2018 Season - UK Episode Discussion

[Red Ranger 1]

I'm still sympathising more with Chelsea than with Colby, who continues to be full-on jerkass territory especially with his "Get outta my town" attitude.It sounds like she refused to lie about his past to their superiors, which resulted in him throwing his toys out of the pram.Not entirely sure why she'd want him back but good luck to her, I guess.On balance, I like Alf telling her that only Marilyn calls him Mr Stewart: She's too old really to be calling people "mister" and it's a shame Sally never got the message.(Okay, letting it go.Until next time.)

Mason grousing at Brody for stealing milk hasn't got too old yet and we did see a flash of him still caring later on.At least Ziggy remembers that Raffy's related to them: A bit frustrating that Raffy accepts Ziggy's dinner invites but not Tori's (still no clue as to whether she knows about the IVF plans and I can't believe we got through the whole Dempsey storyline without any involvement from her at all which was a huge waste) but I'll take whatever scraps we get and it was nice to see some rarer-than-it-should-be interaction between her and Brody.I'd like it if they had a proper chat about the connection with his mother, since it's her mother too of course.Also not quite getting the negative connotations (was he playing guitar when he saw their parents killed or something?!) so hope we get that filled out.

[pembie]

Of what I have seen of this story now it's just so bad Tori was only on the waiting list for about a week and how impainet is she?, She should know it takes awhile she is a doctor haha 

As for Leah a person who wants to be a counseller what ridiculous advice look for someone you know maybe a doctor at the hospital really But then again this was Leah who said to Hunter he caused her trouble when first coming to the bay I say he burnt her house down ridiculous woman 

As for Robbo telling Tori he owes her one I don't think he meant as in giving her his sperm haha ridiculous woman 

As I say this story is so bad

[Razabaza]

Chelsea seems rather possessive and stalkerish. I wonder if she'll treat Colby like Sophie treated Dr Nate.

[Red Ranger 1]

Well, Brody being taught guitar by his mother makes his reaction more understandable.I think it's a shame that Raffy missed out on the discussion of her own mother by being sent to play with the other kids.It's also rather worrying that Brody had so much difficulty discussing it with Ziggy, although their affection for each other remains clear.And he does seem to have gained a new family in the Astonis, with Maggie looking out for him.

I must admit my sympathy for Ryder was slightly limited here.Raffy tried to involve him and, while it was a shame that they rejected his ideas, I think they would have given the shopping a miss if he'd made it clear he wanted to do something else with them (well, Raffy anyway, Coco might be another matter).It's a bit odd that, after spending most of the year hanging out with them, he's suddenly unable to find common ground. Maybe having Ty around for a bit has shown him what it's like to have a male friend and he's missing it?

Dean sticking up for Chelsea was interesting.Is he doing it on Colby's behalf or his own?She did seem to soften towards him a bit although I also like the way she doesn't give him an inch with the flirting.

[H&Alover]

Chelsea dumped Colby because of his prior connections with the River Boys and now she wants to take up with him again like nothing had happened and this was before she was questioned by the cops conducting his tribunal.  Colby obviously takes relationships very seriously and I think it takes a lot for him to trust people and he trusted Chelsea enough to tell her about Bella. She should back off a bit her following him around  like a puppy dog will only make him  dig his heels in more. She's still shiny!!!!

Tori would, I think, be more relaxed by having to wait except for the fact she has a fertility problem making it more urgent for her than it would have been normally and as a doctor she would know the implications.

Mason not surprisingly was snapping at everyone but I did see his point at Brody nicking milk he does have a restaurant after all and he can't keep using the house as an emergency shop.  He was a lot more sympathetic  later once he'd done his assessment.  It seems most of the family know Brody hadn't played guitar since their mum died. I think, from the talk Brody had with Maggie, playing guitar just brought back memories of a happier time. It was good Brody was able to open up a bit to Ziggy after the rest of the Astoni's had gone.  It always seems to be Brody who has these flashbacks, first when he had that fall while they were out in the bush and he remembered Kate and Decker having secret meetings which resulted in the discovery of Raffy, then his falling into using drugs to suppress the memory of seeing his mum and dad shot now this.  Glad he is confiding in Ziggy and Maggie, not a fan of people telling others 'it's what they would have wanted' but it may be true this time Brody's mum wouldn't have wanted him to waste his talent.  he opend a bit more to Ziggy, bound to be a hard thing to talk about but there's no rush he can do it in his own time. Btw I noticed Maggie called Brody a kid again - excuse me, he's 26!!!!! 

I did like the fact Ziggy included Raffy, I think a lot of people, even us the viewer,  sometimes forget she is half Morgan. Made for a lovely night and I liked Maggie's dress.

Raffy was genuine in inviting Ryder to join her and Coco the next day, but Coco didn't seem that keen, worried Ryder would take it the wrong way and think they could get back together?  They did shoot both of his suggestions down and he would have felt like a spare part going shopping with them.   Since Ty left he hasn't had a male buddy, though to be honest he didn't have a male buddy before Ty come along.  John trying to keep him busy at the juice bar wasn't working that well and his and Leah's idea of getting him into junior life guards also fell flat.  It looked like he was heading in the right direction when he joined the gym, but then went and broke the number one cardinal rule about not weight lifting without a spotter, even I know that. The guy on duty did warn him not to touch any of the equipment but this is Ryder we're talking about.

Now Dean has worked out Colby & Chelsea used to an item, he seems very keen on getting them back together.

[Red Ranger 1]

The overriding theme seemed to be people acting in a high-handed manner.I really don't like that John has apparently got some poor guy sacked for something that was Ryder's fault, giving Robbo a horribly slanted account and putting all the blame on the trainer.I should probably check but didn't he need to set up a class or something? Telling an idiot teenage boy not to touch anything was insufficient, but what was he meant to do, shoo Ryder out and lock the door? The problem seems to be that there wasn't enough staff to supervise everyone, and sacking one of the few guys they have is not going to solve that, but apparently Robbo just decided to fire the guy without even hearing his side of the story.Then John decides to try and tell Ryder who he can be friends with, leaving me cheering when Ryder told him to mind his own business.Alf was at least gracious enough to thank Dean for steering Ryder in the right direction, even if he then made it clear he didn't want them being friends...which, given Dean is up in court for leaving Alf lying injured among other things, is hard to argue with.And at this point I have to bring up Roo making a big deal of Ryder supposedly being better off with her than with Quinn, and then being out of town for a lot of the year, and not living with him for a fair chunk of the time she was in town.Mind you, I'd forgotten how serious Caroline's condition is: I'd somehow got it in my head she had MS but of course it's Huntingdon's, which is terminal, and if she's bad then she's probably not going to get any better.Talking of forgetting things, how long have those comfy seats outside the Diner been there? It's probably something I've seen loads of times and not thought about, but here I found myself scratching my head and wondering where Alf and Robbo were.

And then we have Justin, playing the heavy big brother with Robbo.It didn't come across quite as bad as in the promo, and he may have had a point in there about not leaving Tori dangling, but this is a pretty big decision for Robbo to make and he doesn't need Justin pressuring him, or demanding he cancel his plans so he can rail at him.Of course, the conversation is then so short that I'm not sure why Robbo didn't just run after Jasmine and catch her up.He's given Tori his answer and apparently it wasn't the one she was hoping for, but did she really think she could ask him to be a father again and then expect him to have nothing to do with the child?

We learn a few more details about Dean: He doesn't know who his father is, he's not on speaking terms with his mother but he does have her phone number.And he's willing to tolerate Ryder talking as though the River Boys are the protagonists of an Enid Blyton series.

[H&Alover]

The trainer was stuck between setting up  his class and  leaving Ryder alone or leaving his class waiting and getting Ryder set up an  easy exercise. Was that the first (and now possibly the last) time we've seen that guy? Ryder did confirm he'd been told not to touch anything so somewhat absolving the man of all the blame. Robbo was in a tricky position, does he overlook it and give the guy another chance or take the stance he should have known better and fire him?  I know Ryder keeps saying he's OK but he should get himself checked out, we all know from previous experiences, seemingly harmless injuries have turned out to be much worse. I liked how  Dean was concerned and even he  suggested to Leah he see a doctor, what I didn't like was Leah's attitude towards him, just ignored him. Leah seems to have gone into protective 'parent' overdrive, just as I thought she would once Hunter had gone and of course Ryder is the VJ/Hunter substitute .  I can understand her concern, he is kind of under her care, along with Alf during Roo's absence, but she really does push it.

Absolutely none of John's business warning Ryder off Dean and informing Alf - John - "'He's with Dean" Alf -" Dean Thompson!" leaving me to wonder is there another Dean we don't know about?  Then John, Leah and Alf gang up on Ryder and try and order him home to no effect.  So down to Dean to suggest to Ryder he do as they ask, Leah again ignored Dean but at least Alf had the decency to thank him.  Dean came over very nostalgic when talking about his time with the River Boys and how he and  a lot of the River Boys, I guess,  thought of their gang as a real family seeing as their own were pretty much rubbish. It was true with the Braxton's - absent dad, mum not able or unwilling to cope - they get together with other lads in the same boat and before you know it they become a force to reckon with.  Same it seems with Dean, no dad and not a good relationship with his mum.  He did appear to be talking about them in the past tense. Ryder didn't have a good relationship with Quinn, his dad wasn't around, but I thought it had been mentioned he drifted in and out of his life. He does however have Roo and Grumps and by extension Leah who do care about him so is luckier than Dean was.  I suppose we'll find out why Dean and his mum are estranged.   Must have taken a lot for Dean to ring his mum only for her to hang up on him.

Another side mention of Duncan and Caroline could that be a hint that Duncan and Bryce will be making a reappearance in the future after Caroline dies?

Although it's frustrating for her Tori is trying hard not to hassle Robbo, hence her cleaning frenzy, driving Justin up the wall. It is a big, no huge, ask so of course she understands why he needs to give it a lot of thought. She did give him a little nudge so maybe he could have got back to her to say he hadn't forgotten and was still thinking about it. That's big brothers for you,  sticking their nose in thinking they are helping, note he did say Tori didn't know he was there and rather she didn't, knowing he'd get it in the neck. Robbo's talk with Alf about  Ryder's lack of father figure in his life did seem to get him thinking about his own son and daughter and the fact they did briefly have a dad in their lives. At least that is how I like to think his mind was going.  Before we get to the big reveal to Tori we have to mention Jasmine who's going all girly round Robbo and despite her not convincing at all claims she just likes him as a friend, didn't fool Irene or us. Though even if they were just mates Robbo did 'dump' her twice, once for that talk/chat with Justin then because he was off to give Tori her answer which would be annoying. Yes that response, did take  Tori's breath away but as you said Red, they were the very reasons she picked him, she chose Robbo because he was a good man,  kind, thoughtful and had been a dad so would want to be involved, so what did she expect?  We are all jumping ahead assuming the procedure is even going to work.

The chairs, one of those things that have been there but for a while but you don't always see them, have they crammed them in with the tables and other chairs.  Rather like the Diner flat suddenly appearing! 

[Razabaza]

Is it just me or does Ryder suddenly look more mature? He's 23 in real life but passed easily as 16 last year.

[Red Ranger 1]

Alf's episode count this week:Three, and he was credited on Monday and Wednesday for no appearance.Dean was in four, although he wasn't credited on Wednesday.

I'm somewhat confused as to what Irene's playing at with Jasmine.She looked pretty bored in the opening scene as though she didn't really care about what Jasmine did, but by the end of the episode she was back acting like a Shipper on Deck and trying to force her and Robbo together.Maybe she's hoping that if they hook up she won't have to listen to her pining over him.Of course, Robbo turns out to have other things on his mind.As he said to Tori, what exactly was she expecting to happen?He was never going to let his child grow up in the same town as him and have nothing to do with them.So after a lot of consultation, she eventually agrees to his offer, just in time for Jasmine to get the wrong idea and Leah to think "Oh whoops."

In other news, it's increasingly feeling like Justin's regressed in his attitude towards Dean over the past week or two, which is disappointing after a period when they seemed to recognise they were on the same side.I'm guessing that Justin blames Dean for Willow being in trouble, which isn't entirely unfair although she played a big part in it as well.Even though he gets Dean back on track with some straight talking, after even Willow offering to throw herself under the bus with him for a second time didn't work, at this point it feels like he really is just doing it for Willow's sake.

[Slade]

One positive side-effect of the whole Mason/Dempsey thing is that Mason is spoke his mind re Justin/Willow.  I absolutely loved his 'Prison Barbie' remark and calling Justin out on how it is basically a bad choice dating her.

Have to admit, Dean made me laugh the way he was trying to wind up Colby and Chelsea re their relationship.  I wish Chelsea had done what Colby had suggested and just leave town.  If it was the other way round and he'd transferred to be closer to her like that, I'm sure he'd be labelled as a stalker (as another poster has already suggested).

John annoyed me firstly the way he was with the instructor when Ryder injured himself trying to bench press the weights and also the way he was when Ryder was playing pool with Dean.  I'm not sure Ryder should be hanging out with Dean given Dean's track record but I liked that he encouraged Ryder to do the right thing and Alf thanked him for it.  I'm really not liking this storyline with Ryder having no friends.  Although this really is just a consequence of him no longer going out with Coco.  If they were still together he wouldn't care about any other friends he may or may not have.

Justin also annoyed me the way he was trying to pressure Robbo into giving Tori an answer re being a sperm donor.  He failed to empathise that Robbo lost both his kids so obviously this would be a very difficult decision for him and he really needed to think about it.  He would be the same it it was Ava.  Although he did slightly redeem himself on Friday seeing it more from Robbo's point of view.  I assumed Robbo would say yes purely because Jasmine's decided that she definitely likes him now.  Although that was obvious from her disappointment that he was unable to hang out with her just as friends twice.

Didn't like the way Tori was when Robbo said he wanted to be part of the baby's life.  Although when he told her about having a business in Summer Bay and residing there and having to watch his kid grow up, she should have been able to see things from his point of view but it did require Leah and Justin before she was able to.  I'm glad they're going to do this.  Have to admit I really enjoyed when Jasmine was on her way to tell Robbo how she felt and she saw him and Tori cuddling each other.  It was made even better by the fact that Marilyn stuck her nose in (as usual) earlier on and said Jasmine and Robbo were meant to be together.  Leah's expression when Irene told her what Jasmine was about to do (knowing what Tori and Robbo are planning) was priceless.