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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Spells &amp; Karma" data-source="post: 192552" data-attributes="member: 23">Episodes 72-83  ...continuedWhile Danny’s hospitalisation introduced us to Pippa’s parents, Coral and Bert, Alf’s nameless parents are keeping a low profile. But we do get what I think is the first clue that they’re still around:I must admit I was surprised. This passed me by before and I’ve always assumed the elder Stewarts were dead.In a roundabout way, the innocuous engagement present is our entree to some serious scheming from Roo. When Alf leaves to open the present with Ailsa (two of the world’s loudest Bermuda shirts, in case you’re wondering), Roo offers to cook dinner:Cue some deliberately crossed wires, courtesy of Roo:Naturally, Alf discovers Roo cooking up a storm with Frank in the bedroom, with Roo doing all she can to make sure Frank can’t cover up. And it’s Frank that cops it:Alf and Ailsa become the second solid couple to hit problems when Ailsa disagrees with Alf’s decision and hires Frank to work in the shop. Suffice to say, the engagement’s off.There's more trouble for Roo during one of her regular altercations with Bobby:Having a pregnant young woman punched in the stomach still seems slightly horrific - I couldn’t imagine this scenario in an American soap. It’s bad taste, but plays out in such a matter of fact way that it softens the blow, so to speak. Key to pulling off this scene is that only Roo and the audience knows that she’s carrying a baby. It’s not the first time Bobby and Roo have come to blows. They’re still fighting like they probably did in primary school.The lack of knowledge of other characters further isolates Roo. We’ve already seen her deal with the news of her pregnancy alone, making decisions that very few people do without support. She’s heard the way her classmates have gossiped, laughed and judged when a peer became pregnant. She’s managed a situation where she had to find a father for her baby with time of the essence. And now she’s faced with the prospect of losing her baby. It’s a solitary journey.Alf gave Roo a reminder of the problems she faces after catching her with Frank:But now Roo’s decided it’s time to ensure people find out about her pregnancy. In a twist I’d forgotten, the first person she “accidentally” lets know is Celia by putting Celia’s feather duster under her bed… with a home pregnancy kit.This shows why Roo is probably better at this kind of deception than I would be. Whereas Alf would have hit the roof, conservative Celia is concerned with appearances and insists upon confronting Frank and demanding that he do the very thing Roo wants while at the same time joining in the conspiracy to hide the pregnancy from even Alf:And just like that, Roo’s got her husband.He has to deal with a prospective father-in-law, of course, and gets launched from Alf’s house for even mentioning marriage. But that’s when having Celia on side pays off, because Roo knows her dogged Aunt would succeed where Frank failed, and Alf agrees to discuss Roo and Frank becoming more serious.Then Tom and Pippa’s parental intuition kicks in and the pregnancy is out in the open anyway. It’s slightly mind-boggling how quickly this has all moved. The scene in which Tom, Pippa, Frank and Roo tell Alf of Roo’s pregnancy is in stark contrast to the one in which he exploded at Frank earlier in the same episode. Ray Meagher goes quiet and it’s more unsettling in its intensity than his previous blow ups. And so feels more gravely important.Previously unnoticed name coincidence: I’d remembered that Roo’s (then) late Mum (and Alf’s wife) was named Martha Stewart(!), but I’d forgotten that Steven’s late Mum was also named Martha. Her name was visible when Steven visited his parents’ grave on Mothers’ Day.Mothers’ Day brought a nice bit of business for Floss and Nev, when the latter went to give his son a piece of his mind for not sending Floss a card, ending up with Scott reluctantly bringing Ben and his wife to see Floss, with the lid being kept on Neville’s role in things. A little secret is always good for adding a dimension to these relationships.And in among all these happenings, there are still some enjoyably silly one-liners:</blockquote>

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