Little House On The Prairie - General Discussion

[spidermiss2426]

Today was "sylvia Day part One" on Hallmark.

[SpaghettiTuesdays]

Rewatched the Nellie's babies episode. Percy's family gives the Olesons a run for their money in the drama department.

On the other hand, it's interesting to see life as the stereotypical Jew on the show. I couldn't tell if ML / the show were being snarky or what.

What a weird place to live.

[Rhondinella]

ANNOUNCEMENT: 

 

The name of this thread has been changed to "All Episodes Talk" to avoid confusion with other threads and standardize the naming convention across the site. 

 

This is a place to discuss particular episodes, arcs and moments from the show's run. Please remember this isn't a complete catch-all topic -- check out the forum for character topics and other places for show-related talk.

[SpaghettiTuesdays]

Caught the second half of the "Stone Soup" episode. My preschool teacher told us that story and had us make it. I never knew it was such a thing.

I just had to love that Ma took over for Laura at the school. I had to laugh when Willie poured the water over replacement-Nellie. Poor Willie. His mother only loved her daughters, it seemed.

I also wondered how it was that only the children helped water the orchard and why they were so enthusiastic. I can't get my sister to do anything. Kids these days.

[oceanblue]

Do you often see wolves in your neighborhood?   Do other people see them too?  If only LH was still on!  You could pen your very own Very Special Episode with Charles walking to North Dakota to blow (up) Japanese people, while back at home Caroline and the girls are terrorized by a pack of wolves.  A tertiary character stopping by to visit is eaten and never seen again.  Doc Baker tries to save the Ingalls' but fails and feels so useless.  Rev. Alden gathers the townfolk in prayer (from a safe distance) and they sing "Bringing in the Sheaves" until the wolves see the error of their ways and depart.  

[Creeper Jen]

Rewatched the Nellie's babies episode. Percy's family gives the Olesons a run for their money in the drama department.

On the other hand, it's interesting to see life as the stereotypical Jew on the show. I couldn't tell if ML / the show were being snarky or what.

What a weird place to live.

As someone who has lived in Minnesota (Minneapolis-St. Paul area) my entire life, I always get a laugh out of ML's attempts to bring a little diversity to the prairie.  I just find it hard to believe there would have been ANY Jewish folks (like Albert's artisan wood crafter guy) around in those days, and I'm not too sure about the African-American folks either, though this seems a bit less suspect.  I've been to Walnut Grove, and I can hardly imagine there being anything other than Protestant white folks around there now, let alone 150 years ago.   

But it's hardly the only aspect of this wonderful (and often ridiculous) show that strains credulity. 

[SpaghettiTuesdays]

I like to think the diversity on the show is as painfully staged as a third grade math book.

[SnarkyMcSnarkerson]

As someone who has lived in Minnesota (Minneapolis-St. Paul area) my entire life, I always get a laugh out of ML's attempts to bring a little diversity to the prairie.  I just find it hard to believe there would have been ANY Jewish folks (like Albert's artisan wood crafter guy) around in those days, and I'm not too sure about the African-American folks either, though this seems a bit less suspect.  I've been to Walnut Grove, and I can hardly imagine there being anything other than Protestant white folks around there now, let alone 150 years ago.   

But it's hardly the only aspect of this wonderful (and often ridiculous) show that strains credulity

Having lived in rural MN all my life, not far from Walnut Grove and attending college in the big sprawling metropolis that is Mankato, I have to agree that the show's diversity is questionable. I actually asked my mom the other day if there were any African American people in our area growing up and she couldn't remember any (1950s-60s), and could think of only one Hispanic family. Nice try, ML!

[charlieboo]

Ah, but who will teach the people of WG the error of their ways if not for the Wise Negro and the Noble Indian? And who will cheat people and be whores if not for the Evil Irish?  And we have the Jolly Italians for comic relief and the Overly Sincere Russians to make us appreciate America.

I think the JEWISH! thing was just ML (nee Eugene Orowitz) working out his passive aggressivness towards his mother.  He was never quite sure whether to canonize them (see: Coffin Maker) or make fun of them (see: BENJAMIN!). Either way, he got most of the traditions wrong.

[PrincessLuceval]

I don't know. Don't you sing "Hava Nagila" at Halloween time, cboo?

[Rhondinella]

Title of the topic has been changed from "General Discussion".  See pinned post above. 

[DoughGirl]

From the Melissa Sue Anderson school of acting:

When you're not a good enough actress to produce real tears in a crying scene, just grit your teeth, make your voice all wa wa wobbly, and mumble out some of the words so that they're almost unrecognizable:

"I'm gonna be mline?"

"Adam, I've got my chlrrrardrririn."

[spidermiss2426]

Saw the "criminals invade the blind school episode" today, and at the end where Laura wakes up doctor baker and looks at him lovingly and pats his face... I find that disturbing.  It is something I'd do with my boyfriend, not some guy old enough to be my grandpa.

[DoughGirl]

I just watched that one too. Why didn't Albert go for help after Laura came and got Charles? I know he was supposed to be watching Carrie, but he could have managed it somehow, seeing lives were at stake.

[oceanblue]

Albert causes crises, he does not assist in them.

[DoughGirl]

True.

I know Albert and his friend were responsible for starting the mline school fire, but if dumb ass Hester Sue hadn't opened that cellar door allowing the fire to spread faster, they all might have gotten out in time.

Edited July 1, 2014 by DoughGirl

[DoughGirl]

Is there a worse piece of acting in the history of this show, aside from Mary's phony crying, than Caroline and Laura's forced fake laughing about Charles and Manly competing to see who gets their freight wagon to Mancato (or is it Sleepy Eye) first?

[Rhondinella]

No, unless you exclude anything the Carries ever did.  In which case, yes.

[DoughGirl]

How could I forget the Carries?

"Albert, what are you doing with that make believe rock you made? I'm gonna tell."

Worst piece of acting by a child on LHOTP.

[Ubiquitous]

Do you often see wolves in your neighborhood?   Do other people see them too?  If only LH was still on!  You could pen your very own Very Special Episode with Charles walking to North Dakota to blow (up) Japanese people, while back at home Caroline and the girls are terrorized by a pack of wolves.  A tertiary character stopping by to visit is eaten and never seen again.  Doc Baker tries to save the Ingalls' but fails and feels so useless.  Rev. Alden gathers the townfolk in prayer (from a safe distance) and they sing "Bringing in the Sheaves" until the wolves see the error of their ways and depart.  

I thought they sang "Bringing in the Sheep", which worked, for the obvious reasons.

 

True.

I know Albert and his friend were responsible for starting the mline school fire, but if dumb ass Hester Sue hadn't opened that cellar door allowing the fire to spread faster, they all might have gotten out in time.

And the baby wouldn't have become a baby battering ram if Mary hadn't fled like George Costanza at a child's birthday party.

[BatmanBeatles]

I'm so evil. I just thought of the Benny Hill theme during the school fire.

[oceanblue]

You are evil.  And we are your people.

[DoughGirl]

I also thought it was pretty unrealistic that Hester Sue didn't smell the pipe smoke when she caught the boys in the cellar. Anyone that's ever tried to sneak a smoke knows that it's the smell that gives you away.

Edited July 26, 2014 by DoughGirl

[oceanblue]

Maybe Hester Sue was trying to be the cool auntie by not telling on them?  

 

 

Or maybe ML wrote a plot devoid of reason?  

Edited July 27, 2014 by oceanblue

[DoughGirl]

I vote for the second option.

[ElderPrice]

The episode with the dying kid who wanted to see the ocean was just on. Let's gloss over the improbability of riding the rails from Minnesota to San Francisco  with no money, a trip that would have taken at least a week or so back then but on the show took about twenty minutes. In this episode we have Charles committing custodial interference (he helps them ride the rails instead of bringing the kid home), assault and battery (he beats up the conductor when they get caught) and abetting theft (Alfred steals food from the dining car for breakfast, Charles passes out the stolen sandwiches). Not exactly Little Values On The Prairie.

[oceanblue]

Values, schmalues.  The rules don't apply when you are Touched by an Ingalls.  It's assumed that Charles's rules are above the 10 commandments - but only in situations that apply to him.  If anyone else did what he did, he'd be SHOCKED and quite judgmental.

[oceanblue]

Values, schmalues.  The rules don't apply when you are Touched by an Ingalls.  It's assumed that Charles's rules are above the 10 commandments - but only in situations that apply to him.  If anyone else did what he did, he'd be SHOCKED and quite judgmental.

[DoughGirl]

Yes, how many times do we hear, "Pa says, "Cash on the barrel" and that he makes it a strict rule, and then there's a plethora of episodes about the Ingalls being in debt.

Speaking of which, The Richest Man in Walnut Grove" was on today as part of INSP's fan favourites marathon. That, and most of the other episodes make sense to me as fan favourites even if they all weren't favourites of mine, with the exception of "The Creeper of Walnut Grove". I HATE that episode. Can it really be that beloved out of all the episodes of this show?

[smittykins]

Just happened to see this, and it reads like it could've been written by one of us:

 

http://www.vox.com/2014/9/14/6142105/little-house-on-the-prairie-weird

[Brn2bwild]

Just have to ask: at the time LHotP aired, did people think it was batshit crazy?  Or was it only afterward, looking back, when people were like: "Um, this warm-hearted family show is actually kind of bonkers"?

[ElderPrice]

I was a kid when the show first aired and I remember it being wholesome family entertainment (the first few seasons). I was a huge fan of the books so I looked forward to Wednesday nights. Kids at school would discuss it the next day. As it got weird we noticed and gradually stopped watching. I remember mothers being enraged and writing letters as episodes such as "Sylvia" aired, LHOTP was supposed to be a family show and parents were supposed to assume that the material was safe for all family members. So yeah, we noticed as it was happening.

[DoughGirl]

Just happened to see this, and it reads like it could've been written by one of us:

 

http://www.vox.com/2014/9/14/6142105/little-house-on-the-prairie-weird

I'm surprised "May We Bake Them Brown" wasn't included.

[ElderPrice]

It's on! The classic "I'll Be Waving As You Drive Away (But You Won't See Me Because You're Mline)"!

[BatmanBeatles]

Real Mary would have been horrified watching TV Mary fling her food every where.

[PrincessLuceval]

She wouldn't have been able to see it, so there's that.

[oceanblue]

But she would have judged it anyway.

[ElderPrice]

As I watched the episode I was struck by how much of it wasn't about Mary going blind, but Pa's reaction to her going blind. That ML was a real ham.

[Brn2bwild]

As I watched the episode I was struck by how much of it wasn't about Mary going blind, but Pa's reaction to her going blind. That ML was a real ham.

 

Isn't every episode mostly about how Michael Landon's Pa reacts to things?  Blubbering, punching... such emotional range.

[scowl]

The only episode I remember is Albert getting hooked on opium. I'll never forget the fake vomit shooting out of Matthew Laborteaux's mouth as Albert shakes off Sweet Lady H. Thank you, Michael Landon, for reminding us that drugs are bad.

[BatmanBeatles]

There was even a "Just say no" message at the end.

[ElderPrice]

Damn Mary and Adam's wedding g has to be the most depressing wedding in the history of weddings. No one there but four mline kids and Ma and Pa, and in that empty filthy disgusting room covered in dust.

[scowl]

 

There was even a "Just say no" message at the end.

 

Yes! I believe he spoke in front of a classroom making vague statements like "don't do it". I thought he would have been more persuasive if he had started vomiting in front of them.

 

I don't have any complete memories of LTHTP episodes, just blurry memories. Um, the kids find "fool's gold" (with a fantasy sequence of them being rich). Nellie secretly wax-records a private conversation and plays it in front of a class. The Ingals moving to the city (ratings disaster as I recall). Pa working on telegraph lines (didn't real Charles work on the railroad?). Albert pretending to be mlind to scare his biological father off (great twist). Mr. Oleson hooking up his water closet.

 

I think I remember the malaria one -- was there a creepy shot of a pillow full of insects? Was malaria a problem in Minnesota?

 

I don't remember any of the classic episodes that involved fires or rapists. I didn't watch the show regularly.

[PrairieSmoke]

Ok, it's probably blasphemous to snark on Country Girls, but there's just one thing about this otherwise uber-cute episode.

Laura couldn't read or write, except she knew the alphabet. She fully disclosed this fact to Miss Beadle on the first day of school. Laura studies by the creek and works hard, then all of a sudden they have to write an essay. 

"All I know how to write is little words," Laura says to Ma the evening prior to the essay reading. She's afraid of the kids laughing at her.

 

In class, Laura gets up in front of the class and gives the greatest off-the-cuff-speech from the heart in the history of one-room schoolhouses. 

 

Afterward Ma says "What you said was beautiful but it wasn't really an essay was it? But Laura is ILLITERATE!!! The paper has "Ma is good, she cooks, she sews, she works hard." Is that what Laura was supposed to say when she got up in front of class? The kids would have laughed. Instead she gave a speech, Miss Beadle caught on, and accepted that as completing the assignment. But Ma questioned it.

[DoughGirl]

How annoying is Laura in "Willis Jackson Sucks Eggs" (credit to Creeper Jen) aka "The Wisdom of Soloman"? First with the "Are you a for real negro person?" over and over, them talking to him like he's a pet,"C'mon, it's ok, c'mon, c'mon....", then jumping up in school clapping and yelling hooray when Soloman spells cowboy correctly. Just shut the F up Laura. Makes me want to smack her.

I will say that I'm impressed with Todd Bridges acting in this episode, as I was when he portrayed an almost exact part in The Waltons "The Stray".

Edited October 6, 2014 by DoughGirl

[Maherjunkie]

At some point you expect him to do a reverse "Whatch you talkin' about Laura?

[scowl]

I enjoyed seeing director Leo Penn's son Sean as an extra in "The Voice of Tinker Jones" last night. He didn't have any lines but any time in front of dad's camera is going to help his acting career. 

 

It's hard to believe that ugly kid would eventually marry Madonna and Robin Wright. 

[ElderPrice]

The episode where Adam regains his sight is on. He has to be the unluckiest bastard in the world. He loses his sight when he gets hit on the head, gets it back with another hit on the head, then gets mugged and hit on the head again. It would have been hilarious if he lost his sight again. How funny would it have been to watch things always happening to Adam as he gains and loses his sight on a recurring basis. He would have been like Pinocchio in Shrek.

"I can see! World, you are wonderful!" BONK! "Aw, crap."

Edited October 14, 2014 by ElderPrice

[oceanblue]

Only in this community can a post that snide bring tears of laughter to my eyes.  If it had happened earlier, Pa could have brought him to South Dakota to blow (up) Chinese people - just set off some dynamite near Adam and vision thing solved!

[camom]

 

The rules don't apply when you are Touched by an Ingalls

 

Thanks for the laugh.  I need to find a way to use "Touched by an Ingalls" in everyday conversation.  (It's OK, my friends already think I'm nuts.)

 

ML certainly did have an obsession with fire, didn't he? So very many episodes involved fire in some way.