I think Lorraine Newman and her writers need to bring the backstory of the last six and half years to the audience now- maybe they have been planning this all along but its certainly been slow.
The Storm promotion of last August has failed because Sharon's return was massively hyped and many predicted a strong Sharon reclaiming the Vic- instead we have seen a needy, desperate Sharon but if they play out her backstory then we will ultimately realise that she suffered following Dennis' death, a possible fall out with Michelle in America, her relationship with John Hewland etc.;
Sharon was catapulted into a relationship with Jack Branning far too soon and now she is back with Phil- we need to see her alone to see her work through the crap she has been through since early 2006.
I may not like Sharon at the moment but there is a reason for that. I'm glad the writers aren't just sweeping her heartache under the carpet. She maybe desperate, tragic and manipulative but these are realistic qualities of a bereaved woman. As I said, I may not like her but I do find her character engaging.
IMO there is nothing Sharon needs to be saved from. She has never been a saint, often been manipulative and devious and highly dependent on having a bloke in her life. This new stint on the show has confirmed all this plus also revealed her as a crap mum too.
I think Lorraine Newman and her writers need to bring the backstory of the last six and half years to the audience now- maybe they have been planning this all along but its certainly been slow.
The Storm promotion of last August has failed because Sharon's return was massively hyped and many predicted a strong Sharon reclaiming the Vic- instead we have seen a needy, desperate Sharon but if they play out her backstory then we will ultimately realise that she suffered following Dennis' death, a possible fall out with Michelle in America, her relationship with John Hewland etc.; Sharon was catapulted into a relationship with Jack Branning far too soon and now she is back with Phil- we need to see her alone to see her work through the crap she has been through since early 2006.
Don't you understand that this is part of her problem?
She is drifting from one man to the next as a support mechanism. She doesn't love any of them; she's using them as a crutch to distract herself from her addiction. She pretty much admitted as such to Jack when he jilted her - something about not being young any more and needing companionship and security. She also appears to use Dennis as emotional blackmail to keep the men interested.
The characteristic of bed hopping is another classic symptom of depression – seeking solace and comfort, no matter how inappropriate as a form of affection. I’d go as far as saying its genuine affection from the men, but it’s clear the scales are massively unbalanced in relation to reciprocation.
Dennis has mentioned a few times in passing how the men never last and then they have to move on, heavily implying that this has been a regular occurrence over the past 6 years.
There have been a number of Sharon threads since her return to the Square last year...nine months back and the once loved Sharon is no longer loved anymore sadly..
The writers fault or Letitia Dean's herself?
Still Sharon to me can be saved and for that they the TPTB need to go back to basics. There is a whole part of Sharon's life that is still unknown to her and the audience- her Birth Family.
We know that her birth Mum was Carol and that her birth Father was called Gavin but that is all we know, Sharon could have brothers and sisters out there- nephews and nieces even so why has this not be explored? Den and Angie will always be her Mum and Dad but looking at her birth family would add something to her backstory, a chance to create a new Patriarch on the Square should Gavin ever be cast.
Sharon's return has been bogged down with the domination of the Brannings and the Lexi/Lola storyline, Sharon goes from Jack to Phil in an instance without giving Sharon a chance to recover from Jack dumping her.
Where is the strong Independent woman we saw back in 2001, obviously Sharon has been affected by the death of Dennis and the painkiller storyline is playing into that- as an audience we know very little about her backstory over the past seven years- no mention of Michelle, no mention of Vicki, does she know about the paternity of Mark Fowler Jnr? but more importantly Sharon has lost her spark and she needs to recover it but how?
Make her single, get her away from the Brannings and Phil/Lola/Lexi, explore her birth family, bring her friendship with Ian back to the centre of the show. Its sad to see this once iconic character as a victim and Letitia Dean herself deserves better material to work with.
I for one am not giving up on Sharon even if some are and that includes writers who dont seem to care about her anymore...
I agree with most of this, apart from the "birth family" bit, maybe I'm just a traditionalist but to me Sharon will only ever have one Mum and Dad and that was Angie and Den!
I agree that all that has happened since Dennis' death has made her the person she is today and I agree too that there is no quick fix...but out of despair comes strength and further down the line I would like to see her find that...
I personally think Sharon has been vilified on here and its not fair on the character or Leitita Dean.
The problem is we don't KNOW what has happened since Dennis' s death, we know she was depressed, we know she got hooked on painkillers, what we don't know is why, as she would have been given anti-depressants, so did she injure herself? How did she support her habit? How did she lose the big house where Ian went to visit? When did she return as she said she was in the UK for 4 years since 2008 so how did Ian visit her in the US in 2009? How did she meet John Hewland? Why did she ditch him, why did he and his sister kidnap Denny and try to leave the Country, Denny isn't even his child! Why did she forget to collect Denny from the reception when she had burst into Phil's house and disrupted his engagement party to beg him to help her get Denny back? We need to know these things as we can't form a proper judgement about Sharon until we know her entire history, we are owed that much.
I doubt if "Sharon" cares much about being villified by DS as she is a fictional character in a soap
I wonder if Leitita will be going on her break soon...it seems logical that she will be and I hope Sharon comes back stronger. I do think however that Newman has to go as Sharon under her leadership is stuck...
I wonder if Leitita will be going on her break soon...it seems logical that she will be and I hope Sharon comes back stronger. I do think however that Newman has to go as Sharon under her leadership is stuck...
I agree that Sharon is stuck under Newman . I also think we are stuck with this lame duck EP until at least the end of the year . The daft Beeb never do anything too drastic without allowing a large amount of time to elapse .
I think the writers so far personally. The Jack-Phil love triangle was pathetic and the painkiller addiction just isn't very gripping. But she is improving slightly and I would like to see where the painkiller addiction goes.
Seriously? She loses him every week. Doesn't let him see Jack even though he was more of a parent to Denny than she was for six months. She's a dreadful mother!
I'm gonna cut and paste what I wrote in another thread on this subject:
The Sharon thing really annoys me. What do people really expect from her? It’s clear the Dennis’ death has affected her long term and we are now seeing a woman with severe problems. Yes they could’ve written it along the lines of ‘what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger’ but I’m not sure how realistic that would’ve been.
This is a woman who cradled her dying husband in her arms days after discovering she was pregnant and less than a year after discovering her father had been murdered by her step mum. Factor into that abuse from Grant, her previous fiancé dying in a fire and an alcoholic mother (who subsequently died of the disease) and I think it’s fair to say she might not be coping.
We know at some point she turned to pills to cope – not too unrealistic. We also know she’s moved on from man to man to try and find security – I’m guessing not really loving any of them. Personally I’m liking the fact that they’ve given this some thought – her current personality is no coincidence – it’s a well thought out development based on what she’s been through. I don’t think the forum members are really getting it.
Agree 110%! That much hardship and all in just a few years really would probably take its toll on even the toughest person!
I would however like to see Sharon return as near to her former self as possible as time goes on, which I think they are doing with her having given up the pills.
Sharon needs to become a central character again and a move back to the Vic is the answer..
But what would you do with her once she got there, that's the rub, she would be reduced to standing behind the bar every episode a la Alfie, she would have to have interaction outside the pub and unfortunately that would probably involve a man :rolleyes: Peggy had faaaamily, Kat and Alfie had their gone to shit relationship, Alfie and roxy have their Kat issues, Sharon would have Denny...
Sharon's a lost soul since Dennis died, it's why she can't get her life into gear. She's obviously depressed but is good at hiding it. Something drastic, some sort of catharsis, needs to happen to bring her back to who she really is.
As for the actress, I'm not sure, sometimes she's spot-on and other times she seems limited.
I wish they had never brought her back, it was just for ratings which failed and continue to fall so it was a pointless exercise. As much as I loved the halcyon days of Sharon the legend, frankly she is no longer, the writing is dire for the whole show and I get tired of the bobbing up n down and breathless pouting & flouncing when ever they heave her on screen.
Denny the whingy floppy haired runt needs to go as well. And if Ange was still about sharon would have felt a slap round the chops that would have rattled her teeth.
Im really past caring if she can be saved or not, (she's a pain in the arse when she is there and I don't really miss her when she's not there), until there is a change in management it wont happen and EE will continue to go to hell in a handcart.
I'm gonna cut and paste what I wrote in another thread on this subject:
The Sharon thing really annoys me. What do people really expect from her? It’s clear the Dennis’ death has affected her long term and we are now seeing a woman with severe problems. Yes they could’ve written it along the lines of ‘what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger’ but I’m not sure how realistic that would’ve been.
This is a woman who cradled her dying husband in her arms days after discovering she was pregnant and less than a year after discovering her father had been murdered by her step mum. Factor into that abuse from Grant, her previous fiancé dying in a fire and an alcoholic mother (who subsequently died of the disease) and I think it’s fair to say she might not be coping.
We know at some point she turned to pills to cope – not too unrealistic. We also know she’s moved on from man to man to try and find security – I’m guessing not really loving any of them. Personally I’m liking the fact that they’ve given this some thought – her current personality is no coincidence – it’s a well thought out development based on what she’s been through. I don’t think the forum members are really getting it.
Yes I completely agree Sharon has been through so much and its obvious she is weak and not the strong willed Sharon we have seen before, but I do feel that Sharon's pill addiction hasnt been done very we;l it was a good storyline for Sharon but I dont think the show has done a great job of potraying it especially if you compare it to Hollyoaks and Emmerdale's pill addiction storys, I admit i dont watch Emmerdale but from what ive heard on here its very good, and we all know how hard it is for people to praise anything on here so it must be at least ok.
Comments
The Storm promotion of last August has failed because Sharon's return was massively hyped and many predicted a strong Sharon reclaiming the Vic- instead we have seen a needy, desperate Sharon but if they play out her backstory then we will ultimately realise that she suffered following Dennis' death, a possible fall out with Michelle in America, her relationship with John Hewland etc.;
Sharon was catapulted into a relationship with Jack Branning far too soon and now she is back with Phil- we need to see her alone to see her work through the crap she has been through since early 2006.
Don't you understand that this is part of her problem?
She is drifting from one man to the next as a support mechanism. She doesn't love any of them; she's using them as a crutch to distract herself from her addiction. She pretty much admitted as such to Jack when he jilted her - something about not being young any more and needing companionship and security. She also appears to use Dennis as emotional blackmail to keep the men interested.
The characteristic of bed hopping is another classic symptom of depression – seeking solace and comfort, no matter how inappropriate as a form of affection. I’d go as far as saying its genuine affection from the men, but it’s clear the scales are massively unbalanced in relation to reciprocation.
Dennis has mentioned a few times in passing how the men never last and then they have to move on, heavily implying that this has been a regular occurrence over the past 6 years.
I agree with most of this, apart from the "birth family" bit, maybe I'm just a traditionalist but to me Sharon will only ever have one Mum and Dad and that was Angie and Den!
The problem is we don't KNOW what has happened since Dennis' s death, we know she was depressed, we know she got hooked on painkillers, what we don't know is why, as she would have been given anti-depressants, so did she injure herself? How did she support her habit? How did she lose the big house where Ian went to visit? When did she return as she said she was in the UK for 4 years since 2008 so how did Ian visit her in the US in 2009? How did she meet John Hewland? Why did she ditch him, why did he and his sister kidnap Denny and try to leave the Country, Denny isn't even his child! Why did she forget to collect Denny from the reception when she had burst into Phil's house and disrupted his engagement party to beg him to help her get Denny back? We need to know these things as we can't form a proper judgement about Sharon until we know her entire history, we are owed that much.
I doubt if "Sharon" cares much about being villified by DS as she is a fictional character in a soap
Still not a fan of her return or storylines since she's returned. They had potential on paper, but they have not shown potential on screen imo.
I agree that Sharon is stuck under Newman . I also think we are stuck with this lame duck EP until at least the end of the year . The daft Beeb never do anything too drastic without allowing a large amount of time to elapse .
However if it came down to choosing between Letitia or Lorraine it would be Lorraine who would get the boot in my view...
Her and Phils baby, Angela Mitchell.
She can't look after the one she's got....poor kid.:(
Seriously, she's just not mother material.
Shes not doing that badly at raising dennis
We'll have to see. Jack and Phil have been doing most of the parenting since her return.
Seriously? She loses him every week. Doesn't let him see Jack even though he was more of a parent to Denny than she was for six months. She's a dreadful mother!
Get Sharon out if that B & B
Agree 110%! That much hardship and all in just a few years really would probably take its toll on even the toughest person!
I would however like to see Sharon return as near to her former self as possible as time goes on, which I think they are doing with her having given up the pills.
But what would you do with her once she got there, that's the rub, she would be reduced to standing behind the bar every episode a la Alfie, she would have to have interaction outside the pub and unfortunately that would probably involve a man :rolleyes: Peggy had faaaamily, Kat and Alfie had their gone to shit relationship, Alfie and roxy have their Kat issues, Sharon would have Denny...
As for the actress, I'm not sure, sometimes she's spot-on and other times she seems limited.
Denny the whingy floppy haired runt needs to go as well. And if Ange was still about sharon would have felt a slap round the chops that would have rattled her teeth.
Im really past caring if she can be saved or not, (she's a pain in the arse when she is there and I don't really miss her when she's not there), until there is a change in management it wont happen and EE will continue to go to hell in a handcart.
Yes I completely agree Sharon has been through so much and its obvious she is weak and not the strong willed Sharon we have seen before, but I do feel that Sharon's pill addiction hasnt been done very we;l it was a good storyline for Sharon but I dont think the show has done a great job of potraying it especially if you compare it to Hollyoaks and Emmerdale's pill addiction storys, I admit i dont watch Emmerdale but from what ive heard on here its very good, and we all know how hard it is for people to praise anything on here so it must be at least ok.