By Liam de Brun

Copyright manchestereveningnews

EastEnders viewers said they were ‘transported back to the 2000s’ as they ‘worked out’ where Zoe Slater and Vicki Fowler’s rivalry is heading. Zoe has certainly made her presence known since Michell Ryan returned to the role that made her a household name during her initial stint on the BBC soap. Last week saw the character in hospital after she was accidentally shot by Jack Branning and Ravi Gulati, unaware that it was them behind the incident. On top of being back with the Slater family, it was revealed that Zoe gave birth to a pair of twins in 2006 through a flashback sequence. Additionally, Zoe had an affair with Max Branning earlier in the year, but left him after leaving private investigator Dolan for dead after hitting him with a lamp. In scenes aired on Monday night (September 15), Zoe was still shaken by the shooting, but the police insisted it wasn’t a targeted attack. The Slaters welcomed her home but overwhelmed she rushed out over being the centre of attention in Walford. At the Café, Vicki confronted Zoe about Dirty Den Watts, forcing Kathy Beale and Anthony Trueman to step in. Vicki brought up Zoe’s role in her dad Den’s death 20 years ago, which Zoe was framed for by Chrissie Watts. The feud didn’t stop there, with Vicki following her to The Albert where the argument continued as Zoe said Vicki’s family didn’t care for her, to which she stated she was happy she didn’t grow up thinking Sharon Watts was her mum. Later, Zoe joined the Slaters at The Vic but was furious to learn Freddie and Mo shared details of her ordeal online and a local paper wrote an article about the shooting. The episode concluded with Zoe leaving a message on Max’s phone, saying they needed to talk as she said she was a ‘sitting duck’. Zoe is convinced that the private investigator that she contacted to find her son is after her and arranged the attack that left her in hospital. Over on social media, the discussion around the episode was centred around Zoe and Vicki as EastEnders fans are adamant they’ll exchange further blows moving forward. @tiffraymonds said: “Loving the Vicki and Zoe rivalry #EastEnders.” @whoniversalnew1 added: “vicki vs zoe!! absolute cinema #EastEnders.” @annalisekeatinq wrote: “The vicki/zoe scenes in tonight’s episode are absolute gold! It’s so good watching those two go back and forth with the dialogue, essentially trying to ragebait each other.” @awittywizard noted: “Omggg Vicki vs Zoe in today’s episode IM SO SAT #EastEnders.” @RyanSoapKing25 commented: “The nostalgia between Vicki and Zoe tonight was brilliant. It was like being transported back to the early 00s all over again. Zoe definitely got the upper hand on Vicki here.”