"Fonzie's Baptism"

An odd episode, in of itself and in the larger arc of Fonzie's character.  Even though Fonzie has risked his life before, this time he wants to have "home plate" covered, so he meets Al's twin brother, a priest named Anthony, and decides to get baptized.  And then the tag doesn't really fit the mood.  So a C.

A few notes:

• This time Sally Hightower is Mary Lou.
• There are various Cunningham relatives mentioned, but Chuck is very officially erased, with Marion calling Richie the firstborn.
• Al allegedly got a nosejob, a joke that Bickley & Warren felt bore repeating.
• The baptism takes place on "Sunday the 17th."  If this is 1959, that would make it May, although Richie has already graduated (as he mentions).  If it's '58, then it would be August, which fits better, although Laverne & Shirley would very definitely be set in '59 the following Fall.  Then again, it's supposedly cold out.
• Fonzie doesn't like getting his hair wet, which makes the shark-jump all the more tragic.

Season Four of Happy Days ranges from D+ to B, averaging out to a C+, as Season Three (with a wider range).  The show is a little broader in Season Four, but with more of Fonzie as a positive role model.  I'm glad that they finally let Richie graduate after so long, and to be honest, I remember more of his college days from the time.  As for the ratings, this is the season that HD was Number One, with its sister show at Number Two, although Tuesday Nights on ABC were still not quite the late '70s phenomenon they'd become.

We'll see if the series indeed "jumped the shark" when we move on to Season Five....