Egg McMuffin

Merlin’s acting was wooden in everything I saw him in: Little House, Father Murphy, and Aaron’s Way.

The blind school was in Winoka, a fictional town in the Dakota territory. If we use South Dakota as a proxy for Dakota (North Dakota would be further from Walnut Grove), then Winoka could be as little as 100 miles away if it’s in the eastern part of Dakota, or at least 400 miles away if it’s in the western part.

And Nancy. She likes to murder people, you know.

I thought it was great that the show carefully set up a reason for JR’s villainy from the first episode. JR didn’t do bad deeds just for the sake of it; he was doing them to gain his father’s approval by building up the company. When Jock died, they did a storyline about JR giving up on his work because it didn’t matter anymore now that his daddy wasn’t around. JR eventually snapped out of it and went back to his villainous ways when Bobby reminded him that he was now building the company for his son instead of his father (thanks, Bobby!).

Sue Ellen was the best mother on the show. Let’s compare her to the others: Ellie played favorites (“Gaaaarrry!”), guilted her sons to live at home as adults, and was party to denying her granddaughter’s mother the opportunity to raise her. Pamela abandoned Christopher after her car accident. Rebecca abandoned Pam and Cliff. Jenna was coy about Charlie’s parentage, and then tried to keep Lucas away from Bobby and his family. Patricia Shepherd directed her daughters, Sue Ellen and Kristin, to pursue rich husbands at any cost. Afton denied her daughter the opportunity to know her father. Valene’s mother dumped her on relatives so she could pursue her dreams of being an autoharp superstar. The Dallas fathers were no better, btw. Jock played favorites and helped contribute to JRs villainy by feeding his insecurities. He also treated women like second-class citizens. JR treated his son’s mother like crap. Ray took a bizarre interest in his teenage stepdaughter’s romantic life. Bobby abandoned Lucas because Christopher felt insecure. Gary abandoned Lucy.

Oh, I’m totally with you about Bobby (who I liked a lot despite his enabling JR), Bobby and Pam as a couple, sleazy Mark Graison (aka the Pornstache), and the dream season. I liked Jock too because he was such a complex character. I guess I should have read Agatha’s post more carefully because I don’t dislike most of the characters. I just agree that they’re flawed.

Agatha, I’m a big Dallas fan and I agree with all of your points. In some ways, Miss Ellie is the worst. JR doesn’t pretend to be anything that he isn’t. Miss Ellie is super sanctimonious for someone who stood by while the Ewings kept Lucy away from her mother. Her desperation to keep her adult sons living at home and her characterization of those who move away as having been “lost” is just bizarre. I also didn’t like how Jock became a candidate for sainthood after his death (though that happens in real life too). JR even says to his mother at one point when she’s going on about how she doesn’t approve of how he’s running the company that she has no idea about some of the crap Jock pulled. She did know that he had Sam Culver’s uncle institutionalized so he could gain control of his land (and Culver’s uncle died in the institution). And in another episode, some farmer wants revenge against Jock because years earlier, the farmer refused to sell to Jock, who then bribed the farmer’s customers and bankrupted him. Nice. Jenna was nothing but a plot device to keep Pam and Bobby apart. Her finest moment is when she lets Bobby go, right before he gets run over by the car. She should have been written out after that. I thought that writing out Donna was a big mistake given that they were losing Pam at the same time. But I also hated her divorce from Ray and the eventual Ray/Jenna pairing.

Big Girls Gone Bad Week (as opposed to Mean Girls, which focused on the kids): Amy Hearn fakes her own death Caroline does a baby swap Nancy tries to kill Melinda Laura attacks Brenda Sue Harriet’s Happenings

I like “Zaldamo” better.

I thought Charles was a tad hypocritical in his sermon, given that his kids printed some lies in the Pen and Plow, too. But as a rule on this show, Pa’s righteous indignation generally doesn’t hold up to scrutiny.

It’s also on Prime Video. We can get all the Little House we’d ever want. I watched Harriet’s Happenings yesterday. It’s a ridiculous episode, really. Would all those people in WG be transfixed by a scandal sheet? Aren’t they too busy working from dusk to dawn in order to stay alive? That said, it’s still great fun because of Mrs. Oleson. The scene where she confronts Caroline and demands that Laura and Albert be horsewhipped is great. And Caroline’s snark as she parrots back Harriet’s earlier dialogue about printing retractions almost verbatim is classic. A few goofs: The name of the paper is The Pen and Plow. Pa keeps calling it The Pen and the Plow. Also, Jon Garvey talks about getting a loan at the bank to buy Alice an anniversary gift. He can’t, because the bank is gone and the Pen and Plow replaced it.

It reminds me of the difference between the early days of the original Roseanne and the later seasons. There was an episode in a later season where Roseanne and Jackie ordered a new stove for the Lunch Box and two were delivered by mistake and they were scheming to keep the second one and sell it. They never would have done that in the early days. They sacrificed the integrity of the characters for some cheap laughs. And the reconciliation between Bev and Dan was already done in the original series, in the episode where Roseanne hurt her back and Bev came to help out. Dan was not happy because Bev was treating the kids and undermining him and there was a blow up. She later apologized and told him that he had been a great husband and father even though she and Al hadn’t been thrilled about the marriage at the outset.

I think that’s from the first episode of “Laverne & Shirley,” called “The Society Party”. Fonz was there in a crossover appearance.

That new studio is awful. The set design is so gaudy. The audience area is so tiny - the contestants arrive in contestants row practically before George Gray finishes saying “Come on down.” And I don’t like how there’s no elevated stage. Oh well, times change. I did enjoy watching the early 1970s episodes on Pluto in December.

I really think they should have renamed the show something flashier when Charles and family decamped to Burr Oak. And not that “New Beginning” crap - how boring. How about: The Dark Secrets of Walnut Grove Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Place Laura Loves Manly

I know is an old quote, but listen closely to Nancy when she says “Garrett” with a short a, instead of a long A like most of the rest of the girls. That’s the giveaway that she’s from the Northeast. It’s like marry vs Mary. There’s a difference between how you say it on the East Coast, while West Coasters pronounce those two words the same. Yes, I thought so, too. Especially since Edna could have lost her job had there been a repeat offense. The reality is that the writers kinda boxed themselves in with the probation angle. That mean that they girls had to walk the straight and narrow or be expelled. And since this was a show about learning lessons, they had to let the girls get into trouble while still working around the probation issue.

This x 1000. I also get the sense that Arnett thinks he’s really handsome. And he’s not.

Brandon on 90210 was the worst. Especially when he pulled his self-righteous tude with his parents. Or when he tried to act all tough, because he was such a little pipsqueak.

Agreed. To me, the appealing aspects of the show are: the widower seeking a better life for his daughter; their adjustment to that new life; the relationship among the members of this ad-hoc family, and the evolving relationship between Tony and Angela. I felt like the first aspect was dropped almost immediately, and Tony and Sam assimilated into their new family and community too quickly.

The British version of WTB, The Upper Hand, actually went further than the American version did. The two leads are wed at the end of the penultimate season, so they are husband and wife in the final season. I believe they find out she’s pregnant in the series finale. I was going to say that Donna Dixon and Dan Ackroyd are still married. Which they technically are, but have been separated for over a year. And yeah, her acting is…not great.

Never noticed that before! In one of the brewery talent shows, both Penny and Cindy’s mothers show up. Penny’s mom does a dance with her. Penny’s mom ran a dancing school in real life which is why Penny was such a good dancer. Carmine’s dance studio, Marjorie Ward’s, was named after her. Cindy’s mother sings “Pennies from Heaven” and throws real pennies around. The two mothers are crossed billed in the closing credits, just like their daughters.

I really hate the Christmas movie. It’s sappier and cornier than the series ever was. All the separate little dramas for each that were miraculously resolved by the end - ugh. And I pretty much disliked all the in-laws, like Greg’s wife, the New Gidget, who decided that her family was more important than the Bradys because of some aunt she hadn’t seen in a while. I also disliked uptight Philip. And loser Wally. Marcia would have been better off marrying Doug Simpson or Warn Mullaney. Even Harvey the bug boy might have been preferable; I bet he could at least hold a job. I even disliked de facto in-law Sam, who was a cheating bastard and also played by a different actor.

Yep, I think you’re right. If Sony had had its way, they would have quietly announced this closer to Christmas or in the week between Christmas and New Year’s. “Mayim has decided to step away from the daily version of Jeopardy to focus on her acting. We’re looking forward to working with her on the ABC specials.” But she foiled that little plan.

I also love that Mayim told the fans straight up what happened. A lot of times in situations like this, the actor or host will be pressured by the production company to say that it was their choice to leave. Saves face for them and makes it easier for their employer. “I was informed…” - good for you, Mayim.

Yeah, I thought that was odd wording. Still, I’ll be surprised if she shows up again on the syndicated version. She may have a contract for this season but perhaps they’ll rework it and apply it to the ABC specials.