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What episodes are you watching on "I Love Lucy"?


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  • 2 weeks later...

This past week, for reasons unknown, I have been obsessing over the Operetta and have watched it thrice. It never seems to get old.

 

Ricky: Good words?! Lancelot? Dance a lot?! Who wrote this?

Lucy: Who wrote it?! Did you ever hear of Victor Herbert?!

Ricky: Yeah.

Lucy: Well, alright then. Go ahead.

 

Also, Myra Marsh was criminally underused in this series. She is hysterically funny in both of her appearances.

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This past week, for reasons unknown, I have been obsessing over the Operetta and have watched it thrice. It never seems to get old.

 

Ricky: Good words?! Lancelot? Dance a lot?! Who wrote this?

Lucy: Who wrote it?! Did you ever hear of Victor Herbert?!

Ricky: Yeah.

Lucy: Well, alright then. Go ahead.

 

Also, Myra Marsh was criminally underused in this series. She is hysterically funny in both of her appearances.

Agreed, Marsh should've appeared far more often. It goes to show how powerful her performances were that she's so vividly remembered for such brief appearances.

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This past week, for reasons unknown, I have been obsessing over the Operetta and have watched it thrice. It never seems to get old.

 

Ricky: Good words?! Lancelot? Dance a lot?! Who wrote this?

Lucy: Who wrote it?! Did you ever hear of Victor Herbert?!

Ricky: Yeah.

Lucy: Well, alright then. Go ahead.

 

Also, Myra Marsh was criminally underused in this series. She is hysterically funny in both of her appearances.

Truth!...and it's too bad she didn't appear ....(wait for it) ....thrice:HALKING::vanda::lucydesi:

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  • 1 month later...

"Return Home From Europe"

I didn't realize it until today, but this probably falls into my top ten all time favorites. The whole idea of eating a cheese baby strikes me as terribly funny.

Really is a great one.  A perfect ending to the Europe sequence.  Hilarious from start to finish and Mary Jane Croft is in top form.  Episode #153 and they were still cranking out classics!  Remarkable.  A bittersweet episode because, run in sequence it's followed by those very uneven 6th season episodes.  Of all the New York episodes, the only one I care for is "Loving Cup".  Things improved when the moved to country arc started.  "Wants to Move to Country" elevated the entire season and they were back on track.  There are only one or two Connecticut duffers which unfortunately included the 1/2 hr. swan song "Dedicates a Statue". 

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  • 4 months later...

Season 4 Discs 1 and 2

 

I don't often veer into this part of the fourth season, but it's just as good as the rest of what is one of the best years of television ever made. The story-arc-within-a-story-arc of the cast getting ready for their trip is brilliant, but doesn't have enough "action" to fall into classic territory and the whole thing always blurs together in my head. That little group of episodes as a whole is near-perfect.

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Season 4 Discs 1 and 2

 

I don't often veer into this part of the fourth season, but it's just as good as the rest of what is one of the best years of television ever made. The story-arc-within-a-story-arc of the cast getting ready for their trip is brilliant, but doesn't have enough "action" to fall into classic territory and the whole thing always blurs together in my head. That little group of episodes as a whole is near-perfect.

I beg to differ a bit with your "doesn't have enough "action"" remark (e.g. Lucy Learns to Drive alone has enough "action" for an entire season!) for this stretch of episodes which as you say, are near-perfect and for me nearly on a par with the Hollywood-based episodes.  Very impressive for a season which began tenuously with 2 or 3 "dogs" (for ILL anyway) in a row with some of my least favorite episodes of the entire series ("Wolf" and "Mertz and Kurtz" - Oy!). :peachonthebeach:

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I have one I'm training right now and it's so much fun to tell and show them new things. They are like a sponge and your are the flood.

I gave up years ago.  Tired of getting eye rolls and having to actually try and explain the genius that was Lucille Ball (and company, of course).  I applaud your endeavors! :peachonthebeach:

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My trainee sought me out on Instagram and she's wonderful and is reading and watching everything I recommend. Too often I'm running into these new fans who on!y care about the Lucy Desi years, will only watch the ILL series, won't educate themselves on her entire life or career. It pisses me off they seem to write her non Desi life off. Don't get me started on the Gary bashing. My girl is the diamond in the rough and I love showing all the fabulousness of this woman to her.

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My trainee sought me out on Instagram and she's wonderful and is reading and watching everything I recommend. Too often I'm running into these new fans who on!y care about the Lucy Desi years, will only watch the ILL series, won't educate themselves on her entire life or career. It pisses me off they seem to write her non Desi life off. Don't get me started on the Gary bashing. My girl is the diamond in the rough and I love showing all the fabulousness of this woman to her.

Well that's wundaful and admirable and you're lucky you've got a willing "victim"! It's such a hassle when you have to tie 'em down and practically "force feed" them that which they should already be aware! :blink:

 

I'm not gonna touch that Gary-bashing remark though.... that's a whole other kettle of fish (arf! arf! arf!) ;)

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I beg to differ a bit with your "doesn't have enough "action"" remark (e.g. Lucy Learns to Drive alone has enough "action" for an entire season!) for this stretch of episodes which as you say, are near-perfect and for me nearly on a par with the Hollywood-based episodes.  Very impressive for a season which began tenuously with 2 or 3 "dogs" (for ILL anyway) in a row with some of my least favorite episodes of the entire series ("Wolf" and "Mertz and Kurtz" - Oy!). :peachonthebeach:

 

 I wouldn't call these two my favorites but I do like them.  People have the most adverse reaction to Mertz & Kurtz and Lucy Goes to Scotland (in addition to "Drafted") and I like both.  I keep meaning to watch "Drafted" again to see if it is as bad as we all remember.  There are 9 Hollywood-themed  episodes before they actually get there and within that arc there are two others, both great "Lucy's Mother In Law" and "Ethel's Birthday".  Seems to me there was some mention of Hollywood during one of them.   Contrast this to Lucy Carmichael's move to LA from Danfield in 1965.   Couldn't they have talked Viv into appearing on the first 5 or so episodes of the 4th season?  There's a tiny bit of an arc in the beginning of the 4th with Lucy and Mooney referencing their new lives in LA as opposed to Danfield. 

Getting ready for Europe was a little more abbreviated: 3 episodes, then Bon Voyage.  These story arcs added so much to the show, especially the pre-trip shows.  I'm sure audiences at the time were full of anticipation: "what was going to happen next?".   It's a shame the story arc concept wasn't  incorporated into TLS and HL.  Not counting the 2 2-parters, there are no arcs in TLS--unless you count the 3rd season Countess episodes and the 4th season Ironman Carmichael trilogy.   The only one in HL was the motor home trip.  But none of those are true story arcs because the episodes are all completely self-contained.  Once they're done with "My Fair Lucy", the Countess's charm school is never mentioned again.

HL's motor home 'vacation' is sabotaged by bad scripting.  Too much bickering.  Not that the usual HL writers were any good, but one has to wonder where they found this Gene Thompson and why they hired him.   Harry sleeping while Lucy veers off  by a full 1000 miles is just too ridiculous for me to overlook.  Not to mention being able to drive on to the military academy.  No security?  I can't think of one of those location shows that actual has a plot that moves the action forward.  Mostly vignettes, and none too funny.   I guess my favorite of those (by default) is "Runs the Rapids", less because of the comedy and more to marvel at Lucy's stunt work.  I'm impressed even more after looking at the bonus behind-the-scenes footage.  Especially considering Lucy was 59 at the time,about  the same age as Kathryn Card was when she played Minnie Finch!!  and two years OLDER than Frances Bavier when "Andy Griffith" started!  Can you imagine the AG episode "Aunt Bee Runs the Rapids"?

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 I wouldn't call these two my favorites but I do like them.  People have the most adverse reaction to Mertz & Kurtz and Lucy Goes to Scotland (in addition to "Drafted") and I like both.  I keep meaning to watch "Drafted" again to see if it is as bad as we all remember.  There are 9 Hollywood-themed  episodes before they actually get there and within that arc there are two others, both great "Lucy's Mother In Law" and "Ethel's Birthday".  Seems to me there was some mention of Hollywood during one of them.   Contrast this to Lucy Carmichael's move to LA from Danfield in 1965.   Couldn't they have talked Viv into appearing on the first 5 or so episodes of the 4th season?  There's a tiny bit of an arc in the beginning of the 4th with Lucy and Mooney referencing their new lives in LA as opposed to Danfield. 

Getting ready for Europe was a little more abbreviated: 3 episodes, then Bon Voyage.  These story arcs added so much to the show, especially the pre-trip shows.  I'm sure audiences at the time were full of anticipation: "what was going to happen next?".   It's a shame the story arc concept wasn't  incorporated into TLS and HL.  Not counting the 2 2-parters, there are no arcs in TLS--unless you count the 3rd season Countess episodes and the 4th season Ironman Carmichael trilogy.   The only one in HL was the motor home trip.  But none of those are true story arcs because the episodes are all completely self-contained.  Once they're done with "My Fair Lucy", the Countess's charm school is never mentioned again.

HL's motor home 'vacation' is sabotaged by bad scripting.  Too much bickering.  Not that the usual HL writers were any good, but one has to wonder where they found this Gene Thompson and why they hired him.   Harry sleeping while Lucy veers off  by a full 1000 miles is just too ridiculous for me to overlook.  Not to mention being able to drive on to the military academy.  No security?  I can't think of one of those location shows that actual has a plot that moves the action forward.  Mostly vignettes, and none too funny.   I guess my favorite of those (by default) is "Runs the Rapids", less because of the comedy and more to marvel at Lucy's stunt work.  I'm impressed even more after looking at the bonus behind-the-scenes footage.  Especially considering Lucy was 59 at the time,about  the same age as Kathryn Card was when she played Minnie Finch!!  and two years OLDER than Frances Bavier when "Andy Griffith" started!  Can you imagine the AG episode "Aunt Bee Runs the Rapids"?

Now THERE'S a visual!! :blink:

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  • 3 weeks later...

Currently having my own Lucy marathon in celebration of Lucille Ball's birthday. Watching the following episodes:

 

* Lucy's Last Birthday

* Job Switching

* Lucy's Italian Movie

* Lucy Does a TV Commercial

* L.A. At Last!

* Off To Florida

* Lucy Hunts Uranium (episode of The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour)

* Lucy Is Enciente

* Lucy Goes to the Hospital

* Bon Voyage

* Lucy Raises Chickens

* The Million Dollar Idea

* The Freezer

* Lucy Gets In Pictures

* The Celebrity Next Door (episode of The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour)

* Return Home From Europe

* Lucy Tells the Truth

* Lucy's Night in Town

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"Return Home From Europe"

I didn't realize it until today, but this probably falls into my top ten all time favorites. The whole idea of eating a cheese baby strikes me as terribly funny.

 

Mine too! I am surprised that this particular episode never gets included in a Best I Love Lucy list.

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Currently having my own Lucy marathon in celebration of Lucille Ball's birthday. Watching the following episodes:

 

* Lucy's Last Birthday

* Job Switching

* Lucy's Italian Movie

* Lucy Does a TV Commercial

* L.A. At Last!

* Off To Florida

* Lucy Hunts Uranium (episode of The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour)

* Lucy Is Enciente

* Lucy Goes to the Hospital

* Bon Voyage

* Lucy Raises Chickens

* The Million Dollar Idea

* The Freezer

* Lucy Gets In Pictures

* The Celebrity Next Door (episode of The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour)

* Return Home From Europe

* Lucy Tells the Truth

* Lucy's Night in Town

 

Now that's a marathon! :blink:  In this order?? Any particular rhyme or reason (just curious!)?? :peachonthebeach:

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Now that's a marathon! :blink:  In this order?? Any particular rhyme or reason (just curious!)?? :peachonthebeach:

 

Yeah, in this order. Start with the birthday episode because afterall it's Lucy birthday, then the four most memorable episodes, then other popular episodes in random order (to keep the marathon fresh) with some favorites sprinkled in, and round it out with an episode that closely marks the occasion.

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Yeah, in this order. Start with the birthday episode because afterall it's Lucy birthday, then the four most memorable episodes, then other popular episodes in random order (to keep the marathon fresh) with some favorites sprinkled in, and round it out with an episode that closely marks the occasion.

Sweet!

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