Most Popular Character

[alexx]

Gina would usually be one of those characters that warms to viewers, but she hasn't done that ,and I felt that lately in the show that she's been very annoying and been taking her relationship with John Palmer for granted.

I think Gina is much more a product of the 2005-onwards Home and Away, as oppose to the more traditional mother roles in H&A's history. She has been involved in only a handful of 'warm and tender' moments during her time on the show, my favourite and actually the only one that stands out to me is when she 'broke' Mink down in 2010. That was a brilliant scene and I was expecting and hoping Gina would show that supportive, maternal side going forward.

See, I never liked that scene, largely because Gina has never been portrayed either before or since as the sort of person who could magically sort out a troubled teenager's problems with a two minute conversation and it just felt like a lazy plot device and a rather desperate attempt to justify Gina's place on the show, instead of giving that role to someone like Irene or Miles who I could actually have believed could do it.It didn't help that even in that scene she came across as rather cold and arrogant so when Mink broke down instead of telling her where to go, which in itself felt out of character given that they'd never liked or respected each other, I groaned rather than cheered.That said, after a very poor start, the storyline with Jett actually seems to be going well at the moment so perhaps all is not lost.

Yeah I agree with you too. I did think it was out of character and seemed to come out of left field. Perhaps I liked it because I just generally like those sort of long, character lead, emotional scenes. The show hardly ever does them anymore, I can't remember any in the past 2 years so that's probably why it sticks out to me. Plus it's the only time I thought I was getting to know Gina as a character, but they haven't shown that side of her again so obviously it's become less meaningful.

[Red Ranger 1]

Romeo and Indi are as popular as Steven and Viv?!I demand a recount!Steven and Viv were much better.

I did actually stumble across a clip of Nathan Mark 1 on Youtube some years ago:Someone had found the last five minutes of an episode on an old tape and posted it, giving us a random and rather nostalgic look at a bunch of Luke/Roxy scenes(yes, okay, wake up)and some of the Sarah/Nathan storyline, also featuring Ailsa, Damian, Tug and a brief glimpse of Fin.If it hasn't been taken off and I manage to track it down, I'll post the link in here.

Joey did seem to have a brief surge in popularity in the 5* repeats as loads of people, myself included, went "Oh, yeah, Joey.He was actually pretty good."Guessing the outlasting everyone by two years refers to his original Liam/Stephanie/Casey buddy group.I remember even when he left he made the point that he was the last one standing and there was no-one left to attend a farewell party.

[Jezz]

This list keeps getting more interesting every time it keeps progressing.

Indi's a decent character. I guess she may be lower than some thought because of her relationship with Romeo. Otherwise she's been a decent character but nothing memorable to be honest. She's extremely attractive so I thought that in itself may have gifted her a few more votes, but I guess posters vote on the character itself instead of their physical appearance which is a good thing.

I vaguely remember Nathan's return back in 2002. All I remember was he was in prison beforehand and he clashed with the Smiths quite a bit as he was jealous of the relationship they had with Irene.

Steven always came across as a do-gooder, but he was actually quite a complex character. I think my favourite storyline involving him had to do with his initial friendship with Dodge Forbes and the fall-out that occurred afterwards when he found out that Dodge was responsible for his uncle's death.

Josie was only on the show for about a year but she did have an impact on the Bay. It is true that many thought she was bad because of her connection with the infamous Angie Russell, but she was deep down a nice person who was misunderstood. She wrecked her relationship with Jesse when she cheated on him in a one-night stand with Marc Edwards. At least she saved Summer Bay from the developers run by Brett Macklin when they played to destroy the Summer Bay house.

Felix Walters' girlfriend Sarah Lewis was even more crazier than he was. She's one of the best villains that the show has had. She was hated by the majority of the Bay and psychopathic. It ranged from informing Dani that Scott had died at sea which was one of her pranks, the other was shooting Jesse in the gym and eventually holding some of the town's residents hostage and then shooting Noah when she escaped. It was because of her and Felix, that the Stalker storyline occurred for two years after she died.

Paris was a good character and I always liked him and Irene together. Pity it was short-lived. He left because his brother and sister-in-law died and he had to take care of their kids in the city. He offered to have Irene join him, but she couldn't live the Bay.

It's interesting that Tony was on the show for 5 years, but I felt that when he first came to the show and he was with Beth, his character didn't develop very much. It was after Beth died, when his character had been used a lot more and his character was fully utilised. He was nothing memorable, but he was hard to hate as well. It's hard to believe he would end up marrying Rachel and having a baby with her. I wouldn't have picked that in a million years.

Joey was the son of cult leader Saul Bennett. He was an odd character, but an extremely interesting one as well. I don't remember too much about him though. I thought he was returning in 2009, but that turned out to be another Joey in the end

Shauna was Ailsa's long-lost daughter. She never really took off as a character to be honest and a lot of the posters don't seem to like her either. I think it was final straw when she stole Jude off Charlotte after she miscarried. I don't think we'll see her return ever again even if she's connected to Alf in some capacity.

I actually liked Max. Even though he had some bizarre storylines, he was your typical teenager. His friendship with Colleen was unexpected but very unique and it worked extremely well. His departure was extremely disappointing in the end. It did coincide just after Noah's death and the episode he left was primarily focused on Hayley letting go of Noah.

Duncan was a great character. He was involved in many excellent storylines. When he left at the end 2001, he burnt a lot of bridges with some residents. When he returned in 2004, he's behaviour was even worse. He left Seb in a wheelchair after that infamous drag race during Hayley's 21st and Robbie's 17th, he threatened Tasha and threw paint at Barry Hyde's eyes during a war game at Summer Bay High. He left even more bitter and twisted. In 2005, he redeemed himself and made up with Alf and left on good terms. I think the reason for his bad behaviour was because of Ailsa's death. After his mother died, he gradually went off the rails and was angry with everyone. Part of me can't blame him. He was young when his mother died, and I don't think he moved on from it for about 5 years. I hope he returns one day.

Brad wasn't the most likeable character. His relationship with Sally was relative strong but I always felt that he rushed things when it came to the wedding. He put a lot of pressure on her to marry him and she couldn't do it. I think the fallout was the beginning of the end for Brad and fans of the show never truly liked him after that.

I can't wait for the next set of results to come out.

[Trudy Heine]

I think Sally is popular, being on the show since day 1. Plus Kate is a very good actor when it came to emotional storylines, even when she was a kid.

[beau_t]

Brad wasn't the most likeable character. His relationship with Sally was relative strong but I always felt that he rushed things when it came to the wedding. He put a lot of pressure on her to marry him and she couldn't do it. I think the fallout was the beginning of the end for Brad and fans of the show never truly liked him after that.

Actually I think following the non-wedding, was the first time ever that fans took Brad's side over Sally's, and one of the few times Sally was portrayed as the wrong-doer. It is true that Brad rushed Sally into the wedding, but she had ample opportunity to call it off and didn't. Regardless of her reasons behind doing what she did, it was still the wrong thing to do. I think for a lot of years, certainly since 2005, she had been "Saint Sally" and was important to show that she was capable of being cowardly and making bad choices that hurt others, just to show that was is human.

The convenient invention of Brad and Rachel's half sister (a plot device if ever I saw one!) at least gave Brad a happy ending, in that he wasn't leaving the Bay alone. Despite the fact that he wasn't the most likeable character, a lot of fans did feel sorry for him after Sally's rejection and I think were happy to overlook the blatant plot device if it meant he had least had a semi-happy exit.

Joey did seem to have a brief surge in popularity in the 5* repeats as loads of people, myself included, went "Oh, yeah, Joey.He was actually pretty good."

Joey was a great character, I remember really liking him at the time. He was kind-of replaced by Edward Dunglass in the oddball character category although Edward (like many goths) was more "Look at me everybody, aren't I different?" whereas Joey just wasn't interested in being cool or fitting in, but nor did he go out of his way NOT to. He was just... Joey.

Shauna was Ailsa's long-lost daughter. She never really took off as a character to be honest and a lot of the posters don't seem to like her either. I think it was final straw when she stole Jude off Charlotte after she miscarried. I don't think we'll see her return ever again even if she's connected to Alf in some capacity.

Am I the only one who liked Shauna? I thought she was a great fiesty character when she first arrived in 1999, I liked her attitude (sort of a mixture of Bobby and Carly) and then her whole story arc through 2000 was excellent. It was really 2001 where, admittedly, her character went downhill. I think she was last mentioned in 2006 by Sally when she and Flynn were discussing how they first met. It's funny that Leah never mentions her as it was originally Shauna, Leah and Sally that lived together and were very close friends. IIRC Shauna and Leah never had any kind of falling out?

[Perry]

Am I the only one who liked Shauna?

Not at all. I liked Shauna a lot and loved her relationship with Duncan.

[alexx]

I can't remember Leah and Shauna falling out. But you're not the only one who liked Shauna. I thought she was really cool and I enjoyed her storylines during 1999-2000. I also agree that during 2001 they changed her slightly, or in a way, looking back on it, it was like they were trying to make the audience turn against her. Maybe that was a plot devise in itself, so that she would be less missed and the audience would accept Charlotte. If I'm not mistaken, Jude and Shauna were pretty popular over here at the time. When Sally told her to get lost, I felt sorry for Shauna.

[jodlebirger]

Am I the only one who liked Shauna? I thought she was a great fiesty character when she first arrived in 1999, I liked her attitude (sort of a mixture of Bobby and Carly) and then her whole story arc through 2000 was excellent. It was really 2001 where, admittedly, her character went downhill. I think she was last mentioned in 2006 by Sally when she and Flynn were discussing how they first met. It's funny that Leah never mentions her as it was originally Shauna, Leah and Sally that lived together and were very close friends. IIRC Shauna and Leah never had any kind of falling out?

No, you are not the only one! I really liked her too, for me it is important that the actress/actor is believable in what she/he is portraying. And the girl who played Shauna Bradley was good. That made her interesting for me. Unfortunately she is one of the very many characters that the others don't mention after they left. I don't think she went downhill late in her stint either, but she had flaws like everyone else, and that made her human. And I believed that she was misunderstood by the others, and they were meant to be the victims. Yes, the writers tried to turn the viewers against her, but that made me more aware of the storyline itself. I really don't like these kind of storylines, I think they are manipulative!!! And it reminds me about the storylines of 2009 and onwards when a lot of characters are made out to be mean and when you are looking closer it is them who are the victims. An example is Ruby and her storyline with Romeo in 2011 (and 2012?). And Adens departure storyline, when he was made to be the villain and Nicole the heartbroken, when she was actually the one who broke his heart and with no explanation (to him).

Brad... I don't really think he was a unlikeable character.., but I felt that the actor was a bit wooden from time to time and thats the reason he was not one of my favourites. And I think he was really a bit like Ruby who was made the villain, but really was the victim. Sally treated him like dirt, but she was the "holy" one and her and Flynns relationship was loved by many (a once in a lifetime romance-thing), and then he was made to be the villain, and the one that we shouldn't like... Like Sam in the Jack and Marthas mess....

Nathan Roberts - I've only wathced his return... must have been aired around 2003/04 here. And I really thought his storyline was interesting, and was irritated that he left so soon. I would have liked him to stay longer and to build his relationship to Irene and others.

I didn't like Paris Burnett and Irenes relationship that much, I found them unrealistic. I thought he was ok as a principal, though.

I actually thought that Tony would have been much higher on the list. He was a really popular character, and he and RAchel had a lot of devoted fans... But maybe many fans from that time, for ex Aden/Belle fans, left this site when the characters departed. I liked Tony with his sons, especially Lukas, and would have liked to see more father-son scenes, instead of all this romance stuff. And I also think that he was underused as a character on his own. He was on the show for about 2 years with his onscreen sister, and they had far too little storylines together. Their brother/sister relationship and history was never really explored.

Joey... I vaguely remember him... I thought he was ok until the storyline about him going crazy and the over-the-top Saul storyline. Suprised to se him on the list, there have been a lot of better characters.

Josie..I really disliked her character and yes I saw her as a villain, and I don't think it was only because I remembered this actress as Angie. Josie was written as a potential baddie.. with her 1989 mystery.., and I actually think that the actress never came across as a warm and nice character or a misunderstood one. I think they should have found an another one for this role. She was also far too old for Jesse.

I liked Max with the Sutherlands, but I thought that his love storylines went on for too long, and became far too sugarsweet.

Duncan..., was two minded about him. I saw him as a kid who was starting to have really behaviour problems, and then became far worse when his mother died. I would have liked him to stay longer on the show, and to be explored even more. Both seb and Duncan were sent off far too early. It would have been interesting to see them interacting over time, despite what had happened. I really liked Sebs character, but not much enough to have him on top 5. I think he was an underrated character. Liked his storyline.

Stephen.... It is really long time ago since I watched him.. but I thought he was a fairly good character, absoultely ok.

Hm... Karen Dean, Frank morgan Dogde... I think that their time on the show was before the they started to air H&A over here.

Sarah Lewis... I wasn't a fan of this storyline, and I actually think this marks the point were H&A really took the direction of more hard, speclative and policeorientated storylines.

Indigo Walker showed some potential to become a good character when she first appeared in 2009, then when the Walkers returned in australian 2010 season the Walkers were completely different (not only Dex), and Indi became very fast dull and uninteresting. And to put her with the shows worst character ever, Romeo, I think they kind of killed her character. To plastic characters, that just look good togeter. And for those who always says that people just like the characters because of their looks, here is the proof that it is not true because the girl who playes Indi is beautiful. There need to be more to a character than looking good and being pretty, Romeo and Indi are just as interesting as BArbie and Ken, just pretty to look at. If she had started on uni, dumped Romeo and found someone else with a deeper and better personality, they could have developed her more.

And from longer down on the list... Kim Hyde... I know Chris Hemsworth was called the plank... I never understood why, there have been far more wooden actors on the show.. and some of them have even been praised as good of fans here. I liked Kim from time to time, I liked the relationship between him and his father... He probably should have been made out to be an uni student instead, but still... it was pointed out clearly that he had missed a lot and had to repeat so... and in those days it was ok - because every character didn't repeat year 12. Kim should probably had been coupled with someone else than the baby-maniac, but I really liked him with Kit and was happy that he left with her.

Once again, thanks for the list.

[Red Ranger 1]

I quite liked Shauna as well.When she was with Harry, she tended to be a bit of a two-dimensional militant feminist and she didn't really come into her own until she had the connection with the Stewarts and got together with Jude.But I'd disagree that the writers were trying to make people hate her towards the end.They needed to break her and Jude up and having her effectively cheat on him by making a play for Flynn was the way they chose to do it.But while some characters like Sally, Jude and Noah were understandably disgusted with her, others like Leah, Gypsy, Kirsty, Alf and Donald remained sympathetic towards her and it was less a case of her being forced out of town and more a case of her deciding "Yeah, I did the wrong thing there but I'm going to deal with it and be better from now on."Both times I think she remained likeable when she left and most people wished her well.

Duncan...is an odd case.He seemed to turn into a demon child the moment he fell into a quarry and came out of hospital two years older and played by a different actor, including memorably setting Joey up so everyone would think he was going crazy again just out of spite.He seemed to turn himself around a bit after he got Nick as a fellow reformed brat best friend and started hanging out with the Sutherlands but then they turned him bad again so they could write him out and he just seemed to get worse and worse. Basically, it was all Morag's fault.

I don't think Josie was intended to be a villainous character, I think the 1989 stuff was just misdirection and when we finally got the information it turned out she'd "just" killed someone in self-defence, which is pretty much standard behaviour these days.The way she was ultimately run out of town for the apparently unforgiveable crime of kissing Scott when they were both single so Hayley could throw a tantrum, get stomach pains and be seen as the victim was ridiculous.It ended with Irene being branded as a hypocrite for leading a lynch mob against Josie, whereas when Belle got up to the same sort of thing a few years later she was giving her tea and sympathy.

[Jamie!]

I can't remember Leah and Shauna falling out. But you're not the only one who liked Shauna. I thought she was really cool and I enjoyed her storylines during 1999-2000. I also agree that during 2001 they changed her slightly, or in a way, looking back on it, it was like they were trying to make the audience turn against her. Maybe that was a plot devise in itself, so that she would be less missed and the audience would accept Charlotte. If I'm not mistaken, Jude and Shauna were pretty popular over here at the time. When Sally told her to get lost, I felt sorry for Shauna.

Did Sally ever forgive Shauna? I know Shauna briefly came back, but did she ever make her peace with her? I remember Sally seemed obsessed with Shauna and was actually quite unSallylike by being cutting about her, but I can't remember if she ever properly forgived her.