State of the Street - September 2014

Kylie's really taking Max's condition personally. It's dragged up all her old insecurities and she took one of Max's pills to calm down and is fighting the urge to down the whole strip. I don't actually think they would have the same effect on an adult without the same condition, however, so that might be a bit of a slip on the writers' part. I could be wrong, though. I haven't checked it out. But because of that nagging doubt, the storyline doesn't work for me. It would have been more likely that she ran into an old friend who, realizing Kylie was stressed, passed on a couple of pills "just in case" but the writers don't listen to me.

Having said that, it's still interesting enough if I just suspend that bit of disbelief. Kylie has come a long way and grown up a lot but she had an awful lot of history to overcome and it's not easy. I can see how all this knocked her back and I can understand how easy it might be for her to return to old ways though she's been really trying hard to find purchase on that slippery slope. David wasn't very supportive when he found out and that might be the nudge she doesn't really need.

Peter was at death's door. Again. Deirdre really took it hard, Ken is worried sick and even Tracy shows concern. She does love her mother, father and brother even if she doesn't show it much. But weddings can't be forgotten either and since she can't help Peter, priorities must be set. And poor Carla, she can't get away from it. Rob wants her to forget Peter and cut ties and he really hoped Peter didn't make it. Peter's confession to Carla that he is taking the blame for Tina's death to save her from it made her realize that he didn't do it. Peter survived as we knew he would and his return kicked off a war between Jim and Peter.

Steve seemed quite pleased to make up with his dad, in spite of Liz's misgivings. Guaranteed that it wasn't going to last and Steve would get kicked in the proverbial gut by his father's actions again. Didn't take long. Once Peter spitefully told Tracy that Jim was the one that supplied the booze he drank, she went straight to Steve as he knew she would and that turned Steve back against his father and he grassed him up to the authorities for good measure. A nice quiet little enterprise has been squashed, Jim blames Peter and so do all the other prisoners that were bellying up to the makeshift bar. Peter and everyone else might have blamed Jim for roughing him up. He might not have given the order but he certainly didn't discourage it either. He was more concerned with visits from Liz and Steve.

Now Jim has lost his son again and that's another reason to be pissed at Peter. If you thought things were ugly before, they're about to get worse. This isn't an easy ride up to his trial and we still have the roller coaster of that to anticipate. Tracy and Rob's wedding is looming, if indeed it happens. Rob's days are numbered, we know that, we just don't know when and how it's all going to blow up in his face. I first thought Ken would be the instigator of Rob's downfall but now I think it's going to be Carla. That would be more dramatic, Carla having to turn in her beloved brother, don't you think?

There might even be a few people out there that will have some small modicum of sympathy for Tracy. I won't be one of them. I thoroughly enjoyed Becky ruining her marriage to Steve, formerly the love of her life and I shall enjoy even more seeing her face when she finds out about Rob and her life as she sees it ruined. It is too bad in a way, though I detest Tracy as most of us do, she and Rob really were well suited. They "get" each other and accept each other, warts and all, though Tracy's attitude and nasty mouth still upset Rob now and then. I expect it will all come apart in October.

Tyrone is recovering slowly. I don't really understand why Tyrone is feeling the loss of the salary. He's either part or full owner of the business, I forget what Kevin had done in the end, but either way he can draw on a share of the profits, can't he? Working or not? Kevin's back and he's putting Tyrone to work in the office until he's able to dive into an engine. Meanwhile Fiz and Tyrone fell out with yet another long time friend and the only thing to make them see reason was the reason of the women, Eva and Eileen. They get to keep the five grand and get the work redone and everyone's friendly again.

Todd didn't get sacked at first because Jason and Tony didn't want to raise anyone's suspicions but once the truth came out, all bets were off. Todd is jobless and that silver tongue doesn't seem to have brought him any luck finding something else. Nobody wants to be friends with Todd and he's desperate to make someone, anyone like him again. He has even turned his mother off, for the time being though she won't be hard against him for too long. Mothers like Eileen can't turn it off that easily. Todd really only seems upset when he's caught out and can't worm out of it. If he can, then he's cocky and glib all over again. He strikes me very much like the boy who cried wolf. He's all about attention. Once he gets back in the good books, I have no doubt he'll be back to his nasty tricks again. He's not very likeable but he's fun to watch.

Kevin finally got back again after all of the excitement had cleared up while Luke heroically has been keeping his and Tyrone's business afloat single handed. I hope he gets a decent bonus out of this. I really hope he's not going to go all puppy dog and follow Sally around with a wistful look all the time. He needs to get on with his life. He says he knows that but will he? I know on soaps they keep putting popular couples back together again over and over but there comes a time when it's just not realistic and it's boring. Sally has a new fella that suits her really well. If they put her back with Kevin it will be the same old same old.

Maddy is coming along nicely isn't she? She's cleaned up, got two jobs, and getting on with Sophie's parents. She's even got Simon as a fan which helps her get over missing her little brother so much. I think Sophie and Maddie need to find some friends. I know they're friendly with some of the other young women but they never seem to hang out with anyone. Why shouldn't they go out on the razz with Steph and Katy? Whatever happened to Sophie and Chesney's friendship? That's been forgotten. They could take Faye under their wing. Anyway. I like Maddy and now that she's not so defensive, she seems to suit Sophie a bit better but they still don't seem to have a lot of chemistry. Sophie and Sian had it, but nobody they've put with Sophie since then has really worked with her as a couple. Amy Kelly's good, though. Really good.

Enjoying the wedding wars between Beth who's trying to keep up with Tracy. I can't imagine how Tracy's managing to pay for this elaborate wedding she's planning. The shop can't be doing *that* well and Rob can't have *that* much money in the bank. I would imagine Beth and Kirk will realize they have even less money before long and we'll see them have a cheap but very cheerful and quirky wedding of their own and I bet it will be happier and longer lived than Tracy and Rob's! And as much as I thought the actor playing Neil did a brilliant job, I'm glad this is over. Don't let the door hit you on the ass on the way out!

Dev and Julie are starting to see each other in a new light, one that Mary would most definitely like to hide under a bushel. It's a hoot watching and listening to her trying to undermine the inevitable! It will be a bit heartbreaking though, to see her face in disappointment. I hope Dev handles her gently. Perhaps Julie will be the one that smoothes over the hurt and keeps Mary included in their lives. If Julie keeps on working, they'll still need Mary after all. 

October will be the month to see Peter's trial and probably Tracy and Rob's wedding, likely just after that. It'll be interesting to see how that all comes out. Rob's days must be numbered one way or another.

Tuesday Musings

Kevin Webster will be back on our screens very soon as the actor returns to the fold. I really hope Stuart Blackburn doesn't put him and Sally back together again. Sally and Tim really do work as a couple. It doesn't look like it will happen from what I've heard but he's been known to change things up in the past so we don't really know. What I also don't want to have happen is Kevin mooning and looking all sad watching Sally and Tim all the time. Get on with your life, Kev. It's too bad that there seems to be signs that Dev and Julie might get together because I had thought in the past that Julie might be a good match for Kevin. Her bubbly enthusiasm could cheer his miserable face up!

Luke will be happy to have help in the garage again, too. What a mess Kevin is coming back to. Speaking of which, if Tyrone is at least part owner of the garage, isn't he eligible for some of the profits whether he's working or not? I realize the salaries come out of the income and Tyrone's would probably be coming out of his share of the profits rather than as a regular business expense but it still seems like he should be able to draw on the profits as owner. Still, what do I know?

I'm really hating Lloyd and Andrea's story. Really. While it was momentarily interesting to see Neil's obsessive and single minded focus on ignoring all the insults and insisting on doing everything he can to lure Andrea back, it's getting old. Like old fish. I realize the poor man is probably having a bit of a breakdown and to be fair, he never saw this coming so it had to be a shock and hard to get his head around. But still. It's pretty much the only storyline at the moment that I could cheerfully fast forward if it weren't for having to write updates and blog stuff.

Putting Maddie and Sophie together seems to have shoved them into the Corrie storyline cupboard. After a bit of initial angst and trouble, it's all happy families, and even Sally has settled down. I do like the chemistry between Maddie and Tim. There's a spark of kindred spirit there, don't you think?  I hope they keep that going. Maddie latching on to Simon as a substitute for her beloved brother makes sense, too but is it really good for Simon to get too attached to another babysitter type figure? I complain that the writers seem to portray Simon, who's about 12, as a 6 year old crayoning homemade cards and acting quite childish much of the time but you also have to remember what that kid has been through in his short life and it's a wonder he's not wibbling in a corner somewhere. I fear for his puberty, I really do. If anyone is set to be a hell raiser, he is.

And speaking of which, Amy sure has picked up on her mother's personality. I suppose that was inevitable, really. The child gets attention from her grandparents but her dad is busy with two businesses and her mother only pays her attention when it suits her. Life at the moment is consumed with worry about Peter, and Tracy and Rob's wedding and Simon gets more sympathy than she does. What's a little girl to do?

Really loving Gail and Michael. I hate to say it out loud, but could she finally have found a fella that won't end up in a coffin at the end of the relationship? Will this one stick around? I really would like to see her with someone nice, someone that will treat her well and make her happy. It looks like this might be what's happening at the moment. (knock on wood) There hasn't been anyone that's been this genuine in her life since the early days of Martin Platt. Even at the beginning, Brian was too into himself, Richard was too smooth and insincere and Joe was too volatile. All of them were disasters for Gail in the end. Maybe Michael will be too but I like to think he's got a better than average chance of going the distance, providing the actor wants to stay.

Mary is showing definite signs of jealousy now that Dev may be interested in Julie. I don't really think that Mary has a crush on Dev per se. We haven't really seen her crave Dev's company like she did Roy's when she was crushing on him.

I think it's got more to do with the children. She has taken over the mother figure and sees matronly Julie as a real threat to that role. If Julie and Dev get together, Mary won't be needed for the kids and will have no part in the Alahan life at all. You kind of feel sorry for her in that respect. She ends up alone, sometimes due to her own foibles,  but she does seem to get a bit too focussed.

I like Scary Mary to a point as long as she doesn't  get dangerously vindictive like she kind of did with Hayley after Hayley pushed her back from the wedding planning and like she did when she kind of trapped Norris in the cottage. She's a wonderfully quirky character and the actress that plays her is superb. She really does embed Mary with a great combination of weird, quirky, geekiness, off the wall and yet sympathetic at times too.

Love Eva and Jason together. Don't know how this thing with Todd is going to work out with Fiz, Tyrone and Jason and Tony but I like how Eva always defends her fella. The actress is pregnant so I really hope they write that into the character because I'd love to see Jason become a dad. As good as the actor playing Tony is, I don't see the character lasting because he's really the instigator in causing Jason so much trouble here. I really think he might take things too far in trying to fix the situation and Jason will demand he leave town. He's also known to get involved in dealing with stolen goods so I reckon he's going to end up in jail at the end of it. Maybe he can take Tracy with him!

I'm sure at the end of it all, Jason and Tyrone will be friends again but who knows? Fiz and Tyrone seem to be making a habit of alienating old friends, digging their heels in and being unforgiving. I know the accident was awful but it wasn't Jason's fault. The actress that plays Fiz is also pregnant so she's going to drop off our screens at some point too, though it's hard to say whether they'll write her out for a time or just not show her on screen.

And the actress that plays Kylie is also pregnant, a real baby boom there! We can see the start of her going off the rails, unable to cope and feeling extremely guilty about Max's condition. It's a good storyine for me. I am interested in how it unfolds. It's also interesting to see how mature David has finally become. I love David and Kylie as a couple and even though she's settled down from the wild child she was, so has he and it looked like they would have grown up together. They may yet go the distance if they can weather this upcoming storm. I hope so.

I'm tickled pink that Kirk and Beth are going to get married. Wonderful couple! I actually think Rob and Tracy are a suitable couple too. They get each other and seem to know what they're getting into. Or they did. Tracy's not going to be best pleased when she discovers what Rob did. It'll do my heart good to see her get her comeuppance. Becky's revenge on her, causing her to lose Steve is going to be nothing compared to this. After all the hurt she's caused others, people aren't going to have much sympathy for her. Or are they?

Anyway, that's a lot of musing for one blog post. I'll just get me coat.

State of the Street - August 2014

This month's State of the Street is late because I was away on holiday last week.

Ken's back! Forget saving the library, he's got a son to save. Again. A son that seems hell bent on self destruction. I think if he hadn't got that first lot of drink that he got from Jim, he might have been ok but it was obviously real rotgut, quite literally in this case, and very damaging. Jim just wants his family back and is using Peter to do it but Peter wasn't 100% successful. I'm surprised in one way that Jim agreed to supply booze for so obviously a raging alcoholic. He doesn't seem to be getting paid for it, at least not by Peter, not in cash. He must not be getting it for free himself.

I do like seeing Jim back, though. There's such chemistry between he and Bev Callard and Simon Gregson. Still, I don't think there's a place for the character anymore as a regular so I wouldn't want to see him back again permanently. It would mainly be him lusting after Elizabeth who would bravely try to master her old feelings and fail and then the destructive circle would start up all over again.


Lloyd took Andrea back, idiot that he is. Neil is still following Andrea around like a pathetic kicked puppy. He's an idiot too. All of them are, to tell you the truth. The main thrust of this is the departure of Jenna to do good works in far flung places. Another good character wasted while Neil stalks Andrea. It's going to end in some sort of crisis. Either he's going to kidnap her or threaten to kill himself, something like that. The actor's doing a great job, mind you but it doesn't really turn this storyline into anything remotely palatable.

Todd has turned into a dweeb. If he thinks he looks like a dynamic business man with his geeky clothes and slicked back hair, I've got news for him. He looks ludicrous. He's nothing more than an office assistant but Tony's flattering him and he really does know what Todd's ego wants. He's not changed any, though, he's just as manipulative and sneaky as he was playing Marcus around. Only this time it nearly had fatal consequences. He knows nothing about building. Tony wanted him to get the supplies on the cheap. He didn't say get substandard stuff, just find them cheaper but Todd knows nothing and got the wrong grade board.

Gary told him, Tony told him. He lied to Tony and threatened Gary. If I was Gary, I'd take the sack rather than install something unsafe, especially when he knew there were children in the house as well. That didn't really ring true to me.

Looks like everyone seems to be getting over Michael's dodgey past and are on the road to accepting him. And why not? He was always a good man, just lost his way once and regretted it immediately. It was unusual seeing Nick go off the rails and be Mr. Unreasonable rather than David but he was taking his anger at Leanne out on everyone else until she finally forced him to admit it. Faking an illness to get her to back down? Nasty. I like the character in that I like to dislike him. I used to think I liked Leanne with Kal but I don't anymore. He's a rebound just like Nick was a rebound for her off Peter.

I like the new family mostly. Sharif has gone a bit dull but I like the mother and Alya though it's tedious to find Gary popping up every single time Alya is on the screen and vice versa. It's nearly a drinking game now. The younger son, Zeedan, will be on screen in September and we'll see then how they all fit together. I'd like to see more of the mother, Yasmeen, she's a force to be reckoned with!

I really can't understand why Michelle would agree to plan Rob and Tracy's wedding. That is probably the biggest thing this month that doesn't ring true. Michelle might like Rob as an old friend but she detests Tracy and Tracy detests her. It makes no sense. Maybe they just can't think of anything else to do with Michelle? I am, however, delighted that Kirk and Beth are getting married. I can't wait to see what that wedding will be like!

Ken finally returned, as I said earlier, and after making peace with Deirdre and figuring out everything he's missed, he decides he's always been a poet at heart and an outdoorsmen (which he never,ever was) and takes Deirdre camping in a caravan. While it was quite funny seeing Deirdre stomping about the fields in a skirt, top and one of her belts, fag in hand, again, didn't ring true. Why not find a nice country B&B and go hiking from there? Couldn't have been any difference in price than renting the caravan and paying all that extra for the petrol to haul it around.