Vote for why you think it jumped
Never Jumped
Moving (Mary's new apartment)
Moving (Rhoda to New York)
Georgette and Ted adopt
Day One
Shark Bytes
Yes, the "Chuckles" ep was not the funniest MTM show. That honor goes to Ted & Georgette's wedding! Especially when Sue Ann waltzes in like a proto-Martha-Stewart with all her self-created wedding accessories. (What's really weird about Sue Ann is that she's doing Martha schtick BEFORE Martha even started her career!)
The last few season's were the best. when Rhoda and Phyllis were out of the picture and it basically was about Ted. Pure Gold. Ted Knight was the funniest. A great underestimated comedian, talent.
With a clever title that has more than one meaning, Chuckles Bites The Dust is an excellent study of tragedy and comedy, and how they can both coexist not only within the same fictional work, but in our real lives. Be honest, how many of us have at least once gotten a bit of the CHUCKLES after coming across a very ridiculous news story, however sad (like men killing themselves while playing "chicken"), and then feeling gloomy because of the loss of life? The Darwin Awards website isn't popular for nothing. I thought that when Mary began bawling for the deceased right after finding the eulogy so hilarious, it was a powerful statement about how bittersweet life and human nature is. But was the episode itself funny? IMO, not really. The jokes were cliche' and downright corny. The delivery wasn't very speical, either. Perhaps this one's a classic for the themes it explored so well.
I think the quality of this show was pretty consistent over the years. I just saw the infamous "Chuckles Bites the Dust" episode for the first time yesterday and I agree with others who say it was way over-rated. I can't believe TV Guide rated it as the #1 best tv episode ever. IMO, that honor belongs to WKRP's "Turkey Drop" episode. "As God is my witness, I thought turkeys could fly."
Last night on Chicago station WGN, they played Chuckles Bites The Dust. It was my first time seeing it. Over all, it was a good episode with some chuckles (no pun intended), but I didn't find it a hilarious laugh riot. And I have a huge sense of humor. I'm not sure which parts exactly are supposed to be so side-splittingly funny. Ted informing TV viewers that Chuckles had been killed and creating an silly impromptu obituary of him-- so-so, didn't laugh personally. Lou & co. cracking jokes about his unusual manner of death while guffawing- amusing at best, obnoxious at worst. Mary- who had earlier chastised the others for their morbid humor- trying to muffle her uncontrollable laughter during the service while other mourners gawked at her- made me LOL, but I wasn't in stitches. The funniest thing about the episode was the cause of Chuckles death- he was dressed as a peanut and a parade elephant stepped on him. Funny if not macabre. One interesting thing I noticed, as a huge Golden Girl fan, is that the actor playing the funeral minister later played Blanche's love interest in a GG episode. He was Ham, the obese one-who-got-away from her in high school. In the MTM episode, which was like 15 years earlier, he was about 200lbs thinner.
My favorite show of all time, did slip up in the last two seasons: Clunker episodes include Murray thinking he's in love with Mary, Mary dating Lou, Mary's new neighbor--Penny Marshall, Mary seriously dating Ted Bissell, Too many Georgette & Ted episodes, etc. The last episode was great, however! The best thing about the Mary Tyler Moore Show was that it NEVER got preachy, like say The Golden Girls "Rose, blind people don't want to be treated like they are special, they just want to be treated like everyone else". Vomit. I could never, ever accept Betty White in any way, other that Sue Ann Nivens!
Never jumped, but would sure like to see (and own) the last 3 seasons to refresh my memory. Most days I go home for lunch and watch an MTM episode. And I laugh every time. In season 4, Mr. Grant's birthday party and his "first date" are very funny. I love Mary and I love every season of that show!
Shark jump? Nope, not ever. It definitely approached the ramp at times over the last season or so (Ted & Georgette story arcs; the possibility of Lou & Mary as a couple [eeewww; definitely, as an earlier poster put it, more mentor-mentee than romantic item]), but that's as close as it came.
In short, great series, & they knew to quit while they were ahead.
In short, great series, & they knew to quit while they were ahead.
One of the reasons this show is one of the best is that it BORROWED (I suppose some would say "stole) from one of the best! Mary learned her lessons well from her tenure on the Dick Van Dyke show, as I am now realizing since D.V.D. and M.T.M. reruns are now being shown on a local Chicago station.
DVD had a dual-plot setting, with home and work life getting about equal attention on most episodes. Same with MTM.
DVD had a strong supporting cast of co-workers and friends. The newsguys at WJM are echoes of the Alan Brady staff on DVD.The Mary/Rhoda relationship was clearly influenced by the Laura/Millie friendship on DVD.
Most importantly, both series had writers who knew how to create a story, pepper it with snappy dialog (Morey Amsterdam on DVD is without peer in this regard), and make it all believable even when far-fetched.
These were lessons well-learned by Mary when she did her classic show; too bad she and her people seemed to forget them in her subsequent sitcom attempts.
DVD had a dual-plot setting, with home and work life getting about equal attention on most episodes. Same with MTM.
DVD had a strong supporting cast of co-workers and friends. The newsguys at WJM are echoes of the Alan Brady staff on DVD.The Mary/Rhoda relationship was clearly influenced by the Laura/Millie friendship on DVD.
Most importantly, both series had writers who knew how to create a story, pepper it with snappy dialog (Morey Amsterdam on DVD is without peer in this regard), and make it all believable even when far-fetched.
These were lessons well-learned by Mary when she did her classic show; too bad she and her people seemed to forget them in her subsequent sitcom attempts.
Snuggles is absolutely right about Mary's transformation. It's seems to have started after Rhoda left-the show never really recoverd from losing the whole Mary/Rhoda dynamic. It's not that I have a problem with characters evolving and changing; it's what they sometimes change into that kills it for me. I had the same problem with Seinfeld when the characters transitioned from sort of innocently self absorbed, to downright mean-spirited.
This show jumped at some undetermined, amorphous point in the run when Mary morphed from loveable, insecure ingenue to brittle, sarcastic, middle-aged spinster. This moment is impossible to pinpoint, but if you don't believe it happened, watch a first season episode back-to-back with a fourth season episode and you'll see that a huge change transpired.
The strange thing is, MTM is still a funny show after the change, but a less likeable one.
The strange thing is, MTM is still a funny show after the change, but a less likeable one.
I always thought this was a great show, but there is a very troubling aspect in the form of MTM's ego. If you look at the opening credits to the show, it's ALL about Mary. True, the show belongs to her, but her co-stars don't even get credited until the end of each episode. We see the newly-arrived-to-Minneapolis Mary in a montage of shots cavorting around town in an overblown state of euphoria capped off by the famous tossing of the hat. We don't see any other stars of the show and the screen ultimately gets filled with "The Mary Tyler Moore Show". Way to share the credits, Mary!
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