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EastEnders has a bit of a Jean Slater problem at the moment. Recent months have seen her become increasingly unlikeable in the wake of being scammed out of her savings, Martin’s death, and the stress of Stacey abandoning her family.
In doing so, she’s lashed out at those around her – inadvertently pushing Harvey into the arms of another, seeking solace with Kathy amid his own grief and sense of frustration at being the family’s punching bag.
Last week, Jean hit an all-new low, sniping at Nigel – describing him as a ‘stupid man’ – as he attempted to lighten the mood over at Stacey’s baps. Has the soap gone too far… and how can it bring Jean back from the brink?
EastEnders needs to lean into Jean Slater’s friendship with Nigel
This week, Jean made up for her poor treatment of Nigel by being there for him in his time of need. Supporting Nigel after learning about his dementia, she popped around with a film and a chat.
In doing so, this was the most tolerable Jean’s been in a while. The soap would do well to lean into this friendship, reminding us of Jean’s kindness rather than her more mean-spirited side.
“Such a lovely scene between Jean & Nigel. Jean sharing her own experience of MH through her Bipolar and how it made her feel like she was “Crushing the people around her”,” wrote one fan on X as these scenes aired this week.
EastEnders writers need to make Harvey less of a sap for ‘nasty’ Jean
As if to justify his affair with Kathy, the soap seems to have turned him into the Slaters’ punching bag. Much of this came from Jean, who accused him of not supporting the family in their time of need, rejected his Greek feast, and treated him like dirt over the whole Maya thing.
What the soap needs to do, rather than pushing Kathy and Harvey together by using Jean as a catalyst, is have him sit down and have an adult conversation with Jean – ending things properly rather than making them both look bad.
“They are doing [it] with Jean, to make it ok for Harvey to cheat with Cathy I hate it when scriptwriters change characters personalities so obviously,” wrote one fan on X of her treatment of Harvey.
Sure, he’s been hard done-by lately (especially by Jean!) but infantilising the man does no-one any favours.
Utilise her caring side
As her conversation with Nigel demonstrated, Jean does have a tender, caring side (when she’s not talking to Harvey).
The soap would do well to remember this, utilising her friendship with others on the Square, including Kojo, who she struck up a friendship with when he first arrived in Walford. Before this, she was there for Dean’s daughter, Jade, ultimately helping her to see the light about her dad.
“Glad to see the caring jean back again as opposed to the nasty version they’ve been writing the last few months,” said one fan.
“Can they bring back the kind, caring, funny, loving Jean please? No idea who this imposter is,” agreed another.
EastEnders should remember the history of Jean
This week, Jean opened up about her history with bipolar as Nigel admitted his fear of being a ‘burden’ to those around him. Her fractured mental health led to her infamous Southampton episode, in which she attempted to take her own life as she began to spiral.
Her conversation with Nigel – and admonishment of Harvey for his genuine ignorance – was a much-needed reminder of her past, and that her attitude of late isn’t quite so black-and-white as you might think.
EastEnders usually airs Monday to Thursday at 7:30pm on BBC One
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