Are the current producers ruining Home and Away?

[samdanfan]

55 minutes ago, Homeandawayfan. said:

Very true. Seeing as this thread is over 3 years old, in that time nothing has improved, apart from a brief period in late 2015.

1988-2008 was the best years. It has declined since 2009.

That can be said for other shows as well.,Sadly things have changed over the last few years. I do not see it getting better

[Skylover]

Apologies for the very long post ahead but I digress.

I just wanted to convey my feelings and emotions about modern Home and Away and how I feel the producers are ruining it. I’m sorry if I go over points I’ve already made but I want to vent my frustrations all in one go and let go of the harrowing disappointment I feel about losing a show I love. A show which continues to be ruined week after week, month after month, by the people in charge.

 

For me the thing that ruins modern Home and Away is the fact it has lost its heart and soul. Why does defined characterization have no place in the modern show? Why is casting beautiful people the most important thing to the show and realism is sacrificed to suit this? By this I’m talking about VJ. I’m sorry to bring it up again. The producers obviously loved Matt Little and wanted him in the show. But it just wasn’t realistic at all. They had set their heart on having Matt in the show but there are other characters he could have played. Ruining a legacy character wasn’t necessary. I’m sure there are plenty of beautiful actors between the ages of 16 and 18 who would have grabbed the opportunity to play VJ. As a result I feel robbed of a character I’ve watched growing up on screen. It’s like he left and an impostor is pretending to be him. Matt Little is so obviously 22 or however old he is now. To rub salt in the wounds they had him embroiled in this awful ‘not the daddy’ storyline at the mere age of 17. Not that 17 year old characters shouldn’t have storylines like that, but it just once again highlighted how the writers had thrown away VJ’s coming-of-age years in order to have him in adult storylines. Where does Leah’s character go when Matt inevitably tries to crack Hollywood? Years of story material rushed through in order for short term gain and to have Matt Little play this legacy character. I understand VJ and Billie have a fair few fans, but I’d hazard a guess there are just as many people, who, like me, can’t take them seriously.

 

Characters are treated as instantly replaceable by the writers. I know actors can’t be chained down and a lot of them want to try and crack the USA but this wouldn’t matter if the show runners tried to make the show consistent and run smoothly. Do they try and keep any actors for long? Neighbours seems to have some young characters stick around for 5 years or more, why doesn’t this happen on Home and Away? Have the producers just been unlucky? And if they have, why don’t they try and lure back some former characters to bridge the gap? They think plonking a new beautiful person in a random house in the Bay is enough to distract the audience. I am willing to suspend my disbelief, but when there is not even 1 household in the whole show which is believable, it starts to become grating. Granted bringing back Heath and Bianca was a good move in some respects. Good for the 2011-2014 audience. The problem is that the show didn’t bring them back because it respects its history, but because it’s under some kind of weird illusion that the viewers are obsessed with the criminal aspect of the show. What about before 2011?

 

How are we supposed to believe in characters who act as if they didn’t exist before 2011? The past is only mentioned if the writers want to force some of the long-term characters into a story about being in danger. Penn’s vendetta against Alf Stewart in 2010, because of ‘something he did in the past’, Irene’s son and his vendetta against her because she gave him up at birth. In theory Irene’s sexual abuse story could have worked. But they messed it up again. This was a story which could have produced story material for years. Instead any potential gain was thrown away in favour of short-term hysteria. There could have been a 2 or 3-month storyline about Irene having an alcohol relapse because she’s been forced to confront past demons, leading to a recovery and subsequent search for her long-lost child. Mick and Irene could have re-connected over the space of a few years. Instead they decided to have Irene relapse for a week and for Mick to be a crazed lunatic for a week, ruining any long-term potential. The backstory makes sense. It shows why Irene turned to drink and why she had such a volatile relationship with men. But over-the-top drama was the main priority here, just like it always is with the modern Home and Away. They don’t want to tell a good story. They don’t believe the show’s viewers are intelligent enough to watch decent storytelling.

 

A lot of the characters are there in name only. Alf, Irene, Marilyn, John, Leah, Roo. As many older characters are forced to work in the Diner as possible because the writers don’t understand how to do anything else with them. Hell I even saw Alf Stewart searching for potential bushfire victims in the season opener this year! I know this is something he’s done since day dot but he’s getting on a bit now and it’s horrible to see him forced into the OTT dramas of Summer Bay.

 

To counteract my negativity I do want to mention that I think Duncan’s return was beautifully written. His American wife was cast with an actress who could believably portray an American accent. There were a few months of Alf re-connecting with his son, the introduction to Alf’s grandchild, Roo being involved in things she should actually be involved in, like her brother and fathers’ lives, rather than worrying about people she’s not even related to. For me Duncan’s return represents what Home and Away should be – characters and their families, their pasts, the present and their futures, their mistakes, their fears. How they’ve grown as people.

 

Georgie Parker should be the star of the show. Summer Bay House is known to have a central matriarchal figure and Roo suits this role perfectly. Leah is shoe-horned in to the house due to the actor’s longevity with the show but Roo is a more developed, interesting and well-rounded character – or at least – she could be, and she carries a lot of history. Georgie has been loyal to the show for 7 years but Roo only seems to be there to deliver lines or have a dud relationship from time to time with someone who has ‘an exciting secret’. What happened to the fiery and manipulative character who made huge mistakes and left in the 80s? On the one hand I’m glad to see Roo has developed since her troubled days in the 80s. On the other hand - don’t get me wrong I don’t want her to go and stamp on Ailsa’s grave - they have an opportunity here to really explore her very flawed character. What happened to her between 1989 to 2010? Does she miss Frank? Does she regret giving up Martha? Why can’t Martha be re-cast? Jodi Anasta is obviously not going to return and the character returning would give Roo something to do. I know H&A has never been a show to focus too heavily on the older characters but there’s no reason why they couldn’t cast an attractive, young actor to play Martha (if that’s really what’s so important) while in turn giving Roo something to do at the same time.

 

Following on from this point, I’m just saying that Home And Away can do both things at the same time – it can use the current model of focusing heavily on attractive young cast members and focus on characterization at the same time. Back in the day you had Jack, Shannon and Selina, the young beautiful characters, but Irene and Pippa didn’t suffer for it or get sidelined. Their connection to those characters enhanced and developed them as characters as well, particularly Irene. John, Marilyn, Irene, Alf, Roo etc all have rich histories and connections to an abundance of past characters; Nathan, Damian and Finlay Roberts, Irene’s sister Wendy and nephew Nelson, possibly his children if he has any and her own grandchildren. Alf has Ric, Quinn, Martha, Duncan, Shauna, and many others. What happened to John’s daughter Shandi? Leah doesn’t mention her former stepson Ryan anymore. Did her marriage to Dan ever actually happen? Does she ever visit Vinnie’s grave? The show seems to have a false perception that respecting and exploring its history cannot happen at the same time as focusing on the here and now. These are not separate things. They really can exist together and they really can help the current show flourish. Believing in the characters and the writers characterizing them as real people will surely make the audience feel a lot more connected to them and make them want to tune in regularly.

 

Home and Away has become an Australian version of Hollyoaks. A conveyer-belt of attractive people with no personality, no quirks, no charisma. People reading lines and getting stalked, attacked, or trapped in a bushfire every other week.

[masterjai30]

1 hour ago, Edward Skylover said:

Apologies for the very long post ahead but I digress.

I just wanted to convey my feelings and emotions about modern Home and Away and how I feel the producers are ruining it. I’m sorry if I go over points I’ve already made but I want to vent my frustrations all in one go and let go of the harrowing disappointment I feel about losing a show I love. A show which continues to be ruined week after week, month after month, by the people in charge.

 

For me the thing that ruins modern Home and Away is the fact it has lost its heart and soul. Why does defined characterization have no place in the modern show? Why is casting beautiful people the most important thing to the show and realism is sacrificed to suit this? By this I’m talking about VJ. I’m sorry to bring it up again. The producers obviously loved Matt Little and wanted him in the show. But it just wasn’t realistic at all. They had set their heart on having Matt in the show but there are other characters he could have played. Ruining a legacy character wasn’t necessary. I’m sure there are plenty of beautiful actors between the ages of 16 and 18 who would have grabbed the opportunity to play VJ. As a result I feel robbed of a character I’ve watched growing up on screen. It’s like he left and an impostor is pretending to be him. Matt Little is so obviously 22 or however old he is now. To rub salt in the wounds they had him embroiled in this awful ‘not the daddy’ storyline at the mere age of 17. Not that 17 year old characters shouldn’t have storylines like that, but it just once again highlighted how the writers had thrown away VJ’s coming-of-age years in order to have him in adult storylines. Where does Leah’s character go when Matt inevitably tries to crack Hollywood? Years of story material rushed through in order for short term gain and to have Matt Little play this legacy character. I understand VJ and Billie have a fair few fans, but I’d hazard a guess there are just as many people, who, like me, can’t take them seriously.

 

Characters are treated as instantly replaceable by the writers. I know actors can’t be chained down and a lot of them want to try and crack the USA but this wouldn’t matter if the show runners tried to make the show consistent and run smoothly. Do they try and keep any actors for long? Neighbours seems to have some young characters stick around for 5 years or more, why doesn’t this happen on Home and Away? Have the producers just been unlucky? And if they have, why don’t they try and lure back some former characters to bridge the gap? They think plonking a new beautiful person in a random house in the Bay is enough to distract the audience. I am willing to suspend my disbelief, but when there is not even 1 household in the whole show which is believable, it starts to become grating. Granted bringing back Heath and Bianca was a good move in some respects. Good for the 2011-2014 audience. The problem is that the show didn’t bring them back because it respects its history, but because it’s under some kind of weird illusion that the viewers are obsessed with the criminal aspect of the show. What about before 2011?

 

How are we supposed to believe in characters who act as if they didn’t exist before 2011? The past is only mentioned if the writers want to force some of the long-term characters into a story about being in danger. Penn’s vendetta against Alf Stewart in 2010, because of ‘something he did in the past’, Irene’s son and his vendetta against her because she gave him up at birth. In theory Irene’s sexual abuse story could have worked. But they messed it up again. This was a story which could have produced story material for years. Instead any potential gain was thrown away in favour of short-term hysteria. There could have been a 2 or 3-month storyline about Irene having an alcohol relapse because she’s been forced to confront past demons, leading to a recovery and subsequent search for her long-lost child. Mick and Irene could have re-connected over the space of a few years. Instead they decided to have Irene relapse for a week and for Mick to be a crazed lunatic for a week, ruining any long-term potential. The backstory makes sense. It shows why Irene turned to drink and why she had such a volatile relationship with men. But over-the-top drama was the main priority here, just like it always is with the modern Home and Away. They don’t want to tell a good story. They don’t believe the show’s viewers are intelligent enough to watch decent storytelling.

 

A lot of the characters are there in name only. Alf, Irene, Marilyn, John, Leah, Roo. As many older characters are forced to work in the Diner as possible because the writers don’t understand how to do anything else with them. Hell I even saw Alf Stewart searching for potential bushfire victims in the season opener this year! I know this is something he’s done since day dot but he’s getting on a bit now and it’s horrible to see him forced into the OTT dramas of Summer Bay.

 

To counteract my negativity I do want to mention that I think Duncan’s return was beautifully written. His American wife was cast with an actress who could believably portray an American accent. There were a few months of Alf re-connecting with his son, the introduction to Alf’s grandchild, Roo being involved in things she should actually be involved in, like her brother and fathers’ lives, rather than worrying about people she’s not even related to. For me Duncan’s return represents what Home and Away should be – characters and their families, their pasts, the present and their futures, their mistakes, their fears. How they’ve grown as people.

 

Georgie Parker should be the star of the show. Summer Bay House is known to have a central matriarchal figure and Roo suits this role perfectly. Leah is shoe-horned in to the house due to the actor’s longevity with the show but Roo is a more developed, interesting and well-rounded character – or at least – she could be, and she carries a lot of history. Georgie has been loyal to the show for 7 years but Roo only seems to be there to deliver lines or have a dud relationship from time to time with someone who has ‘an exciting secret’. What happened to the fiery and manipulative character who made huge mistakes and left in the 80s? On the one hand I’m glad to see Roo has developed since her troubled days in the 80s. On the other hand - don’t get me wrong I don’t want her to go and stamp on Ailsa’s grave - they have an opportunity here to really explore her very flawed character. What happened to her between 1989 to 2010? Does she miss Frank? Does she regret giving up Martha? Why can’t Martha be re-cast? Jodi Anasta is obviously not going to return and the character returning would give Roo something to do. I know H&A has never been a show to focus too heavily on the older characters but there’s no reason why they couldn’t cast an attractive, young actor to play Martha (if that’s really what’s so important) while in turn giving Roo something to do at the same time.

 

Following on from this point, I’m just saying that Home And Away can do both things at the same time – it can use the current model of focusing heavily on attractive young cast members and focus on characterization at the same time. Back in the day you had Jack, Shannon and Selina, the young beautiful characters, but Irene and Pippa didn’t suffer for it or get sidelined. Their connection to those characters enhanced and developed them as characters as well, particularly Irene. John, Marilyn, Irene, Alf, Roo etc all have rich histories and connections to an abundance of past characters; Nathan, Damian and Finlay Roberts, Irene’s sister Wendy and nephew Nelson, possibly his children if he has any and her own grandchildren. Alf has Ric, Quinn, Martha, Duncan, Shauna, and many others. What happened to John’s daughter Shandi? Leah doesn’t mention her former stepson Ryan anymore. Did her marriage to Dan ever actually happen? Does she ever visit Vinnie’s grave? The show seems to have a false perception that respecting and exploring its history cannot happen at the same time as focusing on the here and now. These are not separate things. They really can exist together and they really can help the current show flourish. Believing in the characters and the writers characterizing them as real people will surely make the audience feel a lot more connected to them and make them want to tune in regularly.

 

Home and Away has become an Australian version of Hollyoaks. A conveyer-belt of attractive people with no personality, no quirks, no charisma. People reading lines and getting stalked, attacked, or trapped in a bushfire every other week.

This was a brilliantly written post and mirrors my feelings exactly.The main reason i gave up on the show was the amount of sex.I'm certainly no prude and don't mind a certain amount of onscreen passion but when it gets to the point where people are having sex in cars and lifts it just gets on my nerves.What happened to good old fashioned dating and romance?

[Homeandawayfan.]

Apart from Alf, the beach and Summer Bay House it is a completely different show. I am pleased we have 20 years of good episodes to enjoy 1988-2008.

May not all be Lucy's fault, maybe there was a new boss at Channel 7 who come in and is demanding crime, vice, sex and hot totty to boost ratings.

[samdanfan]

2 hours ago, Homeandawayfan. said:

Apart from Alf, the beach and Summer Bay House it is a completely different show. I am pleased we have 20 years of good episodes to enjoy 1988-2008.

May not all be Lucy's fault, maybe there was a new boss at Channel 7 who come in and is demanding crime, vice, sex and hot totty to boost ratings.

Well to answer your question it seems someone at CH 7 wants to bring back BLUE HEELERS as Facebook fans post all the time.

Here is my post about what wrong with the Bay and goes down to Ramsey Street as well.

Your right the show lost their heart and Soul. Casting talent and writing good stories is what they need yet as much as we would love to have our wish list of actors we have to be real. In 2010 CH 7 tried to lure a Neighbours actor to work in Sydney and they turned it down because Family didn't want to relocate which I hold NO hard feelings over that as its the official reason yet some actors now do not want to do TV anymore?

Among the problems the soaps have are losing people to the USA. as I was told. Its the dream of many to become popular and jump at the chance to do Hollywood. Yet some Aussie would never leave which is great. AS you said Edward Skylover at least Neighbours has been keeping their cast which Im pleased they doing as I suggested to work at making the actors happy so they commit longer. "The longer people stay the more the viewers invest!"

Yes you always have your "hotties" both male and female. what lacking is someone to stand out like a Sally or Charlene. Your right without Alf and some locations its a new show like a reboot as we say in America. At least Ramsey Street has the houses even though the people change. for both good and bad.

Bad writing again is one issue I take everyone to task for. both the show and casts. Yes I use to love Blue Heelers yet I moved on and the old saying be careful for what you wish for as I wanted more cops on Ramsey Street and Summer bay. I think I wished too much!!!

I feel bad some people are gone and could care less if others came back. the old days are gone and only saved online.

 

What could they do?

Well casting new people always a challenge and maybe they get a sexy Taylor Swift like hottie running down the beach. I love to see one day they find another young Melissa George or Simone Buchanan like actress who could have Their past  success. You think most of the Cast now would be given H&A good press yet that leads to them wanting to jump to other things Movies & USA?

My advice to the Bay is to cast a  couple who move from the city to the bay with 2  pre teen kids and for a change have a happy ending?

My advice for Erinsbough would be to Keep what they have and allow them to enjoy if they willing to work. It be nice to bring people back yet I worried the Dee storyline will have fans begging them to do just that and look how that is is being handled, It seems when they bring people back they mess it up.

 

In Fairness there alot of things that went on we fans do not know and I do think had some casting been allowed and people stayed thinsg would been different yet like real life things change and we have to either accept or move on to other shows as some fans have.

 

 

 

[Homeandawayfan.]

Well Charlie Clausen was in Blue Heelers and is now playing Zak in H&A, and many guest actors in H&A have been in Blue Heelers. It does seem a lot of Blue Heelers style lives on in Home And Away. Cops and robbers.

[samdanfan]

2 minutes ago, Homeandawayfan. said:

Well Charlie Clausen was in Blue Heelers and is now playing Zak in H&A, and many guest actors in H&A have been in Blue Heelers. It does seem a lot of Blue Heelers style lives on in Home And Away. Cops and robbers.

That's all You hear on the Facebook fans wishing it come back. It has!

[Homeandawayfan.]

Well at least the REAL Home And Away is being shown on 7TWO. Almost up to 1996. It is such a shame that H&A has been turned into a Blue Heelers/Underbelly clone instead of sticking to being H&A.

[Skylover]

I don't know what Bevan Lee is upto these days but IMO he is the last writer on the show who understood it.

[samdanfan]

2 hours ago, Homeandawayfan. said:

Well at least the REAL Home And Away is being shown on 7TWO. Almost up to 1996. It is such a shame that H&A has been turned into a Blue Heelers/Underbelly clone instead of sticking to being H&A.

I have agree and even Neighbours is sometimes yet not as bad. One thing going for Ramsey Street is they have better characters now and as some of you have said they staying longer. A little comedy wouldn't hurt H&A and Although I disappointed with both I am grateful for some who were good in the past. It would not hurt Summer bay to copy as i think with all the TV WEEK Press they get they feel being Number one they must be doing something right!