All Episodes Talk: You Take Them Both and There You Have

[sev]

If so, they should make an extra purchase of "Seven Little Indians" for Halloween. xD

 

EDIT: "Tootie!"

Edited October 29, 2015 by sev

[ivygirl]

Yeah it's literally the same line up of episodes! I did finally see some on Logo though that I haven't seen before--when Beverly Ann comes, when Staci Q plays Cinnamon. And then a very special episode when Blair's boyfriend is waiting for his coke dealer.

Fun fact! Cokehead boyfriend is the same actor who played the student Blair tutored/tried to "mold" in "Different Drummer" (Season 4)!

[Maherjunkie]

I love that one.  I also discovered I prefer curious Tootie over serious, dramatic Tootie.  Try drugs but forget identity politics.

[Ubiquitous]

I saw those two eps recently. Would Tootie and Natalie be THAT naive about bongs, or for that matter, be sold several?

That said, Tootie being overwrought about her blackness seems par for the course. That girls needs some serious medication! Ha ha

Last night was another Cousin Gerri ep. I want to like her, but every time she appears is a HUGE red flag for a VSE and I resent it!

[Ubiquitous]

I caught what must be the worst drunk driving VSE I have ever seen over the weekend. Tootie's brother from college, who she practicality worships like Germain Jackson, comes to visit and Natalie, Blair, and she tag along to a party but show no interest in drinking beer and play a lame drinking game involving an unwitting new arrival (Jo) with their diet sodas. I kinda found it odd that Jo, of all people, did not screw with the partiers by making them chug on purpose until they passed out once Tootie blabbed the rules to her. Anyhow, Tootie convinced Nat and Jo to let her drunk brother drive them back to Eastland which, predictably ended with a car crash, but Tootie kept rationalizing until she learned her brother had several DUIs, at which point she tattled to their father. Huh?

[SnarkySheep]

How did Andy even come into the picture? What were the girls going to do anyway?

They had posted an ad for a handyman and Andy applied. Of course they initially told him no, but he persuaded them to give him a trial.

[Mittengirl]

Was there a reason, in real life, that Charlotte Rae left the show? A health issue? It seems like it was very poorly handled, perhaps unexpected. It seemed like they were preparing to write her out the previous season when she was dating Ryan's father, then they backed off. (What happened to Ryan, BTW?) It is not like the show should have been surprised the girls were getting older and them living together made less and less sense. How could they not have an ending planned out?

[Snow Apple]

Woah. New episodes on the Logo schedule. Perhaps they brought a second package of episode? Today has shows from season one with the old girls, but I'm trilled to see something different.

[rags]

Blair: Excuse me, Clam Person!

[ivygirl]

Hey! Logo is showing "Seven Little Indians" in today's block!

If you miss it, don't worry. I'm sure it'll be on a few hundred times in the next few weeks. ;)

ETA:
 

Was there a reason, in real life, that Charlotte Rae left the show? A health issue? It seems like it was very poorly handled, perhaps unexpected. It seemed like they were preparing to write her out the previous season when she was dating Ryan's father, then they backed off. (What happened to Ryan, BTW?) It is not like the show should have been surprised the girls were getting older and them living together made less and less sense. How could they not have an ending planned out?

I just found this...

http://www.biography.com/news/facts-of-life-where-are-they-now

Rae would remain at Eastland—doling out words of wisdom, loving advice and delicious food—until 1986. At that point, though the show was still going strong, and had earned her an Emmy nod, Rae decided that she needed to take a break. As she said in 1988, “I really needed to renew myself. I think I owed it to myself. So I honored myself—and quit.”

Edited December 14, 2015 by ivygirl

[charmed1]

I too really hated Jo. A lot. I was just a little kid and I don't think I hated any character on a show more than her. Not even that annoying red headed kid, Sam on Diff'Rent Strokes. It wasn't until she grew the mullet that I began to like her.

[psychoticstate]

I too really hated Jo. A lot. I was just a little kid and I don't think I hated any character on a show more than her. Not even that annoying red headed kid, Sam on Diff'Rent Strokes. It wasn't until she grew the mullet that I began to like her.

 

Awww, I always liked Jo.  Still do.  I love her one-liners.

 

I finally saw "Seven Little Indians."  Never saw it before for what ever reason but it had me laughing.  I loved the " . . . Tootie . . . "  Hilarious.

 

Have to say that the last two episodes were quite possibly the worst series finale of any show.  It all revolved around Blair buying Eastland and becoming the headmistress.  Completely unrealistic but worse, took us away from the core characters.  I didn't care about the science teacher they were clearly aiming to set Blair up with, nor did I care about the new group of Eastland brats, including now boys.  Would Blair - - BLAIR - - actually put male students in the same dorm as female students?  I don't think so. 

 

While we got the barest of details on the original cast - - Natalie moved to SoHo, Tootie was headed to London and the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and Rick returned to Jo, it just wasn't enough.  Not only that but in the picture taken by Rick at the end, Natalie wasn't even there!!  Just seemed like a half-assed way to end the series and an insult to the characters and its fans.

[Maverick]

 I don't hate Jo, but she really is a piece of work.  Even though they had a rivalry, deep down Blair thought highly of Jo and cared about her.  She could be insensitive and throw snark around, but things got serious she made it clear she liked Jo and considered her a friend.  Jo on the other hand always seemed perturbed to acknowledge that Blair could be a good person and a good friend.  In the first episode, Blair agrees to help Jo acclimate to Eastland as Mrs. Garrett's request, she tries to keep Jo from getting married at 16, she made sure Jo could stay at Eastland (based on Jo's academic career, not Blair's money), gave Jo a place to stay--at risk to herself--when she couldn't afford the dorm, thoughtfully designed a pizza box for Jo during her business venture and on an on.   Jo in turn always met B;air's overtures with contempt and snide comments about the rich.  I get doing that for the first couple of years, but she was still like that in college after all that time at Eastland and living with Blair for so long.  

 

 The finale, unfortunately, was a backdoor pilot for a spin.   I hate when shows do that.  I hated that the other 3 girls basically got 5 minutes of air time to say they were moving in with their men and that's that.  I get that their lives were moving apart at that point, but having been together for so long they still would have had some feelings about splitting up and would have shared a last evening togehr at least.   Well, except for Natalie who acted like she was being blackmailed to live there for the entire Over Our Heads era.

[Bort]

I didn't mind the backdoor pilot finale because it focused on Blair who was my favorite anyway. I really barely tolerated the other three at that point.

[psychoticstate]

The finale, unfortunately, was a backdoor pilot for a spin.   I hate when shows do that.  I hated that the other 3 girls basically got 5 minutes of air time to say they were moving in with their men and that's that.  I get that their lives were moving apart at that point, but having been together for so long they still would have had some feelings about splitting up and would have shared a last evening togehr at least.   Well, except for Natalie who acted like she was being blackmailed to live there for the entire Over Our Heads era.

 

 

I also hate it when shows do that.  It wouldn't have bothered me as much if it was towards the end of the run but to waste the finale on brand new characters that we knew nothing about and cared about even less . . . ugh.   I would much rather have seen the girls acknowledging that their lives were taking them on different paths, outside of Peeksgill (sp?) and away from Over Our Heads.  Since Tootie was always the overdramatic drama queen of the group, maybe have Blair moving on with Eastland, Jo moving on with Rick and Natalie moving on to SoHo while she didn't know where she was going - - until she got her acceptance in London.

 

And YES - - the girls definitely would have spent a last night together in their old room at the house, reminiscing about the last 8 years with Blair and Jo pretending to be happy to be rid of the other, Natalie worried about having enough snacky food to last through the slumber party and thinking about how she would write this into a story and Tootie being overly dramatic about how they were going their separate ways and would eventually lose touch, etc. 

 

Did they ever say what was going to happen with Over Our Heads?  The girls were all equal partners with Mrs. Garrett so were they selling their shares?  Selling the store?  What? 

 

If you didn't know better, you would think the writers had no idea the show was ending and the decision was made to pull the plug at random.

Edited December 16, 2015 by psychoticstate

[sev]

I didn't mind the backdoor pilot finale because it focused on Blair who was my favorite anyway. I really barely tolerated the other three at that point.

 

She was my favorite, too, but that's another reason I hated the finale. Thy made her drop her lawyer career and set her up with that slime misogynist teacher.

Plus I didn't find any of those kids charming.

[Bort]

If you didn't know better, you would think the writers had no idea the show was ending and the decision was made to pull the plug at random.

The show was on season nine, they had to have had an inkling.

She was my favorite, too, but that's another reason I hated the finale. Thy made her drop her lawyer career and set her up with that slime misogynist teacher.

Plus I didn't find any of those kids charming.

Aw, but the kids are like a who's who of future stars! Mayim Bialik, Seth Green and Juliette Lewis.

[sev]

Aw, but the kids are like a who's who of future stars! Mayim Bialik, Seth Green and Juliette Lewis.

 

well, I'm not particularly captivated by their adult versions either ;)

[SnarkySheep]

I still firmly believe that Jo would have married that professor, had it not changed the show too much. She was really involved with him and basically co-raising his child...

[Maverick]

Did they ever say what was going to happen with Over Our Heads?  The girls were all equal partners with Mrs. Garrett so were they selling their shares?  Selling the store?  What? 

 

 They closed the store early in season 9 because no one wanted to work there and they needed room for Andy and Pippa.  I guess we're supposed to assume they made enough money from their own jobs to pay the rent to Mrs G's son.

[Ubiquitous]

I too really hated Jo. A lot. I was just a little kid and I don't think I hated any character on a show more than her. Not even that annoying red headed kid, Sam on Diff'Rent Strokes. It wasn't until she grew the mullet that I began to like her.

I liked Jo b/c she was such a good foil for Blair and, if memory serves, was often the voice of reason.

[SnarkySheep]

Just watched the episode where Blair's boyfriend was secretly doing cocaine....I don't remember this one originally, which is pretty surprising, given the VSE potential. But overall I have to say I thought it was covered well. The guy wasn't suddenly talked out of using by the end of the half hour. For a sitcom not to wrap thingsd up neatly, especially with a topic like this, was really something. But realistically it was the ONLY way to handle it. Like many addicts, he didn't believe he had a problem; like many addicts, he allowed his need for the drugs to take precedence over all else. There was no way he would've stopped just because someone gave him a five-minute lecture.

[charmed1]

I liked Jo b/c she was such a good foil for Blair and, if memory serves, was often the voice of reason.

I think I hated her because of the threats of violence against the other girls. I was really bothered by the clenched fists and beat down threats she'd put up against the faces of the girls especially Natalie and Tootie who were much younger. When she lost the ponytail and went full on Darryl Hall with the hair, she seemed to cut the shit and behaved like a normal person.

[ljenkins782]

Just watched the episode where Blair's boyfriend was secretly doing cocaine....I don't remember this one originally, which is pretty surprising, given the VSE potential. But overall I have to say I thought it was covered well. The guy wasn't suddenly talked out of using by the end of the half hour. For a sitcom not to wrap thingsd up neatly, especially with a topic like this, was really something. But realistically it was the ONLY way to handle it. Like many addicts, he didn't believe he had a problem; like many addicts, he allowed his need for the drugs to take precedence over all else. There was no way he would've stopped just because someone gave him a five-minute lecture.

I thought that was a pretty well done VSE episode too. I liked Jo clueing Blair in and then calmly telling the guy off for conducting a drug deal in Mrs. Garrett's shop. 

 

And Blair's reaction was great too, she was incredulous that he could say he didn't have a problem when he was willing to waste an entire day sitting around all day long to wait for the drugs, but didn't go over the top melodramatic (like I suspect certain other actresses *cough...kimfields* would have done.) 

 

 

[ivygirl]

"A Baby in the House" (former Eastland student abandons baby with the girls) was just on, and I noticed that the sound effect for the "baby" crying sounded suspiciously like an adult saying "WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH." 

 

Or that could've been Charlotte Rae. ;)

 

Seriously though, they couldn't use a sound effect of a real baby crying? 

Edited January 13, 2016 by ivygirl

[VCRTracking]

Yeah the final episode is disappointing for being a backdoor pilot. The only good thing was that Blair's hair looked fantastic. I loved that long, sleek look as opposed to that 80s big hair she had the last few years.

 

Watching episodes it's a shock whenever like one of Blair or Jo's boyfriends show up(not because I prefer them with each other, although I DO) it's that they're always so tall like six feet or over and you realize how short Blair and Jo actually are! It's because they're the tallest of the cast but they're just 5'6''. George Clooney doesn't shatter the illusion because he's 5'11''.

Edited January 28, 2016 by VCRTracking

[mommalib]

I liked Jo b/c she was such a good foil for Blair and, if memory serves, was often the voice of reason.

Jo was the best character on the show. Her relationship with Blair was a classic.

Edited February 1, 2016 by mommalib

[Ubiquitous]

Just watched the episode where Blair's boyfriend was secretly doing cocaine....I don't remember this one originally, which is pretty surprising, given the VSE potential. But overall I have to say I thought it was covered well. The guy wasn't suddenly talked out of using by the end of the half hour. For a sitcom not to wrap thingsd up neatly, especially with a topic like this, was really something. But realistically it was the ONLY way to handle it. Like many addicts, he didn't believe he had a problem; like many addicts, he allowed his need for the drugs to take precedence over all else. There was no way he would've stopped just because someone gave him a five-minute lecture.

Yeah, as far as VSE's go, it wasn't bad.

 

I will never understand why they changed Edna's Edibles into that stupid tacky gift shop.

[KFC]

In my dream scenario, Netflix revives FOL and the girls re-open Edna's Edibles as a gourmet pot shop.

[Maherjunkie]

KFC!  Blair would never be a part of it.  She would finally be forced to be a lawyer or the artist she dreamed of being.  In fact a good episode would be where she had to defend it.

[Snow Apple]

I read a lot about Blair/Jo shippers but never saw it. Well, I'm watching the "Cliff" episodes and Jo is really over the top protective. She wouldn't even listen to Mrs. Garrett's voice of reason. Her face and stance when Cliff was a stripper and when he dated the movie star really screams "nobody hurts my Blair!!!!!" Yikes. So I think I now understand the shippers.

[SnarkySheep]

On 2/4/2016 at 7:34 AM, Ubiquitous said:

I will never understand why they changed Edna's Edibles into that stupid tacky gift shop.

Me neither. After the fire, Mrs G was all like, I'm so tired of that shop already!! WTF?? It had only been a year or two since she opened it, so I'm really not sure where they were going with that one. Unless, of course, TPTB simply wanted to change gears and didn't know how to do it.

[txhorns79]

Quote

Me neither. After the fire, Mrs G was all like, I'm so tired of that shop already!! WTF?? It had only been a year or two since she opened it, so I'm really not sure where they were going with that one. Unless, of course, TPTB simply wanted to change gears and didn't know how to do it.

The only thing I can think is that I know Charlotte Rae wanted to reduce her appearances towards the end of her run, so maybe they wanted the girls to have a business that could operate and serve as a plot point absent Mrs. Garrett? 

[SnarkySheep]

Well, but even that didn't really make much sense...Jo and Blair were still in college and doing various other work (e.g. I recall Jo student teaching around that time), Natalie made it clear she was just helping temporarily and Tootie was still finishing up high school, for heaven's sake. So it isn't exactly like these were equal adult business partners for Mrs G or anything. 

Then again, I could never really fathom how much time any of the girls could possibly have put into the running of Edna's Edibles, considering they all had full loads of classes and various extracurricular activities. Sure, it was just a small shop but Mrs G would've had to be up at the crack of dawn baking every day prior to opening. If the girls actually covered any significant number of hours at that shop with anything resembling regularity, they would've needed about 30 hours each day.

[qtpye]

Quote

I will never understand why they changed Edna's Edibles into that stupid tacky gift shop.

That gift shop was filled to the brim with everything that made the eighties tacky.

[Snow Apple]

I never understood how they made a profit. That junk is not something people buy everyday, unlike baked goods or lunch which Edna's Edibles provided. I guess they sell Langley merchandise, but the college gets a cut too and how many logo sweatshirts or calendars does one need?

[psychoticstate]

I remember when those tacky 80s kitschy gift shops were in every mall.  They could survive in a mall-like setting (at least until the 80s were over) because of the impulse buys and unusual gift potential but in a standalone shop like Over Our Heads was?  And in a small town with the very unclear store name?  No way.

They would have been better off turning the place into a boarding house (with rotating characters) which would have made more sense in a college oriented town. 

[love21]

Recently I watched the first Beverly Ann w/ out Mrs. Garrett episode which was Tootie considering sleeping with a boyfriend she had gotten serious with (not the Jeff one but some other guy). I think they probably should've developed more of a relationship between her and the girls first before that one. It would've made more sense why she was freaking out so much about it, to the point of flushing the flowers the guy got Tootie down the toilet, while the other girls were pretty much calm when they realized what was going on. Would've been a great Mrs. Garrett episode though had they done it the year before.

Does anyone remember if they mentioned if the girls had met Beverly Ann previously off screen before, or if when she showed up for Mrs. G's wedding was the first time they met? I should probably go back and rewatch Mrs. G's departure ep and find out.

Edited September 23, 2016 by love21

[Maherjunkie]

How old was Tootie in the ep?  Seems like an overreaction.

[love21]

Around 18/19 I think. She had graduated Eastland the season before.

[Maherjunkie]

Oh good lord.  who wrote this show, Marie Osmond?

[psychoticstate]

I found there was the same overreaction when Natalie eventually slept with Snake.  I think the way Natalie and Tootie discussed it was completely genuine.  But everyone else acted like Natalie had opted to undergo a sex change operation, then sell everything she owned to pack up and move to a lonely mountaintop rather than the decision to sleep with her boyfriend of a year.  And Natalie was 21, I think. 

What was surprising is that I don't recall much discussion of safe sex.  It was all geared toward YOU HAD SEX! (gasp.)  

I will say that Snake's reaction was a welcome change from the extreme of the guy leaving and not returning or becoming super clingy. He panicked, then they talked about it.  And Natalie did not beat herself up; she said she didn't regret her decision even if Snake broke up with her.  Surprisingly mature. 

[Dee]

Blair singing 'My Boyfriend's Back' ala Julie Andrews will never not be funny.

[CeeBeeGee]

On 10/5/2015 at 10:40 AM, Snow Apple said:

Yes. Yes she is.

Kim Fields is OK with humor or just normal talking, but give her something dramatic and Yikes. Another example is when a new boyfriend made her question having only white friends. Her scene with Mrs. Garrett when she cries and shrieks "I can't! I won't!" is quite a pip.

Kim Fields was an excellent natural comedian. Per the late '70s/early '80s, they gave her a lot of muggy gags that were driven into the ground (this show was spun off from Diff'rent Strokes, after all) but she managed to make a lot of her other stuff funny. One of her best, most precocious moments was in Season 1 when Sue Ann has to talk on the phone to some stud and as she picks up the receiver Tootie says "Sue Ann? Don't blow it." As Sue Ann starts talking in this exaggeratedly casual fashion, Tootie matter-of-factly says "she's blowin' it." She's great with stuff like that.

 

But she was pretty terrible with the dramatic stuff--it just was not her forte. Everyone has brought up the Jermaine Jackson episode (something that always makes me laugh about this episode is that whenever you describe it to someone who doesn't know it, invariably--INVARIABLY--that person says "....Jermaine Jackson? Really?" And yes, I would bet good money it was written for brother Michael!). But another Tootie-flops-at-drama ep was the Tootie-runs-away-to-the-big-city-and-meets-a-teen-prostitute episode in...Season 3? She is terrible, and what makes it worse is that the girl playing the hooker, Tammy Lauren, acts circles around her. Lauren "Kristy" has to carry the episode as it is--she has all the beat changes, she has subtext to play, she has the conflicting emotions, girl has ALL the heavy lifting to do, Tootie just has to react but she's pretty awful. Even in some of the lighter stuff, like when Tootie was supposedly playing Nellie in South Pacific (which makes NO SENSE--the story of SP requires that Nellie be white because the whole story is about white racism and trying to overcome it) she was literally just going through the motions. Tootie half-assing her way through "I'm gonna wash that man right out of my hair and send--him--on--his--waaaaaaayyyyyy!" with her head jerks and lazy jazz hands is burned into my brain!

[nodorothyparker]

Kim Fields was the absolute worst of the offenders at shouting lines that clearly weren't supposed to be shouted for any particular reason.  Sure, it was '80s TV where there definitely was a certain amount of that kind of acting, especially in the very special episodes where they wanted to make damn sure you got the point, but she was still consistently the shoutiest of them all.

[Dee]

The South Pacific episode cracks me up for no other reason than Natalie rolling coconuts onto the 'stage' from offscreen to sabotage Tootie.

[Maverick]

 Saw Brave New World today and was another shining example of how horrible Jo is.  She can't afford to stay in the dorm and how does she turn to?  Her family?  Nope.  Mrs. Garrett?  Nope.  Blair.  She won't accept any financial help from Blair but she basically demands that Blair allow her to use her room, risking not just her but Blair as well getting expelled.   Then when coming in through the window one night, she rudely kicks Blair's guest out because she wants to get some sleep.   Blair could be egocentric, but it was clear deep down she cared greatly for those she considered friends but Jo refused to see anything beyond her being rich and using that as an excuse to treat her like shit.  

[psychoticstate]

On 3/17/2017 at 4:14 PM, Maverick said:

 Saw Brave New World today and was another shining example of how horrible Jo is.  She can't afford to stay in the dorm and how does she turn to?  Her family?  Nope.  Mrs. Garrett?  Nope.  Blair.  She won't accept any financial help from Blair but she basically demands that Blair allow her to use her room, risking not just her but Blair as well getting expelled.   Then when coming in through the window one night, she rudely kicks Blair's guest out because she wants to get some sleep.   Blair could be egocentric, but it was clear deep down she cared greatly for those she considered friends but Jo refused to see anything beyond her being rich and using that as an excuse to treat her like shit.  

The show had to have some reason to have Blair and Jo move into Mrs. Garrett's so Jo losing her scholarship made sense and then causing Blair to get kicked out of the dorm . . .there you go. 

But I'm a Jo apologist.  I always loved her character. 

[GHScorpiosRule]

12 minutes ago, psychoticstate said:

The show had to have some reason to have Blair and Jo move into Mrs. Garrett's so Jo losing her scholarship made sense and then causing Blair to get kicked out of the dorm . . .there you go. 

But I'm a Jo apologist.  I always loved her character. 

Yep. And add me as another Jo apologist.

Plus, I remember what an entitled, self-centered Mean Girl Blair was in the first season. Sure she changed and grew, but I've always loved Jo.

"it's Polniaczek, and I've got your interpreter right here," says Jo with her fist in Blair's face, after Blair assumes her new roomie is probably a foreigner and she'll (Blair) need an interpreter to communicate with Jo.

[nodorothyparker]

The Jo-Blair friendship was one of my favorites on all of TV growing up.  I can mostly accept that the show needed some plot line to move first Jo into Mrs. Garrett's to trigger all the rest of them into following suit long after you would have expected them to have outgrown sharing a single room, so I tend to take that one for what it was.  

But yeah, for as much as I loved Jo when I was a kid, watching it as an adult I can see where the complaint lies.  Well into adulthood she really carried a massive chip on her shoulder where Blair's comparative wealth was concerned that made her pretty thoughtless at times to the costs or consequences Blair might be expected to bear in any situation.  I can't remember the episode title now, but there's a college episode where Jo borrows her watch without asking, breaks it, and then has the audacity to act put out that Blair expects an apology or at least an acknowledgement that she was wrong because it's not like Blair can't afford a dozen more.