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Weekly Reviews > Episodes 4333-4337 by Rhys

UK Broadcast: Monday, November 17th - Friday, November 21st, 2003
Written by: Ben Marshall, Megan Herbert, Helen MacWhirter, Drew Tingwell, Katrina Foster.
Directed by: Chris Adshead, Tony Osicka.

Revelations, renewed friendships, a breakthrough and jail sentence contributed to a week of development in Ramsay Street…

Continuing last week’s cliffhanger, Susan was alarmed to discover her purse missing when she arrived home. A call to Harold at the Coffee Shop didn’t shed any light on its whereabouts, and although Harold tried to ask Isabelle if she’d seen it, she was busy singing along to herself in the kitchen. Harold presumed she hadn’t. When finally Karl and Susan’s walking search led them back to the café, Izzy appeared with that she presumed was Susan’s purse. Despite Izzy’s claims that she had no idea Susan had rung the shop, the school teacher had no qualms about openly branding Izzy a thief. The tension between Susan and Izzy has been a joy to watch. It’s been several years since such a feud between two main characters has been scripted, and for them both to be women is a double bonus. Fingers crossed it will be an ever present factor in the series. Later in the week, despite only having been mentioned briefly a week or two previously, Darcy’s trial occurred. Although the actual courtroom scenes weren’t filmed, which was a shame, we quickly discovered he had been sentenced to eighteen months in prison. Karl, still feeling the rawness of Darcy’s treatment of him and his friends, didn’t think the sentence was harsh enough. Susan, on the other hand, ever loyal to her family, felt her nephew needed support and help as opposed to a jail term. And as the Kennedys temporarily waved goodbye to a nephew, their daughter is also moving to Adelaide to take up a teacher’s post. Amazingly, Susan didn’t seem too bothered about the impending loss, simply commenting that Ben would be a lot older the next time she saw him.

Max’s reaction to Stephanie leaving continued to worry people around him, not least the kids. In a bid not to worry him, Boyd decided he would take the matter of Lisa bullying Summer into his own hands. Therefore, on a school open day, when Lisa was entrusted to Boyd, he threatened to flush her head down the toilet if she didn’t stop taunting his sister. Lisa, ever mischievous, fled to Susan claiming Boyd was unfit to guide her. Max was livid when he found out, and a confrontation ensued back at No. 32. The following day, Max very nearly punched a customer causing trouble at the pub, witnessed by Boyd. A stern talking to by Lou made the Hoyland father buck his ideas up and face up to his responsibilities. He was especially moved when Boyd and Summer confessed they thought he was ‘losing it’. Stephen Lovatt’s performance as a depressed Max has been fantastic to watch, and Marisa Siketa and Kyal Marsh have equally given convincing portrayals.

Despite home-life worries, Boyd’s relationship with Sky continued to blossom. Despite being teased no end by another group of school kids, led by hurtful Erin, Sky at least showed she could give as good as she got by publicly humiliating her at every opportunity. Friday’s episode, in particular, was a good example of this, and while it did get a little repetitive at times and almost cringe-worthy, it’s good see the subject of bullying tackled in a new light.

By far the most prominent story to run throughout the week was that of Steph’s cancer. Still, amazingly by Neighbours’ standards, being explored in the utmost detail along ever step of Steph’s survival, this week saw the plot develop more by the sudden decision by Steph to undergo chemotherapy. Despite having been dead-set against the idea, coming across an injured lady in a car accident gave her cause for thought. Jack, however, was going through hell trying to live Steph’s lie in the face of constant pressure by Joe to suss out what was going on. Finally, the truth did out, and Stephanie was forced to admit to her parents that she’d been hiding the cancer and the treatment from them all. Though they offered her their total support, Joe was furious and upset that Karl knew about it as the family doctor, but had been bound by patient confidentiality from telling him and Lyn. Susan and Karl tried to reason with him, but Joe was having none of it. Despite the tragic revelations towards the end of the week, the days previously had been a time of joy for the Scullys. The Post Natal Depression storyline took a leap forward during Oscar’s second surprise Christening, organised by Joe. Lyn experienced a ‘moment’ with Oscar whereby she felt a rush of emotion and love for him. This, Karl, recognised as the ‘turning point’ of the illness.

And finally, the men of the ‘House of Trouser’ were suffering varying degrees of ‘trauma’ this week. Firstly, love wise, Stuart was doing everything in his power to try and impress Kaveesha that he was interested in new age practises and yoga, still trying to drag Connor along to add authenticity to the scam! However, their real reasons were uncovered and he promptly dumped! Adding to his annoyance, his car wouldn’t run due to a defective starter motor. A kindly fellow offered help, which Stuart politely declined. But, this stranger left his business card, advertising himself as a ‘Life Mechanic’, with the suggestion he should come along to one of his talks. Stu made the last few minutes of the presentation and seemed impressed by his new acquaintance’s words. In a story of a more comedic nature, the boys became scared when the Italian family of ‘Erinsborough’s Mafia’, headed by ‘Rocco’, paid a visit to the pub as a result of Lou’s letter of complaint regarding the faulty coffee machine. In a typically ‘Neighbours’ twist, no violence ensued, but instead, hardman Rocco donned an apron and demonstrated the art of making real coffee! When the family discovered Toadie was a lawyer, they ‘persuaded’ him to act on their behalf, much to Mr Rebecchi’s joy….

Notes: The BBC adopted their End Credits Promotion format for most of this week's episodes, using a specially filmed trail with Carla Bonner inviting viewers to log on to the BBC's website to discover how the breast cancer storyline was researched.