"More character driven show"

[simsyboy]

Front page of back to the back site says when H&A returns to Aussie screens on Jan 12 it will be a more character driven show. Now I know H&A have a great cast and some greatly acted plots recently, Flynn dying, Cassie, Macca and Ric's triangle, the chopper crash, Matilda's eating disorder. But does this statement and the new script producer mean we'll lose the OTT 30 minutes of escape that has been H&A over the last few years? I hope not. I think H&A is special that it doesn't mind asking us to suspend belief now and then and gives us what TV should be, great entertainment. I personally have always been more of a fan of the OTT soap. I would always choose the US lowest rated OTT soap Passions over their highest rated character driven soap The Young and the Restless any day.

[ste]

I think H&A is special that it doesn't mind asking us to suspend belief now and then

But a lot of us mind being asked.

[simsyboy]

I think H&A is special that it doesn't mind asking us to suspend belief now and then

But a lot of us mind being asked.

Really? Perhaps I'm the only fan of the OTT drama then Dont get me wrong I'll always watch H&A, I just hope they keep giving us some high OTT drama. I keep saying OTT a lot don't I?

[alexx]

By OTT what do you mean?

I'm all for OTT (such as ghosts - Ken, Noah, Bobby..etc 'seeing the light' - Alf, Selina.....etc etc) but that doesn’t mean we cant have a realistic character driven response that actually has an affect on a character. But above all I need to believe in the characters to care, and with the loss of follow-through, reasoning and continuity it makes me distant. Sorry man but I hate Passions, and OTT soaps like that though - H&A isn’t a cheap US soap, its no where near on the same level. It was predominantly very much a character-driven show up until a couple of years ago, and I look forward to it returning – coinciding nicely along side the episodic OTT stuff. Just as long as its not every week (or cliff-hanger)...so that it has an impact on the show and characters involved.

[Ryan]

I know you can't really compare it to the bigger budget, probably more popular US shows that I've watched the DVD'S for, such as Dawson's Creek and OTH, to a lesser extent, becuse I don't like as much and haven't watched past halfway through the first season, the OC, which I found a bit less character driven.

I mean, in a way there totally different shows from Home and Away, however on the other hand you could think of 2 episodes of Home and Away as a complete episode of that show and since we've got twice as many characeters those shows do, they are making twice as much telly as those shows make in one year, individually.

Maybe I'd like Home and Away to be that, possibly a bit more Australian, a bit more cheesy.

I mean, you need something to keep the show moving forward, but I believe that what these shows do is retrospective well and in a way show that the characters have learned from their experiences and this I feel is something that can be acheived on any budget.

Good storytelling, knowing your constraints as to how far you can go, and a capable team of writers I imagine is relatively cheap.

[emmasi]

I was watching The OC last night and it felt like I was watching an episode of H&A (with the obvious production/accent differences). I've only recently gotten into The OC, which is funny cause I think that a lot of the old fans are disappointed with it now. Maybe they don't like it because it is more character driven these days. Well, it seems that way from my half-attentive point of view.

I guess if you like character driven stuff, you should be happy with H&A this year, but if you're more into random acts of craziness (and I do mean that respectfully - I love Passions too) you might be disappointed.

I was impressed with the 2006 season finale. I feel like it had the right mix of drama, comedy, emotion and action. If that's any indication of where the series is headed, I'll be very happy.

[alexx]

I think the show will re-gain the viewers who started loosing interest a few years ago, but may loose the more recent viewers who only know of Home and Away as being as it is currently. Watching the finale this year felt like I’d just tuned into the same show I watched 10 years ago!

[dnp52td]

So we going to be seeing H&A taxi cab confessions?

*boom tish*

[bodwod]

I'm happy with the return to old. I much prefer the character driven shows. I've stayed watching because there is still enough of it in H&A to keep me tuning in and the characters I like (Tony, Sally, Irene etc) tend to be involved in the more character driven storylines anyway. The OTT stuff doesn't do much for me. I tend to fast forward through it. I'll be tuning in with interest this year to see how it goes.

[ter06]

I'm all for the big disasters and drama but there is only so much we can take. The past two years have had so many disasters that it is verging on the ridiculous. I am looking forward to a more character driven show.

We only need to look back at the 2004 season to see how it works. That year was very character driven and it worked brilliantly. We had the Sally/Flynn/Leah saga, the Sally/Floss story, the Kirsty/Kane shenanigans as well as the Rhys/Shelley/Beth drama. These were all great storylines without any bombs or plane crashes. Granted we had the Sarah Lewis story towards the end of the year but this worked well as it was the only big event of that year and her the only real villain. I always say Sarah worked better than Zoe as there was more thought put into her character and she was the original.

So, I look forward to a more character driven year but one or two really dramatic stories wont hurt!!