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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Spells &amp; Karma" data-source="post: 416340" data-attributes="member: 23">Episodes 511 - 522 21 September - 27 October 1987 continuedWith Damon’s return to Brookside after working for Debbie’s father, things have sprung into three dimensional life, and he was immediately in conflict with Bobby and Sheila, Mr McGrath and Debbie herself.There’s a winning scene having kept his end of the bargain by proving himself a good worker, he donned a shirt and tie and visited Mr McGrath hoping McGrath would keep his word and permit him to see Debbie. Its combination of optimism turning to shattered dreams is pure Damon, reinforced by the escalation to violence with McGrath attacking Damon and throwing him out of the house, face-planting him on the path outside.But what I particularly love about Damon’s last arc on the series is how volatile it’s been at home. With him only returning for a handful of episodes before heading to York, the predictably soapy thing to do would be leaning into sentiment. Instead, many of the scenes at Number Five have been characterised by anger and disappointment and a lack of support. Bobby’s been in full-on throbbing vein mode, and so vociferous it has felt that he might explode into violence at any point. But it was actually Sheila who struck out at Damon, with a slap to the face.Hindsight makes this all feel particularly heady. When things get this heated with the Grants, there’s a purity that runs back to the beginning of the series. It’s Brookside at its uncompromising best. At this point, this is the only household made up exclusively of original cast members (Claire aside) and it feels their parting gift to Simon O’Brien has been to give him a strong, memorable exit from the main series. It’s a nice touch that Barry returned in Damon’s final episode, the soapy coincidence easily outweighed by the treat of having four of the five original Grants under one roof.Even when things have been difficult, there have been little nuggets of acknowledgement that Bobby and Sheila recognise Damon’s achievements and his hard work. This feels important because there are so many layers and the sense of history always tells.Despite the lack of schmaltz, Damon’s final arc hasn’t been devoid of warmth, reflection and even a little sentiment. It’s been quite touching to watch Damon’s final interactions. Barry supporting Damon’s decision, for instance evolved into a conversation which could just as easily have been Paul Usher speaking to Simon O’Brien: <img src="https://i.vgy.me/sRB0lc.jpg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="width: 588px" /> <img src="https://i.vgy.me/4ULdtp.jpg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="width: 591px" /> Sheila and Damon’s final one-to-one, too, was lovely, with Sheila helping Damon pack his freshly-laundered clothing: <img src="https://i.vgy.me/ry5C6s.jpg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="width: 607px" /> <img src="https://i.vgy.me/iE50Em.jpg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="width: 602px" /> <img src="https://i.vgy.me/LUceH2.jpg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="width: 602px" /> </blockquote>

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