2000 Episode Discussion

[Pierced Musie]

I thought I used to like Mitch, maybe this is the wrong time to see his character again, because he is acting like a know it all, who wants everything his own way and thinks only he can help people and shockingly people say sorry to him!

I feel exactly the same as you do about Mitch. I used to like him but watching these I find him annoying and more immature than Duncan. I have to say that I had the same reaction to Edward as well this time round, even though I always remembered liking his character before.

It's odd how feelings change on rewatching, isn't it?

[Pierced Musie]

Naughty double post but here is the episode guide for next week .

Monday 23rd Sept 2013 (04-08-00/07-08-00)
2890 - Vinnie tries to be a hero and gets called a pervert instead. Duncan offers Kirsty some simple words of wisdom. Judith and Joel take a bold step.
2891 - Joel and Judith have to deal with town gossip. Will takes his fatherly duties too far. Alf inadvertently brings Shauna and Gavin closer together.

Tuesday 24th Sept 2013 (08-08-00/09-08-00)
2892 - Brodie returns to Summer Bay. Vinnie gets his big break. Harry and Gypsy are the talk of the town. Gavin confesses his feelings for Shauna.
2893 - Shauna tries to resist her attraction to Gavin. Vinnie jeopardises Brodie's safety. The Stewart and Sutherland family outing doesn't go according to plan.

Wednesday 25th Sept 2013 (10-08-00/11-08-00)
2894 - Will continues to play dad, much to the chagrin of Nick and Hayley. Joel and Judith's relationship suffers more teething problems. The new surf club kiosk is officially opened. Brodie's life changes for the better.
2895 - Harry and Gypsy finally get what they want - but at a price. Will realises he's been too tough on Nick. Joel and Judith start anew.

Thursday 26th Sept 2013 (14-08-00/15-08-00)
2896 - Will finally asks Dani out on a date. Hayley does her best to keep Mitch and Brodie apart. Harry and Gypsy try to deal with their new living arrangement.
2897 - The twins share an uncanny connection. Gypsy and Harry finally reveal their true feelings for each other. Shauna tries to resist Gavin's charm.

Friday 27th Sept 2013 (16-08-00/17-08-00)
2898 - Sam returns to the Bay a new man. Shauna and Gavin's romantic evening is cut short. Gypsy packs her bags for the city - but will Harry let her go?
2899 - Leah is involved in a life threatening accident. Alf is outraged to learn of Gavin and Shauna's affair. Will tries to make amends with Dani.

I had forgotten about the Shauna & Gavin storyline .

[CaptainHulk]

Still hugely enjoying these episodes.I loved the way that Dani's insisting to Gypsy that she's not interested in Will, then Kirsty comes past and, completely unsolicited, goes "And I'm not interested in his brother."Still, she seems to have warmed towards Nick a bit since he got upset about his mum.The beginning of the friendship between Gypsy and Shelley, with Gypsy getting a job at the Drop-In Centre after impressing with her initiative.I always got the feeling Bevan Lee was trying to do the same thing when he put Belle in the Den in 2008, taking someone who'd been a boy-obsessed troublemaker at school and making them more responsible with a big sister role to the younger characters, but as soon as he left the show they took that role away from her.

The bonding between Ailsa, Shauna and Duncan actually works very well here and Ailsa's childhood home visit was rather spooky.It's perhaps slightly early for Shauna to start calling Ailsa "Mum" but Ailsa opened the door by introducing her as her daughter so it's understandable.Continuity mess, aside from what Dan just pointed out:It's obvious from the comments here that Ailsa's mother is meant to have died while she was in prison and it's heavily implied, if not actually said, that Ailsa was aware of it at the time.Yet when Emma turned up she told Ailsa that her mother died ten years previous, which was the first Ailsa had heard of it.(Given that Emma would have been born around 1972, which was clearly after Ailsa went to prison, possibly long after given she and her siblings were meant to be teenagers at the time, and she served seven years, it's actually stretching it for Ailsa to have still been in prison when Shauna, who can't be more than twenty-five and is probably younger, was born. I can't stand the confusion in my mind!)

By all accounts Ailsa had a lack of remorse (she mentioned in one of the earliest eps) for offing Mr. O'Rourke and was probably locked up longer enough to have Shauna.

[Red Ranger 1]

(Given that Emma would have been born around 1972, which was clearly after Ailsa went to prison, possibly long after given she and her siblings were meant to be teenagers at the time, and she served seven years, it's actually stretching it for Ailsa to have still been in prison when Shauna, who can't be more than twenty-five and is probably younger, was born. I can't stand the confusion in my mind!)

By all accounts Ailsa had a lack of remorse (she mentioned in one of the earliest eps) for offing Mr. O'Rourke and was probably locked up longer enough to have Shauna.

Okay, I looked up the episode where Ailsa's prison stint was first mentioned, just to make sure I wasn't remembering it wrong, and Ailsa says she was eighteen when she went to jail and was sentenced to three years, a lot less than I thought(and pretty much entirely down to the loss of remorse, otherwise she might have escaped jail entirely).So either Ailsa was only about 30 when the show started, Shauna's about 10-15 years older than she seems or the whole thing's a bit of a mess.

Irene takes the Pippa approach to grief:Shut down, carry on like nothing's happened and alienate everyone.Fortunately, it didn't last long and her realisation of the effect her coldness is having on Nick, breakdown in the water and visit to Ken's grave were nicely cathartic.And then the payoff of the ring turning up and Irene's subtle feeling that Ken is still watching over them.Jade's speech about other worlds was well-intentioned but Kirsty's right, Irene tolerated it rather than finding it particularly comforting.But the beginning of the bond between Nick and Jade was incredibly sweet and Nick taking comfort in the fact that Ken's a part of him was very emotional.Will and Dani finally getting their act together is about the only positive thing to happen to the Smiths and the way she's been supportive puts her in the plus column.

Oddly, I found myself on Mitch's side when he objected to Don's "String 'em up" philosophy, which I don't think I was on earlier viewings.It might have been inappropriate for the wake but that goes for both of them.And it does seem to have finally made Don realise what a pain he's been lately.Mitch also handled it well with Brodie;he was spot on telling Sally to stop playing amateur psychologist and it's a shame she didn't listen.Going to counselling does not mean she can do it herself, any more than being in hospital makes her an emergency doctor.But I was annoyed that Mitch was a jerk o Gypsy and she apologised, albeit in a light-hearted manner.Even more annoyed that he's somehow turned his and Hayley's disagreement round on her:"I wanted to comfort you and you pushed me away."Newsflash, Mitch:Hayley's the one whose father has just died and if she doesn't want your manly shoulder that's her prerogative.Alf apologising to Harry then being just as obnoxious next episode was disappointing, as was Joel learning absolutely nothing and making assumptions about Gypsy again.

After the poignancy of the first scene, Colleen acting like Les had just gone away for a bit was starting to get annoying so it's good she's worked out no-one's fooled.Vinnie's reaction to Leah inviting Colleen to dinner("What have I done to deserve that punishment?")and Shauna's reaction to her inviting her to stay were very funny.Even Leah seemed to realise her mistake very quickly.("I could hear myself saying it and I thought 'What are you doing?'")

That awkward meeting between Shauna and Harry indicated develpments and sure enough, by the end of the episode Gavin's wandered into shot virtually carrying a sign saying "I'm Shauna's next love interest".The actor has a difficult job playing a potential adulterer as an amiable everyman and it's not really coming off yet, as he kind of acknowledged.

[Jezz]

(Given that Emma would have been born around 1972, which was clearly after Ailsa went to prison, possibly long after given she and her siblings were meant to be teenagers at the time, and she served seven years, it's actually stretching it for Ailsa to have still been in prison when Shauna, who can't be more than twenty-five and is probably younger, was born. I can't stand the confusion in my mind!)

By all accounts Ailsa had a lack of remorse (she mentioned in one of the earliest eps) for offing Mr. O'Rourke and was probably locked up longer enough to have Shauna.

Okay, I looked up the episode where Ailsa's prison stint was first mentioned, just to make sure I wasn't remembering it wrong, and Ailsa says she was eighteen when she went to jail and was sentenced to three years, a lot less than I thought(and pretty much entirely down to the loss of remorse, otherwise she might have escaped jail entirely).So either Ailsa was only about 30 when the show started, Shauna's about 10-15 years older than she seems or the whole thing's a bit of a mess.

I thought that Ailsa was born in 1950, and therefore she would been in jail from 1968-1971 which is around the time that Shauna would have been born. I'm actually shocked she was only in jail for three years, I thought it was a lot longer to be honest.

It does seem a little messy as you say though.

[Blaxland 89]

No it doesn't add up. Things that weren't intended in the first place usually don't. Especially when a character is written so specificity for so many years.

Not a hint of it in the Morag/Bobby story and surely the conversation would of come up with Phillip Matheson when she was pregnant with Duncan.Especially as she was so worried at having a baby her age and with it being her first! And saying, maybe it did but we didn't see it does not ring true with other conversations the have had.

Honestly, I hope the show have finished with all the "shock" long lost relative rubbish. Its unimaginative and boring. The only ones that felt at all plausible were Morag/Bobby and Sally/Miles.

What are the chances of Alf having a sister and a wife both having secretly giving birth to child. Alf himself having two children he didnt know about, and a grandson.Then discovered he had another sister he didnt know about! Who in turn had another secret daughter she gave away! Also his dead nephew turned out to have a son nobody new existed. And his daughter Roo also gave her baby away.

Then theres Belle/Amanda Peter/Drew Brad and Rachel and there surprise sister. Blake and Karen/Roxy. The twin swap story. Tasha/Angie Braxtons/Kyle. and probably more.

This sort of tripe is the thing that separates good quality drama from a trashy soap.

[Jezz]

No it doesn't add up. Things that weren't intended in the first place usually don't. Especially when a character is written so specificity for so many years.

Not a hint of it in the Morag/Bobby story and surely the conversation would of come up with Phillip Matheson when she was pregnant with Duncan.Especially as she was so worried at having a baby her age and with it being her first! And saying, maybe it did but we didn't see it does not ring true with other conversations the have had.

I'm not sure about that. From memory when I was watching the Early Years, there was a specific episode in 1988 or 1989 when someone (it may have been Morag) asked Ailsa if she's ever had children before and she was hesitant when she said "no" and a lot of people saw this as an indication that maybe Ailsa wasn't entirely truthful when she said that, but it's obviously hard to tell whether the writers ever intended to introduce a storyline involving Ailsa being pregnant to Shauna down the track or it was just coincidence that Ailsa was hesitant in her answer and the writers in 2000 completely forgot about Ailsa's hesitance when she said "no". It's great continuity if it was intended by the writers.

[Dan F]

No it doesn't add up. Things that weren't intended in the first place usually don't. Especially when a character is written so specificity for so many years.

Not a hint of it in the Morag/Bobby story and surely the conversation would of come up with Phillip Matheson when she was pregnant with Duncan.Especially as she was so worried at having a baby her age and with it being her first! And saying, maybe it did but we didn't see it does not ring true with other conversations the have had.

I'm not sure about that. From memory when I was watching the Early Years, there was a specific episode in 1988 or 1989 when someone (it may have been Morag) asked Ailsa if she's ever had children before and she was hesitant when she said "no" and a lot of people saw this as an indication that maybe Ailsa wasn't entirely truthful when she said that, but it's obviously hard to tell whether the writers ever intended to introduce a storyline involving Ailsa being pregnant to Shauna down the track or it was just coincidence that Ailsa was hesitant in her answer and the writers in 2000 completely forgot about Ailsa's hesitance when she said "no". It's great continuity if it was intended by the writers.

Yes it was myself that pointed that little moment out in the 1988 episodes, very unlikely that they'd done it as an indication that she'd had a secret child, but it really did work out well with what transpired all those years later!

[Red Ranger 1]

(Given that Emma would have been born around 1972, which was clearly after Ailsa went to prison, possibly long after given she and her siblings were meant to be teenagers at the time, and she served seven years, it's actually stretching it for Ailsa to have still been in prison when Shauna, who can't be more than twenty-five and is probably younger, was born. I can't stand the confusion in my mind!)

By all accounts Ailsa had a lack of remorse (she mentioned in one of the earliest eps) for offing Mr. O'Rourke and was probably locked up longer enough to have Shauna.

Okay, I looked up the episode where Ailsa's prison stint was first mentioned, just to make sure I wasn't remembering it wrong, and Ailsa says she was eighteen when she went to jail and was sentenced to three years, a lot less than I thought(and pretty much entirely down to the loss of remorse, otherwise she might have escaped jail entirely).So either Ailsa was only about 30 when the show started, Shauna's about 10-15 years older than she seems or the whole thing's a bit of a mess.

I thought that Ailsa was born in 1950, and therefore she would been in jail from 1968-1971 which is around the time that Shauna would have been born. I'm actually shocked she was only in jail for three years, I thought it was a lot longer to be honest.

It does seem a little messy as you say though.

The dates don't really work:Shauna would have to have been around 30 in 2000, which is just about possible but she doesn't look it and she's sharing a house with Sally and Leah who are in their early 20s.(Kylie Watson was 22 at the time, for the record.)

[beau_t]

No it doesn't add up. Things that weren't intended in the first place usually don't. Especially when a character is written so specificity for so many years.

Not a hint of it in the Morag/Bobby story and surely the conversation would of come up with Phillip Matheson when she was pregnant with Duncan.Especially as she was so worried at having a baby her age and with it being her first! And saying, maybe it did but we didn't see it does not ring true with other conversations the have had.

I'm not sure about that. From memory when I was watching the Early Years, there was a specific episode in 1988 or 1989 when someone (it may have been Morag) asked Ailsa if she's ever had children before and she was hesitant when she said "no" and a lot of people saw this as an indication that maybe Ailsa wasn't entirely truthful when she said that, but it's obviously hard to tell whether the writers ever intended to introduce a storyline involving Ailsa being pregnant to Shauna down the track or it was just coincidence that Ailsa was hesitant in her answer and the writers in 2000 completely forgot about Ailsa's hesitance when she said "no". It's great continuity if it was intended by the writers.

Yes it was myself that pointed that little moment out in the 1988 episodes, very unlikely that they'd done it as an indication that she'd had a secret child, but it really did work out well with what transpired all those years later!

Yes there are other unintentional hints as well. In the mid 90s Ailsa has a conversation with Shannon about her past, she says she has moved on from it now but "there are still grey areas. People... places...." She could have been talking about the prison and the prison guard that raped her.

Also in 1988 she tells Alf "anything you've ever heard about being in prison it's ten times worse believe me". She doesn't elaborate but all these things help to back up her revelation in 2000, even if they weren't intended to.