Now we all want Lorraine Newman to be a success because she is an underdog, having worked her way up the ranks to Executive producer.

And Lorraine has certainly retained a better consistency of daily pace at EastEnders, better than Brian Kirkwood. However the show is arguably still in a real lack of credibility and production quality. Many people blame this on Brian Kirkwood's stories still not completely gone from the show after he has left it. When actually Lorraine has said herself, "Inevitably it takes longer for some stories to play out but we're beyond that point now."

So are you impressed?
Do you think the show has improved, and if so will the show continue to improve?

OR

Are you underwhelmed?
Do you want to see more of a improvement?

It's in a terrible state for many reasons that have been discussed in several threads. I don't see how it can continue like this indefinitely. If it's a case of like it or lump it then I can see more and more viewers lumping it. There's not much to stick around for.

I hate to sound negative but she has not done anything noteworthy during her time so far.
She could have curtailed this Kat shagger mess for a start.
And perhaps showing Beale making a mental recovery instead of suddenly being his old self.
Also why she persists with this Bianca-breadline stuff I'll never know
It really cooks my chicken nuggets

The problems run far deeper than just one person being to blame. How many more exec producers are they going to keep pinning hopes on and then blaming when things end up so bad?

The problems are too many average actors who can't act or who are limited with the storylines they can do. Writers who just seem stuck in a loop, rehashing old storylines over and over because they don't have any orginality or fresh ideas. Actors who keep on having breaks all the time, its impossible to plan long term when one is off for 3 months, another off for 5 months etc etc.

In short don't expect anything to change unless there is a major shake up, writers, actors, directors etc. Lots of things need changing imo, unfair to blame it all on one person.

she cant just scrap and magic away the damage that has already been done, she has to slowly clear up kirkwoods mess before she can start clling the shots

she got rid of anthony didnt she

The problems I can idenitify which ruin my enjoyment are as follows.

Bad continuity, pacing, lack of originality, poor dialogue, the acting from some of the cast, the focus on the young characters, Branning overload, lack of purpose and direction for most characters, repetititve scenes and storylines, too many annoying comedy characters who aren't funny, characters going offscreen for weeks and months at a time while others are never offscreen for longer than a few episodes, hyping up stunts which cost a lot, have no impact and are forgotten soon after, dragging out storylines endlessly and only putting in effort when it comes to Christmas.

That's just my opinion on the matter. I don't claim to speak for all viewers.

But isnt it her decision to make that major shake up? Or does she not have the power to fire the writers, axe cast members, bring in new characters?

If its not down to her to make changes, then who? Maybe she thinks the show is great as it is, I get the distinct feeling that the production team are not watching what they produce and they dont know who they are producing it for...

The show could be so much better than it actually is....

That's the overall impression I got from her interview. She conceded some things needed to be fixed but she seemed content with how things stand. I completely disagree with her if that's how she feels. But she's the boss not me. As a viewer I'm terribly disillusioned with it all. I remember when the quality was amazing. It goes back to my point about viewers having to like it or lump it. The ratings indicate EastEnders is out of touch with its viewers.

This.
The Kat Shagger SL should havw ended when Alfie found out, don't know why she didnt make this decision.
Bianca and the bread-line stuff is just the same thing over and over again, theres been no development with Bianca character.
2013, I thought would be a new start but from the spoilers Denise kissing Ray, if this is her big SL I'll be very disappointed

The love triangle between Kat/Alfie/Roxy maybe its just me but I don't want to see that. I don't want to see Kalfie reunite only for them to go round in circles theyare a rubbish couple and I'm not keen on Rolfie, looks like its a rebound and Alfie will go running back to Kat. I want Kalfie to leave.

Michael/Scarlett, could have shown them bonding etc probably have a rushed attempt when Janine returns.

More of Ians recovery, more Ian centred SL that doesnt involve money problems.

Shirley return has been crap.

Why hasnt she axed the deadwood, especially Tyler never seen.a more pointless character. Very rubbish actor.

I suppose they're in a hole at the moment because of what's at their present disposal though, in terms of a mixed bag of actors. Once Charlie Brooks and Jo Joyner have completed the latest bouts of maternal or leisure leave, be it as it may, then they should stop all that - even if it might put a few of the actor's noses out of joint. At least then there may be a more consistent level of continuity in the show.

More worryingly though, if Lorraine Newman is presently stating that the show is in good shape with only a small room for improvement necessary - or a description along those lines - then she is very deluded. As other posters have said, maybe they think the audience out there is easily pleased and that these Christmas eps. coming up will be the best thing since sliced bread and that they will redress the balance after the mostly abysmal year that has been - albeit in their strange opinion! Maybe they're bound to be saying that though?! If they're being genuine in what they say then they really are out of touch with the majority of viewers though. The grittiness disappeared from EE when Diederick Santer's time as EP came to an end I think.

I think she is doing ok at the moment because she is still tying loose ends on what the previous Executive producer left. I am sure by the new year, we will see her work put to action. Especially with how she deals with departure of Zainab, the temporary departure of Tanya and the return of Janine.

I am baffled still why they have not axed the likes of Tyler but five young cast members would only equal one big cast member in terms of pay...

I disagree. Kirkwood's work was patchy but it did have high points. Absolutely nothing Newman has given us so far has been memorable or exciting. I don't think the show has ever been in such a state, at least not since 2005.

Pacing is a huge problem - storylines either dissapear for weeks on end ( Sharon's pill addiction, Ian's recovery, Tamwar's burns storyline, Amira's return last year ) or they're pushed in our face almost constantly and go on for too long, such as Kat's affair storyline, Yusef's involvement with the Masoods or the Mitchell's / Branning's latest issues.

One trick characters such as Kim get too much focus too.

Generally, I think Eastenders has a good cast, with only a few weak links.

I understand what you are saying and agree. But Lorraine Newman is the person to blame. She is Executive producer and responsible for the writers, actors and directors ect. If she is not making the right decisions and changes then the poor quality relatively falls to her.

Straying slightly off "EE in the doldrums" topic here, I'm actually enjoying a Kim-free EE at the moment, not seen that annoying bint for a while now, "which is nice"! Also where's AJ been hiding of late??

yer not THE REALLY AWFUL ONE Tyler though

My feeling are mixed on this one...

Santer seemend to take ages to bed in, I remember his early days seeming awful and everyone moaning and then POW he nailed it.

I think people think you can just walk in and yield the axe, you can't get rid of actors (unless they've been naughty and can be fired) like that, you have to let their contracts run out. Until then, it's better to keep them in the background, occasionally give them something to do and then ship them off in a taxi.

I like her new additions, Ava is great. She gets Cora. I love the parralleling of the Cora and Lola storylines. There's some nice touches.

She finally made sense of Derek. But it's probably wise to get rid of him.

It's what's next that's going to be interesting i suppose... How does she put Sharon, ian, Phil, dot etc back at the centre of the show.

What new blood does she introduce? and what will her hit rate be?

Oh and on first impression i like the new arrival for the massoods... She was a nice foil for their "we are perfect" family pretence... those kind of stories work best for the massoods...

You've hit it on the nail with everything you said, exactly what has been letting it down for ages.

I'm disappointed with her so far, but to be honest, I wasn't really expecting much anyway. I realize it's not all down to one person and that she certainly couldn't come in and change things over night, but still, there really isn't all that much to show for her time as EP so far. She doesn't really seem to be taking responsibility for it at all yet. The story she keeps telling seems to be that everything that's happening is Kirkwood's doing and once it all plays out, her stuff will begin to air. That's really all I've heard, anyway. Maybe you all have heard more. Which leads me to this: she worked with Kirkwood on all of these storylines. It's not like she walked into EE from another show with an entirely fresh perspective. She was working on all of these storylines right along with BK, the writers, and everyone else. So, I would say, for the most part at least, these storylines were her vision for the show as well...she helped craft and shape them or at least approved of them to some degree. That's why I don't believe all that much has changed...and that's why I don't believe all that much will change.

Kat's mystery affair, which by all accounts is almost universally hated, and without a doubt could have and should have been ended as early as possible has played out as much as they could possibly get out of it. She could have ended it in September - and even then it would still have gone on too long - but she's chosen to see it to the very end. Then, they keep telling everyone how shocking it's going to be, and it looks like it's going to end up being the person that was the favourite to begin with.

She also needs to get rid of some of the Brannings. The fact that there are so many of them is ridiculous. They have taken over the Square in a way that not even the Slaters ever did. With the main family of Max, Tanya, Abi, & Lauren plus all of their extended family including Ava, they total 12. With the exception of Dot, who took time off, and Ava, who is new, they all feature regularly.

Moons: After the Brannings, the Moons are the next largest family and they only total 6 and, even then, we rarely ever see Mo and Tyler (and really, how much longer can he possibly last?? Not long, I hope).

Beales: 3 (though really only 2 given that we rarely ever see Bobby) which is truly disappointing for fans of the original Beale, Fowler, Watts family dynamic of the show.
Masood family: 3 (once Zee leaves)
Michell family: 4
Butcher family: 4 - and those are an extension of the Brannings as well with Bianca being Carol's daughter.
Fox family: 2

In other words, there are just too many Brannings. Some of them need to go. Derek is a good start. Alice and Joey should follow.

Also, they miss opportunities to tell really great, realistic, logical storylines. An example would be the fact that Michael has effectively been written out since Janine left, which is ridiculous. They could have used the opportunity to show him struggle to care for and eventually bond with Scarlett, which would have been a really great storyline.

They've also overdone the mystery element of storytelling. Who is Kat having an affair with?? What is Max's secret?? Two of the biggest storylines going and in both leave us guessing as to what the hell is going on.

The lack of continuity both in storylines and character development is a JOKE.

The only really great storyline in a while was the Lola/Lexi storyline, but now it has become all about Phil, which has totally detracted from what made it so good in the first place.

It is because she has been promoted within which leads me to think she wont bring anything new to the show.

It needed somone outside the show to come in and bring some fresh ideas.

Its been disappointing especially Kats SL
The last story line to have an impact was the anniversary ep which was years ago.
Improvements needed beginning with Fatboy and Kim being axed IMO.
Serious storyline... not about Kims palace with mice. It seems as if they are showing the programme on CBBC. People are paying for entertaining drama which they have failed to deliver as of yet.

I see evidence of this in all soaps though, EE isn't the only offender (although sometime it may be one of the worst). The car stunt having no impact for example is unfair to judge as the consquences are still to emerge at xmas...

Yeah, I suppose I can see the argument that she has worked on Eastenders in some capacity for almost 20 years so she's very "comfortable" for want of a better word.

The show needed fresh eyes to come in and see everything from an outsider's perspective to shake things up.

Having said that, Bryan Kirkwood was an outsider brought in so it's just luck of the draw whoever they hire.