New Characters

[Red Ranger 1]

I think Home and Away's always been afflicted with a high cast turnover.The number of characters who've been there more than two years currently stands at eight and dropping(or maybe not since it seems at least some of the 2007 intake are sticking around).As to whether the current lot are particularly bad well...

I like Hugo.There, I've said it.He struck me as a decent guy when he came in and I've seen nothing to convince me otherwise.I'm ignoring all the "mysterious" moments until they actually go somewhere, since there's a fair chance they'll turn out to be something mundane.Of course, if he does turn out to be a serial killer or hitman, I'll look a bit foolish but I'm just treating the character as he is at the moment.

I like Angelo.Took me a few weeks but I got there in the end.It's a shame the writers seemed to give him all the stuff that was going to make viewers hate him:having the audacity to date Belle when he isn't Aden, being the only person brave enough to say Aden deserved to go to jail for what he did, possibly or possibly not putting a bullet in Jack and now

arresting Irene

.Hopefully now he's sticking around for a bit they might go easy on him.

Charlie hasn't made much of an impact on me.I found her a bit irritating at first, now I like her a bit but wouldn't mind that much if she left.She's rubbish with both men and women and followed the usual Summer Bay cop route of coming in a by-the-book officer then turning a blind eye to everything.But the fact she was the only person to stand by Angelo when the rest of the town joined the Cult of Aden and Belle helped.

As for the youngsters...Don't like Xavier, never have done.He's just wet and annoying.Giving him sexy storylines when he looks about 12 is faintly laughable.If the producers didn't do everything they could to keep Melody on the show, then I'm really worried about whether they know their job.Bad enough they tortured her, wasted her by giving her that stupid teen rebellion storyline(it feels like we hardly ever saw the real Melody)and then lumbered her with the worst departure of recent years.But if they decided to get rid of an interesting, likeable and well-acted character and replace her with one with all the depth of a blancmange just because someone noticed they had three girls and one boy and couldn't pair them up...Doesn't help they had to drain Ruby of everything of interest to make her and Xavier work because the Ruby of last year, the one that was good, would have eaten him alive.Jai and Annie have a lot of potential both as individuals and as a couple but they're hardly ever used as either. Really hope Jai isn't the next to get the axe.Actually, the two that seem the weirdest together are Annie and Xavier.They give them little bits like at Tony and Rachel's wedding where they seem to be friends even though they've hardly spoken.

Nicole I liked from the start.She was good as a bitchy girl with a nice line in one-liners who shook up the occasionally staid town and good when she started to show her more vulnerable and caring side. But if they pair her up with

Trey

, I think that'll kill the character for me, just as they killed Belle for me by pairing her with Aden and killed Ruby by pairing her with Xavier.

As for the sort of regulars, Gina and Brendan seem to be gone and I don't really miss them.Gina was never really there and I wasn't sure if she was meant to be a good mother or not.Brendan was possibly there too much, there was no way to include him in a storyline without him dominating or distracting it but it would be nice to see him visit his brothers occasionally.Joey I thought was rather sweet although she got some terrible storylines(was raped without any apparent effect, declared her love to Charlie when they'd only just met).Hopefully she'll be back rather than joining the long line of characters who turn up, get us to like them or be interested in them and then disappear.Lou didn't make much of an impression but it was nice Irene had someone to talk to for a bit.Trey just comes across as a bully and a coward and making him Aden revisited doesn't inspire much confidence because half the time I'd still cheerily drop Aden down a mineshaft.Claudia...I really like, possibly because everyone seems to be insisting I should hate her in a "She's daring to date one half of my favourite couple" sort of way.Although she may be a candidate for Character They Ruined Fastest:For two episodes she was a sassy, confident and sparky farm girl then she suddenly became all teary and helpless.Still hoping they can rescue her...

[oscartg]

The whole Austin family suck not only as individuals but their effect on making the Buckton sisters less cool. Of course pairing Ruby or Charlie up with any guy is always bad news because they writers love to make both of them annoyingly clingy and whiny towards whatever guy they are involved with. Ruby hasn't been so bad with Xavier recently but that's just because he's getting pushed into the background a bit.

[halcyon06]

I dont think we will ever get as good a cast as 2006.

I like some of the additions since then though- Charlie, Nicole, Aden most notibly.

[Merli]

I dont think we will ever get as good a cast as 2006.

I like some of the additions since then though- Charlie, Nicole, Aden most notibly.

I agree. I loved every character from 2006. They were so great !

Nowadays they're not so good for me. Too new. I don't dislike them, but I don't love them as much as I did they cast from 2006.

I think they don't have a choice- they have to bring new characters, because olds are leaving, it would be weird if they had like 3 characters only.

[Ryan]

I think there's perhaps two issues - whether show introduces characters just for the sake of it leading to too many new characters or in my opinion that the current writers on many occasions seem to have introudced characters that have gained negative reactions. Whilst that's OK if you're introducing a character that is supposed to not be like, characters such as Xavier, Ruby and Claudia are supposed to fit into the teenage group, be liked and then some unfortunate stuff like rape or incest will happen and we'll feel sorry for them.

So, I think that those creating the shows perhaps need to view how these new intakes can be viewed more positively and I believe, in some cases, think more carefully about how they fit into the show before introduction.

[devon]

The more I think about Hugo as character, to try and work him out, the more I get confused. I think he was meant to be the medium term successor to Roman - the 30 something handsome nice guy with a mysterious past that will probably turn out to be dark. All I see is a slimy, selfish, @sshole who is not phased over wrecking other peoples relationships or loading all the responsibility of looking after an autistic sibling onto his younger brother, while he hits on girls at the Surf Club. They really wasted a good actor in Bernard - I think.

I really hate the Austin family now - apart from Brendan. However I would happily see his character put up as a sacrificial lamb, to get rid of such terrible family. I can't really see them giving the actor much screen time to develop his character anyway - if they only give a lesbian character less than 3 months screen time. So far Brendan has mainly been a plot device to Ruby/Xavier getting closer, Roman going blind and Hugo's attraction to Martha. Good an actor Kain O'Keefe is, his character wouldn't be that much of a loss.

[Bellzi]

sure Nicole was a bit bitchy at the start but i love how her character has learned from her expiriences and developed into a more caring character.

Plus i like Trey and think he shud be a main as he has had a storyline and is on his second storyline

(Relationship with Nicole)

.

Gardy i instantly hated because he is a freak with an annoyin laugh. I cant wait till

he exits the show after his huge showdown with Roman