Coronation Street

[Red Ranger 1]

I had mixed feelings about Karl's exit.I thought the first half of the two episodes wrapping up his storyline, with the long overdue showdown between Karl and Dev, was great but the second suffered from poor pacing:Once Stella found out what Karl had done, there was still two thirds of the episode to go so it got dragged out by dull padding scenes of them sitting in the Rovers, the police showing an amazing inability to grasp what they were being told and a melodramatic climax of Karl dragging Stella into the cellar as a hostage only to just walk out again a couple of minutes later.It felt like we never really got to see the moment where Stella realises she's married a monster because it all happened too slowly.And while we did thankfully see Gloria apologise to Dev, the necessary climbdown with Jason was missing and he was soon being blamed for taking up with Eva.

The thing with the Platts is kind of the same over a longer period of time.The actual reveal of Nick and Kylie's liaison and David's revenge campaign was brilliant, the kind of character-led drama that Corrie excels at with no need for bangs and flashes.Unfortunately, the seeming urge to get things back to normal as soon as possible is not only disappointing but kind of makes a mockery of the initial reactions, with Gail expecting everyone to just go back to how they were before.Her summit was a joke, the way she ignored Kylie's terms straightaway even more so.Whilst it might not solve anything in the long term, David going away for a bit to give Nick and Kylie some space was a good idea, yet instead we've got Gail trying to force him on the rest of the family.It's a shame that Kylie's started going off the rails in an attempt to make her the one in the wrong.(Loved Simon's weary "Don't worry, this happens every year" after his family kick off during the nativity again.)

I was dreading Liz's return, I'd much rather Steve and Michelle running the Rovers on their own, since the character long ago degenerated into a parody of her former self yet successive producers seem convinced she's wonderful.Thankfully, despite a few annoying moments, she's mostly been deployed as a background supporting character rather than being allowed to dominate the storylines, so it hasn't been too bad.

I guess the Grace storyline did kind of fizzle out once Faye told the police what really happened.I think we're meant to assume she was given an official caution or something but it's not really clear.

Hayley's storyline seemed to get derailed a bit by the euthanasia/suicide thing which actually made Hayley rather unlikeable with the way she was trying to bully and emotionally blackmail Roy into giving his approval to something he's understandably uncomfortable with.At least it's on the backburner for now but I'm worried it'll rear its head when the end draws nearer.It's a shame because otherwise there's been a lot of nicely underplayed moments, like Roy contemplating what his next birthday will be like.I actually kind of enjoyed Christian's blatant "I don't care" attitude(his "I'd better hurry then" when Fiz, who was a bit sanctimonious it has to be said, reminded him Hayley was dying was one of those brilliant moments when a character refuses to react the way normal human behaviour dictates they should), along with Chesney's bewildered attempts to get his head around Hayley having a son.

Not sure what Tina was playing at kicking off a feud with Tracy and smashing her window over a relatively minor matter.At least it seems to have settled down a bit now.I rather like the spark between Peter and Tina and would have loved if he'd actually gone ahead and spent his wedding night with her after Carla passed out.Not sure what the thing with Rob was about.Tina mostly seemed to be trying to get a reaction out of Peter and I think, despite Carla trying to marry them off, Rob did mostly kiss her just to prove a point.Carla seemed to forget that even if Rob and Tracy do split up, Tracy will still be her sister-in-law if she's married to Peter.

[Slade]

Interesting the last post here about a year ago refers to the conclusion of a murder which took place and here we are again recently concluded another murder which I will come to in a bit.

I think with Corrie I'm at about the same point as Emmerdale i.e. not really enjoying it as much but I like a lot more of the characters. Some of the storylines that I found particular memorable for one reason or another:

Haley's death - The fact that I should have felt something but didn't. I was completely indifferent. One thing I won't forget was when Fizz discovered that Haley took her own life and her reaction when she took one look at Anna's face and realised that she knew all about it. Fizz was so annoying especially how she made it all about her and the fact that she wasn't filled in on Haley's plans to euthanise herself.

Phelan - Thought him making Owen's life hell was kind of a role reversal given that Owen used to bully people. I also quite enjoyed the way he tormented Anna and blackmailed her into sleeping with him (I think it was the acting I liked more than anything). I don't like the fact that Phelan won but what frustrated me most about the storyline was the whole mess was Gary's fault. Because of his inability to control his temper they ended up losing everything and I personally felt at the time (and still feel now) that they would have better off letting Phelan go to the authorities and keeping everything even if that meant Gary going to jail.

Maria - I thought Maria and Marcus were an absolute joke so I was not surprised Todd was able to steal him off her so easily. In saying that I loved that it made her go all obsessive regarding Tyronne. And I found Fizz so unbearable at the time I wanted Maria to succeed in her plan of stealing him off her.

Nick going mental - This storyline I actually found really funny although I don't agree with the way he treated Leanne.

Tina's murder - I was actually really disappointed that it was Rob as I quite liked him. I still had a hard time believing it. He was quite prepared to screw Carla over just a few months before so I struggled to get my head around the fact that he would risk everything just to stop her finding out that Tina was having an affair with Peter. Tina was actually pretty gobby at the time so I wasn't too bothered it was the end for her even though I thought she was quite cute. What's frustrating is that he framed Peter but when Peter was cleared he left the street anyway. I think Peter is weak and a cheat but it really annoyed me how when he returned most of the residents took the moral highground with him as if he were the actual killer. I do really like Tracy but she's a very selfish person although I accept her turning Rob in was probably the only time she hasn't been selfish. I quite liked the scene with her and Carla where they effectively buried their differences (hopefully).

With regards to the more recent storylines:

Todd's been pretty unpleasant since he returned but I have to admit I felt sorry for him after he got mugged and had his face scared.

With regards to the depression re Steve, I'm wondering if he might be bi-polar. I say that because of how he's basically bankrupted Street Cars to pay for his sports car which he seems quite excited about and even how he was lively and jolly during Christmas.

Loving the bromance with Kevin and Tim. I really enjoyed the storyline with the expensive red leather sofa. Love it when Corrie inject humour like that into their storylines every once in a while.

Not particularly keen on the Nazir's although I don't mind Alya and Sharif. Cannot stand Yasmeen. I find her quite arrogant and think she generally looks down on certain people. And I struggle to find anything likeable about her. She annoyed me intensely the way she imposed her blasted library on Roy's Cafe. Zidane I find quite petulant and didn't like the way he was with Leanne either to start with. I've completely gone off Kal since he found out about Alya and Gary and punched Gary just because he was going out with his daughter. I'm going to give the Nazir's the benefit of the doubt and assume they don't like Gary because he's a reckless impulsive idiot with not many good career prospects and not because he's a non-muslim.

I'm not sure what to make of Gary. I don't think he's a bad person and think he's his own worst enemy. I hate to see him wallowing in self pity but he never seems to learn from his mistakes. I'm not blaming him for what happened with Alya but the reason why he felt the need to steal from Roy was because he lost his temper and ended up smashing Faye's headphones an needed the cash to replace them. I really hope Roy just gets let off with a caution or a fine because after everything he's been through I don't think he deserves anything more and even Gary could see that. I do find it hard to have sympathy for Gary. I wanted to strangle Anna when she told Roy she didn't think she could forgive him. Don't really blame Sinead, I'd imagine watching Roy do that to someone couldn't have been pleasant. Just a shame it wasn't one of those youths who were hassling him.

Good to see the actress who played Kim Tate from Emmerdale. Now that Nick's all loved up he's being very pleasant to Leanne and did what he should have done a long time ago, reinstated her as manager.

I've never really liked Tony so I'm glad Tracy's got one up on him. I'm assuming she will use his infidelity as some sort of leverage at some point.

Forgot to mention, great to see both Ken and Kevin back as full cast members.

Oh and what has happened to Deirdre? Can't remember the last time I saw her.

[Red Ranger 1]

I have to admit, I practically cheered when Rob clobbered Tina, which probably wasn't the desired response.Given that she was going to send him to jail anyway, just because she was feeling let down by Peter, it was probably worth it:At least he got hung for a sheep rather than a lamb.Still, I'm glad Rob went to jail and Peter got let out.I think Tracy was mostly motivated by self-interest, to avoid being prosecuted herself over her dodgy dealings.I'd have actually preferred if she'd done it, she might have served a few years for killing Charlie but the way that her murder conviction being overturned is practically treated like a running joke is starting to get a bit uncomfortable.

Steve continues to be one of the more compelling and likable characters on the show.Now, I have very little, if any, first hand experience of depression, but I know people who were a bit bemused to be told they had depression because they were always cheery, only to realise they were overcompensating.So from that perspective, Steve's "high" at Christmas seemed to fit, and I can buy his obsessing about the car as fixating on something that will make him happy if he can just get it exactly how he wants it.I'm hoping it can become common knowledge soon though, because the scenes of people berating a man that we know has depression but they don't are making for very uncomfortable viewing.Liz is coming across as particularly unlikable.

I'm slightly intrigued by the mystery surrounding Fake Gavin (and it'll be nice to get a name for him, so we don't have to keep calling him Fake Gavin).It looks as though Real Gavin knows that Fake Gavin is posing as him but...why?

I've found Yasmeen very irritating but it does seem like someone's realised and started making her calmer and less judgemental in recent episodes.I was very disappointed in Kal, I liked him up until the point he punched Gary but suddenly he seems to have turned into Owen.Talking of which, Owen, Izzy and Katy ganging up on Gary really was completely off and I'm glad Anna has finally started sticking up for him.I'm glad Roy escaped jail, I had a worrying feeling he was going to have the maximum torment heaped on him: Community service seemed a bit too far the other way but okay, I'll take it.I'm slightly worried about Gary, since with what he did and with his record I really can't see how he can escape jail.I just hope it won't be for too long, especially since I'm rather liking him and Alya, and I'm glad she's stood up to her family and stood by him at last.

Slade, I don't know the details but I believe Anne Kirkbridge has had to take time off on health grounds.On screen, it was explained that Deirdre has gone to stay with Bev Unwin to recuperate from the stress of supporting Peter while Ken was away.

[Light of the Bay]

Well, Deidre won't be coming back.

Corrie has been shattered and will never be the same again. RIP Anne.

[irish_angel]

Anne Kirkbride's passing is a huge loss to the Corrie cast & fans. I wonder how they are going to write Deirdre out of the show, i'm guessing she'll have a heart attack while still staying at Bev's or have an accident on the way back to the street.

I'll miss the comedy element her character brought to the show, especially when it involved Deirdre getting drunk with Liz or Eileen, you always knew that was going to turn into a hilarious episode.

[Light of the Bay]

Sometime down the line I think she'll be killed off and there will be a big funeral and the character will get the send off she deserves. It is indeed a huge loss and I think a part of the show is gone forever and it's been forever changed now.

Now that Deidre is gone, there is really little comedy left.

[Red Ranger 1]

Kind of ironic that my last post involved Anne Kirkbride being absent from the show.I heard the news Monday night and my initial response was sheer disbelief, I really wasn't expecting her to be the next to go.I agree that we'll probably hear that Deirdre's died in a few months' time and get a proper send-off for the character.I disagree that there's no comedy left though, Ken's actually very funny without her, with his random philosophising, and the Websters have had some great material lately.Steve, one of the usual sources of comedy, is in the middle of a serious storyline at the moment but he's still got a lot of charm coming through.

It's been a pretty dramatic week with the minibus crash.I absolutely loved the way Michelle was with Steve in the aftermath and now;there are times when the way she treats him irritates me but when they're on form I do really like their relationship.There were lots of nice little character moments, with Maddie showing hidden depths and Tracy getting to play the hero (although a part of me was still hoping she'd be in the bus when it went over).The wittering between Maddie and Julie was rather fun.While I'm hoping that she's all right, I'm glad that Sinead's got a storyline out of it: She's a character I've got a lot of time for but she seems to get shunted into the background a lot so it's good to see her getting something meaty.I hope everyone lets up on Steve though, having him be berated for something that wasn't even his fault when he's ill is very hard viewing and Carla seems particularly unsympathetic.

If Roy getting community service was unlikely, Gary getting the same when he's had time in jail for housebreaking before was even more unlikely.I'm not complaining though because I like him.We finally get a name for Fake Gavin: Andy.And it turns out Real Gavin doesn't know he's impersonating him.Steph is a character I'm up and down with: Sometimes I like her, sometimes I find her very sanctimonious, especially the way she treated Peter on his release.But it's nice to see her having a point to existing.

[Slade]

Even factoring in that the soap shown is 6-8 weeks from when it is actually shot and Anne Kirkbride died in January they still haven't written Deirdre out so it will be interesting to see when and how they do this.

I have mixed feelings about this whole scam thing with Tony trying to con Liz/Steve out of the Rovers. I do quite like Steve and don't really want anything bad to happen to him. I really don't like Tony and see him as a bully and a criminal. However I don't like Michelle and cannot stand Liz. I often find Liz incredibly sanctimonious so part of me was glad to see this happen and I quite enjoyed it when Tracy told Liz everything. Although that didn't appear to take Liz down and peg a she reacted pretty badly to it. I would like to think that's the last we've seen of Tony but given that he owns half of the Rovers and the pawnbrokers I don't think so unfortunately.

I remember when Tracy saved Carla's life shortly after the bus crash. Immediately afterwards it kinda felt weird when there was a truce between them and they were getting on but I thought they were taking their relationship in a different direction. Carla even helped to bail Tracy out when she was in trouble with her Pawnbroker's shop. But it seems as though Tracy hasn't learned a thing. She was blinded and consumed by pure hatred and jealousy. She was annoyed that Carla purchased the other half of the Rovers and foiled her attempt to be the landlady. But what this really is about is that Carla has succeeded where she failed in business and I guess from a personal point that people respected Carla. That drove her to set fire to Carla's flat (that's how I see it). So surely it's murder and surely she can't get away with this. Although baring a confession I don't see how she can get caught (she confessed to Deirdre about killing Charlie but there's no way she will be stupid enough to do it twice). The worst thing is how she's tried to pin everything on Carla. Although I did find Tracy's welcome to my world line interesting i.e. she couldn't be a success like Carla was so she wants Carla to be in her shoes and feel what she felt.

There are times when Leanne annoys me because she comes across as extremely self-righteous but my reaction when she broke Carla's door down with the fire extinguisher, pulled her out of the flat and then when back when it was burning to rescue Amy was...WOW, what a woman. I was shocked when Cal ended up dying from the explosion. I really wasn't expecting that. They were previews about the fire but I thought Carla would be the person to come out the worst. I thought the Nazir's have handled the whole thing really well particularly Yasmeen and Sharif. I especially liked the way Yasmeen was with Simon when she told him about Cal. My opinion of Yasmeen has changed a lot since she first arrived. Even Zidane has been a lot better than how I thought he would be.

I don't mind Maddie but was kinda glad she was injured in the other explosion just so it puts her out of action temporarily. She was about to foil Jenny's plan and I would like to see how that plays out. I do think it's a shame with Jenny as I quite liked her and Kevin together initially and thought they made a good couple. I also didn't like the way everyone ganged up on her when she came back. The issue was with Rita and nobody else's business. Even though Jenny was in the wrong I still found myself on her side versus Sophie because I just find Sophie so annoying so I was glad when she threw her toys out the pram when nobody believed her about Jenny then she moved out. It's a shame though because she is going to be proved right and it will be like.. I told you so! I am interested to know more about Jenny's back story. Her dependency on Jack made me initially think she had a son who died but I'm assuming what she said to Maddie it was a baby who died in her care.

I'm glad Owen left Anna. He deserved so much better. He gave up everything for her and she treated him like crap a lot of the time constantly blaming him for everything and biting his head off at every opportunity. He should have left with his ex wife to go abroad. I'm glad Anna has been left on her own to look after Faye's baby. A lot of the time I find her utterly repugnant but this hasn't made her any better. She's actually gotten worse because of the pressure from raising a kid, bringing up Faye and trying to juggle this with work.

I've found the dynamic between Callum and David fascinating. In one had Callum was prepared to make allowances for David where he wouldn't had that been anybody else purely because he was looking after Max. In the other hand the whole custody about Max thing has effectively become about power struggle and mind games. Such as turning up a David's whenever he feels like it, giving Max gifts to undermine him and engaging in a relationship with David's sister. You could even see it in Callum's eyes when he was staring across from David at the custody hearing.

I cannot stand Sarah or Bethany. I find both of them highly annoying, especially Bethany. I don't find anything likeable or funny about either of them and wish they would both get back on a plane to Italy. Sarah annoyed me intensely when she engaged in a relationship with Callum even after he admitted to giving David a kicking. And Bethany also annoyed me when she told Callum about David's misgivings and Calum used that at the hearing against David. They were both a pain in the backside when they initially moved into David's with Sarah refusing to move out and Bethany pulling all kinds of stunts to avoid going back to her mum when Sarah was still abroad.

Whilst David and Steph's brother also know about Andy's secret I wonder how long before everything comes out. It's bound to eventually. I thought Gail was kicking herself a while back when she let Gavin blackmail her and had she just waited a day or so (as he died in the accident) she would have saved herself a couple of grand.

[Red Ranger 1]

They are taking a long time to explain Deirdre's permanent absence.I guess it's coming, not sure if we've been given a date or not even though a few details have leaked out about the storyline.

I think Kal dying in the fire was pretty much an open secret given the information that had been given about his departure but I wasn’t expecting Maddie to go too, even though she’d also been announced as leaving. So that’s two (more) deaths that Tracy’s caused but it’s hard to see what consequences there can be. It didn’t look as though she started the fire by accident, just left a candle burning without thinking, so it’s not murder or arson and I’m not even sure it’s manslaughter. So while no doubt the truth will come out eventually…what’s going to happen then? Everyone hates her? Gee, I’m sure she’ll adjust to that…

 

Zeedan has stepped up to the plate somewhat in the aftermath. Simon hurting Leanne came out of nowhere and was hopefully a one-off.

 

Glad Michelle and Steve finally got married.

 

I love Sarah and I’m certainly not inclined to take David and Kylie’s side over her, but I’m not sure how I feel about her sticking with Callum. I liked it at first but, like Katy before her, she seems to be turning into a doormat who lets him treat her however he likes, which isn’t putting the character in a particularly good light. It’s a bit of a shame because I’ve wanted her to come back for a long time (Any chance of a reunion with Jason?) and I like the idea of her working at the Rovers, but there’s a certain aspect of “Print the legend” about her return, as if no-one working on the show now has a clue who she is. I get the feeling Tina O’Brien actually had to point out to them that no-one’s called her character Sarah-Lou for about 15 years, since they abruptly switched to Sarah once she actually turned up. I’m in two minds about Bethany, sometimes I find her amusing but I really didn’t like the way she got her own way and got to stay in Weatherfield by stabbing Sarah in the back (even if it was partly Sarah’s fault for copping off with Callum when she was meant to be working).

 

I’ve not been too happy with some characters’ reactions to Jenny and, even though she’s clearly unstable and has done some bad stuff, Sophie jumping to the conclusion that she was after Kevin’s money (er, what money?) seemed somewhat prejudiced.

 

Glad that it’s out about Andy not being Gavin and that it hasn’t meant the end of him. (In fact, aside from Michael, no-one seems that bothered.) I hope Michael and Gail can sort things out, and it’d be nice to see him and Andy reconnect even if a father/son relationship might be a bit too much to hope for.

[Slade]

I really enjoyed the funeral episodes but not because they were sad. I actually found them really funny or should I say more the dialogue with Tracy and Ken.  As much as I like Tracy I absolutely loved Ken calling her out on her selfishness.  And the scene in the church was brilliant where Steve was sitting right between them and looking extremely awkward and Ken was laying into her.  Tracy was just so self-absorbed that she couldn't believe what she was hearing.  Not sure what to make of her trying to turn over a new leaf.  I think I preferred the old Tracy although I did actually really like some of the scenes with her and Ken that have since followed and I like the way they are apparently getting on.  Wasn't expecting to see Peter.  Thought they could have maybe done a scene or two with Carla.

I'm kind of indifferent to Carla's gambling storyline but I did really enjoy the scene where she sacked Sally and gave her a serve in front of everyone.  It was harsh but I often find Sally quite pretentious and I'm not happy about her kissing Kevin when whilst being engaged to Tim (Although I don't want this coming out because (a) I really like the bromance with Kevin and Tim (b) I think that will end up pushing Tim to Anna which would be far worse).  I'm glad Carla didn't sell the factory to Alya as I find her quite annoying and I enjoyed seeing her sulk at Aidan being the new co-owner.  I'm am kind of glad Alya slept with Jason.  Can't remember what happened about the whole pregnancy thing but looking forward to when this inevitably comes out and stuff things up for both her and Gary.  It's especially worse as the Nazir's have fully accepted him.

I quite like Zidane now.  Really like the way he is with Simon and Leanne especially.  Unfortunately I cannot say the same about Simon.  I hate the way he's been towards Leanne and some of the scenes have been slightly uncomfortable to watch.

I quite like Andrea and was disappointed when she stole Lloyd's album.  And the way she just left like that just didn't ring true.  I was expecting Lloyd to put up more resistance than he did and fight for her to stay although he did call her afterwards even though he was drunk.  I don't like Liz but I actually really enjoyed the scenes with her Lloyd and Erica when they all got wasted.  I especially liked the part when Steve saying look what happens when I leave you alone with these two.  I was actually quite enjoying the interaction with Lloyd and Erica and thought they had chemistry so was disappointed when Andrea turned, got jealous, had a go at Lloyd and quickly left again.

I don't find characters like Kirk, Fiz, Chesney Sinead etc. that interesting.  Beth (in small doses) and Tyronne I don't mind as much.  However I did actually enjoy the camping trip.  I'm so happy that Craig met someone too.  Shame the romance couldn't have continued.  She was a nice girl.  I hope that everything will be alright with Hope but it's looking quite serious at the moment.

As someone who cannot stand Sarah or Bethany these last few episodes have been an absolute treat.  I absolutely loved Callum intimidating Sarah and making Bethany cry.  Sarah deserves it anyway.  She chose dropping her knickers rather than loyalty to her own brother so I'm glad this has come back to bite her.  Bethany is an annoying little oxygen thief so I was so happy when Callum filmed her delivering the drugs and used it to blackmail Sarah.  I'm hoping this comes out and they send Bethany to juvie.  My enjoyment continued when Callum drugged Sarah's drink then blackmailed Bethany into giving him a false alibi.  I really enjoyed the suspense in this evening's episode seeing Bethany absolutely bricking it knowing that she would have to fess up to getting Callum off the hook.  And boy wasn't I disappointed!  I was in stitches when Kyle hit the roof and loved every moment of it, especially given that they got the Champers out beforehand.  All this on Lily's birthday.  So Callum outsmarts them again.  Well for now anyway.  I don't think he should get away with what he did to Jason and it will be interesting to see how far Tony is prepared to take things.  But before that I hope that Callum makes Sarah and Bethany suffer some more.