When H&A had good quality, well written storylines

[princess.sparkle]

Personally I don't think the show is any where near as good as it used to be, I loved the Shannon-Selina era, the Gypsy-Will-Sam-Hayley era and the Kirsty-Kane era, I think the storylines where more about the characters and realism rather than surrealism and stuff that is just completely out of charcter. I also think that I preferred the show back then rather than now has alot to do with the fact that I actually liked characters in those eras. There were always some that I couldn't stand but there were also ones that I loved which balanced it out. Whereas now I honestly don't paticularly like any of the main characters- except for Sally, Leah, alf etc, who we're 'supposed to like'. It doesn't help that certain characters like Martha get tons of storylines while stronger characters like Irene, alf etc don't do anything much except clean tables and serve food. Another thing I hate now is the way most of the characters have no real distinction. For example they brought Kit back only to totally knock down her character and build up a completely different character, thus taking her from being one of my favourites to one that I couldn't stand. Then they go and bring back Don and totally ruin his character, all for a non-existant storyline. And I'm also hating the way they seem to love bringing back rapists and turning them into these remarkably wonderful people who've 'seen the light', as much as I loved Kane and K/K I really wish they wouldn't keep on using the issue of rape so lightly- either do it properly or not at all! On that note Rachel has been on the show for quite a while and you'd have thought that there would have been some clue or mention of what she'd been through with Henk beforehand, it just seemed really random to me and so typical of the inconsistent writing.

[*Huw*]

The 'new' H&A, as I see it, has completely lost my interest. I don't watch it and nor do I want to, because there are now a very small amount of character left who I care about and even they are being wasted with sensationalised storylines, which fail to focus enough (or even at all) on the characters themselves. Of course, it's important to acheive good ratings, otherwise there wouldn't be a H&A, but as far as I know, the ratings have certainly been good enough over the past (is it 19 years now?) and the vast majority of those years didn't see a plane crash every week and an avalanche every other, interspersed with murders and infantile relationships aimed at eight year olds.

I may come across rude asking this, but if this is the case then why are you a member of Back to the Bay (and a moderator, of all people)? Please don't be offended, I'm genuinely curious. Look --> Happy face! See! Not angry

I don't want to seem rude either, but why are you still a moderator when you don't like the show? Again without being rude, I don't post very often, but I do visit the forum several times a week. I would expect a moderator to visit a lot. I don't see you around very much at all, in fact until Nathan pointed it out I would not have known you existed as a moderator, and I do know who the others are, again no offense intended.

I have my favourite eras and I am sure everyone else does. I loved the Angie era, I loved Shannon and Selina, I loved Bobby and Morag in the early years. I like some of the more recent stuff, but think they try to make everything fast, because thats what they do in the big american soaps. This isnt america and it doesn't have to move at 1000 miles an hour to be good. They also use too many guesties and don't let the longer term cast have some good stuff to get their teeth into. they have given Sally some good things in the last few years but she tends to be the exception. The others are all there for 2 - 5 years so they hype them up and its sort of conveyor belt story telling. After a while it gets tiresome. Some of the cast might stay on longer if they werent so worn out by it all . They dont tie things up as well as they used to. thy sort of go fo the big crash finish and then are on to the next big dram without any consideration being given to the effects of the last story. I agree with Liz that they dont focus so much on the characters as much as they used to, but I do see sign of this returning. The way they treat relationships has at times been appalling. they change characters out of recognition. what they did to Robbie and Tasha was nothing short of criminal and they changed Rachel from a likable fun loving happy person into a real whinge bag. Its been a bit lazy sometimes. It just needs someone to put a bit more thought into it. But I think the new guy might do that he did it bfore and I am sure he will do it again.

[pippa_ ross]

It has gone a bit sensational and not realistic, I mean how many coma's has Jack had now? Their wounds heal in a matter of hours and despite Jack's liver transplant you never hear or see any mention of his medication that he would have to take! They always find a job or housing, no mention of claiming benefits and no one seems to get Auz study anymore the kids have a never ending supply of funds and they all go to the diner for breakfast for a muffin and a milkshake. Not very healthy and yet the girls are like rakes. The weather is obviously freezing at times and yet they wear hardly any clothes

[chatter box]

I have often said that the medical team at Norther Districts Hospital should be nominated for the Nobel Prize for medicine. Their success rate, in all fields, is second to none any where in the world!

[Miranda]

Having not read this thread at all and just adding a post before I go off to bed, I wanted to say that I think H & A is better these days.

I remember a few years ago, the announcer [i think it was on Five] said 'Home and Away is looking a bit different today' or something, and I saw that the whole way it was filmed had changed. It went from looking studio based to looking like it was filmed as a film [if you know what I mean], as if they'd used a different way of shooting it. And also the characters changed. I remember particularly Hayley- she went from being an always smiling happy clappy type to a more serious type person [who constantly criticised Noah ]. I think it was around the time she had an accident and scarred her face? Anyway, if anyone knows around when that happened to Hayley, that was when I think H & A changed for the better with more realistic characters and plots.

Sorry this probably doesn't make sense but as I said, I'm shattered, good night

[pippa_ ross]

Having not read this thread at all and just adding a post before I go off to bed, I wanted to say that I think H & A is better these days.

I remember a few years ago, the announcer [i think it was on Five] said 'Home and Away is looking a bit different today' or something, and I saw that the whole way it was filmed had changed. It went from looking studio based to looking like it was filmed as a film [if you know what I mean], as if they'd used a different way of shooting it. And also the characters changed. I remember particularly Hayley- she went from being an always smiling happy clappy type to a more serious type person [who constantly criticised Noah ]. I think it was around the time she had an accident and scarred her face? Anyway, if anyone knows around when that happened to Hayley, that was when I think H & A changed for the better with more realistic characters and plots.

Sorry this probably doesn't make sense but as I said, I'm shattered, good night

Hayley was always g a go at Noah for drinking too much and making a fool of himself kissing other girls and getting into bother at the pub, they were always breaking up goodness knows what would have happened if he hadn't died!

They paid more attention to things in the early days now it's all boats sinking planes crashing,fires,landslides, explosions and long lost relatives of don and alf turning up. Poor Don lost a daughter and two sons, was divorced from his wife and had an affair with his sister in law.

Now it's all stalkers i mean there's been at least 3 in the last 2-3 years. I think it was better years ago more family orientated. Now it seems possible spoiler

Sally has a long lost relative. Sorry if this is not in the right place but it's relavant to topic

[Miranda]

I remember Hayley telling Noah off for what you said, but I also remember her not supporting him when he wanted to do things like go to university, get involved in music etc. I remember thinking what an unsupportive moaning girlfriend she was. But then again I never liked her, so I'm a bit biased

[Liz]

Isn't the whole point of this section of the forum to talk about 'Old H&A', proving that you don't need to currently watch the show to discuss it?

[snakewoman52]

I'm inclined to feel the problem with Home And Away now days is there seems to be way too much bed hopping and many of the relationship storylines just seem too sentimental and too cliched for my liking. Whatever, happened to characters being single, why is it that the writer always feel as though they have to pair everyone up in order to make them interesting when sometimes it's the whole concept of the chase and courting which makes for an interesting relationship, rather like when Martha first met Jack, but then the writers manage to spoil the characters by throwing them together into a full-on-relationship too quickly only to have the relationship fall apart a number of months down the track and one or both couples wind up bed-hopping straight into the next relationship. I mean! Pleease! What normal everyday relationship works like that?

I would much prefer to have a boy mets girl senario whereby boy likes girl and girl secretly likes boy too, but never tells and boy courts girl sparking off a long term friendship between the two of them leaving viewers guessing as to whether or not they are going to get together or not, kind of a bit like the Jack and Martha type senario now, only without the complication of a marriage getting in the road, because if Martha were to get with Jack now she officially be known as the marriage wrecker and that would not be setting an good example to viewers.

I have also gotten rather frustrated as rather the childish use of language used by many of the teenage characters in the program showing their complete lack of maturity and disrespect for the older generation of characters: prime example; Matilda's rather crude, arrogant and pretentious attitude towards Tony who was just trying to make her see sense that her actions of inviting Aden's brother Sean to stay the night by sneaking him into her room behind Tony's back were totally inappropriate, even if she felt she was perfectly justified in the process.

I realise many people may have considered Tony a complete hypocrit in that particular episode, however, sometimes the very people best equipped to offer advice on how to deal with a particular situation are those who've been through it themselves.

Tony may have realized just how inappropriate his actions of spending the night with Noami were and how soul destroying the whole experience was not just for him but for Lucas, Matilda and Kit and didn't want to see Matilda wind up doing something stupid she many later regret just for the sake of getting back at Ric, even if he did bring much of it on himself by sleeping with Viv.

All I can say is thank god for characters like Geoff and Annie, who still seem to have some good solid morals and don't sleep around, don't engage in heavy drinking simply because they have a problem and don't show disrespect to their elders, or in their case foster parents as many of the other characters have been known to do.

[John]

I must say I am having difficulty with this thread as I disagree with the implied premise which is that everything in the past with the show is better than everything in the present. In my view this is simply not so. In the past we had high points as well as lows the same as we do at present. I've said in another thread how much I appreciated the " fortnight long finale" of last year with its more extensive development of story scenarios and opening up of opportunities for the coming year. It came after what I considered to be a "down" period with all the Jack/Martha stuff which I didn't particularly like.

My favourite Home and Away storyline over the years ( and I haven't been watching forever! ) is the development of the relationship between Will and Gypsy.