Quick Questions

[cymbaline]

On 08/02/2024 at 19:11, adam436 said:

It could have been an interesting story to go down though - Bobby struggling to fit in and adjust to uni, standing up to lecturers etc. I guess you could argue it would just be repeating her Year 12 though, but it could have been a catalyst for her and Frank's marriage ending.

If Neighbours hadn't got in there first with Charlene becoming a mechanic, Bobby could've gone down that road. It would've been interesting to watch her become a tradie of some sort and overcome the obstacles that a fiery, short woman would encounter. But of course, from a dramatic point of view, having her in the diner was a good choice. It put her at the heart of everything for a few years. 

[nenehcherry2]

11 hours ago, cymbaline said:

If Neighbours hadn't got in there first with Charlene becoming a mechanic, Bobby could've gone down that road. It would've been interesting to watch her become a tradie of some sort and overcome the obstacles that a fiery, short woman would encounter. But of course, from a dramatic point of view, having her in the diner was a good choice. It put her at the heart of everything for a few years. 

Agree. Putting her in the diner sure did make her the heart BUT the trade off was that there were times where she (like Ailsa) had "diner dependency syndrome". Nicolle was contracted to four episodes per week throughout her 5.5 year run; in those episodes where the characters closest to her didn't appear (e.g. Sam, only in 2 eps per week, Greg = 2-3ish, Don = 3), much of Bobby's contribution was to just to serve milkshakes etc. It almost became formulaic (i.e. "the diner's needed in this episode block quite a bit, let's stick Bobby in there because Ailsa needs to be in Stewart House scenes for a big Blake etc story"). Especially during periods where there was no big Bobby storyline.

As much as I appreciate the show was firmly teen-centric by 90', I still think they missed a trick by not having a bar for the middle aged & twenties characters to hang in (alas the Waterhole). Perhaps have it linked to the Macklin resort with Bobby running it (with or without Ailsa). Bobby had all the makings of a ruthless business woman (she was a Stewart after all!) but a stable, dependable little business like the diner hardly allowed her to show that side. 

Edited February 10 by nenehcherry2

[cymbaline]

They have Salt and the Pier Diner now. Maybe it was a step too far at the time but it would've made sense even in the early 90s. There were times when the older characters looked out of place in there, especially when they wanted to have a meal. A fast food joint with a jukebox and populated by teenagers wouldn't be most people's idea of a nice evening out. And if you were a teenager, would you really want to socialise in a place also frequented by your parents and your teachers? If you were to move Bobby forward in time, she'd be running Salt rather than the pier diner.

[nenehcherry2]

38 minutes ago, cymbaline said:

They have Salt and the Pier Diner now. Maybe it was a step too far at the time but it would've made sense even in the early 90s. There were times when the older characters looked out of place in there, especially when they wanted to have a meal. A fast food joint with a jukebox and populated by teenagers wouldn't be most people's idea of a nice evening out. And if you were a teenager, would you really want to socialise in a place also frequented by your parents and your teachers? If you were to move Bobby forward in time, she'd be running Salt rather than the pier diner.

Firstly, please keep posting, @cymbaline, because I just totally LOVE all your contributions on here!

Totally agree with all of this, as I always do with your responses! A bar would have also allowed us to see the early 20s characters being their age. Not playing big sibling / mini parent roles to the teens whilst equally being young, having a drink etc. I still intend to write a fanfic of Adam, Maz, Bobby & Nick heading to "the city" for a warehouse rave (the scene was HUGE in Sydney at that point). 

Speaking of the diner, the original idea from Ailsa was to have some kind of "drop-in centre for kids to hang out" (or something to that effect). In my opinion, the Diner was anything but that. It was simply a capitalist venture (complete with a very messy looking kitchen before the 92 revamp), designed to take all of their pocket money at the risk of diabetes. And, as you said, a café which catered for all ages. No youth "hang out".

Also, very random choice from a character perspective. Neither Ailsa nor Bobby had had any stated catering experience or passion for cooking before this point. So decide to open a café together. As you would do. 

Edited February 10 by nenehcherry2

[cymbaline]

They were a bit funny about alcohol in those days but it seems odd that none of the over 18's ever went anywhere for a drink. Well, apart from when they went on dates to Yabbie Creek offscreen. Alf only seemed to drink at home. I guess that because Home and Away was pitching to a younger audience at the time, they went for a diner rather than a bar or restaurant. If the Home and Away Early Years Instagram account (which I love) is anything to go by, Ailsa's heart wasn't really in it  The Surf Club probably became the youth hang-out, complete with a kiosk selling even unhealthier fare than the diner. 

And yes, do write that rave fanfic!

[adam436]

3 hours ago, cymbaline said:

They were a bit funny about alcohol in those days but it seems odd that none of the over 18's ever went anywhere for a drink. Well, apart from when they went on dates to Yabbie Creek offscreen. Alf only seemed to drink at home.

Lance and Martin were big drinkers in the early days too, but likewise, only drank at home.

It seemed the only "adult" restaurants were in Yabbie Creek, which we saw occasionally like with Steven and Sandra, Stacey and Jeff Samuels etc. 

[CaptainHulk]

The Diner was basically a hangout were teens kicked it but Ostensibly it was for EVERYONE. Once the kids buggered off back to school post-lunch, it was pretty much an Adult Zone until 3:30 when school let out.

 

On 10/02/2024 at 14:53, nenehcherry2 said:

Firstly, please keep posting, @cymbaline, because I just totally LOVE all your contributions on here!

Totally agree with all of this, as I always do with your responses! A bar would have also allowed us to see the early 20s characters being their age. Not playing big sibling / mini parent roles to the teens whilst equally being young, having a drink etc. I still intend to write a fanfic of Adam, Maz, Bobby & Nick heading to "the city" for a warehouse rave (the scene was HUGE in Sydney at that point). 

Speaking of the diner, the original idea from Ailsa was to have some kind of "drop-in centre for kids to hang out" (or something to that effect). In my opinion, the Diner was anything but that. It was simply a capitalist venture (complete with a very messy looking kitchen before the 92 revamp), designed to take all of their pocket money at the risk of diabetes. And, as you said, a café which catered for all ages. No youth "hang out".

Also, very random choice from a character perspective. Neither Ailsa nor Bobby had had any stated catering experience or passion for cooking before this point. So decide to open a café together. As you would do. 

Do it! I can just a see a scene where Maz is off her face after unwittingly ingesting speed/e/x/whatever you find in granny's cupboard, Bobby and Adam get suspicious (Maz is a lightweight but drugs on top drink would get her blitzered quicker and acting even ditzier), Nick realises  even on his night off he's gotta do some detective work.

My own ideas have yet to make it to paper (they include: certain modern characters NOT dying, a couple who were friends but go further than that with two other people in their clique now gone, a vengeful daughter, couple old faces settling back in the bay for goood, metafictional characterisations of people you may know ,oh and a long grudge that was never properly settled  despite dredging the ocean for one half the participants)  

 

 

 

Edited February 11 by CaptainHulk

[cymbaline]

Looks like you need to get writing too @CaptainHulk

[Luigi Severus Fletcher]

Anyone notice how similar Mary O'Brien was to Nola McKenzie's alias "Jean Carter" in Prisoner...? I know they were both played by the amazing Carole Skinner, but the characters were similar.

[Old H&A Fan]

Why is Sophie's baby "Tamara Simpson" credited to 2 people (Emily and Chloe), and why are their last names not mentioned in the closing credits?