2018 Season - UK Episode Discussion

[Red Ranger 1]

Okay, Ebony's behaviour gets ever more confusing. It doesn't seem to be a case of her turning "good" (which I'd actually not be wholly against) but it does seem like she doesn't want to kill Robbo.Is that because she likes him or because she doesn't think he's done anything to deserve it?(Which, according to her code, perhaps she believes Colby has.That said, what happened to punishing Tori, Willow and Dean as well?)It's hard to tell on what level she and Robbo were operating here.Robbo seemed to abruptly forget his suspicions of her and start opening up.Then again, establishing a connection with an aggressor is basic police procedure.

I actually rather enjoyed Olivia here: It was deliriously over the top but it makes a change from her obsessing about Hunter, or indeed Jasmine, Colby, Ebony or anyone else.(Sadly, the promo indicates next episode we're going back to her and Hunter having that same conversation they always have.)Alf and Ben's increasingly bemused commentary on the wedding preparations was also amusing, although I really didn't buy the pay-off that Brody's rolling in money and can afford to finance all Ziggy's mad ideas: It doesn't seem that long since he was scraping together the money to buy back Salt.

Didn't really get the "Ash goes surfing" cliffhanger.The last wedding he was involved in was Billie's, which would prompt bittersweet feelings at best, so I'd love if he was thinking about that but I suspect it'll be something else.

ETA: By the way I Googled "doughnut wall" and it's not actually a wall of doughnuts, it's a wall with doughnuts on it (they're, like, stuck on spikes). Which makes slightly more sense.

[Slade]

Ebony is probably one of the best things for me in H & A atm.  Great to see her in a bikini.  Can't believe Colby isn't suspicious of her yet.  I did find it really funny when Robbo was staring at them by the peer last week Ebony looked at Colby and said 'really'.  Not surprised John was so eager to dish the dirty on Robbo as despite his own indiscretions has always looked down on people.  I did really like the scene where they pretended there was some sort of romantic interest just so they could scope each other.  I also quite liked their interaction when they were playing pool and found Tori's jealousy of them spending time together really funny.  Even if Ebony hadn't been fit enough to play pool, Tori would have thought of something else to be suspicious about.

The big question for me is - is Ebony beyond redemption.  I don't think she's done anything too bad (I've made this point before but she's considering what she's trying to avenge she's gone way too easy on them).  She exposed Colby's ties to the River Boys which objectively the police had a right to know anyway.  And she's also committed fraud.  She did poison Robbo's drink but she changed her mind although that was only because  she empathised and connected with him.  I am interested to see if she can actually be reformed.  But she will need to get away from Hazel first.  Looking forward to seeing how things develop with Robbo.

[D.B]

Well, I'm glad that Ebony decided not to kill Robbo, but I am left in wondering why. Does she have feelings for him? Or that she doesn't want to hurt anyone other than her targets and she doesn't want any collateral damage? It is a bit confusing, but if this means we can start seeing a better side of her, I won't mind at all. It would be nice to see if she can become a proper member of the community. I really enjoyed Robbo and Alf's conversation at the start, it's good to see Robbo still getting on well with the community, and I was interested to see Ebony and Robbo talk about their losses. She actually seems serious when she said she understand and Robbo also seems to be losing his distrust for her and opening up. It will be interesting to see where they go with this. Though I rolled my eyes very strongly when she said Boyd didn't deserve it, when he did. Still, it appears that she is still after Colby. But seriously, wow, it's been 5 months since Kat died? 

Despite the fact that nearly every cent with Olivia I had to cover my ears, I did like how excited she was for Brody and Ziggy and planning the wedding. Alf and Ben's faces watching Olivia and Ziggy talking about the dresses- hilarious! It was nice to see Brody prepared to cover the wedding, and how he agreed to move the wedding for Maggie. Ziggy really has found the right guy, hasn't she?

Some very awkward stuff between Ash and Tori today, it feels like that Ash thinks that him and Tori  won't get that far. Or that he wanted that once for him and Kat, or, as you said Red, he thought of Billie's wedding and how tragic it was.

[H&Alover]

On ‎10‎/‎07‎/‎2018 at 14:06, D.B said:

 

Side note: did anyone else for a second think it was Ash behind the bar when Colby and Justin stepped in or was it just me?

I did and said so.

The River Boys have and do have their own code, which if you break you are out, but it seems Hazel's gang don't have any boundaries. That motel definitely not the one everyone else stays in, looked very tatty. I'm of the same thought Hazel had to have been within sight of Justin & Colby because she said 'I see you got my note' and neither of them thought that was significant, Justin OK we may let off but Colby is a cop.  I bet if Robbo had been there he would have had a good scan round the car park. She is clever, hasn't got away with all she's done till now if she hadn't been, probably just drove quietly out of there, not drawing attention to herself just before McCarthy and the 'cavalry' arrived.  She must feel spooked though to go down the let's poison Colby (and his flatmate) route. Ebony has been playing the psychological game, discrediting Colby and getting him suspended and now thrown off the force without him or anyone else knowing who was behind it. Her deciding against poisoning Robbo isn't going to go down well with mama. 

Ebony and Robbo's mind games were clever, he has been at a long time, playing a role, Ebony has personal reasons for it.  We know Robbo was being truthful about what happened to Kat, but we also know Ebony was being economical with her truth, yes her brother died, but it wasn't down to others, it was his life style and choices that killed him. I'm crossing my fingers Robbo will get the best of Ebony in this game. I also didn't buy the fact they'd been close. Her sudden change of heart was out of the blue, so what has she got in mind for him, still willing to poison Colby from what she said. I did have to furrow my brow earlier when Robbo was talking to Alf about someone having it in for Colby and Alf looked taken aback that why would anyone do that, has the selective memory loss struck again, it wasn't that long ago he and others were ready to string Robbo up because they all thought he was a hit man without knowing any of the facts.

Colby did push his luck, he was warned by McCarthy to stay out of it, he was in effect acting illegally and could have blown the operation, if there was one that is and any evidence would have been thrown out of court.

I don't think Ryder deliberately forgot Ty, he got genuinely caught up with Coco and her wedding ideas and anything that had occurred before went straight out of his head, signs of his ADHD or whatever it is still being around. I think I was more surprised his phone was turned off so missed Ty's calls, thought that was something teens had to be nagged to do from time to time. He was really sorry but Ty wouldn't understand that is the way Ryder is sometimes. It was nice to see him and Coco swapping ideas and enjoying each others company.  Methinks she is getting carried away with her ideas, though chocolate fountain is OK.  The look of panic every time Ziggy showed him another of Coco's fantasies.  I like he wants to be the traditional dad, Italian roots showing, but lovely Brody has offered to pay and Ben wasn't averse to the idea - they have become  good friends, I know how I hate it but for the fans out there -Brendy anyone? They could both chip in of course and they have two weeks!!!!!  I'm not expecting Olivia to do Ziggy's dress for free but mate's rates maybe and if Ziggy was happy with the idea good publicity for her. It's going to be a bit odd for her in a way seeing as it could have been her dress she was designing.

I don't think Tori meant to spook Ash in any way when she said she didn't want all that fuss at her wedding just making an innocent everyday comment, she did make that mistake with Nat so wouldn't go there again.

 

[Red Ranger 1]

Dean was a bit frustrating here, it feels like he really doesn't understand how serious the situation is and how much he and Willow are surviving hand to mouth.In fact, they're not even doing that as everything Willow gets is now going straight out again.I don't really see anything wrong with Jasmine's behaviour here, she wasn't even forcing the issue of the debt particularly.Willow has well and truly crossed the line now, if stealing from the kiosk didn't mean she was there already, and she's put Jasmine in an impossible position by forcing money on her that she knows was gained by stealing from people she likes and expecting her to be grateful.

I can see cases for either Justin or Mason as best man, but it obviously means a lot to Mason so I'm pleased for him.Hopefully he won't regret Justin convincing him to arrange a bucks night on the sly.The Hunter/Olivia stuff wasn't as bad as I thought it would be, but I was still wishing when Hunter started acting like this was an awkward moment that it turned out Olivia hadn't given the fact she never married him a second thought. As for Ash and Tori, they break up once a week on average so hard to see this one as significant. I did like though that when I thought Justin was going to have a go at Ash, he actually just spoke to him reasonably and was there for him as a friend.

[H&Alover]

Dean does talk the talk a lot about getting himself a job but hasn't walked the walk. OK I know as an ex con and an unqualified mechanic he'd find it hard to get a job in a garage that pays good money but heck anything  would be good at the moment Willow is funding both of them on well nothing. Dean soon finds out (as we saw) when Jasmine tells him about Willow's gambling, Dean is supposed to be her boyfriend so should know however independent Willow says she wants to be. Really not as good at lying as she thinks she is is she? It's not going take long for Mason, John or Alf to realise gear has gone missing.   It only needs for it to appear for sale on E-Bay and the jig will be up. Btw Slade did you notice Willow has caught the forehead clutching habit from Tori?

Robbo was down for the chop as Ebony told her mum he suspected her, but maybe she's thought if anything happens to him it would alert Colby.  I thought the original idea was for her to take her revenge on Willow, Dean and Tori too and was saving Colby for last, ruination then death!  Justin she has sorted by getting the compo out of him, does Hazel know about that btw? Tori isn't jealous of her, just like other women doesn't trust her. Hazel is your text book villain so bound to get her just desserts, we don't know Ebony's history but I'm pretty sure she hasn't been doing your average nine-five job, con woman/fraudster so will get caught too.

Methinks Tori was overreacting in wanting to apologise to Ash for what she thinks he thought was a huge hint she wanted to get married. It obviously had been on his mind but not for the reason she was thinking.  He's only just got himself out of a very dark place, breakdown, having anger management counselling so not fully healed yet.  He & Tori, despite their numerous break ups, do love each other just not at the same place yet and he doesn't know when he will be so not fair to either of them to even consider marrying Tori or anyone.  This break up does seem more final than the others, certainly more peaceful, no shouting,  and Justin was understanding at him telling him he didn't want to give Tori any false hopes.  I loved how Justin warned Brody & Mason to be gentle with Tori and to give her some space. 

Before that when Brody was being  gently pressured into choosing a best man I did think what's wrong with a best woman!   Rather sweet of Justin to step back and suggest it should be Mason, considering how Mason was towards Brody after the accident and everyone thought Mason would never speak to Brody let alone forgive him it was great that Mason was delighted.  Has it really been a year since Brody went into rehab - wow!  Unless she makes it back Irene will be disappointed to miss it.

I thought Hunter & Olivia's chat was rather poignant - him checking she was OK about sorting Ziggy's dress so soon after what may have been their day.  She was having a whinge about it having to be done in two weeks but I reckon she was loving it. Her teasing about was he sure he didn't want to chose a fabric I think showed she is now over him. Loved her being so bossy with Brody and ordering him to get his best man sorted.  Not so sure about Leah & Roo suggesting Olivia put her designing the wedding dress on Leah's blog, I think it would only be woman who are thinking of getting married soon that would be interested. Ziggy has to agree for a start and I'm glad Olivia said if she says yes it doesn't go out until after the wedding.

 

[christine king]

2 hours ago, H&Alover said:

Tori isn't jealous of her, just like other women doesn't trust her.

Yeah but Olivia, Jasmine and Tori didn’t trust her because she was spending time with the guys I.e. Hunter, Colby and Robbo. Tori’s reaction to Robbo and Ebony was weird considering she was on a date with Ash at the time but still cared enough to talk to him about it, that’s more than a friends thing.

[Red Ranger 1]

Alf's episode count this week:Three.

Well, Willow was being an utter cow here and is clearly completely delusional, convincing herself that it's not really stealing because she'll pay everyone back as soon as she gets that big win that she's bound to get soon.Jasmine's choice of Dean as an ally made sense on one level but hit a wall since Willow can twist Dean round her little finger and he isn't really mature enough to realise how serious it is, believing her when she says she'll get a win soon.As a result, Willow is able to convince herself that Jasmine's the one with the problem.That slap was completely undeserved and shows how much trouble Willow's having facing up to the truth, although with so many people having seen beneath the mask she's going to have to be honest soon.

For a while there, I was wondering if Mason might be better off approaching Dempsey on his own rather than have Hunter rather weirdly hanging over his shoulder: The conversation might not have been so awkward if it wasn't for the menage a trois. But to be fair, Hunter did eventually manage to get the conversation going and Mason did get a number out of it. (So turns out he didn't have to track her down at work, just hang around Salt waiting for her to come in again!)

At first the everyone-round-Maggie's scenes felt like a way to include a few actresses who were owed an episode, but it ended up working rather well as they divied up her to-do list between them.Maggie commenting that she isn't used to being part of a community where you can ask for help really did sum up what the show's meant to be about.

[D.B]

Yes, Willow definitely has gone down the deep end here, if stealing from the people who have given her a chance to make a living wasn't, slapping Jasmine unprovoked, when all she did was trying to help Willow, was very disappointing. And Dean is no help here whatsoever, pretty much encouraging Willow's addicting problem and doing nothing to land a more sensible and reliable source of money. What hope I had for Willow is slowly fading, which is very disappointing. She's making this unfair for Mason and John, she's making this unfair for Jasmine, and ultimately, she's just going to make this worse for herself and Dean, unless, someone will be able to pull her out of it.

It was rather nice to see Justin allow Mason to be Brody's best man, but really, I always would have thought that Mason would be picked. I've felt like him and Brody had a great brother-relationship, whereas Justin, to me, always seemed like a father figure towards Brody, so it was a good choice. Whether Brody will enjoy the bucks night Mason and Justin have in plan, though..well, we'll just have to wait and see, Brody never really looked like the type of guy who would have a exciting rampaging bucks night, instead having a quiet night in, so we'll see. It's great to see Mason getting another chance with Dempsey, hopefully we'll see more of her.

The Ash and Tori stuff- I feel sorry for both of them, but they break up nearly every single day, so it's hard to really connect with it.

It's lovely to see  Maggie getting some beautiful community support, and of course again with Leah and Roo and Marilyn, who always have great scenes with Maggie. This is really the main reason why I love this show so much, the great sense of community and how it all comes together in the good times and the bad.

[atrus]

So, Ebony suddenly got interesting. Were those hints of humanity we saw on Wednesday? It certainly appeared as if she was having pangs of conscience even when she was moping with the poison by the beach at the start - and then it seems we got confirmation when she changed her mind about bumping off Robbo. Hard to know exactly what motivated the switch, but I'd say their both having lost loved ones was a big part of it, with a bit of infatuation thrown in and possibly a dash of pragmatism too; it's hard to see how being lumbered with a dead body at this stage is going to help her snare the real target, Colby.

Meanwhile, we got thrown a lot of string-out-the-storyline-level excuses for Ash and Tori's latest break-up, such as that 'she's waiting to trust him' and 'he can't put her through it again' and other such emptiness, none of which really justified how things turned out, especially since they both continue to insist how much they love each other. I'm not saying all mutually loving relationships do work out, but there kind of have to be specific reasons why not, rather than just mumbled platitudes. Anyway, they'll probably be back together by Monday so likely a lot of angst about nothing.

Nice scene with the Morgans as they came together to congratulate Brody on his wedding and reflected on how far they'd come as a family. It would have been nice to have Raffy there, but of course she's still inexplicably at the Palmers', presumably with armed guards outside her bedroom lest Ty should try to sneak in. Although I guess she wasn't an OG Morgan, so it's perhaps excusable. I think Mason was exactly the right decision for best man; as Justin said, he and Brody went through a really tricky patch last year, and also it gives Mason a storyline whereas Justin already has plenty.

Not too interested in Willow getting further into crime to feed her gambling habit, or Jasmine getting even judgier about it. I'm not saying she deserved the slap, and I appreciate that she wants to help, but she's so arrogant and patronising in the way she hectors Willow about changing her ways that it's difficult to get on-side with her. I feel like she just quite enjoys being loudly pious, and that if she's really that incensed about the theft, she should just go to John about it and be done with it - whereas if she's really that worried about Willow, she needs to stop enjoying the sound of her own voice for five seconds and start listening, like a real friend would.

And Mason and Hunter are chest-bopping now? Seriously? There's something slightly irresistible about their Tweedledum and Tweedledee routine. Not so sold on Tweedle-Dempsey.

Oh, and another fashion design crisis for Ughlivia. Sigh.