Could Offspring's Nina and Patrick be doomed already?

WE'VE all been waiting with bated breath for the hot new doctor to hit town, but could she spell trouble for Offspring's Nina and Patrick?

WE'VE all been waiting with bated breath for the hot new doctor to hit town in the new season of Offspring, but could this young surgeon spell trouble for Nina and Patrick?

The fourth season of Ten's hit drama returned to our screens last night and fans were quickly brought up to speed with the calamity and chaos that has been ensuing under the Proudman roof.

While the debut ep didn't exactly blow the ratings out of the water - nabbing 868,000 viewers during its 8.30pm timeslot - it's a promising figure for the beleaguered network, which has been buckling this year with the likes of The Biggest Loser and MasterChef.

An adorable 'welcome home' party for Zara and Jimmy's bub Alfie sheds some light on who's with who - Geraldine is busy frolicking with Nina's biological dad Phillip, Cherie and the hilariously awkward Martin Clegg are trialling their first outing as a "family unit", and new mum Zara has decided to give adorable Jimmy the benefit of the doubt and move in with him.

The gathering takes an embarrassing turn when the family realises they've all forgotten to invite dad Darcy (John Waters), who's feeling very redundant in the whole scheme of things.

Meanwhile, Nina is already having bizarre pregnant lady dreams about giving birth to inanimate objects.

She's also busy crafting a wall of post-it notes in preparation for the bub at her counsellor's request. (All eyes on this hunky newcomer by the way - Lawrence Petherbridge, played by Ido Drent).

But the big question on everyone's minds last night was - what is this new registrar's deal? How does the shy Dr Eloise Ward know Nina's man and is she planning to open up old wounds from Patrick's peppered past?

offspring - season 4

offspring - season 4

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