DRW50

That timeslot was a bad choice for Corrie and then when you add in the competition from Waterloo Road and Come Dine With Me it gets even worse. And people say that the decision to have Emmerdale-Corrie-Emmerdale makes it even worse. The BBC has done a good job with finding a stable timeslot for Eastenders and a stable repeat timeslot too. It's strange because I didn't even think of this as a low-key summer until I looked back at the plots. There were some big shockers, like Owen being found, Denise "dying", Ben abusing Louise (although I think the show might forget that one), Ben almost killing Jordan, Ben being put in prison, but they have all been more about characterization and emotional fallout and relationships, not oh wow the diner is going to be blown up. I think it's been a breath of fresh air and has done a lot to help build up some neglected characters like the Foxes or Shirley. I'm hoping all the soaps are going to move more away from the stunts with nothing else going on. Budget-wise they may have to anyway. If Corrie could learn the same lesson that would also help improve that show.

I hated the way they made her look the last time around. I know they did that because they saw the character as trash but Sam had never dressed that way with Daniella or with Kim Medcalf. It led to a lot of nasty comments about her appearance. When she was on Dancing on Ice she looked much better. Thanks for that. The photo of Heather in tears made me laugh. I know I'm a bad person.

Eastenders is still holding up well in the ratings: http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/soaps/s2/eastenders/news/a245132/thursday-enders-miles-ahead-of-corrie.html I think this is the first summer in a few years which hasn't had a psycho blowing things up. It's made for a nice change, as most of the stories so far this summer seem more character-driven. I thought Mad May's return and death were a big waste (she had a lot of potential...far more than Dawn if you ask me), and the Nick stuff was a mess, so I think viewers might be happy the show has not tried for a threepeat. The ratings for Eastenders this summer seem more stable than they were last summer, aren't they? Or am I wrong?

I think what annoys me the most with Christian and Syed is this story is billed as some kind of fascinating tale about faith and Islam and yet they have barely ever shown any of that. They also didn't show Syed and Christian actually fall in love. They went to bed almost immediately and after that it was just months of Syed being ashamed of Christian, until Preeya quit the show and suddenly they had to end the story. That resulted in a lot of gimmicks to get attention, none of which were really followed up on (gay bashing, suicide attempts, et al), and then more time offcamera followed by a rushed reunion. It's like, how do you tell a story without ever actually telling a story? I know they're very popular but I swear this is one of the worst written stories I have ever seen, in terms of construction and pacing and characterization, the works. It's a story which seems to be just a press release. If not for Nitin Ganatra and Nina Wadia I would have skipped the whole thing.

I guess I enjoyed Dennis and Sharon more because they never really hurt anyone, at least not for a long time (they were together off and on for a while before Dennis started with Zoe), and I thought the actors had chemistry, although I know that's subjective. Christian and Syed have not only hurt people very badly, which of course is a natural part of soaps, but they also constantly pass themselves off as victims. Over time it feels like the show has started writing them that way as well -- perhaps they never saw Amira as more than a plot device and were surprised when some fans empathized with her and the callous way she was being treated. Better to move on from that and instead reframe the story to make it look like poor Chryed were tormented by bigoted Zainab. The other problem I have with them is that I have struggled to believe through their actions that they actually love each other. For months I actually had no idea whether or not Syed loved Amira. Marc Elliot played most of their scenes in a very couply, friendly way, as if Syed truly enjoyed being around Amira. I still think that someone at the show might have become concerned about that because it was only very quickly that he suddenly started being cold towards Amira, only a few months before she left. I have to admit that Eastenders isn't a show that I really watch for couples, mostly because in recent years the couples on the show have been so empty and so driven by plot, with the show not knowing what to do with them between the will they/won't they stuff ("Rack", "Phirley", "Bracey", "Manya" or "Tax" or whatever they would be called). Perhaps that is getting in the way of my feelings towards "Chryed." In earlier years, there were some I enjoyed, like Sharon and Dennis ("Shannis"), I thought they were fantastic. And going back, Angie and Den ("An" or "Dangie" or whatever). I don't mean to tack on to this but I will say that, as someone who isn't a Roxy fan, I think she's been better the past few weeks. That might be down to her not having a story of her own, so it's not the right time to say oh look, Kirkwood has worked a miracle, but I thought the scenes this week, especially the one where she fired Christian (unless I misinterpreted that scene), were very suited to Rita Symons.

Thanks for posting all this. I really enjoyed the interview with Andrew Moss. I think their best moment was Rhys being revealed as Noel's biological son, but the anorexia story was also very powerful. I'm glad Rhys will get a love interest and possibly be happy. I wonder who it will be? He's already been with Mercedes (I liked them together a lot) so that probably isn't happening. Carmel? Jacqui? Are there any other women who aren't leaving? Nancy? Nancy/Rhys would be interesting. I can't get excited about this Mitzeee stuff. I hate that name and saying Duncan will be involved is not a good way to start. The Costellos sound very contrived, I sure hope they will come across better onscreen. Is it me or does this new character Doug look like several men mashed together? Nathan from Emmerdale, and a bit like Guy Burnet, and his hair looks like a Frosty. The girl looks like Lily Scott from American Idol. http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/soaps/s13/hollyoaks/scoop/a244534/meet-the-new-hollyoaks-students.html

I thought most of the episode was good, with a few exceptions. It's difficult for me to care about Stacey's stories now, not because she's leaving, but because they're all very narrow in scope. Stacey has been such an isolated character since she returned from being sectioned, in part because her stories dictate her being alone, with all her secrets. Stacey is scared. Stacey is angry. Stacey is hiding. Rinse and repeat. I don't care about Becca but I wish they would have it where Becca actually turns out to be the one to help Stacey, and then Becca leaves to go be with family or whatever. Then Stacey and Jean leave town because Stacey has nothing but bad memories of Walford. Ryan learns he is the father but because of Janine's anger he decides he isn't going to risk the child's life by being involved. Christian's scenes really annoyed me. After all he did to the Masood family, and the pleasure he took in what he did, both at New Year's and the day he exposed the grand love affair, how bizarre to see him being so chummy and expecting Zainab to go along. Then as soon as he gets the opportunity to lash out, he humiliates them, and his beloved "Sy", talking about his sexual encounters with Syed, and in the pub no less. What about his concern for "Sy" when the man attempted suicide only a few months ago? Surely having a Square full of people gossiping about his ex-boyfriend saying that stuff in the pub would possibly drive Syed over the edge yet again? Then after Masood hits him, Syed runs over to Christian's to be as pathetic as he always is and we get scene #493 where Christian tells Syed to go away, complete with that ridiculous overdramatic collapse against the door. I can ALWAYS see John Partridge and Marc Elliot acting. I do not believe in their characters or in this great love story. All I believe in is that these two men have ruined the Masoods and it's a shame that Tamwar, Zainab and Masood are now barely allowed any purpose or personality of their own beyond reacting to this Gayhog Day crap. Everything with Ben being sent down was wonderfully done, the acting and the writing. Your heart goes out to Ben, even as damaged as he is, because he wants so much to be his father's son and to be tough yet he isn't, and this is still destroying him. When he gets out I guess they're probably going to have him going around knocking people around like Grant used to do, yet hating himself (as Grant also did). I wonder how Phil would feel about having Grant as a son? The way they included the whole family, including Jane and Ian, was just great, and there were some really well done, small moments, so sad, like Ben trying to shave and cutting himself, Ben giving Jordan his video game. Charlie Jones can be proud of these last episodes (I think he has one more). Of all his relationships I will miss the one with Shirley the most. I don't think it will ever be the same after Ben is out of prison. His lawyer had shoulder pads that Felicia Gallant would die for. Poor Chelsea. That scene on the swings was just devastating, and so was her hovering around the Mitchells like some cloud of death. You can tell how much this is all killing her and understand why she can't stay in Walford. Tiana Benjamin only ever seems to get notice when she gives a bad performance. She's been amazing lately and deserves recognition.

I wish Holly were a better actress. She's OK when she's screaming or having a breakdown but not with your typical dialogue, especially when she tries to banter with someone. Other than that the story isn't bad. Very good choice to continue to show Nikhil and Jai at odds after Nikhil's confession. They are so believable as brothers and the tensions between them seem just right, not too overdone. I really enjoyed the family day with the Wyldes. Natasha's attempt to have one last day with happy children was heartbreaking, and it was great seeing Nathan and Maisie mend fences and Nathan actually smiling and enjoying himself. The Wyldes are so believable as a family, I'm going to miss them if/when they're gone. Andy's control freak tendencies starting to return? I guess the relationship with Adele will be more about this than about an actual relationship, which is fine with me. I'm glad they haven't forgotten what he is like. Marlon and Rhona are a good couple. I know some people hate the Marlon comedy stuff but overall I think they've found the right balance between Marlon's clowning and pathos.

The problem is that the soaps which have come in recent years weren't successful (Crossroads, Out of the Blue, that really dumb show Echo Beach), and like in the US, a lot of the networks in the UK seem to think that reality shows are preferable. You have the knockoffs of The Hills like "The Lakes." I hope that they still have a chance in the UK because soaps are such a unique and special artform. Jack and Tony have never been superclose, Tony usually spent most of his time after his original friends left with OB, Max, and Max's father, but they have known each other for 15 years and are friends. There's some Hollyoaks stuff on Youtube from 2005 and early 2006 -- it's worth watching, even though the stories aren't exactly thrilling. The show is very different (aside from the silly "comedy" stories -- although those weren't as aggressively sexual as they are now), but it's very interesting to watch. Tony is much more neurotic and more of a comedy character. They brought in Dom to be the anti-Tony, in some ways. They also seemed to want a triangle between Tony, Dom, and Tony's wife, Mandy. I guess after Mandy left the show they decided there was no reason for the two brothers to be opposites and Dom became much nerdier in order to start the story with Tina McQueen. This worked for a while but in the long run I think it's one of the reasons Dom hasn't had anything to do in a long time.

I'm still hoping they might keep Kyle around. We should both do that "power of visualization" thing and assume that Kyle might stay and Dave might stay (he's in the new 5 minute spinoff at least) and Duncan won't come back. Surely we have enough power over space and time for this to work, right? The stuff with Kyle and Anita didn't quite work for me but his scene with Theresa was great, very tense and genuinely frightening. As for Anita, this was actually pretty low-key by her standards. Thanks for the warning about Leo's tooth, but even then I was a bit startled. So let me guess, Lauren will have to go somewhere to get treatment for her head injury and Leo and Sasha will go with her? Spencer too I guess? I'm just glad they're almost gone. I can't take anymore of Sasha's judgmental attitude -- the man she worships, Warren, did some horrible things. I think the scenes with Cheryl and Jack were supposed to be comedy. Unfortunately, like the scenes where Cheryl thought she was a lesbian, she took everything so seriously she came across looking like an ass, and the scenes went on and on. The arrogance of this woman to believe that Jack was fixated on her when she doesn't do her own washing and she can't lock a door while she's changing? And she won big money but she won't pay rent. Ridiculous. She's just unbearable. At least Jack had a scene with Tony, which is very rare. Did you see the scenes where Dominic first showed up, back in September 2005 or so? He was much more confident and Tony felt threatened by him. I think that making him an even more awkward version of Tony was a mistake. It's interesting how they had Cindy try to be polite but then she couldn't take any more. Pregnancy does make some women look different doesn't it? She still looks good but her face is different. The hair is very Robert Palmer video. I laughed when she told Theresa how fat she looked, as Theresa is covering up a pregnancy. Nice in-joke there. The ratings for the show have been over 1 million every day this week, I think about 1.1-1.2 million or more. That's pretty decent considering the show was getting down to about 700K only a few weeks ago. I know the show hasn't drastically improved in quality but I hope the viewers will stay, and continue to come back to the show. I don't want to see it canceled. I'm surprised they're bringing Lee back in that, since a lot of fans won't see the spinoff. I just wish that Dave being included meant he was staying around...

That's great. Is

Another online spinoff is starting in August: http://www.e4.com/blog/hollyoaks/post/sf1et3sgkbdebajbluzri1/view.e4

It was nice to see Sally back on the Street. She's such a great character and when the other stories seem so thin (I can't believe a week of episodes have involved John lying about selling furniture -- and since when would Anna behave that way, flopping all over store couches, when she has always been ashamed of Eddie for such a display), what she's gone through is a dose of reality. I like the Webster family dynamics, they're always believable as a boisterous yet loving family. While I'm glad that Carla got her own back against Nick's petty attempt to steal her business, I wouldn't have minded if Nick had punched Sean. So smug and so fake and as always he seems to be some kind of creation of someone who has only ever seen parodies of Men on Film. They apparently decided he was so annoying they could use him to make people feel sorry for Graeme...didn't work for me though. Speaking of Graeme, yet again this story seems to be told almost entirely from Graeme's point of view. He and Tina have barely been together a few weeks yet he's already going on about how he loves her and what if she doesn't love him. He is way too obsessed with her and it's creepy, IMO. Speaking of creepy...Nick with those damn tears in his eyes when Carla takes his business. Surely we're not supposed to see Nick as the heir to Falling Down, are we? That endless, weird intensity makes him seem like both a joke and a nightmare. And why is he suddenly obsessed with Leanne, declaring his love for her after about a week, when a) he barely noticed her for over six months after returning to Weatherfield and b ) he never really liked her all that much, even when they were married, during the last time the character was on the show? He has more chemistry with Carla, not that I want them together either, she's had enough trauma. Jane Danson did a fabulous job with the scenes where Natasha told Nick that Leanne was an ex-prostitute. The scenes where she wept and Peter had to comfort her were brilliantly done. Some of the best stuff on the show in ages. I wish they would stop having Simon make cutesy and smart aleck, precocious comments all the time.

I thought she was all wrong for Vicky. I thought she had a strange voice and she was a weird combo of too weak and yet brittle. I think they also ended up showing the world her panties when Adam (hated him) carried her away for yet another failed experiment. She might have worked in another role but by that time Victoria had become a very bland character and I think it was mostly Moltke which kept her together. The only story I was looking forward to was her being revealed as Liz's daughter and that wouldn't have had much impact with a new recast.

I imagine that they probably initially considered keeping Victoria around, but quickly realized this wasn't going to work. Victoria basically was Alexandra Moltke. If they had brought in Carolyn Groves from immediately after Alexandra's departure, that might have worked, although Vicky still would have been a reduced presence. But hiring Ruth Buzzi Jr? No thanks. I think the story worked as well with Maggie as it would have with Vicky. Vicky and David had a strong relationship but that had been downplayed the last 5 or 6 months before Moltke's departure anyway.

Thanks. That's a nice story about Hilda Braid, I really liked her. Very diplomatic about Little Mo/Alfie...

A few more comments, complaints mostly: - Was anyone else annoyed that they didn't have at least Amy show up to say goodbye? They were living together and friendly only a few months ago. I know Michaela and Josh haven't been close in a long time but I just feel like they half-assed some of the details, and I didn't even like Josh. - I don't think it was in character for Neville or Suzanne to disown Josh for a fresh start. The characters were so cheapened by the end. - I don't think it was intentional, but it's fitting that the last scene was Rhys and Gilly looking on. The first scene the Ashworths had on the show, or one of the very first, was when Rhys and Gilly jumped out of their sports car to look around. Rhys jumped out smoothly, while poor Gilly stumbled and fell. Gilly's changed so much over the years, slowly -- various producers and Anthony Quinlan have done a good job with him.

Just when I can't take any more of Cheryl or Duncan, along comes Spencer to remind me just how repulsive he is. The worst character ever in a soap?? Or one of the worst. The scenes with the Ashworths were so sad, partially because the family was so decimated by poor writing, partially because the last moments were genuinely moving. The Dirty Diegos photo book. I miss Fletch and now we will definitely never see or hear about him again. And the scenes where Rhys confessed -- Andrew Moss was brilliant. The family forgiving him but Rhys choosing to stay behind helps the character a lot. I think Andrew is a great actor, I hope the show will give him good stories! Seeing Rhys and Gilly standing there all alone kind of broke my heart. The Ashworths really were a fantastic family in 2007 and 2008 (aside from Josh...). I wish that Duncan leaving with the Ashworths meant he was actually gone for good. I hope he is and I will cling to that until he actually comes back. He was awful as he usually is, such a one-note character.

Ben, the scenes about his reasons for not being with women played out better onscreen than they do on paper. Although they could have come up with a better idea. I agree that the show is probably still seen as being for older people but I don't know how they could change that too blatantly without losing older viewers and not gaining younger ones (as has happened to American soaps). The older characters on the show now have little story of their own and the show has brought in a lot of younger people. I guess they could do an ad campaign or something, I don't know, what would your ideas be? I know back in 1992 or 1993 they had Rachel Sugden pose in her underwear and her boyfriend at the time, Feldman, pose bare-a$$, although that doesn't seem likely today (of course most of the guys might be better with that type of pose...he was a bit flat).

It's a bit absurd, but he was was with her for years, and he never had sex because she wanted him to wait until marriage. Then, before they get married, he finds her in bed with another man. I guess I can see why that might have scarred him enough to where every time he actually considers taking that last step with a woman, he's too scared. Of course for all I know he could get over this in like a week; hopefully they will explore it. You're right. I meant more recent years. They became so known for the stunts that I think it hurt the show more than it helped. Even now you see stuff like, "Emmerdale is so unrealistic, things are always blowing up or someone is always dying," when that hasn't been true of the show in several years. I think the show has been quieter in the past year or two, they don't have the big finales to stories, stories tend to fade or they build up to another chapter, or the big moment is slightly off (like the reveal of Mark/Daniel). So the show is kind of hampered by not doing too many stunts yet was hampered because they did too many in the past. Anyway, it's not perfect but I think the show has become strong on a day to day basis and the storytelling is pretty decent. At the very least I wish it would get better ratings than Corrie, which is still all over the place...

I think that they were kind of stupid to build this up, because people were expecting something very shocking. When you just hear "I'm a virgin," you are more likely to feel let down. It's too bad, because I actually thought that the scenes with Jai and Nikhil were very believably written and the guy who plays Nikhil is very good at playing a man who wants to love yet also feels repressed. A lot of the time virginity is treated either as being all-important or something which is a big joke. If this story actually deals with the issue without going into negative stereotypes then it could be good. I just hope they're making the reveal a "moment" won't backfire.. I think the Sharma brothers have been great additions to the show and I hope this might be the start of more stories for them. Here's a followup interview with the man who plays Nikhil. http://www.digitalspy.com/soaps/s12/emmerdale/scoop/a238715/rik-makarem-talks-nikhils-secret-in-emmerdale.html Y&RWT, since we were talking about consistency in the Eastenders thread, do you think Emmerdale is consistent? I think it's consistently pretty good to great. Usually more pretty good, they don't have as many of the "wow" moments. There are a lot of problems with the show but overall I think it's in good shape at the moment, I hope people might be drawn to that consistency in time. As for the rest of the episode, Adele seems to be increasingly clingy, and I'm glad they seem to be addressing the distance between Aaron and Jackson. I hope this will actually be a part of their story, because Aaron isn't the type of person who would become couply, yet the show hadn't addressed that until Tuesday's show. I just wish Holly could get voice lessons because I don't think the actress is doing a bad job, but her voice is just so lifeless. I think they've done well at showing Cain menacing the Wyldes without becoming too menacing -- he was very kind to Will, he never crossed the line, yet the fear of what he might do still drove Natasha around the bend. I hope Natasha might get her spirit back at some point, as the story would not work if it is just this family being beaten down. As those scenes with Cain twisting Nathan's hand didn't really work. Amello, have you heard that supposedly

I wonder if the "getting it on" is a shout out to the Digital Spy thread. I have a hard time believing that an actor playing a high profile gay role wouldn't get something of a negative response. There are a lot of people out there who enjoy the idea of taunting someone who plays a gay part, or some people who are just plain homophobic.

I couldn't quite tell with Patrick but I think you're right, Ann. I have to admit that I am secretly hoping Denise is working with the police and that the police also got Patrick involved. Now that most of her family is going I want to see the Patrick/Denise bond become even stronger. Speaking of Denise's family, apparently this is the woman who will be playing Denise's other sister, Daphne, who is also at the funeral. She's beside Chelsea in this photo, I think. http://www.digitalspy.com/soaps/s2/eastenders/i303222/eastenders-4040-2010-07-23-lucas-chelsea-and-libby.html Here's a photo of the actress, Emi Wokoma: http://www.ultimatedivas.co.uk/images/emi.jpg There is still so much of Denise's life to explore and I hope that this might happen. I think that the Foxes have often labored under the view by a lot of fans and by the producers themselves that they are second-class characters, not worth investing in. The past few months of this story have shown what they can do when they get the opportunity. I think that it does help on some level that people know at least one of the actors is straight. I think that in this case it also helps that Syed is probably the type of guy a lot of women would want to cuddle, with those big sad eyes and the constant tears. I think there's also just a natural inclination for some women (it seems like most of these pairings are mainly popular with women) to enjoy these same-sex stories, I guess because they tend to be written as star-crossed and with very little actual physical contact, like what old soap stories used to be.

I loved when Zainab asked if just the one had tried to kill him! Has this Ina woman been on the show before?

The scenes where Lucas was talking to Zainab and Masood, intercut with Libby and Chelsea grieving and Patrick going to the scene of Denise's "suicide", I've never seen anything like that on Eastenders before. Best of all there was no random pop tune blaring to try to manipulate our emotions. It was a big step forward. The last few weeks of this storyline have had a lot of what I would call risky choices -- another one being the lengthy Denise/Lucas scenes in the car. There's a risk in not coddling viewers or trying to distract them. Don Gilet and Rudolph Walker were fantastic. Don Gilet has just been on fire these past few weeks. I don't know whether Patrick actually believes Lucas or not. Syed's monologue to his "therapist" was well-written, and I was relieved that they finally tried to actually show some of this turmoil. Marc Elliot did a decent job. Hearing him blame his parents was pathetic, but then, that's what ex-gay "therapists" do -- they tell you to find a cause and it often ends up being some fault of your parents, your father never loved you enough, or your mother loved you too much. I would have been more moved if I had not seen him do these same mannerisms (the teary eyes and the hysteria) for a year now. I will say that he was better than John Partridge; I thought Partridge was fake and very actor-y in all his scenes. If he's trying to play Christian as a breathless, delusional, sad figure, then great work, but I don't think that is the intention. And his friendship with Roxy is also shallow, although at least the writers made an effort today. I could have done without that jogging scene and the bumping into Syed though, it was a bit cringeworthy and "cute." Shirley trying to teach Ben how to cope in prison was a sad, good scene. Charlie Jones and Linda Henry work so well together. It really upsets me how desperate Ben still is to please his father and how Phil cares more about this than he does about Ben's actual welfare. Anyway, this was, overall, a pretty strong episode. The day-to-day episodes are getting much better.