Three's Company: Chrissy's Cousin

Three's Company: Chrissy's Cousin
ABC
December 16, 1980
Sitcom
DVD
B-

Grossman & Burditt wrote this story that introduces Jenilee Harrison in her first of thirty-two appearances as Cindy Snow.  In the earlier part of the episode, Chrissy seems like she'll be away awhile longer and she's only mailed an IOU for her share of the rent.  So Jack and Janet decide to get a replacement roommate, and they each bring home the current girlfriend/boyfriend.  But Larry brings over one of his girlfriends, and Furley brings over a widow who's looking for a place to live.  It doesn't seem to occur to any of them that it would be extremely awkward to have their love interest living in the apartment if they broke up.  Nor does Jack consider that it'd be harder to pass as gay with his girlfriend on the premises.  For that matter, how would Janet explain Bill to Mr. Furley?

Cindy shows up, on Chrissy's invitation, and comes up with a solution inspired by the Man About the House episode "One More for the Pot": using astrology she suggests Bill and Maxine (who've never met before today) move into a one-bedroom apartment she noticed is available.  Janet and more particularly Jack, who begins to suffer with Cindy's clumsiness, as he will throughout the rest of her run, are dubious about their new roommate, but when she convinces Mr. Furley to wait on the rent (she's got a job as a secretary at Chrissy's ofice but won't be paid for two weeks), they're won over.  As for me, I was used to characters coming and going (for instance, Alice that same season replaced Flo with Belle), and I think I liked Cindy at the time but didn't yet realize that Chrissy wasn't coming back.  But then even the producers weren't sure yet.

Jordan Clarke, who plays Bill, was Saunders on M*A*S*H.  Barbara Stuart, who plays Mrs. Medford, would later be Martha.  Karen Austin, who plays Jennifer, would have a more prominent role later as Denise; she was Chester's nameless Woman on Soap in '79.