Good vs Bad Exits

[Danifan]

I was just wondering what other people thought about characters exits in Summer Bay. Personally i've found quite a few exits a little underwhelming and in a lot of cases a bit dull. I like a character to have decent storyline to go out on, not just suddenly out of nowhere announce they are leaving and within one day has disappeared. Exits where people 'go travelling' or 'go to uni' for me always seem like waste as i think writers should see characters leaving as an exciting prospect, to be able to give them their own special farewell, not just pack them off to somewhere/anywhere as long as it's not Summer Bay. Sam's exit was great as not only did she go out with a bang it had a snowball effect on the storylines and made a real impact, which as a viewer i like to see. When you invest say 4 years in a character you really want an exit that satisfies and entertains you. For me the 'boring exits' have been happening for quite a few years now (Lucas, Kim, Josie, Dani, Jade, Seb, Max, Henry) and although not everyone can go out with a bang it's always a shame when good and in some cases brilliant characters who've really stood out go out with a whimper.

The other types of exits for me that are unsatisfying are the ones that are just implyed (a la Brodie, Robbie and Tasha, although their's was quite nice). It's sad when a favourite leaves but when you don't actually see them leave it's a bit disappointing. Beth and Dan's exits, althoiugh the aftermaths were brilliantly acted, especially by Ada Nicodemou and Indiana Evans, their actual exits didn't sit right with me. Beth just suddenly took off travelling, a quick goodbye and vanish. Dan's last scene was him leaving his house. I like a big emotional goodbye at an airport/farewell party is always much better IMO.

Great departures haven't really happened for a while. Sam's was probably the only really recent one that springs to mind, the last ones included Jesse, Noah, Kirsty and Kane (that'll probably be the only time i ever say anything nice about them ) and they left a good few years ago. Exits that are dramatic and entertaining with a unique ending. Sally's final scene with Alf was great but for me her explanation for going was very weak, although saying that, even though she had a quiet exit i thought Cassie driving (all be it illegally) off into the sunset an independent woman with her baby was extemely well done. I think there should be more balance. Maybe it's just me as a lot of the characters that have left recently either annoyed me or i had little interest in them so it didn't really affect me. Alot of the other soaps too i've noticed seem to be losing some well established characters that are given a very nsatisfying ending.

Do you like dramatic or quiet exits? Does it depend on the character? What makes a good soap exit? What makes a bad soap exit?

Sorry about the rant!

[emmasi]

There are a lot I could say that were bad or good for different reasons, but I'll stick to the ones I was personally affected by.

Josie: Okay. I didn't like the way she was pretty much run out of town, but she maintained a quiet dignity through it all which was nice.

Corey: Good. His scenes with Jack and Martha in the bush are amongst my favourite ever, and I loved that in his final scene, he was still trying to get Martha to go on a romantic killing spree with him, even though he was in prison. So wonderfully deluded

Charlie: Not Great. Could have been worse for a guestie, but I disliked the way he was literally wheeled off screen, never to be heard of again. It didn't have the same class as Corey's exit, and he was sick, not evil. I feel like Rachel and/or Kim could have made the effort to make sure he was actually okay. He only wanted to be their friend, after all...

Robbie and Tash: Excellent. Apart from the suspicious circumstances of Robbie being able to travel with a murder conviction, and the way their decision to leave was rushed, their final scenes were gorgeous. Robbie totally hugged Kim . They got a happy ending, which is exactly what they deserved, and their last kiss on the beach holding Ella was beautiful.

Dean and Gareth: Okay. Not happy about them being shuffled off as soon as they got back together, but Mattie and Luc were being nice to them and Gareth had his hand on Dean's leg - can't complain with hot action like that!

Rocco: Devastating, but brilliant. I don't think I really need to explain why.

Kim: Undecided. I really really hate that he was run out of town for having the audacity to want to raise his only son with the woman who gave birth to it, and who he had unrequited feelings for long before his so-called wife ever came onto the scene. It was disgusting that he didn't rate so much as a goodbye from anyone - because clearly he is the devil and everyone must hate him for what he's done. However, him leaving the bay was not his final scene. At least I don't think it was. The final scene in my memory was him and Kit in that horrible little apartment in the city, and they were kissing in front of a window... I suppose I would call his exit horrid overall, but I so liked that image that I'm almost willing to forget about the rest of the atrocities. Plus I saw Kim takin' a whiz. That was an experience...

Dan: Pathetic. His exit was what? Picking up a couple of suitcases on his own? Wow. Spectacular. And then he gets killed off however many months later but that's okay because as long as Sally's alive, we should all be ecstatic. Well, no. Biggest load of BS ever. Let me keep the karmic books in balance - Sally can take the knife like she wanted to and let Dan live on happily thank you very much.

Lucas: Bad. I got the very distinct feeling that Rhys Wakefield was being punished for pursuing his film career. Kind of like "Oh, you're too good to be on TV now? Well screw you then. Let your character rot at university and never come home to visit, even when your sister in law dies and your brother almost goes to jail for it. Forever be one of those characters who's reputation is continually damaged by appearing not to care about those you've left behind!!!" Bah.

Drew: Good. I only decided that I liked Drew just before it was announced that he was leaving, so I was disappointed, but I liked the way it was done. His fight with Belle proved what he was capable of, and I was glad that he returned to make up with her as well as Jazz. Sending him off to Peter and Amanda meant that there were no questions left open about his character, but that you still felt he had a legitimate future beyond Summer Bay. I think that's probably the best way to end a character's run without making it dramatic.

[JoJo85]

Best exit was Dodge falling off the side of the boat or whatever it was all those years ago!!

Seriously tho for me in recent times I would have to say that Sam took the best exit as it was very, very well thought out and drawn out but in an interesting way with lots of different twists and turns and implications from her actions.

Worst in recent times would be Dan as it was no exit at all! and the whole thing has been handled really poorly IMO.

[Red Ranger 1]

Although her last two episodes were very good, I did find Sally's exit a bit of a non-event.The really odd thing about it was that just about a few weeks later we learned she was teaching in an orphanage. If we'd actually seen her decide to do that, it would have been much better, rather than her effectively going "I'm leaving because I can."Cassie was probably even worse served, coming across as little more than Sal's sidekick and having no more say in what they were doing than Pippa.

The exit that really annoyed me at the time and still does all these years on is Shelley.Up to that point, she'd always been a kind and caring mother.Then in the space of one episode she suddenly decided she hadn't forgiven Rhys for cheating on her after all(more evidence of last minute script changes?)and packed her bags and left.Immediately.Without even stopping to say goodbye to her children.The only reason she saw Dani before she left was because she happened to come home when she was halfway out the door and I don't think Kirsty and Jade were even in the episode.

[claire_louise]

Bad: Jade, Kit and Kim, Dan, Beth, Drew, Henry, Sally and Cassie, Dani, Shelley, Hayley.

Good: KK, Barry, Robbie and Tasha, Angie, Will and Gypsy, Noah, Flynn, Peter and Amanda.

[Claire]

Anyone remember Charlotte's exit back in 2002/3(?).

"I'm going to work in an orphanage in <insert place name here>"

"I'm going to go for a swim before I go"

"Oops, I drowned, silly me"

(Script above may differ slightly from the on-screen version, but this was the original, I promise... ;) )

Possibly the most pointless killing ever.

[DinerLandlord]

I loved Dani's exit, I thought it was very understated and sad. I think they tried to do the same thing with Drew, but it didn't work. Jade's exit was stupid and rushed, and then she randomly comes back for five minutes because Kirsty was in hospital. Kit and Kim's was great, as well as Robbie and Tasha's, and Peter and Amanda's - three lovely couples who got happy endings. Oh Will and Gypsy as well, that makes four. Hayley and Scott didn't seem to leave at all, they were just at a party in one episode and gone the next. Seb and Max had rubbish exits, but who cares I hated them anyway. Lucas and Dan's exits were really poor, shame on the writers for those two. Rocco's death was the most heartbreaking exit in a long time, even sadder than Flynn's in my opinion.

[MasterHolden]

I loved Dani's exit, I thought it was very understated and sad. I think they tried to do the same thing with Drew, but it didn't work. Jade's exit was stupid and rushed, and then she randomly comes back for five minutes because Kirsty was in hospital. Kit and Kim's was great, as well as Robbie and Tasha's, and Peter and Amanda's - three lovely couples who got happy endings. Oh Will and Gypsy as well, that makes four. Hayley and Scott didn't seem to leave at all, they were just at a party in one episode and gone the next. Seb and Max had rubbish exits, but who cares I hated them anyway. Lucas and Dan's exits were really poor, shame on the writers for those two. Rocco's death was the most heartbreaking exit in a long time, even sadder than Flynn's in my opinion.

I agree with you for the majority of the characters, but for me, Flynn was the best exit, whilst Beth's exit was pretty pointless. I was DELIGHTED when Max left, I didn't care how he left, I couldn't stand him! I also think the KK exit was a little erratic too. I liked Kirsty and Kane, although I wasn't fond of Kane at first.

[jasonandrobin1996]

Tasha and Robbie's exit was handled really after a distastrous "Believers" storyline.

Kim's was decent.

The one I was disappointed in was Lucas's, he should've received better.

[emmasi]

I've been watching 2006 eps today, and I'm halfway through Barry's exit storyline. Considering "Who Shot Josh West?" is one of my favourite storylines, and Barry is one of my favourite characters, and he did it all for one of my VERY favourite characters... I thought I'd just mention that I also loved his exit too