Three's Company: Navy Blues

Three's Company: Navy Blues
ABC
May 3, 1983
Sitcom
DVD
B-

Staretski & Rips wrote this story that makes you wonder why Jack continues to trust his old Navy buddies.  This time, instead of a hostile blind man, it's charming Bill Martin (Rod McCary, who previously was Gregg Halliday, the guy pretending an interest in Janet's ferns).  He cons Jack into hiring him and then manipulates Angelino.  I can kind of see people falling for his lies, but it's a bit much to believe that he falls for Jack's lies.  Note, this surprisingly has some of Ritter's most serious acting on the show, moments where Jack is genuinely hurt, worried, or angry.  My guess is that by this point, although there's still some slapstick, Ritter wanted the character to grow up more, which would become more of an issue behind the scenes in the final season.  But this is only the penultimate episode of the penultimate season, so we're not quite there yet.

Patty Regan, who had three roles on That Girl, plays Marilyn Carmichael.