Bosom Buddies: One for You, One for Me

Bosom Buddies: One for You, One for Me
ABC
November 27, 1981
Sitcom
DVD/VHS
C+

So, after a month off the air, ABC moved Buddies to Fridays at 8:30, after Benson.  I kept watching and liked this Jack Carrerow story at the time, although watching it now I can see some elements have aged badly.  One is the racial aspect, with the two prisoners that Henry meets, Hispanic Jay and even more so black Rochelle (a pre-Ghostbusters Ernie Hudson), presented somewhat stereotypically.  The other is the sexual aspect, particularly in regards to Kip.  Not only do we have him buying tickets to female mud-wrestling (not that long after being embarrassed to admit he enjoyed attending with Dr. Bob), but he pressures Sonny into going on a ski weekend with only one hotel bed, ignoring her hesitation about sex and claiming it'll be innocent, and then he's annoyed when "all Moose Moss wants to do is ski."  (Amy's line to Henry, "Did they beat you? Or worse?" plays male rape for laughs, although at least it's not graphic.)

Another flaw with the episode is inconsistent characterization, besides Kip.  This is seen with Isabelle, who rebuffs Rochelle's pick-up lines and then confides to Ruth, "His head may shine, but his body is fiiiiiiiine!"  And it's seen with Rochelle himself, who's never heard of a metaphor and yet chimes in on Henry's "I feel like Doesteyski in debtor's prison," with "You, too?"

Still, the episode does have one of the funniest moments of the series.  Henry has unknowingly bought a hot video recorder and so he's thrown in jail.  Despite a recent fight about money (including another funny moment, involving Special K), Kip comes to bail him out.
DESK SERGEANT: Could I have your name?
KIP: You could, but it'd be an incredible coincidence.
And then he applauds himself with the ski gloves hanging from his belt.

There are also a couple of musical interludes that did not make it onto the DVD, although they're important to showing how Henry and Kip (the latter also now in jail because his name is on the warranty, too) bond with the other inmates.  The four of them sing and dance to "Yakety Yak."  And then Henry lets Kip use the bail money to go rejoin Sonny, and Rochelle and Jay sing "Da Doo Ron Ron" with Henry.  Note that Kip makes another cocaine joke this episode.

Desk Sergeant Warren Munson was Mr. Collins on What's Happening!!, and incidentally was one of the executives in the 2003 movie Down with Love.  (He's pretty recognizable there.)