Coronation Street Scene of the Week (Jan. 22/12)

Sympathy for the devil

I never thought it would happen: I felt sympathy for Kylie and appreciation for Gail. When Kylie told Gail she wanted Max to be put up for adoption, she explained why.

She would never be able to be a good mother. Her own mother had told her that, had said the best thing she could do for the kiddy was drop him off on a stranger’s doorstep. She hadn’t done that and she’d heard her own mother’s voice in hers when she dealt with him. He’d be better with someone who knew how to be a mother. She would be just like her own mother. She wanted better for Max. And she couldn’t go through losing him again.

And Gail shut up and listened. She sat on the stairs beside Kylie and put her arm around her. After Kylie had bared her soul, she hugged her and said she could be a fine mother and that she and David and Nick would help.

Supportive Platt-style

I hadn’t expected to react as I did to this scene at the beginning. It started with Gail asking why Kylie didn’t want to fight for Max. When Kylie said she just didn’t and it was her business not Gail’s, Gail launched into her. David has been nothing but supportive of you blahblah-blah, she went on. I said to the screen “You call that supportive? Supportive is helping someone clarify what they want and why, then respecting their decision. It is not ramming what you want down their throat!”

David was being supportive of the idea of having Max with them. That is not to say that he would continue being supportive in the event of Max actually being with them. And he certainly wasn’t being supportive of Max not being with them, which was what Kyle wanted. Whatever her reasons were, she had made her decision crystal clear in my opinion.

Believing that Kylie should not have custody of a goldfish, I thought her decision was the correct one for her, Max and her marriage. David should not be responsible for the welfare of a goldfish either. But I softened when I listened to her explain why she felt she’d be a lousy mother. What her mother did to her is not right. What Gail did is right.

Despite the sympathy and surprising understanding shown by Gail, I think Kylie still was railroaded into seeking custody of a child that she may or not be able to give stability. But it was nice to see beneath Kylie’s horrible brassy surface and see a vulnerable young woman who does occasionally have a serious thought. It was also nice to see her and Gail look at each other with something akin to respect and warmth.

What was very sad was seeing Becky when she learned David and Kylie were seeking custody. Becky needs Max and I think she could give him a stable and loving home.

By the next episode, Kylie was back to being her hideous self. But I’ll never again be able to watch her with my previous loathing. She dropped the shell and let us see behind it. I liked what I saw.