I wouldn't say better but i'd say hes on par with Brendan.

The other remotely interesting male characters since Brendan were Trevor and Patrick.

James is the secret love child of Pee Wee Herman and Marnie but also he had a secret twin who Marnie's mother took back to the States, was adopted and grew up to be the Sheldon Cooper we know and love

Trevor and Patrick were decent and watchable but neither had the wow factor. The again how many male characters do and that goes for all soaps.

That's why I think HO have struck gold with James. I know it's still very early days but the character and actor has a kind of presence that makes you sit up and pay attention. I'm thinking Dennis Rickman, Michael moon, Brendan Brady. They all had that extra something and I think if the writers play thier cards right, they can have something really special with James.

I just hope they don't take the predicable road. I'd hate to see James turned into some kind of panto villian that will need bumping off at the end because he's made so many enemies. The interesting thing about James is that he's flawed, done some cold and calculating things and he's by no means a angel but essentially a guy who is conflicted between the ideology that has been ingrained in him since a child.... and his moral compass that toys with his heart.

He also has very moral Siblings, who could help him, I think we need more time him and Nathan, Nathan is very emotional, James is very closed off, they could help each other

Imo noone compares to Brendan.

However I can't see how, aside from being gay, that they're comparable. They're completely different characters

James is brilliant but if I had to choose it would be bring Brendan back

He's ok as interesting but I don't think he's that good, certainly not in the Brendan Brady league in fact still not quite a Trevor or Patrick.

I'll second that. I'm still living in hope he will return. Best.Character.Ever

If Brendan returned, it would be the ruin of the character. Second stints almost never work. For Brendan to remain the beloved and iconic character he is remembered as, he needs to stay away from HO, especially while Kirkwood is in charge. And I think Emmett Scanlan knows that, and that's why we will never see him on HO again.

I love James.
I really hope they have big plans for him!

Then Emmett Scanlan shouldn't have went along with such a crap exit. He should have let Brendan die on the balcony. He's already gone along with Birkwood by letting Brendan become a loser in that last episode.

How did Brendan become a loser??? He went out on the balcony with the intention of getting the police to kill him. But they didn't, they just wounded him... and of course they arrested him. What could he have done to avoid that?? He accepted hgis fate with dignity, which was admirable under the circumstances.

Also, Emmett wanted Brendan to die on that balcony, but the producers had a different idea. When you are an actor and you have a contract, you act what they put on the script, it's not like you have any power to "allow" certain things or not.

Me too. He needs to be further developed. Hes already come a long way since he first arrived. I hope the writers realise how popular he is becoming.

He's an actor, he has no influence on the story.

I'm happy as long as he doesn't kill anyone.
I mean I know he will sooner or later (this is Hollyoaks), but I live in hope.

I'll give you Brendan but Patrick and trevor? Hell no 😂 James as a character is far more interesting and faceted.

I never got the Brendan love. He was okay for me and I've liked Emmett Scanlan in other things post Hollyoaks but I felt at times the writers just piled it on with the character to excess and I hated his relationship with Ste.

I didnt like Brendan either, found him off putting, and him Ste was too much

Not sure why a thread about james has become a brendan love in

But he is a pantomime villain, is he not?

Hardly a love in. There was a comparison made to Brendan by someone else

Just most posts are about him, and I cant stand Brendan was glad he went, wish he took Ste with him

Fair enough

Bib agreed

Is he? I thought recent scenes with JP and Marnie have given him a fair bit of depth. I mean I know he's been machavillian for the most part so I can't blame anyone for seeing in bad light but unlike his callous mother, he does have more shades of grey. Im yet to sympathise with that witch but who knows. 😶

Of course he went out on the balcony with the intention to die and if he had that wld have been the perfect exit. They turned him into a loser by having him thrown in prison (like a piece of rubbish) then had Cheryl going off into the sunset after killing the man she was supposed to adore after finding out what her brother had been through but she still left him to take the rap. She wouldn't even let Brendan answer the phone call that Ste made when he heard the gunshot.
I remember reading long before Brendan's exit that Emmett Scanlan wanted Brendan's exit to be epic with police helicopters, car chase etc it sounded in that interview that he wouldn't accept anything less. Well, he had the opportunity to leave this for the fans. He acted all the scenes he wanted but left the character a loser giving Walker exactly what he wanted.

I disagree with most of this, but this isn't the thread to go into that!

James could be a great character; I'm just not sure whether current HO is capable of doing him justice. Everything in the last few years has been so fast-paced and superficial. Are they still capable of developing in-depth, character-driven storylines that don't crash and burn in a couple of months? I guess we will find out soon enough.

Thanks Sweetie

Im wondering what hes up to with Joanne, there seemed to be something implied today when she was getting the mug