Mrs. Pitts (Marjorie Eaton) has just moved in down the street from the Douglas's. (Although, I'm not sure it's the same street we were on in the last episode.) She knows that Mr. Douglas is a widower and wonders how he can take care of his three sons when all the help he has is from that strange old man, Bub. As the boys run wild and Bub tries to run the house with all the plumbing out, she watches what seems to be a day of debauchery at the Douglas house. In the end...it's all a big misunderstanding!
Oh, the fun we have with the lady from Monstrosity/ The Atomic Brain! That movie was sleazy and odd and made her out to be a grotesque old woman. This episode is several years before that but they don't seem to be filming her any differently. She looks like the archetype of the Repressed Old Librarian. Every time she makes her squeezed up "What's going on over there?" face, it's more disturbing than anything. Even in the end, when all is well, she's still filmed in a rather too close manner that calls attention to the fact that she is not the loveliest of ladies. And, she seems to be our audience identification for this episode as we certainly don't know enough about the Douglas family to be able to side with them. (More on this in a bit...)
I'm not sure what I'm supposed to be feeling while watching this. Again, no one is really developed. Chip, Bub and Steve are exactly the same as the previous episode. Mike and Robbie run around a lot getting involved in boyish shenanigans. Which makes me think: How old are they supposed to be? It feels like the script was written for 3 10-year-old boys. Mike, especially, feels too old to be running around the whole time.
Am I supposed to just sit back and laugh at the proceedings? Certainly there are more funny moments here than in the last episode but it's all seen from the point of view of Mrs. Pitts (well, most of it). She's one of those busybody's who doesn't seem to understand that all you need to do is ask a few questions and everything gets cleared up.
Chip, why are you so dirty?
The plumbing's busted. Plumber's on the way.
Chip, why are you collecting rags? Is it because you're very poor?
We're having some sort of rag collection for charity.
Chip, why are you so hungry?
Bub can't cook until we get water because all the dishes need cleaning.
Chip, has Bub been drinking?
No.
She asks none of these questions. Instead, the hilarity meter shoots through the roof as she stares at the Douglas boys and Bub engaged in what must be horrible behavior! So, she has to save Chip. When he comes by for rags, she sits him down on her couch and feeds him...lemonade, ice cream and cake and cookies. Way to go! Was this stuff nutritious back in 1960? Lady, why do you have nothing but deserts to eat in your house where you live all by yourself? One of my favorite parts of the episode happens after Steve arrives home. "Where's Chip?" "Don't know." Night is falling. Chip is missing. Oh, here he is. He was at Mrs. Pitts's house. She wouldn't let him leave. It's all a big misunderstanding and certainly not kidnapping.
(An aside: This type of character and these sorts of situations used to bug me when I was a little kid and they drives me crazy now. The only way, I think, you can get away with a character like this is if they are extremely funny. If the hilarity is so high, that it is all justified. Mrs. Pitts...not so much.)
The comedic peaks occurs because of Bub's coveralls. They are dirty and covered with paint. When Bub takes them off, Chip fills them with rags. Mike and Robbie think it's Bub, at first. Then, once they've ascertained that this is not a man, they begin to move the full coveralls around the house and people keep mistaking it for a guy. When the plumber arrives, he's wearing coveralls...Oh no! Oh yes. When the plumber is in the bushes, Steve comes home and starts talking to him. Mike and Robbie laugh at their dad for talking to the empty coveralls. So...they grab the legs and drag the screaming plumber along the ground for about twenty feet.
In order for this story to work, Mrs. Pitts has to go out of her way to ask absolutely no questions that a normal human would ask in these situations. And, everyone else has to be as clueless as possible. The coveralls filled with rags do not look like a person. There is no head and no feet, for example. Surely, Bub can make something for dinner? Why are all the dishes dirty at the same time? How does that work? Does he let them all pile up until there's nothing left? Sorry.
Really, I should just let this ride. It's a breezy episode of a sitcom. It's got a few giggles and it's fun, somewhat. It's just that after the intelligence of the first episode, this is like a kick to my Dumb Place and I'm, frankly, a bit insulted. It's the second episode. We know Mrs. Pitts will probably never appear again. Why is this felonious old woman our touchstone for this episode? Isn't it time we learned who the heck the "Three Sons" are exactly? This is all so generic I wouldn't be surprised if it was a script for another show.
It's not just the Mrs. Pitts and the "everyone act dumb now" angle that I dislike. There's this constant run of wackiness occurring here and the show acts like this is all normal. And, it very well might be. However, after only one other episode, you could have fooled me. An episode like this works when we know the characters. Then, you bring in someone from the outside who sees them and thinks "They're nuts." But, the first episode was very low-key, nothing like this. So, it just ends up looking out of place and being somewhat annoying.
Sorry. I'm sure the next episode will put me back on track. This one just disappointed me. The first episode hinted that we could be in a very generic sitcom land. This one is practically holding up a sign saying "Welcome to Generic Town! Home of the Douglas Family!" Sophomore slump, I guess. I hope.
On another track, I can see the "Fred MacMaurry is only available for a limited time" disadvantage being used to their advantage here. The episode is 25 minutes long. Steve shows up about 17 minutes in. But, to Mrs. Pitts, everything moves around when "Mr. Douglas is coming home". When he does arrive, he actually does very little because, let's be honest, not much has actually happened. He gets worried about Chip, engages in some comedy with the coveralls and is in the final scene with Pitts & Company. The fact that he is constantly referenced makes his presence felt even if he's there for very little of the episode.
I wonder if anyone thought it strange that the big star of the show is in this for only about one-third of the episode. I'm now interested to see how they deal with "The Vanishing MacMurray" from here on out. But, please, let's keep the Mrs. Pitts to a minimum. Think of the children.
No comments:
Post a Comment