"Some obligations can't be passed on": Watching A Place To Call Home

[Mel O'Drama]

Confession: I had already watched this season 4 scene on YouTube. I'm very proud that I have managed to keep this a secret.
(how Regina of me!)

You did very well, Willie.

And thanks for keeping it under wraps (as nobody said to Regina, ever).

This floored me on first watch. I don't know why but I just hadn't expected the show to go there.

Yes - it was certainly a grim and brutal scene. I wonder if being on Foxtel allows them to get away with more. I've noticed the language and nudity have been a little more colourful at times since it made the move.

Perhaps it was due to Bevan Lee's return but I recall the show having an absolutely relentless intensity this season. It felt as though it was build to something awful

Season Four has been an instant favourite of mine. There hasn't been a bad season yet, but this one has stood out as having a nice balance between salacious soapy goodness and character-driven drama. I thought the peaks and troughs were very interesting, with episodes alive with building tension which kept building through the season to frenetic action in the last couple of episodes. But with a few exciting highs also scattered through the season, such as Elizabeth's return during the PM's dinner. The Fourth is perhaps the most accessible, exciting and moreish season.

Another shining moment for Marta - the chance to play mother lioness and naturally she gave it her all. There's something about her acting style that she can fortunately pull off these huge, shouty, highly melodramatic moments and yet she's not doing camp.

I completely agree. Whatever happens to Sarah (and a lot happens to Sarah), Marta keeps it fully grounded in a reality that keep me completely invested.

On a separate note, I remembered your frustration about Harry's gym bunny physique - funnily enough the actor has popped up in Between Two Worlds. His first scene emerging from a dive into the ocean...in tiny wet swimwear naturally. I didn't recognise him at first (long hair and a beard) but when I did, it took me back to your fair cynicism about him fitting into rural 1950s Australia.

Another Bevan Lee series? With every episode written by him? And starring Sara Wiseman and Andrew McFarlane? Count me in.

Out of interest, where are you watching it? Is it officially aired in the UK?

Funnily enough, I've just watched the trailer, and the scene you described was in it.

Still loving your take on the show!

Thanks. I'm really glad. I'm certainly enjoying getting stuck into it.

 

[Willie Oleson]

I have to say that Regina and her story arc seem a little too straightforward. It's the kind of no-holds-barred carnage you'd expect to see in shows like Nip/Tuck or Footballer's Wives.
She could still be responsible for most of these things e.g. intentionally or unintentionally influence other characters' actions - and then, yes of course totally blame Sarah for the poisoning (even if she doesn't exactly know how it came about).
I think it would have created a more interesting kind of frustration.

 

[JamesF]

She could still be responsible for most of these things e.g. intentionally or unintentionally influence other characters' actions - and then, yes of course totally blame Sarah for the poisoning (even if she doesn't exactly know how it came about).
I think it would have created a more interesting kind of frustration.

That would certainly be an interesting way of developing her. I wonder if the season-to-season renewal anvil hanging over the show maybe influenced her arc in season 4. It makes for an exciting descent but it's very neatly plotted.

Another Bevan Lee series? With every episode written by him? And starring Sara Wiseman and Andrew McFarlane? Count me in.

Out of interest, where are you watching it? Is it officially aired in the UK?

Alas no, I downloaded from 'sources' as I was so eager to lap it up. Unfortunately, contrary to Bevan's assertion it's the best thing he's ever written and like a summer beach read page turner...it's a turkey. If it ever makes it over here, I'd recommend it as a curiosity but APTCH it's not. When even Sara Wiseman comes across as unlikable and stilted, you know something is amiss! 4 episodes left and I will watch them (it's a completist, personality issue) but I can't see I'll be having any sudden epiphanies.

 

[Willie Oleson]

contrary to Bevan's assertion it's the best thing he's ever written and like a summer beach read page turner...it's a turkey.

The trailer does look a bit schlocky, made for short attention span-audience (they even put the bitch slap in it).
Kinda like Spelling's TITANS being promoted as "your next guilty pleasure".
It doesn't really work that way.

 

[JamesF]

That’s the irony, the pace is actually very slow. It’s not What/If territory for example. It’s confused and pretentious.

At some point I do hope somebody else on here watches it because I’m personally amazed it made it to air...

 

[Mel O'Drama]

I have to say that Regina and her story arc seem a little too straightforward. It's the kind of no-holds-barred carnage you'd expect to see in shows like Nip/Tuck or Footballer's Wives.

I wonder if the season-to-season renewal anvil hanging over the show maybe influenced her arc in season 4. It makes for an exciting descent but it's very neatly plotted.

Yeah. I'm getting the sense that when it was renewed for a third and fourth season there wasn't much certainty beyond that. Bevan had a very clear and specific story for Season Four, and a fascinating one. The ending was satisfying as that, but it's so thoroughly and neatly wrapped up that I have to assume there were concerns about a sudden cancellation and a hurried reshoot for a perfunctory ending, à la Season Two.

The repercussions are being felt in the first couple of Season Five episodes, because most of the drama had effectively been resolved, and so the renewed drama feels a bit forced. But I'll get to that soon.

Unfortunately, contrary to Bevan's assertion it's the best thing he's ever written and like a summer beach read page turner...it's a turkey. If it ever makes it over here, I'd recommend it as a curiosity but APTCH it's not. When even Sara Wiseman comes across as unlikable and stilted, you know something is amiss!

Oh dear. Thanks for the warning. That explains the viewing figures for the series, which seems to lose 25-50% of viewers with each passing week.

 

[Mel O'Drama]

Season Five



Episodes One and Two






With Season Four having no cliffhanger to speak of, I decided to dive almost straight into Season Five the following night. And I was excited at the thought of doing so.

So far, I’m underwhelmed by what I’ve seen. There are a number of factors here.

Firstly, the overarching story was somewhat tied up by the conclusion of Season Four. There were no major loose ends, and little outstanding friction. This means that much of the drama in these first two episodes feels a little forced and manufactured. There’s the sense of a series trying to start over and find new ways to interest.

Secondly, Season Five has seen the most significant changes to the cast since the series began. With PCH having no proper title sequence, my attention to the main cast credits depends what’s happening on screen while they play out. But I do try to take some notice, particularly when a new season begins. And I more-or-less know the order in which cast members appear. Even if I’m not consciously registering them, there’s something reassuring about the order. For instance, I enjoy Arianwen Parkes-Lockwood’s credit following Abby Earl’s, as it reminds me of Olivia and Anna’s friendship in those early episodes.

Now, I didn’t notice David Berry’s absence from the titles (though I had previously read that he was recurring during later seasons). I was thrown when Abby Earl’s credit was followed by Sara Wiseman. So not only is James conspicuously absent as a regular, but so is Olivia. This threw things off-kilter for me even going in, as I consider them two key characters who both bring something very special to the series. And it gets worse…

Imagine my delight on seeing Tim Draxl’s name appear in the opening credits (I actually groaned. Out loud). We’re now expected to believe that James and his wife have left, but James’s gay lover is not only still on the series, but living at Ash Park in James's absence. This is real “why are you still here?” stuff. It makes no sense. With Berry and APL gone, there’s no logic to Draxl remaining. That's a lot of trouble to retain a tertiary character, so I assume the actor must have got on well with people behind the scenes. Henry’s entitlement was plain to see in his first two seasons, but his arrogance has been taken to a whole new level this season. Now he’s all over the hospital making lofty put-downs to Sarah (whose help is unwelcome since she’s “just a nurse”) and Jack, while living under the same roof as them. In a way he’s re-enacting Regina’s arc: making nice to George and Carolyn while being bitchy to Sarah and Jack in his trademark rapid fire speech with high school vocal fry. When Jack tried to say he wasn’t sure they should live under the same roof while working together, Henry cleared his throat(!) and reminded Jack that “James Bligh” had asked him to stay. Then he stuck his nose in the air and walked off. Talk about your thick skin. It’s to his credit that Draxl seems willing to go ugly, but when the actor has done little to endear or interest over the course of two full seasons, it simply reinforces a frustrating viewing experience. And it’s all in tune with Season Five’s story-over-logic approach.

Adding insult to injury, Fox’s first act on the show was to dismiss a man having a diabetic coma as being drunk, an assumption based on the fact that the man was indigenous. The man in question is Frank Gibbs, one of the better additions, though still only tenuously connected at this moment. He lives in a shack where he paints in the style of Albert Namatjira and actually owns a painting by the artist himself since he claims they were friends. This has garnered interest from Carolyn and her art world friends.

Frank has also connected with Jack over wartime history, though there’s some mystery about exactly what happened to him during that time.

So what else? Well, there’s been a three or four year time lapse.

Sarah and George are still living separately (she and David in the cottage), and she’s still Mrs Nordmann. This is because Regina wouldn’t permit George to divorce her. She’s now agreed to this as part of her “reformed” character, and has walked out of the psychiatric institution arm in arm with Sir Richard Bennett, having fooled her consultant. Meanwhile, George and Sarah are in conflict over Sarah’s desire to raise David in the Jewish faith. It’s a rehash of stuff we’ve seen before: Sarah says they can’t be together unless “X” happens; George concedes and permits it but then warns Sarah to never again use their relationship as a threat.

Little Leah Gold - formerly Goldberg, and recast due to the time jump - is living with Sarah while Isaac - formerly Itzaak - is overseas. And she’s dating a wrong ‘un with a perfect singing voice. We did at least see Isaac briefly, but I was most unhappy that Miriam has been unceremoniously killed offscreen.

Anna is a best selling authoress, having written a book called Own Worst Enemy. Which is different from Tender Vines (the book about Gino) or House Of Lies. But she’s having writer’s block with her second, and is sleeping with her publicist.

Roy is now apparently married to that woman Dawn who was hanging around in Season Four. There go my hopes for a Roy/Doris pairing.

The best news of all is that Doris is now a series regular. And there’s a gorgeous new furry addition to the cast in the adorable form of Sarah’s ginger tabby.

 

[Willie Oleson]

We’re now expected to believe that James and his wife have left, but James’s gay lover is not only still on the series, but living at Ash Park in James's absence.

Oh dear, the Andy Greene-syndrome has also wormed its way into APTCH.
It looks like Regina is our only hope now.

 

[JamesF]

It probably speaks to me having a similar reaction to these eps - I don't remember a lot of what you've described! I can remember that not all that frustrates you will carry on through the season though.

Imagine my delight on seeing Tim Draxl’s name appear in the opening credits (I actually groaned. Out loud). We’re now expected to believe that James and his wife have left, but James’s gay lover is not only still on the series, but living at Ash Park in James's absence.

Something else I'd blocked out! You've described many reasons I never took to the character but the Harry/Henry comparison was a primary factor from the outset. One was a kind, pragmatic soul and the other is in essence a bitchy queen. Happy to watch both but it sort of felt like one was traded in for the other and because Henry is so obnoxious I couldn't invest in him. Was fun to watch him and Regina circling each other in season 4 though.

 

[Mel O'Drama]

Oh dear, the Andy Greene-syndrome has also wormed its way into APTCH.

Yes indeed. The silver lining is that this unwelcome guest can't be around for 600 episodes. Even if it feels like it.

It looks like Regina is our only hope now.

Oh - could we get that lucky?

I can remember that not all that frustrates you will carry on through the season though.

That's very good news.

You've described many reasons I never took to the character but the Harry/Henry comparison was a primary factor from the outset. One was a kind, pragmatic soul and the other is in essence a bitchy queen. Happy to watch both but it sort of felt like one was traded in for the other and because Henry is so obnoxious I couldn't invest in him.

Yes. I find Henry very difficult to like, care for or even be interested in.

You're so right about the Harry/Henry comparison.

 

[Mel O'Drama]

Season Five
Episodes Three to Five






What did I previously say about “fool me twice?”

Against all odds, the unthinkable has happened. Regina has become one of the series’ most fascinating characters. And what’s more, I find myself empathising with her more than the other characters do. And that’s despite me having an inkling about her true motivation.

The main reason she’s working is that we’re back to the secrets. And doubts. The other characters think they know her (and they’re probably right). But they don’t quite know what her 1958 modus operandi is. None of us do.

What’s more, Regina ’58 appears to be a broken woman. To everyone she appears to be a shell of the woman she was. Even left alone, the viewer sees her looking haunted. We’ve seen snippets of her treatments at the asylum, none of which look particularly enjoyable: ECT; locked from the neck down in what appears to be a steam box; hosed down with water. And her occasional flashbacks suggest these have affected her deeply.

It helps that she looks physically frailer. Eschewing the glamorous wardrobe provided by Richard, she’s chosen (to Richard’s fury) to flee the city for Inverness, wearing simple clothes, little makeup and a headscarf over new newly light brown hair (“my natural colour”, she reminds George). They all make her look softer and frailer. Reginie With The Light Brown Hair is no longer pale and interesting. She simply looks pallid. I like it.

There’s additional penance for Regina in the understandably cold reception she gets from Inverness locals. Her farmhouse is now run-down, dark and dusty. But not empty. Young Larry and Leah are using it for their meetings, and Regina is surprised to reach her sanctuary only to find it occupied.

Naturally, Leah tells Sarah about the strange woman she’s seen at “Crazy Regina’s”. Sarah and the Blighs are already frantic with worry having heard about Regina’s release. Sarah is sure she knows what’s happening and heads straight over to the farm, alone and unarmed. I enjoyed that their first meeting had that “cold light of day” tone and felt almost accidental. After looking through the windows and seeing nobody, Sarah is leaving when Regina walks round the corner. Neither is ahead of the other - they’re both surprised. Sarah tells her to leave Inverness and stay away from her family:

I’m not a threat. Not anymore.

I saw into your soul a long time ago. I know you.

The altercation becomes physical when Regina tries to create identification by talking about Sarah’s own mental health problems and Sarah reacts with a good wallop to the chest.


Even when Reggie visits the church to pray, she surprises Doris, Roy and Dawn who are arriving with flowers for the display. Doris is so shaken she starts beating Regina with the bouquet of flowers she’s holding, driving her down the aisle and out of the church.

And when youths - including Larry Grey - pelt her farm with missiles she looks absolutely terrified.

Sarah later makes a return visit to the farm, armed with Roy’s shotgun which she keeps at her side the whole time she’s speaking:

Tell me you don’t want what I have. George. His child. A future together. A life at Ash Park. [Regina opens her mouth to speak but hesitates] There you are. You can’t be trusted anywhere near us… Well next time I won’t hesitate. I will pull the trigger. Just when you least expect it.

Bluff and double-bluff are the order of the day. It’s difficult to tell what’s truth and what’s scheme. When George visits, Regina gives him a warning:

You’re living in a fool’s paradise. You and your family are at risk. Sir Richard is not your friend. I don’t know yet what he’s planning. But his malice is real. And he won’t stop until he has the revenge he craves. Who do you think helped organise such a forward-thinking doctor at the asylum. Who do you think helped orchestrate my deposition to the parole board? Richard is not who you think he is… He sees me as playing a hand in your destruction. He’s always considered me his foot soldier. The more I recovered my sanity, the more the truth of him appalled me.

This is even accompanied by a pair of letters she's written - one each for George and Sarah. Sarah destroys hers without reading it, but George’s contains details of Richard’s reasons for wanting revenge. This includes Carolyn’s rape and Elizabeth stabbing Sir Richard’s hand.

Despite blowing Richard's secrets, Regina sneaks off to a phone box under cover of darkness and contacts the man himself:

Where the hell are you.

Exactly where you’d want me to be. Just a little ahead of schedule… I simply couldn’t wait.

Even with all the clues, I’m none the wiser about what Regina’s true plans and motives are, nor who’s side she’s on - if anyone’s. But I suspect nobody is going to get off lightly.

continued...​

 

[Mel O'Drama]

Episodes Three to Five... continued​

Sir Richard’s influence has continued, with him showing up in Canberra at a soiree where George is entertaining Americans. Richard wastes no time in chastising George for being accompanied by Sarah. It’s a warning that is later reiterated to George by PM Menzies, presumably after a word from Richard. George is all smiles, and eerily polite to Richard, despite this being their first encounter since George discovered that Richard raped his sister. I wonder what he has planned.

Meanwhile, at the same soiree, Sarah is shaken to recognise a German woman in attendance as one of the guards from Ravensbrück. How exciting.

The Canberra house in which George and Sarah are staying is absolutely gorgeous.

To begin with, I wasn’t sure about Douglas’s lung cancer storyline (which I’d initially thought was going to be TB). It seemed like a slightly lazy thing to do because there wasn’t really a story for Elizabeth and Douglas this season. And perhaps it is.

That said, any storyline which puts Noni Hazlehurst and Robert Coleby front and centre has to be a good thing. They’ve both been wonderful. Noni in particular had some beautifully poignant lip trembling/moist eyed moments while Elizabeth tried to hide the severity of his condition from Douglas behind her smile.

The discovery that Douglas’s cancer had spread - even after the removal of one lung - and is now inoperable brought forth a typical episodic medical drama ethical dilemma about whether or not the patient has the right to know. Progressive Henry feels they do (the first time I’ve found myself agreeing with him about anything), while Jack feels not.

Henry, incidentally, has wisely been moved out of Ash Park and into hospital digs. We only discovered this through a line of dialogue, but it’s already a great improvement, as he no longer turns up in every other scene and is pretty much restricted to the hospital, where - as with much of his dialogue - he utters medical terminology too quickly to be understood. Limiting his screen time this way has made him far more tolerable.

Douglas having a short time to live seems a waste of a fine character. We’ve seen too little of him, and he has great chemistry with the other characters. Perhaps the intent is to take the series back to basics with Elizabeth reigning as matriarch alone. Whatever happens, I’ve every hope there will be some powerful scenes ahead.

In more familiar hospital drama, there are echoes of Season One when Sarah clashes with her patient’s violent partner: a defiant, troublemaking man with piercing blue lupine eyes.

In the Bert Ford role this time round is Stan O’Rourke. Once again, there are whispers. Once again, his conduct is an open secret to which his friends at the pub turn a blind eye. As before, Sarah recognises the marks on her patient as resulting from domestic violence, which the patient denies. The patient this time is Stan’s wife, Sheila, who has just undergone a mastectomy for breast cancer - something she knows her husband would not be supportive about. And now she’s not showing up for her follow-up appointments, leading Sarah to drive there and warn him she’ll be persisting until she sees Sheila. We just know it won’t end well.

Stan has also torched Frank Gibbs’s shack (roping Larry Grey in to help him). This has left Frank homeless and much of his art destroyed. Apart from one - the Namatjira, I believe - which Carolyn has kept in the safe at Ash Park on his request.

Carolyn and Jack’s relationship isn’t in a great place. There are lots of arguments and atmospheres.

And chain-smoking Anna has already finished her second book: All That Glitters. Another one set to cause controversy in the family for its feminist slant and its thinly-disguised observations about her family.

She’s also split up from her publicist lover after turning down his proposal. I only recognised him in his last episode as Matt Day, AKA Brice, the adorable parking inspector who unzipped Muriel’s bean bag.

 

[Mel O'Drama]

Season Five
Episodes Six to Eight




After a slow start, Season Five is proving to be a heavyweight season, and is delivering with each episode.

Regina and Richard continue to be great fun to watch. Mainly because of the unknown. Regina’s motives still aren’t clear. The more that’s revealed, the more it seems as though Regina is doing what she’s said: staying close to Richard in order to feed him information and protect the Blighs as best she can. At great risk to herself. But it is Regina, and so I keep waiting for the twist. And there are still some unanswered questions.

I love that as a viewer I’m in the same position as the Blighs. All recent evidence points to Regina being trustworthy. But it’s difficult to trust because of her past behaviour. And all I have to do is watch. The Blighs have to decide whether or not to ask Regina’s help.

When even Sarah sees this as a necessary option, you just know there’s something to it. Seeing them at the fair was just surreal due to layer upon layer of different realities and possibilities. Sarah and George are “pretending” to be kind to Regina so that all three can convince Richard that the Blighs have been sucked in by her “act”. But all the deception is based in some truth. The difficulty lies in knowing how one is separated from another.

In addition to warning George and Sarah about Richard’s schemes, Regina’s warned Henry that Richard is using him to get back at Jack (Richard has offered Henry a very promising position if Henry can give Richard some dirt on Jack).

Most importantly, she’s prevented Anna from being raped by Richard during a lunch meeting. First she went to Ash Park, only to be screamed away by Carolyn and Elizabeth before she could speak of her concerns. So she rang Anna and warned her to have pepper to hand. And while Anna was dismissive, Richard’s increasingly creepy behaviour prompted her to pocket a jar of pepper after taking the lid off. Richard unzipping his flies and producing his willy was her cue to use it, and Richard ended up taking a tumble down the stairs.

George and Carolyn, meanwhile, have done some digging into their accounts at Regina’s suggestion, and have found that a couple of companies that have given their financial backing in recent years are owned by Richard. Meaning he can call in those loans and take possession of Ash Park at any time.

George initially explores selling off segments of the land to investors, but Carolyn is adamant they can’t do this to Elizabeth (incidentally, George pointing out that Carolyn has done very little at Ash Park over the years resulted in what I believe is the series’ first F-bomb, shot off - twice - by Carolyn. And in front of the help as well). Now the two of them, with Sarah and Jack, are working out a way to keep Richard busy for a few months until they can take back the debts from under his nose. And for this, they’ll need Regina’s help. What can possibly go wrong?!

Perhaps the most satisfying thing to come from Regina’s confessionals is what appears to be the truth about the day George was shot:

It wasn’t René who pulled the trigger. It was me.

It’s a belated vindication for René and Sarah both. But there’s still no cast iron guarantee that her “it went off by accident” story is true.

Meanwhile, Sarah has faced more ghosts. She came very close to killing Gerda Davis after confronting her with a knife and holding it to her throat. But she settled for leaving her a list of names of the women who died under her watch. Once again, Marta Dusseldorp is electric in the scene, going from terrifying fury to cowering in horror on realising that the woman - despite repeated denials - actually is the person she feared in the camp:

I have been expecting one of you. One we didn’t finish off. And that was you. My favourite… I saved your life, you know. That last July… “No Jews alive”. That was the order. You owe me… for not sending you to the gas in vans that day.

Why?

You weren’t a real Jew. You were an Aryan shaming your race. But still an Aryan.

I was a Jew then. And I’m a Jew now.

It’s heavy stuff. And the show is all the better for it.

continued...​

 

[Mel O'Drama]

Episodes Six to Eight... continued​

Death has come to Inverness again as Douglas has exited from the series. The pacing, with all the time jumps, means there’s been no time to linger, and it also means - mercifully - that we’ve been spared watching a lot of Douglas’s suffering as the lung cancer takes hold. Though I’ve seen enough to be struck by the irony of the heavy smoking that’s continued to go on around Douglas, which would have been normal enough at the time. Indeed, one of the heaviest smokers is Henry, who opened Douglas up and saw first-hand the tumours. And who described in great detail the suffering that Douglas could expect at the end:

His moments of lucidity will be fraught with excruciating pain. In his final stages he’ll feel like he’s drowning. His organs will start to break down. His family will watch and wait for his last breath wishing it would happen sooner so everyone can be put out of their misery. It’s a cruel and unnecessary end.

With Douglas knowing the truth about his condition, the next ethical argument for Doctors Duncan and Fox was over euthanasia, in light of a request by Douglas. Unsurprisingly, Henry comes down on the more progressive “pro” side. All the same, Jack’s conservative “anti” stance is a little surprising when I think of the doctor who interviewed a nurse by taking her to see patient he knew to be armed and difficult. Or the man who lied on a death certificate to protect a number of innocent people.

In the event, while the phenobarbital was provided by a friend of Douglas on his last day, it was Elizabeth who gave him a helping hand.


As expected, the scene was not only tasteful, but also incredibly moving. Elizabeth’s shock and horror at seeing what Douglas plans to do eventually are eventually overcome by her love for him. Noni Hazelhurst’s nuanced performance is nothing short of incredible. Robert Coleby does wonderful work with a very challenging scene. Everything works, from the performances to the poignant dialogue and the choice of music.

After our wedding day, this has been the happiest day of my life.

He opens the bedside drawer and, struggling, takes out the phenobarbital.

Well, Lizzie. We’ve come to that sweet and perfect day. The most perfect day for me to take my leave. Don’t you think?

What’s in that bottle?

I can only go with your blessing.

Not yet. Not now. I’m being selfish, I know, but we have more time. You’re the first real happiness in my life.

And you for me. But my poor old body’s done for. I can’t manage any more.

He tries to open the lid, but is too weak. Elizabeth takes it from him to help. He becomes agitated over her involvement and fingerprints. She promises to hide it. They kiss.

You know what I’d like to hear? Chopin. Tristesse. It’s on the table.

He drinks while she puts the record on and wipes her tears.

It’s one of the most heartbreaking scenes in the series yet, more because it’s about the end of a love as much as a life. It’s just perfect.


It was so good to see David Berry and Arianwen Parkes-Lockwood credited in the opening titles for Episode Seven.

I was surprised when the phone call came from Olivia to say they were delayed and would miss the funeral, but only mildly so. I thought it might be a little playful fake-out, aimed at viewers who didn’t spot the credit and assumed they were doing the archetypal soap thing when departed actors don’t return for family events. This way it would be more of a surprise when James and Olivia did show up later on.


It was more surprising when Olivia showed up without James. The explanation was as inevitable as it is disappointing:

We arrived in England, playing roles that would quash any questions once we divorced. Despite the subterfuge, we enjoyed ourselves. Which is why the trip to see my brother in Cap-Ferrat seemed a good idea… When we got to the Riviera it was as if it was destined to be. His feelings for William… His kind: they’re thought of differently there. And what that meant to him. Dining with Somerset Maugham and Noël Coward. Edward and Wallis Simpson. To feel so accepted.

You mean to tell me that James has deserted his family - his son - for a bunch of gin soaked celebrities?

Back when watching Season One, William was so important to James that it seemed logical he would one day visit Ash Park and old feelings would come to the surface.

With the years and events that have passed in between it’s seemed less likely that William and James would pair off again. Indeed, everything about this just screams that David Berry is unavailable. His single scene, at the end of a telephone in a darkened room just reeks of an unavailable actor either fulfilling a contract or doing a hurried favour to his previous employer. And then there’s William. I’ve got a mental picture of him, and he didn’t look like I imagined, nor how I remembered from the glimpses in the photos. He was taller and fairer, and looked quite grim. Rather like Lurch from The Addams Family. He didn’t speak, but just lurked in the shadows wearing a robe before coming and grabbing onto James’s shoulder while standing behind him. On reflection, my preference would have been to see neither James nor William here. Let the story come from Olivia - as it did. But let it stay that way. This gilded the lily, and I’d say even diluted the story.

All the same, it’s great to have Olivia back, and I hope she sticks around. Since she had married into the family and her son is heir, it makes sense for her to be there. It makes even less sense for Henry to be there than it did before. He’s got no reason to stay in Inverness now. But somehow I have a sinking feeling that he will.

In other news, Dawn’s pregnant and, since I don't even really know her I’m finding it difficult to care.

 

[Willie Oleson]

Sarah and George are “pretending” to be kind to Regina so that all three can convince Richard that the Blighs have been sucked in by her “act”.

I like those scenes, it's like a play within a play. Barbara did it with Liz Smith because (forgot reason).

In other news, Dawn’s pregnant and, since I don't even really know her I’m finding it difficult to care

Dawn who? Is she related to someone?

 

[Mel O'Drama]

Dawn who? Is she related to someone?

She's some woman with a daughter who rough old lone wolf Roy fell for, upsetting gossip Doris who thought he reciprocated her feelings for him.

Roy and Dawn have married in the time lapse years between Seasons Four and Five. But she hasn't really done anything other than arrange flowers and bake cakes. And we've seen nothing of their home life. Sadly, Roy's place isn't somewhere we visit now that Sarah's living at Ash Park.

 

[Willie Oleson]

Spoiler: spoiler theory

Meaning he can call in those loans and take possession of Ash Park at any time

If Regina is double-crossing Richard then she could also be double-double-crossing George and Sarah.
Could there be a "I've got the papers to prove it!" scene coming up?

 

[Mel O'Drama]

It could happen, Willie. What I'm loving about this season is the unpredictability and obliqueness when it comes to character motives. Especially Regina's.

There are just four episodes left of the season. Will we be any the wiser by the end?

Speaking of spoilers, I know of one Big Thing that happens later in the series. And I'm pretty sure it's this season. It's adding to the excitement for me.

 

[Mel O'Drama]

Season Five
Episodes Nine to Twelve




It’s been an eventful, exciting end to the season, dominated by one major storyline, itself an outcome of several storylines converging and weaving together.

There’s also a tidiness to things. Loose ends are being tidied up. So much so that, as with Season Four, it seems apparent that there was no certainty that there would be a Season Six. So once again, we’re left with a primly neat ending as “i”s are dotted and “t”s crossed. Which makes for a satisfying series finale, but a less satisfying season finale.

We've met a new character who is essentially a knight in shining armour. Or, to be more accurate. in a shining two-tone Holden FC Station Sedan. A gorgeous beast of a car which has roof rails on which sits a surfboard. You see, this is APTCH’s first surfie.

Matthew Goddard, son of Douglas, is played by Conrad Coleby, son of Robert. This means that father and son have been able to appear in the same episode. Though not quite together, since onscreen father and son are very much estranged and Elizabeth only learnt of Matthew’s existence after his father’s death.

Matthew immediately catches Anna’s eye, but is blinded by Olivia’s charms and ends up sweeping her off her feet, proposing and whisking her and George off back to America with him for what’s apparently a happy ever after.

Elizabeth is busy with the refuge, and is focussing specifically on work for Aboriginal veterans in Douglas’s honour. Matthew’s arrival helps her to begin to come to terms with her feelings about Douglas’s death. As she watches Matthew, Anna, Olivia and George playing near the water from a deckchair, Elizabeth has a conversation with Douglas, who she envisions sitting beside her:

You should’ve told me you had another son. After everything we shared. And don’t tell me you don’t know how to be a good father. You were wonderful with David. And George. You made a terrible mistake. But I’m not in a position to judge you. Stupid, wretched pride. So many precious moments missed.

This in turn has allowed her to focus on her family. And in particular George who is still bitter at James for abandoning her family. She sees the parallels with not only Douglas and Matthew but also herself and Anna. And she addresses it with George. They also have a discussion about George considering a conversion to the Jewish faith to support David and Sarah. Elizabeth isn’t thrilled, but there’s enough give and take for it to be a very real possibility.

And so, George accompanies Sarah as she takes Leah to Israel and surprises her with a detour to the Riviera where he hugs James on a terrace garden as William silently lurks. David Berry gets fourth billing in the opening titles for this episode, but appears in one brief scene where he doesn’t utter a word. It was so eerie that I’m still not entirely convinced David and Brett were on the same set at the same time. But I suppose it worked.

Anna, meanwhile, fears she’ll never end up with a man due to her infertility. So she proposes to Henry who has sex with her and then… dumps her when he finds out she’s infertile. Nice.

Having been moved out of Ash Park, Henry has been tolerable for much of Season Five. Certainly, Tim Draxl tends to gurn and over emote when he given something to do, but he’s been on the periphery of much of the action, which has worked well. And there’s been little of the stomach-churning throat clearing he did throughout Season Four (though he did save up a big one for his final scene of the season). But with the last couple of episodes he’s been pushed forwards once again. And what’s the betting he’s knocked her up despite all odds, giving him more screen time in Season Six). Episode Eleven was virtually The Henry Show. It felt like he was in every scene. In the last episode he even ungraciously ruined a Christmas singalong with an attention-seeking attempt at a showy high note, followed by an “aren’t I adorable” smug little laugh that made me think of H from Steps (oh Lord. Maybe that’s who he reminds me of all the time, which is why I can’t enjoy him). He hampers my enjoyment of an otherwise pretty perfect series.

But it still couldn’t ruin things for me. Not after the thrilling events of Episode Ten. But I’ll get to that.

continued...​

 

[Mel O'Drama]

Episodes Nine to Twelve... continued​

Sarah and Regina’s history makes all of their one-to-ones feel very exciting. And they’ve had a number this season. In particular, I never know what mood Sarah’s going to be in during them. Whenever they seem to be making progress, she gets angry or resentful. Which is entirely understandable given that Regina tried to murder Sarah and her child.

There’s a nice scene where Regina has been at Ash Park helping work on toppling Richard. As she comes out of the front entrance, Sarah and David are coming round the side of the house. Regina smiles and waves, and says how things are coming together. Sarah stops, hides David behind her skirt and then ushers him away in the opposite direction. And I really get that awkwardness between them, because I’ve found it hard to trust Regina’s motive this season. Surely it would be tenfold for Sarah. Regina for her part looks hurt and scurries away.

In their next scene, Sarah comes to Regina’s house, and I assumed she was there to make things right. But she’d come to ask Regina if she planned to leave when this was over, and to ask if she would sign the divorce papers for George. Regina picks up the copy of Anne Frank’s The Diary Of A Young Girl she’s been reading and asks if Sarah thinks it’s genuine. Sarah replies in the affirmative, but Regina says she’s not convinced. This seems to encapsulate Regina’s journey as much as any other scene. She may not quite be there yet but, given her previous anti-Semitic attitudes, the fact that she would even consider bringing this work into her home is more telling of her progress than her professed scepticism after reading it. There’s an implicit message for Sarah underneath the “I doubt” surface. And the message is that she’s trying to see things from a different point of view.

Sarah leaves, simply asking Regina to deliver the papers. Which Regina duly does:

Divorce papers. Signed, sealed and delivered.

You see. That wasn’t so hard, was it?

A simple thank you would suffice.

For allowing George what you promised.

You are a hard and uncompromising woman. One day you may come to regret this moment.

For me, these interactions have won me round to Regina even more than her helping the Blighs counter Richard. Sarah is smiling, frosty and looks down upon Regina. It might be going too far to say that Sarah is enjoying Regina’s pain, but it’s clear that her defences are up and she has no intention of making herself vulnerable. Sarah may not be a fool, but she does indeed come across as “hard and uncompromising”. She’s got very good reasons, but making someone’s life more difficult when they’re trying as hard as Regina isn’t a good look on anyone.

Sarah later comes to Regina and finds her lying on the bed in a darkened room, a flannel over her face. This time there is a degree of concern from Sarah. An acknowledgement that Regina’s work to overthrow Richard is taking its toll. Regina sits up, tearfully, and the scene becomes one of their most intimate:

D’you know why I so hate Richard? He’s a mirror. I see in him what I was to you. I see why I can’t be forgiven. Why I can’t hope for a future with the family… I spent three years regaining my sanity. A year establishing it. Months earning your trust. All to make reparation. And once that’s done, there’s nothing. But guilt for my crimes. Milly Davies. Brian Taylor. Yes - I did shoot him. I’m sure you never doubted.

Which means…?

Punishment. Whichever one I deem fit.

As always, Regina’s unpredictability means that any number of things could be read into her statement. But whatever the meaning, it seems appropriate somehow that she should discuss it with Sarah.

As the scene ends, Regina simply asks Sarah for a glass of water. Sarah leaves the room, and Regina is left alone, deep in thought. Something is about to happen.

continued...​