Benjamonster's TV

It's time to kick off a new episode guide! Over the next six weeks, I will be looking at  Rhoda  during my weekly Thursday episode guide! A reminder about my breakdown in ratings of episodes: 9-10: Exceptional 7-8: Strong 5-6: OK 3-4: Mediocre 1-2: Terrible RHODA: SEASON ONE 1974-1975 25 episodes After four celebrated years on  The Mary Tyler Moore Show , Valerie Harper moves over to one of TV's first successful spinoffs in  Rhoda .  Rhoda  kicks off its run in grand fashion with a string of very strong episodes leading up to the iconic one hour wedding episode (more on that below). After the wedding episode, the show starts to meander a bit and develops the inconsistent streak that will plague it for the rest of its run. Though there are great episodes to come,  Rhoda  is a show where the first 10 episodes collectively are better than any batch of 10 that follow it. Starring Valerie Harper as Rhoda Morgenstern Gerard  (25 episodes) Julie Kav...

RHODA September 9, 1974-December 9, 1978 110 episodes Starring: Valerie Harper, Julie Kavner, David Groh, Nancy Walker, Harold Gould, Ron Silver, Ray Buktenica, Kenneth McMillan Before Frasier , Rhoda was arguably the most successful spinoff in TV history. Based on a wildly popular character from the wildly popular The Mary Tyler Moore Show , Rhoda was a show that started off on the right track the first season with a highly publicized and widely watched wedding but lost its way later in its run and fizzled out during its fifth season. At the beginning of the run, the show focused on Rhoda's (Valerie Harper) return to her hometown New York City after living in Minneapolis. Almost immediately (to ensure that people would be watching as it aired against Monday Night Football ), Rhoda met and fell in love with a man named Joe (David Groh). The perpetually single girl was finally getting married and her wedding was viewed by the second biggest audience (at the time) ...

On Thursdays, I go through classic series with a critical look at each season. Today I am looking at Season Three of  Rhoda ! RHODA: SEASON THREE 1976-1977 24 episodes Season three has a little bit of TV history as the writers decided to split up Rhoda and Joe and make Rhoda TV's first divorced lead on a sitcom. I'm not going to pretend the show was firing on all cylinders before Rhoda and Joe split up but the reality is, the show takes a turn for the worse after the divorce. That being said, season three has some highlights because the divorce storyline itself is without question the most interesting the Rhoda and Joe relationship ever was. It features some strong performances from Valerie Harper and David Groh. It's too bad they couldn't find a way to make the marriage compelling without splitting them up. Starring Valerie Harper as Rhoda Morgenstern Gerard  (24 episodes) Julie Kavner as Brenda Morgenstern  (24 episodes) Ron Silver as Gary Levy  (13 episodes) David...

On Thursdays, I go through classic series with a critical look at each season. Today I am looking at Season Two of Rhoda ! RHODA: SEASON TWO 1975-1976 24 episodes Rhoda and Joe have been married for nearly a season and already the show hits a rut at times in its second season. Famously, the attention given to Brenda and Ida stories this season is a reason that the writers split up Rhoda and Joe in season three. Rhoda, and especially Joe, sometimes feel like afterthoughts in this season as the show starts to kick up the obnoxious side characters with episodes devoted to such unnecessary characters as Myrna Morgenstein and Nick Lobo. There are some really, really strong episodes in this season but also some pretty rough ones to sit through. It's a step down from Season 1 but sadly it's better than any season that follows. Starring Valerie Harper as Rhoda Gerard  (24 episodes) Julie Kavner as Brenda Morgenstern  (24 episodes) David Groh as Joe Gerard  (23 episodes) Nancy Wal...

On Thursdays, I go through classic series with a critical look at each season. Today I am looking at Season Three of  Rhoda ! RHODA: SEASON FOUR 1977-1978 24 episodes David Groh has left the show and  Rhoda  kicks off season four with somewhat of a reset. We thankfully get Nancy Walker back, but the show continues its trend of super obnoxious side characters and we don't even have the Rhoda and Joe storyline to keep things afloat like we did in season three. It's a new(ish) apartment, new characters, new theme song, new feel. But it's not a better show. This is very clearly the beginning of the end for  Rhoda , a show that can still be great but feels like a shell of what it was. Starring Valerie Harper as Rhoda Morgenstern  (24 episodes) Julie Kavner as Brenda Morgenstern  (24 episodes) Ron Silver as Gary Levy  (20 episodes) Ray Buktenica as Benny Goodwin  (15 episodes) Kenneth McMillan as Jack Doyle  (15 episodes) Nancy Walker as Ida Morgen...

On Thursdays, I go through classic series with a critical look at each season. Today I am looking at Season Five (the final season) of  Rhoda ! RHODA: SEASON FIVE 1978 13 episodes Rhoda' s final season was a truncated one as the show was cancelled in December 1978 after only 13 episodes had been produced (and only nine had aired). This feels like a continuation from season four in many ways except with the ill-advised split between Ida and Martin (more on that below). While  Rhoda  has an occasional good moment and even a couple decent episodes, it is a show that seems so wildly different from season one and not in a good way.  Rhoda  could never figure out what it fully wanted to be and only made it four and a half seasons as a result. Starring Valerie Harper as Rhoda Morgenstern  (13 episodes) Julie Kavner as Brenda Morgenstern  (13 episodes) Ray Buktenica as Benny Goodwin  (11 episodes) Kenneth McMillan as Jack Doyle  (9 episodes) Nancy Wa...

THE MARY TYLER MOORE SHOW September 19, 1970 - March 19, 1977 168 episodes Starring: Mary Tyler Moore, Ed Asner, Valerie Harper, Gavin MacLeod, Ted Knight, Betty White, Georgia Engel, Cloris Leachman The Mary Tyler Moore Show is a classic sitcom by almost anyone's standards but I would go one step further and say it was more consistently excellent than any other show in television history. Most shows, even the best of them, have dud episodes or dud seasons but not The Mary Tyler Moore Show . Each episode was the highest of quality thanks to incredibly talented writers, directors, and actors. It was a sophisticated show in the 1970s that holds up well in the 2010s with some of the most developed and wonderful characters in sitcom history. Of course at the center of the show is Mary Tyler Moore as the ever-perky, single, working girl Mary Richards. She broke sitcom barriers by being a career woman in her 30s without a husband or children or even a steady boyfriend. But unlike ...

As its season one theme tells us, Rhoda Morgenstern was born in the Bronx, New York in December 1941 (she always felt responsible for World War II). Valerie Harper was born in Suffern, NY in 1939, but she and Rhoda always felt a little bit like the same person, and it was so sad to hear of the passing of the iconic actress today at the age of 80 after a long and courageous battle with cancer. She was a Tony-nominated stage actress and starred in a handful of other series, but she will always be remembered as Rhoda Morgenstern, first on The Mary Tyler Moore Show and then on her spinoff, Rhoda. That role earned her eight straight Emmy nominations and three wins and cemented her as one of TV's greatest characters. While Mary Richards was pure, pretty and perfect, Rhoda was probably the character the audience identified with much more. She was urban, Jewish, struggled with her weight and her dating life, and yet had a sarcastic and funny sensibility about it all. Mary Tyler Moo...

My Top 10 this week is Top 10 The Mary Tyler Moore Show Characters. This is my all time #1 show so it was a list I took quite seriously! 10. GORDY HOWARD The Mary Tyler Moore Show only had eight regular characters during its run and back in those days, recurring characters on shows were few and far between. One of the few was Gordy the weatherman played by John Amos before he hit in big with Good Times and Roots . Gordy was always good for a few quips and the show occasionally dabbled with him being the only black character in a white sitcom/ensemble. I'm sure he would have had more to do if the show was made today but he made the most of his limited opportunities. 9. IDA MORGENSTERN Nancy Walker only appeared in four episodes of The Mary Tyler Moore Show but boy did she make her presence known in a role she then shined in on Rhoda too. Her first two appearances ("Support Your Local Mother" and "A Girl's Best Friend is Not Her Mother") are among the all-time...

Here is a summary of  Rhoda ! Next week I will start looking at a more recent favorite, Parks and Recreation, but before that, here is a look at all five seasons including the ultimate countdown of  Rhoda 's best and worst episodes! RHODA September 9, 1974 - December 9, 1978 110 episodes (4 unaired) Starring Valerie Harper as Rhoda Morgenstern Gerard  (110 episodes) Julie Kavner as Brenda Morgenstern  (110 episodes) David Groh as Joe Gerard  (55 episodes) Nancy Walker as Ida Morgenstern  (42 episodes) Lorenzo Music as Carlton the Doorman  (82 episodes) Ron Silver as Gary Levy  (33 episodes) Ray Buktenica as Benny Goodwin  (28 episodes) Kenneth McMillan as Jack Doyle  (24 episodes) Harold Gould as Martin Morgenstern  (17 episodes) Michael DeLano as Johnny Venture  (11 episodes) Rafael Campos as Ramon  (10 episodes) Scoey Mitchell as Justin Culp  (9 episodes) Barbara Sharma as Myrna Morgenstein  (9 episodes) A...

Two weeks ago, I counted down my Top 10 Shows of the 1960s . Now it's time for the 1970s. While I was making this list, I realized there are far fewer shows I like from the 1970s than the 1960s therefore there will be no close calls and only a Top 9. Once again, for a show to qualify, it must have had the majority of its episodes during the 1970s. 9. M*A*S*H (1972-1983) I'm not as big a fan of this show as many are but it is still a classic from the era. I also haven't seen as many of the later episodes, but from what I can tell, the early years with Hawkeye and Trapper John McIntyre and Henry Blake are far superior as the show started to take itself too seriously when it became "The Alan Alda Show." Those early episodes are really strong though and the friendship between Hawkeye and McIntyre plays like a very genuine friendship. Sometimes it's hard for me to believe this was as big a hit as it was, but it's still a well-written, well-acted show. Episo...

Tuesdays are Top 10 Tuesdays where I count down a topic in the TV realm. This week is  Top 10 TV Weddings! Close Calls Hank & Sarah - Parenthood Cam & Mitch - Modern Family Dwight & Angela - The Office 10. Jeannie & Tony - I Dream of Jeannie The coupling of Jeannie and Tony may have been a "jump the shark" event for I Dream of Jeannie but their wedding itself is a pretty fun episode. The idea that Jeannie can't be photographed makes for a madcap wedding ceremony and it feels very sweet even if you know it means the show can't go on much longer. 9. Max & 99 - Get Smart Another madcap wedding, Max and 99 getting married was less of a death sentence on its show. It was very fitting that it was wrapped up in a mission and it leads to a truly hilarious sequence during the actual ceremony. 

Back in the mid-1990s, Nick at Nite ran a programming block on the weekends called "Very Very Nick at Nite," which looked at four episodes with a similar theme. Now I will look at four sitcom episodes from across the decades that have a similar plot or theme. This week's topic is  Very Very Back Injury! This Week's Episodes The Bob Newhart Show #27 "Backlash" (First Aired: September 29, 1973) Bob throws his back out right before a planned trip to Mexico with Emily that he was reluctant about going on to begin with. Bob and Emily Hartley have one of TV's most underrated marriages. There was such a grounded realness in their interactions with each other and this episode, while filled with comedy, also includes honest conversations between the two of them. Bob Newhart is a gifted comedian but being stiff is a little bit a part of his shtick so seeing him actually physically stiff proved that there is another layer he doesn't usually have. This was a wel...

Back in the mid-1990s, Nick at Nite ran a programming block on the weekends called "Very Very Nick at Nite," which looked at four episodes with a similar theme. Now I will look at four sitcom episodes from across the decades that have a similar plot or theme. This week's topic is  Very Very Home Stakeout! This Week's Episodes Coach #197 "The Neighbor Hood" (First Aired: April 23, 1997) Christine signs for a package for their Florida neighbors, who they don't really know, and then find out that they have the attention of the secret service. This is the last regular episode of Coach before the three part series finale. This episode is set up well because it plays into Hayden's reluctance to interact with anyone but when he finally does interact with the neighbors, after two years, they get embroiled in a stakeout. Unlike the rest of the episodes on this list, the agents actually want active participation from the sitcom characters we know and love. Tha...

Tuesdays are Top 10 Tuesdays where I count down a topic in the TV realm. This week is  Top 10 Theme Songs of the 70s! A reminder, it had to be any show that premiered in that timeframe even if it ran well into another decade. Also, the song had to have been written for the show. Close Calls Dallas The Odd Couple Taxi 10. M*A*S*H (1972-1983) This song, titled "Suicide is Painless" is a really nice piece of music. It's a little bit haunting and a little bit wistful and it fits perfectly for a show that incorporated just as much drama as comedy during its run. One of the better purely instrumental themes. 9.  The Partridge Family  (1970-1974) I have only watched a small handful of episodes of The Partridge Family but I've always enjoyed the theme song and the clever little intro with the egg. It's one that is hard to get out of your head and has a happy feeling to it. I mean, it tells us to get happy after all.

On Wednesdays, I take a look at a series that lasted one season or less. This week, I am looking at 1995's The Office ! THE OFFICE March 11, 1995 - April 15, 1995 5 episodes CBS Starring: Valerie Harper, Andrea Abbate, Kevin Conroy, Lisa Darr, Kristin Dattilo-Hayward, Gary Dourdan, Dakin Matthews, Debra Jo Rupp Created by: Susan Beavers and Barbara Corday Plot: Rita Stone (Harper) is a long-time secretary at a package design company who manages three other secretaries (Rupp, Abbate & Dattilo-Hayward) while also dealing with incompetent CEO, Frank (Matthews). Other office members include the only female executive, Natalie (Darr), the firm's artist, Bobby (Doudan) and salesman Steve (Conroy). Brief Pilot Review: No, it's not THAT The Office . A decade before NBC's iconic workplace sitcom, there was a much less iconic sitcom of the same name on CBS. The series deliberately was going for an Upstairs, Downstairs approach with the attention focused on the secretaries serv...

Tuesdays are Top 10 Tuesdays where I count down a topic in the TV realm. This week is  Top 10 TV Apartments! Close Calls Alex Levy's Apartment - The Morning Show Rhoda and Joe Gerard's Apartment - Rhoda Bob and Emily's First Apartment - The Bob Newhart Show 10. The Weismans' Apartment - The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel A really stunning apartment on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, the apartment where Midge, her kids and her parents live would sell for millions of dollars today. I love how sprawling it is and the show makes expert use of the characters moving throughout the apartment. It's also so brightly colored with a great 50s style, especially in the kitchen. 9. Joey Tribbiani's Apartment - Friends One of the two major apartments on the series (the other one is still to come on this list), Joey's apartment is the ultimate guys apartment in the early years. Compared to Monica's beautifully decorated apartment, Joey and Chandler ornamented things with a poo...

I am starting a new topic for the Weekend Rewind - my all time favorite theme songs. This week, check out #50-#41. Please keep in mind that I eliminated shows that used songs that were not made famous by the series (such as The Wonder Years or Parenthood ). Here we go! 50. Hey Arnold! Theme Song ( Hey Arnold, 1996-2004) Hey Arnold wasn't quite like any other cartoon from the heyday of Nicktoons back in the mid 1990s. It had an edge to it that was exemplified in the jazzy, street smart theme song. Jazzy themes are always a good way to go and this is one of the best. The wacky street gang that Arnold marches along with and Helga's incessant "Hey Arnold" served as a great intro to a classic Nicktoon. "Move it football head!" 49. Petticoat Junction Theme ( Petticoat Junction , 1963-1970) The relaxing, less crazed of the two Hooterville shows also had the better theme song despite Green Acres ' theme being much more famous. Mixing the sounds of the ...