Hollyoaks - Enjoy The Ride. (Contains spoilers!)

A couple of months ago it was announced that Hollyoaks was going to air one of their biggest stunts ever in the show's history. The episodes was based around the double wedding of Cindy and Tony, Doug and Ste, Cindy and Rhys' relationship and where it would escalate from there. It involved teenagers, a heroic Jono, explosions, one of the best soap deaths... EVER, fantastic performances, editing, directing, it was simply brilliant.

When it was first announced that the crash was going to happen, it was 'confirmed' that there was going to be two deaths. Which lead to some fans battling and thinking of possible victims. At the start, this is who I thought was going to die...

Maddie - I thought Maddie could die because she's been such a main bitch and a bully I thought the time was up for the character. In some episodes characters would often tell Maddie that one day she'll get what's coming to her, for example, Callum.

Rhys - I thought Rhys would be a certain character to die. I think with all the Cindy-Tony-Jacqui storyline, I felt that there's nowhere else they could take the character of Rhys. I haven't really been a fan of Rhys but I think the last two/three weeks, Rhys has been brilliant.

Doug - I thought long and hard about this one, I thought it would be the only way that Ste and Brendan could get back together, which online it shows both characters in Dublin, and supposed to be back together... I think the character of Doug has been there for too long now, he was exciting and brilliant in the beginning but I think he should of died when he was about to commit suicide.

These are my thoughts about who actually died in the crash/aftermath:

Neil - I think it was a certain that Neil was going to die as soon as him and George swapped seats. I really liked it how George said he was dead but as soon as Maddie was about to leave the minibus, he spoke, asking for help, which was a shock as we did actually think he was dead in the first place. And with Maddie leaving him, it really shows how much of a callous bitch she really is. I think she left him there for one; obviously to save herself. Two; to put the blame more on Esther. I think it was the right choice for Neil to die as he wasn't exactly a favourite of mine.

Maddie - Wasn't this just the best soap death EVER? I think this was such a brilliant way for the character and for the actress to leave. As the audience thought that Maddie was still alive, just left her friend to die and the bullying of Esther, BOOM, as the minibus blows up, the door hits Maddie leaving her dead... I do think Maddie and Scarlett (Who plays Maddie) was underrated. I think she is a brilliant actress and she really made Maddie likeable even though she isn't a very likeable character. I think they could of done so much more with Maddie, I'm sad to see such a brilliant bitch leave.

Rhys - One of the saddest yet brilliant performances ever. This was such a brilliant death. The way they left Rhys and Jacqui just play the scene out for the end of the episode was just brilliant. I also think that Jacqui (Claire Cooper)'s performance was stunning. Just amazing, you could really see the emotion, you felt so sorry for Jacqui. As the audience knows, Cindy and Rhys was going to leave together until the minibus crashed into the venue, which I think gives more impact on Rhys' death. It was also good to see a vulnerable side to Jacqui. I think it was a very slow build-up but it really paid of, Andrew and Claire was both amazing.

Jono - The one who died a hero. I really liked the fact that Jono was the 'hero' saving all of his friends, being the soldier he so desperately wants to be. We all thought that Jono was safe, we all thought that he was the one who was definatley safe, saving his friends... until a tragedy occurred. Whilst outside The Dog In The Pond, Jono was lying down in Ruby's arms whilst she tells a story of her childhood looking at the stars out of her bedroom window, as she told him that they should go inside, he died of a blood clot. This was such a monumental scene and I think it was the best performance from both Ruby and Jono. The music was just brilliant to go with the scene and the scene was just so simple yet really effective and emotive.

Another emotional scene was this scene:

It's just so effective, the way she is trying to wake her father up wondering what's going on... I'm not really a big fan of the character of Ste but one thing I really like about him is the relationship he has with his children. Especially Leah. And this just sums up their relationship to me, just brilliant. I really loved seeing much more Leah in these episodes doing more and saying more. I hope she gets used much more in more storylines to come. 

What also happened during the crash/aftermath:

• The return of Holly Cunningham - I was really excited for Holly to come back, I thought that she would be great for the character of Cindy and would give Cindy something much more to do rahter than having an affair with Rhys or hurting Tony's feelings. There has been lots of discussion that Wallis Day, who plays Holly, is to hold to play Holly, who is a fourteen year old girl. I think that she may be a bit old to play her but she doesn't look that old, most fourteen year old girls look much older these days and I'm really excited to see what is in store for Holly.
• Sinaed being pregnant - We all knew that she had a one night stand with someone a couple of weeks ago, but when in hospital following the crash, she found out she was pregnant. Who's the father? Rhys? Darren? Ally? Callum?... 

Best performances during the week...

1. Claire Cooper. Blimey, this woman was simply amazing during this week, well, we all know that she has been amazing since she has joined the show but she really did play these episodes brilliantly. I would be really surprised if she doesn't win any awards for these episodes as she was simply excellent. The aftermath of the crash is also a very fine performance from Jacqui as she finds out about Rhys' plans to leave her. Claire Cooper is one of Hollyoaks' finest actresses and she won't be going for a long time.
   
   
2. Stephanie Waring. Steph's performance of Cindy is always brilliant and I am so impressed on her performance during this storyline. At first, I was about hesitant of the Cindy/Rhys storyline but I just think its one of the best performances from Steph. You can really see the love she has for Tony but you can tell that Cindy wants Rhys too and you can see how torn she really is between the two of them. I can't wait to see what's coming up for Steph and Cindy.
   
   
3. Scarlett Bowman. Some people might be surprised to see Scarlett/Maddie there but I really do think her performance these episodes has been brilliant. At first, she wasn't a very good actress apparently ... well, I think she always has been a good actress, it was just the material letting her down but this week has just been brilliant for both Maddie and Scarlett. I can see a long future and a fantastic career ahead for the beautiful Scarlett.
   
   
4. Dylan Llwellyn. I think since Hollyoaks Later, Dylan's acting has improved a vast amount. But this week/episodes, he's been brilliant. Jono's relationship with Ruby has been the driving force for the characters and the actors but I think Dylan made Jono his own and I'm kind of gutted to see him go and for the relationship of Jono and Ruby to be no more. Plus, his final scene was just right.
   
   
5. Andrew Moss. Andrew's performance has just been brilliant these past episodes and these episodes has been the first time for me to actually really enjoy watching the character. The main thing that I really like about Rhys is his relationship with Jacqui. In his final scene, you could really see how much he loves Jacqui, even though he was about to run of with Cindy... but, you could see how suited they both were. Andrew and Claire work so well together. It'll be sad to not see that again...
   
   
6. Nick Pickard. Nick has been in the show since the beginning and he is still brilliant. But in the past, I have often thought that he hasn't been given anything to do, a storyline on his own, something for him to shine. But this storyline has just proved to me how brilliant Nick and Tony is. I thought Tony loosing his eyesight was a very good storyline and it was good to take Tony in a new direction but being in 'Soap Land', things was about to change. Having his sight back, he seen Cindy cheat on him with Rhys, leaving Tony devastated. I think his performance has really been excellent and I hope one day to see a Tony/Jacqui reunion.
   

Overview.

This has been such a brilliant week for Hollyoaks. The writing, the acting, the special effects, the directing, the editing, the music has all been just brilliant. I really hope that Hollyoaks win big at the soap awards for these episodes as they deserve them so much. I really enjoy soap stunts, that's one of the main reasons why I watch them but Hollyoaks have really out done themselves with this week and I hope the standard continues at 'Oaks. Goodbye Neil, Maddie, Rhys and Jono.

Thank you for reading. The photographs that I used in this post was either taken of the Hollyoaks website or Digital Spy.