Who's the Boss?: Who's Minding the Kid?

Who's the Boss?: Who's Minding the Kid?
ABC
December 4, 1990
Sitcom
DVD
C+

Besides being focused on Billy, the writing by Barry Vigon and Deborah Leschin (their first of two, and he'd done some of the last season of Soap) is a little weak, e.g. Mona not knowing how to spell "school."  There are moments of weirdness that work, like Cop Rock and driftwood, but no one is bringing their A game at this point.

Ellen Crawford, who was Brenda McNair on Three's Company, plays Prof. Wallace.  Ria Guillani has her first of three WtB roles, as Abbie.  Ironically, Edward Winter had played Eunice's married boyfriend on Soap, while here he dates Mona.  (I don't think he and Helmond had any scenes together on Soap though.)

M*A*S*H: Rally 'Round the Flagg, Boys

M*A*S*H: Rally 'Round the Flagg, Boys
CBS
February 14, 1979
Dramedy
DVD
B-

This is Mitch Markowitz's second of two M*A*S*H stories and not only has the return of Flagg (with a reference to something he did in the past) but also has Hawkeye and BJ dealing with a patient who's angry at Hawkeye.  Both the patient and Flagg think Hawkeye is a com-symp.  It's interesting to see how Winchester manipulates Flagg, very different from how Burns used to be cowed by him, but the episode feels a little unfinished.

Bob Okazaki makes his first of two M*A*S*H appearances, as Doo Pak.  Jerry Fujikawa (this time Hung Pak), Roy Goldman (this time as Roy Goldman), James Lough (this time an MP), Kellye Nakahara (Yamato), and Neil Thompson (this time Corporal Basgall) return.  This is Edward Winter's last appearance on the show, although he would play Flagg again five years later on After MASH.  This episode, which Morgan directed, aired on a Wednesday (hence the "special" above), but it would return to its usual Monday night slot the next week.

Soap: Episode 23

Soap: Episode 23
ABC
March 14, 1978
Dramedy
DVD
B+

This episode is better than usual, helped along by the guest cast and some resolution for some plot threads, as well as two laugh-out-loud moments: Bob moving his lips when he reads, and Jessica defending herself for stepping on ants.

Mrs. McCallam threatens to ruin her husband's career if he doesn't end things with Eunice, so he ends things with Eunice.  Burt confesses to Mary about murdering Johnny.  Ingrid sleeps with the Judge to sway Jessica's trial, and Corinne realizes that her birth mother hates the Tates more than she loves her, so she leaves.  Father Tim tells his mother, Flo Flotsky (Doris Roberts, then 52 and of course playing this sort of role for the next thirty-some years), that he's in love with a woman and leaving the priesthood.  And Franklin's surprise witness turns out to be Mrs. Fine (Nita Talbot, as marvelous as ever).  Note that she had already left Peter's apartment when Jessica made her threat to Peter, but perhaps she was listening at the door.

Luis Avalos plays the Doctor and would return as Gen. Sandia.  Note that it's more plausible that Eunice and Walter are meeting at Nino's, Ann Marie and Donald Hollinger's favorite restaurant in New York, than that Greg Brady and Phil Packer took their dates there.

Soap: Episode 20

Charles Lane as the Judge in a later episode

Soap: Episode 20
ABC
February 14, 1978
Dramedy
DVD
B

Eunice makes it back inside the hotel, is mistaken (by Milt Oberman, who would return in a different role) for a call girl, meets up with Walter, plans a future in Aruba, and then is left in the mail room when he gets the incriminating photos back from the Messenger (Martin Braverman again).  Then there are a bunch of "Campbell" scenes, the best of the lot definitely being the scene where Jodie hides Bob in the refrigerator in an attempt to talk to Chuck.  Danny tries to break up with Elaine but instead finds out he has to marry her, or be killed.  And Burt finds out that Mary wants him committed.  The last scene is set in the judge's chambers (which Jessica has a wacky interpretation of) and the judge turns out to be veteran character actor Charles Lane, then 73 but still with many roles ahead of him, including as another judge on Mork & Mindy.  Also, Hesseman returns as Mr. Franklin's twin brother, the prosecutor.

Corinne, Billy, and the Major are absent.

Soap: Episode 19

Soap: Episode 19
ABC
February 7, 1978
Dramedy
DVD
B

Mallu tries to find a character witness among the Tates and Campbells.  (Note, here and in other places, like the opening credits, "The Campbells" includes Danny and Jodie Dallas.)  Mary takes Burt back to Dr. Medlow because he thinks he can make himself invisible.  (I guess Dr. Medlow doesn't just deal with sexual dysfunction, or maybe Mary wanted to take Burt to a doctor he trusts.)  Walter accidentally gives a messenger (Martin Braverman, who would return next episode) copies of the blackmail photos, while Eunice is out on the ledge in the pouring rain, hiding from Marilyn.  And Jessica gives a moving speech to Corinne about how much she loves her, but after Jessica leaves, Ingrid tells Corinne that Jessica just doesn't want Corinne to testify against her.  (You can hear the audience react to Ingrid's manipulation.)

Billy is absent.

Soap: Episode 17

Soap: Episode 17
ABC
January 17, 1978
Dramedy
DVD
B

Ingrid spends a lot of the episode gloating over Jessica's arrest.  Elaine takes Danny to talk to her father, Charles Lefkowitz (Sorrell Booke in his first of four Soap appearances), and we find out (though Danny doesn't yet) that Lefkowitz wants Danny to marry Elaine.  Howard Hesseman (briefly appearing onscreen with his future co-star Gordon Jump) plays Jessica's lawyer, Mr. Franklin, who refuses to continue since he's sure the case can't be won.  Congressman McCallam is being blackmailed.  And Burt thinks he can make himself invisible.

Susan Harris returns as Babette, this time answering Jessica's questions about prostitution.  Lee Weaver, who plays the Sergeant, would be Gus on Mork & Mindy.  Billy, Corinne, and the Major are absent.

Soap: Episode 14

Soap: Episode 14
ABC
December 27, 1977
Dramedy
DVD
B

This episode includes the introduction of Eunice's lover, Congressman Walter McCallam (40-year-old Edward Winter, perhaps best known as M*A*S*H's Colonel Flagg), and his alcoholic wife, Marilyn (29-year-old Judith-Marie Bergan in her first of three Soap appearances).  Ironically, when Tinkler chokes on his food (having invited himself to dinner), he asks for water and the Tates think the murderer is named Walter.  (Eunice isn't present, but she and Benson have been cleared by this point.)

Earlier in the episode, the two families speculate on whom they suspect.  Interestingly, no one suspects Mary.  It would be out of character for her to kill someone, and yet she sort of has a motive in that she might've resented Peter causing unhappiness between her sister and niece.  On the other hand, she'd be very unlikely to kill Burt's son, especially the same night that Burt has finally made love with her.

The first scene is set shortly after Tinkler and the non-Tates have gone home from the post-funeral gathering, with Chester very jealous now that he knows who Jessica's lover was.  He finally realizes how she's felt all these years.  (That she was in denial about his adultery is clearer now.)  He apologizes and they promise to never make each other suffer like this again.

At the very end of the episode, Tinkler says Corinne is the suspect.  She says, "Ma!" in her shock and disbelief, suggesting that, despite their recent falling out, she still loves her mother.

M*A*S*H: The Abduction of Margaret Houlihan

M*A*S*H: The Abduction of Margaret Houlihan
CBS
October 26, 1976
Dramedy
DVD
B

This is the first of two scripts by then new producers Allan Katz and Don Reo, based on a story by fellow producer Reynolds, who also directed.  Except for the plothole of Klinger not only not telling anyone where Margaret has gone but not noticing all the fuss in the camp, it's a good one.  Margaret, who is now fairly fluent in Korean, delivers a baby in a villager's home, while everyone (except Klinger) wonders where she's gone.  Flagg shows up with his special brand of insanity, including a story of once being a Vegas showgirl.

Jon Yune makes his first of four M*A*S*H appearances, as the Korean Translator.  June Kyoto Lu (this time as a Korean Woman), Susan Sakimoto (this time as the Korean Girl), and Lynne Marie Stewart (Nurse Baker) return.  This is Burghoff's 100th episode (and of course he was in the movie).

M*A*S*H: Quo Vadis, Captain Chandler

M*A*S*H: Quo Vadis, Captain Chandler
CBS
November 7, 1975
Dramedy
DVD
B-

Burt Prelutsky's first of eight M*A*S*H scripts, directed by Gelbart, is an odd one.  A soldier claims to be Jesus Christ, and so both Flagg and Freedman show up, leading to a scene where Flagg basically calls Freedman a Commie.  The tone of the episode shifts wildly and, laugh-track-less this time, it's hard to know how we're supposed to take any of this.

Kellye Nakahara (Yamato) returns.

M*A*S*H: White Gold

M*A*S*H: White Gold
CBS
March 11, 1975
Dramedy
DVD
C+

This Gelbart & Muntner story has its moments, mostly involving (not surprisingly) Flagg and/or Klinger, but it's muddled in tone and plot.  We're expected to laugh at the idea that Frank is excited by Flagg wanting to torture a prisoner.  (The laugh track is used intermittently this season, or rather unused and misused.)  And, as in some other recent episodes, other characters' actions are also morally dubious, even within the context of the episode, or the series.

Hilly Hicks, who plays Corporal Perkins/Johnson here, would come back as Corporal Moody.  Stafford Repp, who's best known as Chief O'Hara on the '60s Batman and who was on a '71 episode of That Girl, died a few months before this episode with him as Sgt. O'Hara aired.  Jeff Maxwell (Straminsky) returns and has a nice reaction shot to Hawkeye in the mess tent.

The Bob Newhart Show: The Gray Flannel Shrink

Oliver Clark as Mr. Herd

The Bob Newhart Show: The Gray Flannel Shrink
CBS
October 19, 1974
Sitcom
DVD
B

This story by Jerry Mayer, directed by Bonerz, has Bob briefly taking a job at an insurance company, so there's a whole other set of people Bob interacts with, although we still see him with his friends at work and home.  (Emily is visiting her parents for their 37th wedding anniversary, which narrows her age down to I'm guessing 33 and 36.)

Mary Robin Redd, who's Susan Wick, was Janie Downs on That Girl and Sister Theresa on M*A*S*H.  Jerry Fogel, who plays Paul Hollander and would play Paul Billingham, was also on That Girl, four times.  This time Edward Winter's terse delivery is used well for the character of Wes Greenfield.

M*A*S*H: Officer of the Day

M*A*S*H: Officer of the Day
CBS
September 24, 1974
Dramedy
DVD
B

This story by Laurence Marks has some good wordplay (as with Hawkeye's "carry" speech) and some satire of military intelligence, which (perhaps anticipating or perhaps stealing from George Carlin) is seen as a contradiction in terms.  Col. Flagg is back, after four or five months he claims.  Col. Blake is gone (I think Stevenson was easing out of the show), so Hawkeye has the position of the episode's title.  He does his best to defy Flagg, and even though you can see the twist at the end coming, it's still satisfying.  Maybe Marks should've worked without Gelbart more often.

Richard Lee-Sung has his first of eleven M*A*S*H roles, as the 2nd Kim Luc, while the 1st Kim Luc, Tad Horino, would come back once.  Jerry Fujikawa's third M*A*S*H cameo is as Sang Yu.  Mary Peters makes her first of two uncredited appearances as a nameless Nurse.  Roy Goldman (as Roy Goldman), Jeff Maxwell (Straminsky), and Dennis Troy (this time as Carter) return.

M*A*S*H: A Smattering of Intelligence

M*A*S*H: A Smattering of Intelligence
CBS
March 2, 1974
Dramedy
DVD
B

This Gelbart & Marks story (also directed by Gelbart) is funnier than most of the episodes of the season it closes.  Edward Winter returns, now as Col. Samuel Flagg, facing off against another spy, who interestingly is a good buddy of Trapper's.  That doesn't stop Trap and Hawk from playing mind games with them both, with Frank's patriotism questioned from the right and left.

The season fluctuates in quality almost as much as the first one did, this time ranging from D+ to B+, although the average is ultimately a B-.  Sexism and unfunny humor (sometimes but not always overlapping categories) continue to crop up, but less so.  There are times, as in this episode, when the humor comes, as it should, from the contrast of Hawkeye and Trapper with the genuine craziness of the military and government.  The character overload of the first season is less of an issue.  On the other hand, there are times when staleness and de ja vu are a problem, and I don't know that that's going to improve with nine years left to go.  Verdict: M*A*S*H is still trying to figure things out, but it is getting closer.  I hope.

M*A*S*H: Deal Me Out

The sunglasses are the perfect accessory.

M*A*S*H: Deal Me Out
CBS
December 8, 1973
Dramedy
DVD
B

This is the best episode in awhile, helped along by the guest shots from Allan Arbus (Sidney Freedman) and Pat Morita (again as Capt. Sam Pak).  The script by Gelbart and Marks is wittier than usual, including a Kafka joke.  The performance by 25-year-old John Ritter as Private Carter is a little shaky, but then it's a tricky role, and again the laugh track is misused, with him threatening Frank with a gun played mostly for laughs.

Gwen Farrell (Wilson) returns.  Tom Dever has his first of five M*A*S*H roles, this time as Lt. Rogers, while Jerry Fujikawa has his first of seven, as "Whiplash" Hwang.  And Edward Winter, who'd done a guest shot on The Bob Newhart Show, is Capt. Halloran here, but would be Col. Flagg later, a much more gung-ho character as I recall.  Note that there's no sign of Hot Lips.

The Bob Newhart Show: Emily, I'm Home - Emily??

The Bob Newhart Show: Emily, I'm Home - Emily??
CBS
February 17, 1973
Sitcom
DVD
C+

Emily gets a full-time job and Bob is not at all supportive or adaptable.  He does finally give in at the end, but since he's drunk, it's not much of a victory, and the tag suggests Emily is still too busy.  Ironically or not, this episode was written by Martin Cohan, who would go on to create Who's the Boss?, with a very different take on working women, but then a lot would happen in society and on television in the next decade or so.

Jill Jaress returns as Mary Ellen.  Alma Beltran, who plays Marina, would be Maria Calderon on The Brady Bunch.  Thirty-five-year-old Edward Winter makes his first of three BNS appearances, as Professor Trainer, and would be on Soap among other shows.