Since her return to EastEnders, Janine Butcher (Charlie Brooks) has mainly been living up to her conniving reputation. It’s exactly what we expected from the troublemaker; but could she be in danger of earning herself a shelf life?
It’s not that Janine’s plotting is out of character – it’s very much on brand. However, she has barely paused for breath over the last few months. Messing with the Carters – specifically poor Linda (Kellie Bright) has certainly kept her busy.
The wedge between Linda and husband Mick (Danny Dyer) was widened by Janine, who set her sights on a romance with Mick. After coaxing Linda into breaking her sobriety, Janine manipulated her into ending her marriage – and Mick went on to fall for Janine.
But Janine knows that Mick still cares deeply for Linda, and she wants her gone for good. Stepping up her game, Janine waved champagne under Linda’s nose, encouraged Linda’s housemate Jada Lennox (Kelsey Calladine-Smith) to have her thrown out, paid her to leave Walford and conned their daughter Nancy (Maddy Hill) out of her life savings in order to fund the scheme.
Most recently, while trying to stop Linda from revealing the truth, Janine crashed the car with both of them inside. She then dragged an unconscious Linda into the driver’s seat, framing the intoxicated woman. Pretending she was a passing stranger, Janine fled the scene, letting someone else raise the alarm.
She later took suspicious daughter Scarlett (Tabitha Byron) away from the Square, securing an alibi before rushing back to play the supportive girlfriend for Mick. Janine’s dirty tactics continued when she discovered that Linda had used the stolen money to buy into the salon, inadvertently paying off Sam Mitchell (Kim Medcalf).
After a warning from Sharon Watts, Janine turned the tables by threatening to call the fraud squad on the comatose Linda, as there was no proof linking Janine to the theft of the dodgy cash. So Sharon reluctantly agreed to keep quiet – for now.
I can imagine what many will be thinking as they contemplate this headline. The very idea that Janine could be on limited time is almost unthinkable. Charlie Brooks’ iconic catalogue of work in the role has earned her much acclaim since she made her first appearance in EastEnders back in 1999.
My question is whether the soap is exhausting Janine as a villain; and if so, how far will she go before she is pulled back from the brink?
We’ve seen how soap baddies are either dispatched at the appropriate moment or redeemed to an extent that allows them to stick around. Janine definitely falls into the category of characters we don’t want to lose; but she is at risk of burning out.
Yes, she’s done worse over the years. Who can forget the brutal moment she left husband Barry Evans (Shaun Williamson) to die after pushing him off the edge of a cliff?
But during this era, Janine’s storylines thrived on one vile act at a time, rather than an endless selection all at once. There used to be a reasonable gap between her misdemeanours, and it allowed for a more layered approach in exploring who Janine really is.
Those layers resurface when she bonds with her daughter; and when she reminisces over dad Frank (Mike Reid). Memories of Frank were referenced in Janine’s dialogue prior to the crash; but no sooner had we been reminded of her rich backstory than we were thrown right back into her chaos.
Her conscience has, at least, kicked in to a degree; and we know Janine is capable of showing humanity. When she killed husband Michael Moon (Steve John Shepherd) before he could poison her to death, it wasn’t the act itself that was the problem, given that it was a matter of survival.
Rather, it was her decision to let Alice Branning (Jasmyn Banks) take the blame. Let’s not forget, though, that Janine eventually put things right by ensuring Alice was exonerated, delivering half-truths to get herself off the hook in the process.
As ever, actress Charlie does a sterling job of blending together those two sides of Janine. But when her latest cruelties are inevitably uncovered, where does Janine go next unless she stops conspiring long enough to find out?
With her evil deeds piling up and at risk of undermining her development, I hope EastEnders will give her a break from so many merciless machinations. After all, Janine is one soap villain who should never have an expiry date.
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