There's gonna be a borstal breakout, as Sham 69 sang (or barked) many years ago. To be honest, I thought Soap Rules stated only one prison break per annum and we already had this year's, (Rob Donovan back in January). Anyway, Mick gets a job in the laundry, which somehow means he can make an escape (let's just gloss over the details) and he's back on the street and looking for his kids (originally, I thought he might be on the lam because he heard about the Oasis gigs and wanted to be at Heaton Park).
Brody has already gathered Shanice, but Joanie has gone off to a taster day at Weathy High, where she's immediately bullied by Hope, who has a conspiracy theory that the whole Michaelis family hates gingers. First Ches, then Craig, now Gary. She's worried for her mum (Ben Stokes and Jannick Sinner should go into hiding). Meanwhile Mrs Crawshaw, sporting a fetching blonde bob, is pretty much begging Daniel to return to the school, which I presume means the STC set is being dismantled (and that Crawshy's midlife crush on Dannyboy has not faded with time).
The two stories collide as Mick invades the school looking for his eldest daughter and Sam, who has become an adolescent over night and Lily, who is a completely different person now, hide in a classroom. La Crawsh and Daniel are locked in the head's office and can't stop Mick, but Joanie has already gone home and is hanging out with Sally and Izzy in the factory. He heads there and Sally, hearing him in the foyer, takes Joanie up onto the roof. Once again, I implore Carla to get a keypad installed on the front door. Also the back door shouldn't be locked - fire regs! Anyway, Kit is now stalking Mick and seeing Sally and Joanie on the factory roof, he follows Mick up there where they fight and Kit is stabbed. He goes to get his daughter and Sally meets him with a crowbar.
Sally acknowledging her weaker physical prowess, shows her stronger mental/emotional power and talks him into giving himself up. Now that Gail and Eileen are gone and Rita and Audrey only in a few episodes per month, Sally is now the true matriarch of the street and it can't be long before The Girls #2 are ensconced permanently in the conservatory.
In the meantime, Jess tells Lou that she can't be released on bail because she is a flight risk, due to Mick's escape. I presume Jess is now going to get all the copper scenes that Craig once had (maybe she'll graduate to being a fully formed character a la Swain?)
It was all quite exciting but I do wonder if the Michaelis's needed to be on t'cobbles for at least a year before this denouement. Mick was shaping up to be a Phelan-style baddie but everything has played out very quickly. I wonder if Joe Layton, who has an impressive resume, was required on set somewhere else and so the storyline had to run over 5 months only. Also, given Corrie's recent flop at the Soap Awards, I wonder if these EastEnders style storylines are even worth it. Corrie's competition is not Emmerdale or 'Enders but reality shows like Love Island or true crime. Young people don't watch soaps and I wonder whether TPTB should stop trying to appeal to them and just produce continuing drama for their core audience of middle aged and old people, who still watch regularly scheduled terrestrial TV. Corrie is based on humour, pathos,and bathos, not gangsters, issues and voiceovers. Characters should drive the drama and the drama should draw out and enrich the characters - it shouldn't be social issues steering the drama. I mean, if I had to guess, I'd say more people enjoyed the Toyah/Leanne/Nick love triangle than, I dunno, Summer having diabetes.
Here's what I think Corris should do to keep viewing figures (none of it will win any gongs at the Inside Soap Awards, but they didn't win any anyway!):
Ramp up the camp. I'm not saying they should abuse Jonathan Harvey's, Damon Alexis Rochefort's or Nessah Muthy's human rights and tie them to a table so they can write every episode, but at the same time I'm not not saying that.
Older characters having a natter.
Fewer gangsters.
Bring back older characters (I loved seeing Julie and Jason again).
More love triangles. Everyone loves a love triangle.
Give Michael a storyline.
Give Glenda a love life.
Don't neglect characters otherwise they will leave (Aadi, Beth, Bobby).
More Brian.
Fewer Very Special episodes. Corrie doesn't need flashbacks or weird camera angles.
More dysfunctional family time. People still remember the Barlows at the AA meeting or The Trifle Incident.
Introduce new characters more slowly. It feels like Kit, the Michaelis clan and Theo (and family) have been in every ep since they were introduced.
More of what creates a consistent world: Zombesi on TV, the ongoing olive situation at the Bistro, remembering Monday is quiz night.
Rachel Stevenson - on bluesky
1 comment:
I don't want to come across all Mary Whitehouse but wasn't the violence a bit OTT for an 8 pm broadcast? But I'm one of the middle aged viewers mentioned in this piece. Maybe that's the level of violence that's the norm these days in a soap. I've said my piece about the new lily on another thread.
Lou and Mick are leaving but will the kids stay? The guy who plays Brody is a good actor. if he does, I expect we'll see a sudden transformation of his character into a good guy.
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