Our Neighbours Finale Wish-List!
- Angel Noire
- 1 day ago
- 7 min read
We’re hurtling towards December and for soap fans, we know what’s coming… the end is neigh, we mean nigh for Neighbours! It’s with very heavy hearts that we know that our favourite Aussie soap that has kept a lot of us entertained for over four decades is now coming to an end.
Hang on - didn’t they say it was ending three years ago? Yes they did - and it did! But then by some miracle, Neighbours returned to our screens - only for it to be given the axe yet again! While many are living in hope that this iconic TV show can be brought back to life yet again, for now at least, it looks as though it’s disappearing from our screens for good. We know, we know - all good things come to an end and all that.
As we’re weeks away from the final episode, Neighbours’ fans are wondering what the finale is going to look like the second time around. It’s been said that it’s going to be very different to the soap’s finale back in 2022 - and we can’t help feeling a bit disappointed. Different doesn’t necessarily mean it won’t be good, but we feel the show ended on such a high the last time. There was a rekindled romance, a wedding, characters we hadn’t seen for years, oodles of nostalgia, and gasp - a return from the king and queen of Ramsay Street, Scott and Charlene, as original actors Jason Donovan and Kylie Minogue very generously reprised their iconic roles one last time for the fans. But it was Guy Pearce who totally stole the show as Mike Young. And let’s not forget Susan Kennedy’s heartfelt monologue as the final ever - or so we thought at the time - episode drew to a close. It really was the perfect blend and we don’t see how the next 'final ever' episode can can top that. But we’ll soon find out…
Many of us will have ideas on how we would like to see Neighbours end. Here’s our wish list. We’re hoping for a miracle with number one - but it probably won’t happen!
1. Mike and Jane Back Together Again!
Neighbours’ fans cheered when the love story of Mike Young (Guy Pearce) and Jane Harris (Annie Jones) came full circle and the lovebirds reunited after more than thirty years apart in the show’s finale (the first one!) While viewers back in the eighties went crazy over the pairing of Mike and Jane’s best friends, Scott and Charlene, many of us were pretty big Mike and Jane fans too, and couldn’t understand it when the latter split up after Jane fell madly in love with Des Clarke who had always been a kind of father figure to Mike. No, we couldn't see it either!
But while Scott and Charlene got married; moved to ‘Brizzy’; had a family and are still happily loved up all these years later, the path of true love wasn’t quite so smooth for Mike and Jane who faced more than their fair share of bumps in the road over the last three decades. Their story couldn’t have been more different to that of their besties. So our little inner twelve year old’s heart skipped a happy beat when Mike and Jane finally got back together in what was the Neighbours’ finale of 2022. Never mind Toadie and Melanie’s wedding - it was the Mike and Jane show!
However our inner twelve year old’s heart broke once again, when Mike and Jane split up yet again during the show’s reboot, when their long-distance relationship floundered and Mike fell for his boss, Angela. Like we didn’t see that coming! If truth be told, we knew that once it was announced that Neighbours was returning to our screens, it was game over for Mike and Jane as it was highly unlikely that actor Guy Pearce would be reprising the role of Mike Young full time. But the fans are eternally grateful for the appearances he did make during the reboot. Thanks Guy! We just wish writers had found a way to keep Mike and Jane together. It’s a huge amount to ask for, we know, but we would like to see Mike and Jane get their happy ever after once again as Neighbours disappears from our screens - and maybe for good this time. However with Mike and Angela’s (off-screen) wedding imminent, and Jane’s former flame, Clint back on the scene, that’s looking highly unlikely.
But we still love Mike and Jane regardless!
2. A Baby For Krista and Leo
The trip to the altar was a pretty long and difficult one for Leo and Krista Tanarka. There was Krista’s addiction issues; the tragic passing of Leo’s twin brother, David; the arrival of Krista’s vindictive sister, Fallon; Leo’s business woes, and not forgetting Krista’s rather creepy and annoying bestie, Seb, with whom she cheated on Leo the night before their wedding - thanks to Seb and Fallon's manipulative tactics. But it was the stillbirth of her baby daughter, Hope, that very nearly destroyed Krista. And even though she’s created a good life for herself as a successful businesswoman, loving wife, and doting stepmum to Leo's daughter, Abi, the pain of losing Hope is still as strong as ever. So much so that Krista is adamant that she never wants to get pregnant again.
Enter Nicolette Stone - mum to Leo and Krista’s niece Isla who has offered to have a baby for the couple that they will all ultimately raise together. What could go wrong? Well where Nicolette is concerned - a lot! And while Leo and Krista were enthusiastic about the idea at first, it became clear that Krista was having second thoughts. In the end, the couple decided not to go ahead with this arrangement and are now looking into fostering.
But one this is for sure. Kind, caring, compassionate Krista was meant to be a mother. So we hope that by the time the show ends, there might be a miracle on the way for Krista and Leo (just as there was for Kyle and Roxy.) Even if it does mean that disappointingly, we may never meet Baby Tanaka.
3. Nostalgia Fest
Never mind a walk around Ramsay Street, if there’s one thing Neighbours does well, it’s a stroll down memory lane, and they’ve always known how and when to amp up the nostalgia, with returns from well-remembered characters and mentions of storylines from days gone by. Neighbours has done a great job in bringing back characters we thought we’d never see again: Jane Harris; Glen Donnelly; the Alessi twins; Annalise Hartman, Sam Kratz… Even Hilary Robinson has her own apartment at Eirini Rising! But the mother of all comebacks has to be Mike Young with Scott and Charlene. Who’d have thought… In the days leading up to the show’s first finale, it turned into something of a nostalgia fest with appearances from Joel Samuels; Beth Brennan, Sharon Davies (a real blast from the past!) and the infamous Izzy Hoyand. Even Margot Robbie reprised her role as Donna Brown in a video clip where she took us back in time with the mere mention of… the shruggalero (a cross between a shrug and a bolero for those who don't know!)
We wonder who they’ll bring back this time. With the return of Zac Willis who hasn’t been on the street since he was a baby, could his mum, Gaby be heading back to Erinsborough? We hope so!
4. Paul Robinson Back at Lassiters!
You can take the man out of Lassiters…
Since the show began, Paul Robinson has always been the heart of Lassiters, Erinsborough's hotel and shopping complex. In more recent times, he’s handed over the reins to his daughter-in-law, Krista Tanaka (not so much handed the reins over but had them wrenched from his very firm grip when Krista realized she could not work with her overbearing father-in-law!) as he’s contemplated other alternative life choices such as spending more time in New York or starting a new business with his daughter, Elle. Paul has started other business ventures before - remember The Flame Tree Retreat? - but somehow, he always manages to find his way back to Lassiters. Could this happen before Neighbours comes to an end???
5. A Happy Ending For Felix Rodwell
Andrew Rodwell’s brother Felix is that rare type of soap character - the bad guy genuinely turned good. Felix is no Finn Kelly that’s for sure! When he first arrived on Ramsay Street, it was clear to see that the Rodwell brothers were as different as night and day: Andrew, law-abiding citizen and police officer as well as a dedicated family man… And Felix who’d been in and out of prison, showed no sign of giving up his dodgy ways and had absolutely no interest in being a dad to his long-lost son, JJ Varga-Murphy. Then there was the classic cliché of finding God after another spell in prison! Could anyone be blamed for not believing him?
But he first arrived in Erinsborough, Felix has really worked hard to turn over a new leaf. And although he’s not so religious these days, discovering his faith marked the beginning of the new and improved Felix. He was a good friend to Holly Hoyland, helping her to work through her trauma; worked on his relationship with JJ, and is now regarded as an upstanding member of the community having left his criminal past firmly behind him. In fact, after Andrew’s affair with Holly became public knowledge recently, it’s Felix who is now considered the ‘good brother!’
And ever since Felix bumped into the newly-returned Elle Robinson, there’s been something of a spark between the two of them. They went from love-hate to will-they-won’t they… and we hope they definitely will! They are like something out of a Mills and Boon novel and we think it’s so cute how he calls Elle ‘Red’. Come on, Neighbours - let Felix have his happily ever after!
How would you like to see Neighbours bow out?
Photos: YouTube
GIFS and stickers: Wix
Blog graphics: Angel Noire
I don't think the last ever episode will be anywhere near as good as the last time, I'm afraid. With roughly four weeks to go, the show doesn't look like their aiming for the finale. It all seems a bit banal I'm sorry to say.