On the whole, I like the Carters - well, most of them anyway. Are they overexposed? In a word, yes, which is unfortunate because they began life on the Square as such a fresh and good family. but now they are the focal point to such a degree that other storylines seem all but forgotten. I can't remember the last time I saw Sharon. What's happening with her search for her father? That storyline is well lost, and it will be lost in other storylines that surround it. The Beales creep on at petty place, the scarey Walford equivalent of MacBeth and his evil Queen, and we've just learned that the Bobby angle will grow and grow for years to come.
And then, there are the babies. If I'm desensitized to anything, it's the increase in babies. Tonight added to the Carter population, but I do get that the function of thie episode is the subtle beginnings of other storylines. Some worked. Some didn't.
Oddly for me, and I do give credit where it's due, Shirley and Buster worked well. For me, they were the understated stars of the piece.
Let's take the negatives first and get the shit out of the way.
What Didn't Work
1. Comedy. The majority background of the episode tonight was played against two mantras - that of "Where's Mick?" and "Let's Get Linda to the Hospital". Thankfully, both of them were brief, but they were too too corny.
First, we had Carol's mindless journey up and down the stairs to her home at the whim of Sonia. We had her stumbling sleepily down the stairs to witness her horny, witless daughter get on her gladrags and cream her knicker because the feckless, theiving Court Jester "wanted to talk." (Actually, I'm surprised Whitney advocated Tina's part in this dilemma. Whitney, more than anyone, is sensitive to children acting out, and you'd think she would have chosen the moment to point out to Tina why Rebecca did what she did and where the kid was coming from in her reasoning.
Then, she came down the stairs again as Sonia made her mad dash home for the keys to her car in order to take Linda to hospital, issuing orders over her shoulder for Carol to "find Mick."
Secondly, there was the dash to hospital, itself. I bought Kat's finding Linda, hurt and distressed; but of course Nurse Numpty has to happen along as well. Absolutelyloved Kat's put-down of the self-righteous bitch.
Sonia: But Ah'm going to The Albert.
Kat: Well, don't let us keep yer.
And what's this about Sonia saying she couldn't drive? She has a car. She was certainly driving Abi to the prison to see Dot. She drove Bianca and a stricken David to the hospital. It was Kat who had the provisional licence. The trip to the hospital offered scant attempts at humour, with Kat wittering on about having to pull Linda's knickers down, and wailing about not "doing" childbirth.
That was the first downer.
2. The Most Repulsive Pairing in EastEnders' History. Sonia ...
... and Tina ...
... stinking up the place. First, Tina sulking in The Albert, and then Sonia, whingeing at the top of her voice about always being on hand when a woman went into labour. She was worse at the hospital, when Linda was in pain and Kat was urging the nurse to give Linda an epidural or gas. We had Sonia giving a lecture about the joys of natural childbirth, reminding Kat that she would say every memory of Tommy, the twins and Zoe (and the secret son - subtle bit of foreshadowing here) were all worth the pain.
Shut your face, you abusive, lying hypocrite! You didn't even realise you were pregnant, and then couldn't wait to give your child away. Even now, she's only allowed close to you when she does your bidding.
Even worse, in the midst of Linda's childbirth screams, whilst Nancy, Whitney, Lee and the Moons listened to the noise within and Nancy couldn't take the pain, it fell to Saint Flaming Tina to intone (about the pain of childbirth):-
All the pain is worth it.
Really, TinaShite? You're the one who, at least, is honest enough to admit you don't love your daughter and left her to bring herself up. You only contact her to see if she's still alive and the strongest sentiment you have for her is that you "wish her well." Then you intone this when you aren't moaning to Mick about having "lost" Zsa Zsa. You didn't lose her - she ran screaming from the frightful person and parent you are.
But the really low point of their presence, was their final scene. I get it that TPTB want us to root for this couple, but when one is a flibbertigibbet with no moral compass, and the other is a liar and an abuser, it's pretty damned hard. Their reunion scene was craven. Sonia was craven enough to tell Dumbarse that sex with Martin meant nothing to her and then she proceeded to feed Tina's ego about how amazing Tina was. That's all these two ever do is get off on bigging the other one up. Of course, Tina's still moving in - ne'mind what Rebecca thinks. After all, both Tina and Sonia think Rebecca is shallow enough that if they bought her enough presents, she'd chill out and accept them. Maybe she might even come to trashmouth her father.
I hate both these women. Foul characters played by less-than-adequate actresses. I'm actually surprised that Carol hasn't clued in on Rebecca's refusal to accept this situation and had a word with Sonia about putting her daughter first, but then Sonia trashmouths Carol when her back is turned.
I didn't like the fact that, last night, Sonia was threatening to slap Rebecca simply because she refused to kowtow to Sonia's "amazing" girlfriend. I wonder if this is going to lead to an abuse storyline involving these two bitches and Rebecca.
I wish both of them would just bugger off and leave.
3. The Blue-Eyed Liability. Richard Blackwood's casting is one big mistake, and Samantha Womack either needs to leave the show, because she's phoning this performance in, or get a swift kick up her arse for the half-arsed performance she's giving.
Carl White's name is in the frame again. Good. People shouldn't forget that Ronnie is a murderer. She's a fool, and Vincent's a bigger one. Neither one of them knows the other the way they pretend to do.
Wait a moment ... Ronnie's known Vincent since the time she and Roxy were setting up the R and R? Pardon me, but didn't that little venture involve someone else - name of Jack Branning? I also get it that Vincent is a composite of a reasonably intelligent, older version of Dexter and a lamebrained version of Michael Moon. Either way, his character comes out like this ...
Ronnie accuses him of being arrogant. Pot, meet kettle. Ronnie thinks the world owes her obeisance. So Vincent thinks that Ronnie actually used Phil to kill Carl White, that she wouldn't sully her hands, and that Phil would kill the man who was hassling Ronnie and getting Roxy into trouble? That fool doesn't know the half ot it. Phil Mitchell thinks precious little of either of those women. He's right about Ronnie - she gets herself in deep shit, then holds her hands up and plays the dumb blonde - and that's before she runs away, leaving a host of incriminating evidence at Phil's house.
I am so over the Mitchells when they feature Roswell Ronnie, and I am so unimpressed with Vincent Hubbard. I would imagine the combined forces of Kim and Claudette could beat his arse around the Square with a two-by-four.
What DID Work (and Worked Well)
Mick and Buster. Buster, away from the dynamic of Shirley and Dean - well, away from Dean - when he isn't bluff and bluster, is actually all right. I could take a character like this - not Phil -Lite, not a gangster (although, I'm sure he'll be caught up in whatever the mysterious Gavin is involved), just an ageing man upon whom has landed a family about whom he knew nothing.
He had fortitude and sensibility enough to react calmly to Mick's initial tirade and to repair to the cafe in order to have a snack (after Mick sprayed his chips all over the pavement) and to talk with Mick. Fair dos to Buster for breaking the ice, and fair dos to Mick to explain, calmly, the problem he has with Buster. Buster's position as his biological father doesn't even come into the equation. It's all to do with Dean, and Mick beautifully and simply stated his case to Buster in a heartfelt soliloquy:-
Mick:-He's a fantasist and a liar. He wanted to be me. Well, he wanted what was mine, and so he raped my wife. She said no. And she kept saying no. Until somewhere along the way, he just raped her.
Buster: Dean's a ... good-looking boy.
Mick: And you believe all the rapists you know when you were inside had macs? He raped my wife. And you're ok with that?
Notice that throughout all of Mick's calm tirade, Buster never once protested, and the look on his face at the end told me that he believed everything Mick told him could, in fact, be true.
Buster never knew either Dean or Mick, and even though he's been defending Dean to the hilt with Shirley these past few months, unlike Shirley, he was willing to listen to Mick's side of the situation. He knows Mick as well as he knows Dean, and he knows Dean, mostly through Shirley's protests. I think Mick has struck a nerve.
I think Buster recognised Mick as the better man when he asked Mick if he and Linda planned on keeping the baby, even if the baby turned out not to be his.
It's our baby. Mick asserts. To Buster, this means "stepping up." Maybe Buster was not only remembering how Stan stepped up, but also how the now-forgotten Kevin Wicks stepped up as well.
Shirley and Dean. In this episode, more than any other, we saw how adept Dean is in manipulating Shirley. I really felt sorry for her tonight, learning about Linda's trip to the hospital, but careful not to intrude upon the situation and to urge Dean to stay away, even though Dean is adamant that he wants to see his child, or the child he believes is his.
Shirley urges cautions. Let Mick and Linda have their moment, but already Dean is turning the screws. He's very much like a small child - Shirley witholding his wallet so he's unable to get a taxi, Dean throwing a tantrum. What if the baby doesn't live? What if this is his only chance to see his child? When Shirley won't buy that, he aims lower, referring to Linda as a "lying whore," and that's what captures Shirley's mettle. She's reminded, once again, of what Linda is saying about her son. Linda and Mick have reduced Dean's reputation to ashes. For one brief moment, I thought Shirley was going to capitulate and give him what he wanted, but, thank goodness, she remained firm.
Dean, however, managed to fanagle Buster's wallet from his jacket pocket.
I guess the feud continues.
Mick and Linda. And by extension Nancy and Lee. The baby is born and it's a boy. Another Carter boy. But lurking in the back of Mick's mind is the child's paternity, and Nancy is broody.
Alfie and Kat. Australia's out and Spain's in. They're still happy for awhile.
And then, there are the babies. If I'm desensitized to anything, it's the increase in babies. Tonight added to the Carter population, but I do get that the function of thie episode is the subtle beginnings of other storylines. Some worked. Some didn't.
Oddly for me, and I do give credit where it's due, Shirley and Buster worked well. For me, they were the understated stars of the piece.
Let's take the negatives first and get the shit out of the way.
What Didn't Work
1. Comedy. The majority background of the episode tonight was played against two mantras - that of "Where's Mick?" and "Let's Get Linda to the Hospital". Thankfully, both of them were brief, but they were too too corny.
First, we had Carol's mindless journey up and down the stairs to her home at the whim of Sonia. We had her stumbling sleepily down the stairs to witness her horny, witless daughter get on her gladrags and cream her knicker because the feckless, theiving Court Jester "wanted to talk." (Actually, I'm surprised Whitney advocated Tina's part in this dilemma. Whitney, more than anyone, is sensitive to children acting out, and you'd think she would have chosen the moment to point out to Tina why Rebecca did what she did and where the kid was coming from in her reasoning.
Then, she came down the stairs again as Sonia made her mad dash home for the keys to her car in order to take Linda to hospital, issuing orders over her shoulder for Carol to "find Mick."
Secondly, there was the dash to hospital, itself. I bought Kat's finding Linda, hurt and distressed; but of course Nurse Numpty has to happen along as well. Absolutelyloved Kat's put-down of the self-righteous bitch.
Sonia: But Ah'm going to The Albert.
Kat: Well, don't let us keep yer.
And what's this about Sonia saying she couldn't drive? She has a car. She was certainly driving Abi to the prison to see Dot. She drove Bianca and a stricken David to the hospital. It was Kat who had the provisional licence. The trip to the hospital offered scant attempts at humour, with Kat wittering on about having to pull Linda's knickers down, and wailing about not "doing" childbirth.
That was the first downer.
2. The Most Repulsive Pairing in EastEnders' History. Sonia ...
... and Tina ...
... stinking up the place. First, Tina sulking in The Albert, and then Sonia, whingeing at the top of her voice about always being on hand when a woman went into labour. She was worse at the hospital, when Linda was in pain and Kat was urging the nurse to give Linda an epidural or gas. We had Sonia giving a lecture about the joys of natural childbirth, reminding Kat that she would say every memory of Tommy, the twins and Zoe (and the secret son - subtle bit of foreshadowing here) were all worth the pain.
Shut your face, you abusive, lying hypocrite! You didn't even realise you were pregnant, and then couldn't wait to give your child away. Even now, she's only allowed close to you when she does your bidding.
Even worse, in the midst of Linda's childbirth screams, whilst Nancy, Whitney, Lee and the Moons listened to the noise within and Nancy couldn't take the pain, it fell to Saint Flaming Tina to intone (about the pain of childbirth):-
All the pain is worth it.
Really, TinaShite? You're the one who, at least, is honest enough to admit you don't love your daughter and left her to bring herself up. You only contact her to see if she's still alive and the strongest sentiment you have for her is that you "wish her well." Then you intone this when you aren't moaning to Mick about having "lost" Zsa Zsa. You didn't lose her - she ran screaming from the frightful person and parent you are.
But the really low point of their presence, was their final scene. I get it that TPTB want us to root for this couple, but when one is a flibbertigibbet with no moral compass, and the other is a liar and an abuser, it's pretty damned hard. Their reunion scene was craven. Sonia was craven enough to tell Dumbarse that sex with Martin meant nothing to her and then she proceeded to feed Tina's ego about how amazing Tina was. That's all these two ever do is get off on bigging the other one up. Of course, Tina's still moving in - ne'mind what Rebecca thinks. After all, both Tina and Sonia think Rebecca is shallow enough that if they bought her enough presents, she'd chill out and accept them. Maybe she might even come to trashmouth her father.
I hate both these women. Foul characters played by less-than-adequate actresses. I'm actually surprised that Carol hasn't clued in on Rebecca's refusal to accept this situation and had a word with Sonia about putting her daughter first, but then Sonia trashmouths Carol when her back is turned.
I didn't like the fact that, last night, Sonia was threatening to slap Rebecca simply because she refused to kowtow to Sonia's "amazing" girlfriend. I wonder if this is going to lead to an abuse storyline involving these two bitches and Rebecca.
I wish both of them would just bugger off and leave.
3. The Blue-Eyed Liability. Richard Blackwood's casting is one big mistake, and Samantha Womack either needs to leave the show, because she's phoning this performance in, or get a swift kick up her arse for the half-arsed performance she's giving.
Carl White's name is in the frame again. Good. People shouldn't forget that Ronnie is a murderer. She's a fool, and Vincent's a bigger one. Neither one of them knows the other the way they pretend to do.
Wait a moment ... Ronnie's known Vincent since the time she and Roxy were setting up the R and R? Pardon me, but didn't that little venture involve someone else - name of Jack Branning? I also get it that Vincent is a composite of a reasonably intelligent, older version of Dexter and a lamebrained version of Michael Moon. Either way, his character comes out like this ...
Ronnie accuses him of being arrogant. Pot, meet kettle. Ronnie thinks the world owes her obeisance. So Vincent thinks that Ronnie actually used Phil to kill Carl White, that she wouldn't sully her hands, and that Phil would kill the man who was hassling Ronnie and getting Roxy into trouble? That fool doesn't know the half ot it. Phil Mitchell thinks precious little of either of those women. He's right about Ronnie - she gets herself in deep shit, then holds her hands up and plays the dumb blonde - and that's before she runs away, leaving a host of incriminating evidence at Phil's house.
I am so over the Mitchells when they feature Roswell Ronnie, and I am so unimpressed with Vincent Hubbard. I would imagine the combined forces of Kim and Claudette could beat his arse around the Square with a two-by-four.
What DID Work (and Worked Well)
Mick and Buster. Buster, away from the dynamic of Shirley and Dean - well, away from Dean - when he isn't bluff and bluster, is actually all right. I could take a character like this - not Phil -Lite, not a gangster (although, I'm sure he'll be caught up in whatever the mysterious Gavin is involved), just an ageing man upon whom has landed a family about whom he knew nothing.
He had fortitude and sensibility enough to react calmly to Mick's initial tirade and to repair to the cafe in order to have a snack (after Mick sprayed his chips all over the pavement) and to talk with Mick. Fair dos to Buster for breaking the ice, and fair dos to Mick to explain, calmly, the problem he has with Buster. Buster's position as his biological father doesn't even come into the equation. It's all to do with Dean, and Mick beautifully and simply stated his case to Buster in a heartfelt soliloquy:-
Mick:-He's a fantasist and a liar. He wanted to be me. Well, he wanted what was mine, and so he raped my wife. She said no. And she kept saying no. Until somewhere along the way, he just raped her.
Buster: Dean's a ... good-looking boy.
Mick: And you believe all the rapists you know when you were inside had macs? He raped my wife. And you're ok with that?
Notice that throughout all of Mick's calm tirade, Buster never once protested, and the look on his face at the end told me that he believed everything Mick told him could, in fact, be true.
Buster never knew either Dean or Mick, and even though he's been defending Dean to the hilt with Shirley these past few months, unlike Shirley, he was willing to listen to Mick's side of the situation. He knows Mick as well as he knows Dean, and he knows Dean, mostly through Shirley's protests. I think Mick has struck a nerve.
I think Buster recognised Mick as the better man when he asked Mick if he and Linda planned on keeping the baby, even if the baby turned out not to be his.
It's our baby. Mick asserts. To Buster, this means "stepping up." Maybe Buster was not only remembering how Stan stepped up, but also how the now-forgotten Kevin Wicks stepped up as well.
Shirley and Dean. In this episode, more than any other, we saw how adept Dean is in manipulating Shirley. I really felt sorry for her tonight, learning about Linda's trip to the hospital, but careful not to intrude upon the situation and to urge Dean to stay away, even though Dean is adamant that he wants to see his child, or the child he believes is his.
Shirley urges cautions. Let Mick and Linda have their moment, but already Dean is turning the screws. He's very much like a small child - Shirley witholding his wallet so he's unable to get a taxi, Dean throwing a tantrum. What if the baby doesn't live? What if this is his only chance to see his child? When Shirley won't buy that, he aims lower, referring to Linda as a "lying whore," and that's what captures Shirley's mettle. She's reminded, once again, of what Linda is saying about her son. Linda and Mick have reduced Dean's reputation to ashes. For one brief moment, I thought Shirley was going to capitulate and give him what he wanted, but, thank goodness, she remained firm.
Dean, however, managed to fanagle Buster's wallet from his jacket pocket.
I guess the feud continues.
Mick and Linda. And by extension Nancy and Lee. The baby is born and it's a boy. Another Carter boy. But lurking in the back of Mick's mind is the child's paternity, and Nancy is broody.
Alfie and Kat. Australia's out and Spain's in. They're still happy for awhile.
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