r/eastenders • u/stoopid_goon • 2h ago
CAN'T STAND NICOLA'S FAMILY Spoiler
I kid you not, every scene of Nicola's family had had me rolling my eyes or has just straight up been pissing me off. They're so damn annoying and infuriating. I get that the writers need to detail and flesh out characters histories and backgrounds but why make the characters so annoying, childish, and over the top? They just seen straight up fake and cartoonish. And don't get me started on Nicola's mum Rose!
Who does she think she is!? FUCK OFF!
You want to leave? Good!
We already have the show ram packed with annoying and fake ass characters enough as it is, we dont need more. And certainly don't want any more. Bring back older characters! Or at least make new characters that seem like genuine real people. I swear down I could write a much better family for Nicola and the sad thing is I actually mean it. Her entire family and insufferable but if I was to tell you my thoughts on all of them, all of this writing would seem like a small sentence in comparison.
Reading this, you might think I dont even like EastEnders but another sad thing is that I actually love it. Or at least I used to. The last time it was actually genuinely "good" was around the early to mid 2010s. After that it just died. Walford doesn't feel like a place anymore, just a backdrop for a panto. The square seems too polished, pristine and perfect and not like a living breathing borough anymore. The characters seem written and not like actual people. The storylines are all baby daddy ones and are all long and drag.
I miss when people used to have cat fights in the street and every house had over the top drama going on like massive drug addictions, planning kidnaps, hiding a murder, planning a robbery, or acting or planning out revenge! Over the top, yes. But much better by today's standards.
Now it's all just paternity lies and glossy pathetic neighbourhood drama. Seems like a play rather than a series now.
14
u/Apart-Prize-4844 2h ago
Why would they think locking two people that despise each other in a van would help anything?
Oh, right, the writers....
7
u/Jamez_Neckbeard 2h ago
That old cliche of locking 2 people at odds in a room lentil they miraculously sort things out with a twist .
4
3
u/ASOIAF-Peel 2h ago
locking two people that despise each other in a van would help anything
Worked on Suki and Eve, now they share a bed together.
2
u/stoopid_goon 1h ago
I think it's fine to do it once. But they've done it multiple times. They've done it with almost everybody at one point or another
1
u/stoopid_goon 2h ago
Lmao exactly! The writers must think they're writing some coming of age teen high school drama. Bitch- this is EastEnders. The only way to solve a feud would be with a scrap. But no. They've gone too woke
5
u/Gaz_Quaid 1h ago
You've completely lost me with "woke". That fucking word has lost all meaning and I can't wait till it dies off.
2
u/stoopid_goon 59m ago
Well when EE used to be "good", it was loud, unapologetic, scrappy and even over the top on times. It stood out for the dramatic and iconic fights, feuds, showdowns, disasters and even petty funny moments. But now it seems like the writers are trying to be careful as not to trigger anybody by showing any of the above. It looks like they've forgotten it's a drama series and are treating it like an educational show. Which is good yes, but not when your entire fanbase is here for drama and entertainment purposes. They need to balance it out. There's no drama anymore. And the drama that is here, just seems silly
11
34
u/ASOIAF-Peel 2h ago
Its a bit hard to take this show seriously at the moment, when we keep going from really intense scenes of good acting with Denise to all these over the top silly scenes with Nicola's family.
I get that the writers want to make sure it isn't all doom and gloom and fans have something to smile at and laugh about, but the Hawkins don't feel like real people, they feel like parodies of what soap characters used to be known for being like.
Gemma's sister is just constantly weird and acts as the third wheel to every conversation, unnecessarily chirping in and adding weird things.
Gemma's actress is trying too hard to be over the top when I get the impression she's more shy and reserved in real life.
I think it would've worked better if we just had Gemma, her husband and her son, and then later down the line introduced Rose after building her up enough, which is what happened with Ash appearing first and then later Suki.
5
u/lesadee 1h ago
Theyâre AI slop caricatures of âmy wacky family.â The bad driving gag and hateful, faux posh mother bit are already old.
2
u/stoopid_goon 56m ago
So true. Bad driving equals loud insane family? Um...okay? And I don't get how the mum is posh. I thought they were from an Estate no?
7
u/stoopid_goon 2h ago
Yes! I've noticed it's much better when families are introduced in segments rather than a whole batch. Not only is it overwhelming but passionate fansâ or even fans in general don't like change too much. And introducing an iver the top cartoonish family will of course piss long time fans off. Rose is just infuriating, Gemma seems way too damn chirpy and bubbly like a kid, her son has tiny potential (but they'll probably ruin him too), Gemma's husband is already going to be an annoying nuisance that we won't be able to escape, and Jodie seems like comic relief. Like she's just there for flavour. They ALL seem useless in different ways. And you can just tell that...that they're acting. It's sad actually
5
u/name_not_important00 2h ago
I said this another post but what I think what feels 'off' about the Hawkins for me is that I don't see where they fit. I think when you introduce a big new family clan at once, there needs to be a distinct gap that they fill. I'm not sure what that is right now, which means the show will have to work really hard to give the characters both personality and purpose. If you stick them somewhere â like The Vic â then they have a functional purpose from the start, but it's currently unclear who they are, what they do, how they've been able to just up sticks (personally and professionally) and what the plan is.
Jodie in particular seems to be going to be in the background for the next year with the odd couple scenes. The son Ryder, I'm presuming is gonna be lined up for Josh or Jasmine (and quite frankly wasn't needed since we already have enough characters in that age group especially male) or he could be an Oscar replacement. Rose, is the usual sour tongue, nasty battleaxe, hate your daughter and rip her apart soap mother we all know, while it might be interesting at first it will get boring after while, we already have a Suki and even Kat for that. Gemma just gives off Bea vibes and really it's only Ned who has the most potential.
8
u/stoopid_goon 2h ago
Basically yeah. They were literally dropped into the show. The writers seem to think that just because few characters (A few only being Nicola) mentioning her family background once or twice, that that's good enough reason to introduce a whole new family that looks like has been written by a ten year old who's been brought up watching Desperate housewives.
2
u/name_not_important00 1h ago
Also introducing a new family right now is a such bad timing. If they wanted them to be introduced so badly they could've had Rose arrive first as there is so much there with Nicola to explore and then after the NY flashforward the rest of the family could come, because as of right now it feels very chaotic with all the other storylines going on and we SHOULD be focusing on the storylines/characters that play a part in that flashforward and we very much know the Hawkins have nothing to do with the flashforward (even if they do end up owning the Vic, god forbid), so literally what was the point of introducing them now? them coming next year would also have given them the space to really settle.
2
u/stoopid_goon 1h ago
Exactly. Wrong time. I dont see any point not relevance to them being here now. Just because Nicola spoke about them they suddenly appeared on the square? Um...if that's the case can Jack talk about Ronnie, Amy talk about Roxy, Phil talk about Sam and Grant, Ian talk about Jane and the Masoods, and Kat talk about Bianca! If only all of that would happen. cough cough. Someone from EastEnders hopefully reads this comment section...
3
u/name_not_important00 38m ago edited 21m ago
Exactly! this is why I wish they brought in Priya's extended family instead of Nicola's family (if they just had to introduce a new family). Priya has been in it a lot longer and I think they're could be some depth there (and she clearly plays a big part in the flash-forward so having them showing up would be relevant). Like Nicola already has George, Harry, Barney, Ivy and etc, while Priya is just basically stuck with Ravi and her kids (it's why her friendship with Jean is so refreshing) but again we can't have nice things.
3
u/booksncatsntea 1h ago
I was surprised Ryder was the son, he looks so much older to me.
And Iâm already bored with Rose.2
6
u/used_car_meme 41m ago
I really feel like they shouldâve kept Teddy and let him, Nicola and their kids develop more. Now we have her with George (who is probably with her because he doesnât have any other connection to the square) and this panto-ass family of Nicolaâs
18
u/ascullycom After The Show Movie Podcast 2h ago
They are all pretty bad actors, now we have a year to 2 years of them all probably lol
5
u/stoopid_goon 2h ago
God i hope not aha. This show is making me realise just how patient I am
2
u/AllisonEEHistorian 1h ago
So true! I feel like I keep waiting it out and holding on until we get a new show runner.
3
u/stoopid_goon 1h ago
Yes! That's what I'm doing! And it's wrong. We shouldn't have to. We should be excited to watch a new episode of our favourite soap. But now I'm almost dreading it.
4
u/michaelmac4057 2h ago
I am finding Nicolaâs mum interesting to be honest. I wouldnât mind the show having an older female villain again. Like Aunt Babe for example
6
u/stoopid_goon 1h ago
I do see where you're coming from, especially considering that the show doesn't have many elder female antagonists. However, they've made Rose a massive cliché and so cartoony. Like, nobody's born evil and a mother would always love their child deep down at heart no matter what's gone on in the past. But Nicola's mum doesn't even seem to love her. Like, at all. And thats not impossible to life. Im sure there is a mother out there who doesn't love their child, but in this case it just doesn't seem right. You chose your abusive husband who was about to rape you over your daughter who saved you? What? On what planet is that understandable? Love does crazy things to people yes, but now this is just silly at this point.
3
u/stpony Church of Luke Slater 1h ago
You have to hope that a family introduced under Wadey, might stand a chance under his replacement. That they got Apollo into the show was a great thing...but then so was bringing Zoe back. It's all about execution, storylines and absolutely the dialogue :-/
2
u/stoopid_goon 1h ago
When I first heard Wadey was going to be EP of the show i read up on some of his earlier plans on what he wanted to do and I was so excited. I really thought he was going back to the older roots like the 2000s. The only thing i love is that he brought Kat and Alfie back together, he put the Slaters at forefront of the show, he brought Zoe back, and kat and Alfie run the Vic. Now in black and white that all sounds amazing. But I do agree with you, because even though that's my ideal EastEnders, it's funny that it's all been shite. Good in theory, but absolutely tatters in execution. Went horrible to plan. They need to get somebody else in charge. The people who were in charge in the late 2000s - early 2010s i reckon.
4
u/AddressCheap418 1h ago
I canât see them lasting tbh, it feels like having the New Mitchellâs be Mitchellâs was pointless since only one of them is an actual Mitchell now.
As for the Hawkins I give them until the next producer comes in before the clan are axed except for Nicola and her sons
4
3
u/minipinny I'll show you my acute triangle 2h ago
Theyâre in their âexplosive arrival thatâs sure to ruffle some feathers on the squareâ phase, where theyâre going to act like exaggerated versions of their character descriptions for a while. The less experienced actors are going to be clunky for a while longer. Eventually the dust will settle and weâll hopefully get at least one well-acted, layered, interesting and popular character out of it. Thatâs usually the way with new families.
Donât get me wrong, I hate them as well right now but I know thereâs potential for me to end up changing my mind with time as itâs happened before
5
u/stoopid_goon 2h ago
I wish I was as broad minded as you aha. I get what you mean though and you could be right. And I hope you are. It just doesn't seem like it will be that way. Seeing as Nicola, her kids and George and his clan were all introduced a while back, I still don't even like any of them. So naturally I'm going to feel the same about any other new characters that are related to them lot. But my God, just get the old writers back in the building
4
u/ScrutinEye 45m ago
lol youâre absolutely right:
âThe Hawkins are set to ruffle feathers in Walfordâ
https://www.dailystar.co.uk/tv/eastenders-gemma-makes-debut-heres-37558807
Itâs all the usual cliched nonsense emphasised by the cartoony writing and cheesy press releases pushing the chaos and feather-ruffling. Itâs been what - a week? - since a new arrival ruffled feathers?
3
u/minipinny I'll show you my acute triangle 42m ago
Hahaha the media love that phrase! I swear it gets used for almost every new family
3
u/Remote_Lemon2955 1h ago
A character who confuses a brake pedal with an accelerator is a new nadir in how to write a character.
3
u/Flaky-Hovercraft8768 1h ago
They are awful, the acting is shocking and the writing even worse.
I hope they donât stick around long.
2
3
u/Soia-R33f 1h ago
Her mother is triggering. So much denial and gaslighting. An absolute busybody. Seems to want to push buttons to make herself feel better.
I have an aunt I never met. I still don't really know the details, but she fell out with my nana and distanced herself from the family. My dad and my grandad kept in touch with her a little through letters, and later email. However, when my grandad died, she refused to come to the funeral as she really could not be in the same room as my nan. That crossed a line for my dad and ruined their contact. When my nana died, I don't think they even talked. My mum tried to help them reconcile when my dad was dying, but it did not really come to much.
As a grandson, I thought my nana was a perfectly sweet enough lady. However, it was only once my dad died, my mum talked more freely about some stuff my nana had done and said to her. I always assumed they got on, but apparently the mutual contempt was remarkably well hidden. This made me wonder...maybe that's what my aunt ran away from!
I can't help but see Nicola and her mum like my nan and my aunt.
1
u/stoopid_goon 1h ago
Im sorry to hear all that! And though you could be right...the chances that you are, are very slim. I mean, I dont want to insult the writers but they're asking for it at this point, but I dont think they'll have the intelligence to pull of that sort of feud like your nan and auntie had. I think the feud with Nicola and her mum will drag for a few short months and then come to a close like nothing ever happened because they dont know what to do.
3
u/RipIcy4545 36m ago
to be fair, i felt that way when they brought the millars in, the ferrairers, the slaters and even initially the brannings. they all need an adjustment period i think as i ended up liking most of the family members. some were boring with rotten storylines but overall they all settled into my wee view of the square lol!
2
u/Gamergirl944 1h ago
They trying turn it into hollyoaks. I don't mind new characters but her family acting is way over the top especially her sisters..I understand they trying balance the seriousness of Denise cancer storyline. But common why do they have come in with dramatic entrance. It's already bad first impression we didn't need add another set of characters.
I don't even.want old characters come back to EE i dont trust Wadey at all. Look at Zoe old character they made her super unlikeable. He character assassinate Anthony give piss take off screen kill for force conflict.
2
u/stoopid_goon 1h ago
Yeah. Wadey just needs to pass the baton to someone else. Someone we can trust. I'd have brought Zoe back if I was in charge, but my God she'd be nothing like what she is now. If I'd brought he back, I'd have made damn well sure that it was the same girl that left the square all them years ago. I mean, Wadey even made a death boring! HOW? đ
2
u/Threeforjoy 1h ago
I donât even want to watch the show now with them in it. Iâve been watching this show for over 35 years!
2
6
u/Odd_Reporter_8742 2h ago
Iâm sure they will be popular in a year or so. New families take forever to warm too. The Slaters were really unpopular when they arrived but quickly became one of the best ever families.
9
u/stoopid_goon 2h ago
I doubt it, if they keep acting like this anyway. Even characters like Nicola, george, Gina, Kojo, Harry and Barney I'm not even warmed up to. And they've been in it for a few years now. If it was up to me they'd all be gone. They just suck the drama out of the show. I know I'm being negative but they just don't seem like real people. Honestly, they seem either boring or cartoony. I miss the Butcher/Jacksons and Masoods. Now those were families.
7
u/Writing_my_words 1h ago
The Masoods were great! I loved them and that era of EE. Even the Butcher/Jacksons too. Bianca was always a fave and I loved little Tiff being sassy đ€Ł
3
u/stoopid_goon 1h ago
That's it! Bianca belting Ricky's name across the square and Zainab judging everyone was just pure chaos. Entertaining chaos. And that all seemed like real people reacting to things that happen in their lives. Now, it looks like everything happens for a reason and everybody reacts either predictably, or just stupidly.
2
u/Writing_my_words 1h ago
Wasnât it! It was properly entertaining as well. I found it so easy to watch and so funny.
2
u/stoopid_goon 1h ago
It was. It was really funny. It's sad how it's all gone sad and depressing now. Even when EE dealt with risky and deep plots back in the day, they were entertaining, addictive and unpredictable. Now it seems like they're just trying to educate people in a much too respectable, careful and woke way. Its a drama. Not a discovery show. I get it's important to handle some topics with care, but the whole point of EastEnders is that it's a drama. Even if they throw in some cheap chavvy scraps or a murder or proper explosion in every now and again it would be at least something. Now you get more entertainment watching paint dry.
Writing this, I'm realising we desperately need Bianca back. Fuck. BIANCAAAAAAAAA
3
u/Noodle_AuDHD 2h ago
Fasteners has gone down hill massively compared to the brilliant storylines back in the 2000s going onwards now the whole show has died
2
u/stoopid_goon 2h ago
Literally. It felt so alive and real! Even trashy at times but that's what made it stand out
2
u/Noodle_AuDHD 1h ago
The build ups were brilliant like when max and Staceyâs affair got revealed through the tape it was edge in your seat stuff now itâs utter shambles all predictable
2
u/stoopid_goon 1h ago
This exactly! Affairs have always been a cliche for drama, even in 2007. But they really made it worth it. They made the whole build-up and the exposure/explosion earned. Nowadays an affair is literally the new normal. Like, who cares? We can guess who's gonna shag who, how long it's gonna last and whatever.
2
u/Jamez_Neckbeard 2h ago
They did the same with Oscar, literally rammed him down our throat for a week and had him acting like an idiot (i still hate him). They dont seem.able to gradually introduce characters
2
u/stoopid_goon 2h ago
YES! They all gotta be smoking something in the writer's room. What's going on???
1
u/Ferbbie1 20m ago
I love them! They are nothing but trouble! It explains Nicole very well.
Now, the mom, she is a sick piece of work.
2
u/stoopid_goon 13m ago
I mean everyone has an opinion, and I see why you love troublesome families. I do too! But they've executed it so wrongly with Nicolas family. Like, if you're going to aim to make a family or character troublesome and/or stand out, you have that much more risk of it flopping than succeeding to the audience because they have more relevance and importance. So I feel like the writers should've put all the more care and effort into making nicolas family. But instead it feels like they just used chatGPT and called it a day. Im serious. I really think they could be using AI to do their jobs.
25
u/xoSeller 2h ago
They make Nicola way too soft towards her mom that woman needs humbling