Kudos to Pete Lawson. He should write more of these.
Tonight's episode was good. It was watchable, it was well-written and scored some points in emphasizing the flaws in a lot of characters who need some home truths spoken to them.
Jake Wood proved tonight, once again, why - along with Steve McFadden - he's the best actor on Eastenders. His scene in the charity shop with Ann Mitchell was brilliant. Good to hear Bradley mentioned again. In proportion to the amount of times we get Saint Stacey Slater rammed down our throats, we hardly ever hear about Bradley. Tonight I understand why, and how much mentioning him hurts Max. The scene with Cora reminded me of a similar scene between Max and Carol after Billie's death, when he was explaining to her how the hurt of losing a child never gets better, but becomes something that a parent loves because it's the only thing left of the child who died.
This was Max at his best, coming clean about how even though he had Bradley for 22 years, he missed out on so much with him (leaving the unspoken bit about the reason for that, being Cora's other daughter). It was good seeing him reference his guilt about Stacey regarding Bradley, and how he thinks about what he'd be doing now and how he wants to see him again, just to hold him one more time. Cora's reaction, however, showed she's just as much a hypocrite as her daughter, ticking off Max for presuming that she was like him, for letting her children down.
Sorry, madame, but you're wrong. Max may be a serial cheat, but he's provided a home, shelter, and emotional as well as material comfort for his children, including Bradley. Denied by both Tanya out of selfishness and Rachel out of revenge from seeing Bradley as a child, Max saved for years in order to be able to present Bradley with £41,000 on his twenty-first birthday, a gift that Saint Stacey made him refuse. Cora pursued her own pleasures, clubbing, drinking and gambling whilst her husband lay dying and her girls later partied down. It's no wonder that Tanya, Rainie and Lauren have addictive personalities. They did learn a lot of their behaviour from their mother and grandmother.
Just another thought: Cora got pregnant at eighteen with her first daughter. I seem to recall the day Tanya wed Greg, when she was on the way to the church with a drunken Cora in the limo, and Cora reminiscing about her wedding day when she was "five months gone." So Cora got pregnant by Bill Cross also. Except he married her.
I've never understood the attraction of Tanya as a character for some people. Everything Cora said to her yesterday was the cold, hard truth, and her initial reaction of denial and poking the blame back at Cora, saying she'd learned everything she was from Cora, was just another pisspoor example of the shifting of responsibility inherent in today's main characters, especially the females. Archie was a control freak, but Roxy isn't. Max is amoral; Bradley wasn't. Most of the Slaters were loud-mouthed chavs; Little Mo wasn't.
Of course, Tanya is selfish. Everything has always been about her - how something affects her, how she figures in a situation, what she wants being paramount. Lauren is the same, as she has showed consistently - she's lazy, entitled, won't hit a lick of work, expects to come and go as she pleases and treats her father like shit, all the time expecting him to pay her way. The purpose of this work with the homeless - whom Tanya disdained as "tramps" - was, in Lauren's words, to get them tickets to a gig where they could get "wasted." - which makes me wonder where the hell the rehab line came from tonight. Lauren spent half an hour talking to a locum doctor and refused all other help when Lucy dragged her home from a night out.
It's interesting that, of that trio tonight (Lucy, Lauren and Whitney), only Whitney was cognizant of underprivileged people. I guess her character must be growing up, remembering that she, also, was homeless at one point.
As for Lucy - first things first. If that actress isn't anorexic, I'm a Dutchman. Her arms are like sticks, and she has the classic lollipop head of an anorexic. There were a lot of sleeveless tops on show tonight, amongst the younger girls, and that was ample opportunity to compare. Lauren, Whitney, Poppy and Alice - none of whom are anything other than petite, had toned and fleshed out arms. Lucy's were like skin over bone, with her shoulder bones protuberant. Joey, corn-fed and steroid-enhanced, looks as though he could snap her in two. And, please, please, please, someone tell her to stop allowing her mouth to hang open. It's not only unattractive, it's puerile and annoying.
So she's conjuring up her mother's ghost because she's angry at her father's abandonment. Please. She's influenced by a plank of beefcake who has daddy issues himself and who's paying her bills for the privilege to sleep with a rag, a bone and a hank of hair, live free-of-charge, and influence her against dear old dad. Ian's spoiled Lucy rotten, and she's given him nothing in return but grief, and to think she's going to bend to the will of a walking penis just because of service from that tainted member is a joke. Her empire? Please. Three weeks ago, she was quaking in her shoes in fear of Derek. As for "Cindy's", what, exactly, does she remember about Cindy?
If I recall correctly, when Steven shot through, she remembered precious little about her. When Cindy abandoned Lucy for Italy, she was two years old. When Cindy died, she was five. There's very little to remember, and Ian certainly wouldn't have painted a kind picture of Cindy. He didn't of Mel or Laura either. And pardon me, as for her "empire," aren't all those businesses still registered in Ian's name, including the stall? Let's see how she copes with paying business rates, VAT etc. Or will Joey find a way to cheat the authorities like his old man? What a stupid girl!
By the way, I like the way Big Mo put poncy pretty boy Joey in his place.
Let's get something straight (bad pun) about Syed and Christian, and I'm a big fan of theirs. With all the best will in the world, Christian is Yasmine's stepfather, not her father. And Syed has the final say in anything concerning her. The tiny tot beauty contest is just a crumb from the big table at Eastenders thrown Syed's and Christian's way, as they've become little more than glorified extras recently. It's also yet another comedy ploy for Nina Wadia. I'm a bit tired of Zainab the OTT Everything, and I can't believe that this woman who was being psychologically and physically abused the better part of last year has so conveniently forgotten all of that and recovered.
Ray is another beefcake hired for the purpose of poncing about in a towel. I suppose Ray is to the older contingent of female viewers what Joey is to the younger, except he's just as annoying. I used to like Ray and thought him a decent bloke; but now I think he's someone supremely in love with himself, with a high opinion of himself to the point that he disdains others. I hated his remark to Kim about "his" women, as if every woman he knew were his own personal property. Kim isn't "his" woman. There's nothing to denote her as such, except that he sleeps with her now and then. That is a really offensive and sexist remark, and all the moreso, regarding women as "possessions" considering Ray is Afro-Caribbean, and should really know better. As for Sasha, less is more, and the actress should be axed.
Weak points: Anthony Moon, Sasha, Fatboy, Poppy and everything in which they were involved.
Of course, the appearance of Ian at the end was the climax of the show, but apart from that, I'm left with a niggling question of what was meant by the weird reaction of the ever-annoying Jean to the news that Janine was bringing Scarlett home at the end of the week?
Very good episode, made all the moreso because Katshite wasn't in it.
Tonight's episode was good. It was watchable, it was well-written and scored some points in emphasizing the flaws in a lot of characters who need some home truths spoken to them.
Jake Wood proved tonight, once again, why - along with Steve McFadden - he's the best actor on Eastenders. His scene in the charity shop with Ann Mitchell was brilliant. Good to hear Bradley mentioned again. In proportion to the amount of times we get Saint Stacey Slater rammed down our throats, we hardly ever hear about Bradley. Tonight I understand why, and how much mentioning him hurts Max. The scene with Cora reminded me of a similar scene between Max and Carol after Billie's death, when he was explaining to her how the hurt of losing a child never gets better, but becomes something that a parent loves because it's the only thing left of the child who died.
This was Max at his best, coming clean about how even though he had Bradley for 22 years, he missed out on so much with him (leaving the unspoken bit about the reason for that, being Cora's other daughter). It was good seeing him reference his guilt about Stacey regarding Bradley, and how he thinks about what he'd be doing now and how he wants to see him again, just to hold him one more time. Cora's reaction, however, showed she's just as much a hypocrite as her daughter, ticking off Max for presuming that she was like him, for letting her children down.
Sorry, madame, but you're wrong. Max may be a serial cheat, but he's provided a home, shelter, and emotional as well as material comfort for his children, including Bradley. Denied by both Tanya out of selfishness and Rachel out of revenge from seeing Bradley as a child, Max saved for years in order to be able to present Bradley with £41,000 on his twenty-first birthday, a gift that Saint Stacey made him refuse. Cora pursued her own pleasures, clubbing, drinking and gambling whilst her husband lay dying and her girls later partied down. It's no wonder that Tanya, Rainie and Lauren have addictive personalities. They did learn a lot of their behaviour from their mother and grandmother.
Just another thought: Cora got pregnant at eighteen with her first daughter. I seem to recall the day Tanya wed Greg, when she was on the way to the church with a drunken Cora in the limo, and Cora reminiscing about her wedding day when she was "five months gone." So Cora got pregnant by Bill Cross also. Except he married her.
I've never understood the attraction of Tanya as a character for some people. Everything Cora said to her yesterday was the cold, hard truth, and her initial reaction of denial and poking the blame back at Cora, saying she'd learned everything she was from Cora, was just another pisspoor example of the shifting of responsibility inherent in today's main characters, especially the females. Archie was a control freak, but Roxy isn't. Max is amoral; Bradley wasn't. Most of the Slaters were loud-mouthed chavs; Little Mo wasn't.
Of course, Tanya is selfish. Everything has always been about her - how something affects her, how she figures in a situation, what she wants being paramount. Lauren is the same, as she has showed consistently - she's lazy, entitled, won't hit a lick of work, expects to come and go as she pleases and treats her father like shit, all the time expecting him to pay her way. The purpose of this work with the homeless - whom Tanya disdained as "tramps" - was, in Lauren's words, to get them tickets to a gig where they could get "wasted." - which makes me wonder where the hell the rehab line came from tonight. Lauren spent half an hour talking to a locum doctor and refused all other help when Lucy dragged her home from a night out.
It's interesting that, of that trio tonight (Lucy, Lauren and Whitney), only Whitney was cognizant of underprivileged people. I guess her character must be growing up, remembering that she, also, was homeless at one point.
As for Lucy - first things first. If that actress isn't anorexic, I'm a Dutchman. Her arms are like sticks, and she has the classic lollipop head of an anorexic. There were a lot of sleeveless tops on show tonight, amongst the younger girls, and that was ample opportunity to compare. Lauren, Whitney, Poppy and Alice - none of whom are anything other than petite, had toned and fleshed out arms. Lucy's were like skin over bone, with her shoulder bones protuberant. Joey, corn-fed and steroid-enhanced, looks as though he could snap her in two. And, please, please, please, someone tell her to stop allowing her mouth to hang open. It's not only unattractive, it's puerile and annoying.
So she's conjuring up her mother's ghost because she's angry at her father's abandonment. Please. She's influenced by a plank of beefcake who has daddy issues himself and who's paying her bills for the privilege to sleep with a rag, a bone and a hank of hair, live free-of-charge, and influence her against dear old dad. Ian's spoiled Lucy rotten, and she's given him nothing in return but grief, and to think she's going to bend to the will of a walking penis just because of service from that tainted member is a joke. Her empire? Please. Three weeks ago, she was quaking in her shoes in fear of Derek. As for "Cindy's", what, exactly, does she remember about Cindy?
If I recall correctly, when Steven shot through, she remembered precious little about her. When Cindy abandoned Lucy for Italy, she was two years old. When Cindy died, she was five. There's very little to remember, and Ian certainly wouldn't have painted a kind picture of Cindy. He didn't of Mel or Laura either. And pardon me, as for her "empire," aren't all those businesses still registered in Ian's name, including the stall? Let's see how she copes with paying business rates, VAT etc. Or will Joey find a way to cheat the authorities like his old man? What a stupid girl!
By the way, I like the way Big Mo put poncy pretty boy Joey in his place.
Let's get something straight (bad pun) about Syed and Christian, and I'm a big fan of theirs. With all the best will in the world, Christian is Yasmine's stepfather, not her father. And Syed has the final say in anything concerning her. The tiny tot beauty contest is just a crumb from the big table at Eastenders thrown Syed's and Christian's way, as they've become little more than glorified extras recently. It's also yet another comedy ploy for Nina Wadia. I'm a bit tired of Zainab the OTT Everything, and I can't believe that this woman who was being psychologically and physically abused the better part of last year has so conveniently forgotten all of that and recovered.
Ray is another beefcake hired for the purpose of poncing about in a towel. I suppose Ray is to the older contingent of female viewers what Joey is to the younger, except he's just as annoying. I used to like Ray and thought him a decent bloke; but now I think he's someone supremely in love with himself, with a high opinion of himself to the point that he disdains others. I hated his remark to Kim about "his" women, as if every woman he knew were his own personal property. Kim isn't "his" woman. There's nothing to denote her as such, except that he sleeps with her now and then. That is a really offensive and sexist remark, and all the moreso, regarding women as "possessions" considering Ray is Afro-Caribbean, and should really know better. As for Sasha, less is more, and the actress should be axed.
Weak points: Anthony Moon, Sasha, Fatboy, Poppy and everything in which they were involved.
Of course, the appearance of Ian at the end was the climax of the show, but apart from that, I'm left with a niggling question of what was meant by the weird reaction of the ever-annoying Jean to the news that Janine was bringing Scarlett home at the end of the week?
Very good episode, made all the moreso because Katshite wasn't in it.
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