Neighbours – Ramsay Street Round-Up (22nd – 25th September)

It was a little bit like Groundhog Day on Ramsay Street this week, as Elle continued to be awful, while Andrew and Holly were still being a pair of absolute trash cans. Let’s round up everything that happened this past week.

Sad Max Breaks Everyone’s Heart

Max continues to be the saddest little puppy in Erinsborough, because he still doesn’t understand why Holly split up with him. Sadie and Taye attempt to cheer him up by covering him in experimental face masks, but seeing them being coupley sends him over the edge.

They try taking him to the beach on what looks like an incredibly cold and cloudy day, and he does get his mojo back a little bit when a girl playing volleyball starts flirting with him. They seem to be hitting it off really well, but when she tries to kiss him, Max backs off and explains that he’s really not ready to move on. The girl says she hates whoever it was who broke his heart, and I have to say I agree with her.

Poor Max. I’d like to say that I hope things improve for him, but he’s going to be devastated whenever it finally all comes out about Holly and Andrew’s affair.

Holly is Unhinged

Holly is forging ahead with her plan to try to preemptively set Wendy up with a rebound love interest before her and Andrew have even split up. She hosts a painting night at the pub and ropes Wendy in as the teacher, trying to set her up with one of the pub’s regulars. They do seem to get on, but because Wendy thinks she’s happily married, she’s obviously not on the lookout for anyone else, unlike her cheating husband.

Holly’s plan to try to set Wendy up with someone is just the most childlike way to try to deal with the fact that she’s sleeping with her neighbour’s husband. There’s absolutely no way that this situation is going to end with Wendy being grateful to Holly for her potential new boyfriend once she finds out Andrew has been boning their daughter’s best friend. Holly is so delusional. As my friend would say, she has crowned herself the Queen of Delulu Island.

Andrew is a Terrible Liar

Andrew’s treatment of Wendy is getting worse and worse – if that’s even possible – because she’s trying really hard to make things OK between them, but he is running off to the seedy motel with Holly at every opportunity he gets. He keeps telling Wendy he’s on surveillance, but he very nearly gets caught out when Wendy pops over to sees Cara, and Cara knows nothing about that night’s operation. You’d think that a police officer would have heard every lie in the book from the people he’s interviewed, but Andrew is absolutely terrible at lying. He’s going to have to come up with some new ones because Wendy is already getting suspicious.

His plan as to how to handle the break-up of his marriage is no better than Holly’s, as he seems to think that as long as he hypes Wendy up enough before he ends their marriage, her boosted self-confidence will somehow negate the betrayal, anger and humiliation she’s going to feel when she finds out Andrew has been sleeping with Holly. I couldn’t be more infuriated with the both of them.

Krista is Ignoring Leo

Krista is fully immersed in Lassiters since she took over from Paul permanently, and now she even has an assistant manager to bond with over Cary Grant movies, and a really ugly bell on a plinth to look at. Poor Leo has been very much left on the sidelines and is feeling rather left out. How is Krista more excited to see the Bronze Bell than she is to see her husband?

I understand how it is when work gets in the way of other things, and sometimes it just cannot be helped, but the way Krista is acting is so oblivious. It’s one thing to not be able to go for lunch during your work day because you’re too busy, but inviting your new assistant manager to share your takeaway when you’re in the middle of a cosy night in with your husband is a whole new level of not being able to read the room. And for the assistant manager to just plonk himself down in the middle of the sofa with a bowl of noodles is diabolical.

Zac Has a Secret

Talking of the assistant manager, it’s Zac – a baby who was born back on the street in the Prehistoric times. This makes me feel incredibly old because I can remember the storyline where Cheryl and Gaby had babies at the same time and both wanted to name them Shannon. Anyway, that almost-Shannon is here as an adult old enough to have boyfriends and an important job, which has caused me to have a minor existential crisis.

Zac definitely has a dark secret, which is so unlike every other new character who has ever rocked up on the street…

He goes on a date with Colton and the two seem to hit it off, but when Zac finds out Colton lives on the same street and knows Terese, he immediately slams the brakes on. He’s also briefly got a secret phone, before he yeets it into the lake, and he’s unhappy about his photo being on the Lassiters website. What’s he up to? He seems like he might be a bit shady, so I’m looking forward to finding out what he’s been up to.

Elle is a Car Crash

Elle is just the worst. After rummaging through a councillor’s car, she thinks she’s uncovered a corruption scandal. Due to some payments on the councillor’s credit card, Elle puts two and two together and comes to a total of about 79, and decides that the councillor must have been bribed to approve the planning permission of the building that is connected to this thing with Cara and the Linwells. I’ll be honest, I’m sketchy on the details because it’s boring.

But Elle’s accusation crumbles under the slightest pressure when the councillor offers an extremely logical explanation for the payments, and tells Elle she needs to issue an apology before she gets sued.

I mentioned last week that I did a journalism degree and, while I never worked as the type of newshound that Elle is, even I know that for Elle to have printed this story without approaching the councillor for the right to reply is not only unethical, it’s downright stupid. You simply can’t publish a story like that without checking that it’s accurate first. My uni lecturers would be horrified.

It seems she’s won over Cara’s dad though, as he appears to want to work with Elle to try to help her uncover more about the Linwells. That is a very bad decision, Greg, and you may end up with more than a bop on the head next time.

Elle has had the distinct impression she’s being followed, and we’re left with a cliffhanger as it looks like Elle is about to get flattened by a car – it’s not even that long since we had an attempted murder by car on Power Road either. I can’t say I’m particularly distraught about the thought of Elle getting skittled anyway…

A Few Random Notes

As usual, here are a few random notes I took while watching Neighbours this week:

• Does Holly really think that if Wendy takes a few art classes she’s going to fine about Andrew shagging Holly?
• Face mask Max is so funny. He’s like a grumpy old dog. 
• Sadie and Max trying to be the most dejected at the beach. 
• WE GOT A “RACK OFF!” And Cara saying it is so perfectly in character for her. 
• I need people to stop just walking into the penthouse. 
• Sitting watching trash TV in your suit, I between your boss and her husband is ridiculous. 
• Oh good, I hope Elle gets flattened.