I hate cliffhangers.

They are the bane of my television viewing experience.

There is nothing worse than your favourite show leaving you hanging for the entire summer, waiting to find out who dies/gets blown up/ has a car accident/ is pregnant.

All Saints (Seven, 9.30pm, Tuesdays) is notorious for gripping season finals that leave you begging to find out what happens next, and their cliffhanger for 2007 was a cracker.

Three gun-wielding bandits burst into the ED in search of drugs. In the process they took all the staff hostage and locked the doors, ensuring no one was going out and no one was coming in.

That in itself would have been a sufficient cliffhanger, but it wasn’t enough for the All Saints team … no, they had to include a bomb which was set to go off in 15 minutes.

Only it didn’t go off before they ended the season for 2008, so all summer we were left wondering what would happen next.

Well what happened next made the season final look like an episode of Playschool.

The events of the first episode of this year sent the ED and hospital into chaos and cemented All Saints’ place as one of Australia’s most popular dramas.

Although it was slightly disappointing that none of the main characters got written out in the dramatic season premiere, we were nonetheless kept on the edge of our seat.

I watched with pride as Frank stood up to hospital admin in front of God and the press to condemn security procedures and at the same time fight for better conditions for his team. But this is certain to cause even more consternation between him and weasely hospital CEO Oliver.

If you aren’t already a fan of All Saints, this series could get you hooked.
Despite being set in what is possibly the most unlucky hospital in the world (this is the second bomb and one of many shootings in the ED), the show’s storylines seem fairly realistic and I have it on good authority that the medial procedures are only slightly over-dramatised. (Although I have never been to a hospital that is staffed by quite so many beautiful people – a broken leg wouldn’t be nearly as painful if Dr West or Dr Beaumont were fixing what ailed you.)

The best thing about All Saints is that it’s not all blood, gore and stethoscopes like other medical dramas; it is peppered with tales about the fascinating lives of the staff of the ED.

Bart’s relationship with his former patient, Ann-Maree, is still continuing and there are plenty of trials and tribulations for that pair to face, even though Ann-Maree’s constant whining is starting to grate on my nerves.

Dan’s experience with hepatitis C and his relationship with Erica is one of the most interesting storylines on television at the moment.

And Frank’s future within the hospital is still under attack, with admin planting a spy in the ED to gather information about his running of the department.

We at Couch Spud HQ have seen the first few episodes of the series and can put our hands on our hearts and say that All Saints just keeps getting better and better this season. Even fans who deserted with Georgie Parker when the team transferred from Ward 17 to the ED are coming back in their droves as the plots become more and more dramatic.

It is no wonder that despite being on television for 10 years now, All Saints is still topping the ratings for locally produced drama, even though it is consistently pushed back in timeslot in favour of shows like It Takes Two and Dancing With The Stars.

One can only hope that the programming genies at Seven realise that it will rate even better if it is given its rightful timeslot.

— NATHANAEL COOPER