Director: Duncan Foster
Writers: Debbie Oates
Watch Now: ITVX or STV
Well Swarla-nation, hostage week is finally here! Initially teased in an ITV trailer at the end of February, it feels like we’ve been waiting 84 years to get to these scenes. Not that I’m being dramatic in the slightest.
As the episode opened, we saw Rob order Tracy to cook out of date spaghetti hoops, and tell her to summon Carla to number 1 Coronation Street. At Carla’s flat, I was surprised to see Bobby keeping Betsy company I have to say. He said was trying to make up for things, despite Betsy being adamant she didn’t need a babysitter and wanted to ‘be more Nina’. Carla’s phone rung, Tracey asked her to head round to Ken’s house to discuss a business proposition. Carla wasn’t completely convinced, as when she turned up she accused Tracy of being in contact with Rob. She then found none other than her brother (who she thought had escaped abroad) in the living room looking ‘half dead’.
Tracy served up the spaghetti hoops, which Rob referred to as ‘the last supper’, and his plan became clear. He was going to end his life, even if it meant provoking the police to shoot him, as he would rather die than go back to prison. Something he told his prison officer partner, Mandy, back in February when they were planning his escape from hospital. Carla tried to engage with Rob, encouraging him to escape again and visit doctors abroad, proudly declaring that Lisa would help her to help him.
Back at the flat, Lisa arrived home to find Betsy and Bobby having lunch. Betsy informed her that Carla had gone to Tracy’s to talk about spreadsheets and flowcharts, and you could see Lisa’s suspicious arousing right away.
As Rob drifted in and out of sleep, he’s woken by a knock at the door, and we saw Lisa peeking through the letterbox and the window to see if there was any life in the house. Carla tried to jog Tracy’s memory and encouraged her to find some ‘stronger painkillers’ in a tin in the kitchen. Tracy got up to retrieve them, but it actually transpired Carla was hinting at a spare key for the back door. She unlocked the door, and made a swift exit, bumping into Lisa in the ginnel, who calls for backup from Kit.
As Rob threatened Carla once again, waving his gun around, Lisa appeared in the kitchen. Rob ordered her to lock the back door and take a seat next to Carla, once again referring to her as clingy. Rob and Carla discussed their childhood, with Lisa looking on, and it made me wonder how much of her history Carla has actually shared with her girlfriend. Was Lisa hearing about them begging for food from their neighbours for the first time?
As the armed response team arrive, and Kit makes contact with Rob, demands are made. Rob asked for butterscotch angel delight (Carla’s favourite pudding) to be delivered to the house, along with fortune cookies for Lisa (in the moment she can’t decide on her favourite pudding, although I’m sure she has one, I mean who doesn’t have one?).
Rob’s anger escalated, but Lisa eventually managed to get the gun from him. In all honesty, she should have taken the clip out of it quickly, but that wouldn’t lead to the dramatic ending and upcoming storyline, would it?
Rob launched himself at her to try and get the weapon back, and in the struggle the gun was fired. Armed response made their way into the property, where they found Carla holding Rob on the floor so he wouldn’t get away. Once they had him restrained, Lisa provided comfort for Carla, before hearing that there had been a casualty. A teenage girl.
As Lisa walked out of the kitchen, we saw a bullet hole through the window, and Betsy laying on the floor in the ginnel having been shot in the shoulder. After her worries around leaving the flat in recent episodes, I was surprised to see she was outside, let alone managed to get past the armed response somehow, but that’s sneaky teenagers for you!
Betsy was loaded into an ambulance, Carla told Rob to get some help as he was loaded into another ambulance, and Lisa travelled to the hospital with Betsy. An incredible episode if you ask me, I was on the edge of my seat for most of it. Can’t decide if I would have rather seen Lisa get shot, and Carla panicking she could have lost her, but I’m sure in upcoming episodes it will become clear why they went with Betsy for the storyline.
Our next episode recap will be tomorrow! Thanks to the football for messing up the schedule this week, we don’t have to wait long for the aftermath of today’s drama!
Swarla HQ xo
Images copyright of ITV