#102: Fatted calf is off the menu - will the Easter Bunny save Lower Loxley's bacon, or will there be egg on Russ's face? Will Tom's sausage business get the chop? Join us here to discuss The Archers!

[GabrielleNelson]

Thanks due to @PseudoBadger for kicking off this long, long series of Archers threads and to @DadDadDad for being our resident statistician and keeping the ball rolling when Pseudo stepped back a bit. Thanks also to all those who contributed to the thread title, principally Dumdedumdedum and MikeUniformMike on this occasion.

All views on The Archers welcome here! New blood welcomed. We don't all agree on all points and most of us are posting tongue in cheek a lot of the time, so don't worry about revealing that you'd like to be Susan's best friend or other odd unusual views.

Spoilers: not on this thread, please. We don't wait for the omnibus to discuss the weeknight episodes, but we do try our best to avoid cross-contamination from this thread, where spoilers are positively welcomed!

So, to business: will Helen's new cheese be a success? Will Kate succeed in keeping her visiting Brummies under control? Will Pip, Toby, Tom and Natasha fall into the slurry pit, leaving Rosie to be brought up by Anthony Head Robin Fairbrother? Will we ever hear Lee again, and will he casually drop in a mention of his fine collection of framed Bruce Lee posters?

Will is an awful character. I liked the conversation between Emma and mia but even she spectacularly failed to notice that a grieving 13 year old should not be organising the best hairdresser for her sister.

Does Natasha know that Susan and Emma are mother and daughter? Or will she start the conversation in which Emma is going to give her the low down on the people of Ambridge by saying "I already know to avoid Radio Carter in the shop...."

More flowers for Susan!?

I liked the conversation between Emma and mia

I didn't. I know Emma meant well, as does Will, but what with Mia being like a naive simpleton who can't form her own friendships with boys and Emma telling her she is tough, who is going to let her be the grieving daughter that she is?

Shula's delivery is annoying me a lot too. She sounds so .... unsure of herself ... all the time ... people don't really talk like that IRL.

I didn't either. Telling her (Mia) that she is her mother's daughter only encourages her to continue being the primary care giver for Poppy. Someone should get her out of there and allow her to enjoy her youth.
William needs to parent Poppy, not Mia.

but what with Mia being like a naive simpleton who can't form her own friendships with boys

Aargh - I meant what with WIll treating Mia as a.....

Did anyone else notice Emma saying Ed has some fencing work that was too well paid to turn down? Maybe it is stolen goods he’s moving?

Mustn't ruin those boots. They aren't actually paid for yet, I bet...

boop for the continuity announcer!

Oh yes Well said, Continuity Announcer!

The bunting was the first thing that I thought of too.

Talk about 'pot-kettle-black' when Natrasha (sic) said that about Merryn!

Still, at least she and Tom didn't end up having another spat. But she's definitely changed her tactics from openly confrontational to passive aggressive.

What is she up to?

Was the BOOP for the Natasha character assessment or the bunting reference?

Ed's driving job was definitely dodgy. I thought Emma's going on about her and Ed might be an indication that Ed will be caught out.
I like the Shula character. I don't like it when she's doing things that are out of character. I think she is very well acted.

Anyway, nice contrast between Tom who could barely mask how he resented every minute Natasha spent with Trevor, and Leonard giving Jill all the time she needed to commune with Phil.

Well ...

There is one distinct difference between Trevor and Phil!

Trev's not interested in the feed price?

Shula's delivery is annoying me a lot too.

Oh, me too! She always sounds as if talking is a real strain. It's exhausting listening to her. Why can't she speak normally?

Re Emma and the "fencing" job, she just doesn't want people to know about the driving job, in case people ask what he's couriering. So much for just making Tim think Ed was willing to do it, to get more fencing jobs. That never happened, he's just jumped straight in to doing the driving.

I liked the bit when Emma told Natasha about her and Ed really knowing each other before getting married, so nothing was a surprise!

I missed the beginning of the episode, so will have to catch up with it tomorrow.

Exactly that D3

I’m rather hoping that, in addition to the obvious C&C in the Emma /Natasha conversation, there was a hint that Ed n Emma might soon have a major falling out over the couriering.

Which reminds me. It was Eddie, wasn’t it, who had a vague feeling he’d heard of Tim Oatey - but couldn’t think where or why? Isn’t it about time he remembers, so he can warn Ed?

A bit disappointing. Such clunking C & C. Though the predictability of Tom and Natasha constantly on the brink of a spat was entertaining.

Did anyone think that Emma had the touch of her mother: that slight edge of smugness about the strength of her relationship with Ed and that apparent obliviousness to how she might come across to her listener (extolling the value of knowing your spouse for a long time, in contrast to Natasha and Tom).

That said, whereas Susan can come across as a snob, Emma is more sufferable because clearly she and Ed do have a supportive loving marriage.

(Interesting: "insufferable" is a common word, but I don't think I've used it's antonym like that before)

Sorry, what's C&C?

C&C = Compare and contrast - the SWs' (scriptwriters) regular technique of putting two scenes side by side for us to spot the similarities and differences. Sometimes grates with people here (I suspect it depends on whether it's done well or badly!)

It’s Shula’s pious navel gazing that I can’t stand - the constant questioning of her faith. She just seems so self absorbed - everything is always about her these days. I find her religious crisis so tedious - and she had the cheek to tell Alistair she was leaving him because she was bored. The woman is the very definition of dull - she is not only dull in herself but the cause of dullness in every storyline she comes into contact with. Her only saving grace at the moment is that she has a beautifully distinctive voice without having to resort to a regional accent or comedy rustic twang.

(Interesting: "insufferable" is a common word, but I don't think I've used it's antonym like that before)

It's like inept and ept. I'm sure I've never used "ept" whereas inept and ineptitude....

I thought there was some terrifying foreshadowing with Emma this evening - congratulating herself for saving up for the house, working really hard, knowing her partner so well, wanting the same things, this being what made them such a great team. Food for thought for Gnasher no doubt, but also a reminder to the audience of just how much Ed is risking by taking on the dodgy driving job for Timotei. And in her heart of hearts Emma knows this which is why she said he was fencing. You just know that as many steps as they have taken forward towards their dream with us cheering them on all the way, when it comes down to it they are Grundies and so are destined to mess things up for themselves. Where is Oliver - can anyone remember?