Eastenders (BBC) - General Discussion

[M. Darcy]

Good thing if Sonia is just going to steal the money.

[Wootini]

Gah. I really want one of those calendars, but nobody on Facebook or Twitter seemed willing to buy one for me. :-(

 

The Children In Need musical numbers are getting completely out of hand. This Grease thing was INSANE! (But in a good way, I suppose) I always spend more time trying to recognize everyone in their weird musical costumes, though.

 

The Ghosts Of Ian Beale was a delight. I didn't think Cindy was quite right, but holy cow, when he walked into the cafe and Kathy was just standing there like nothing had changed? I might have gotten a little ferklempt. (Although Billy running the square was hilarious) And I loved them playing "Perfect Moment" on the radio in the launderette. Nice Easter Egg. :-)

[M. Darcy]

I loved it when Ian tried flirting with Pat.    Did you try asking Eastenders directly via their twitter account? 

 

Something that recently occurred to me with the Tina/Tosh storyline.  I cannot believe that no one pointed out to Tina when they were talking about having a family that if Tosh is hitting Tina, there is a good chance that she would start to hit any kids that they have also.

[Wootini]

Wow, Babe was WAY out of line telling everyone about Stan like that. Although it did lead to Shirley, so yay for that, I guess. :)

 

Ben is kind of hilarious in the way he clearly wants Johnny but doesn't want to be gay. Trying to kiss him in broad daylight isn't the way to go about that, Ben. You have to hang out with him and get really drunk and then after having sex with him, you can use the "I was so wasted I don't even remember what happened last night!" excuse. Come on… do I have to do EVERYTHING here? ;-)

 

But what was up with Lee going all postal on Ben? That was kind of insane. And I know Abi is desperate (and a bit wonky herself) but maybe wipe the blood off Ben's face before snagging him? Ewwww!

[M. Darcy]

I hope Stan doesn't die - I love Timothy West.

Poor Linda-so close to getting rid of Dean.

[Wootini]

Yeah, I'm a little concerned they'll go ahead and bump off Stan. Although it would be kind of funny if he just kept lingering on and didn't actually get any sicker. But that's probably not the message they're trying to send. Actually, it's more likely he'll die next month around Christmas. That's when everyone tends to die on this show.

 

I was really hoping that the argument between Mick and Linda would escalate into a "Why would you try and kill my baby?" "It's not YOUR baby!" cliffhanger, and let us finally get over this hump and deal with the rape. But nooooo... we've got to have a tease that Dean might leave, but then he doesn't, and now Linda is totally screwed.

 

No flies on that Buster, though, is there? ;-)

[M. Darcy]

Or maybe Stan will get.....murdered!!   Maybe Lucy's killer will get bored and start killing again.  Though, with the "I get violent" storyline, looks like they are trying to make it seem like Lee is the killer now. 

 

I wish Linda would just tell someone she was raped.  If not in the Square, maybe the Clinic does counseling? 

[eejm]

I loved, loved, loved Shirley’s outrage at Mick over Buster’s arrest.  Yes, Shirley, you have a 26-year-old son who guessed himself that the convict you were with was his biological father.  You make up a half-assed plan in the span of about an hour to leave with said man and son and run from the law.  You also have a 37-year-old son who thinks he’s your brother and has no idea said convict you’re running away with is his biological father as well.  Yet this entire mess is completely Mick’s fault.  Damn that meddling Mick. 

I really fear for Linda now.  Dean really amped up the creepy when he said, “Did you think I wouldn’t find out?” in reference to Linda’s pregnancy.  I have a feeling that the next few weeks for Linda will be even rougher than before. 

Apparently she will tell Stacey about the rape in the coming weeks, and I really hope that will be a turning point for Linda.

[Wootini]

I loved when Mick was all "Listen, Shirley, I'll tell you this so you'll stay, but DON'T TELL ANYONE ELSE BECAUSE IT'S A BIG SECRET." I'm surprised it took as long as it did for Shirley to blab to Dean! :-D

 

I loved the scenes with Cindy crying on Liam's shoulder and Denise struggling with Patrick. Those are the kind of small, realistic moments of drama that EastEnders does so well. That's not to say I don't enjoy a terrified Sharon trying to warn Shirley to stay away from her and Phil! But for the first time since… well, ever, I suppose… I actually kind of felt bad for Cindy. It is overwhelming to be a new parent, and being a child yourself doesn't help.

 

And then they lightened the mood with the running bits. Shame it's so cold so Kush had to wear a shirt...

[M. Darcy]

It did make me laugh how much Buster looks like Phil - Shirley does have a type. 

 

Not that I am saying that murder is ok,  but I really wish when people are giving a hard time to Ben about him killing someone, he would say "well, who hasn't killed someone in the Square".  Most of them if they haven't killed someone, has shot someone at least.

[Wootini]

It did make me laugh how much Buster looks like Phil - Shirley does have a type. 

 

I thought the same thing! HAHAH!

[Wootini]

Okay, I have questions. First off, why was Massood running in the Commons? He didn't have any more mail, not that there's anyone to deliver to in the park, and he wasn't dressed for a casual jog. It was so random, and clearly just a way to wrap up this Bobby thing in one episode. (Which I appreciated, because I couldn't take much more histrionic Jane.)

 

And second, if you're going to bury evidence up the allotments, maybe don't bury it DIRECTLY IN someone's garden so they'll dig it up with the veg. Maybe just a little off to the side where no one would notice it? 

 

So clearly our mysterious murderer is a complete moron. Hm… that doesn't narrow it down very much. That's pretty much everyone in the Square. ;-)

[Amello]

You do remember, we saw Jay and Ben bury Lucy's purse and wallet, don't you?

[Wootini]

Wait, we saw who it was? I thought it was just hands burying the phone and wallet...

 

I remember Jay and Ben burning the beanie that Jay was wearing the night he was on the bus with Lucy….

[Decider]

The phone and wallet being buried was shown, not who was doing it.

 

Edited to add a clip of the scene.

Edited November 29, 2014 by Decider

[Wootini]

I just can't with these idiots anymore. Seriously, if Ian is going to act like a complete prat, he doesn't deserve to find out who Lucy's killer is and bring them to justice. 

 

Denise should have called the police to come to the allotment and not touched the wallet/phone as soon as she dug them up. But obviously you can't do that because that's the right action and nobody on soaps ever does the right thing. So I was okay with her bringing it home and checking with Patrick before calling the cops. And when she brought them to Ian's, I was like, okay, sure. Tell him about it and bring the cops there. It prolongs the drama to the next episode. But as soon as they all started fighting and then freakin' Ben bust in and started weaving his web of lies (I assume) and Ian didn't call the cops at all, I was like, screw you all, you deserve whatever you get.

 

At least Ian decided to check out Lucy's phone and hopefully that will lead to something more interesting. Because otherwise, we're not going to get anywhere. Although now that I think about it, I remember them saying that we're not going to get any resolution with this until February. And didn't I hear something about a live episode to reveal the killer to avoid spoilers? Or am I imagining that?

 

Also? I'm SO over creepy Ben launching himself at Johnny and then running away when Johnny rightfully pushes him off going "What the hell, dude?"

[Meredith Quill]

I heard that the Lucy storyline was going to run till next Easter? Although I would be happy if it resolved in February because Yawn.

[M. Darcy]

I believe we the viewers will find out before they officially solve it on the show so I think we'll find out in February.  By which time, no one will care.  Which is already me.  And, I remember hearing about a live show too but can't remember when or why its supposed to air.  I know realistically in "real life" murders aren't solved that quickly.  But they are just dragggging it out.

 

But honestly, just give the police the wallet and phone.  Jeez.

[Decider]

Agreed.  I don't see the point in dragging this out for as long as they have.  I do recall hearing the the viewers would know the culprit before the case was solved.
 

The week of 30th anniversary shows will start on February 16, 2015.  Hard to believe I've been watching this show for nearly that long, I started when episodes first started airing on PBS back in the 80s.

[Wootini]

Me too! And since I've continued watching the PBS shows, there's a whole chunk in the middle I've never seen (but sometimes know the ultimate outcome based on what I've seen from the "future"). Also, we let the PBS shows pile up in the DVR for a really long while, so we're WAY behind. The episodes we're up to only just got rid of the Fereiras, finally! :-)

 

As for Lucy's murder, I was initially annoyed that they were going to drag it out, but they said they were going to do a "Broadchurch" style investigation, and I thought that a series of surprising reveals could possibly be interesting. Also, it would be more realistic to have the cops take a while to solve the case, I suppose. But they've dragged it out so long now that the reveals have lost all interest for me. And it was one thing when the cops simply couldn't find any leads, but when a lead drops into someone's lap and they DON'T call the police? Well, that's just dragging it out for the sake of filling episodes until the anniversary.

 

That said, I'm still holding out hope that the killer is revealed to be Abi, because OH MY GOD I CAN'T TAKE ANY MORE OF HER. And I don't know why Jonny keeps trying to be nice to Ben when all Ben does is act like a little monster and then alternatively try to kiss him out of nowhere. Ben is creepy and I can't see him as a romantic interest for ANYONE.

[M. Darcy]

So, Lucy was killed in April (I think that's when Good Friday was)....8 months ago...and her phone battery didn't just completely die?  Damn, English phones are good.

 

Well, if Lucy was run over, then we would know for sure it was Abi. 

 

Man, the men in the Square are horrible human beings - Phil was cheating on Sharon (among his other issues), Alfie set the house on fire with Kat in it, Dean is a rapist, Aleks is living with one woman while his wife is still hanging around the Square....it kind of explains why Ian is somewhat successful with the ladies - the rest are so bad. 

Edited December 3, 2014 by M. Darcy

[eejm]

So, Lucy was killed in April (I think that's when Good Friday was)....8 months ago...and her phone battery didn't just completely die?  Damn, English phones are good.

 

Well, if Lucy was run over, then we would know for sure it was Abi. 

 

Man, the men in the Square are horrible human beings - Phil was cheating on Sharon (among his other issues), Alfie set the house on fire with Kat in it, Dean is a rapist, Aleks is living with one woman while his wife is still hanging around the Square....it kind of explains why Ian is somewhat successful with the ladies - the rest are so bad. 

 

 

I think we saw Ian plug Lucy's phone into the charger when he first brought himself to look at it.  

 

But a big yes as to the idiot men in the Square.  Add Charlie working 24/7 to hide Nick, Dexter being obnoxious, Johnny not being into the ladies, and Mick not having any eyes for Linda and the pickings are pretty slim.  It's a wonder that Kush, Masood, and even Tamwar aren't clubbing the women off of them as they seem to be the only decent guys around.

[Wootini]

Well, if Lucy was run over, then we would know for sure it was Abi. 

 

BWAHAHAHAHAH!

[Wootini]

Okay, that was slightly awesome. I kind of loved when Peter was berating Ian for being the terrible father that he is. But then when Ian totally blew Peter out of the water at the party and then tossed his bag on the sidewalk, I kind of loved that, too! :-) Although I sort of felt like Ian was grudgingly going along with it and wasn't actually planning to expose Peter's drug dealing in front of everyone, but he just sort of snapped.

 

And watching Ben struggle to be straight so his daddy will accept him? Yeah, I'm really sympathetic towards that kind of thing, but he's just so awful and terrible I can't feel sorry for him. Almost, but not quite! Good try, though! (And after the way Abi snapped at Emma, maybe those two psychos deserve each other! They can go be miserable together since he won't actually want to sleep with her)

 

But I have a question. One I'm sure will be explained in the next episode, at least I hope it will! When Lee rewound that video of Fats doing his actually terrible non-impression of Jay because he thought he saw something, I assumed it was the beanie on Jay's head that he recognized from the security cam footage from the bus with Lucy. But then he zoomed in on Lauren walking down the sidewalk in the background. Can someone explain to me why that means anything? Who cares if Lauren was there? What have I missed?

[Decider]

Lauren's alibi that she gave to the police is that she went to Roxy's party on the night of Lucy's murder, left early and went straight home but in the background of the video, she was seen going towards the Beale's house.

Spoiler about  where the investigation goes next (the spoiler is in the page address as well, so careful when clicking on it if you don't want to be spoiled).

Edited December 6, 2014 by Decider

[eejm]

Max to Abi: You are not going out with a gay convicted murderer!"  

 

A line every father has to utter at least once.  

[Wootini]

Having watched James Alexandrou literally grow up in the role, I don't know how I feel about a new Martin…

 

Also, I would assume that there's more story to tell here, because why would you have him being awful to Sonia off camera for months only to bring him on for one episode where they finally split up? I'm not crazy about recasting, but at least they finally brought him on camera so he can defend himself. Or learn to act right. I don't know. Since most of this happened off camera, the whole storyline is so awkward.

[eejm]

I'm fine with the new Martin so far.  He isn't drastically different than the old Martin in looks, speech, or mannerisms.  I did notice that he seems gargantuanly tall, although perhaps all of his scenes yesterday were with shorter actors.

 

I think the writers have done a great job establishing Linda’s current emotional state.  We’ve seen more than just the fact that she's anguished, we understand why she won’t tell anyone about the rape – she’s scared people won’t believe her, she frightened of Mick going postal on Dean, she may fear some sort of retribution from Dean, she feels exposed at everyone knowing something so tragic and personal, and she really just wants everything to stay the same between her and Mick.  That doesn’t even account for the fact that her feelings are amplified due to her pregnancy and her fears that Dean might be the father of her baby.  Linda has backed herself into a corner, but I can completely understand why she’s done it and I really feel for her.

But…

I do wish someone would notice that Linda’s whole demeanor changes drastically when Dean is around.  Up until last night only Elaine (and possibly Babe, I thought I saw a scene in which she seemed to catch on) had noticed that Dean’s presence obviously upsets Linda.  Mick had a puzzled look on his face last night when Linda started yelling about Dean’s role in the Johnny-scooter debacle that made me think Mick was finally, finally getting in tune with the fact that Linda is more upset when Dean is nearby.  Instead of asking Linda, “What’s wrong??” for the umpteenth time, I wish he’d confront her directly by asking her why she seems so obviously distressed around Dean. 

Mick, get a clue.  Linda goes kind of mental when Dean’s around.  There’s a connection.

[M. Darcy]

The official Eastenders twitter account tweeted this "Poor Tina - in the receiving end of another beating from Tosh.  Should this be the last straw for their relationship".  I really want to reply and say Why is that even a question?  YES. 

[Decider]

I don't know that Sonia is necessarily telling the whole story about Martin being so awful to her in their time offscreen.  He seemed to be very willing to support her and try to work things out with their marriage and I can't imagine that a man who allegedly had no interest in his wife would make that effort.  In the past, she always seemed to see him as too common for her, that his life of wanting to be near family and run the fruit and veg stall was not the kind of life she wanted.  Not saying that Martin has no hand in any of it at all, but I think Martin and Sonia's marital problems are mostly all about Sonia.

[eejm]

The official Eastenders twitter account tweeted this "Poor Tina - in the receiving end of another beating from Tosh.  Should this be the last straw for their relationship".  I really want to reply and say Why is that even a question?  YES. 

 

I was really creeped out about Babe giving Tosh the watch.  Babe knew Tosh had been violent with Tina before.  Why did she want to inflame an already dangerous situation and leave Tina so exposed and vulnerable?

[Wootini]

Yeah. And hanging around outside to keep an eye on things wasn't really ever going to be that helpful. She should've had Shirley with her, because Shirley would've broken that door down!

 

Also, that was a sickening thud at the end there before Tina came running out covered in blood. I'm really hoping that we're not doing a repeat of Little Mo's story. I would much rather Tosh still be alive so she can go to jail for what she's done to Tina and suffer. In prison, she can learn what it's like to be on the receiving end of a beating! (Sorry, I really really really don't like Tosh)

 

And Decider, yeah, I had the same feelings about Martin and Sonia. All we got was her side of things for so long, and I was always a little irritated that they were basically throwing Martin under the bus. I never like when soaps break couples up off camera because they can only get one of the actors back on the show. That said, was that it for Martin? I assumed since they recast, he'd be on for a while. If it was just for one episode, couldn't they have gotten James Alexandrou to return?

 

Also, it's really hard for me to take Peter's side in all this when he goes and gets high and smashes up the house. It's very satisfying to watch Ian break down, but really there's no one to root for here. 

[M. Darcy]

Hopefully, though I doubt it, they went to a hospital and filed a report with the police.  Re: the next episode I watched the preview

Tosh is alive. She storms over to the Vic and Shirley starts beating the crap out of her.

.

[eejm]

Hopefully, though I doubt it, they went to a hospital and filed a report with the police.  Re: the next episode I watched the preview

Tosh is alive. She storms over to the Vic and Shirley starts beating the crap out of her.

.

 

I watched Thursday's preview.  I'm a lover not a fighter, but it was oh-so-satisying to see that. 

[M. Darcy]

I agree.  I can't wait to see it. 

[Wootini]

The… place where I am able to watch EastEnders doesn't show a preview. Not that I would watch it anyway, because I hate watching previews for anything. They always spoil way too much. But it would have been nice to see at least a taste of your spoiler without having to wait until the Thursday episode! :-)

[Decider]

That said, was that it for Martin? I assumed since they recast, he'd be on for a while.  If it was just for one episode, couldn't they have gotten James Alexandrou to return?

 

I read elsewhere that James Alexandrou did not want to return to the show, at least not at the moment, and James Bye was cast with his approval.

 

I believe that Martin will be back, though.

[Wootini]

Part of me is glad that Tina didn't kill Tosh in self defense, because I didn't want to have to deal with that storyline. The Carters are dealing with enough right now. But at the same time, I really wish she'd been punished more for what she did. Or punished at all! Sure, she's really sad that Tina dumped her violent, sorry ass. But that's not enough. They should've called the cops. Immediately. Grr. Now there's nothing to stop Tosh from going to Croyden and finding a new girlfriend to abuse. I did think that the scenes were well-handled, although I did get the impression that the actress playing Tosh wasn't quite able to sell her lines 100%. Like she herself didn't believe the words coming out of her mouth.

 

I was so pissed when Mick showed up at the clinic, because I knew that would be just what was needed to push Linda over the edge and keep the baby after all. Now we've got that drama to deal with. And I love that the woman at the clinic was literally the first person to twig that Linda might have been raped. Not that we dealt with that. Linda swept it under the rug again. Sigh. 

 

Shirley's mom showing up has me confused again about the Carter family tree. So This woman is Shirley and Tina's mom? But Nick thinks she's his mom, too? She looks more than a little unstable, so this should be interesting...

[Meredith Quill]

Eastenders 30th anniversary series to launch on BBC iPlayer.

[eejm]

Part of me is glad that Tina didn't kill Tosh in self defense, because I didn't want to have to deal with that storyline. The Carters are dealing with enough right now. But at the same time, I really wish she'd been punished more for what she did. Or punished at all! Sure, she's really sad that Tina dumped her violent, sorry ass. But that's not enough. They should've called the cops. Immediately. Grr. Now there's nothing to stop Tosh from going to Croyden and finding a new girlfriend to abuse. I did think that the scenes were well-handled, although I did get the impression that the actress playing Tosh wasn't quite able to sell her lines 100%. Like she herself didn't believe the words coming out of her mouth.

 

I had a tough time believing that Tosh and Tina were ever that into each other.  I think it would have helped had we seen them happier at the start of their (on-screen) relationship, or have them referencing better times they had before they broke up the first time.  From the start they seemed to me like a couple whose relationship was on the downward slope but they had yet to acknowledge it.  Regardless, I'm glad Tina stuck up for herself and dumped Tosh.  I'm also glad she had the courage to tell that to Tosh without her family around - I think that sold it to me that Tina had finally had enough.  

 

I was so pissed when Mick showed up at the clinic, because I knew that would be just what was needed to push Linda over the edge and keep the baby after all. Now we've got that drama to deal with. And I love that the woman at the clinic was literally the first person to twig that Linda might have been raped. Not that we dealt with that. Linda swept it under the rug again. Sigh.

 

I had mixed feelings about this too.  On one hand, I think Linda actually made the decision not to get the abortion herself. I really don't think she wanted to go through with it, but she felt so alone that she believed she had little choice.  I think Linda felt that Mick's presence that actually helped her feel that she could continue with the pregnancy because she had his unconditional support in whatever she decided.  But I really wanted Linda to tell the counselor about the rape.  Linda's acknowledgment of the rape - even to someone who wasn't family or a friend - would have showed that she was taking her life back, for lack of a better phrase.  If we'd seen that, then we'd seen that Mick was supportive of whatever choice she made, I think that would have been more convincing when she told Mick to take her home.

 

Shirley's mom showing up has me confused again about the Carter family tree. So This woman is Shirley and Tina's mom? But Nick thinks she's his mom, too? She looks more than a little unstable, so this should be interesting...

 

The one thing Sylvie seems to be quite lucid about is the fact that she doesn't have a son.  And she's right, but of course no one will believe her!

[Wootini]

Oh yes, by all means, take a clearly unstable woman out of the home in which she is staying and presumably feels somewhat safe in order to stick her in a car and drive her to a busy are to thrust her into a pub to meet a whole slew of people. Without even shoes on her feet. Sounds like a plan, Mick. [/eyeroll]

[eejm]

Oh yes, by all means, take a clearly unstable woman out of the home in which she is staying and presumably feels somewhat safe in order to stick her in a car and drive her to a busy are to thrust her into a pub to meet a whole slew of people. Without even shoes on her feet. Sounds like a plan, Mick. [/eyeroll]

 

Raise your hand if you were majorly creeped out when Sylvie unknowingly started flirting with Mick.  *raises hand*

[Wootini]

*raises hand*

 

Although I'm not sure if it's creepier for Mick thinking it's his mom or us knowing she's his grandma… ;-)

[eejm]

*raises hand*

 

Although I'm not sure if it's creepier for Mick thinking it's his mom or us knowing she's his grandma… ;-)

 

 

Well, you aren't a Carter unless you have mommy issues, massive disrespect of sexual boundaries, sociopathy, a terminal illness, or a child with questionable paternity.  

[Wootini]

Glad we're getting to see some more of Ronnie and Charlie. Especially since their wedding is apparently going to be on New Year's Eve. I hate when relationships happen 95% off camera. Makes them so much less effective. And I actually kind of like them together. Ronnie can be a bit abrasive, but either Charlie or the baby or a combination of both are softening her nicely.

 

Now if we could only do something about Roxie's extensions...

 

Oh, and I'm assuming that Lee accidentally dropped Kat and Alfie in it by calling the landlord? Because they're squatting, right? Whose place was that again? Someone gave them the keys, but I don't remember who or why.

[Decider]

Yeah, they are squatting.  Donna, the market trader in the wheelchair, gave them the keys to Terry's old flat when they got bounced out of the previous apartment that Alfie had moved them into before Kat got out of the hospital.  Donna told them that Terry's rent had been paid up through the end of November but I don't recall if she explained why she had his keys.

[Wootini]

That's right! I thought I remembered Donna giving them the keys, but that's Terry's flat, so I was totally confused.

 

I know Terry and Donna flirted, but I wouldn't think things got so far he'd give her keys to his place! :-)

 

Of course, since we've not seen Kat and Alfie for a month or so, we have no way of knowing if they've thought about trying to rent the place properly or perhaps find another one before this one becomes a squat… I'm assuming that Alfie has just been hoping things magically turn around like usual while Kat just rolls her eyes at his uselessness, which is why they haven't bothered showing them on screen.

 

I hope she tears him a new one when she finds out the truth about the fire. That's gonna be GOOD!

[Wootini]

I hope that Kat finds that photo of Nana Moon and figures it out herself. That would be so much more interesting than Stacey blowing the whistle on Alfie. 

 

And all this crap with Lauren's computer just makes that neon finger pointing at Abi glow that much brighter, doesn't it? :-)

[Decider]

I think that is how Kat is going to find out about Alfie.  (Speculation, not a spoiler.)  Otherwise, why show him tucking the photo away into a bag?  It has to come back into play somehow.

Edited December 18, 2014 by Decider

[Wootini]

Gah! I guess I should be grateful that Kat didn't realize the truth at the end of Friday's episode. I don't know if I could wait the entire weekend to watch Alfie get what's coming to him...