Forgive Us Our Sons (Fri, Jun 29 '07)

Friday night's episode felt like a little bit of a stopgap episode, just filling in some of the big developments we had earlier in the week, but it was notable for a fairly lowkey farewell to one of the main cast members, a no-suprise Lolly.

Updates first though, cos there wasn't much else going down. On Thurs night last week, we finally heard the story behind Frazer's brother's death with a teary expose (pron: expoazy - dunno how to do those tricky little accent inflection things) from Mrs Brown out at their joint in the bush. Tonight continued that conversation, and Frazer's mum was crying and sobbing and further explaining it and how it meant they treated Frazer different. Clearly still a bit touchy about it, she explained how Frazer, then 3, was just staring there looking at the body in the pool. "If only you'd done something, anything, yelled for help, *change* but you were too young, I know that *change* but still, you could have done something *change change*". Basically she knows it was wrong to blame Frazer, but she did anyway, and said that whenever they looked at him after that, etc etc etc. So he was right, she didn't really love him, and she goes crying into the house. Frazer was looking pretty damn upset through all this, but now more just plain sad, as opposed to the hurt outrage he had at the end of last ep, and Rosie was kneeling beside his wheelie giving him hugs, also looking sad. It was a sad moment. Got better though. Everyone kinda made up, Frazer came to terms with it a bit, and remembered where the pool had been (first time we've confirmed it was all at that house, I think), and said he always remembered the pool being at Uncle Walter's, etc etc. Rosie had a nice mum-in-law-to-be talk with sobbing Pru as well, giving her justifications for what she did, even though none of it was really that true, but it was a nice realistic family thing, finding ways to forgive people for stuff they did that was pretty well fucked.


The new feeling-their-way-back-into-each-other's-lives Browns (Mrs, Brown, Frazer Yeates and Rosie Caminetti) found their way back to da borough, where they all visited toolbag utecrasher Ringo in hospital. He was a bit shocked to see his Mum too, but they all 'splained everything, he made the connection between Paul's drowning and his fear of water, and he agreed to head home for a couple of days. Rachel was invited too, separate rooms, but she thought it would be better for Ringo and his mum to have some time workign things out. I'd try to get out of it too. She's a bit creep-out. All up, there's a new policy of No More Secrets in the family, but Frazer still can't feel his legs, and said to Rosie that he thinks it might just be time to accept it. NO FRAZER YOU CAN DO IT!

The only real progress this episode is in the grasping at straws Caleb, who got Stinger’s heart and lost all his family and friends cos they won’t talk to him. Last we saw earlier in the week, he and Sky were convincing each other that they had a sort of connection, the Timminses were a little bit “ewww rack off”, and Boyd was concerning himself with everything. Nothing’s changed at the start of this one, until Cal comes bounding into the General Store with a couple of giftboxes. “Does Mrs Timmins like jewelry?” he asks a stonefaced Boyd who looks like he’s ready to quote a page he’s read in a medical textbook to prove that he knows whatever Caleb’s up to is wrong. Boyd knows best. Then Caleb bounces over to Sky and gives her one of the boxes. It’s a silver <3shaped locket with Scott engraved on it. “I got Scott engraved on it” he says, explaining why it’s got Scott engraved on it. Sky can’t possibly… no, she couldn’t… it must have cost him a fortune… well, okay. But he better not give the other one to Mrs Timmins, cos she’ll flip it bad.

Or maybe not. As soon as he saw what was going on, Boyd had pelted full barrel round to Mrs Timmins’s to tell her what’s going on. “pant pant… And he got Scott engraved on it” he explains. Janelle’s relationship with Boyd’s a little confusing. When he first knocks at the door she’s very reluctant to listen to him or invite him in, seeing as how he cheated on his wife who happened to be her daughter, and he’s a blatant fuckhead. But in an un-Janelle fashion, she relents, and he toughsooks his way inside and goes through the whole deal with her. In a bit of a twist, she agrees to meet with the transplantee, and wants him to come around that arvo, just to get it all out of the way. Boyd, meanwhile, decides to take things into his own hands, and heads down the skatepark where a few of the kids there knew Caleb. Caleb himself is a little dorky, or maybe more goofy looking, but is believable enough as a lanky kid who hangs around with other kids at a skatepark. When Boyd’s there talking to them, he looks like an undercover cop at a My Chemical Romance gig. He’s such a straightlaced social vigilante, with his crew cut, fucking pink polo, and constant “How dare you” glare, talking to these guys who for all we know could actually be skatekids. Sore thumb. Anyways, he rants at them all “Shame on you, shame on you all, no don’t try to correct my misinterpretations, just be scolded you disgusting people”, and their leader holds back one of the minions who’s going to throttle him. If I could do a rewrite, it would involve placing their leader out of arms reach from the clenched fist guy. They tell him he’s got his wires crossed, and that they haven’t turned their back on Caleb – he’s too ashamed to see them. He turns around, and scurries back to the Timmins house, full of more self-righteous contempt.

By this time, Caleb, Sky and Janelle are all feeling a bit awkward in the loungeroom. Janelle’s pretty sensible about the whole thing, and accepts the gift generously, but does want to feel his heart. That makes her cry, and you probably might have too if you’d seen it. Janelle’s a great cryer, and anything related to Stinger’s death pretty much sends me back over the edge too. That death & aftermath was done so amazingly fucking well, like Molly Jones on ACP well. *sniffle* Boyd arrives back in time to meet with them all, and with “Oh great” Caleb mutters what we’re all thinking as Hoyland strides back in. “Is he still here?” Yes Boyd. “I’ve been talking to your mates…” he says, and Caleb admits he’s the one who’s cut himself off from his parents and friends, but he sounds pretty ‘durr’ about it, like it was his only option. “I killed my best mate. I can’t look them in the eye. Sky and your family are my life now” he explains, in a freakin huge leap of logic, and instantly going from annoying waste of space to creepy obsessodude. Nobody else sees it that way though, and there’s no spooky music or sneaky eye movements when nobody’s watching, so I don’t think he really is a stalker or anything, but a line as big as that should really have some plot afterwards to back it up. Boyd tells him his mates want him back, Caleb says ‘sif, Boyd gives him his mate Jamie’s armband and says “He says you’d know what it means”, Caleb does (it means they want to be mates again evidentally. I was hoping it was a sign to punch the armband’s deliverer in the face.), and Janelle gives a little speech about how he’s got a real life, so go get it back or Stinger died for nothing, a perspective her granddaughter Kerry might refute. And here’s ya stinkin pendant. Janelle and Boyd wander off into the kitchen, and I’d love to hear that conversation. (“I knew we couldn’t trust him. Lucky you listened to me.” “What the hell are you doing in my house?”) Instad it stays with Caleb and Sky as we learn she doesn’t never wanna see him again, and he’s gonna finish the Stinger tribute wall before he shoves off. Wow. Fuck this is dull, although to be honest that’s probably just because it’s using three of the dullest characters around, Boyd (who’s not even fun to hate, he really just is a fuckhead), Sky (hopeless and pathetically gullible for a character who only 2 years ago was so street smart) and Caleb, who’s the latest in the long line of good looking but wooden acting young guest actors. Ned, Katya, Rob/Cam, Carmella and other younger guests had made the wooden youth tradition possibly the worst ongoing part of Neighbours for a while there, with but the same episode arrival of Frazer, Rosie, Pepper and Will last year blew that away, with the three remaining characters instantly great, and only the shortlived Will studying at the Home & Away school of looking TV Week good and leaving the acting and emotional roles to the veteran cast. Caleb’s pretty shit hey. Anyways, Sky and chumpo keep chatting, and by the end of the episode she also asks to feel his heart, but this time there’s a different response, and she doesn’t cry, but kisses him. Or maybe he kisses her. Either way, there’s a pash, and Boyd walks in with a “I can’t believe how right about everything I always am, my head’s gonna blow off my neck with aggressive smugness” look. That’s where it ends, and ruh-roh, Boyd looks like he’s gonna cause trouble. But that’s for tomorrow (or maybe later tonight if I stop taking so long, I’m running behind).

Otherwise, there’s a few short plots. Karl’s been getting calls from his dad Tom in the nursing home, complaining more and more about living there and getting worse and worse dementia. Karl’s been visiting him pretty often but he doesn’t remember. Susan suggests Tom come to stay with them, see how it goes, and Karl doesn’t want to burden her and the kids, but Suse insists, and after a bit of sweet-talking the nursing home, Tom’s going to come stay with them for a bit. I loved Tom’s previous appearances, he’s very much, as they say, a character, so looking forward to this.

Rachel’s back from her seemingly overnight stay with Katya in Adelaide, where I think she’s in a happy relationship with Paul McClane, who might be a footballer. I dunno, but she mentions it. Rachel’s only major scene tonight is visitign Ringo in hospital, where their frustration at each other is kinda brought up without turning into a real fight. He tells her he doesn’t love Carmella, but he loved the way she treated him, like an adult whose opinions mattered, whereas Rachel “just makes me feel stupid”. To be honest, he is a bit, but still, Rachel admits she does have control issues, stemming from the death of her mum and Katya’s disappearance etc etc, so she agrees to try to change with Ringo’s loving help, and there’s all sorts of cuddling etc.

The most noteworthy part of the episode though is the end of Lolly Allen, who I’m sure has been on the show longer than the 3 months the Dolly competition gave her, but probably not by much. After dropping hints earlier in the week that she wants tomove back home, she kinda does the same more tonight – Harold and Bree notice, but Lou and Zeke are obvious in their not noticing. For every attempted “I had fun at home”, Zeke meeted it with an OTT enthusiastic “Yeah, but not as fun as here hey!”, or when she mentioned to Lou she’s like to get back home more, it was all “Not in the school year love, too disruptive. But how about a weekend a month and school holidays!” “Err, sure” It was a few of these scenes, including one where Zeke and Lou bonded over making steak marinade instead of noticing the fact that their favourtie girl wanted to leave. Eventually, Harold talked to Lou, Bree to Zeke, and Lou gave Lolly a surprise, 2 tickets to Russia in a week’s time, so she can come with him to meet Mishka. Just hearing her name makes me pine for her. Then he tells her he’ll pick her up from DadJohn’s place – he’s taking her back this afternoon. She’s happy but sad, all the usual reactions, but Zeke’s downright upset, poor fella. So that arvo she’s all packed up, presumably finding green bras and wallets she stole in her first coupla days on the street, and ready to leave. The farewell scene was really well done, a whole bunch of neighbours out the front of their house while she ran around saying “Thanks for helping me with the whole Sandy thing” and “You’re the best big sister ever” and Lou honked the horn. Sheesh Lou, you’ve only given the girl a coupla hours notice she’s moving out, give her an extra 5 minutes. Zeke’s allowed to come for the drive too (she gave him a goodbye kiss earlier – I think it was meant to be a pash, cos their heads moved a bit, but it lasted for approx 2 seconds. So cute.) so Lolly, Lou and Zeke drive off, and through the windows as they drive around the curved end of Ramsay’s dead end we can see Harold, Sky and Bree, Karl and Susan, Rosie, Frazer and his mum, Rachel and Ringo all watching and waving, and some nice folky music plays, and it’s a erally sweet goodbye. As the camera goes through the back window, we see Bree, Rachel and Ringo walking after them waving, and it’s a bit the end of the super school gang, and it’s beautifully done, and tehn the camera’s up high looking down on the street, and Karl’s saying they’ll have Lou over for dinner next week, and Susan asks Harold if he wants to come get that salad bowl he lent them, and the school gang talk amongst themselves, and it’s a fantastic ending, like neighbours really do become good friends to both the show, and a character’s stint. Weepy sigh.

Then Sky walks back in to Caleb and says “It just won’t be the same around here without her” which we all know is absolute bullshit and with that she blows the feeling away, and then the kiss happens, all that brilliant wistful small self-contained village vibe gone. Still, bye Lolly. She won’t be missed, but I liked her after all that Sandy shit was sorted out. Now to see if Lou comes back from Moscow or not next week. Everyone else seems to be gaining family members, and he’s just lost his only one. Hmmm.