TeeVee329

Another great episode today around the Rodwell/Varga-Murphy drama, and a nice job extending it out at least one more day with JJ taking off on Mike's bike just as the results came in. I still think this is a misdirect, that they're going to tie JJ back to the Sinclairs via the American donor that's in the mix, but I guess we'll see. And WHOA, the trailer for next week, a.k.a. Flashback Week, is intense: Toadie justifiably demanding to know why he should believe a word Melanie says while she looks all disheveled and heartbroken gave me the chills. Which is amazing because I've been vocal about finding Melanie annoying and not being into her and Toadie as a couple, but it's clear even from this clip that she's been Through It and I'm so curious to see what she has to say. And then Paul, at first you think he's threatening her, but when the camera angle changes, it's clear he's panicked and desperate, oh I can't wait.

Great episode today! Even though there was no way it was actually going to be anthrax, I think the show did a great job making the situation feel dangerous and tense. The actress who plays Remi, in particular, was fantastic playing scared, but trying not to show just how scared she was. And considering how annoying I found her early on, the character work they've been doing with Wendy has been wonderful. And then, using that drama to immediately springboard to JJ spilling the beans about Andrew possibly being his father! Given the various levels of prickliness between the adults, very curious to see how this unfolds from here. But also! The drama with Ed(en) really being an excuse for Holly to imprint on Haz and, by the looks of the previews, decide to get her Izzy on to snag him for herself was unexpected, but so perfect. And I like that they set it up so Holly doesn't know Mackenzie is into Haz so we can watch her scheme without her knowingly stabbing her friend in the back.

Wow, an anthrax scare on Ramsey Street, I did not expect things to escalate so dramatically. Nice touch too with Remi nicking her finger on the envelope as she opened it. I find all the dramatics and dynamics between the Varga-Murphys and the Rodwells really interesting, first Cara and Andrew's prickly conversation about JJ's driving lessons, then Wendy's horror learning she's responsible for putting them in danger. So there's the excuse to keep Mike out of Erinsborough for another few months. I'm torn about whether it's a good idea to keep Jane romantically tethered to a mostly off-screen character, but I think it'd be near impossible to sell another romance for her, not after how lovely their reunion in the faux finale was. Cute little "The O.C." nod with Mischa Barton picking up the photo of Paul's dad, a.k.a. Alan Dale.

Agreed, I was surprised they pulled the pin in the Ed(en) grenade so quickly. I have to think there's more to come there, but with the blatant thefts, not sure how that'd work. I had totally forgotten about Mackenzie's Hendrix ring being in her purse, which led to another nice bit of acting from Georgie Stone as well as cute cuddles with Trevor. Relatedly, I'm really liking Billie as the benign spoiler as the show builds up to Haz and Mackenzie. On a US soap, I'd worry she'll be villainized, but given this show is mostly about nice people being nice, I'm sure she'll get a graceful exit when the time comes. Paul's "Yeah sure" reaction to Bryon babbling about him and Mischa Barton being in love was pretty funny. "Neighbours" scholars - is there anyone in the show's history who would make sense as Mischa Barton's sister?

I figured Holly's no-good ex would show up eventually, given they planted that seed, but I'd been predicting that Holly/Byron might be the pairing post-Mischa Barton and thought they'd save said ex to be a complication then. But I kinda like the use of Ed(en) here, expanding the scope of the Mackenzie/Haz slow burn, building up Holly's place with the twenty-somethings, and giving us classic soap as Ed(en) woos Mackenzie for nefarious purposes while Holly juuust keeps missing seeing him. I'm somewhat intrigued by the little mystery going on with Mischa Barton and the necklaces, as I suspect they're going to tie it to "Neighbours" history and I'm curious how. I like her so much more in this mode versus being schmoopy with Byron. But she was so dumb not just going right over and telling the maid it was her necklace versus having to dig around for it a whole day later and making Paul and Leo suspicous. While I did roll my eyes at yet another "Toadie has to teach Terese to have fun!" subplot, 1) I felt like you could feel the real-life friendship between the actors come out as they were playing around and 2) I liked Terese being like, "Um, my brand is dresses that show off the front porch" lol. Is the actor who plays Karl taking a break? Him suddenly being added to the Harold train trip seemed like an out for another project or something.

I f-ing love Paul. To end an episode with him finding out about Mischa Barton and Bryon's affair and then, in the very next episode, in his very first scene, you have him immediately putting her on blast, gleefully throwing the evidence photos around like confetti, hilariously expressing faux-shock that Mischa Barton didn't know about Byron's escort past, amazing. His swerving away from a completely separate conversation to gloat at/berate Byron was also great. And his delight in Byron's drunken scene in front of Mischa Barton and his mom ("Welcome home, Janey!") was the cherry on the sundae. I also liked the little yet visible charge Terese got out of scheming with Paul to dig up some dirt on Mischa Barton. And I liked that she was completely transparent about it with Toadie and he had zero jealousy about it. Wendy is being so annoying about the Varga-Murphys. Getting all upset that they're being cold/standoffish with her? Lady, you haven't apologized yet for falsely accusing their son of theft! And Cara was completely normal and mature when she asked Wendy to move those boxes or whatever. You know Wendy digging into Cara's work history is going to blow back on her bad and I look forward to it. I guess Sadie is Leo's nanny? Nobody's said it out loud, but this is the second time we've seen Sadie looking after Abigail.

I liked the show injecting conflict between the Rodwells and the Varga-Murphys - first with JJ being accused of stealing Wendy's watch, then Cara getting the job at Lassiters over Wendy - before it even comes out about Andrew possibly being JJ's biological father. And I also kinda liked JJ thinking his little scheme was harmless, but now being stuck in this emotional mess, there's something very dumb teenager about it lol. Paul and Terese still got it, there was so much more sizzle during their brief interaction this week than anything between her and Toadie. But skip me with all this blah blah blah about Melanie being the greatest, she was annoying. Since it can't be Sonya (the best acting from the Toadie actor so far was him reminiscing about her), bring back Dee for Toadie! Earlier this week, I was amused that Holly was dressed for a day of early coffee and joblessly loafing around in a boob-forward mini-dress. Izzy taught her well!

I haven't been enjoying the Mike/Jane storyline because 1) there's an element of doom hanging over the whole thing since we know Guy Pearce isn't staying and 2) Jane has been acting so weird with her yawning and constant talk of her ex. But the proposal today was very sweet...though I was worried throughout Mike was going to get hypothermia from wading into the water or had been bitten by a snake or contracted some kind of infection lol. I guess now we'll have to worry if Mike is going to die in a fiery motorbike crash to explain him not returning in a few weeks. Betting right now that JJ's dad actually is the American donor and said donor is part of Mischa Barton's family. This might be mean because he's young and this is "Neighbours" after all...but the kid playing Dex is...not good.

Some stray thoughts from the last few episodes... - We get it, Nell's secretly plotting against Toadie and Terese, we don't need to see her smirking into the camera all the time. - That said, I'm kinda over Toadie and Terese as a couple already. I don't like that the vibe seems to be that she's uptight and needs Toadie to mellow her out by forcing fun on her. Bleh. - I feel like the response online has been mixed, but I just really like Holly. It was nice this week to see another side of her, to show her really remorseful about betraying Susan's confidence, and that she values her relationship with Susan. - But given Mischa Barton flat-out refused to give her her job back, I bet Holly finds out about her and Byron and blackmails one of them. - Also this troublemaking ex of Holly's is surely going to blow into town as soon as she's started dating Byron or somebody else lol. - I like Mischa Barton better when she's busting Paul's balls versus flirting with Byron. - Sadie was stupid to not just tell Mackenzie that Haz is on a dating app. It's not really a big deal, he hasn't even gone out with this other girl yet, and it doesn't mean he might not be into Mackenzie, but Mackenzie deserves that information. - I like Haz and his dog is cute, but dude runs a café and the dog's hair is getting in peoples' food, that's not quirky, it's gross. - I continue to enjoy how weirded out the new family - particularly Remi - is by the overfriendliness of the neighbors. Them fleeing when Wendy et. all were screeching about a barbeque was very funny. - Are we ever going to see the Mike/Jane scenes? We've been teased after every episode, but they haven't shown up yet lol!

Mischa Barton being a member of the family who are silent partners in the hotel with Paul was kind of a blah reveal. I thought they would tie her into the history of the show more, though I guess there's still time for that. What I did enjoy was Holly's stank attitude towards her. Obviously, she was in the wrong, but there was still something quite amusing, and very Izzy, about Holly refusing to concede any ground, even when Mischa Barton recognized her designer perfume. Toadie trying to get Terese not to do work on their honeymoon really rubbed me the wrong way. So Terese has to change who she is to make this work, what is Toadie changing about himself exactly (besides his address, as it sounds like he and the kids are moving into Terese's and, my guess, is that the new family will take over Toadie's house)? Ah so Mackenzie, Haz, and Byron live together in Aaron and David's old house. I think it's fun there's a house for the twentysomethings. A small touch I loved is that we heard and saw that people were hungover from the wedding, not because they were drowning their sorrows or made a huge public scene, but because it was a wedding and everyone got a little tipsy. That's very true to life!

In a weird way, Toadie and Terese turning to each other given the partners they were burned by makes a kind of sense. If you had been stood up at the altar by someone like Paul - secretive, holds his cards to his chest - you might gravitate towards someone like Toadie who's open and big-hearted. And if you'd had an hippy-dippy flake like Melanie walk out on you, a woman who's strong and self-assured like Terese would be a breath of fresh air. So I guess I'm in for now. I'm not 100% buying the chemistry - I feel it more from Toadie to Terese than vice versa - but it's working enough. And it's clear this is just for now - the spark was still there when Terese talked to Paul and there are a bunch of question marks, I think, about why Melanie really left. It's also pretty obvious that newly teenage Nell was the one who planted the invite and the charm at Terese's to try and spook her. It took me forever to figure out who was standing up for Toadie. It's the Rodwell husband, right? Were he and Toadie friends when last we were on Ramsey Street? Angie motioning for Terese to adjust her...generous front porch...was pretty funny. Mackenzie and the new guy Haz were cute, ditto the meet-cute with JJ and Nelle. Guess we'll find out who Mischa Barton is tomorrow, not that I'll be referring to her as anything but Mischa Barton lol.

...why? Why was that necessary?

"Neighbours"! Everybody needs...well you know! Some thoughts on the return: - It was almost obnoxiously obvious that we were being misdirected into thinking Paul and Terese were retying the knot so that was a bit frustrating to sit through. Still, I was shocked by the reveal that Terese was marrying Toadie of all people! I never cared for Toadie with Melanie so I'm not sad that coupling went bust, but oh, I did always like Paul and Terese together. Curious to see how they fill in the backstory of how this happened. - Nice job by the show keeping the appearances by Imogen, Daniel, Callum, and Angie to themselves (I'm not sure if they're just guesting, but Imogen and Daniel could be interesting to keep around, at the very least because it would give Paul and Terese opportunities to interact). - Speaking of couplings busting up, oh, I'm anxious how they're going to end things with Mike and Jane as we know Guy Pearce can't be sticking around too long (the fact that Mike was already out of Erinsborough slash isn't interacting with anyone but Jane seems to confirm Pearce did one burst of filming and that's it). - I was predisposed to given her mother, but I'm excited to see what the show does with Holly. I liked the realistic portrayal of a young twentysomething who's a bit aimless - staying out until 3am, not giving a toss about the minimum wage job their parent arranged, etc. And there can be a lot of sweetness on this show so I liked that she seems to be adding a dash of salt. Curious to see more of her with the other youngsters and if a feud develops between her and Mischa Barton. - Speaking of, Mischa Barton was...I dunno, fine? So we know she has a Dad in the States whose orders she's presumably there on. - Finally, I liked the new family, particularly Remi and JJ. It was funny how taken aback they were by the almost obtrusive friendliness of the neighbours. And whatever JJ's interest is in the street, that's a smart if obvious way to tie the new to the old.

I made very similar complaints in the GH thread when Lucy and Felicia visited Jackson Montgomery in Pine Valley and we were to believe Lucy wouldn't know a former Mr. Erica Kane if she saw one. As if. And it is weird they didn't at least bring up the Skye connective tissues given, I'm pretty sure, the last time we saw Blair on GH, she took off with Skye and Tea to look for Tomas slash Alcazar. But I'm still looking forward to watching her scenes. Thank gawd she's with grownups like Tracy and not like, stupid Sasha.

Did Tracy and Blair talk about how much they both hate Skye?

Clicking into that feed, I guess they don't share scenes, which I'm actually fine with as Austin is such a dud.

Never forget that returnee Rena Sofer (Lois Quartermaine) used to make out with Frisco on "Melrose Place":

Slightly OT, but quite the coincidence that just as the "Again With This" podcast hit the era of "Melrose Place" with Rena Sofer as Amanda's retcon friend Eve... ...that Rena Sofer is coming back to "General Hospital" to play with my girl Amanda Setton (Kimberly Andrews). I feel like Setton hasn't gotten anything good or meaty since the "baby swap" with Maxie so hopefully this gives her a storyline I actually want to watch.

Bye Olivia (gawd, I wish)! I'm kinda into seeing Rena Sofer and Amanda Setton together, but given the Eddie Maine stupidity going on, I can't get excited.

I'm torn like a thousand ways about this.

The first clip from new Neighbours!

What makes the Lydia storyline feel extra unnecessary is that, from the minute it was announced, all I could think is that they did something very similar with Lisa. Yes, that was years ago, but still, is this all they can come up with to befall the Dingle matriarch?

For real, though, Gabby is the worst. It's been half a day since Dawn found out that Gabby tried it on with her husband and then tried to blackmail him, but Gabby is all huffy that she hasn't been forgiven? And all it took was a half a day of Dawn being mad at her for Gabby to decide to leave town in a strop, screwing over Laurel in the process? So whiny, so unrootable, shut up Gabby.

I'm thrilled that Billy called Gabby's bluff and that Dawn and Kim got to drag her for being a pathetic whiner. You got a long way to go to be the next Kim, Gabs

Three weeks to go! A few articles and interviews with some spoilery teases about what's to come on Ramsey Street: https://www.digitalspy.com/soaps/neighbours/a44938152/neighbours-producer-jason-herbison-new-season/ https://www.digitalspy.com/soaps/neighbours/a44946534/neighbours-spoilers-annie-jones-jane-mike/ https://www.digitalspy.com/soaps/neighbours/a44950775/neighbours-spoilers-new-season/ I remain intrigued about what the show is going to do with