Ben

What do you expect when it's two episodes all about Bianca's annual poverty plight and her going another round with the loan sharks (it's all repeat and rehash with Bianca), Carol being dirt broke and going all Breaking Bad, pointless Terry, Nikki, Donna and Alfie scenes? The highlight was Roxy and Aleks. @ Shabnam staring at the half-eaten sandwich, then running off, starving due to Ramadan. And Cora hushing Mo when she guessed that Cora's real name is Carol. The Jacksons/Butchers being dirt broke doesn't make any sense. I can't believe that between Carol and Whitney, they couldn't have scrapped together £350 without hawking jewellery and headphones. Ridiculous that Carol has no savings at all, and that Whitney (who has a job), could only contribute £20. Then Sonia appears, and not once does she offer to contribute - a woman who works as a nurse, should be able to lend her mother the money. Unbelievable. Carol's always been a martyr to own coarse, but she's become even more mardy. She morally judges Tina for selling weed, threatening her with the cops, like the girl's selling crystal meth, only to ask to be let in on the deal, all so they could go all Breaking Bad. I just can't with this lot. Too contrived.

I think Dean and Shabnam would have been very interesting to watch. Both have changed a lot since they last saw each other in 2007 (or 2008), and it would have been interesting seeing them talk about these changes and develop a genuine friendship; something that could represent some light in Dean's life (outside of the dark, revenge thing he has going on). I think Dean and Linda are a bit predictable and only serves to isolate them even further. I can also see Dean sharing scenes with Stacey when she returns, and will probably be predictably paired up. It's easy to forget about Shabnam as she hasn't appeared for ages. She's supposed to have a secret, but with DTC's dodgy pacing, we probably won't know what it is until Christmas 2015.

I thought DTC said that there would be twists and turns at Christmas that would change who people thought was the killer? I guess it makes sense to reveal the killer to the viewers at Christmas, then have the characters find out in February. Still, they'll have to do a lot to make me care, as so far, I don't care who the killer is. Oh, the Ferreiras, and "original" Shirley, and her cat, and the random Australian chick, and the one who used to be in Family Affairs - a period best forgotten. Shirley should have been rebooted by bringing Dean back alone, as their history is enough to generate story without the need to recreate her history in the shape of a big new family that never previously existed. The Carters should have been a new family completely unrelated to anyone on the show.

Carl, I think a problem with the Carters is that they haven't really been integrated into the show all that well. They don't play support to other characters' storylines as they are constantly on the front burner with their own dramas. DTC has only really focused on Shirley, Mick, Johnny and Tina & Tosh (who are an unlikeable couple). They feel like they are in their own little story bubble sometimes, not really part of the main show. I think the Carters are there to prop Shirley, along with Dean, which I think is a shame, as he has a lot of potential away from Shirley and the Carters; I really want to see Dean interact with other characters, especially the ones he knew previously, like Shabnam - their scenes would write themselves. I don't know why Nancy is sidelined and underdeveloped. They don't what to do with her. They also introduced Aunt Babe, who has be a disappointment, with little to no purpose so far; then there's Lee, who's another Carter who isn't needed. I don't think the Carters have been failures, but I don't think they are widely applauded offline, either. They're waiting to reveal Lucy's killer in February, for the 30th anniversary. So even longer to wait. It's a flawed storyline so far that has lost a lot of momentum from the moment Jake was arrested and everyone automatically believed he was guilty.

You mean: "I know you, you've had more traffic through you than the Blackwall Tunnel." It's a tunnel in east London that goes under the Thames. I know, I'm being major pedantic. The difference between eras is quite evident. 1994 had more heart and spark than anything modern EE can muster.

Thanks. That was the episode my attention was on multiple things, so I must have missed it.

No-one ever develops Max. He's so preoccupied with his next lay that he hasn't made any on screen reference to David taking all his money out of the business. When DTC's material first started (around the time Shabnam returned), the plotting and pacing was spot on. They were producing each block in a similar fashion to how Neighbours and H&A produce, by showcasing about 5 stories over the week, which were very character-driven. Now, they've dropped back to having characters and storylines randomly disappearing, for plot points to have relevance only to never be mentioned again (Stacey's key, Shabnam's secret, Ronnie killing Carl, etc), to only showcasing about 3 stories over a week, which have been a bit plot heavy in places. Suddenly, everything has lost momentum. There's still a lot to like about the show. I love Roxy & Aleks - in fact, Aleks has turned into an awesome character. I appreciate them trying to make us sympathise with Tosh by giving her a tragic backstory, but no amount of Mummy issues will make her a likeable character. Dean is also awesome, and I like his relationship with Tina, but, I feel like he will eventually be thrown under the bus in favour of the Carters.

DS' Jason Herbison interview: http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/soaps/s14/neighbours/interviews/a577156/neighbours-producer-jason-herbison-reveals-show-gossip-and-teasers.html If you have read any of the previous producer interviews, then I recommend reading this one, as it has a completely different vibe to it; Jason is much more open and engaging compared to Richard Jasek and Susan Bower.

The episodes that focus on more human emotional drama, and family conflict work better than random, OTT drama, and gangster stuff. Grace's presence brings down an entire episode, and even the mere mention of her name lowers the tone. They've tried making her sympathetic by explaining away her actions on a loveless father. Fine, we get it, she had a messed up childhood. Time to move on. Preferably never to be seen again. The obsession with gangster stories needs to end. The Loft needs to return to being a club, and not Criminal HQ. Fraser's murder has been an epic fail from the beginning. It has no momentum at all. And who really cares who killed him? I certainly don't. Due to the poor pacing, I keep forgetting that there's a murder mystery still going on, as no-one on the show (bar Grace) cares at all. This story needs wrapped up pronto. Not every story needs dragging out for 6 months. The Patrick/Maxine abuse story is the best story on the show, but that isn't without fault. They've not spent enough time showing us the reason why Maxine loves Patrick, as all we ever see is the abusive monster. It's so one-sided, and lacks nuance in a lot of ways. NS has been awesome, though; her acting style really suits the direction of HO. Dodger continues to be all kinds of awesome. And Leela has all the making of a decent character. I thought Blessing was an OTT mess to begin with, lacking in likeability. But, this trans story has really injected a sense of vulnerability into her. I feel bad for her, especially after Finn's vile attack. Which links nicely into Sinead's revengenda (she's HO's answer to Emily Thorne!). Sinead is a seriously unlikeable character, and I didn't care about her revenge on Lyndsey and Freddie, but moving her back into her family's orbit injects the much needed element of family conflict. I think it helps that Diane is an awful character, too, in many ways, and needs a good dose of Karma for how she's treated Sinead, Tony, Esther. What lets this story down is Sinead's reactions to learning that her brother is a monster. Her horror and disgust haven't been genuine, they've come across as fake, due to sinead constantly smirking and pulling a secret evil grin. This is where HO fails - they continue to ignore the importance of adding subtlety to the writing; characters lack complex, nuanced reactions sometimes. Also, we've seen Diane bury her head in the sand and cover for Sinead when she was bullying Esther, but for to them repeat the exact same thing with Finn, which has a much more sinister edge is ridiculous. I think it sends out the wrong message, and further cements what a horrible character Diane is. I do hope Nancy and Robbie don't go down the student/teacher affair route. There's no way that Nancy would ever have an affair with a student, not after what happened to Becca.

This is how I felt about Honey, too. I was disappointed when they axed her, as she worked so well with Billy; it was a shame they ruined a good thing just b/c they couldn't think of any storylines for Honey or for them as a couple. I've always thought that when Billy leaves (if he ever does), that he should reunite with Honey. Seeing their scene reminded me this. I think Billy's character has run his course anyway, and a positive exit would be of him leaving to be with his family.

So, Mick is Shirley's son! (A fact that escaped me when I wrote the above post.) And, I thought her trying to drown him as a baby was unnecessary, now this twist takes it all to convoluted levels of outlandishness.

David's awesome, so I'm sad that he's leaving. I'm very disappointed, I guess, if they have David run away, again, as it will undo all the character development he's had. I feel like David leaving makes his entire return pointless - unless he dies, of course. I'm not fussed about the Spraggins, even though Nikki is kinda interesting. Maybe if she stays with TJ and Rosie, something can be done with her, but I can't see Terry leaving without his kids. When Bianca leaves, she needs to take her kids with her (at least the ones that are too young to live without her) to make it realistic. Hopefully she doesn't get another prison sentence, as that would be tedious and boring. I guess there is some mileage in TJ and Cindy's pregnancy, even if Cindy is basically recurring, who spends 90% of her time off screen. So far, her pregnancy story has been pointless. ITA with all those that feel there are too many Carters. There hasn't been any time to develop any of them, before another one arrives with a big secret in toe that never really gets resolved. In fact, the pacing is too slow that none of the storylines are going anywhere fast enough, and are treading water in many ways. Nancy has random epileptic fits, but nothing is ever done about them. Is she on medication? Does she need medication? Is she intolerant to the medication? Nancy is a very underdeveloped character. The Johnny/Linda story hasn't been developed at all since he came out; Shirley continues on her cycle of misery and torment, with the randomly unnecessary story about her trying to drown Mick when he was a baby. The Charlie Cotton mystery is so badly paced that I forget he even exists half the time, as he only appears 2-3 times every other month to rehash the same mysterious behaviour that leaves all the characters involved in the same place they were two months previously. Does anyone really care about this character? Even the non-start of Abi/Jay/Lola triangle retreads the same scenes once a month. The only story that is paced just right has been the aftermath of Lucy's murder, and more specifically the fallout for Denise and Ian. Denise has been refreshed thanks to this story.

Spin the bottle? That's so 90s. A drinking game would have been more modern. I guess it shows some commitment on VL's behalf to keeping the show in viewers minds, by producing these webisodes during the hiatus. Building an online presence is never a bad thing, IMO.

What is it with EE and creating obnoxious disabled characters? I really don't get why she needs to be a regular character - recurring at best. It feels unnecessary having Bianca and Kat involved in another war with a market trader.

Yeah, I'm keeping that whole random outcome in mind. Complete let down that was. So far Lucy's murder has been written better - the emotional fallout at least. It does have a good creative edge over other murder mysteries, which usually follow a formulaic pattern.

I think it's just fanfic dressed up as a story "leak". DTC has said that only 4 people know who the killer is. He has also said that the lead up to Christmas and NYE will have viewers second guessing who the killer is, so no reveal of the killer's identity until February 2015. Also, a plot outline does not look like that. If you know the apparent next 6 months (which makes it October time, not NYE) of story, then you will know the motive for Lucy's death.

Cindy is the highlight of the show. Especially during the period you're up to Chris. I think she's the one character who hasn't been ruined or tainted, yet. *touch wood* Oh, and Dirk, Dodger, Dennis and maybe Holly.

I won't miss Bianca. She's been on a stale merry-go-round for years, and as such, has lost all warmth in the process. If Patsy hadn't of quit, we'd be stuck with Bianca for years. Interestingly, Sonia is a much better written character this time around. Softer and warmer edges, more sympathetic, less stale than she previously was - and I say this as someone who hated Sonia.

And Pam Willis returns! http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/soaps/s14/neighbours/news/a563517/neighbours-sue-jones-returns-as-pam-willis.html

He does seem to love all of his creations, doesn't he? Even the ones that have run their course: Fatboy. DTC has certainly rebooted the show to pre-2010. Not all of it being that great, though. What do people here think of the Carters overall? It's hard to gage an objective view on DS, as they seem to be having a love-in over the fabulousness of the entire family. ETA: Also, what do you all think of the Max/Lucy twist?

It's most certainly not rare, but in fact the majority. The ratings managed to push past 1 million last October-ish, having hovered around the 600-800K mark for years, and they stayed consecutively strong. But, this year they've fallen back into the 800-900K, sometimes even falling as low as 600-700K. Those viewers that they gained last year do seem to want to tune in, as they randomly venture back, pushing the numbers back over a million. But this never lasts these days. People are sick of the gangster rubbish, the overuse of many characters, the poorly plotted stories, all the death, all the pointless stunts, all the forced misery, all the victimhood. He makes characters suffer, becoming victims, making them hated by everyone, and then resolving the plot, having everyone move on like all the nastiness never happened. He did it with Esther and Nancy, now JP, Sinead, Ste. Characters are no longer developed; the plot dictates their OTT actions. Diane and Tony are a forced couple, and she's become so horrible recently. Tony became a drug mule, which was so out of character and dumb. Frankie has her vile moments, too, and her and Jack have been ruined with all dumb affairs, and Jack visiting a prostitute (Sinead). Fraser having an affair (and a kid) with Tegan is the most unbelievable (and creepiest) thing in the show's history. Sienna went psycho, got locked up, was let out (due to Fraser blackmailing the judge), and is now the victim. JP was raped, then tormented by his rapist, and is now in jail for hitting a homophobic student, no longer believed by Sam, b/c he had an affair with her spineless husband - his rapist is still roaming around free. Characters turn on family and friends in a blink of an eye for the flimsiest of excuses; they lose their brains and make stupid, rash actions for contrived, implausible reasons. Everything than BK did wrong at EastEnders, he's brought over to HO. The show has lost it's identity (again), and has become hollow. Some people do seem to like all of the action, all the time, though... And that seems to be what BK is latching on to.

This is exactly how I feel, too. Home Farm was made for a rich, melodramatic, scandalous family - not bland, middle class siblings who are too vanilla for Home Farm. Faye should have been positioned into Home Farm after Natasha Wylde left, along with her son Ryan, starting up/carrying on the feud with Nathan and his sister Maisie. They could have slowly expanded on Faye and Ryan's family. Kate Oates said last year in an interview with DS that she feels the days of the Home Farm dynasty is over. This tells me that she has no plans to utilize the set to its maximum potential. I know we are in a recession, but scandalous rich people still exist. I think a proper big dynasty in Home Farm would give the show some much needed life, and a link to its identity of the past. They did burn it down last Christmas. Clearly, they don't want to do what they were famous for, so torched it, making sure it's never mentioned again. Such a waste of a decent set. ETA: Re Danny Miller's return: Terrible idea, IMO. I know he has his fans, but he was clearly not comfortable playing a gay character, unless it was angst and crying, but anything affectionate, and it was all awkward and uncomfortable. I feel this is just to give Chas something to do outside of her revolving door of love interests. I bet they'll pair him with Finn Barton, who's the only gay guy in the village. Shame if they do, as Finn would be better off in a romance with Robbie Lawson - they had chemistry in the few scenes they've shared, and Robbie is on backburner hell, who hasn't appeared since January (and that was for a handful of scenes). He desperately needs a story that will make him likeable.

Oh, that's cruel. I hate it when networks draft in a replacement show, testing it out to see if it will rate better. And obviously, it has to be a non-scripted show potentially replacing a scripted show. Game shows, reality shows, they're all about saving money. Are VL's numbers bad? I also don't understand why they don't try going back to basics with VL, instead of all these cast changes, like axing characters and drafting in new ones is going to save the show. Clearly, it hasn't worked so far, so why not try something different. On the other hand, do you think German's are falling out of love with soaps?

You're right, James, the episode balance works well when they have more than 2 stories happening at once. It really lifts the show, and makes it feel like it has a bigger cast than what it does. For 5 years they tried to change the show into something that it isn't; they avoided having more than 2 storylines running at the same time in each episode, which really slowed the show down and made it feel lifeless. I feel like this is Jason Herbison's changes, and while I don't want to get too excited about his potential greatness at being EP, I do feel like he's getting off to a positive start (even though he hasn't officially been credited as EP, yet). Lauren now has some depth, and even the terrible Josh/Amber pairing seems to have been better defined. Unlike Kate, I feel like Josh is being written as a jerk, b/c he is a jerk, and we are supposed to dislike him and see him as a jerk. I guess he's the "evil" twin and, Imogen's the "good" twin. LOL. I also love the character arc they have mapped out for Paul, and it feels like Sonya also has direction - she's one of the most defined and layered characters on the show, IMO. Rebecca's return has been great; Jane Hall is effortless, and she has great chemistry with Stefan Dennis. I like that they had her reference how contrived her own return is. I also think Mark Brennan has fitted into the show well. There's still some work to be done, like giving Matt a personality, fixing the merry-go-round that is Kyle & Georgia, and not prop Jamber as the new Scott & Charlene! ETA: I'd love Rebecca to become permanent. I hold out that this guest stint is designed to test the water.

Charlie's gets a complete make-over, and is re-branded The Waterhole. FYI: The Waterhole was the original name for the pub back in the 80s.