Reliving Happy Days

Easily the worst episode so far, a D in fact, and that's only because I liked "the Potsie Club" part and the episode starts out with a standard plot, used on The Brady Bunch and Three's Company among others, where someone can't go on a blind date and he (it's usually a guy) gets a friend to pretend to be him.  Potsie hits it off with the girl, who of course (another trope here) is not the expected "dog," but then (offscreen) he attacks her and rips her dress as she tries to escape!  Then she has to hitchhike back to the hotel where she and her parents are staying.  And there are lots of jokes about men being "animals," as if attempted date rape is funny.  Even Joanie being voyeuristic, which is weird enough with Richie pranking her by telling an imaginary date that his sister would want to watch, gets even more twisted.  And to top it off, Fonzie, the "expert on women," says women aren't real people and they expect a guy to ...

This is one of the best episodes so far, with some laugh-out-loud moments and some heartfelt moments, which somewhat overlap, as in the "sex talk" scene between Marion and Joanie.  And, yes, the irony is thick as Fonzie doesn't seem too concerned about Joanie dating his twelve-year-old nephew Spike, when she'd later date and marry his cousin Chachi.  This also of course is the debut of Richie as protective older brother, which would be a big part of the next five and a half seasons. Notes: I know Tony Randall was then working for Garry M. at Paramount on The Odd Couple, but I was definitely not ready to see him as an untransformed werewolf kissing in a black & white movie! Is Carol the first girl to kiss Richie, Potsie, and  Ralph?  I like how we can both sympathize with her and understand Richie's sense of honor that requires him to keep ditching her. The aptly named Danny Butch would return as Raymond "Spike" Fonzarelli thrice more and he's qui...

This one sort of plays with the idea of image vs. reality, with a "wholesome" Hollywood star (played by the lovely Cheryl Stoppelmoor, in I think her first appearance as Cheryl Ladd) who drinks and smokes but is also faithful to her secret husband.  This tension is very Happy-Days I think, especially in the early seasons.  And the thing of Fonzie have Richie literally "sniff Coke" (to see where he's hidden the booze) is one of those moments where I'm not sure if it was meant innocently or they were trying to slip something past the censors (and succeeding). Other thoughts: This feels a little early for Frankie Avalon to be a teen idol, unless it is 1959 after all. It's pretty clear that Potsie and Ralph are meant to be virgins, considering how eager they are to hear details of what Richie did at the starlet's hotel. Richie is definitely going steady with Gloria, and certainly we've seen more of her than his other girlfriends so far. James Daughto...

Things start to feel a little more familiar here on March 26th, with Anson Williams singing and the "Chinese fire drill" popping up in the credits.  By the way, every time "Rock Around the Clock" comes on, I get into it, which can't be said of the bland Happy Days theme that would replace it.  Anyway, this is another B, with some laugh-out loud moments (including the dog-playing-poker shot) and Howard getting the best of the frat-boy card-sharks. Other thoughts: Fonzie has one scene, in his leather jacket, giving an accurate assessment of the boys' band, who all seem to be playing in different styles. Ralph is working as a busboy at Arnold's and calls the owner "Arnie," but the man who yells at him clearly isn't Pat Morita. Bag and to a lesser extent Ralph seemed like frenemies before, but they are now in Richie and Potsie's band. Chuck shows up only in the tag and is the only one who can stomach Joanie's "chipmunk stew." ...

On January 22, 1974 the second episode of Happy Days aired and it's a little more assured, helped by Bosley's Howard finding a way to be a sarcastic voice of reason, so it's a B-.  The object of the episode title is of course a used car in poor condition.  Some notable things here: Richie is seventeen, but I guess it's the second half of his junior year.  Howard says that not only Davy and Ricky (Nelson) don't have cars, but neither does "Beaver."  Considering Beaver Cleaver was only about seven in 1957, that's not very helpful.  And, yes, I'm already confused by the timeline, and we're only two episodes in. Joanie is already in her mode of bratty little sister teasing her brother about his love life. Chuck is credited but I didn't see him, so I'm not tagging him. Potsie again is the relatively worldly one, while Richie still can't kiss.  Fonzie of course walks in on Potsie teaching Richie how to put his arm around a girl in a car, ...