DRW50

I'm sure it might be seen as too wacky or whatever but some fun wouldn't be bad, especially since the Slaters have not had any in years. Is she still going to be pregnant? Is it me or does she look like Wendy Richard (of the later Are You Being Served Years) there?

My guess is she would only return for two reasons. Phil's departure or Grant's return.

I know some wanted Peggy to have more scenes with the longrunning characters. I guess Ian didn't have a great reason to be there -- Janine ruined his life last year. Still it would have been interesting to see Jane's reaction if Ian had been in danger. I think they were only there at the end to show the various reactions of people in Walford. There were some odd moments, and I'm glad you pointed them out. The episodes weren't perfect. It's more the "how could they have Peggy leave with no money and we don't know where she went" (when neither of those is true) and the, "It was all so boring because no one died, how epic if Peggy had died in the Vic" (which is incredibly lazy writing on a show which has already decimated its past and part of its future through needless stunt killings) that annoy me when people say them. I agree with you that I didn't feel any real sense of danger with Phil in the Vic (and he should have been in the hospital in the next episode -- I guess they wanted him to stay at home for the last scenes with Peggy but they could have just said a few days had transpired since the fire). I did feel that with Stacey, mostly through Lacey's performance. I don't agree with the "Lacey is the best on the show and everyone else sucks" type of attitude -- frankly I think she's seemed at loose ends with her character for a long time. But she was very good in the fire episode and then when she convinced Peggy not to turn her in to the police.

I thought that made sense, to have the various characters who weren't at the party run out of their homes when they realized the Vic was on fire. That's the sense of community I've missed on EE. Glenda's appearance didn't really bother me either, although she should have been mentioned in the next episode. I didn't mind a lot of the stuff mentioned (and some was cut -- Peggy was supposed to try to use a fire extinguisher and Phil took it from her), but I wondered why the Masoods were at the reception in the first place, as they never go to the Vic, and Syed has no real history with Janine, beyond falling out with her a year ago.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4lGlE1Q6L0c&feature=related

Thanks. It was just jarring seeing Peggy that way. I tended to remember Yorke having her as more restrained.

I'd never seen any of the stuff where she smashed the Vic up on Christmas. Was that Robinson, or Yorke...? It doesn't seem like Yorke to me but then I haven't seen a lot of his stories for Peggy, aside from the one with Harry and the feuding with Sharon.

Yes but wasn't Sharon in a lot of ways often dependent on the men in her life? I think that this was worse on her return because there was no Michelle, and then with Anita Dobson not wanting to return, no Angie. I think she almost had to become about men, Phil, then that annoying fireman, then Dennis and Den. I guess the frequent absences and returns from 2001-2005 just magnified that.

Thanks for posting those. I can see why Barbara HATED the clothes Peggy wore early on. I thought the episode was very powerful and fitting for Peggy's character. I think that soap viewers have been so trained to wait for the next big death that it's a jolt when someone lives. There's a lot of talk about what a waste it was that Peggy didn't die and no one died in the fire and what was all that for. But the lack of death meant a focus on the emotions and the pain Phil and Peggy caused each other. It's kind of funny hearing the comments about not being realistic -- we all know how Eastenders is known for its realism. Loved the speech she gave about her mother. The scene with Sam was very poignant, giving Sam her mother's jewelery. Daniella has been so much better this time and that scene struck a chord with me. After the horrible and shameful treatment of Pauline and Wendy Richard I'm glad they gave Peggy such a moving and upbeat exit, and that shot of her looking back at the Vic, in tears, and yet smiling, as she walked away to her new life -- it was everything the character deserved. It summed up everything about her. I love the walk away/last look back type of exits. I'm really thrilled they gave one to Peggy. I hope that all the criticism they're getting for not having a slaughterfest won't deter them from being this brave again. I didn't cry but I did come very close. And with the self-parody Peggy had become at some points I wasn't sure if that would happen. These last few months have been a very strong goodbye to her.

I have a hard time watching, so I end up being a few weeks behind. When I do I enjoy some of it, there's some decent stuff, it's just hard to care about anything, or when I do care it's mostly being annoyed by something. I think they need to dial down the gloss on their new characters, and Brendan is just a creepy joke. I'm glad they are using some of the older characters, but for every Myra (who has had some entertaining material), there's Frankie and Jack who somehow still seem to be superfluous even when Steph is dying. I also wish they would write Tom out, I don't see where this character can go now. I still don't know why Gabby Sharpe needed kids.

A glimpse of the new credits. http://www.digitalspy.com/soaps/s13/hollyoaks/scoop/a275695/new-hollyoaks-titles-airdate-announced.html It reminds me of Desperate Housewives. I think that's one of the reasons I am not enjoying the revamp as much as a lot of people (many over at DS seem to love the show now and cannot get enough of Brendan, Cheryl, et al). The whole thing, when I watch, just feels generic. I'm not all that surprised to learn that Mitzeee was supposed to go on a Marquess project which didn't get off the ground so he put her on Hollyoaks. Her character, along with most of the Costellos, and Brendan, seem like bad parodies of a very cheesy primetime soap. I don't feel like any of this has anything to do with Hollyoaks. Everything is grafted on and shallow, which might be one of the reasons I can't entirely buy Steph's cancer story.

It's not pathetic at all. I also miss a lot of those characters. They never really leave you. I know the last episode of that was widely derided but I think it had a lot more heart and happiness than most soap finales, including ATWT's, most likely.

I don't see a lot of chemistry so far, although my watching has been sporadic. The problem I had when I did watch is the story doesn't suit their characters (online dating, really??) and feels rushed. They're two of the show's best actors so I hope this works but it's hard to get involved. I kind of would rather have seen him with India.

That will be nice -- I know it won't look that different but some other details might be nice. It will be interesting to see a new kitchen. I think that one has been around since at least the early Mitchell days. I can't remember if we saw it with Den and Angie. I wonder why people always overpredict ratings. People were expecting 10-12 million last night, which is difficult for any show to get in September, and now here we are again with people saying 10-12 million for tonight.

A few people noticed that Roxy was back to her 2007 look. Supposedly she and Kat are going to feud. That was the best Shane Richie's ever looked, BTW...

Well that was fun (although at first I thought it was going to be like that GL fantasy where Nola shot Quint). I liked all the people in the background doing the spaghetti Western reactions -- Jane's was especially good. What did you think of it? I'm sure it will be polarizing as these characters often seem to be but it was very eye-catching.

Well I would have loved seeing her run the Vic, but I know that wasn't likely. I hope she still might be able to work there. She could become a mother figure to Kat, which would annoy Mo, given their history. I'd also like to see David or Simon return, and see her ties to the Beales further explored. More with Carol would be great too. A story where they are thrown together. I'd like to see Pat have a partner too, that could be built up over time. Mostly I just want to see her as a vital part of the community and not going back to sitting around the house, raising Bianca's kids, and going on holiday all the time.

This episode was slow moving at first but still very strong, and then the last fifteen minutes, the fire, were pretty damn good. At first I felt like I was watching actors but then as it went on I was more and more caught up in the characters. There were a lot of little moments which seemed so right, like, as Y&RWT mentioned, Zainab shaking and being traumatized, and Jean trying to climb up the ladder to save Stacey. I'm really glad they had Zainab save Syed, as it shows that no matter what she said at a low point, she does love him. As also mentioned, having so many characters who were not at the party leave their homes to watch the fire was a great way to remind us of community, and is something I am thrilled to see on Eastenders again. I'm glad Ian was in there somewhere, since he's the only original cast member left. I wonder why Minty wasn't around. I guess he and Heather were listening to George Michael. Was Shirley there? I didn't even realize Jodie was there. In terms of storytelling, I think that having no one die was a brave choice, as it put focus on the death of the Vic itself. While one could say that doesn't mean much as the pub will probably be about the same after it's unveiling in a few months, it's still a big moment, and a major impetus for Peggy's departure. As much as I might dislike some characters, seeing Leon thrown into the flames would have distracted from the message. I've seen some "Was this better than the Dog fire? No." which I would agree with, but then, those were different circumstances. Barbara Windsor has been criticized for being so OTT and I can see that but that's what Peggy is. I thought the confrontation between Phil and Peggy was classic soap, melodramatic and full of pain and rage and a battle of wills. The only part I would have cut out was Peggy saying "let it burn." The scenes of Phil rummaging for money as the flames danced around him were chilling (although that money must have been hot). That and Stacey in hell were both very effective set pieces. I just loved that slap Pat gave Stacey, not so much because of Stacey as because of Pat being so full of fire. Pat is back with a vengeance and I hope it lasts. I'm a bit surprised they had Dot there, but at least they made sure she was out first and kept June Brown away from any health hazards. Oh, and I am really enjoying the camraderie between Sam and Roxy, and how Sam was trying to comfort her at one point. Sam's been very enjoyable this week. I kind of wish she were staying.

I guess we can see a reason why they didn't last long. I didn't mind the clone story that much, I have to say. I think because I saw Josh as a control freak and I bought he would try to keep Reva even from beyond the grave. Zimmer was annoying at first as Dolly but then got much better. I do think that the ending was a copout. While Zimmer did a good job in the death scenes, I would have preferred Dolly just move to some hot place, perhaps Rio, in homage to Josh thinking Reva was on a travel tape of Rio (was it Rio?), and then she could have popped up again every few years, like Serena on Bewitched. The drama between Frank and Eleni at the time I felt carried the show during some dull periods. Melinda was so powerful as Eleni when Eleni would stand up for herself. I have never cared for Melina in anything else. Sometimes I wonder if it's because I am still waiting to hear the Greek accent again. I have some of that on tape somewhere...

http://www.igs.net/~awhp/special.html http://www.igs.net/~awhp/mar1994.htm This is a bit awkward, but Anna Stuart's outfit is...interesting.

By the time I started AW was well past its prime but I really liked Cass, and Felicia, Donna, EW's return as Marley, and then Lila, and Paulina and Rachel, and I liked the strong acting and the friendships. AW did those so well, even up to the end, like with Jake and Chris. This got me started in the earlier episodes, reading about them, trying to watch some. Then of course Soapnet. Something I can't say enough is how important the Another World Home Page was to me in being absorbed by the show. At the time I had never seen such an extensive site for a soap. The only other one was the Edge of Night fansite. AW also had a lot of roles which were saved by the actors, especially Grant and Cindy. I have never seen a whole lot of affection from Lemay to Strasser. Not in his book or in interviews. I think it might be because she played a Rachel he did not create. I guess in some ways it's like the dismissive attitude some have towards Elaine Princi's work as Dorian. I just don't believe that Strasser played Rachel as only a meanie. I think any redemption of Rachel probably had to be there from the start. Otherwise it wouldn't have worked, even with a powerhouse actress like Victoria Wyndham. It was also Wyndham's Rachel who did things like send Alice a baby ribbon after she had had a miscarriage. Even though I was not a long term AW fan the show just got to me and even though it's been off the air for so long now, I still miss it, I still feel like it's a part of me. AW was so one of a kind and they had such amazingly complicated characters and underrated actors. And they tried so hard. You could tell how much many of the senior cast members loved and respected the show. They're the ones who kept it going long after NBC and P&G gave up. They should have at least brought in some Matthews for Josie to interact with when the character was all alone after Sharlene was written out. Guarineri was the producer when they got disqualified for Best Writing, wasn't she? It's interesting to hear Sloane say that she wanted to bring in more of a racial balance. I guess she might have been the one to do the Marshall Kramer story. It's a shame how AW went from a strong black presence to completely phasing out all black characters sometime around 1990. Still, they did start up again around 94-95, even if it wasn't enough. Compared to a lot of soaps over the past ten years AW was a rainbow...

Wow, Rauch destroyed her photos?? I can see the allergy now that you pointed it out. I guess we'll never know but I feel like Robin does not get enough credit for her work as Rachel. I don't believe that she just played a "mean" Rachel. There was a lot more to Rachel than this. Rachel struggled with feeling unworthy and with poverty and needing love. Clearly Robin nailed all of this because otherwise I doubt Agnes Nixon would have repeatedly helped her with jobs on AMC and OLTL. Thanks for reading all this stuff. I know it might already have been posted but I just had it and thought I might as well share it. I didn't start watching AW until years after I'd already been watching the CBS soaps but something about the show appealed to me. I guess we might all have our soap types. I think I was a P&G type. Too bad I missed their heyday.

April 26, 1994, AW's 30th anniversary. Primedia.