Most Popular Character 2024

[Zig]

@Red Ranger 1can i say for a start that your write ups are iconic, i love them.

 

im also very surprised with who been in the poll so far as some people i didnt expect to see.

 

glad Michael was low as i didnt like him and at least Tom will be higher them him.

[atrus]

We seem to be down to the top 100 as of the next drop, so hopefully we're now through most of the really random entries. Like Lorraine Jensen. No offence to her but, while I do have the very vaguest memories of her anti-piano antics, I find it incredible that she would be among anyone's Top 5 unless they'd literally only watched the show during an extremely narrow window and have an inexplicably clear memory of it decades later, but... okay. Doubly so for Peter Bedford, who I absolutely do not remember! Not that I'm wanting Peter Baker to be awarded any more points than necessary but... might autocorrect errors have a part to play in some of these entries?

I'm taking Buddy as a protest vote due to annoyance over the fact that he's seemingly vanished without explanation. Personally I'm more annoyed that the entirety of Summer Bay High has vanished without explanation, but I suppose you can't vote for the entirety of Summer Bay High. Given Izzy's appearance too, I'm tempted to suggest that babies and animals should be banned (where do we draw the line? Would a vote be accepted for the shark that ate Rory Heywood?) but particularly with children that then becomes a potentially slippery slope I suppose.

Quite a few more really unremarkable regulars here - Scarlett, Angelo, Mia, Romeo, Harry, Peter, Geoff and Annie, Angie's twin cousin who I never quite grasped the point of, and the disappearing Matt Wilson - though given there have been upwards of 200 regulars in the show altogether and only 190 characters voted for including quite a lot of guests, it's going to be interesting to see who has missed the boat entirely when the full list is in.

Of those guests, Andrew Lawrence was a genuinely interesting one from recent times and one of the few characters introduced in the modern show who really deserves any sort of placement. Likewise Gary Morrow, I can definitely see why he's crept in; and from earlier days, Meg and Rosie.

Edward, Raffy, Adam, Nick, Sam, Jack, Floss and Neville would be higher for me, they all had something about them. Probably Will and Jesse would be too if only mostly for the staying power factor.

Edited December 11 by atrus

[Dan F]

Forgot to post in here yesterday, but all characters that placed at 100 and lower are now up

https://www.backtothebay.net/features/most-popular-character-2024/mpc2024-index/

4 hours ago, atrus said:

Doubly so for Peter Bedford, who I absolutely do not remember! Not that I'm wanting Peter Baker to be awarded any more points than necessary but... might autocorrect errors have a part to play in some of these entries?

Given it was the same person who voted for both Peter and Lorraine, who has been a regular poster in the Early Years threads, I think we're safe to assume it was written correctly

[Zig]

Was very happy to see that Cassie made the list today I had a feeling she would be the lower out of the Flecther Saunders Family.

 

Was very happy to see that both Jesse and Celia made the cut as was worried they wouldn't same with Nevile and Floss so glad they made it.

 

Wonder where Miles, Flynn and Tom will be on the list and which current regular will be ranked the lowest.

[j.laur5]

I really liked Floss's character. She had  great warmth about her but I can understand why Colleen and Celia  were better fitted characters.  They brought something different to the show as we already had Pippa and Ailsa as warm motherly characters. Celia and Colleen could bring more comedy, also Celia and Colleen could stir up trouble with their gossiping about people. Celia and Colleen could be quite nasty at times. 
 

I think Celia's character had more room for development and had potential but Fiona Space decided to leave.

If Fiona Space had stayed long term I think Celia would have had mostly Colleen's storyline’s and eventually work in the diner like Colleen.  I'd say Colleen probably wouldn’t be brought back as a regular if Celia had stuck around. 

[~Lynd~]

Not gonna lie I'm surprised a few of the current cast rated so highly but given what we've seen so far I think everyone must have.i'm interested in what the write up for them will be.

I'm also sad not to see a few because I think it's likely they didn't rate if we haven't seen them already.I didn't vote so I only have myself to blame lol.

Edited December 12 by ~Lynd~

[Dan F]

Characters that placed 80-99

https://www.backtothebay.net/features/most-popular-character-2024/80-99/

[atrus]

Definitely getting to the 'wheat' of it now, with most characters being ones that I quite liked rather than was indifferent to or couldn't remember! I guess Jack, Roman and Dan are the exceptions to that; I never quite saw the appeal. Flynn wins the prize for most incongruous recast, but probably a recast for the better nonetheless. Ash was one of those characters that I was comprehensively fed up of seeing because of endless crime-adjacency, but nonetheless I appreciated the performance. I'm amazed Bianca isn't higher given how she's always being vaunted as the doyenne of the River Boys era.

Jett's a great example of how the show's longevity can allow coming-of-age stories to be told in quite a deep and affecting way. (Not so thrilled at the 'joining the army and getting blown up' outcome but there we are.) Carly and Chloe are great (I had a total brain lapse over More Recent Chloe and had to resort to Google to get the reference!) and I loved Maggie too. Logan was reasonably decent for a modern character, pity about the vanishing act.

Hmm, it's interesting to consider how Kane's story would have played out differently now (because it certainly would). I tend to favour a pro-redemption editorial line, but that's not to say that all characters involved have to feel the same way, and it's difficult to imagine him being wholesale forgiven and smiling away in the opening titles in 2024. (And not just because there aren't any opening titles!)

[Zig]

Was so glad to see Flynn get as high as he did, very happy with that. A few results surprised me today. 

[Red Ranger 1]

13 hours ago, atrus said:

Hmm, it's interesting to consider how Kane's story would have played out differently now (because it certainly would). I tend to favour a pro-redemption editorial line, but that's not to say that all characters involved have to feel the same way, and it's difficult to imagine him being wholesale forgiven and smiling away in the opening titles in 2024. (And not just because there aren't any opening titles!)

It's interesting to compare with the way 2021 Home and Away treated Matthew Montgomery, who seemed no worse than Kane and had no more sinister intention than wanting to get to know his daughter, but because he'd done one rape twenty years earlier (in a similar case of convincing himself he had consent when he didn't), the show seemed to assume we'd automatically see him as a monster and be fine with him being bashed to death with rather flimsy justification.