"Fonzie the Substitute"




I vaguely remember this episode from the time, including the girl thinking she could get pregnant from necking in a swimsuit.  I'm not crazy about how everyone just finds the possible pregnancy funny, and I can't believe they went and added a cousin for Eugene, named Melvin Belvin, leading to yet more nerd-bullying, including by Fonzie, but I did find one bright spot: Roger actually has a bit of a personality here, beyond being pseudointellectual hunk.  He shows integrity deciding to dispel ignorance, even if it might get him fired.  And I sort of like the scene of Roger and Fonzie's argument ruining Howard and Marion's romantic evening.  So C-.

Notes:
  • David LeBell makes at least his second uncredited appearance as a Patron at Arnold's.
  • Scott Mitchell Bernstein would be back six more times as Melvin, oh boy.  (I had apparently blanked this character out of my consciousness, although I did recall Eugene before launching this project.)
  • Ceil Cabot's third and final HD role is as Mrs. Eckhardt from the school board, and she probably gives the best performance in this episode.
  • This script is the first thing Ralph Farquhar wrote for TV, and he has a long post-HD career.
  • And, yes, I'm going to say it.  WHAT THE FUCK???  Joanie (and Jenny and Chachi) still in high school?  After all this time?  She was 12 in Season One, right?  She was supposed to graduate at the end of Season Seven.  What is going on here?   At least when Richie was perennially seventeenish, we never actually knew what year it was supposed to be.
  • Is that why it's still 1962?  If it is still '62.
  • I will rant more about this in the future no doubt.

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