1994 Episode Discussion

[Dan F]

1 hour ago, Edward Skylover said:

I suppose the second thing is Shane and Angel, personally I find both of them a bit overbearing (do they receive more screentime than the others?)

From the last count I've got from Matt, which goes up to the end of August '94, they do currently hold the record for most eps for the year.

And I have to agree with you with regards to Pip and Michael (or Deb & Dennis rather) - as unlikeable as I've found Michael recently, they have been fantastic to watch. The breakdown of their marriage also has to be one of the standout storylines of the year, slow-burning and all the more realistic because of it.

[Trudy Heine]

As I remember Sally was kinda protective of Pippa when she first started seeing Michael, as she didn't grow up w a stable family. Don't really blame her.

[beau_t]

Yes, Sally is fiercely loyal to, and protective of Pippa. I love their relationship - hence my avatar.

[j.laur5]

But I wonder  if Tom was still alive and Tom and Pippa were having problems if Sally be still giving Tom same treatment.

[Red Ranger 1]

So, I'm still stuck back in the 1560s but... A few weeks in, I'm surprised at how much I like Curtis.Not that I remember disliking him, but he's coming across as a genuinely nice boy who isn't afraid to show his sensitive side.Shannon...hmm.She's got a vulnerable side which is quite empathetic (she seemed to start cuddling up to Pippa a bit too soon after they first met, but then I guess it's easy to forget how young she is and that she's just lost her mother), but she's also a bit bratty.I'm not sure pitting her against Alf straightaway was a good idea.I remember people making similar comments about the Sutherlands half a decade later but at least Rhys had a reason for being annoyed with Alf.Shannon really doesn't. (Incidentally, Alf catching Curtis and Shannon will always be entwined with memories of February half-term for me.Yep, no UK Christmas break in those days, we were still five months behind.)

I seem to be seriously in the minority here but I actually liked Frankie and am disappointed that after building up a sisterly relationship with Angel the show basically not only wrote her out but erased her from history.Actually, with her fiery redhead persona she feels a bit like a trial run for Shannon.

So far, I'm also more sympathetic towards Michael than some people on here.I think there's a real feeling of him as someone suffering from mild undiagnosed depression.He can be unlikable at times and he doesn't help himself by constantly bottling stuff up and then having outbursts, but I can believe in him as a good if proud man for whom providing for his family is everything, and not only is he failing at that but his family don't seem to appreciate or respect him.Sally's another one that's being a bit bratty and there's a feeling that, now she's the longest serving foster child by far, she's showing signs of being very proprietorial about what she sees as "her" family.Her insistence on bringing Shannon and Curtis to the Bay, which I remembered quite positively, came across as quite myopic, unable to see Michael's point of view or accept that he's doing what he thinks is right for the family.

I guess we're sowing the seeds for her feelings of entitlement about the household when Pippa leaves...and, conversely, for her taking it over as an adult.

[Skylover]

I agree with you about both Frankie and Michael. The actress who plays Frankie is very good. As for Michael, it almost seemed like he was bullied into taking on another foster child. 'How uncaringl' that he didn't want to take another one on, I don't really get how he was uncaring, after all Michael was going to end up being the main person to provide for them (yes, they get funding etc but still) and how many kids were therre in the house already? I suppose it requires a suspension of disbelief to an extent, as Michael seemed quite against taking more kids on right from the start when he met Pippa. Part of me wishes that when Pippa had met Michael, he was originally a foster carer too.

Having said all that, I suppose Michael always gave in because he knew when he met Pippa that a huge part of her life was fostering.

[bronson]

Where does Michael get off treating everyone like dirt, then when they reject his feeble attempts at reconciliation he cracks it. If I was Pippa I would have sent him packing ages ago!

[Skylover]

Sarah's (for me) pretty much the best thing about 1993 and most of 94

 

I'll be sad when she leaves.

[Skylover]

I was just looking at Shannon and Curtis on Wikipedia and the actors' pages say that Curtis was 14 when he started playing him and Isla was 18, if so it surprises me that they were playing a couple. I wonder if those ages are correct.

ETA: did they really just credit someone as 'porno freak' in the closing credits ?

[Dan F]

33 minutes ago, Edward Skylover said:

I was just looking at Shannon and Curtis on Wikipedia and the actors' pages say that Curtis was 14 when he started playing him and Isla was 18, if so it surprises me that they were playing a couple. I wonder if those ages are correct.

That's right, Isla said at the time that she found it rather odd to spend her days pashing a 14 year old when she was pushing 20, but her friends found it hilarious.

35 minutes ago, Edward Skylover said:

ETA: did they really just credit someone as 'porno freak' in the closing credits ?

I knew it was coming but my mate was quick to point it out when we were watching.

I mean yeah, one of them may have grown up into a bit of a psycho—obsessed with having violent showdowns with Brax—but still, a bit harsh to judge