Susan is becoming increasingly concerned about Bea, who hasn’t been heard from apart from a text or two to Elly since she left The Island and hasn’t yet reached Liz, who she is supposed to be going to stay with. She hasn’t been able to get in touch with anyone and is concerned that a huge storm is heading towards The Island.
Mackenzie drags reluctant Ritchie down to the Wedding Expo. He is not thrilled. They are awkward when they bump into Terese who wants to know where Harlow is and it’s not long before the truth comes tumbling out; Harlow and Hendrix have gone to The Island. Paul is too busy trying to resolve the fact that both Des and Jane have asked him to be their best man and left him to decide who to choose. He has no space in his head to even listen to his wife.
While Jane is sad that she has nothing of her Nan, Mrs Mangel with her on her wedding day, Dipi suggests Nell, her namesake be her flower girl, which is just a beautiful touch. She is such a cutie. Rather than being Jane or Des’s best man, Paul has secured acting as their celebrant so he can be there for both of them equally. And finally, after goodness knows how many years, Des Clarke and Jane Harris are husband and wife!
Paul officiates Jane and Des’s Wedding!
After the wedding, Paul overhears Terese discussing Harlow sneaking off to The Island with Hendrix. He is not amused, especially with the storm breaking contact so they have no idea whether she is safe or not. And she’s not. She’s stuck in a mine with Bea and a dangerous snake!
Meanwhile, Clive and Sheila are uncomfortable all day, encountering signs that they should get married, starting with Sheila winning a wedding dress worth several thousand dollars. Eventually, they are honest with each other. Neither of them wants to get married. Sheila intends to sell the dress and take Clive on a fantastic holiday.
Jack solves Mark and Paige’s prayers when he announces that he has got a job in Adelaide! The family can all move to Adelaide to be with Mark, Tyler, Piper and Faye and be one big happy family. Hooray!
Also, just as an aside, the background music of Queen Kylie’s ‘Golden’ just made this episode even more fabulous. Thank you, Neighbours. Thank you.
The storm begins to set in on The Island and the party begin to batten down the hatches in preparation. Gary expresses his concerns about Finn to Elly but she is dismissive. She cannot see beyond her feelings and it hasn’t occurred to her that he might have turned into a psycho again. Finn overhears their conversation and warns him to keep his nose out. Well, that makes me worry for Gary…
Down in the mine, Bea is still hopeful that there is still some reasonable explanation for her boyfriend pushing her into a hole and telling that she is in the way of him running off into the sunset with her sister. Well, that is some level of optimism there, Bea. Harlow feels guilty as she recalls the moment a few days ago when Finn remembered something he shouldn’t have when he visited her. She should have flagged it. Yes, probably but it wasn’t her fault. Bea insists that all of this is down to Finn and neither of them should blame themselves. Harlow explains to Bea that things were becoming more intimate with Hendrix and when she was unsure, she felt patronised by him so she got angry and left. She can’t bear the thought of dying without making things right with him.
Finn makes plans to meet with Harry. He awkwardly mentions that he is bringing Elly and Aster with him. The phone signal cuts out as the storm sets in. Chloe tells Finn that she knows about him and Elly and that’s why it would be better for her to go and find Bea instead. He accuses her of still wanting Elly for herself and warns her to focus on her husband. He then persuades Elly to stick to their original plan. The tension between Finn and Gary continues. Gary expresses his concerns about Finn to Kyle. He is trying to forget about Prue (RIP) and hasn’t listened to any of her voicemails. Kyle ditches Roxy in order to spend time with his Dad.
Hendrix arrives at the site and is alarmed to realise that Harlow isn’t already there. Everyone scatters to look for her, with Chloe staying behind to wait for Elly and Finn who have gone out to locate a boat to leave on. When Finn and Elly return, Finn panics that everyone is searching The Island and may come across Bea and so delays his and Elly’s departure in the guise of looking for Harlow himself.
Bea and Harlow are trapped…
In the mine, Bea and Harlow’s hopes are raised and then dashed when they hear noises above and call out for help: it’s Finn. He gleefully throws rocks at them. Then he flicks a snake into the mine! He is genuinely enjoying the cruelty he is inflicting upon them. There is no humanity left in him now.
Gary returns to the site, having found nothing. He and Chloe confide in each other over their Finn fears. Gary heads out to search the area Finn headed off to. But I’m worried his downfall may come when Chloe mentions this to Elly who mentions it to Finn. One minute he is satisfied that he has solved the Harlow/Bea problem and he’s ready to leave with Elly and the next, he has picked up the archery set and he’s set off after Gary.
Pierce and Hendrix are out searching for Harlow together. Hendrix is honest about his argument with Harlow but promises that he never put her under any pressure. I hope Harlow survives. I really like her relationship with Hendrix. Also, surely they wouldn’t dare kill off Jason Donovan’s daughter?!
In the mine, Bea and Harlow are being seriously harassed by the snake. They attempt to trap it but one of them gets bitten…
There is a wave of grief covering the whole of Summer Bay and Robbo and Mason’s death make the front page of the paper.
Roo forces Alf and Martha to sort out their differences. Alf explains that he had been thinking of proposing for a while but the loss of their friends pushed him forward. He gets down on one knee and proposes for real. Martha accepts. The wedding is going ahead!
Alf proposes properly…
Ryder is still feeling low about everything that has happened with Jade. Jade gives him a load of hassle and he can’t stop himself from arguing with her. A new guy, Nikau intervenes and he and Jade end up on a date. She gives him her skewered version of what happened with Ryder and he refuses to listen to any of Ryder’s warnings. When Ben brings Ryder home from a fight with Nikau, angry Ryder blurts out the whole sorry tale to Alf and Martha right in the middle of their engagement celebrations. Great timing!
Jade has new guys, Nikau in her sights…
Tori, Justin and Grace arrive back from visiting Brody, Raffy and Simone (although Simone never gets mentioned ever). Justin hasn’t yet broken the news about Robbo to Tori. When he does, she is understandably devastated. He is the father of her child. When she later discovers that he has been gone for two days, she takes all her grief and anger out on poor Justin who has only been trying to do the right thing. I feel sorry for him. His brother is dead. His friend is dead. His sister has just woken up from a coma. His girlfriend is missing. Give the poor guy a break! It’s a sad scene as he wanders into the sea and sobs. He seeks support from Ben who has been through dark times of his own. When Tori lays into him the second he walks through the door, he is actually able to stand up for himself. I’m glad. This isn’t just happening to her.
Marilyn has also arrived back from visiting Jett. She is still struggling in the aftermath of the siege. She bumps invites Ari and his family over to dinner. Now, I can’t quite work his family out just yet. He has a nephew, this Nikau boy and Nikau’s mother, Gemma, who is his sister in law. Her husband, Nikau’s father is dead. Nikau is furious with Ari but we don’t know why. Over dinner, he remarks that Ari left Marilyn and the other hostages behind, which technically he did but he was helping them escape. So did he do something like to his brother? Are him and Gemma a couple? I can’t work it out.
All I do know is that they are living in a motel, struggling for money and have been harassed and chased away from other towns so need to lie low. Ari was in jail for ten years and he knows Dean from his time behind bars. He makes it clear to him that he doesn’t want anyone to know he was in prison. So, when kind hearted Marilyn puts him in the paper for being a hero, he is not happy at all. Time will tell the back story of this family, I suppose…
Oh, Ari finds the memory book so that Marilyn can return it to Tori! Hurrah!
Alex is reluctant to go to work where she must face constant reminders of everything that has happened there so she flirts with Willow instead. Colby interrupts, fretting about Jasmine and ruining the moment. Willow continues to feel concerned about how Alex is coping.
Wendy and Ian arrive and Wendy is so lovely, making it clear that Jasmine will always be part of her family. She offers the emotional and practical support that Jasmine needs in preparing for the funeral. She has already done this for Robbo when he lost his wife and children. Wendy and Ian request to see Grace, making Tori very nervous as she has never actually met them before the meeting mostly goes well. Colby continues to work on Victor’s case, bringing it to a close and keeping Jasmine away from it like Robbo requested. That night, Jasmine struggles with her speech for the funeral. She falls asleep and has a vivid dream about Robbo.
Colby lays a wreath for Robbo…
The funeral is fully attended by residents of Summer Bay and the police force. Colby carries a wreath. Lance’s Dad attends. Lance’s funeral is the next day. Wendy and Ian tell her that when one officer dies, all the families rally round. Ian gives an emotional speech about his son. The more Jasmine absorbs, the more things don’t make sense to her. When Colby gives his speech, she realises that Robbo sent her away on purpose and that he knew he was dying. When it’s time to take the coffin away, she jumps up in protestation, crying desperately about Robbo abandoning her.
Jasmine struggles to cope without her husband…
Mac has spent the day at the hospital keeping Bella company. Alex is also at the hospital, working. They have a rather strange conversation with Bella, where she casually mentions that she has never been to a funeral before. She never even knew her mother had died. Her Dad just buried her in the back garden! Marilyn and Alex confide in each other over how much they are struggling in the wake of the siege. I think it’s genuinely important to not have had this massive storyline and then have everyone just go back to their normal lives. I’m really enjoying these little scenes, like between Alex and Marilyn where they admit they’re not sleeping and offering each other kindness and support.
Mac, Marilyn and Alex both join the others at Robbo’s wake. Justin and Tori reveal the plans for Mason’s funeral, which will take place off screen, somewhere between Summer Bay and where Raffy and Brody live. I like that it’s not the typical soap situation where someone dies and members of their own family can’t even be bothered to notice! Marilyn, John, Alex and Willow plan to attend. Colby is impressed that Mac and Bella have reconnected.
Ziggy finds herself in turmoil when she is invited to Mason’s funeral; she wants to say goodbye to her friend but she doesn’t want to see Brody and Simone. Dean doesn’t have a clue as to why going to the funeral is so important and only upsets Ziggy more but Mac provides more help. When Ziggy opts out of attending the funeral, Dean makes a wreath for Mason, and he and Ziggy say a few words and send it out to sea together.
Jasmine is desperate for answers from Colby about the siege and exactly how and why Robbo died. She also wants to know why everyone is rallying around Robbo and Lance’s family and not Scott’s. When Bella arrives home she immediately says all the wrong things to Jasmine who rushes out of the house in tears. Colby is left with no choice but to admits that Scott killed Lance, having been threatened into working for Victor. Robbo knew he was dying and wanted to protect Jasmine right up until the end.
Tension continues between Jade and Ryder. Nikau continues to argue with his family and spend time with Jade. However, things go south when Jade is rude to Gemma who comes in with her CV, not realising that she is Nikau’s mother. She turns on the tears but he is starting to wise up to what she is really like, thank goodness. They go back to his motel where he tells her that he spotted her stealing from work. She storms out when she fails to seduce him. She later takes him aside and gives a whole speech about how Ryder ‘stole her innocence’. She attempts to get physical with him but he already knows she’s set her phone to record them. He steals her phone. She is livid. I think my favourite moment is when she is arguing with him at his front door and Ari walks in and just casually slams the door in her face as if she is completely irrelevant.
Nikau finds Ryder before the wedding and gives him the phone, telling him that he isn’t the only person on it. Ryder hides the phone in a drawer, which hopefully isn’t a mistake. Jade demands the phone back from Nikau who tells him it’s in Ryder’s hands now.
Alf asks Ryder to be his best man as the family continue to prepare for the wedding. Alf looks so smart and so happy on the morning of his wedding. Ben has rebuilt an archway like for like the archway that they had at their first wedding, at Alf’s request. Roo is Martha’s bridesmaid and the wedding is perfect as Alf and Martha say their vows. We even get one of Alf’s fabulous speeches. It’s nice to see Alf so happy. I mean, she’s no Ailsa but…
Alf and Martha get happily married!
Ryder and Nikau catch Jade searching for the phone but thankfully it’s safely hidden. Alf publicly throws her out of the house and ends her tenancy at the caravan park. He is about to lay into Nikau when Ryder assures him he’s a friend so he is invited to the wedding instead.
Ari and Gemma decide that with the article making him a public, local figure, they have no choice but to up sticks and move away again before more trouble starts. Nikau returns home to find Ari and Gemma packing. He refuses to leave and doesn’t think they should keep running. Marilyn pesters Irene into hiring Gemma; Irene is reluctant, not wanting to replace Leah. Knowing that Leah wouldn’t want her to struggle, Irene gives her the job. Ari and Gemma decide it’s time to face their past and stay.
Channel 5, 1:15pm & 6pm (sneak peek, weekdays on 5STAR at 6:30pm)
In what was a three episode long Season Premier over in Australia, the hospital siege rages on while relatives fret about their loved ones outside. Alex, Mac, Marilyn and Jasmine desperately try to keep Bella alive although it’s not looking good. Mason’s lifeless body is taken away. Jay (who I think I was calling Jack in my previous review – sorry) agrees to let Alex get the medication she needs. As she does so, she realises that Dean and Colby have found their way into the lift shaft (it’s very ‘beginning of Speed’). She tells them about Mason and that the AFP officer is a dirty cop, dropping all the meds she needs and picking them up slowly in order to buy her some time to talk.
The gunmen hear Dean’s phone ringing and despite Mac attempting a distraction, they break into the lift but the boys manage to hide in time. Ziggy leaves a worried voicemail for Dean, who tricks his way into the building, disarming a gunman acting as a lookout on the way. He speaks to Mac when she goes to fetch blankets and gives her instructions before Colby and the police storm the building and take the gunmen down.
The police storm the hospital…
Meanwhile, Robbo is reeling from Scott’s betrayal, especially that he murdered Lance. He talks him down from shooting him off a cliff in the woods and the pair of them head back to the car where Scott breaks down, convinced there is no safe way out for him and his family now. Unable to get through to him anymore, the two men fight for control of the wheel and end up in a huge car crash (which Channel 5 in the UK accidentally cut out of the episode but showed in the recap the next day and on My5).
Scott and Robbo’s car spins out of control…
Back at the hospital, the gunmen are all reunited while Jay protests his innocence. He is told that the prison will be very much be made aware that he is a cop! Marilyn and John are reunited as she breaks the news of Mason’s death. Willow suddenly remembers to be concerned about Alex (although I like to think she was just keeping it all inside).
While Alex urgently treats Bella for her overdose, she and Mac explain to Colby what has happened. In rare moments alone, it’s very clear that the siege has seriously affected Doctor Nielson and she is struggling to cope. Willow throws herself into her girlfriend’s arms and vows to stay at the hospital all night, never wanting to let her out of her sight again. Aww. Maybe she was worried!
While Bella tries to explain herself to Colby, Jasmine can’t work out where Robbo has got to. Her questions are soon answered when he is rushed into the ED, despite it being technically closed. It turns out that Scott died at the scene and even after surgery, Robbo is in critical condition. Alex genuinely has no idea how he is still alive.
Justin and Tori are broken hearted when the police knock on the door and break the news that Mason has died. They decide to go and tell their siblings what has happened in person but then rush to the hospital with Grace when they hear the news about Robbo. He tells them not to halt their plans and says goodbye to his baby girl.
Robbo reassures Jasmine and sends her home to get some things for him. The last thing they say is that they love each other. When she is gone, he breaks down in tears. He knows that he is dying. He urgently tells Colby that Victor was behind the whole thing and that Scott betrayed him and killed Lance. He tells him that everyone will be safe now but doesn’t want Jasmine to know what Scott did because she trusted him. He begs Colby to promise to look after Jasmine. Then he dies. Alex desperately tries to save his life but it’s just too late.
Colby meets Jasmine as she returns to the hospital but she cannot accept that Robbo is dead. She breaks down in his hospital room, screaming and shouting at him and everyone else, desperate for him to wake up. Now, I’m not a Robbo fan but I confess, I found this scene quite emotional. Well done to Sam Frost (Jasmine). You moved me. Colby persuades Jasmine to go home with him where he, Willow and Irene flock round to look after her.
John looks after fragile Marilyn. She feels guilty for never having retrieved the memory book for Tori. If one good thing has come out of the siege, Bella and Mac have finally bonded; Bella is grateful to Mac for saving her life. I think it’s the first time this kid has been grateful for anything! Ziggy attempts to reconcile with Dean but he struggles to forgive her for kissing another man and giving up on their relationship.
Willow is worried about and a little frustrated with Alex who won’t even stop for so much as a cup of coffee and keeps throwing herself into work. Alex insists that it’s just the way she copes with stress. They confess that all they could think about during the siege was each other; Alex says that Willow kept her strong after Mason died. Shout out to Irene in the background of this scene looking absolutely overjoyed at how adorable they are with each other. She is the epitome of every #willex fan out there! Too cute. Another shout out to Lynne McGranger who plays Irene and has been very vocal about supporting LGBTQ visibility on television and particularly on the network Home and Away is shown on in Australia (Channel 7).
Alex visits Jasmine to offer her support both as a friend, colleague and medical professional. Jasmine reveals that she and Robbo had been planning to start a family. Colby supports Jasmine as she struggles to break the news to Tori and to Robbo’s parents that he has died.
Alex finally allows herself to break down on Willow, admitting how frightened she was during the siege and how much she is struggling to cope at the hospital after Mason and Robbo’s deaths.
Alf and Martha return home from their trip and discover the horror that has occurred in the Bay in their absence. As they arrive, John takes Marilyn away to see Jett in the city. Alf recalls the first time he ever met Robbo, who had amnesia, and brought him to live in the Bay. While Jasmine and Colby look on, he gets the residents together (including Roo, Ben, Maggie, Irene, Willow and Alex) to pay their respects to the two men they have loved and lost. Goodbye Mason. Goodbye Robbo.
The Vigil…
During the vigil, Alf proposes to Martha. She freaks out and storms off!
Channel 5, 1:15pm & 6pm (sneak peek, weekdays on 5STAR at 6:30pm)
The Soap Dish 