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Aren't we just being a tad hypocritical about Kat?


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Old 08-08-2012, 23:47
BumbleSquat
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A long post so bear with me...

The hate for Kat Moon on the internet forums is palpable to say the least. The current ''sh*gger'' storyline has tipped many viewers over the edge in how they now see the character. Her first stint made her a true icon in not only EastEnders, but in soaps in general. Since she returned in 2010, feelings towards her were never quite the same. Some felt the current writing team didn't quite 'get' her, while she was nothing without that Slater family dynamic around.

She's been back for almost 2 years and nothing has really improved. It doesn't look as if there's a light ahead in changing perceptions. In 2005 she had come full circle. She fell in love with her 'man in the moon' - her Alfie Moon! She got her happy ending - a stripped back Kat with no make-up and bare feet, being lifted into Alfie's arms to drive off to their fairytale ending. The book had closed on Kat.

But forget her first stint for a moment and take her for what she is in 2012 - a deeply unhappy woman who craves constant attention. She doesn't feel she deserves Alfie's obvious love for her so she reverts back to the ''dirty Kat'' persona she believes she has. This is what viewers find so grating about her. I do, however, find the hatred a little unsettling and somewhat hypocritical.

Take Max and even Tanya for example. Max left his first wife Rachel for babysitter Tanya. Years later he moved their family to the Square where we learn he's just cheated on Tanya and Walford is their fresh start. Only a few months later, he's being tempted into Stacey's bed - the then ex-girlfriend of the son he abandoned years before for his babysitter!

Max and Stacey's affair was karma for Tanya. If he can cheat WITH you then he can cheat ON you. She retaliated by burying him alive and sleeping with his brother. They reconciled a year later but that went downhill after his further lies. She then returned with a new fiance Greg while Max had shacked up Vanessa - another broken marriage as result. It wasn't until Tanya's wedding day to Greg that she was kissing Max - in her wedding dress! ''Just like Stacey''...

These are characters who have cheating in their DNA. Max is even a suspect on this ''sh*gger'' storyline! I've said it before and I'll say it again - it wouldn't surprise me in the least if Max was the culprit. The phone and the sh*g pad are both little stunts he's pulled during his affairs with both Stacey and Tanya.

Yet, despite the Brannings being on the show for over 6 years now, they have never quite had the vitriol and hatred directed them quite as much as Kat. Kat may have a toddler now - but Max had baby Oscar on the way. Bradley was only 5 when Tanya broke up Max and Rachel's marriage.

Heck, even Glenda Mitchell had Ian Beale and Phil Mitchell on the go at the same time - she was even letting Ian pay her rent for the pleasure! Then there's Jack who we saw enjoying a drink with 2 air-hostesses after their walk-of-shame escapades.

These are all characters with some very loose morals. They repeatedly do this, just like Kat.

So why the Kat hate? Is it simply because Kat wears a lot of slap, short skirts and boobylicious tops? Would it make a difference if Kat dressed like a Jane Beale type?
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Old 08-08-2012, 23:52
Sez_babe
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I think it's to do with how Kat is written rather than what she is actually doing. Kat doesn't seem to care about Alfie at all now. She doesn't feel guilt. I can't remember the last time she told Alfie that she loved him and I actually believed it to be true.
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Old 08-08-2012, 23:56
monalisa62003
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the difference between max and kat is that jake wood is one of the best actors in the show but max can be horrible i dont think anyone justifies him cheating. at least he has learnt from his mistakes (for now) tanya seems to have gotten less popular and the cancer storyline didnt really help not many sympathised with her

oh and max knows what he is and never uses any excuses.
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Old 08-08-2012, 23:56
Hankshaw
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Because people like Max are brazen and don't make out they're conflicted or confused. The act on their impulses. Love to hate b******* of soap.

Kat behaves as if it's a really tough decision every time she responds to a seedy text message. She's had no reason to cheat on Alfie, yet she continues to do so based on some idea that she's being ignored.

The seedy nature of the storyline hasn't helped either. She parades herself in front of the men and winks and smiles at them all to make us confused as to which one she's sleeping with.

Edit - And I'll add that yes Max has cheating in his DNA, but Kat doesn't. Kat was, as you say, the self proclaimed 'dirty girl' who men only wanted for a good time. So why has she gone back to that when she found someone who loved her?
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Old 08-08-2012, 23:57
maurice45
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Max and Tanya are BOTH horrible people. Nobody agrees with their actions. But, because they're BOTH in the wrong, people find it hard to sympathise with them. Having said that, there is quite a bit of Branning hate on here. Particularly Tanya's scheme to bury Max alive, which she has NEVER apologised for.

Max and Tanya battle with each other for the moral high ground. When Max cheats, he apologises because it was his fault, for instance. Tanya doesn't, but this has been addressed by Cora, so we know that we're thinking along the same wavelengths as the writers - Tanya is selfish.

With Kat, it's all about portraying her as the victim, whereas we all know it is ALFIE who deserves our sympathies.

Kat is an abuser. She shifts the blame onto Alfie. She justifies her cheating by branding herself a "dirty girl" - this wasn't present during her first stint, where she only slept with Andy to keep him from killing/hurting Alfie. Why the sudden change? What's the logic?

My biggest problem with the shagger storyline, in fact with the Kat/Alfie relationship in general is that we're supposed to SYMPATHISE with Kat. Reading the spoilers, it's as if the writers are saying "poor Kat, look at the way Alfie treats her. She SHOULD have an affair" - that I can't abide.

Kat has flirted her way through the men of Walford, slept with men and blamed Alfie and then turns on Roxy for being a good friend to Alfie, showing just how hypocritical and insecure she is. She punched him in the face. She slept with his cousin and had his child, then shifted all the blame onto Michael. It takes TWO to have an affair, Saint Katleen!

Do you see why I can't stand her? I could go on, but I can't be bothered to talk about her anymore.
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Old 08-08-2012, 23:58
felixrex
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Max may never have had the same level of vitriol directed at him as Kat does, but I have never seen anybody condone his cheating behaviour; or Tanya's. And the main difference between Kat and Max is that Max has never tried to justify his behaviour or blamed anybody else for it. He owned up to it and accepted the responsibility for what he did both times. He is morally repugnant and cruel, yes; but he knows it, and he doesn't try to excuse it or justify it or expect others to take some share of responsibility for it like Kat does; and it is precisely this that attracts the most criticism and frustration towards Kat's behaviour - her absolute refusal to take responsibility.

And Jack and Glenda are a totally different story. Jack is not in a relationship and can sleep with whoever he wishes to; even if it might be a wiser move for him to invest some time in his children. And I don't think we were ever supposed to sympathise with Glenda or consider any of her behaviour commendable or just.
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Old 09-08-2012, 00:01
los.kav
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Hating Kat doesn't make anyone a hypocrite. Unless you've cheated on your husband a couple of times and had his cousin's baby. Then it's hypocritical to hate Kat.
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Old 09-08-2012, 00:03
maurice45
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Hating Kat doesn't make anyone a hypocrite. Unless you've cheated on your husband a couple of times and had his cousin's baby. Then it's hypocritical to hate Kat.
Quite
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Old 09-08-2012, 00:12
Bertypop
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The thing about Kat is that shortly after discovering that Tommy was alive and watching Ronnie go to prison for his abduction, she discovered she was pregnant. Alfie refused to believe it was his (some Spanish doctor had told him he couldn't have kids). It was his distrust that led Kat to sleep with Mark. Then when he found out rather than scream and shout at her which seemed to be what she wanted, he simply shrugged and said "You're a tart, it's who you are. Go ahead, and sleep with whoever you like."

A lot of people say that Kat is an abuser - and verbally (and perhaps physically at times) she probably is. But what a lot of people don't realise is that Alfie is emotionally abusive to Kat - and those are the bruises that take longer to heal.

I'm not condoning her affair in anyway, but I happen to think Alfie has behaved atrociously towards her.
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Old 09-08-2012, 00:14
PrincessPerfect
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But forget her first stint for a moment and take her for what she is in 2012 - a deeply unhappy woman who craves constant attention. She doesn't feel she deserves Alfie's obvious love for her so she reverts back to the ''dirty Kat'' persona she believes she has. This is what viewers find so grating about her. I do, however, find the hatred a little unsettling and somewhat hypocritical.
Kat doesn't cheat because she feels she doesn't deserve Alfie's love, and thus is subconciously self-destructive. Kat cheats, because she can. She has an inability to accept responsibility, sustained by those around her not forcing her to own up to her action's. Thus, Kat can emotionally justify her actions through silly ''dirty girl'' memes. I can't understand you're overall argument. A good number of people on this forum have come to a negative view of the Branning family in general - Tanya, and Derek especially. Max Branning doesn't now get the virtol Kat does, but I remember when he had his affair and he got just as much virtol has Kat has now. Not only that, but I suspect one the reasons why isn't quite so sustained is that Max doesn't have Kat's inability to take responsibility for her actions. Jack's also criticised for being a neglectful father, frequently, and no one condoned Glenda's actions either. It's just TPTB don't view many of these characters as moral crusaders of whom we should love, as they do Kat; which is what gets on many people's goat. I'm failing to see the hyprocrisy, from anyone all in all.
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Old 09-08-2012, 00:17
BumbleSquat
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I wasn't suggesting that people must be condoning other characters' behaviours when they have affairs. But I just find it odd that a character like Max, who repeatedly cheats, isn't met with quite the same hatred, all because he ''owns up'' to it when he's caught out. Ok, Kat blame-shifts but at the core Max is a repeat offender of adultery. Is he given a slight reprieve because he always owns up?
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Old 09-08-2012, 00:19
monalisa62003
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I wasn't suggesting that people must be condoning other characters' behaviours when they have affairs. But I just find it odd that a character like Max, who repeatedly cheats, isn't met with quite the same hatred, all because he ''owns up'' to it when he's caught out. Ok, Kat blame-shifts but at the core Max is a repeat offender of adultery. Is he given a reprieve because he always owns up?
as i said max has learnt from his mistakes. he said no to roxy and seems to have settled with tanya. kat just never learns and never wants to change.
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Old 09-08-2012, 00:24
los.kav
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as i said max has learnt from his mistakes. he said no to roxy and seems to have settled with tanya. kat just never learns and never wants to change.
To be fair, Mona, until he's eliminated as a suspect in the Kat's affair story, we can't say that he's learnt from his mistakes. He might just have knocked one woman back and moved on to another one.
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Old 09-08-2012, 00:25
BumbleSquat
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as i said max has learnt from his mistakes. he said no to roxy and seems to have settled with tanya. kat just never learns and never wants to change.
I still believe he only said no to Roxy because he was aware he'd face an overwhelming backlash had it come out he'd cheated on his 'wife' with cancer. Remember, Tanya hadn't received the all-clear at that point. He was smart enough to know there would've been no way of redeeming himself after that. Take Tanya's illness out of the equation and he'd have been in Roxy's bed in a flash!
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Old 09-08-2012, 00:26
Check it out
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I have to agree. I personally criticise this story because unlike max beig a slag for no reason was never in Kat's character. It's only a new thing where she is mean hearted which no one wants. Max has always been a cheat so it is natural for the character, whig is why it's excepted.
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Old 09-08-2012, 00:27
rapunzel4
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i cant imagine why he would knockback roxy and go with kat?

just me?
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Old 09-08-2012, 00:28
monalisa62003
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I still believe he only said no to Roxy because he was aware he'd face an overwhelming backlash had it come out he'd cheated on his 'wife' with cancer. Remember, Tanya hadn't received the all-clear at that point. He was smart enough to know there would've been no way of redeeming himself after that. Take Tanya's illness out of the equation and he'd have been in Roxy's bed in a flash!
i think max didnt cheat because tanya was so ill and cos he does love tanya (yse he is selfish and probably loves himself more) it was a way of moving the character forward. they did the same with phil last year hence why he never cheated after glenda. i dont think characters think they need to be redeemed though? if that was the case nobody would cheat or do anything bad lol
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Old 09-08-2012, 00:32
BumbleSquat
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i cant imagine why he would knockback roxy and go with kat?

just me?
Max always had a thing for Stacey. He even asked her to run away with him when she left on Christmas Day 2010.

Stacey = Kat + a few years

It really wouldn't surprise me...
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Old 09-08-2012, 00:36
Milton Jones
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Its because firstly she isnt as good an actress/actor as jake, and secondly she comes out with the line of "this is who i am and i will continue to be a slag" like as though it is out of her hands when that is just beyond stupid. At least if she accepted responsibility for her actions it would be like max but she acts as though she has done nothing wrong and as though its some sort of disorder she has when quite clearly she is making her own choices.
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Old 09-08-2012, 00:51
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I think that some of the "hate" comes from disappointment in how the character was changed so much and all the development from ealier years seemed to be forgotten. I think Kat grew up a lot in her first stint and that's been ignored now. Max, Tanya etc are portrayed more consistently as being selfish and having affairs.

I actually think an affair storyline would have been more palatable if they hadn't done all the previous affairs since she's been back. Having tommy not be Alfie's was really disappointing to me. The way she turned the blame on michael for "sleeping with his cousins wife" was just annoying like she had nothing to do with it!

I could see a bored Kat having an affair but not multiple affairs it just makes Alfie look weak for staying with her. He wasn't a weak character before.
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Old 09-08-2012, 00:56
Bingette
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Kat has become boring and tired, I could'nt wait for Alfie and Kat to return but Kat has been a total disappointment.
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Old 09-08-2012, 02:03
GloriaSnockers
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I think that some of the "hate" comes from disappointment in how the character was changed so much and all the development from ealier years seemed to be forgotten. I think Kat grew up a lot in her first stint and that's been ignored now.
I'd agree. They treat the character as if she's got no history and no future, just a one-dimensional being stuck perpetually in some kind of Groundhog Day with her knickers round her ankles.

The Kat of old would have done almost anything for her family and would not have thought twice about abandoning casual knob-hopping so that she could bring her son up within a stable relationship. They seem to have forgotten all the years that she was forced to watch her own daughter being brought up as her sister - Tommy would be the apple of her eye in reality, but they've got her paying him so little attention that I wouldn't be at all surprised to hear him gasping incredulously 'You aint... my muvva?' a few years down the line.

She was also ferocious in the face of insults at one time. If Alfie had unjustly suggested that she was pregnant because she'd been sleeping around, he'd have been wearing his Jaffas for earrings and swallowing the Vic's condom machine sideways.
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Old 09-08-2012, 11:41
mikebuk
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It isn't attention Kat wants, it's sex. She had an addiction. She probably doesn't even like men, as long as her hole is filled, that's all she gives a damn about. Max Branning is the male equivalent. If they ever plan to do another HIV storyline, you have the perfect pair to to choose from.
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