yesterday I decided to pick the seasons 1/2 set on sale at Target. Outside of "Atomic Shakespeare" on N@N a few months ago, I have never watched the show Moonlighting. I was a kid when it aired and grew up in a household where NBC was where it was at, and we didn't even turn to ABC until Roseanne premiered. I figured since I have always enjoyed "Remington Steele" (which has been likened with Moonlighting) and plus there's a lot of Bruce Willis movies I liked, to check it out.

I watched the pilot and immediately loved it. Unlike some shows from the period (like I love Steele and have seasons 1 and 2 on DVD, but the episodes are a little too slow-paced to really watch a lot of in a sitting), the show never got boring and Bruce and Cybill were both fantastic, and I cannot wait till I sit and watch more episodes, and maybe get season 3 when it comes out.

However, one thing I noticed about the show were the short episode orders per season. What was the cause of that? 67 episodes over 4 1/2 seasons just seems so small (Remington Steele also ran 4 1/2 seasons and had over 90), especially when other shows were cranking out 26 episodes a season at the time. The show looks great, but it will be kinda sad that there were so few episodes in the long run. I know Bruce had become a fairly big movie star in the last season or two of Moonlighting, was that part of the episode shortage so he could have more flexible time to make Die Hard, etc...?

All in all, I am looking forward to digging deeper into the Moonlighting experience, judging from the pilot this looks like a fantastic series.

Moonlighting had a lot of backstage turmoil ( Bruce, Cybil, and the creator had a lot of altercations), plus the scripts were always late coming in. I remember some ads in the tv guides wouldn't even announce what the episode was about. They said it was harder to film because they had a lot of overlapping dialogue.

Hi! Welcome! If you love season 1 and 2 you will have to get season 3 which is the best season of all. And like the previous post stated there were problems galore for the show between actors and writers,etc unfortunately but all in all it is one of the best shows ever. Bruce and Cybill's chemistry is what made the show. Also love your former name. I was a diehard Buffy/Angel fan also.

hi there to both of you, it's great that you have joined us! I'm so glad that you have discoverd Moonlighting and enjoyed it so much. Yes, I believe what DallasCowboysFanatic said about problems with the actors and writers was partly to blame for the inconsistancy of the number of episodes in the season. But I think it was also partly due to the fact that Glenn was new to the buisness and he often didn't realise about or care for things like deadlines and budgets. I think in one of the commentaries on the DVD he talks about how the ABC executives were always giving him rows and says to Cybill that at the time she was the most expeienced person there.

Love Gem

Welcome to the board! :wave:

Gem is right, the reason for the inconsistent number of episodes is often down to Glenn Caron just not being able to physically do that many with the huge amount of dialogue (overlapping and otherwise!), as well as him just not knowing about the business. I think ABC expected 22 episodes a season! Ha!

Another point to note is that Season 1 (from Gunfight at the So-So Corral to The Murder's in the Mail) was what they called a mid-season pick up and it was only half a season anyway.

Mul

I also watched Gunfight At The So-So Corral last night, pretty good episode though I wonder if looking back, they should've made Tim Robbins the main villian instead of the other guy. It's a shame Cybill and Bruce have had such a feud since the show went off because I think they gelled very well.

I also applaud Lion's Gate (which is a shock, LG is known as being one of the worst DVD companies period besides this show) for remastering the prints so well. Just look at the ABC pilot promos on the disc and then look at the episodes on the DVD, you can tell they spent a lot of time cleaning it up.

okay, I have watched episodes 2 and 3 as well, and think they're great too. You could tell from the earliest episodes that Bruce Willis was going to be too big a star to stay on television.

From reading responces on various message boards, is season 3 the logical place to stop with the series? I have not read one positive mark given to the fourth and especially fifth seasons.

Also, I read Pierce Brosnan guest stars in a season 3 episode as his Remington Steele character (might've not been too dificult for them to manage since Glenn Gordon Caron wrote for RS in it's first year), was it just a brief cameo or did Steele actually team up with David and Maddie for a case? in many ways the two shows are alike (all the way down to Brosnan and Zimbalist hating each other for years) and seeing the two shows cross must've been gold for those who like both.

Hey! Pierce Brosnon was only in a cameo scene in the episode The Straight Poop. He is on screen by himself.
As for seasons 4 and 5 there are some great episodes and some not great episodes.The first 3 seasons are the best. Unfortunately the show series finale is not what us fans wanted to happen.

The problem with season 3 was that Bruce and Cybil weren't on screen together a lot of the time especially early in the season. She was pregnant and then he was busy filming Die Hard. I think they both lost interest in the show ,although their was still some good episodes left during the next 2 years , the show did become uneven.

Actually Bruce and Cybill weren't on screen together during most of Season 4 not season 3. Season 3 was the best season and they were in just about every scene and show together.

Actually Bruce and Cybill weren't on screen together during most of Season 4 not season 3. Season 3 was the best season and they were in just about every scene and show together.
It was a typo on my part. I meant season 4.

From reading responces on various message boards, is season 3 the logical place to stop with the series? I have not read one positive mark given to the fourth and especially fifth seasons.



If you are satisfied with the story after season 3, you may be better off not watching 4 and 5 because you will almost certainly be disappointed and frustrated.

Moonlighting absolutely self-destructs in the 4th and 5th seasons. The decisions the writers made were incredibly horrible. The way Moonlighting ends will rip out your heart and stomp on it... repeatedly.

I think Rose sums it up well about seasons 4 and 5. It's very uneven. There are some flashes of greatness, but ultimately it becomes a different show altogether. I think its worth watching all of the episodes really, as there are some very moving/funny/silly scenes that you'd miss out on otherwise...

Mul

I totally agree with the other posts about season 3. It is by far my favorite season!! Between "It's a Wonderful Job" and "Atomic Shakesphere" You can't beat it!! Seasons 4 and 5 are definite dissapointments. There are some good episodes, not many but some! Season 5 is by far the most disappointing! Not at all what the fans of the show wanted or expected! I still can't watch "Lunar Eclipse" without seeing red!! LOL!!

I still can't watch "Lunar Eclipse" without seeing red!! LOL!!

I can't watch it. Period.

:crying:

Ditto. Haven't watched it since it originally aired. I try not to even think about it!

I can't watch it. Period.

:crying:


Definitely double ditto!!

Believe me when I say that I do everything I can to avoid watching it. Although one weekend my girlfriend and I got together and had a Moonlighting marathon. I have all the episodes on tape so we watched them all over the course of 2 days. Needless to say by the time we got to the end we were exhausted. LOL! It was funny to see two grown women throwing things at the tv screen and booing!! LOL!!