2026 Season - UK Episode Discussion

[H&Alover]

it would cost a lot for Justin to set up a new garage even though he does have his own equipment and it can't be too far rom the bay, not that we ever see anyone in  it, but that's an aside.  Now he hasn't got Theo it's a one man band.  

We saw yesterday, well some of us did, he has found a sort of solution, he just has to run it by Leah.  Not giving too much away, but is Lyric's van still in his name?

Where has Harper been btw, was it ever said?   I thought it was funny Dana ushering her out so she could get up close and personal with Sonny again, now he's found he can perform in the bedroom, they do have some time to catch upon. 

 Not such good news for her regards visiting Tane with Archie. I'm guessing he was gong by personal experience when Mikaere was inside when he was young which was why he's banned her taking Archie to see him.    Jo's visit  to him was not a happy one. 

Oh it's still paperwork, files and coffee making for Cash. But as said John was pecking his head a lot though of course we and he knows who the  strangers are so Brax would answer the door to to him and get him to come to the station without any fuss though he was going to hand himself in anyway.   Did smile at David's comment about  a lot of fugitives are handing themselves all of a sudden.

I get Brax and Ricky wanted to 'protect' Casey but he's a smart kid and he's 10 now not  a little 'un, they didn't have to go into details, but could have told him dad was blamed for something he didn't do and had to hide.  Not that he has to now.

I heard the cogs  whirring in David's head when Brax revealed where  he lived. 

We did see Casey find something very relevant to Tane's case.  Not even going to ask how it was missed before, that's been done. 

Edited May 13 by H&Alover

[Medea Fleecestealer]

Gee, what an anti-climax.  All the Brax conviction buildup and we didn't even see him facing the magistrate.  

[Red Ranger 1]

I really don't know what the point was in acknowledging Brax got let of the hook way too easily without any real explanation just so he could be let of the hook way too easily without any real explanation. I guess we're meant to overlook the fact that he didn't kill the guy but did assault and rob him, and that a prison guard died in the process of him escaping from custody (which wasn't directly his fault but still adds to the bad taste the whole thing leaves). Ten years on and the show still refuses to let him face any real consequences, especially legal ones. I guess David has forgotten that big speech he made about tracking down anyone who helped Tane as well, given he had one of them right in front of him, and at least suspected it, and couldn't be bothered to do anything about it. He didn't even give him the "No, we don't let wanted fugitives just walk out again, they stay in custody" treatment that he gave Tane.

Talking of, reality seems to be hitting home big time for Tane and his harem. That's two episodes this week where Archie's been credited despite being just out of shot at all times: Did they really hire a baby for those scenes just to not show him? Was it Mackenzie that Tane told the story to about Nikau seeing his dad in jail? Or possibly Jo? Neither of them though to mention it anyway. I really wish people wouldn't back down when Mackenzie insists rules don't apply to her, as the guard did here.

When did Remi have time to visit his parents? We only saw him two episodes ago and it seemed to still be the next day! Well, Justin has come up with a business plan but whether it's one Leah will approve of...

[H&Alover]

it seemed it was the local magistrate who decided it wasn't worth the expense of taking Brax to court to face any charges that may be still  hanging over him for something that happened 10 years before. Guess they have a  budget too which limits what they think is worth following up. 

David may have had his suspicions  about Brax when he let slip he lived in WA, but that's all he's got, and we know David he wants facts.   WA is a very large state. Tane is a very recent fugitive whereas Brax is an old one and wasn't under David's charge, if that's the right word, like Tane was. 

I thought Jo was made of stronger stuff but apparently not.  Mac did play the pregnancy card very well there, but couldn't she have stood back while Tane and Jo had their private talk?   Talking  of Mac being pregnant shouldn't she have mentioned that when she was being scanned when she and Jo were being signed in? 

 I think sometimes TPTB use shots of Archie when he's not being held by anyone  and just in his buggy.  Same rules, I guess, that they use over here, babies are only allowed on screen for a short time. 

Harper is going to find it hard looking after Archie on her own now Tane is  inside, they took it turns to take care of him.  Plus now there is going to be a another problem for him as in what is going to happen to the gym.  

That was a quick visit Remi made and now Eden has disappeared.  Justin being Justin again, making decisions without consulting Leah first.  After she had a strop she forgave him.   

Leah and Roo reunited with Brax and Ricky then Marilyn.

Naturally Casey wouldn't have  a clue what he was looking at but Brax will. 

 

[Red Ranger 1]

The whole "it's too expensive after a decade" excuse adds to the feeling that Brax got away with it by evading responsibility for long enough that all the people who'd have been keen to finally pin something on him have moved away. Or, in David's case, have suddenly decided not to bother: He might need facts but he actively avoided trying to get any, rather than questioning Brax. (The briefest of questioning would have led to the discovery that he's living in Tane's house and there's your link right there.) Leah and Roo's "I thought it was impolite to ask" sums up the Bay's attitude towards Brax: He's part of the in-crowd, so everyone ignores the fact he's a criminal and doesn't ask questions that they don't want to know the answer to. Except for Casey and so much for the "Don't ask questions" rule being over, since Brax and Ricky are still blatantly lying or just not answering whenever he does. It really does sum up how much of a mistake Ricky made abandoning her attempt to build a good life for her and Casey to go back to him: She can't pull the "You're just a kid" card for too many more years, and then she'll have to admit who his father really is.

In related news, she can't even be honest with Jo, just giving a vague "Things fell apart" rather than saying "He bust out of jail and let me think he was dead." When Jo said their only hope is for the person that framed Tane to come forward, I was half-expecting Ricky to say "It's more common than you'd think." And as for the baby monitor "turning up" (ie having been right there in the house all along), it's the ultimate headbanger. All these weeks of doing a runner or tracking down drug dealers and hoping they'll tell the truth, and neither Tane nor Harper nor anyone else that knows about it thought to go "Hey, did the baby monitor catch anything?" I'm reminded of the Doctor Who story Warriors of the Deep, where they basically tell you about fifteen minutes into Part One how the villains will be defeated, but at least that was only three episodes later, not thirty.

Meanwhile...Mali finally gets let in on the loop about Mackenzie's pregnancy, after being so out of it that Jo knew before him! Leah finds out about Justin's new plan and veers back and forth a bit between being understanding and throwing a wobbler but gets on board eventually. I wonder if Justin threw out a deliberately daft idea so Leah would feel useful!

[c120701]

On 07/05/2026 at 14:36, H&Alover said:

David does know Tane  was married to Cash' sister  because when Tane rescued Jo he did say to Cash  thank your bother-in-law for me.   Oops I keep spelling Mangrove  wrong. 

He was referring to Levi.

[H&Alover]

The fact the local magistrate decided it would be too expensive to try Brax wouldn't be down to David, Brax was innocent of the crime he was in for, even if he did go on the run so it would, probably in their eyes, be a waste of time and money. It was 10 years ago and anyone involved in it would have moved on. Mac made a boob by mistaking Brax as the contact for finding 'Uncle' Fred.

I know you don't like Brax but as I said before when he was the head of the RB's they did have their own code of how to treat people who weren't in the RB's, unlike this new chap Srerlo.  Eden filled Brax in of what the RB's are like now. But yes Brax and Ricky  should be more honest with Casey, he's 10 and a bright kid, they just need to tell him things in an age appropriate way. Ricky made her own choice to get back with Brax.

It was said at the time why the cops didn't look at the baby monitor or why Tane/Harper didn't suggest they look at at. But hey ho it would have finished the story a lot sooner so we wouldn't have had all that drama of Tane going on the run, and meeting up with Btax and him coming back to the bay to clear his name. 

it was a fluke that Jo knew before Mali about Mac's  pregnancy as Tane brought it up when she and Jo visited him.  

Justin got away with it pretty easily really when he  told Leah of his new business venture idea.  I'm supposing it's only going to be local  so he won't be schlepping all over the  state.  

[Medea Fleecestealer]

2 hours ago, H&Alover said:

It was said at the time why the cops didn't look at the baby monitor or why Tane/Harper didn't suggest they look at at. But hey ho it would have finished the story a lot sooner so we wouldn't have had all that drama of Tane going on the run, and meeting up with Btax and him coming back to the bay to clear his name. 

I don't remember that being mentioned.  Still doesn't explain why they didn't find Kerrie's fingerprints all over the drug bag.   Honestly they've been so inept during this investigation the whole lot of them should be fired when the truth comes out.  

Good to see Lacey and Abbey still being friends after Lacey's decision not to do another intereview with the Coastal News.  

Srelo thing was a bit weird.  If he didn't know Mac was "hot" what else was he expecting to get out of her as he only had a blank piece of paper on him.  Money maybe?  Is Dean still in charge of the Boys?  If so, I doubt he'd be pleased with his behaviour either.  

[Red Ranger 1]

Episode count this week:Another four episodes for Brax, Ricky and Casey, who continue to appear more than the regulars.

It's up to David whether he investigates Brax's most recent crimes (as he dramatically insisted he would) or decides, like many a local copper before him, that since it's Brax he won't bother.Brax is kidding himself if he thinks these River Boys are any worse than the ones he hung out with, or indeed like him half the time. He may not have asked for payment in kind but he was neither a monk nor a gentleman and was perfectly happy to use women and treat them badly. If the River Boys had a "code", it was only because Brax beat them up and gave them hypocritical lectures when they broke it. It's a laugh to hear him still insisting the River Boys were a family when he broke that as much as anyone: To him, they were a family when it suited him, and mostly they were disposable minions. But no, let's pretend Brax is a good guy. The scene of Mali watching him beat up a guy and automatically assuming Brax was somehow in the right sums up everything that's wrong about the character. (And does Eden know Dean well enough to describe him as a "good guy"? Their main interaction involved Dean coward punching Remi!)

Not that I've got any sympathy for Mackenzie, who has made things worse at every time. I was disappointed Levi forgave her as quickly as he did, but I guess he just wants to put it behind them and have a quiet life. But seriously, by now everyone should know that "ask the River Boys for help" is an absolutely terrible idea.

I did like the scene between Lacey and Abigail, they've got a good friendship.Leah, Roo and Marilyn sitting around chatting about everything and nothing to make up their episodes really does sum up the characters.

So that's two characters who've seen the magic video. What will Brax do in between picking fights?

Edited May 15 by Red Ranger 1

[H&Alover]

The 'new' RB's DON'T have any sort of code, we saw that when Sterlo propositioned Mac.  Eden had earlier informed Brax why she wasn't keen on the RB's and that he should ask Leah about what they and no names mentioned but we know she meant Gage did to Theo, but Leah didn't have any problem with Brax  when she met up with him again, so she obviously didn't hold him responsible. 

Did Mali know Brax was a RB, he had his tatts covered and let's not forget Mali had dealings with the RB's himself when  Rory was in control.  The one Felicity got involved with.

The 'missing' fingerprints have been forgotten but at least now the vid on the baby monitor has been found and against  RB nature Brax handed it to a cop, partly though I think to help an innocent guy.   I had the feeling I was right that Brax did live at Cash and Eden's place back in the day as he said when he walked in that he liked what they had done with  the place.   As an aside there was Br and Casey thinking it was a big issue and all that had happened was the batteries got knocked out of their slot.   Suppose he couldn't resist seeing what was on it and it was a good job he did. 

Brax deciding to show Casey where  he and Ricky were brought up didn't go down as well as he thought it would.  Who thought though they did the best fish and chips in the area?   I don't think the sign 'inviting' people to Mangrove River has any - citizens  than when we last saw it. 

Not looking good for Tane in prison with this  guy Knox, he seems he's the  top dog who was testing Tane out.