Martin Fowler

[Alisha]

I think that's because Sonia really regrets her decision. I agree -Sonia did what she thought was best at the time but back then she was in a different place, clearly confused and in a difficult position. She was 15 and just given a birth to a baby she didn't plan for. She knew that she couldn't offer Chloe the life she deserved. There have been many mothers in similiar situations who have regreted thier choices months/years down the line. However Sonia made her decision and it best to let things lie now. It also depends on the families perspective on this and whether thier opinion of Chloe's best intrests will change over time. When Sonia heard about the death of Chloe's parents in the paper -her maternal instincts were telling her to check the welfare of her daughter. At that point her intention wasn't to get Chloe back but just to check that she was ok. However seeing Chloe is going to make it very difficult for Sonia to let her go and move on.

I don't think that adoption would be a option for her now but back then she thought she was doing the right thing. After kidnapping Chloe, only months later it became apparent that Sonia deeply regreted her decision and has done ever since.

[RealityGap]

it is a very difficult subject/situation, and depends on what you feel about things. I would say that a teenager who delivered a baby following a pregnancy would stuggle to bond with her baby (speaking as a nurse who has watched mothers struggle to bond with planned babies) therefor not quite sure I always get the fact Sonia is going along with her maternal instincts, as a mother myself I firmly believe my maternal instinct have grown along with the love for my children as I have gotten to know them.

BUT insaying all this EE is a soap and is there to entertain us and the bearing on reality is often blurred, and certainly the story line will no doubt bring out some great acting from James Alexandrou and Natalie Cassidy

[littlemo]

it is a very difficult subject/situation, and depends on what you feel about things. I would say that a teenager who delivered a baby following a pregnancy would stuggle to bond with her baby (speaking as a nurse who has watched mothers struggle to bond with planned babies) therefor not quite sure I always get the fact Sonia is going along with her maternal instincts, as a mother myself I firmly believe my maternal instinct have grown along with the love for my children as I have gotten to know them.

BUT insaying all this EE is a soap and is there to entertain us and the bearing on reality is often blurred, and certainly the story line will no doubt bring out some great acting from James Alexandrou and Natalie Cassidy

Yes I remember when Sonia gave birth she did find it very hard to bond with Chloe/Rebecca. She just wanted the social worker to take her baby away, and needed to get on with her life. At the hospital she felt confused and didn't think the baby had anything to do with her, it was like it had happened to somebody else. But the social worker wouldn't take the baby there and then, and Sonia was made to take the child home and bond with it, which made it very difficult for her to ignore growing feelings.

When Sonia finally gave her child away she felt devestated. It's clear those feelings haven't gone away. Martin was saying tonight that he thought she had put it behind her before, and wondered why she was feeling this way now, Sonia stated she had never got over it. We as the viewers have seen her emotion since she gave her baby away, Martin hasn't, so it seems he is a bit of an outsider.

I feel Martin was 'out of order' (that's a familiar EE saying isn't it) tonight, I know he has strong feelings and emotions about the situation, but what Sonia's going through can't be helped. Martin seems to think Sonia is crazy for even having these feelings for her daughter. And what he said about her being nutty, I know a lot of people have thought this of her recently, but for her husband to say it, it just wasn't nice. I also think Martin should talk about their daughter with Sonia, she needs to talk to somebody, and her husband should be the ideal person. A councillor can be good if you want to speak to somebody anonymously but you should be able to talk about your partner about something like this.

Martin needs to get on Sonia's side more. He can talk about his feelings, she can talk about hers. I'm sure it would help if they opened up, they love one another, and it's important to be there for each other.

[littlemo]

What did you think of the Chloe storyline tonight? It seems Martin and Sonia are really drifting apart. I don't think I'm on anybody's side, it is all very complicated. I have sympathies for both characters.

Martin is a bit on the outside of things, and is feeling that he may not be enough for Sonia, which is a horrible thing to be feeling. But on the other hand the person who is competing for her affection is his daughter, and he shouldn't feel jealous of that. He really wants to protect Sonia from getting hurt, but he can't because her maternal feelings are taking over her mind. I don't think Martin can compete with that.

I feel sorry for Sonia, Martin is trying desperately to understand what she's going through, but he can't. They are in love, but at the moment they are both at complete loggerheads. People keep telling Sonia that once she sees Chloe she is not going to be able to stop, and they are all right, and Sonia knows it but she can't help herself. We saw Sonia tonight with Chloe, and we knew that it wasn't going to be the last time she saw her. As soon as the grandmother suggested her coming around again, we knew what her reply would be. It's a great storyline!

[*JSW*]

I thought we saw good progress tonight in this storyline. Its almost as though we saw 'nutritional growth' in the emotions of Martin and Sonia. I think for the first time tonight we saw Sonia getting addicted to the drug which is Chloe.

I'm hopeing we'll continue to see similar 'evolution' in this storyline in the coming weeks. So far this week I had been disappointed (poor writing undoubtedly to blame), the inconsistancies to create a moving storyline was really becoming irritating but tonight I felt a very organic feel to things. Natalie Cassidy had a script where you could feel the emotion similarly with James Alexandrou and Jim (don't know who plays him!) but not to such a greater extent...

Certainly stronger progress tonight...

[mandypops]

my partner and i have been through an adoption assessment and we were asked to name somone who would look after our adotpive child if something happened to us. Also nominated persons would have to give their consent, so if eastenders have done their research chloes/rebeccas adoptives parents would have done the same thing. When parents give their children up for adoption they lose all rights and I mean all rights. The child even gets a new birth certificate with the adoptive parents name on and not the birth parents. So Matin and sonia have no rights at all as regards to Rebecca. If the child goes back then this is 100% unrealistic and I will switch off for good. If something happened to us I couldnt bear the thought of our 6 year old being put back with birth parents instead of the family he has grown to love.

[sarah21]

I really don't know where EE are going with this storyline, whether it is just finally covering the emotional fallout of Chloe's adoption between Sonia and Martin, or whether they will try to get her back. But, I do believe that whatever the outcome, it will be something that could happen legally. It is too important a topic and EE know that.

I enjoyed the scenes tonight. Natalie and James are talented and I felt so sorry for both Sonia and Martin. I wish Martin had talked to Sonia last night when she desperately needed to speak with him. Now he wants to talk, she is bottling it up and closing off, you could see it in her face. It is going to cause so many problems for them, I wonder if they are strong enough to cope with it all.

[Ruby21]

I believe Martin and Sonia have a very strong relationship, this is the first major crisis in their marriage, apart from the stalker and Sonia forgave Martin even before she found out that nothing happened with Sarah which proved the strength of their love for one another. Their main problem so far has been living with Pauline, in fact they have been so loved up its weird to see them fight ! It will interesting to see what happens after they both see Chloe next Friday and how they cope afterward. Its complicated but I could'nt help thinking last night when I saw Chloe's elderly grandma , that Martin and Sonia should be a part of her life as her grandma won't be able to look after her forever and then her life will be disrupted again and she will find out when she is older that she was adopted and could resent her parents for not fighting for her. Whereas if she can now develop a relationship with Martin and Sonia when her grandma is no longer able to look after her , living with Martin and Sonia will seem natural to her. Chloe would still remain in contact with her extended adopted family. Ultimately its up to the executive producer but i really hope Martin and Sonia remain Mr and Mrs Fowler, i love the idea of them been the new Pauline and Arthur without the cardigans !

[.:Kitz:.]

Yeah, but some how i can't see Sonia down the pub with Dot and comparing dodgy hair cuts can u? ha ha, only kidding. Personally, i totally agree with u even tho i'm FAR to young to remember arthur and pauline together!

[littlemo]

I believe Martin and Sonia have a very strong relationship, this is the first major crisis in their marriage, apart from the stalker and Sonia forgave Martin even before she found out that nothing happened with Sarah which proved the strength of their love for one another. Their main problem so far has been living with Pauline, in fact they have been so loved up its weird to see them fight ! It will interesting to see what happens after they both see Chloe next Friday and how they cope afterward. Its complicated but I could'nt help thinking last night when I saw Chloe's elderly grandma , that Martin and Sonia should be a part of her life as her grandma won't be able to look after her forever and then her life will be disrupted again and she will find out when she is older that she was adopted and could resent her parents for not fighting for her. Whereas if she can now develop a relationship with Martin and Sonia when her grandma is no longer able to look after her , living with Martin and Sonia will seem natural to her. Chloe would still remain in contact with her extended adopted family. Ultimately its up to the executive producer but i really hope Martin and Sonia remain Mr and Mrs Fowler, i love the idea of them been the new Pauline and Arthur without the cardigans !

You make some very good points here. I agree that Sonia and Martin are great together, it's amazing how their relationship has grown from them being a couple of kids who hated each other, to husband and wife. I would love it if their relationship lasted, however I can't really see Natalie Cassidy staying long enough to become the next Pauline Fowler to be honest. I think she's such a great actress.

What you just said is exactly the way I want the situation with Chloe to happen. Sonia and Martin should be allowed access to their daughter. I don't know who Chloe/Rebecca should live with or who would benefit her in the long run. Her adopted grandmother is somebody the child knows quite well, and can probably give her a lot of things Martin and Sonia can't, but her feelings for Rebecca can't be as strong as Sonia's. I think a parents love is important. If Sonia and Martin keep contact with Chloe, at least she'll know she isn't an orphan.