeable. She’s judgemental, self-righteous arrogant and feels she is above everyone else. With a personality like that I honestly don’t see how she has been as attractive to the people that she has so far.

I haven’t paid too much attention to Newt’s storylines recently but having personal experience with someone that is mentally ill, I found the stuff this week quite compelling. I actually had a great deal of sympathy for him and respect to Jack for diving in the water to save him. I’m glad they decided to highlight the issues surrounding mental illness as well as they did.

My memory is very vague so I’m hoping to have a couple of questions answered.

1. Were Jake and Nancy actually married or simply engaged?

2. What is the deal with Darren and Hannah? I keep hearing that they’re married. Didn’t they simply sleep together or am I missing something.

[irish_angel]

^^ Jake and Nancy were married, he tried to rape her on their wedding day so that ended that marriage.

Darren and Hannah are also married, they got married when they went off with that band to Denmark i think it was. They got drunk and Hannah decided to rebel against always being the good girl so she married Darren.... I have no idea what she was thinking

Loved the whole Newt related stuff this week, it was gripping and at times heartbreaking to watch. I had guessed that Rae would turn out to be another figment of his imagination early in the week though but it was still shocking to see them go off the building. I also felt really sorry for Lauren after the way he spoke to her in the warehouse when she first went to give him his pills and when Jack pulled him out of the water and they thought he was dead

I'm wondering what is behind Loretta writing to Jake while he was locked up, there is something seriously fishy about her and the way she has really latched on to Nancy..

[haaxhaa]

I'm actually reallly glad that I managed to watch the sky diving scene with Zoe/Sarah/Lydia... - Was seriously panicing cos I thought I'd missed it!

But luckily my sister recorded it! - Bless herr

Thought the the actor that plays Newt, did a fantastic job the other night with the whole Eli/Rae thing going on.

Ammm fed up of Nancy and her bloody mood swings though!

Really annoyed that they brought Jake back.... his character will just be another useless addition to the cast alongside those like Archie, Charlotte, Elliott, Leila, Cheryl, and Spencer.

Jake's character served his purpose; he shouldn't have come back because all he'll be trying to do is prove that he's changed. YAWN!

[Slade]

^^ Jake and Nancy were married, he tried to rape her on their wedding day so that ended that marriage.

Darren and Hannah are also married, they got married when they went off with that band to Denmark i think it was. They got drunk and Hannah decided to rebel against always being the good girl so she married Darren.... I have no idea what she was thinking

Loved the whole Newt related stuff this week, it was gripping and at times heartbreaking to watch. I had guessed that Rae would turn out to be another figment of his imagination early in the week though but it was still shocking to see them go off the building. I also felt really sorry for Lauren after the way he spoke to her in the warehouse when she first went to give him his pills and when Jack pulled him out of the water and they thought he was dead

I'm wondering what is behind Loretta writing to Jake while he was locked up, there is something seriously fishy about her and the way she has really latched on to Nancy..

Thanks. Problem is because of work I don’t get to watch as much TV as I would like. I guess I must have missed the episode were Hannah and Darren got married (or at least where it was first mentioned if it was off screen). I thought Hannah did write the letters and she confessed to Loretta then Loretta just lied about it to Jake as some way to maintain influence over Nancy.

I actually didn’t realise Rae was a figment of Newt’s imagination until Jack and Lauren pointed it out to him (probably because I didn’t watch all of every episode). For a split second I thought Newt was a goner but I realised that they wouldn’t kill off two major characters in two separate storylines in such a short space of time.

We might only get to see Jake/Nancy/Newt etc in one or two episodes next week. Isn’t the trend with Hollyoaks due to the size of the cast, one week off, one week on for most of the major characters? That's what I've noticed anyway.

[irish_angel]

I thought Hannah confessed to writing to Jake too earlier in the week, but then i think Loretta said that Hannah wrote to him but never read the reply he sent back but Loretta did and she continued writing to him... Maybe i got it wrong as i was in work watching so i wasn't really concentrating on it.

I noticed that they focus on a few characters for a week or 2 and then we don't see much of them for a while after that. Thats the one thing that annoys me about them having such a big cast.

[xGlowingAngelx]

I really enjoyed the Newt/Rae/Eli stuff. I think most viewers figured Rae wasn't really quite early on, so it wasn't that much of a revelation. Eli, again, was absolutely brilliant. I really love the character, so it's incredibly sad that we may not get to see him again. Marc Silcock is, IMO, one of the greatest additions that the cast has had in the last 2 years. When a character comes in that is directly only attached to a small number of characters, they tend to get boring or annoying. Eli worked so well though. His "relationship" with Newt was wonderful to watch, even when they were at the low points. And, my gosh, did he make me giggle a few times last week. (Seriously, his line about Rae: "Another Fruitcake" was genius!). It's an odd situation. On the one hand, I would just love to see Newt get through this and settle back into the village as a regular teenage boy, with some happiness, but on the other hand, doing that would no doubt mean losing Eli for good and that would be rather sad. Plus, Nico is shaping up to be one of the best young actors there. He was superb last week.

Nice to see Jake back, too. I've never been the biggest fan of Kevin Sacre as an actor, particularly during the physco phase. Mainly because Kevin comes across as such a genuine, lovely guy in real life, that it's difficult to take him seriously as a baddie. However, it's just nice to see the Dean-Osborne family slowly creeping back on screen more and more. Of all the families on the show as a whole, I find them the most appealing because, IMO, they have the strongest cast members. I do wish they'd somehow find a way to put them back in the pub though. I just don't like the Ashworths running it. They don't have the right sparkle for it. Maybe the Osbornes can somehow buy it back and the Ashworth's can move back into their old home. The remainig Roy's could find a flat somewhere. Having three "young adult" siblings - who don't seem to spend much time there anyway anymore - living in such a big, family-ready home just doesn't seem right now Bel and Gov have gone. I always liked the Ashworths there.

I also quite like the idea of Sasha/Calvin/Mercedes/Mal running The Loft. I'm not the biggest Sasha/Calvin fan, have always found them quite dull and reserved, but this could be a god oppurtunity to broaden them out with other characters, assuming Calvin will have any more involvement in it. Otherwise they're useless, and might as well leave. Mal and Mercy are perfect for it though. I was worried they would fade into the background and lose some sparkle after they'd got married and the drama had settled, but this could be perfect to show just how great they are.

Spencer...... TBH, I do think they should get rid of him. His relationship with Warren made the character when he first arrived, but he's more like a spare part with him around. Sasha and Calvin may have felt they could look out for him, but long term, I don't think they can. Calvin seems way out of his depth and Sasha's growing up way before her time. Spencer would be better going somewhere he can build reliable relationships.

Dave, Charlotte, Hayley, Josh and India have only just settled in Halls and are already shaping up to be the worst set of students so far. What a dull bunch!!! They should bring back Fletch and reconnect him and Josh. Far more entertaining. The rest have zero depth, together and individually. No chemistry between them all at all, which we have had with past students.

Archie, I think should stay. At least for a bit. From that little glimpse we've seen of him adapting to Zoe being sent to prison, he's had more potential than he has since he arrived. If they build on that whilst he struggles to adapt to his sister being in prison, I think we could see a whole new, more watchable character.

One of the things I am hoping for, whilst Sarah's death is still raw, is some strong connection rebuilt between Hannah and Nancy. Once upon a time, those 3 (Along with JP and C) were a tight bunch.

Once Hannah departs, Nancy's flying the flag for that era on her own, so I'd like to see some more scenes, just to give more lasting memories of them all.

. Marrying Hannah and Darren seemed like such a dreadful idea at the time, but I like the way they're shaping it up with the possibility of Darren getting the pub back eventually (see above.)

Hopefully, Sarah's death will put Mike centre stage for a while too. Tony Hirst is a brilliant actor and I'd rather watch Mike struggle to cop with her death than watch people Sarah rarely interacted with try dealing with it.

Overall, I've quite enjoyed the last few weeks. Glad I'be tuned back in and I do hope they somehow manage to keep this up. After what has been a dreadful few months for the show, they need to take this as their chance to somehow climb there way back up. Otherwise people will just give up on it all together.

[Slade]

It was so funny when Darren was winding up Malachy, Malachy dragged him across the bar and was going to knock the stuffing out of him. Glad people are giving Jake a chance now, although I don’t think Calvin would have offered him a job if he hadn’t left Claire to finish Warren off and lied to Spencer and Sasha about it. Newt clearly still has problems (going round to the house of the old lady he mugged, following Rai, videoing her, insisting they have a connection despite the fact that she doesn't know him from Adam) but I’m glad he apologised to Jake. Quite liked his chat with Theresa and they appeared to have reached an understanding now. I did find the fight between Mercedes and Sasha quite funny but the snide remarks are tiresome. Mercedes is worse. She seems to have an attitude problem. I can’t imagine working with her. Was disappointed Amy left her kids again. Ste got a bit lucky landing himself a job and a place to stay though. I know Archie is 100% right about Lydia but I don’t like him so I’m kind of glad he had a hard week. Quite enjoyed what Elliot said to him. I’m glad India’s back. I thought they got rid of her too quickly.

[Slade]

Man, I hate Nancy. She is such a stuck-up, arrogant, pompous b*tch - And an extremely bitter one at that. The whole business with her outing Hannah (about Anita's alleged eating disorder) wasn’t even to help Anita it was simply for revenge, payback and born out of spite and malice. I was kind of glad they had a fight so was extremely displeased at what appeared to be a reconciliation. I’m glad they’ve reverted back to being enemies. Nancy doesn’t deserve any friends. It was good seeing Loretta tell her about her relationship with Jake. That’s another mate gone and with the worst person possible. Now that Nancy knows I hope Loretta and Jake flaunt their relationship in public and rub Nancy’s face in it. All we need now is for Chris to dump her and she’ll be all alone. A Ravi/Chris reunion perhaps…

[DinerLandlord]

Archie, I think should stay. At least for a bit. From that little glimpse we've seen of him adapting to Zoe being sent to prison, he's had more potential than he has since he arrived. If they build on that whilst he struggles to adapt to his sister being in prison, I think we could see a whole new, more watchable character.

I love Archie, he's one of my favourite characters now. I hated him from when he arrived, up until his brief romance with Sarah ended. Since then however, his storylines have mainly been to do with Zoe, which brings out the best in him. I'm just worried they'll axe him after Zoe leaves, because to be honest, that will leave him with little to do, and there are too many students in the show anyway. Hopefully he'll have some new people to interact with next year, and maybe a bit of romance.