Emmerdale

[Red Ranger 1]

Found the climax of the siege a bit plod-plod-how-many-more-minutes.The only good thing about Cameron dying is it means we won't be subjected to another nonsensical return, it was very unsatisfying on every other level and he didn't even manage to kill Marlon or Debbie which would have made it slightly less of a waste of time.The splashing around in water finale was a mess and his final decision to randomly touch a live electric wire was so farcical that I just shook my head in disbelief at the banality of it all.

It is kind of ironic that Priya suddenly starts being nice just before David dumps her.I guess he shouldn't have let it go as far as he did when he was settling for second best but now that we're finally there I hope he and Alicia make a go of things.Rather liked the way Dom decided to be the better man and walked away from them at the hospital.Missed Thursday so not sure if it was shown but I'm guessing from her smirk that it was Gemma that smashed the window, which I really hope gets some sort of comeback.I don't think Priya would have told Jacob but it was past time for Alicia to tell him anyway.

I completely failed to recognise Ross as Laurel's carjacker and, while I'd heard some relatives of the Bartons were turning up, I didn't know it was going to be him, so that was a double shock and well done to the producers for keeping it secret in the days when every plot twist is known six months in advance.Haven't liked Laurel for a while so rather enjoyed her being arrested:The fact she seemed to want Ross murdered didn't exactly win me over.And I seriously disliked the way Diane and the others turned on Moira at the wake.Seems a bit convenient that Jude announces he's leaving right when Ashley's considering going back to the church.

Alan's funeral was appropriately sombre but I could have done without Steph turning up:It makes sense that she'd be there but I never liked the character and I've always found it galling that with Terence and Tricia both dead she's Alan's only surviving descendant.Some nice work from Victoria, who's shaping up as one of my favourites:She got hate from some viewers for daring to answer Betty back but I love it and also that she's not afraid to tell Amy how wrong she is.I am really starting to hate Amy with this whole storyline, hers, Kerry's and Val's behaviour is utterly disgusting.I don't want them to take Kyle off Joanie but sadly I can't see how this storyline can end any other way unless they all suddenly gain a conscience or a shred of sanity.

[Slade]

Regarding the stuff with Amy, I think her leaving was the best thing. She'd just passed the point of no return and perhaps apart from a short stint inside or her getting some sort of help I'm not sure what they could have done to salvage her character. Val was just horrid immediately following her departure. Directing her anger at just about everyone and anyone with Eric receiving the brunt of it. Felt really sorry for him and kept thinking he should have ended things with her when she buggered off to Portugal and cleaned out their bank account.

I want Declan to get out of this mess he's in but boy is he making it hard for himself. And we have they guy who played Pete Callan from Family Affairs as a prospective buyer. Anyway I absolutely hated the way Declan went round to Katie's to basically grovel with Chas there. And I could understand him trying to trick her because if he had been honest no way would she have gone for it. It also annoyed me in the pub when Diane got on her high horse regarding him selling up. I'll mentioned what I said before and that is why should he put those people before himself. They all hate him and I'm not sure if they wouldn't do the same in his position. Then there's that little pr*ck Robbie opening his big mouth and giving the game away. So I honestly believe that this storyline will end up with Declan going under anyway.

I've actually felt a bit sorry for Rhona as of late because I honestly believe she is trying to do everything she can to overcome this drug addiction of hers. She's even not taking the antibiotics she was prescribed by the doctor for her infection just in case there's a risk of her relapsing silly as it may seem. It was disappointing seeing Paddy not believe her at first but I was almost jumping for joy when he had her back and took Leo back of Marlon. Marlon really annoyed me and it seemed as though he was making any excuse to not give him back. Even Laurel was being objective about the whole thing.

So Charity finally knows about Jai and Rachel. Wow she has got a real temper on her. Breaking the mirror in the bathroom of the hospital and then smacking Rachel. It's debatable whether Rachel deserved it but I didn't feel sorry for her for the simple reason that she thumped Megan a while back. I do think Rachel had a point when she brought up Charity and Declan though. Charity claims that her main gripe is that Jai kept quiet while she fessed up to sleeping with Declan and took all the flack from him but I personally believe even if Jai had come clean then she still would have walked out. I think if Jai had slept with a really attractive hooker it might have been different but she can't get over the fact that it's Rachel, someone who Charity sees as the lowest of the low. And Rachel's also given him something that Charity outright refused. A child. Even though it was understandable I didn't really like Charity's ultimatum with Lisa and Zak but I'm glad they didn't back down. And unfortunately Debbie's back and turning Charity's attention towards exacting some sort of retribution on Jai. See this is one of the reasons why I didn't want her finding out, a woman scorned and all that.

I guess one good thing about the truth coming out is at least Rishi isn't painted as badly as he was before. Was glad Priya was apologetic but was disappointed with Georgia. Blaming Rishi for lying anyway even though he'd just had a heart attack.

I wasn't sure if Rodney or should I say Hunter cheated on Georgia but if that had been me that blonde wouldn't have needed to offer me 3 grand to sleep with her. I would have done it for free.

Not sure I like this whole Priya pregnancy storyline as it seems as though she and David are getting close again so it's kind of back to square one. David is obviously doing it to preserve the baby but it feels like he's leading Priya on and giving her a false sense of hope.

[Pierced Musie]

Emmerdale is still my favourite UK soap but at the moment the only characters I actually like are Sandy, Edna, Moira & Cain (they kind remind me of Bianca & Heath in a way ). Oh yeah and Rodney the cad (tis awesome!).

Sandy just makes me cackle every single time.

I absolutely adored him at the speed-dating night.

[Red Ranger 1]

I found the conclusion of Amy's storyline vaguely distasteful.At least the show stopped short of actually letting her get away with Kyle but the sympathies were pointed in completely the wrong direction. It felt like we were meant to see Joanie as the villain of the piece for not wanting Amy to take her grandson, both Val and Kerry were utterly vile towards her and it felt like the audience were being encouraged to cheer them on.It made for extremely uncomfortable viewing.Can't say I'm sorry to see Amy going, she went from someone I quite liked to someone with very few redeeming features very quickly.

So, it's finally public knowledge about Jai and Rachel.Had to happen eventually and glad Rishi acknowledged that his cover story just dug a bigger hole for them.Rather like the fact that no-one really seems to have any sympathy for Charity.Even Debbie thankfully seems to be reverting to her pre-Cameron persona and despairing of it all.

I guess it's good that Priya's decided to keep the baby even though it makes things very awkward.The main problem of course is that she still loves David and is going to have a very hard time divorcing the fact he wants to be a father from the idea of them as a couple.It doesn't seem to have affected him and Alicia though and they do stand a chance of getting it right this time.

Declan's back to bordering on supervillain territory, although neither he nor Megan seem that bothered about him hitting her.It's actually pretty hard to work out who we're meant to sympathise with here.Katie's too smug to really champion, Robbie's a weasel despite his vaguely noble intentions and Megan's too shady to be a convincing martyr.Still, nice to see David Easter back on our screens and oozing screen charisma.

Was actually quite liking the idea of Laurel going to jail so her deciding to change her statement was just met with a weary sigh.

[Homeandawayfan.]

I had hope that the new producer Kate Oates would put Emmerdalre right. Some say she is doing great but I cannot see it really. Still too many fires, violence and gangster related storylines. I was hoping she would curb the tiresome big reveals and plots. I still find many of the characters unlikeable such as Declan, Robbie, Moira, Rhona, Priya and Ali. I dont know what women see in Cain Dingle. If I was a woman I would not find him very attractive, just average.

[Red Ranger 1]

I seriously disliked the way Diane bullied Katie into going to the Home Farm event when it was obviously going to cause trouble.Katie should have stuck to her guns and told Diane to go herself if she thought Victoria needed babysitting.So now Declan's been deserted by his few remaining allies.Gonna be a lonely Christmas.If Adam really likes Katie as he seems to, then he's an idiot for taking the bet with Ross.

Is Charity serious?A couple of weeks of making an effort and she tells Jai to choose between her and his son?I'm very disappointed that he didn't tell her to take a running jump and it's obvious that he isn't going to be able to stick to it for long.

Val and Kerry did something but my mind's starting to shut down whenever they're on screen.

[Slade]

I had hope that the new producer Kate Oates would put Emmerdalre right. Some say she is doing great but I cannot see it really. Still too many fires, violence and gangster related storylines. I was hoping she would curb the tiresome big reveals and plots. I still find many of the characters unlikeable such as Declan, Robbie, Moira, Rhona, Priya and Ali. I dont know what women see in Cain Dingle. If I was a woman I would not find him very attractive, just average.

I agree about the unlikeable characters. My list would be - Debbie, Charity, Bernice, Val, Kerry, Katie, Victoria, Vanessa, Ali, Diane and Ashley. Ironically though even though I dislike so many people in it, it is still my favourite soap at the moment.

As I mentioned above Charity is one of my least favourite characters and I do think there is a slight element of hypocrisy regarding the way she reacted about Jai sleeping with Rachel but I can see it from her point of view. If I was married to someone and they went and had a kid with someone else, I would be extremely unhappy and the child would serve a constant reminder of the infidelity. So even though it isn't Archie's fault I can understand Charity hating him even though I'm not sure I would go as far as disliking the actual child. I'm kind of on the fence with her ultimatum but it was obvious when she issued it last week that Jai couldn't have both. One thing that's annoyed me is Debbie. It feels like she's trying to constantly rile Charity up to exact some sort of retribution.

I actually didn't mind Ashley during his humble times when the stuff with him and Sandy became public knowledge. But now that all has been forgiven and he was given a shot at being a priest again he's gone right back to being pompous and sanctimonious. I really like Harriet. I think she is a breath of fresh air and I like that she has a different approach to things (Can't remember where I've seen her - Casualty? Holby City? Doctors?). I was almost cheering when she shoulder tackled Sean and got annoyed when Ali threatened to report her (maybe if she controlled her kids better he wouldn't have been in that situation in the first place). It will be interesting if Harriet decides to take the job offer as priest and sticks around.

I have tried to give David the benefit of the doubt many times but agree with what some of Priya said last night. He's not a bad person at all and there is nothing malicious about him whatsoever but he is completely and totally spineless. He got married to Alicia to help her out and didn't have the bottle to tell her during the marriage that he was in love with her. He got engaged to Priya and didn't have the balls to tell her that he was in love with Alicia. It wasn't until Alicia was at death's door and even then he completely sidelined his own fiancee. And he didn't have the backbone to tell Priya that he and Alicia are soon to be wed because he was worried about losing access to his unborn child. I actually feel sorry for Alica and Priya and don't think he deserves either of them although I really don't agree with Priya cutting David out of the life with their baby. Objectively speaking David's proven with Jacob that he can be a father figure and Priya is doing this purely because she can't have him not necessarily because he can't help raise the baby.

While I'm disappointed Megan's gone because I quite liked her, I'm glad she is out of Declan's clutches. She went out of her way to help him and remain loyal to him and he repaid her by knocking her about. And she still wanted to defend him in spite of that. I don't see anyway out of the hole Declan's dug himself and Megan's lucky she got out when she did otherwise Declan would have taken her down with him. I'm not sure what Robbie's role is now that Megan's gone. The only reason he's there in the first place is because Declan went behind his sister's back to sought him out but look how that's turned out. He hasn't really integrated with many of the characters and apart from Megan, I can't think of a single person in the village who likes him so maybe he's gone too.

I don't like Ross but looking at the way Moira's taken him and looked after him, I don't think he's completely beyond redemption. Even though the mess that happened with the farm getting raided and destroyed and Adam getting beaten to a pulp was down to him, I did agree that he wasn't the actual problem i.e. it was Cain as he was the one who went to those people and involved Ross in the first place. I think some time apart with Moira and Cain might actually do them some good. I think it's interesting bring John's brother and family into the equation. I'm presuming that they are going to feature a lot more heavily in the episodes at some point and there's more of a back-story.

[Red Ranger 1]

I'm glad the show stopped short of having Priya sabotage David and Alicia's wedding, that would have tipped her over into panto villain territory and made her a bit too hard to sympathise with.As it was, Val pretty much did the job for her.I'm glad that, broadly speaking, the wedding went off without a hitch.And, once again, in an era when every plot twist is listed in half a dozen magazines every week, a huge congratulations to the show for keeping Leyla's return secret.Those feet getting out of the car were obviously going to be someone and it did cross my mind it might be her, but her entrance at the B&B was still a major shocker.I guess it was a plot point that's been dangling since Jacob found out she was his mum and it was good to finally address it while leaving it open for a return at some point.

Charity has become seriously deranged in framing Sam in order to get at Rachel and the fact she wants them to run away rather than go to jail doesn't really mitigate.Sadly, on past experience I doubt any real comeuppance will head her way:If/when the family find out they'll probably not talk to her for a couple of weeks then forget about it.Declan seems to be wandering through it all on autopilot but his epiphany with regards his treatment of Megan doesn't seem to have extended very far.

The actress that plays Harriet was Sally Hunter in Hollyoaks some years back, Slade, is that where you remember her from?Alternately, she did have a guest role in Casualty near the end of last year. She's a potentially interesting character, she brings a fresh set of ideas to being vicar but seems to have trouble doing what the role requires of her at times.I still like Ashley though and think they make a nice double act.

Ruby being pregnant could be interesting so glad they got there at last.Finn was putting on airs and graces a bit so inflicting Val on him, and vice versa, could be quite fun.

[JimRRR]

Only saw 2 episodes last year....Could not get into it

[Red Ranger 1]

Well, Rachel's exit was pretty terrible.If that was one of Gemma Oates' favourite storylines as she claimed, I can only assume she didn't care about her character and was only interested in getting as much face time as possible because it made her seem absolutely pathetic.I kept willing for there to be some sort of twist, that she'd maybe confess but not go on the run, so Archie would stay in the village and she and Sam could be together when she got out.But no, she just meekly and stupidly goes along with everything Charity says, condemns her son to a life in hiding, deprives Sam of his new family and Jai of his son.At times I was left wondering what on earth the writers expected us to think:"If I don't do this, Jai wins!"she wails at one point, as if that's somehow worse than Charity winning. So Charity wrecks three lives and comes up smelling of roses.Happy days.

Up until the last few episodes, Val's HIV story has failed to live up to its promise.The spoilers typically didn't say what Ian's news was but told you everything else to the point where there was nothing else it could be.Given that Val's been a pretty unlikable character, shallow and self-absorbed, this was a chance to really shake the character up, give her a reality check and see a real change.Instead we've just had more of her being shallow and self-absorbed, burying her head in the sand, putting Eric through hell and "protecting" him by keeping vital information from him.Hopefully now both Diane and Victoria are in the know things will finally come to a head.Without meaning to be cruel, I hope she is positive because if she isn't then the whole storyline will have been a waste of time and she'll just go back to business as usual.

Not been too sold on Brenda's kleptomania or whatever you want to call it either.Whatever she's going through, she doesn't have the right to steal things that mean a lot to people in order to make her feel better.

Cain and Moira have turned into a surprisingly involving couple, there's a real chalk and cheese element to it yet it works very well so I'm hoping they do go ahead and get married and the James thing doesn't cause trouble.After the spiteful beginnings of Priya and Leyla's friendship, it seems to have developed into something genuine.Leyla's way out of her depth trying to deal with Priya's eating disorder though but what else can she do?Priya really needs to see a counsellor but she won't go.