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“Welcome to Summer Bay”: Rewatching the early years.
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<blockquote data-quote="Spells &amp; Karma" data-source="post: 199603" data-attributes="member: 23"><p><u><span style="font-size: 22px">Episodes 216-221</span></u></p><p></p><p></p><p>With the end of Season One just around the corner, there’s an enjoyable mix of the old and the new in the air. Significant changes are happening in characters’ lives that guarantee things will not be quite the same again. While at the same time, characters and events from the series’ history are being referenced in passing or reflected upon to inform decisions about the future made in the present. Established characters are leaving. Others are unsure of their place in the series’ future. New characters are arriving. There’s even been a returnee.</p><p></p><p>One storyline that’s had a definite line drawn under it is the Gary Samuels murder mystery, with Carly flashing back to her conversation with Gary at Stewart’s Point for the benefit of Inspector Truman and the audience:</p><p></p><p><img src="https://i.vgy.me/b5puZU.jpg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" /></p><p>Notably, this flashback was in colour, which I assume is to show that it was fact and not fantasy.</p><p></p><p>The denouement from here was brisk. “T”s were quickly crossed and “I”s quickly dotted. Naturally, Stacey and Philip were able to validate Carly’s story of Gary jumping as he’d tried a similar stunt on them. Thus Poor Gary Jill Bennetted himself several months before Poor Jill Bennett Jill Bennetted herself.</p><p></p><p>On discovering this turn of events, Pippa took a particularly hard line:</p><p></p><p></p><p>I found her lack of empathy or even sympathy a little startling, even considering Gary’s treatment of Carly. It was almost out of character, and yet not. Both Tom and Pippa are far more complex characters than I remember. Both can be opinionated and even, as this comment suggests, a little ugly at times. And this is a good thing.</p><p></p><p>On the subject of ugly characters, the end of Gary’s murder mystery has also seen the departure of Jeff Samuels, whose unapologetically brutal outlook has been a delight through the course of Season One. Pleasingly, he remained almost as standoffish at the end as he was to begin with, with the added layer of him grieving and being somewhat outcast.</p><p></p><p>There were flashes of the old Jeff when initially denying Carly’s claim:</p><p></p><p>And when he could argue no longer, there were scenes of quiet closure. First Steven came to the flat:</p><p></p><p></p><p><img src="https://i.vgy.me/4xLJd0.jpg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" /><img src="https://i.vgy.me/cJUvqH.jpg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" /><img src="https://i.vgy.me/0uCzsI.jpg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" /></p><p>The dynamic with Jeff has seen Steven at his ugliest. And not just when he was training with the Power Pack and taking Jeff’s philosophies on board. One of their last scenes together prior to this took place in the school corridor and saw Steven gloating at Jeff being let go from the school, going as far as to give an evil laugh as he walked off. As with Tom and Pippa, Steven’s behaviour isn’t always endearing, and this adds a richness. It was no surprise that Jeff thought Steven had come to gloat. Perhaps the self-righteous judgement and thinly veiled distaste for him was even worse than out and out gloating. The scene, as with almost all of his post-Gary scenes, showed Jeff to conduct himself with a grace that is both satisfying and unexpected.</p><p></p><p>His final scene with Stacey, Philip and Tom had a great combination of grace and bitterness:</p><p><img src="https://i.vgy.me/aGvDJ2.jpg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" /></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>For a character who has spent a great deal of time bellowing and being the alpha male voice of arrogance almost to the point of one-dimensionality, there’s something unexpectedly Knotsian about Jeff’s latter day episodes. His bitterness towards Summer Bay and his feeling of exclusion from its inhabitants reminded me very much of Richard Avery.</p><p></p><p>With so much going on elsewhere, Jeff’s final scene on the show - in the final act of Episode 218 - could easily be overlooked. It’s simple, but incredibly effective. As in the earlier scene of looking at Gary’s photo and fighting his feelings, he is entirely alone and the scene plays out wordlessly. No flashbacks. No thought bubbles. No soliloquys. Just one man, alone.</p><p></p><p>Jeff walks through a graveyard carrying flowers, he looks at his parents’ grave (Clyde and Rose, died 30th March 1983). Then he moves to the freshly dug grave next to it, covered with floral tributes. He kneels, sifts earth through his fingers and looks deep in thought as we have an extreme close up.</p><p></p><p>Then there’s a wide shot of Jeff. He stands up and walks away, still carrying the flowers. Tossing the flowers onto a random grave, he exits stage left. And that’s it for Jeff Samuels. It’s perfect. Poignant without being schmaltzy. Satisfying while enjoyably unfinished.</p><p><img src="https://i.vgy.me/IltJ1d.jpg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" /><img src="https://i.vgy.me/RjvNsU.jpg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" /><img src="https://i.vgy.me/Rf3JrG.jpg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" /><img src="https://i.vgy.me/OH9rFN.jpg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" /></p><p>I never thought I’d say this, but I’m really going to miss Jeff. He left me wanting more.</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p style="text-align: right"><em>continued...</em></p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Spells & Karma, post: 199603, member: 23"] [U][SIZE=6]Episodes 216-221[/SIZE][/U] With the end of Season One just around the corner, there’s an enjoyable mix of the old and the new in the air. Significant changes are happening in characters’ lives that guarantee things will not be quite the same again. While at the same time, characters and events from the series’ history are being referenced in passing or reflected upon to inform decisions about the future made in the present. Established characters are leaving. Others are unsure of their place in the series’ future. New characters are arriving. There’s even been a returnee. One storyline that’s had a definite line drawn under it is the Gary Samuels murder mystery, with Carly flashing back to her conversation with Gary at Stewart’s Point for the benefit of Inspector Truman and the audience: [IMG]https://i.vgy.me/b5puZU.jpg[/IMG] Notably, this flashback was in colour, which I assume is to show that it was fact and not fantasy. The denouement from here was brisk. “T”s were quickly crossed and “I”s quickly dotted. Naturally, Stacey and Philip were able to validate Carly’s story of Gary jumping as he’d tried a similar stunt on them. Thus Poor Gary Jill Bennetted himself several months before Poor Jill Bennett Jill Bennetted herself. On discovering this turn of events, Pippa took a particularly hard line: I found her lack of empathy or even sympathy a little startling, even considering Gary’s treatment of Carly. It was almost out of character, and yet not. Both Tom and Pippa are far more complex characters than I remember. Both can be opinionated and even, as this comment suggests, a little ugly at times. And this is a good thing. On the subject of ugly characters, the end of Gary’s murder mystery has also seen the departure of Jeff Samuels, whose unapologetically brutal outlook has been a delight through the course of Season One. Pleasingly, he remained almost as standoffish at the end as he was to begin with, with the added layer of him grieving and being somewhat outcast. There were flashes of the old Jeff when initially denying Carly’s claim: And when he could argue no longer, there were scenes of quiet closure. First Steven came to the flat: [IMG]https://i.vgy.me/4xLJd0.jpg[/IMG][IMG]https://i.vgy.me/cJUvqH.jpg[/IMG][IMG]https://i.vgy.me/0uCzsI.jpg[/IMG] The dynamic with Jeff has seen Steven at his ugliest. And not just when he was training with the Power Pack and taking Jeff’s philosophies on board. One of their last scenes together prior to this took place in the school corridor and saw Steven gloating at Jeff being let go from the school, going as far as to give an evil laugh as he walked off. As with Tom and Pippa, Steven’s behaviour isn’t always endearing, and this adds a richness. It was no surprise that Jeff thought Steven had come to gloat. Perhaps the self-righteous judgement and thinly veiled distaste for him was even worse than out and out gloating. The scene, as with almost all of his post-Gary scenes, showed Jeff to conduct himself with a grace that is both satisfying and unexpected. His final scene with Stacey, Philip and Tom had a great combination of grace and bitterness: [IMG]https://i.vgy.me/aGvDJ2.jpg[/IMG] For a character who has spent a great deal of time bellowing and being the alpha male voice of arrogance almost to the point of one-dimensionality, there’s something unexpectedly Knotsian about Jeff’s latter day episodes. His bitterness towards Summer Bay and his feeling of exclusion from its inhabitants reminded me very much of Richard Avery. With so much going on elsewhere, Jeff’s final scene on the show - in the final act of Episode 218 - could easily be overlooked. It’s simple, but incredibly effective. As in the earlier scene of looking at Gary’s photo and fighting his feelings, he is entirely alone and the scene plays out wordlessly. No flashbacks. No thought bubbles. No soliloquys. Just one man, alone. Jeff walks through a graveyard carrying flowers, he looks at his parents’ grave (Clyde and Rose, died 30th March 1983). Then he moves to the freshly dug grave next to it, covered with floral tributes. He kneels, sifts earth through his fingers and looks deep in thought as we have an extreme close up. Then there’s a wide shot of Jeff. He stands up and walks away, still carrying the flowers. Tossing the flowers onto a random grave, he exits stage left. And that’s it for Jeff Samuels. It’s perfect. Poignant without being schmaltzy. Satisfying while enjoyably unfinished. [IMG]https://i.vgy.me/IltJ1d.jpg[/IMG][IMG]https://i.vgy.me/RjvNsU.jpg[/IMG][IMG]https://i.vgy.me/Rf3JrG.jpg[/IMG][IMG]https://i.vgy.me/OH9rFN.jpg[/IMG] I never thought I’d say this, but I’m really going to miss Jeff. He left me wanting more. [RIGHT][I]continued...[/I][/RIGHT] [/QUOTE]
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“Welcome to Summer Bay”: Rewatching the early years.
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