Critical discussion / spoilers allowed

[sheepiefarm]

Jan 19, 2011 16:52:03 GMT -5 beautifullion69 said:

Jan 19, 2011 16:25:09 GMT -5 sheepiefarm said:

@nom & Patroclus

Double bluff my arse.

Those scenes have got less to do with Aarson and more to do with the Cain / Charity / Jai storyline.

You've read waay too much into them.

Say what you see on the screen.

Aaron looking confused about it all - then as Charity walks away - the penny drops for Aaron.

At best - Aaron may have mentioned in conversation to Cain & Charity that Jackson is fed-up.
As you'll see from tonights ep - they are just being used as pawns in the other storyline.

but why would charity say 'i won't tell anyone and ruin your bad boy image' as if aaron actually did something nice/thoughtful? that whole moment was confusing mostly due to aaron's reactions.

Its her subtle way of saying that maybe he doesn't do stuff like that for Jackson himself i.e look how made up he is by feeling useful - when does Aaron make Jackson feel useful.
Her "bad boy" comment is actually a slight dig at him.

[beautifullion69]

Jan 19, 2011 17:04:03 GMT -5 sheepiefarm said:

Its her subtle way of saying that maybe he doesn't do stuff like that for Jackson himself i.e look how made up he is by feeling useful - when does Aaron make Jackson feel useful.
Her "bad boy" comment is actually a slight dig at him.

maybe we should just ask the producer (@thetonyhammond) about this scene on twitter:) i haven't seen tonight's clip yet, maybe they really are, as you say, just pawns in charity's game.

[nomdeplume8ie]

Again, I said my theory was convoluted
I didn't necessarily believe in it.

... So then, for Charity's actions to make sense, her visit to Jackson at the start, and her fake story was from a genuine attempt to cheer Jackson up, since she couldn't have actually planned that Jackson would send her chocolates in order to make Cain jealous of Jai... it was just her being opportunistic of Jackson's generosity.

[Zathras]

Jan 19, 2011 16:25:09 GMT -5 sheepiefarm said:

Double bluff my arse.

OMG, I should never read things out of order . I read this part of your post before I read patroclus' post right above it. Then for a minute I was thinking this was some weird expression in the UK that I've never heard before, and was trying to figure out what the heck it might mean. ;D ;D ;D

Anyway, back to the regularly scheduled program...

[carld2]

The Aarson couple theme.

[nomdeplume8ie]

Well, I remember going to a seminar where Scott Hamilton Kennedy (director of an oscar nominated documentary 'The Garden (2008)'), saying that all good stories must have a conflict, be it internal or external, in order to keep the audience interested.

And I think that the problem with the Aarson storyline, at the moment, is that there's not enough conflict.
Yes, we do have Jackson's internal conflict of coming to terms with his paralysis, and Marc's doing a wonderful job of that; however, with regard any conflict between Aaron & Jackson, I ain't feeling it... at least not from Aaron's side anyway .

I'm getting Jackson at the moment, feeling his every emotion, in spite of the fact that Marc has to rely entirely on voice and facial expression to get it across (and without being histrionic either).

But with Aaron, no.... nothing. I ain't feeling anything on my radar. He's just coming as a bit meh (how long ago was meh added to the Oxford english dictionary? ). If Aaron's visiting and taking care of Jackson out of supposéd guilt, then it's not coming across to me on screen. If I'm doing something out of guilt, at some point in time or another, I'm going to vent out my frustration (even something as little as a sigh) about having to give into that guilt, be I alone or in somebody else's company.

And yet, in today's scene, for example, we had Jackson saying to Aaron to go out and stop sacrificing his own social life in order to care for Jackson. And how did Aaron react? Meh.... If he is sacrificing his social life, shouldn't we actually see the effect it has on Aaron, perhaps a scene or two with Adam would help portray that (but the Barton's seem to be on holiday around that time of filming ) .... but if it's nothing to do with guilt, and if he actually wants to help Jackson then there should be some tangible opposition in Aaron to Jackson's requests for him to go away... but no.... not feeling anything on that side either.

I'm just not feeling anything from Aaron, be it love for Jackson, guilt for the accident, or any semblance of internal conflict with trying to find out what he thinks he wants or desires or needs. If he was going through depression, that, perhaps could explain his emotional vapidness at this moment in time, but he's not, so... Aaron, to me, has now just become a character who bends in the direction of the prevailing wind. I don't even know what his motivations are anymore.

(Maybe I'm being a bit harsh on Danny, but I just know that he's capable of doing better, à la 'Aaron's coming out story'. )

[sheepiefarm]

Oh well – it seems we are on the cusp of hearing the much awaited (or not, in my case) ILY from Aaron to Jackson.

I feel I must congratulate Emmerdale on the sheer cunning genius of this gay love story.
A gay love story that has been devoid of romance, sexual desire, human intimacy – in fact – it’s a love story that has been devoid of the one essential ingredient that any love story should have – a visible affirmation to the viewer that the two principal players are indeed, actually in love.
Of course, it comes as no surprise that this declaration of love comes now – now that one member of the pairing has been effectively and definitively immobilised.

I must also congratulate Danny vote-for-me Miller on his perfect portrayal of the most frigidly, romantically sterile, asexual gay guy ever to find love on a soap – its been flawless.
But then – the producers did manage to make it pretty easy for him – one visit to a gay bar and hey presto – the perfect boyfriend was just waiting for him.
And how perfect was that boyfriend – confidently out & proud, successful business & social life, caring & upbeat by nature, understanding & thoughtful – indeed, the only person in the whole wide world who could possibly “get” Aaron. And lets not forget his selfless altruism – constantly willing to forgive and forget – even after being assaulted, ignored, verbally abused – in fact – he sucked up anything that Aaron could throw at him, and it just made him love him more.
And, as if that wasn’t enough – he’s now transcended the abyss – and become the ultimate tragic gay hero – what’s not to love about a gay martyr to love.
His succession to the heights of gay sainthood, up among the pink fluffy clouds, where kittens are cute and puppies never grow old is almost certainly assured!

I can’t even give it credit for originality – since there’s nothing original about the old formulaic context of “gay guy comes out & falls in love with the first guy that crosses his path”.
Its only claim to originality is the amazing plot devices that have been concocted to keep these guys together, and yet, at the same time, ensure the sterility of any romance.

Initially – I could go with the flow, in the thinking that Jackson was Aaron’s “gay tour guide”. The plot device that gave Aaron credence to his new-found sexuality and discovery of himself – the one-off throwaway character for Aaron to exercise his learning curve on – but somewhere along the way, the story changed.
Jackson became a revered demigod – and Aaron disappeared up his own backside.
Aaron used to be a vibrant, colourful character – complex and fascinating.
Now – to call him one-dimensional would be generous. He has become totally devoid of any personality whatsoever – a human vacuum of stylised crying and over exaggerated facial expressions.

The story itself might have been interesting if it hadn’t descended into, what can only be described as an “Arthouse film” style of direction. You know the kind, where its all style over substance – you sit for an hour and a half – get to the end – and realise nothing actually happened.
This story has become boringly bloated in self-indulgence – so turgid with over inflated angst and stylised performances, that it’s forgotten to do the one thing that a soap story should – and that’s tell a character driven story.

It is somewhat ironic that, undoubtedly, in the run up to the BSA’s, it will be lauded & applauded by the great & the good “cough O’Grady cough” and might even attain an award or two – when in reality, the coming out story was far superior and more deserving than this overly indulgent, latently homophobic offering.

[sooky]

I feel your pain, Sheepie.
I feel your pain.



(I didn't know that it's confirmed now that Aaron says the magical three words. "Finally", as you said.)
I'd add something but I wouldn't know what I could. I can only nod in silent agreement.

[patroclus]

sheepie: one of the major problems for me is the studied ambiguity of all of Aaron's motivations. Thus we see he obviously does want to follow up on Flynn - and he seems relieved and pleased to be back with Jackson. He's presented as such a passive character these days who essentially goes with the current of whoever he's in the company of!

To read a spoiler which says 'Aaron announces his intentions' is startling. I'd forgotten he was capable of having such definite things!

[justinate]

I have to confess, while Aaron's coming-out s/l was brilliantly played by Danny Miller, almost everything on the romantic front has been an utter failure. I cannot believe he is going to play this character as asexual, devoid of even the most basic intimacy in the privacy of their own home. Okay, I get Aaron is not comfortable with snogging his boyfriend in public. But when they're alone, he can't even muster up the slightest bit of passion? Come on, don't tell me the Aaron character is not the least bit passionate. Someone who feels things so strongly (anger, despair) apparently stops feeling anything where love is concerned. They can't seriously expect us to buy think that this TEENAGE character is going to go through life without expressing the slightest affection towards his love interests. Maybe an 8-year-old or an 80-year-old can be portrayed as asexual ... but for everyone else on a soap, romance is a very large part of their repertoire. If the current s/l is Danny and the writers' idea of romance for Aaron ... well!

[caitlinp]

The comparison to a typical art house film is spot on, except for the fact that, as patroclus points out, Aaron's character has been so poorly developed. We have no idea why he does the things that he does, what motivates him, or what he wants. Part of that is because of the writing, and part is because of Danny's acting choices.

[mycatfox]

In light of the sharp deterioration at all levels that has been suffering the storyline since the "aftermath of the crash", I came to the conclusion that it would have been better if Jackson had died in the accident. Then Emmerdale wouldn't have had to make the character almost completely paralyzed ("paralyzing" the s/l at the same time, as a side effect ) in order to portray this very improbable gay couple that is "devoid of romance, sexual desire and human intimacy"

Aaron would have had to deal with the shooting pain of having lost Jackson right after that intensely emotional talk that -ultimately- led to the tragedy

Of course, Aaron would have cried a river (increasing the chances of more awards for Danny Miller :, and we would have been spared from this truly nonsensical storyline


Oh, well...I guess anything else would have been waaay better than what we were/are watching lately...



(Edit: anything >>> anything else )

[patroclus]

hi, mycatfox: I'm not so sure the storyline is nonsensical exactly to me, more that's it's not effectively dramatic. In fact to me the forward/backward movement in a relationship struggling to end but neither parties able to finish it is pretty realistic (I've been there!)

BUT it's not dramatic and that's a problem. Individual scenes are intense and powerful - but they don't move the narrative anywhere. It's like there are two performers doing well but flopping about inside a storyline like a paper bag and they can't find the opening! The writers seem terrified of committing Aaron's character down any definite route. I can't see how they can realistically keep switching viewers' interest and attachment on and off indefinitely without provoking a weary backlash - a point sheepie has evidently already reached.

[mtnviewboy]

I felt the storyline is simply trying to outdo EE religion/sexuality contradiction, but so far it only makes it worse not better in terms of viewer relatablity. While Chryed flip-floped their relationship, we never doubt that the chemistry always exists. You can't say the same thing to Aarson relationship.

[Zathras]

(Sorry about the length of this post )

You know, I have a love/hate relationship with this storyline (so to speak ). The coming out was wonderfully done. Danny's portrayal of the turmoil was incredible, and the scenes with him and Dominic were outstanding. It felt like the story made sense and had a purpose. And even Jackson's presence early on was important and felt right, even if Jackson wasn't anything more than a plot device.

But then something happened. I'm not sure I can put my finger on exactly when it happened, but somewhere along the line I think they decided to change directions. And I'm not even really sure why. The cliché of the closeted guy being driven out because of the attraction he felt for another guy doesn't even bother me, per se, but for some reason they had Aaron try to pursue a relationship with Jackson. I remember wondering, "what happened to the guy who was so terrified of being gay?" Not only was he pulled out of the closet, but now he was actually trying a relationship with another guy. It wouldn't have been bad, if they had continue Aaron's character growth toward accepting himself and being (relatively) comfortable in his own skin. But they didn't. Suddenly he was okay with being out and about with Jackson and having everyone know about it. Wha…?

So … okay, then, I thought, I guess I'll roll with it and see where it goes. Of course, if they're going to try to make a go of it and keep Jackson around longer (after he already served his plot-device purpose), they better let us get to know more about Jackson. Um … well, that didn't really happen, either. So then we had Aaron and Jackson in a relationship. Yet they just looked like friends, not lovers. Except for the first time, there wasn't any serious discussion that they even had a sex life. Or any kind of physical intimacy that you'd expect from two people that age in a relationship. They were hardly romantic at all, and it just felt off.

Then they went on holiday together and suddenly they were shown to be a little more flirtatious. Okay, I thought, now we're getting somewhere. And then everything fell apart again. Okay, so Aaron screwed up yet again with his temper. The whole business with Mickey drove Jackson away, and I thought that was it. And it would fit, too, if Aaron returned to his normal personality and that caused his boyfriend to leave. It would have made some sense if it ended there (despite my still not being sure exactly why they were together in the first place). It would have been nice to have Aaron clearly pining for the lost Jackson and (eventually) realizing that it was because of all his anger issues. Just like coming out, it could have been a catalyst for some growth on the part of Aaron. But it didn't happen that way. Instead, after an intensely emotional argument, Jackson drives onto the railroad tracks and is instantly paralyzed.

Hmm, okay. Well, that was a plot twist I didn't think would happen. So, what was going to happen with Jackson? With Aaron? With their relationship? Of course Aaron was going to feel guilty about it, and for a while I hoped Jackson wouldn't have permanent, near-total paralysis. At the time I wondered what the point of it would be. Was this all a set up for Aaron to learn a lesson much like the events that led to his coming out? And, if so, what lesson would it be? Where would Jackson's paralysis lead? There was some discussion here about an assisted-suicide route, but I didn't really think they would end up there. Despite how bleak it looked, exactly what lesson would that teach Aaron? Of course, I was thinking that Jackson (and then Hazel) were still serving as plot devices for Aaron's journey, which was an assumption on my part. Of course, I suppose they could still go down the assisted-suicide route. It wouldn't make any more sense to me now than it did then, unless Jackson sinks further into his depression than he already is.

Anyway, we finally got some more insight into Jackson's past with the introduction of Jerry. Jerry was an ass at the outset, but he relented a bit after some persuasion by Aaron and Hazel. It helped us understand some of Jackson's behaviors, especially with regard to Aaron's anger issues. And after his coming out it was nice to see Aaron standing strong against the homophobia pointed directly at him. It still wasn't entirely clear what Jackson saw in Aaron, let alone how he could be in love with Aaron. Okay, I guess I can take that at face value, I thought, since we can't control how we feel about those around us. Still not sure where Aaron stood, though.

And even with all of that behind us, you might think that nearly losing your boyfriend would be enough to draw Aaron a tiny bit out of his shell and get him to be somewhat more demonstrative, even if just in private. Hell, I could even allow a little time for Aaron to get used to their situation. But that one day Jackson was nearly weeping at the thought of not being able to feel Aaron any more … and Aaron still couldn't bring himself to touch Jackson in the one place he could actually feel it. Argh! I find it very hard to believe that Aaron is so devoid of empathy that he wouldn't be moved to do something to make Jackson feel like he wasn't alone. Unless … Aaron doesn't really feel all that strongly for Jackson, after all. In a lot of ways, Aaron's behavior strongly implied (to me, anyway) that he was only hanging around with Jackson out of guilt. And if that were really true, Jackson pushing him away would be the right thing to do. After all, Aaron didn't really seem to be trying to do the things you'd expect a boyfriend to do. Sigh.

So, is Aaron going to end up admitting he's actually in love with Jackson now? I really have no idea anymore. For someone so screwed up in understanding how to deal with love, I can understand it taking a while to figure out. But if he was really in love, or has fallen in love, he hasn't really shown it. And even if he does say it, would Jackson believe it? And would he stay together with Aaron? And if they end up professing their love for each other and sticking together, what happens then? If they really cared about physical intimacy, I might think they would try to explore any options they have. If they don't (which seems highly likely at this point), it seems like we'd be in store a very uninteresting romance. While I can accept them together (at face value), I don't really have any interest in watching a supposed romance where the two protagonists don't even bother to try to show their affection.

I have a pretty high tolerance for incongruent stories, and I tend to be pretty patient. But that patience is not infinite. I've more or less gotten to the point that I don't really care what happens to either Aaron or Jackson (well, except that I don't want Jackson to die). That's kind of a dangerous place for them to have put themselves. When people stop caring, they stop watching. I pretty much got to that point with DeRo when the EKP ladies stopped posting subtitled clips. Even though some nice folks have stepped in to fill the void EKP left behind, I found it hard to get interested anymore and haven't watched any of the new clips in a while. Maybe I'll go back and try to catch up, but I'm not holding my breath. I don't want that to happen with Emmerdale.

[margarite6666]

I have just been watching the new episodes of GTST and Ludwin. What a difference! I believe the UK shows are all a bit scared of any complaints. I have also watched Hollyoaks who do allow a gay couple to be seen in bed and they do kiss. However, there are these silly laws which say that in a scene with 2 men one has to have clothes on despite the fact that 2 mens chests look the same. As to Aaron and Jackson there was never any chemistry to begin with as the actors obviously have psychological hangups about being affectionate with other men. Again with Ludwin we see touching and putting hands through hair etc; all of which people in love will do. Recently we had the case of the 2 teenagers killing that gay man in London. A soap like Emmerdale which is watched by up to 9 million can do alot to change attitudes . What they have to do is make you care about them as a couple. I don't. I don't even know if the writers tried whether Danny etc can pull it off. I read an article in which he said that he probably was in love with Jackson but that would not stop him going with other blokes. I hope they don't make him promiscuous because this would just reinforce a stereotypical view that all gay men are promiscuous. As to Jackson I cannot understand his character. He says that noone loves or understands Aaron like he does. If you look at the scene before the accident you hear Aaron explain exactly how he feels. He doesn't know if he loves Jackson. Jackson still wants him to say the words and is dismissive of what he says. He also said that Aaron would know when he fell in love despite having no other reference. Again we look at Edwin in GTST. He also is 18 and had no previous experience. He knows what he feels: the funny feeling you get when someone you like touches you; how you feel just looking at them and looking away when they look at you. You know when you like someone: I remember the first person I had a crush on. Hence I don't think the writers know exactly where they were going and how to handle it. I have a feeling that British soaps are so wrapped up in winning soap awards that they aim the stories towards great dramatic climaxes so that they will win votes. I can see this S/L leading up to Danny crying his eyes out again. I think most people seem to have cottoned on the fact that they are being manipulated. Personally I take exception to that. Some people have take exception to viewers not likeing the fact that they made Jackson so disabled. In real life people like Steven Hawking show what can be achieved. However this is a soap opera. There is a reason why characters make miraculous recoveries and they have made this S/L just depressing beyond words. I have written to Ofcom about the silly rules we still have in the UK about 2 men together. They say they do research to gage public opinion but we seem to be behind even the US now.( Kish in bed together when this was broadcast in the early afternoon). I think perhaps people should start petitioning Ofcom to bring us alongside our European neighbours.

[bsgnut]

I've been doggedly watching these clips in hopes this storyline will turn around, but geez, it's just so awful! I got excited when they brought on Flynn but now it appears he's just a plot device? Ugh!

Could it just be a case of writers that don't know what to do with gay characters other than make them come out of the closet? Soaps are first and foremost about romance and relationships, yet there has been precious little of either for Aaron and I wonder: is it just the show being squeamish?

Several posters have alluded to Danny and/or Marc refusing to do onscreen intimacy-- do we have real evidence of that? I find it hard to believe actors would have that much power to resist what the writers and directors tell them to do.

[mycatfox]

Feb 17, 2011 23:52:08 GMT -5 bsgnut said:

Several posters have alluded to Danny and/or Marc refusing to do onscreen intimacy-- do we have real evidence of that? I find it hard to believe actors would have that much power to resist what the writers and directors tell them to do.

Straight from Danny Miller's mouth:

Q:"We don't often see Aaron and Jackson show much physical affection for each other. Has that been a deliberate thing - perhaps to show how the relationship isn't as strong as people might think?"

A:"No it's not, it's more to do with my personal decision. I mean, this is Aaron's storyline - it has been for the past two years - and it's a point that I've always chosen to do. Regardless of girls or boys, Aaron has never been an intimate person and he's never been a person who would walk up to someone else in The Woolpack and give them a kiss, because he's insecure and he's not a happy bunny, really. I think it's been a personal decision on my part that I've chosen to do that with the character of Aaron, because he's not an intimate, cuddly person - he shuts his emotions off and he doesn't care what people think of him."



The entire interview, here

[bsgnut]

Feb 19, 2011 20:06:56 GMT -5 mycatfox said:

Feb 17, 2011 23:52:08 GMT -5 bsgnut said:

Several posters have alluded to Danny and/or Marc refusing to do onscreen intimacy-- do we have real evidence of that? I find it hard to believe actors would have that much power to resist what the writers and directors tell them to do.

Straight from Danny Miller's mouth:

Q:"We don't often see Aaron and Jackson show much physical affection for each other. Has that been a deliberate thing - perhaps to show how the relationship isn't as strong as people might think?"

A:"No it's not, it's more to do with my personal decision. I mean, this is Aaron's storyline - it has been for the past two years - and it's a point that I've always chosen to do. Regardless of girls or boys, Aaron has never been an intimate person and he's never been a person who would walk up to someone else in The Woolpack and give them a kiss, because he's insecure and he's not a happy bunny, really. I think it's been a personal decision on my part that I've chosen to do that with the character of Aaron, because he's not an intimate, cuddly person - he shuts his emotions off and he doesn't care what people think of him."



The entire interview, here

Thanks for posting!

Okay, I can understand this argument EXCEPT we're not talking about affection in public we're talking about affection in private-- there was precious little of that even before Jackson was paralyzed.

I get that they've chosen to make Aaron this dour, troubled character, but after his coming out they've shown him growing in other ways (controlling his anger, forgiving his mom, etc.), so you'd think they'd want to show him being more affectionate, especially when Jackson clearly needs it so badly.

I still blame the writers and producers more than Danny Miller because they're the ones that truly call the shots. If they wanted a real romantic storyline for Aaron they would write it and Danny would act it the way he was directed.

In my view, Emmerdale doesn't particularly care about entertaining the audience with this storyline. They seem to crave acclaim and awards for Danny and Marc's acting prowess and are giving them as many horrible things to play as possible.

[HQ75]

Actually, Danny Miller said that when they initially told him that Aaron would come out as gay, he was very "concerned" about what would be required of him in the role and the writers and directors assuaged his concerns.

So actually, I think they chose to write the role within the limitations of what Danny was willing to do and continue to do so.

They obviously wanted Danny for this role and he's gotten loads of attention so it would be to the detriment of the writers and directors NOW to try to push Danny to do things on screen that he isn't comfortable with.

There are plenty of soap actors of UK tv who kiss and hug and hold hands with and are romantic with their on-screen gay partners and it doesn't change their core personality.

You don't have to be a huggy, feeling man to be sexy with your boyfriend.

There are loads of examples in the other British soaps that belie what Danny believes about Aaron.

If, in fact, Aaron does love Jackson (and Danny Miller has says that he does) then we know they have had sex and some affection between them and the fact that we have NEVER in a year seen that on screen except for 3 kisses on the lips (even when the characters were alone together) has nothing to do with Aaron's personality and EVERYTHING to do with Danny's lack of comfort with kissing and touching other male actors.

We'll see how long the fans are willing to put up with it if Aaron is a character that is to have longevity on the show.

The farther we the viewers get away from Aaron's teen years and his coming out/suicide, the harder it will be for folks to tolerate how chaste and uptight Aaron is with his onscreen love interests.

[mycatfox]

HQ75: If one reads carefully the interviews with Danny, Gavin and Marc, it's not unreasonable to think that the events occurred as you say:

Danny probably got scared when Gavin told him that Aaron would be gay. And given the uneasiness of Danny, Gavin reassured him that Aaron would not be a conventional homosexual (?) ("don't worry, Aaron will hardly touch or kiss another man" ).

Perhaps this promise was not in open contradiction with Emmerdale's notion on how to approach this storyline: given the background of the soap opera on this issue, I don't think the initial idea was too far from Danny's ...

Anyway...


We may never know what really happened. But I guess one thing is sure:

Feb 20, 2011 16:41:13 GMT -5 HQ75 said:

We'll see how long the fans are willing to put up with it if Aaron is a character that is to have longevity on the show.

The farther we the viewers get away from Aaron's teen years and his coming out/suicide, the harder it will be for folks to tolerate how chaste and uptight Aaron is with his onscreen love interests.

[md1347]

Feb 20, 2011 12:42:32 GMT -5 bsgnut said:

In my view, Emmerdale doesn't particularly care about entertaining the audience with this storyline. They seem to crave acclaim and awards for Danny and Marc's acting prowess and are giving them as many horrible things to play as possible.

Isn't that how most gay storylines end up? Certainly here in the US. European soaps are better, thank goodness.

[md1347]

Feb 19, 2011 20:06:56 GMT -5 mycatfox said:

Straight from Danny Miller's mouth:

Q:"We don't often see Aaron and Jackson show much physical affection for each other. Has that been a deliberate thing - perhaps to show how the relationship isn't as strong as people might think?"

A:"No it's not, it's more to do with my personal decision. I mean, this is Aaron's storyline - it has been for the past two years - and it's a point that I've always chosen to do. Regardless of girls or boys, Aaron has never been an intimate person and he's never been a person who would walk up to someone else in The Woolpack and give them a kiss, because he's insecure and he's not a happy bunny, really. I think it's been a personal decision on my part that I've chosen to do that with the character of Aaron, because he's not an intimate, cuddly person - he shuts his emotions off and he doesn't care what people think of him."



The entire interview, here

I think for the most part, what Danny says is true. Remember the history of Aaron. Unwanted by his parents and constantly being shifted from home to home but at some point, he will have to begin opening up to others or his character will suffer and he'll be marginalized or written out.

[mycatfox]

Spoiler for Monday 14th March: "Hazel worries about Jackson's foul mood following his night with Aaron"


I can't really imagine a happy Jackson after his night with Aaron : having been in bed with your lover and not being able to -physically- feel him like you did before must have been an incredibly painful reminder of the life that you won't ever have anymore...

Predictably, this traumatic experience will probably be a crucial factor in Jackson's decision to commit suicide, if the storyline goes down the AS route

I am convinced that showing the tremendous difficulties of living with this type of disability was not the real intention of the soap opera , so why did Emmerdale make Jackson a quadriplegic?

The obvious answer would be that this was a formidable way to avoid showing physical intimacy between the gay characters, either for not offending its more conservative audience, or due to Danny Miller's (allegedly) unwillingness to touch or kiss another male actor .

But I would like to hear what you guys really think...

[sheepiefarm]

And there we have it – Aaron’s metamorphosis from emotionally repressed, socially dysfunctional, self-hating closeted gay teen to exalted gay superhero boyfriend is complete.

Aaron’s gay soap destiny fulfilled as he utters the immortal I Love You to the first available guy that crossed his path.
Even after being abused, assaulted and rendered physically immobile – even after being called a nutjob, a physco and getting dumped a gazillion times – events that would have floundered any ordinary heterosexual relationship and had each partner running in the opposite direction in a bid to recover their self-respect and dignity – these two cling to each other like the tragic wreckage from a nuclear explosion.

Because in soap, Gay love can only be portrayed as something rare and precious, only justified if it is seen to be pure, everlasting and all consuming – its only entertainment value derived from its unique ability to conquer all obstacles in its path as the heroic warriors do battle with the world itself to be united – and ultimately, its only nemesis being death itself!

And we, as viewers, do our duty and cheer at the overcoming of adversity and weep at the forlornness of the tragedy.

In soapworld why do gay relationships always have to be something extraordinary?

It saddens me that a gay story that started out with such character driven intensity and reality has ended up becoming crippled by its outdated idealism and sentimental symbolic tokenism.