|
||||||||
Anyone else feel a bit underwhelmed at DTC? |
![]() |
|
|
|
Thread Tools | Search this Thread |
|
|
#1 |
|
Inactive Member
Join Date: Apr 2013
Posts: 6,713
|
Anyone else feel a bit underwhelmed at DTC?
When DTC came on initially everyone was excited because he seemed like the perfect man for the job but tbh I've been underwhelmed
In terms of storylines it started off well with Ronnie, Kat, Janine e.t.c but since it's gone down. Every year there's usually some SL that defies the year somewhat. This year it seems to be Lucy's murder but tbh I haven't been enjoying it. Started great, unpredictable, the squares reaction was great e.t.c. However things just haven't moved forwards enough. For starters Lucy was murdered out of the blue, nobody had a strong enough motive to kill her. However I thought that was the exciting part, we'd get to discover more about her that we didn't know as time goes on. Well, it's been four months now and we've discovered nothing. By this point most whodunnits and wrapped up! I thought if I was to get bored of this SL it would be very late in at least, but we're barely midway in and I've already lost interest. Other SLs just aren't gripping enough. I feel there's too much going on at the same time, all trying to outdo each other and it makes it hard to keep up. In terms of characters, I'm not liking the current lot too much. This is because there's frankly too many. I feel DTC has introduced too many new characters and brought back too many. This wouldn't be so bad but the way he's handled it all isn't very good IMO. I feel new characters should be blending in when they arrive rather than shoved in our face or sat round doing nothing. Well there's three scenarios that each newbie/returnee seems to fall in to- -They're shoved down our throats, in nearly every episode, brought to the forefront/mingled too quickly. You have to be a special type of character to be able to do this, the type viewers want to see more of from the very first time we see them. And there's only so many characters that can have this effect, and even then I think there should be a limit as to how often they're on screen -They come and have a week or SL's worth of exciting SL's, then disappear for weeks and weeks and by the time they come back nobody cares -They're sat round doing nothing and may as well not even be there I feel as if with all this happening, the cast don't seem to connect as well as they did a few years ago. It's as if there's something lacking between the actors. Also, I feel as if the cast isn't varied enough. There's less of a mix right now as there was a few years ago. Also I hate the new sets and stuff. Ian's restaurant and Sharon's bar are so bloody awful, really not needed! I thought Ian's restaurant was crappy LN work that DTC would axe but he's kept it and introduced something on the same level He's gotten rid of the salon and we never see the club or the car lot anymore and I think something should have been done to fill the Arghee Barjee. Now we only ever see the Vic, the cafe, Ian's restaurant and Sharon's bar. Hardly a variety of places. It's as if there's still a certain life lacking in the show, it's just so meh at the moment IMO |
|
|
|
|
Please sign in or register to remove this advertisement.
|
|
|
#2 |
|
Forum Member
Join Date: Feb 2014
Posts: 1,264
|
No!!!
|
|
|
|
|
|
#3 |
|
Forum Member
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: The Queen Vic
Posts: 196
|
Quote:
When DTC came on initially everyone was excited because he seemed like the perfect man for the job but tbh I've been underwhelmed
In terms of storylines it started off well with Ronnie, Kat, Janine e.t.c but since it's gone down. Every year there's usually some SL that defies the year somewhat. This year it seems to be Lucy's murder but tbh I haven't been enjoying it. Started great, unpredictable, the squares reaction was great e.t.c. However things just haven't moved forwards enough. For starters Lucy was murdered out of the blue, nobody had a strong enough motive to kill her. However I thought that was the exciting part, we'd get to discover more about her that we didn't know as time goes on. Well, it's been four months now and we've discovered nothing. By this point most whodunnits and wrapped up! I thought if I was to get bored of this SL it would be very late in at least, but we're barely midway in and I've already lost interest. Other SLs just aren't gripping enough. I feel there's too much going on at the same time, all trying to outdo each other and it makes it hard to keep up. In terms of characters, I'm not liking the current lot too much. This is because there's frankly too many. I feel DTC has introduced too many new characters and brought back too many. This wouldn't be so bad but the way he's handled it all isn't very good IMO. I feel new characters should be blending in when they arrive rather than shoved in our face or sat round doing nothing. Well there's three scenarios that each newbie/returnee seems to fall in to- -They're shoved down our throats, in nearly every episode, brought to the forefront/mingled too quickly. You have to be a special type of character to be able to do this, the type viewers want to see more of from the very first time we see them. And there's only so many characters that can have this effect, and even then I think there should be a limit as to how often they're on screen -They come and have a week or SL's worth of exciting SL's, then disappear for weeks and weeks and by the time they come back nobody cares -They're sat round doing nothing and may as well not even be there I feel as if with all this happening, the cast don't seem to connect as well as they did a few years ago. It's as if there's something lacking between the actors. Also, I feel as if the cast isn't varied enough. There's less of a mix right now as there was a few years ago. Also I hate the new sets and stuff. Ian's restaurant and Sharon's bar are so bloody awful, really not needed! I thought Ian's restaurant was crappy LN work that DTC would axe but he's kept it and introduced something on the same level He's gotten rid of the salon and we never see the club or the car lot anymore and I think something should have been done to fill the Arghee Barjee. Now we only ever see the Vic, the cafe, Ian's restaurant and Sharon's bar. Hardly a variety of places. It's as if there's still a certain life lacking in the show, it's just so meh at the moment IMO |
|
|
|
|
|
#4 |
|
Forum Member
Join Date: Apr 2014
Posts: 7,927
|
Most of what you've said is a load of rubbish, the Lucy storyline has moved on well, it's not going to be massive until February, the funeral was great, so was the billy mitchell link! As for other storylines, they're not the best but they're ok, not one storyline dtc has started has ended yet, so you're going to have to be patient, there have been a few bad weeks this summer, but it's picking up again now, also the car lot, community centre, the gym, the launderette, the funeral directors, and blades have all been used quite a bit?
|
|
|
|
|
|
#5 |
|
Forum Member
Join Date: Jul 2011
Posts: 4,362
|
He is very overrated and the Carter dominance is just too much.
|
|
|
|
|
|
#6 |
|
Forum Member
Join Date: Apr 2014
Posts: 7,927
|
Also, September seems like it's going to be very good! Janes return, slater fire, phil and sharon wedding, I think you should be patient, the summer is never as good as the winter and autumn on EE
|
|
|
|
|
|
#7 |
|
Forum Member
Join Date: Apr 2005
Posts: 4,750
|
I wouid like to know when we will see Mrs Doyle again? She was in one episode and hasn't been seen again, it was ages ago now
|
|
|
|
|
|
#8 |
|
Inactive Member
Join Date: Apr 2013
Posts: 6,713
|
Quote:
Most of what you've said is a load of rubbish, the Lucy storyline has moved on well, it's not going to be massive until February, the funeral was great, so was the billy mitchell link! As for other storylines, they're not the best but they're ok, not one storyline dtc has started has ended yet, so you're going to have to be patient, there have been a few bad weeks this summer, but it's picking up again now, also the car lot, community centre, the gym, the launderette, the funeral directors, and blades have all been used quite a bit?
What? Billy having an argument about stolen food? Hardly groundbreaking news, and even if it does go further than that with Billy, it's still taken far too long And no they haven't, we rarely see them. |
|
|
|
|
|
#9 |
|
Forum Member
Join Date: Oct 2012
Location: Suck it
Posts: 7,777
|
I'm not underwhelmed simply because I kept my my expectations low based on my disappointment with the last several executive producers going right back to Santer. Treadwell-Collins has impressed me quite a bit so far which I wouldn't have thought possible given he was Santer's right hand man. DTC seems to get EastEnders and what makes it work for the most part.
I can't say I love everything he's done so far but I like it a lot more than what's been on offer since Santer was in charge. Most of the cast are being given something worthwhile to do and it has that ensemble feel again. One critcism I'd make is that The Carters have been overexposed and now is the time to tone down their dominance since people seem to be getting a bit fed up of them. I'd like this family to last for a long while yet and not be burnt out like the Slaters in the early 2000's and the Brannings (a horrible family from the word go). In defence of the Lucy storyline, I think it was a starting point to focus the show itself so it could move into a new phase. Personally speaking I'm not a fan of the storyline or the current Beales. I think for this storyline to be a true success a bigger character or perhaps a more popular and well liked character from a more sympathetic family should have been chosen. I also think it was a mistake letting the viewers know it would run until February 2015 as it's hard to care what happens in the meantime and the journey there hasn't been all that exciting. Trying to tie it to the 30th anniversary by way of the Beales was a nice idea to honour the show's roots but the current Beales are awful, including murder victim Lucy. All in all I'm happy with DTC's era but there's room for improvement. I'll be glad when The Carters take a backseat for a while and the Lucy murder storyline concludes. |
|
|
|
|
|
#10 |
|
Forum Member
Join Date: Jul 2011
Posts: 288
|
I think the show has some great character interactions, which is what keeps me watching day to day. The storylines however, and the way they are paced, let the show down.
Lucy's murder was good television for like 2 episodes (imo) but alot of the stuff since has seemed either mundanely clinical/ boring or overly melodramatic. After that first week, it really DID become the generic 'who-dunnit' that they were so adamant it wasn't going to be, with the false arrest of Jake, characters behaving shifty, police being about constantly etc etc. It seemed to be pegged as the story that would 'save' the show, but at the moment, it is the one story the show could do without! Shirley being Mick's mum, as an upcoming 'major story' doesn't seem very inspired either. It worked with Kat and Zoe because of the layers and layers of heartbreak it caused, for many different characters, but this feels like it can only really be a 'Mick exclusive', not some big explosive family event. Likewise, the much hyped Stacey return just leaves me thinking "Why?....."Another thing that's bugged me is that the shocks and surprises are in the forms of returning characters and NOT in the content actually being shocking/ gritty. Jean was lying on the kitchen floor, wrists cut the other day and we saw absolutely nothing of it! If EastEnders is going to 'get it's balls back' then we need to see stuff like that or where's the shock?? |
|
|
|
|
|
#11 |
|
Forum Member
Join Date: Jul 2011
Posts: 3,686
|
DTC does seem to have a good grasp on the show's history and characterization has been a major plus under him, and for that I'm grateful. For me, it is the storylines that are letting the show down at the moment. The majority of the storylines started out promising before turning into a damp squib after a couple of months.
|
|
|
|
|
|
#12 |
|
Forum Member
Join Date: Apr 2007
Posts: 125,435
|
Quote:
DTC does seem to have a good grasp on the show's history and characterization has been a major plus under him, and for that I'm grateful. For me, it is the storylines that are letting the show down at the moment. The majority of the storylines started out promising before turning into a damp squib after a couple of months.
I'm liking the storylines at the moment, but I do think the storylines should be darker and get back to its roots more. |
|
|
|
|
|
#13 |
|
Forum Member
Join Date: Jul 2005
Posts: 31,001
|
It's 50/50 for me.
Most of the Carters are great and I like the fact that the Vic is livelier. The Beales don't interest me unless you count Denise, and the sooner she's away from Ian the better. I lost interest in the Butchers when David left. The Albert and Beales are pretty awful sets. Blades could be alright, but the only person we know in there is Dean. The Sharon/Phil stuff is predictable, besides I couldn't care less who gets the money. Dot/Charlie/Yvonne is interesting, there's still lots of intrigue about Nick's 'death' and how they fit in. Much as I love having Stacey back her return s/l is abysmal...it's been so convoluted I've lost interest. I wish we could just fast forward on this one. There's some decent new characters that aren't Carters...Charlie, Yvonne, Aleks, Les and Pam. It's definitely improved, I can't remember liking one thing about the show this time last year. |
|
|
|
|
#14 |
|
Forum Member
Join Date: Aug 2012
Location: With My Courtney Mitchell
Posts: 1,085
|
Quote:
I wouid like to know when we will see Mrs Doyle again? She was in one episode and hasn't been seen again, it was ages ago now
|
|
|
|
|
#15 |
|
Forum Member
Join Date: Oct 2013
Location: London
Posts: 5,497
|
The Lucy storyline has become quite uninteresting. Lucy wasn't really a top character ever since Hetti took over the role.
|
|
|
|
|
|
#16 |
|
Forum Member
Join Date: Feb 2014
Location: I like to singy singy singy...
Posts: 17,667
|
I'm with Mr Arrow on this. I had very low expectations and have been pleasantly surprised. I'm still very sceptical about the story that most interests me as the way it started and was paced was poor. Having said that other stories have been good and I keep changing my mind!
|
|
|
|
|
|
#17 |
|
Forum Member
Join Date: Sep 2012
Posts: 6,701
|
I do agree in some places. It does feel like Pam, Les and Donna have been brought in as token characters and are being given nothing. Yvonne's one episode was pointless, they should have held back a little before doing her one episode so when she comes back more regularly it makes sense. If I'm right in saying DTC barely did any axings when he came in (it was 6 wasn't it?) which didn't free up much room and he's brought loads of characters into it and loads back so the cast is getting out of control now (although should clear up a bit when Bianca and her brood and Terry and his sprogs clear off).
Actually take that back, DTC axed Carl White, Kirsty Branning, AJ Ahmed, Poppy Meadow and Ava Hartman. It was also announced that Alice and Joey Branning would be leaving, as well as Danny Pennant (do we ever know if Alice, Joey and Danny were axed or not, Ii know there was some controversy on Jasmyn Franks refusing to return to do trial episodes even though they weren't in her contract?). And now Bianca, Terry and the kids are all leaving as well I think he won't axe anybody else. I'd like Fatboy and Dexter to leave, utterly pointless to keep them in it especially as both won't last another year and their on-screen 'families' were axed but not them (Poppy in Fatboy's case, Ava and Sam in Dexter's case). |
|
|
|
|
|
#18 |
|
Forum Member
Join Date: May 2012
Location: In my mind.
Posts: 496
|
I think we just need to start to see a decent payoff of current storylines. We should have a clearer picture about Charlie next week, The Lucy suspects are gradually getting whittled down, and I expect EVERYTHING to come out re the Carters, including Sylvie's arrival at Christmas.
The only thing Boring me is Bianca & Terry |
|
|
|
|
|
#19 |
|
Forum Member
Join Date: Jul 2008
Posts: 3,504
|
Quote:
He is very overrated and the Carter dominance is just too much.
|
|
|
|
|
|
#20 |
|
Forum Member
Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: Team Moira is not a slag.
Posts: 25,900
|
I'm not over impressed by this era. I do like the carters, in small amounts, however I wish they weren't connected to the low life that is Shirley. Ironically, I preferred her when she was a totally cow and knew it.
|
|
|
|
|
#21 |
|
Forum Member
Join Date: Jun 2005
Posts: 56,342
|
You would get any disagreement from me, the current producer is somewhat worshipped on here when what he is providing is not way better than last year at all.
When is someone is very popular on here is not usually a good sign foe the bigger picture. The Albert looks like the set of a spare bedroom |
|
|
|
|
|
#22 |
|
Inactive Member
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: Cell Block H
Posts: 11,878
|
I actually think Newman made more positive changes than DTC but people are so hell bent on hating Newman for not giving us exciting storylines they just can't see it. Newman was the one who brought back pre 2010 writers, Newman was the one who calmed the show down after a period of sensationalism, Newman was the one who set up the returns of David, Ronnie, Peggy etc. DTC just expanded on the work she started. Newman basically cleaned up all of Kirkwood's mess so that DTC had a clean slate to work with.
I wouldn't say I'm underwhelmed at DTC but I'm getting concerned about the Carters. I only like half of the family and as already highlighted here it feels as though they are now interlinked into every storyline. Mick is involved with Ian which puts him directly within the Lucy murder story, Linda is involved with Sharon so that puts her directly into Sharon's revenge, soon Shirley will also be involved in that. Tina was involved in Carol's storyline. I'm just waiting to see which one of them ends up being involved in the Charlie/Dot story. The most annoying thing about the Carters though is how they make out they are so close as a family yet were all estranged from each other 8 months ago.. I mean really?!! I can suspend reality for some storylines but this is all such a retcon of Shirley its difficult to make much sense of it. So as a viewer I don't believe it. Therefore lays the problem. I had a feeling this would happen and I remember posting about it on here. They got carried away in the success of the family early on and are now milking them to the point where viewers will be sick of them very soon. Its all too much and its making me bored of them. Nancy has had next to no development since joining. If you ask me they should axe some of the family and just keep the stronger members. There is really no reason for Dean, Lee or Tosh to be there at the moment. Also no matter how good Adam and Ben might be, killing Lucy was a big mistake. I have liked parts of the story but was it really worth losing a legacy character for? I actually think killing Lauren would have been more worthy of this story. I agree about the unnecessary revamp of sets too. I think The Albert is great if only we could see it being used more but the new look Beales is awful. It looked much better before so I'm not sure why another revamp was needed given it only opened last year. If anything its the bar of the Queen Vic that needs a desperate overhaul. There are still many positives though. I think the Carol storyline has been great and Lindsey fantastic. Sonia having the gene is also great and I suspect that aspect won't come into play for a while yet so its good leaving it there in the background until they are ready. The Charlie/Dot storyline is hotting up but at the same time it has taken too long to really get going. I guess this couldn't be helped though as June is almost 90 and Declan who plays Charlie had a theatre commitment he needed to see out. I like the fact Ronnie is now involved due to her having Charlie's baby so things should be better once Sam returns. The best thing DTC has done though is bringing back Sharon. Its taken a while but he got there in the end. I do worry about what happens once her and Phil are over though. Once again she will be a loner. As that DS article stated. I think she needs Vicki back to aid her character. |
|
|
|
|
|
#23 |
|
Forum Member
Join Date: Dec 2010
Posts: 6,968
|
I think sometimes we expect too much. Incredible vast changes have been made over the last eight months, and the next six months looks truly fantastic.
|
|
|
|
|
#24 |
|
Forum Member
Join Date: Mar 2011
Posts: 9,447
|
Quote:
He is very overrated and the Carter dominance is just too much.
|
|
|
|
|
|
#25 |
|
Forum Member
Join Date: Mar 2011
Posts: 9,447
|
Quote:
I'm not over impressed by this era. I do like the carters, in small amounts, however I wish they weren't connected to the low life that is Shirley. Ironically, I preferred her when she was a totally cow and knew it.
|
|
|
|
![]() |
|
|
All times are GMT. The time now is 12:24.



Likewise, the much hyped Stacey return just leaves me thinking "Why?....."