Well ... first impressions of Lorraine Newman's debut as Executive Producer? Not great, but I appreciate she is probably knee-deep in shit left over from Bryan Kirkwood and is hard put to make a silk purse from a sow's ear. It'll take time, but tonight was a filler episode, and positively reeked of Kirkwood.
It was an episode centred around Shirley and Lola, mostly Lola, which means that much of what happened tonight was unpalatable for the viewer. Let's take the good first and then the bad.
Good things: Michael and Janine, as usual. She doesn't trust him (with reason), and he doesn't trust her. Bless him, though, he's trying. And she's afraid to let him into her confidence because of what's all gone on before in her life. One thing I don't understand is the inconsistency of Michael's relationship with Alfie. Before the Jean reveal, Alfie pragmatically gave Michael the benefit of the doubt. Then on Michael's wedding day, Alfie reveals that he believes Kat's suspicions of Michael, that Kat "doesn't lie" (we know that's not true). So now Alfie's on the outs with Michael, and Jean and Kat "love" him.
WTF?
Alfie's threat when he left Michael at the hospital was obviously the latest red herring being thrown out in the odious and totally shitworthy shaggerman storyline.
The other good thing was Alfie dropping everything and helping Michael get to the hospital. That's Alfie all over - in times of crisis or need, he puts personal feelings aside and helps.
The other most watchable character was Shirley, and Linda Henry was at her best tonight. Starting the day determined and happy, wanting to cook for "her boys." You have to feel so sorry for Shirley, but then, you almost can't. Shirley is a real enigman. She was an abysmal mother, walking out on three small children, one of whom was disabled. She left them to party with Heather, her best friend stunted in terminal adolescence. She wasn't a very good best mate either, for all she reckoned she was tonight. At times, she treated Heather abysmally, bullying and baiting her. When Shirley had nothing else in her life, Heather was her focal point; when Shirley returned to Walford in 2007, looking for Carly and Dean, that was the period when Heather was being prodded and poked by Queenie, and Heather was trying to please Mummy. So Shirley went back to trying to "be" mummy, after leaving Kevin all the hard work of bringing up the kids.
Newman's new signature piece is that we now get to hear the other end of telephone conversations with departed characters, so tonight we got to hear "the voice of Carly." It didn't sound like her in the least, and whilst the bully boys of Walford Web and the old girl trolls on Digital Spy are creaming their collective knickers at the thought of a recast Carly, I'll bet it ain't gonna happen.
It should. Shirley's children should return. That's a relationship that really needs examination, especially since tonight our Lorraine did some retconning of her own. Carly and Shirley parted on improving terms when Carly left in 2008. Not great terms, but Carly at least acknowledged Shirley as "mum" and told her good-bye. She's since called her one Christmas, so this disembodied woman on the other end of the phone is coming totally from left field in saying Shirley has no right to call her.
Now, we've got Shirley wallowing in self-pity and set again on a course of mourning Heather. She's living in a ticking time bomb, oblivious to the parts "her boys" played in Heather's death. (How creepy and cold was Ben's reaction to Jay's disgust in their first scene, when Jay sarcastically remarked as how Ben could have a lie-in, with Ben smirking and biting into his sarnie. Never mind, he's a cold-blooded murderer). I so want this storyline to end soon, because the longer it continues, the more it loses his edge.
Is Shirley withdrawing from this dynamic now, realising that she really has nothing but Phil's goodwill? Will this make the reveal all the more demonic for her when she finds out? Think volcano. Watch this space.
The bad bits: Lola.
I hate her as much as I hate Kat, who wasn't there tonight. I guess with two of them, it would have been insupportable. This girl is so unlikeable, I can't fathom how we are supposed to view her as a sympathetic character. Two lines tonight summed up her terminal headuparseitis:
It's against my human rights.
And
The baby fits in with my plans.
Lola's "human rights" are basically being allowed to do whatever the hell she wants with no repercussions and no assumption of responsibility. Anytime she's challenged, she kicks off. Jay trashed Andrew's van, but tonight he assumed responsibility, apologised for the action and repaired it. Lola thinks the world owes her sorry chav ass a living. She was abysmal tonight, conning a drink from the cafe from Denise and then dousing her with water. Later, in the fast food joint, she conned food from Fatboy. That was not only theft, that was fraud; moreover, if that doesn't cost Fatboy his job, it will come out of his meagre wages. It doesn't matter that Jay promised to come in and pay the next day. That's not the way businesses work, and that's not the way Phil Mitchell would run a business - but then, it's one rule for anyone connected with the Mitchells and another for anyone else. Lola wantonly vandalised a business (of which Phil owned part), yet she was perfectly happy to let anyone else shoulder the blame, and has even sworn revenge on Lucy.
Oh, and her snide remark to Denise tonight, after Denise told her some home truths - about her body not being her own anymore and how her life wouldn't be her own after the baby was born - summed her up entirely. The baby certainly does fit in with her life plan. She'll use the kid to milk the system as much as possible, and then some - milking sympathy from the community when it suits her and then leaving Billy to hold the baby and do the heavy work when she wants to play. I'm glad Nico called the police - theft and further vandalism. I'd love for her chav ass to go to jail (now that she's sixteen) and the baby be placed with responsible people.
Lola is one character I hope Lorraine Newman has the balls to axe. Y'all know who the other one is.
The Uglies: Please. Stop with trying to put Lola in the position as matriarch. She's an old lush, and the scene tonight when she was sat on the barstool, innuendo-ing the faux football team was just rank. Ann Mitchell, whose credentials run as a protogee of Joan Greenwood and being a member of the RSC, must be hard up for money to stomach a character like that with a script as badly written as this one was.
The less said about Polly Perkins, the better - especially, the fish pie.
Lorraine, I hope your tenure can only get better; it certainly can't get any worse.
It was an episode centred around Shirley and Lola, mostly Lola, which means that much of what happened tonight was unpalatable for the viewer. Let's take the good first and then the bad.
Good things: Michael and Janine, as usual. She doesn't trust him (with reason), and he doesn't trust her. Bless him, though, he's trying. And she's afraid to let him into her confidence because of what's all gone on before in her life. One thing I don't understand is the inconsistency of Michael's relationship with Alfie. Before the Jean reveal, Alfie pragmatically gave Michael the benefit of the doubt. Then on Michael's wedding day, Alfie reveals that he believes Kat's suspicions of Michael, that Kat "doesn't lie" (we know that's not true). So now Alfie's on the outs with Michael, and Jean and Kat "love" him.
WTF?
Alfie's threat when he left Michael at the hospital was obviously the latest red herring being thrown out in the odious and totally shitworthy shaggerman storyline.
The other good thing was Alfie dropping everything and helping Michael get to the hospital. That's Alfie all over - in times of crisis or need, he puts personal feelings aside and helps.
The other most watchable character was Shirley, and Linda Henry was at her best tonight. Starting the day determined and happy, wanting to cook for "her boys." You have to feel so sorry for Shirley, but then, you almost can't. Shirley is a real enigman. She was an abysmal mother, walking out on three small children, one of whom was disabled. She left them to party with Heather, her best friend stunted in terminal adolescence. She wasn't a very good best mate either, for all she reckoned she was tonight. At times, she treated Heather abysmally, bullying and baiting her. When Shirley had nothing else in her life, Heather was her focal point; when Shirley returned to Walford in 2007, looking for Carly and Dean, that was the period when Heather was being prodded and poked by Queenie, and Heather was trying to please Mummy. So Shirley went back to trying to "be" mummy, after leaving Kevin all the hard work of bringing up the kids.
Newman's new signature piece is that we now get to hear the other end of telephone conversations with departed characters, so tonight we got to hear "the voice of Carly." It didn't sound like her in the least, and whilst the bully boys of Walford Web and the old girl trolls on Digital Spy are creaming their collective knickers at the thought of a recast Carly, I'll bet it ain't gonna happen.
It should. Shirley's children should return. That's a relationship that really needs examination, especially since tonight our Lorraine did some retconning of her own. Carly and Shirley parted on improving terms when Carly left in 2008. Not great terms, but Carly at least acknowledged Shirley as "mum" and told her good-bye. She's since called her one Christmas, so this disembodied woman on the other end of the phone is coming totally from left field in saying Shirley has no right to call her.
Now, we've got Shirley wallowing in self-pity and set again on a course of mourning Heather. She's living in a ticking time bomb, oblivious to the parts "her boys" played in Heather's death. (How creepy and cold was Ben's reaction to Jay's disgust in their first scene, when Jay sarcastically remarked as how Ben could have a lie-in, with Ben smirking and biting into his sarnie. Never mind, he's a cold-blooded murderer). I so want this storyline to end soon, because the longer it continues, the more it loses his edge.
Is Shirley withdrawing from this dynamic now, realising that she really has nothing but Phil's goodwill? Will this make the reveal all the more demonic for her when she finds out? Think volcano. Watch this space.
The bad bits: Lola.
I hate her as much as I hate Kat, who wasn't there tonight. I guess with two of them, it would have been insupportable. This girl is so unlikeable, I can't fathom how we are supposed to view her as a sympathetic character. Two lines tonight summed up her terminal headuparseitis:
It's against my human rights.
And
The baby fits in with my plans.
Lola's "human rights" are basically being allowed to do whatever the hell she wants with no repercussions and no assumption of responsibility. Anytime she's challenged, she kicks off. Jay trashed Andrew's van, but tonight he assumed responsibility, apologised for the action and repaired it. Lola thinks the world owes her sorry chav ass a living. She was abysmal tonight, conning a drink from the cafe from Denise and then dousing her with water. Later, in the fast food joint, she conned food from Fatboy. That was not only theft, that was fraud; moreover, if that doesn't cost Fatboy his job, it will come out of his meagre wages. It doesn't matter that Jay promised to come in and pay the next day. That's not the way businesses work, and that's not the way Phil Mitchell would run a business - but then, it's one rule for anyone connected with the Mitchells and another for anyone else. Lola wantonly vandalised a business (of which Phil owned part), yet she was perfectly happy to let anyone else shoulder the blame, and has even sworn revenge on Lucy.
Oh, and her snide remark to Denise tonight, after Denise told her some home truths - about her body not being her own anymore and how her life wouldn't be her own after the baby was born - summed her up entirely. The baby certainly does fit in with her life plan. She'll use the kid to milk the system as much as possible, and then some - milking sympathy from the community when it suits her and then leaving Billy to hold the baby and do the heavy work when she wants to play. I'm glad Nico called the police - theft and further vandalism. I'd love for her chav ass to go to jail (now that she's sixteen) and the baby be placed with responsible people.
Lola is one character I hope Lorraine Newman has the balls to axe. Y'all know who the other one is.
The Uglies: Please. Stop with trying to put Lola in the position as matriarch. She's an old lush, and the scene tonight when she was sat on the barstool, innuendo-ing the faux football team was just rank. Ann Mitchell, whose credentials run as a protogee of Joan Greenwood and being a member of the RSC, must be hard up for money to stomach a character like that with a script as badly written as this one was.
The less said about Polly Perkins, the better - especially, the fish pie.
Lorraine, I hope your tenure can only get better; it certainly can't get any worse.
No comments:
Post a Comment