2 July 2013

Offspring - always the highlight of my Wednesday night.

The only problem about blogging Offspring, a show I completely adore, is - where on earth do I start? Its outstanding cast? The brilliantly written episodes? Its Melbourne backdrop? Nina's elaborate fantasy sequences? How dreamy Dr Patrick Reid is? And that's only a few of the things that come to mind...

I think I'll just begin with my thoughts on season 4 so far and see where they take me.

Note: If you're not up to date with the show on TV there will be spoilers.

When the Season 3 finale ended with Nina and Patrick discovering they were expecting a child together, I knew the wait for season 4 was going to a be tough one. Six episodes into the season, I can say that it has been well worth the wait. The introduction of new characters, registrar Eloise Ward (Caren Pistorius) and Patrick and Nina's counsellor, Lawrence Pethbridge (Ido Trent), has only added to the show's already impressive ensemble cast.

I love Patrick and Nina's counselling sessions with Lawrence and how they have provided an excellent segue into some pretty amusing fantasy sequences and flashbacks. (I've listed some of my favourite Nina fantasies below). Patrick's smile in these sessions (yes, you know the one I mean!) is another reason to love seeing the pair smoothing out the bumps in their relationship before the baby arrives. Speaking of the baby, I really loved the scene at the end of episode 5 where Nina and Patrick are in bed and the baby kicks. Cuteness of the moment aside, talking to the baby saw Patrick's attractiveness sky rocket. (And how hilarious was Clegg butting in from their couch?! I loved him as their house guest!)

New character Eloise provided plenty of intrigue when it came to her connection with Patrick. I picked her initial connection to the anaesthetist but wasn't quite sure what the big revelation about her was going to be. The text message Eloise sent Patrick is a lot clearer now that we know of her crush on Nina. And if you thought there couldn't be any more opportunities for awkwardness in Nina's life, this crush would've convinced you otherwise. Already we've seen Nina nearly sit on Eloise's guinea pig and accidentally drop the word 'lesbianism' into conversation with the the young registrar at work. And now that the nurses know about the crush, I have a feeling things are going to get a lot more awkward! This can only be a good thing for viewers, as Nina in awkward situations means a whole lot of laughs.

Speaking of awkwardness, Nina's boss Martin Clegg has provided it in bucket loads since his break-up with nurse Cherie. Cherie leaving the doctor to go off on a road-trip with Darcy has taken its toll, and while we feel the man's pain, how he has dealt with the split has provided plenty of laughs. Getting his ex's face tattooed on his arm during a drunken night out was just the beginning of Clegg moving forward. His two week stay at Patrick and Nina's, while disruptive for the couple (poor Nina when he baby-proofed the toilet closed!), gave us some reminders of why we love just how strange he is and also why Lachy Hulme is the perfect actor for the role.

Kat Stewart has been outstanding again this season. While I really want to see Billie happy, Kat is fantastic when it comes to the more emotional story lines. The only downside is that seeing Billie in tears always makes me want to cry! I was hoping she'd be able to run Proudman Real Estate on her own but, after seeing episode 6 last week, I'm just really glad her and Nina's friendship is still in tact - it's one of my favourite things about Offspring. I also love Mick and Billie's relationship. A line of Billie's in episode 5 "Mick's my rock" is something I think sums up their relationship. Mick balances out Billie's chaos and always knows the right thing to say. I hope all the drama with the business settles down soon because their relationship is at its best when they're both happy. It's been good to see Mick and Rosanna's music really taking off, however. Also, I was really hoping the song Mick sung to Billie this season would be on the show's latest soundtrack (out July 5), but sadly it isn't.

I loved seeing Jimmy's taco business do well in last week's episode. If it were a real store, I would be there in a flash! I thought it was great that Phillip gave him the capital to start the business too. Garry McDonald was such a good casting choice for Nina's biological dad and I love that he's become so close to the Proudman family. He constantly has me in fits of laughter. One of the funniest moments this season, for me, was when Phillip's knee gave way as he was saying goodbye to Darcy. I also loved his use of the word 'pinkle' in the spa with Geraldine and Darcy.

Another great addition to the cast has been Kevin Hofbauer as Kate's new boyfriend, Joseph. I loved Patrick interrogating him at the start of the season when they were first introduced. Patrick's protectiveness towards Kate is something that we've seen since Patrick's first appearance at the hospital back in season 2. I love that they're so close and can't wait for this week's episode to meet their father.

While I could continue typing for goodness knows how long, I'm going to leave this post here. My next post on the show will be devoted to Offspring's filming locations, I think. Stay tuned! And enjoy the new episode tomorrow night.

Favourite Nina fantasies of season 4 so far (in no particular order):

1. Patrick and Nina playing tennis.
2. Nina giving birth to a troll doll, porcelain owl and a pineapple, among other things.
3. Patrick in bed with Eloise, saying he'd never remember her name.
4. Nina imagining people (including Matt Preston) declaring they have a crush on her.

Honourable mention for the most elaborate fantasy: Nina and Eloise in the boat.

My to-watch list for tonight:
My saddest one yet - the two hour final ever episode of Packed to the Rafters. Going to miss this Aussie Drama so much and be an absolute mess by the end of the two hours.