Are the current producers ruining Home and Away?

[Little bean]

I agree with Luke. One of the main features of the show has always been the beautiful people. I don't think being too good looking makes viewers not like characters. I care about Kat a lot. (Nate.....meh, not so much!!)  I know here's a general feeling on this forum that the good old days were better but I do feel there's a bit of "rose tinted glasses" viewing going on. Personally ( and yes, I know I CANT say this, but here it comes, you have been warned) I never liked Sally. Not as a child, not as a teen and especially not as an adult. I'm not saying that to start an argument by the way, just to point out that we all have different views and enjoy different characters and SLs.

There's always been crime and there's always been a certain level of violence. Yes, in recent years there's been more but that probably reflects modern society and also changes to what is seen as acceptable viewing on a teatime show. I'm not a huge fan of it myself but I suspect that while the majority on this forum think it has ruined the show, many many fans around the world feel it has given it a boost. Heath, Andy and especially Kyle (again, a character I've never liked, because of his hideous treatment of Casey, but one who is very popular here) are the main perpetrators of the violence that in my opinion was too much. I'm not sure why you included Josh in your list Greg? To me he seems a sweet natured kid who has always wanted to get an education and become an architect but who has constantly been caught up in the violence and crime his brother has bought into their lives. He has been on the RECEIVING end of a massive amount of violence but isn't a violent person himself. The recent mention of the Pirovic murder (UK pace) set alarm bells off for me as I'm sure this is going to become an important thread that will once again lead to Josh paying for his brother's mistakes especially since 

Spoiler

Andy is confirmed to be leaving and it seems very likely that Josh has finished too so my guess is they both end up in prison for Jakes and/or Charlottes murder/s

 

[~Lynd~]

I've never been a big fan of Sally either.I don't actually mind violence if it'd done well but it hasn't been in recent times and people seem to get away with it and we seem to be meant to like them.I'd actually like them more if they were treated like the criminals they were.Johnny, Sarah and more recently Charlotte were great because they were treated like the characters that were being portrayed.It also wears thin after awhile.Like any show, it can't just keep relying on the same old shock tactics.They aren't shocking, they're stale and lame.

[Homeandawayfan.]

I have never been a great fan of Sally and dont see what many people find that is so appealing about her as if she was H&A. Until she was about 14 all she seemed to say was "Can I play with my dollies upstairs" or being told not to eavesdrop on adults convos by Tom, Pippa, Floss, Lance, Martin etc.

I think 2005 H&A was a different kettle of fish to 2016 H&A, back then there was much more warmth and family drama along with the dramatic plots. 2 things I dont like is the filmic look which makes the sets look dingy and the generic monotonous underscore music.

[Skylover]

I really like characters like Kat and Nate. They look like models but they're great actors too. I loved Sally too though. IMO the quality of the acting and the casting has improved in recent years. The Braxtons are good, but too extreme a lot of the time, but I've enjoyed their time on the show. For me it was the characters of Oscar, Evelyn and Zac etc that made me lose interest from about 2013 onwards, but I think it's more because of the way their entrance was sensational - at least with the Braxtons they had defined personalities but I didn't care about the Maguires at first and in addition to this we lost the Walkers and April/Bianca which for me were part of the modern day golden era (2011-2013).

[Luke39]

Yes,loved the Walkers. Still miss indi lol. I thunk the show needs a new family. Sutherlands etc. Thats my opinion. Miss April too. 

[Red Ranger 1]

I agree that actors cast for their looks is nothing new.I also agree that crimes and violence are nothing new.The problem is that, as Lynd indicated above, once upon a time the violent criminals were visitors and the storyline would end with them being dead or locked up.Nowadays, they're the main characters and their actions are portrayed as having no consequences.It's getting to the point where the "ordinary" people are outnumbered and also have to develop wilful blindness and dodgy moral compasses in order to accept people that ten or twenty years earlier they'd have driven out of town as part of the community.Attempted murder gets a slap on the wrist, murder gets nothing at all.Someone like Hunter is treated the same as Shane, Jack or Ric, someone who's a bit naughty and in need of guidance, when he should be like Dodge, the person they took into their home and family only to discover that he's a criminal who's destroyed lives.

At the risk of being a broken record re Olivia, I've always said that if you bring a character back you should bring the character back, not bring in some generic boy-obsessed teen who happens to have the same name, and in this case is played by a new actress so you haven't even got a connection to them on that level.I'm well aware that people who weren't watching in 2005, and maybe some who were, don't care if it's faithful to the storyline then, but that just underlines that it's a pointless exercise.I never wanted Olivia to come back because her storyline was over and bringing her back would just mess it up, as it has.Those who were in favour of it dreamed of another showdown between Irene and Diana but that's obviously not going to happen: Unless it's happened at Oz pace, Diana hasn't been mentioned once, when you'd expect her to be straight in there at the news her granddaughter is living nearby with a woman she hates.(Guess no-one's told her.)There's no point bringing in a character with history if you're not actually going to do anything with that history.

[Blaxland 89]

Yes. Actors cast for looks is nothing new. But way back when that look wasn't always necessarily the model look. Rather looks that would fit the character. And rather more interesting and individual looks. 

 

And I don't mean Ric Maddie Lucas etc era. They just remind me of some American teen show. 

[Pierced Musie]

I don't understand the hate for Ash to be honest. This is just my opinion but he is what Brax should/could have been. A character with a criminal past who knows he did wrong and did time for it. He has his dumbass moments when he reverts to his old ways but seriously... is he really that bad?

[~Lynd~]

15 minutes ago, Pierced Musie said:

I don't understand the hate for Ash to be honest. This is just my opinion but he is what Brax should/could have been. A character with a criminal past who knows he did wrong and did time for it. He has his dumbass moments when he reverts to his old ways but seriously... is he really that bad?

This.He's not that bad.He's just an easy scape goat.Brax can't take responsibility for any of his actions so it must all be Ash's fault.

[Pierced Musie]

And because Ash was introduced as Brax 's friend... he was always going to be hated by some fans.

Do you think he would be a liked character if he had been introduced as Jesse's ex cellmate who needed help?