1989 Episode Discussion

[dncllpyk]

Well it was over fifteen years ago and I was only a kid at the time.

[alexx]

I wonder whether in 391 Ray Meagher hurt his head when he was doing those pull ups and hit it on the roof. It didn't look scripted.

[Natasha]

I wonder whether in 391 Ray Meagher hurt his head when he was doing those pull ups and hit it on the roof. It didn't look scripted.

I noticed that too.

[Old H&A Fan]

Lance & Martin distracted him by making fun of him. Alf must have lost his temper a bit but he didn't burst into flame.

[English Invader]

Anyone feel sorry for Morag at the moment?

[beau_t]

Anyone feel sorry for Morag at the moment?

A bit, but the way she treats people you could call it Karma.

I found it quite haunting a few episodes back when she said that she and Bobby would remain sworn enemies and that wouldn't change until one of them was in the grave

[Skylover]

I feel sorry for Morag.

This is the first time I've ever seen the Early Years and I have to say, melodrama has been prominent in Home and Away since the very beginning. I mean, how many psychos have there been in the last year and a half? There was the Summer Bay Nutter, which graned was a very good story because it showed how appearances can be deceiving as actually Bertram wouldn't hurt a fly, but because Bevan Lee was at the helm I felt it ws much more character-driven and 3-Dimensional.

Then we had Gary Samuels, the priest, Dodge, and now this guy. Overkill?

Having watched most of the 1989 season now, I can safely say that I prefer 1988 overall. IMO it is far superior to '89 in many ways. I think that has a lot to do with Bevan Lee, as since his departure the storylines have been less relatable. I still think the show's a lot of fun in '89, but it's far more plot driven and has a fair few silly plots, i.e. Image with Marilyn, Lance and Martin. It feels very unrealistic. I don't know if it will sound strange, but I watched an '88 episode the other day, and there was a scene in Hogan's Store, and I noticed how that set the feel for the show in '88, with Celia at the heart of everything. With Celia not so at the forefront, proceedings are definitely less entertaining. The loss of Floss makes '89 lose that edge too, plus the introduction of the exceedingly bland Viv, even if Mouche Phillips was a good actress.

[beau_t]

I feel sorry for Morag.

This is the first time I've ever seen the Early Years and I have to say, melodrama has been prominent in Home and Away since the very beginning. I mean, how many psychos have there been in the last year and a half? There was the Summer Bay Nutter, which graned was a very good story because it showed how appearances can be deceiving as actually Bertram wouldn't hurt a fly, but because Bevan Lee was at the helm I felt it ws much more character-driven and 3-Dimensional.

Then we had Gary Samuels, the priest, Dodge, and now this guy. Overkill?

Having watched most of the 1989 season now, I can safely say that I prefer 1988 overall. IMO it is far superior to '89 in many ways. I think that has a lot to do with Bevan Lee, as since his departure the storylines have been less relatable. I still think the show's a lot of fun in '89, but it's far more plot driven and has a fair few silly plots, i.e. Image with Marilyn, Lance and Martin. It feels very unrealistic. I don't know if it will sound strange, but I watched an '88 episode the other day, and there was a scene in Hogan's Store, and I noticed how that set the feel for the show in '88, with Celia at the heart of everything. With Celia not so at the forefront, proceedings are definitely less entertaining. The loss of Floss makes '89 lose that edge too, plus the introduction of the exceedingly bland Viv, even if Mouche Phillips was a good actress.

I agree with a lot of that.

I'd also add that sadly Ailsa's character seemed to lose something when she left the store and opened the Diner. Apart from her post natal depression story (which was very isolated anyway), she seems to have lost a lot of purpose in the show and in the Summer Bay community.

I have to say that overall I haven't enjoyed the light hearted stories of 89 as much as those of 88. The bunyip story, the "Image" story, and so far the raft race story just haven't held my interest and haven't entertained me. In fact I find myself skipping some scenes.

And the overall plot of 1988 just seems to work better. It's like a self contained story with a beginning, middle and end, and in between we have excellent character development. 1989 is a bit more "plodding along" and seems to lack focus in some ways.

But a big tip of the scales for me is Morag. She makes 1989 Home and Away worth watching. 1988 Home and Away was just far too nice and "all's well that ends well". Well done to whoever it was who spotted the potential in her character in 1988 and brought her back properly. (I suspect it was Bevan Lee). And of course 1989 also sees the arrival of Marilyn, although as a character I think both she and the writers are still finding their feet. She is a bit hit and miss at the moment and is yet to become the classic Marilyn I remember and love. I think that happens more around 1990 and will no doubt be one of the few things keeping me watching during that year.

[Ryan]

All the villians mentioned though are very different though.

Bertram - OK, not really a villian, but perceived to be until his discovery due to a knock on the head.

Barlow - a man who looked like he was just hot-headed to others, but behind closed doors he was bashing his family.

Gary Samuels - a con-man really, who played with people for his satisfaction.

Rev Newton - a man with an overly strict punishment code.

Dodge - never that straight forward a character to evaluate - whether he was just playing everyone along or what.

Some of the problems with the more recent characters of this ilk is that they've been far more cartoony, especially during 2006 and 2007, the only way they could be more cartoony if they had a twirling moustache.

[beau_t]

Some of the problems with the more recent characters of this ilk is that they've been far more cartoony, especially during 2006 and 2007, the only way they could be more cartoony if they had a twirling moustache.

I completely agree. Bevan wrote a good villain in 2008 - Gavin I think his name was, the editor of the newspaper. He wasn't evil or cartoony he was just a guy who wasn't very nice and used his power as the editor of the paper to get what he wanted and it was delicious to finally see Leah and Belle win one over on him. It showed that villains do not have to be cartoonish lunatics.

Christine Jones was another example of this except when Bevan left and the new writers took over, they made her exactly that.

So while we're on the subject of villains (and trying to get this topic back on, erm, topic), do you class Morag in current 1989 episodes as a villain?

She was certainly a bit of a villain in 1988, the way she tried to steal Roo away from her family and the underhanded way she went about it (pretending to be on the phone to Celia making out in front of Roo that Celia wanted to lock her away). And she was definately the villain of the month in her 1993 stint, which I think is possibly the most evil she ever was (though I'm working from memory of seeing those episodes a long time ago).