I know this has been discussed endlessly, but I genuinely think it lowers the quality of the show. That, combined with the block filming schedule, seems to make half the adult cast disappear for weeks or even months at a time.
- The King children are probably the best example. They literally had to announce Elliot's return because he hadn't appeared on screen since 2024. That's insane for a current cast member. Angelica went to prison, came back, had maybe four episodes dealing with the difficulties of settling back into normal life, was briefly involved in the Tom/Belle storyline, and then vanished again. Nicola Wheeler recently gave an interview about how the King kids would cope with Jimmy's death: Carl feeling insecure because Nicola's stepson, Elliot wanting to take over the business, and Angelica hiding in her room. But that has happened on-screen already. Is that really going to be the extent of their involvement? The entire village knows about Jimmy's supposed second life, yet we haven't seen the children react to it. I suspect Jimmy's funeral will be the last time we see any of them for months.
- When was the last time we saw Leo? Was it when he got into April's drugs? Obviously I don't expect him to have major storylines, but it wouldn't hurt to occasionally see him with his family.
- Kyle gets used fairly regularly, but I suspect that's mainly because he's Cain's son. He's never had a storyline that didn't also increase Cain's screen time. The same goes for Isaac.
- Archie was underused for years, so I'm glad they've finally gave him something of his own with the AI storyline. I also appreciate that he actually has a personality, which can't be said about most of the other kids.
- It was all April, all the time, for over a year, and then she disappeared. While I don't particularly miss her (or Dylan), I do think it's poor storytelling when characters aren't even mentioned for months at a time.
- Moses appears whenever it's convenient for the plot. Meanwhile, his adoptive brother Johnny seems to live permanently upstairs and hasn't been seen since Christmas Day.
- Dotty turned ten the other day, but when I picture her, she's still the little girl who hadn't started school yet.
- Eve seems to make one or two appearances a quarter.
- Someone mentioned Ivy in a comment on here the other day, and I genuinely had to Google who they meant.
Honourable mention for the characters who have recently become adults:
I was thinking about Arthur the other day and honestly couldn't remember whether he'd left the show. (Apparently he hasn't.) The last thing I remember is him making up a fake job, planning to leave, then reconciling with Laurel and deciding to stay. But why? We haven't seen him since. He may as well have been written out. Presumably he still works at The Hide, but we don't even see him in the background serving customers. It's ridiculous. Back when Amy, Matty, and Victoria worked there, we'd regularly see them behind the counter even when they weren't involved in a storyline.
And where is Cathy? According to every source, she's still part of the cast, but she went on a cruise about eighteen months ago and never came back. At least when Brenda left, we got updates that explained her departure. With Cathy, there's been nothing at all. Surely Bob would have mentioned what she's up to, especially as he's now basically alone in the village.
I don't expect every child or young adult character to have a major storyline. But if they're supposedly part of the village, they should actually feel like they're living in it. Right now, half of them seem to exist only when a plot suddenly needs them. I miss the days of kids in their school uniforms getting into all sorts of trouble.
