It was with a mix of grief, excitement and Kylie Prosecco that my wife and I tuned into the second to last episode of Neighbours on Friday evening.  And this is my review…

Izzy’s Breakthrough

While Mal spent time with his parents, Izzy reluctantly took the Ramsay Street History Book from Levi to fill in her entry.  Well, she does have a lot of stories to share!  She was full of regret for her infidelity with Shane, only compounded by Karl’s beautiful entry and his life and shared experience within the community on the Street.  Izzy looked through the pages of some incredible precious people from Ramsay Street, including Dorothy Burke, Todd Landers, Beth Brennan and Lou Carpenter.

Meanwhile, Kyle reluctantly told Karl and Susan what he witnessed between Izzy and Shane.  However, when they charged over to the hotel to confront her and reveal the truth to their son, Izzy had got their first and Izzy and Malcolm had broken up.  While at first they believed she was trying to find a way out of the situation, they found her broken, having realised that dating Mal was never about him – it was all about them.  She was desperate for their approval, acceptance and inclusion and always has been.  While neither they, nor Mal were forgiving, it was Susan, of all people, who took pity on her later.  Reading her very honest entry in the History Book, Susan’s advice was that she didn’t need their acceptance, she needed to learn to like herself in order to be happy.  But the best line in all of it, was Izzy’s, wondering if Susan had slipped on milk again and lost her memory!

Jane’s Dilemma

Jane sought advice from Susan.  Well, if anyone knows about learning to love someone again after betrayals and lies, Susan is your woman!  Jane was upset over Clive and also over both her kids moving away at the same time, having only just got them back again.  Meanwhile, Clive was very optimistic that he would win Jane back with a throwback to the eighties – donning a Gorilla-gram to declare his undying love for Jane.  However, he was left frustrated when they were interrupted by a noisy motorbike zooming around the Street.

Mike Young’s Return

And who did the noisy motorbike belong to but Jane’s first love, Mike Young?!  Of course!  But in a surprising twist, it turns out that Chloe’s assistant Sam, who has been diligently working away in the background all these weeks, has been Mike’s daughter, all this time.  I hadn’t even noticed we never knew her surname all this time!

Mike strolled into Paul’s office, with Paul having just confirmed that Sam would keep her job when Shane took over.  Sam had wanted to keep her Dad’s identity a secret and not have it influence whether she got the job or not.  Conveniently, Mike has recently moved back to Melbourne and is also recently divorced.

The Originals Reunite

After Paul, Sam and Mike bumped into Jane, they, along with Harold and Shane all went for drink, catching up on old memories including Paul and Jane meeting at school, the time that Charlene stole Mike and Scott’s clothes and when Shane and Mike got into a boxing match over girl.  I was only small but I definitely remember Charlene stealing their clothes.  And I remember them burying her in the sand on the beach!  This is how long Neighbours has been part of my life.  I was born in 1984 and back in the early days of Kylie, Jason, Mike, Jane and all the 80s gang, I used to sit in my sisters’ bedrooms and watch Neighbours with them.  I loved it!

So, Clive spotted the bike parked and intended to angrily confront the rider until he realised it was Mike; Clive and Daphne were once his guardians.  After Jane left to continue the wedding plans (Mike evidently does the best impression of Melanie!), Clive took Mike aside, awkwardly explaining that he and Jane are going through a rough patch but he is doing everything he can to get her back.  He politely requested that Mike didn’t get in his way.  We’ll see how that works out…

Toadie and Mel’s Wedding

Speaking of the wedding, Callum returned just in time for Toadie and Mel’s wedding – and I should think so too, as the wedding date was planned around him.  He cannot get his head around his Dad moving away from Ramsay Street.  He gifted an ornamental pig to Mel to welcome her to the family.

Amy’s Return

Amy surprised Toadie and Mel by returning home, explaining that she had met up with Joel, who had made her understand that she wasn’t in love with Toadie after all.  She had become confused with their friendship and the fear of losing that, confusing her feelings for love. 

Name Drops: Dorothy Burke, Todd Landers, Beth Brennan, Lou Carpenter, Charlene Robinson, Scott Robinson, Daphne Clarke

Arrivals: Callum Rebecchi, Mike Young, Amy Greenwood, Joel Samuels (in Cairns), 

Departures: None