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What do you think of the writing/storylines?


Guest TelephotoMarigold

Storylines.  

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So many people have commented on the writing recently, myself included so I've created a poll to gauge general consensus regarding the storylines and general writing of the show.

I've tried to set it up so you can select multiple responses to the questions if that better expresses your thinking on the subject and there are three questions.

If you have a comment to add please remember to respect each other's views. Also, don't just put why you agree or disagree with someone add in your reasoning or an example of what you mean.

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Thanks to Telephoto Marigold for putting together this poll. It will give us a central place to discuss the writing and general direction of the show without cluttering multiple other threads with "off topic" comments. This discussion is important.

I see two issues.

The first is the general direction that the show is taking. Do we want more dramatic, edgy storylines and/or a more contemporary feel to the show or do we wish to retain the more family and community oriented feel of the early years. Obviously it isn't that black and white but hopefully people will understand what I mean.

The second issue is the quality of writing in the whatever storylines are being used in the show. Character development, pacing, character use, character focus or event focus etc.

I find it really annoying when proponents of a particular point of view seek to "hijack" the so called Spirit of the Show and apply it to their particular view.

I also find it disturbing when we have very personal attacks or campaigns against individuals in the writing or production teams. We don't allow this under Board rules against cast members or members of the Board and I don't see why it should be considered acceptable against these individuals.

General comments are of course perfectly acceptable and encouraged whether praise or criticism.

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Even though people may disagree with this and they are way over used If we were not to have the Braxtons in the show I think it would be really boring what with all the supposedly happy couples always breaking up only to get back together again a week later or something to that effect. Take Maddy and Spencer they were to said to be so in love with each other they ran away to be togthe.r They have only been in the show for a short time and have already broken up. I would of kept them as brother and sister and have them have another secret

I also think instead of bringing Kyle in as a brother to the Braxtons was abit pointless. I think it would of worked better if they would of brought Tamara in as a sister for them instead. That way there could of been a change in the dynamic for the family with having a female Braxton instead

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The first is the general direction that the show is taking. Do we want more dramatic, edgy storylines and/or a more contemporary feel to the show or do we wish to retain the more family and community oriented feel of the early years. Obviously it isn't that black and white but hopefully people will understand what I mean.

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I think they can do both. Coral Drouyn and Bevan Lee managed to do this very well and I think the show had a near perfect balance under their direction. Coral introduced some very modern plots that pushed the boundaries of the show in some ways yet she always maintained the community spirit of Summer Bay and made sure that all characters had storylines and also knew the importance of character development. Characters grew under her stories and she never relied on using drugs, guns and crime to tell the audience a story. Her stories focused on family, friendship and the importance of community.

Bevan Lee was another who understood the "spirit" of Summer Bay and he knew how to tell gripping stories again without relying on the overuse of violence and crime. He made sure it wasn't thrown in our faces.

It was Daniel Bennett who really screwed things up and since then H&A has never been the same. Each SP who has succeeded him has never found the balance that their predecessors managed to maintain from 1988-2004. It's a real shame and I miss the everyday things characters used to do. It's really important to show that but do the writers care?

I think they've run out of ideas and they all need sacked IMO. Bring in some new blood and things might improve? I think the production team needs changed too - it'd make a lot of difference. I think H&A is slightly better than it was last year but they're still losing viewers...

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Even though people may disagree with this and they are way over used If we were not to have the Braxtons in the show I think it would be really boring what with all the supposedly happy couples always breaking up only to get back together again a week later or something to that effect. Take Maddy and Spencer they were to said to be so in love with each other they ran away to be togthe.r They have only been in the show for a short time and have already broken up. I would of kept them as brother and sister and have them have another secret

I also think instead of bringing Kyle in as a brother to the Braxtons was abit pointless. I think it would of worked better if they would of brought Tamara in as a sister for them instead. That way there could of been a change in the dynamic for the family with having a female Braxton instead

But we have Rosie who is very relatable and gives Sasha something to do instead of chasing boys, John and Jett, Dex with his strugles after the accident, so it's not only about breaking up and making up. I only am upset that Braxtons get storyline after storyline, while Marilyn and Irene just work in the diner.

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So far we have 18 people who have participated in the poll and none of them have said that the writers are getting it right. More votes have been cast in the 'Writers are getting it wrong' section.

Do we want more dramatic, edgy storylines and/or a more contemporary feel to the show or do we wish to retain the more family and community oriented feel of the early years.

I think that the show needs drama in order to attract viewers and keep people interested but that it also needs to be well paced and plotted out. Currently the show (writers) throw things at us without putting in the effort to plot it out so the viewer can care about the individuals involved. Take the Danny Braxton storyline as a prime example of this, with just a bit more effort put into introducing him as a character then we would have cared more about what happened rather than dismissing the whole thing as sensationalist.

On balance we have the Rosie storyline, first we saw her as a lonely girl and then as a victim of an assault. The build up to this has been well paced, we cared about her character first before it evolved into something more dramatic.

The introduction of Maddy and Spencer has been hit or miss with many people. For me it missed. Not only with Roo and Harvey picked out as "Foster" parents; and I used the term foster loosely, but in the fact that Maddy behaved in some very brat-ish ways when she pitched up and still hasn't seemed to develop much in the way of characterisation. Spencer seems nice enough but I haven't warmed to him either. The debate over whether they are actual foster kids I'll leave for now.

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I think it is so woefully over biased to the Braxtons and has been since they joined, and there just doesn't seem to be any character development. I actually really like Brax (Steve peacocke is a good actor IMO), think kyle has potential, heath I dont like, Casey so/so but I really don't see how Irene, Marilyn, Alf as peripheral characters with no stories of their own shows that the writers understand what H&A is about.

And how on earth am I supposed to believe Bianca as principal when she has no 'headmistressy' qualifications as far as I know and showed no previous desire to be a headmistress? Just think she has gone downhill ever since the baby was heath's.

In short, I'd keep at least some braxtons but redress the storyline balance big time, find some new stories for the remaining braxtons, and have more returning characters, generally on a guest basis because I think that is believable like with Celia at the beginning of the year and ensure storylines that continue tradition and credibility which involve permanent stalwarts.

Ps. I'd like whoever ticked 'they understand the traditions of home and away' to sit and watch some Early Years episodes with me that I've been enjoying for the last 4 years and tell me how the current show resembles that superior one. In the early years and the years I grew up watching the show (95 to 03ish when Don left) i'd say I cared about almost every character but now they just don't make me care about half of the characters. It's sad really.

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I don't want to be too unkind on the writers/writing teams and their qualifications, but the whole thing feels like people who done Screenwriting qualifications, but actually don't have the heart required to tell a storyline. The show usually feels cold, clinical and merely churning out 5 episodes a week because that's what Seven requires. I often wonder whether you can watch too much soap, so that everything becomes too predictable, but then I watch 1991, a year I've never seen either, and I enjoy it.

I also feel there's almost a complete lack of happiness to be derived from the show. Death is a natural part of life, almost inevitable, that's not what I'm talking about, more the inevitability that everything will end up badly. What is life without a bit of joy?

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^ Yes I knew as soon as Tele drew attention to the fact that no one had voted that 'the writers are getting it right' that it wouldn't be long before a member with an agenda would be voting it up.

Honestly I think they have dialed back the more extreme Braxton nonsense, with none of the gang warfare of 2011. I especially enjoy Heath's storylines which have mostly revolved around his relationship with Bianca, their son's death, and most recently his efforts to secure custody of his daughter. This storyline in particular I have really been enjoying. That is why I chose 'some storylines are ok'.

However I also chose 'I think the writers are getting it wrong', and this is because - as is repeated 100 times in each thread - the more established cast members like Irene and Alf are completely neglected by the writing staff. Having highlighted that Irene hardly gets any screentime, this is something they have clearly been working on more recently, as she often gets more than two lines of dialogue in the episodes she features in.

However there has still been no effort to give these characters a storyline, like at all. Think back to the last storyline Irene had - breast cancer. That lasted a couple of months from the latter part of 2011 into early 2012 and even that wasn't given much focus within the wider program. Since then she literally hasn't had a storyline, and compared with the quantity given to Casey or Brax for example, I'm not sure how much credit the 'the same effort goes into writing all 22 characters' statement has.

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I'm sure how much credit I give it - very little! Like Ryan says, one doesn't want to make anyone feel bad or put the writers down but one can only give one's personal reaction.

That's the thing isn't it - we do see Marilyn and Irene and Alf but on the sidelines. For example: All the youngsters Irene took in in the past involved her playing an equally active and important role, whereas Bianca (with Heath) seems to totally dominate every aspect of that duo, and Irene is just there merely to give some advice to Bianca, she doesn't have a life of her own. All it needs is a visit from a family member, for instance, and she would have something to do. It isn't rocket science but I can only assume that the current team don't care.

Compare to Neighbours which i think is currently doing a great job of blending the need to respect the past, and long serving cast members - thanks to a newish exec producer who knows and understands the show's history - with the need for fresh characters with their own stories to tell.

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