Bosom Buddies: Only the Lonely

Bosom Buddies: Only the Lonely
ABC
March 12, 1981
Sitcom
DVD
B-

This Carrerow & Chambers story has some good moments but feels slightly off to me.  Ruth invites Kip and Henry over and tries too hard to befriend them.  After talking to Amy and Sonny afterwards, they feel guilty for leaving Ruth's apartment with feeble excuses.  Meanwhile, Sonny, Amy, and Isabelle have found a box of kittens, so Kip and Henry bring one back to Ruth's as a peace offering, and Ruth names the kitten Ruth.

The thing is, the timeline is fuzzy here (yes, like a kitten, only not as cute).  The guys refer on their return visit to "last Saturday."  This implies more than a week has passed.  But wouldn't they have seen Ruth at work in the meantime?  And why has Lilly allowed the kittens to stay so long?

I like the insights into Ruth, from her adoring her brother Lex, "the pink sheep of the family," to her reluctant admission it's sometimes hard for a woman in business to make friends.  In "Gotta Dance," the guys gave her a hug and things felt awkward, but the episode didn't focus on the awkwardness.  Maybe part of the problem is I don't like to see people look so uncomfortable, except when it's funny, like Kip playing bongos while Ruth recites Howl and Henry looks on in disbelief (see picture above).

Note that in the tag, Lilly, Amy, Isabelle, and Sonny are watching Some Like It Hot.  Amy is amused that the other women think that they would spot what Lilly calls "he-she's."  Then Buffy and Hildy come in and say the movie has a stupid premise but the guys are good.  Such tweaking of the very basis of a program was rare on TV pre-'90s, outside of Burns & Allen and Mork & Mindy.  It'd be like if Hawkeye suddenly said something about the M*A*S*H timeline.

Director Tom Trbovich would go on to do The Garry Shandling Show: 25th Anniversary Special.