Emmerdale fans think that Nicky Milligan (Lewis Cope) is an "unoriginal clone" of iconic soap character Robert Sugden (Ryan Hawley) as a very similar storyline played out during last night's episode (Tuesday, April 25).
Nicky arrived in Emmerdale after landing a job at Home Farm as a 'manny' for Gabby Thomas's (Rosie Bentham) baby son, Thomas and after his whirlwind romance with Gabby, the couple are now set to get married.
However, the babysitter's true identity was exposed when a shocking bombshell revealed that Nicky was the son of suspicious businessman Caleb Milligan (William Ash).
Not only that, but it was also revealed that Caleb is Frank Tate's secret son — making Nicky Frank Tate's (Norman Bowler) grandson.
Since the discovery, Nicky has been secretly working with his dad to take Home Farm and everything Kim Tate (Claire King) owns.
And Nicky's true intentions with his wife-to-be Gabby were uncovered, with their sham engagement all a part of their plan to steal her share of the assets too.
However, another secret came to light during last night's episode as it was revealed that Nicky was gay after he had a night of passion with his 'friend' Ally, who dropped Nicky back home after their encounter.
Despite his evil scheme against Gabby, Nicky was riddled with guilt for cheating on his fiancé and told Ally that it was a mistake and Gabby didn't deserve it.
"Not for me. Until next time, then," Ally said.
"There won't be a next time," a frustrated Nicky replied.
"Oh, there'll be a next time," Ally quipped.
After being out all night, Nicky returned to Home Farm to a panicked Gabby and apologised for not responding to her calls and texts.
However, Caleb was furious with his son and accused him of being with another woman.
The pair got into a heated confrontation, until Nicky confessed that he couldn't do it anymore and was sick of all the lies.
Later on, Nicky threatened to break up with Gabby to Caleb and begged him to abandon their revenge plan. But a fuming Caleb ordered him to "stop whining" and told him that Kim murdered Frank.
Fans couldn't help but notice how similar Nicky's current storyline was to Robert and Aaron Dingle's (Danny Miller) as they also began an affair behind their partner's backs.
In 2014, Robert got engaged to Chrissie White (Louise Marwood), but embarked on an affair with Aaron, which was eventually exposed by Katie Sugden (Sammy Winward).
Aaron and Robert's aka 'Robron' turbulent relationship went down in soap history, but their marriage came to an end when Robert was sentenced to 14 years in prison for the death of Lee Posner (Kris Mochrie) after he sexually assaulted his sister, Victoria (Isabel Hodgins).
Fans were unimpressed that the soap seemed to be trying to copy 'Robron' with Nicky and Ally and branded Nicky as an "unoriginal clone" of Robert...
Nicky now obviously being an unoriginal Robert clone has actually kinda killed his character for me. Like im struggling to enjoy this storyline now because *shock horror* we've seen it before – Almost verbatim, actually🙃 #emmerdaleApril 25, 2023
Nicky is so Robert Sugden coded #emmerdale pic.twitter.com/4iWZYXu4CHApril 25, 2023
To be honest I feel like #Emmerdale are just trying to do a rehash of #Robron with Nicky and Ally. The scene with Nicky pushing Ally against that car was so similar. It all feels a bit too cliché and forced in my opinion.April 25, 2023
Is it just me or does the whole Nicky and Gabby situation remind anybody of #Robron? I can’t remember who Nicky kissed but that’s the first thought that came into my mind when I saw it! #EmmerdaleApril 25, 2023
Emmerdale continues tonight at 7:30pm on ITV1.
