Slade

Wow, some of the new characters (like literally appearing in the last three months) finishing strong, even Bree. Colby as high as 25 - That's really surprised me. And....yesssss..Heather there too. I didn't vote for her but very surprised Mackenzie has done so well. I thought she would be the sort of character to rub a lot of people up the wrong way but I guess maybe taking her punishment after the poker nights and not dropping Felicity in it (Who I think should have faced something considering she got Mackenzie into it in the first place), forming a genuine friendship with her and dropping the occasional snobbery has helped. I am absolutely over the moon Sally didn't win TBH. It will be interesting to see where Alf, Irene, Leah, Marilyn etc finish though.

The person I was most surprised about was Bartlett. I have to admit, I did quite like him. They seemed to be developing some sort of backstory then it just faded away. Not surprised Chloe was the least favourite out of the people this year. Found her very unlikeable and still not happy about the fact she killed someone and effectively got to ride off into the sunset.

It's interesting that the voting is now effectively anonymous. I actually think that works better. It's also interesting that the poll is now open to anybody rather than members of the forum. We'll see if that makes any difference to the results this time.

Tori was really getting on my nerves re the whole Jasmine thing when she argued with Christian and Justin (You could tell even Leah didn't entirely agree with her). Once again coming across as high maintenance. Wasn't expecting to see Angelo/Taylor and am surprised they are still showing Colby as his storyline is pretty much over. I quite like Taylor and enjoy the scenes with Jasmine and hope she sticks around although I think it would be difficult for her to remain in the bay as apart from Jasmine she's barely interacted with anybody unless it's Colby related. I am in agreement that Angelo should not be taking her back because it does seem like she's only going with him because Colby's unavailable (kind of like Shane and Dipi from Neighbours). I think a fresh start is the best for both of them as presumably anytime they have an argument in the future, this case is always going to come up. Quite intrigued by this storyline of Martha's son. It's pretty major getting married and not telling your husband. I will say though, the reaction and the sheer look of disbelief on Roo's face when Martha told her was absolutely wonderful.? Just priceless. It was worth Martha telling her just to see that.

I'm guessing you didn't approve when crazy Jasmine forked out for Colby's bail. I did like the way the Channel 5 announcer asked before the episode whether this was Colby's last surf. It was quite amusing how Willow the traitor tried to get Bella to wait outside because she didn't want Bella to see her stick the knife into Colby's back when she was giving evidence. Notice how during the whole thing she couldn't even look at Colby. Ironically she helps the prosecution convict the person who killed the individual who tried to kill her (Perhaps Colby wished she had died when Ross shot her now). The problem is, she has lied in court so it calls into question the credibility of her evidence. It will be interesting to see whether that will come back to bite her. I do have to admit, I had a wry smile at Angelo's smug victorious expressions. Colby didn't know what hit him. This must be one of Angelo's sweetest triumphs. And I did quite enjoy Dean and Bella's reactions to Willow's betrayal. She appears to have committed the cardinal sin as far as their code of conduct goes. Not sure what advantage there is throwing Colby to the wolves for Dean as opposed to letting Colby take his chances with the evidence Angelo had amounted previously, although I can kind of understand with Bella. Was glad Irene gave Marilyn a serve.

More conversations with Jasmine and Irene - Yay. Let's look at Irene's facial expressions - we have understanding, concerned, disapproval, touched, bemused and horrified. I was half expecting Jasmine to pick up a large object and smack Christian over the head with it at Grace's birthday party. I laughed when Colby told Taylor he loved her and then I thought she's not going to fall for it again but maybe he does at least think he's in love with her. Wow, what a traitor Willow is. I was shocked. Really wasn't expecting her to be witness x. It will be interesting to see the fallout with the other members of the inner circle.

I am quite liking the way Ari is supporting Tane, despite the fact they are going to commit a crime and I did quite enjoy the exchange between Tane and the drug dealers particularly with their cynical attitude. I was pretty much non-reactive through various parts of Monday's episode but my eyes lit up at the end when Ziggy told Mackenzie about Colby and Dean. I wonder how many people Angelo suspects of knowing what Colby did. Presumably he knows that Dean and Bella know but I'm not sure who else. There's probable reason to suspect Willow knows but he can't be sure. Despite the serious nature of this storyline, I spent most of Tuesday's episode laughing. I'm absolutely loving the fallout of this. Colby's smugness has disappeared and it's being replaced with desperation. The way he was with Bella, Willow and Dean trying to determine who witness X is, confronting Ziggy and being quite aggressive with her on the beach and his reaction when Mackenzie stormed round to talk to Dean about it. In one hand I do sympathise with Jasmine as she doesn't have the facts but on the other hand it's quite funny as an observer seeing how delusional she's coming across in her conversations with Angelo and when she was discussing using the gym as collateral for Colby's bail with Mackenzie. If it comes out that Colby is guilty she's going to look really stupid and given how she said one of the reasons she supported Colby was because of his relationship with Robbo, this may actually negatively impact her state of mind. I actually really wanted Mackenzie to tell Nikau about Colby just to see her and Ziggy's reaction to yet another person knowing. Not sure what Mackenzie's problem with Taylor is exactly. This leads me back to how she was like with Amber. Don't get me wrong because Amber was drunk and being slightly obnoxious so I can see how that was annoying but I am wondering if she perceives certain attractive females as a threat.

Forgot to mention before that I found it really funny that everybody bar Ryder knew exactly why it would have been problematic calling the police on the drug dealers when they rocked up at Tane's. Again, feel sorry for Taylor despite the fact she did the dirty on Angelo. As far as she's concerned Angelo and Colby really are two sides of the same coin. Both of them using her to get the better of the other in terms of the case. Angelo clearly doesn't really care about his marriage as he wouldn't have tried to blackmail Taylor into picking a side re him/Colby. And if he really cared, he might have confronted Taylor before bugging her. When she made her point that she fell for Colby was because he neglected her, I actually laughed when Angelo said he'd been faithful as it's fairly obvious, he wouldn't have cheated on her as he was too focused on his work. Not doubting his ability as a detective, just as a husband. I will say I quite enjoyed the interaction with Jasmine and Taylor and assuming Angelo is here temporarily, I would like to see Taylor stay on if/when he leaves. It's funny watching Jasmine over these last few episodes. She works far better in scenes where she's not tied to the Morgans. Irene continues to be the master at facial expressions in conversations with her. Irene's reaction when Jasmine said she wanted a baby was quite amusing. I'm tempted to say Jasmine came across as deluded but objectively she's not been party to the stuff that has gone on with Colby. So from her perspective she briefly dated him, it didn't work out and they're good friends. Again continued to enjoy the rivalry with Angelo and Colby. I loved it when they were in each others faces at Salt but the best part was when Angelo arrested him at the end. So glad he did it in front of an audience. My only regret was that there weren't more main characters to witness it. Although, even when Colby was getting handcuffed he did not seem that phased at all and was still quite convincing, blaming the arrest on Angelo being narked that he was seeing Taylor.

I have to admit, you are still quite funny sometimes. Well you heard it folks. Straight from the horses mouth. Jasmine looking after Grace is potentially asking for trouble. It's a shame we didn't get to see Justin's running commentary on it this time. I have to admit, I laughed at Irene's reaction when Jasmine said she dreaded giving Grace back just before reassuring Irene she wasn't back to let's say..the..previous Jasmine (the c-word re Jasmine is prohibited around here). Also, she was mentioning to Colby when she went to spend time with him, how she enjoyed spending time with Grace. I wonder what she would make of him killing Ross and disposing of his body, although Robbo did the same thing, admittedly there's an argument it was in self defence. Whilst Tori can be funny, she can also be annoying especially on her childish reaction to Christian not having her back although at least she apologised afterwards. Whilst I'm not a fan of Nikau, I have to admit I loved the scene when Colby confronted him about taking Bella to New Zealand, Colby threatened him and Nikau told him about Ross. The look of disbelief on Colby's face was wonderful. I mentioned before that there are times when Colby has been sociopathic and I think it's worth mentioning again. Watching him on Friday's episode, even putting the lack of remorse aside for killing Ross, he still has complete lack of empathy towards Bella. So I was glad Bella told him she was leaving because of him. I was surprised Ari didn't complete lose it when Tane told him about the trouble he was in. He actually handled it really well. Interestingly, the drug dealer made clear his issue was with Tane and gave Ari every opportunity to stay out of it. Most of the time these people will go after family and close friends.

It's funny, that scene where Angelo told Bella about Colby and Taylor was reminiscent of the scene when he told Roman about Aden and Belle all those years ago. I have to admit, I did find it quite amusing the semi mind games Angelo has been playing with Taylor i.e. asking her to spend the evening with him when he knew she had planned to meet Colby and turning up just as she'd left Colby the next morning asking her to have breakfast with him. I think Willow summed it up perfectly - Colby thinks he's untouchable. He was so deluded even when Bella point blank told him Angelo knew he was seeing Taylor, he refused to believe right up until he saw the file with the photos of them and phone records from the hotel. If Angelo is able to progress this, I wonder if Taylor's ever going to be called as a witness. Although it's hard to see what sort of traction Angelo can gain now with this case. I agree with the comment that Angelo hasn't been shown in a favourable light either but I've said multiple times, this is now more of a competition to beat the other. I don't agree with what Dean did previously but IMO part of the reason Amber took Jai from Dean was out of spite and to punish him for doing the same thing to her (with the idea to deny access to Jai permanently). When Amber first told Dean about Jai, I was hoping Jai wasn't his son because I suspected he would get close to Jai and would eventually end up losing out. And when Dean called her, she basically claimed her reason for leaving was because of the stuff with Dean and her mum, implying that it was unresolvable, ignoring the fact it hasn't been going on for too long anyway. So I'm not really surprised something like this has happened. If Amber decides not to come back to the Bay, at least we won't have to see her any more, which is a good thing. Justin's commentary on Tori/Christian continues to be highly amusing. Leah was quite funny too. Just a shame he appears to have had a relapse. Oh, dear. Looks like Roo had it bad for Owen.?

Funny how you said you ignored the 'crazy label' re Jasmine twice and even advised someone else to as well. Not very good at practising what you preach.? I despair at how simple statements often go over people's heads. Tori on heat continues to be amusing. Especially when Christian tried to hook up, she made a big thing about it, he immediately backed down and she was disappointed he didn't make more of a fuss. Leah was right about her giving mixed signals and she continued to even after their conversation in that episode. Justin's commentary about it later on that evening was also really funny. Crazy Jasmine continued to see Christian as a threat but I would also liked to have seen the conversation with them. Still not finding Bella and Nikau very interesting and probably wouldn't be that bothered if both of them went to New Zealand.

Presumably Angelo's figured out that Colby is using Taylor in attempt to keep one step ahead of him. You could see yesterday that it was difficult for him to listen to them. The fact that he's prepared to allow his wife to continue sleeping with another man to progress the case.... you have to admire his dedication. Although a lot of it is fuelled by the fact that Colby has just been so smug and arrogant about everything. As I said before it's now more about beating the other than it is about the murder investigation itself. I actually really enjoyed the scene when Angelo confronted him and Colby told Angelo his games wouldn't work. Crazy Jasmine. Yay! Her facial expressions at Christian, particularly when he was interacting with Tori were hilarious. She's not happy about them.? Tori though once again shows her funny side especially when she is involved with anybody romantically. Justin's reaction to the prospect of Tori getting waxed was slightly amusing. It's interesting seeing him dealing with his cancer treatment. I'm guessing that was probably about 3 months ago. Australia hasn't been hit as hard with Covid as most other places but if that had been the UK (especially now) he would have real problems. Re Tane's story to Ari about ending up in hospital, Ari must have been thinking it was a pretty big husband.

Despite my dislike towards Amber, I did actually think she was very reasonable in that episode and actually found myself annoyed at Dean, particularly his refusal to respond to any attempts from her (or anybody else) to contact him. I actually thought she was well within her rights to go to the police and was annoyed the way Willow was trying to stop her from taking things further. Really don't like the position Ziggy's in because of Tane.

Channel 5 should really remove the picture of Gemma from their website given that she's not coming back (Yay!). I liked the way Ari was trying to spend time with Dean to help take his mind off Amber re Jai. I guess Dean is the only friend Ari has. I didn't like the way Mackenzie was dismissive of Ari when he just wanted to buy Dean a drink, Dean obviously didn't want to talk about Amber but Mackenzie wouldn't let it go. I do actually think the legal approach is the right option as I agree with Dean that neither Amber or her mother can be trusted. Dean would need his head read confiding in John for anything though given how John acknowledged how he's acted towards Dean in the past. Even if you put that aside, John is obviously team Amber anyway. Dean shows he's not thinking properly going round to confront presumably Francesca about the info on his criminal past left at his front door and taking Jai afterwards given how Mackenzie said she could get him a decent lawyer.

It will be interesting to see if it comes out that Angelo pretended to be Colby to obtain Taylor's phone records, whether there will be any repercussions, regardless of whether he cracks the case. I do have to admit the mind games at the moment is sublime. And Angelo is definitely winning. I didn't think I would initially but I am quite enjoying seeing Colby and Taylor squirm. Taylor more-so. It's interesting how Colby was using Taylor to turn the case to his advantage and now Angelo is using her to further his advancement in the case. Given that he's bugged Taylor, presumably he's going to allow her and Colby to continue seeing each other. You've got to admire his dedication. Although he did seem to recognise he had been neglecting Taylor. I did find it quite funny Colby agreeing to lift Nikau's travel ban. I also found Colby's expression funny when Amber's mum rocked up at his. The problem for me with Amber is that it feels as though she's banning Karen from seeing Jai permanently out of spite. Not so much spite towards Dean but spite towards Karen. However in saying that she does have a valid point (although I don't think Karen would intentionally harm Jai) I've said previously that Karen's a lose cannon. Very surprised John would even want to speak to her to be honest. Even though Amber has a point she's getting a lot of flack from Dean because of how dismissive she's being rather than having a proper discussion about it. Her mother's attitude doesn't help matters.

It doesn't sit right with you - From a fictional program. That's my point. There's an argument that it may be hyperbolic but that's it as far as I'm concerned in the context of the fictional program. I haven't said you said there was anything wrong with criticising crazy Jasmine BTW, don't know where you got that from unless you've made it up. Yes, Colby is a good cop - Judge, jury and executioner. It's getting really tense with him and Angelo both of them taking turns to psych each other out via the staring competition they seem to have going at the moment. You can even feel the tension in the scenes with Angelo and Taylor especially when they were at Salt. It will be interesting to see how Angelo plays this now that he's presumably found out about the affair. I think he's too smart to directly confront them about it. And given the murder investigation has effectively turned into a p*ssing contest between Colby and Angelo, both desperately want to win at all costs, it wouldn't surprise me if Angelo will probably try and use this to his advantage. I have to admit, Justin made me laugh again, when his cautious or should I say logical side regarding Jasmine resurfaced although he used the word 'intense'. I mean really Tori can date who she likes. Strictly speaking she shouldn't really care how it affects Jasmine. I've always felt that a post Robbo life should be starting from scratch away from the bay and away from Grace. But there is the argument Tori's been so ambiguous, especially during the whole restraining order debacle that she's put herself in this position and she's only got herself to blame. Although at least Tori and Jasmine squared things afterwards.

Well tough, because you're wasting your time. You haven't convinced me of anything. I'm not going to change what I say just because you don't like it. Nobody's sticking a gun to your head and forcing you to read my posts OK? H & A is not real life. It's a scripted drama with fictional characters and I don't see anything wrong with criticising a fictional character in a fictional program. You can defend crazy Jasmine all you like but I'll continue to refer to her like that, when I see the need. Understood?

Who are you trying to convince, me or you? Very disappointed with Tane although I guess old habits die hard. I have to say, surprisingly I've liked Ziggy a lot more since she's been single. And I do actually quite like the scenes with Tane although I really hope they keep the relationship platonic. I also like the way she's got Justin's back at the moment. That being said I would like to see some sort of reconciliation with Dean if only to put Amber's nose out of joint as it's always felt like she mentioned Jai in to reclaim him. Looks as though the crazy one's turning into the green eyed monster lol?

I felt a little bit sorry for Ari when he did seem to be making a genuine effort with Tane and was getting the cold shoulder. Not sure he deserves sympathy given how he's acted towards Tane previously. I didn't like the way Mackenzie asked Ari to square things with Tane about him being around her though as it seemed a bit selfish. She should just give Tane some space. Have to say crazy Jasmine's looking quite tasty. Very surprised Angelo hasn't sussed Taylor and Colby yet, given how he seems to turn up everywhere and presumably he's been doing quite a bit of following. I actually thought he might already have found out about them in yesterday's episode the way he was looking at Taylor when they were at Salt and they were talking about the case. I am interested in seeing where this storyline with Colby goes. It's interesting seeing him act less and less rationally given how the net is closing in and being more sociopathic. Part of me thinks he's going to go further into oblivion although the other part (like other people) thinks the arrogant side will kick in and he will relish not only trying to get away with it but more importantly beat Angelo. The Bella/Nikau stuff is like watching paint dry.

Despite the fact that these are rhetorical questions, I won't waste time going back and forth with you again trying to spell anything out as it will be like talking to a brick wall. Ziggy could definitely use help at the garage. And she will probably run herself into the ground eventually without it considering (after what we've seen on Friday) that there's a good chance Justin probably won't be back anytime in the foreseeable future. Despite not being her biggest fan, I feel a bit sorry for her. Family's gone, she's broke up with Dean and the work is piling up. Justin and Alf have both seen this. She must be contemplating her future and if Summer Bay features in it. I'm glad Ari accepted that it wasn't Tane's fault although it took Gemma to convince him (As an aside I'm glad she hasn't come back yet). I quite liked the fact that they were going to sit down, watch TV and have a drink together so I didn't completely like it when Mackenzie texted Ari and he just took off, even though I completely understood. Can't help thinking that Mackenzie's "I don't fall in love easily" line was a warning. I think she cares deeply About Ari and wants the relationship to work but if she's going to fall for him it should occur naturally. Ari (quite correctly) has succumb to the logic, half of something is better than all of nothing. Immediately after Mackenzie had a go a Tane on Thursday's episode before the preview, I suspected she would apologise to him. Although I didn't like the way she told Tane he was there for an apology before actually apologising as it made it seem like she only did it out of duty. I think he's made the right decision quitting as he needs to break contact from her for a while. I'm really hoping that a new girl shows up and he falls for her instead as whilst I don't think Mackenzie and Ari will last, I don't want any reasons to be completely Tane related.

Yesterday's episode emphasised why I feel Mackenzie and Ari probably won't work out in the long run. Ari is more invested in the relationship than Mackenzie is. I think Ari is punching above his weight and he knows this. As he's come out of jail, he doesn't feel he has many options women wise. So he's put all he's eggs into one basket. This in itself adds pressure to the relationship. He seemed to be consistently trying to pressurise Mackenzie to make a decision as well. She obviously wants to go out with him but doesn't want the relationship to be too serious. If Ari doesn't watch it, he's going to come across as needy and Mackenzie will just get fed up and want out. She was out of order having a go at Tane like that. You could tell he was quite hurt. Ziggy didn't agree with what she said either. Tori once again proves she's like a teenager when it comes to relationships but she is quite funny when she is like that. Justin was really funny blurting out that she liked Christian to crazy Jasmine, who does not seem to be that crazy at the moment (It's funny how people are completely cured. John not too long ago was disabled from the stroke now it's as if nothing's happened. And after a handful of counselling sessions Jasmine's also back to how she was). Justin's facial expressions and semi awkwardness when Tori was mouthing off without realising Christian was there reminded me of how awkward he was when Nate said goodbye to Tori just after he finished with her. We'll I guess Roo proves that looks do matter to some people.

Nope, you misunderstood the post. Thought I saw the actress that played Amber from somewhere but completely forgot she was in Wentworth until I watched a couple of the earlier episodes last week. Again, not keen on her and this was one of the issues that I immediately had when she told Dean, Jai was his. It's obviously the natural thing for writers to do i.e. Amber wanting a relationship and this was why I was against it. The fear is that Amber will use Jai as leverage and as Dean is a decent guy he will do the right thing. I'm not a fan of Ziggy at all but just feel she doesn't deserve to have a third relationship ruined by her partner going for someone else. Have to admit, I found the fallout from Colby going with Taylor from Dean, Willow and Bella quite amusing. It was also amusing seeing Dean tell off two people close to him for being crazy in two successive episodes. If you remove the moral element there is a certain degree of logic to what Colby is doing i.e he's already gotten valuable information out of Taylor. However he came across as very sociopathic, bragging about the fact that he gotten away with murder and ignoring the effect it had on Bella. Even Willow had to point out how he came across. Every time Ava shows up I always end up feeling really sorry for her because she often has such a sad face. Even though it was time for Grace's nap, didn't like the way Marilyn took Grace off her. Must be good for Marilyn often having Grace to herself. Is it possible to fall in love with twins, within a few weeks of meeting both of them?? We'll see with Roo if the answer is yes. I did find it funny when she asked Owen on a 'date', walked off and he had to ask the time and place. Whilst Nikau did well can't say I was that keen on him wanting to leave work early. I had high hopes for him initially. But for the most part don't find him to be very interesting although I don't actively dislike him. I feel the same about Ryder and Bella, although Ryder is funny sometimes. I think the group of youngsters works better when they are at school but that was effectively made redundant with the departure of Coco, Raffy, Maggie handing her notice and leaving and Bella deciding to adopt a different approach to her learning. Whilst crazy Jasmine was only in one scene we got to see a bit of her cleavage so I'm not complaining!

You've clearly misunderstood what I've said. When they initially showed the last scene on Monday with Tane fixing the lock on the bathroom, them talking about Mackenzie's presence making things difficult for Tane and then they kissed, right at that moment, my thought (as the kiss seemed out of the blue) was I hope this is someone's imagination (although it wasn't clear which one of them was imagining if so). Then when it was actually revealed Tane was imagining I was glad. The last part of my statement was referring to the fact that I believe something will happen with them anyway at some point. Really think Dean should get a paternity test even if he has to do it behind Amber's back given how quickly he's become invested in Jai. I actually felt a bit sorry for Angelo's wife. Angelo seems to barely acknowledge her and Colby is just using her. However I find this storyline somewhat hard to believe. Would she really cheat on her husband with the guy he's investigating just like that, without forcing Angelo to have a proper discussion about their marriage regardless of how much she has been enjoying her time with Colby.

Angelo's face when Bella walked into the police station was priceless. It wasn't even about Bella. He just wanted to get one over on Colby. Very surprised Angelo's wife doesn't think Colby is hitting on her. It will be interesting to see what he's planning. Angelo's so obsessed with the case, his wife feels neglected so is at the very least enjoying the attention/company Colby's giving her. So Irene herself said the main reason Jasmine's even getting help is to have access to Grace. Didn't agree with Alf giving Nikau his job back at all. Really not liking Amber, especially after the way she was acting towards Ziggy re Jai. Mackenzie moving into the Parata's is absolute craziness, which Dean quite correctly pointed out. I was hoping someone was imagining things when we first saw them kiss but I suspect it's inevitable that kiss will be for real. Tori annoyed me when she arranged for Ava to come over to see Justin now putting him in an extremely difficult situation. I liked the way Leah refused to leave when Tori just wanted to talk to Justin herself and how Leah has his corner.

Not sure I like this storyline with Amber and Dean. Assuming she's even right about Jai being Dean's son, even though I'm not keen on Ziggy, I wouldn't like to see another relationship of hers ruined by a partner of hers deciding to go with another woman. It will be interesting to see why they killed Evan off if they were going to bring the actor back anyway. Have to admit, I did find Roo and Marilyn's reactions to Ryder and Alf bringing his doppelganger home very amusing. Don't really see much point of Mackenzie even aiding the search for Nikau and Bella. Seems as though the writers were trying to portray her as a calming influence during all the arguing which ensued but they probably would have calmed down by themselves anyway.