EastEnders: Discussion Thread

[FrenchFan]

Yes, I tried the three of them. I think Emmerdale is great and I like Corrie. I find EastEnders very dark and not compelling at all. I can't say I like a single character after a week of watching.

[DaytimeFan]

Ross Kemp is back for Dame Barbara Windsor's last episodes:

 

http://www.mirror.co.uk/tv/tv-news/grant-mitchells-eastenders-return-confirmed-7196711

[NothinButAttitude]

Glad to hear. Grant was my favorite out of the Mitchell brothers. Can't wait to see his scenes opposite Letitia. I pray that don't revisit that mess between him and Jane. Yuck. 

[BetterForgotten]

Sharon is the love of Grant's life, but they'll probably ignore that. 

[DRW50]

Judging by Friday's episode, when they had Kathy (who slept with Grant before she left Walford and said she felt like she may have married the wrong brother) dismiss him as a "psycho," I'm not expecting much good at all with how they handle his return.

 

Speaking of Grant, this scene with Nigel is a great example of the nuance and vulnerability that EE has never managed with Phil, in spite of many pity party scenes with that old hobag Shirley. 

 

There are also a lot of great Sharon clips put up here too yesterday.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ucrsICNs0z0

 

Peggy truly was the "poison dwarf" Suzy called her in this era...

[BetterForgotten]

The era in and around Sharongate is incredibly strong, everything seemed to gel together in that era. Not just with that story, but with most of the ensemble as well.  

 

Tony Jordan wrote a lot of the Sharon/Phil/Grant stuff in that era, and as I mentioned with the Slater heavy week last week, his presense is sorely missed when it comes to the Slater's, Sharon, and the Mitchell's. No one at the show understands these characters as well anymore. 

Edited January 18, 2016 by BetterForgotten

[DRW50]

There's too much focus now on the idea of a Mitchell history or family or legacy, which is mostly just Phil and Peggy being insecure and needy. The show takes it all too seriously to the point where it pretty much just drained any life out of the characters or family, and drags down everyone they come in contact with.

 

I love the use of audio flashbacks in this scene with Sharon. It's a true end of an era moment. 

 

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[BetterForgotten]

Sharon's first real exit was amazing, and the chemistry between Letitia and Ross had was in full display. It's also a great display of Tony Jordan's writing, the way he manages to get to the heart of the characters in a believable and uncontrived way. When he wrote the major episodes, he wrote all characters fantastically, even the ones that had little to do with the main story.

 

Sharon was an important link character between the first era of the show and the second era that the Mitchell's ushered in. I wonder if they would have had a lasting legacy on the show if the Grant and Phil never got mixed up with Sharon. Shraongate to this day is the definitive story for both Sharon and the Mitchell's. 

 

Hell, they've also managed to piss on the character development Sharon had in her 2001 return - John Yorke did a lot of work to make sure Sharon moved on from the Mitchell's and especially Phil, but all of that is gone now. It was Sharon who walked away from Grant and later Phil, but you'd never know that when watching Sharon in her current state.

 

Th wigs they used to put on Barbara Windsor when she first joined the show are hilarious. I don't think I started to like Peggy until the Matthew Robison era. 

[Dion]

Just as an aside to the above video featuring the pub quiz, I'm not entirely sure but the answer to the final question (which dish of meringue, cream and fruit is named after a Russian ballerina), the answer should be Pavlova, but Peggy says Desdemona (which I believe is three biscuits sandwiched together with whipped cream apricot glaze and fondant).

[BetterForgotten]

Ross on his return on Twitter: https://twitter.com/RossKemp/status/688999112549777409  and https://twitter.com/RossKemp/status/689009959439339520 

 

Edited January 18, 2016 by BetterForgotten

[DRW50]

He probably thought most people didn't care at this point. While I don't see it being a big ratings booster, I do think it's one of the few returns that would really get major attention. 

[BetterForgotten]

Knowing DTC, Alex Lamb, and Sharon Batten, they'll probably have Grant knock Sharon up in this brief stint, and they'll have her pass it off as Phil's. 

[BetterForgotten]

I'm glad that they've remembered that Billy was close to Charlie, and the Slater's for a time at least, were the only family unit he's ever been accepted into. This was something that could've easily been overlooked. 

[NothinButAttitude]

OMG. Please take that back. Knowing those fools, they'd do it. 

[NothinButAttitude]

@DRW50 I guess we were on the ball. By that gleam in Louise's eye when she saw Jay, we can assume that she is Jay's new storyline.