I noted the following observation:

Most of the time on LITB, June really couldn't do anything for herself in terms of disciplining the boys or taking control in parenting situations. Poor Ward always had to be the authoritarian. But their are three episodes where June, out of character shows firmness and backbone:

"Beaver Won't Eat": Beaver's forced to eat Brussell's Sprouts and Ward thinks she makes too big a deal of it. It was good that they negotiated Beaver could go to the football game with them if he agreed to eat them the next time they were served. But June really over-rides Ward's authority here. Critics say that she shouldn't have done so. Why not just make Beaver a different vegatable that he likes? (Although she does point out that Beaver won't eat any green vegatables.)

"Wally's Haircomb": When Beaver puts on some of Wally's hair-tonic and comes down with that infamous "Kookie-Burns" hairstyle, June goes right threw the ceiling! Probably the maddest that she gets in the entire series!

"Forgotten Party": When June buys that little baby sea-horse for 10 year old David Manning's birthday party that Beaver forgets to tell her he was invited to. He refuses to take her present and June finds it deflated under Beaver's bed. All is forgiven when it is learned that Beaver gave David his new camera because Beaver considered David a special friend that goes to a different school and they hardly ever see one another. (A great episode!)

Jack

Isn't that funny. I was thinking about this very topic today. Here are my two:

Wally buys the orchid - This was on last night and today and I was impressed how forceful June was in insisting that Ward give Wally the money for the orchid.

Wally and Beav invest in the stock market - Ward is trying to explain the difference between stocks and bonds and June is quite well-versed in the topic and keeps correcting Ward.

I'm sure there are more.

Oh and of course the Silent Treatment one.

There was an earlier episode, "Brotherly Love" where she made the boys write out a friendship pact. Ward's memorable line to June was "Friendship is something you simply cannot force."

I don't agree that in "Forgotten Party" June was really taking control by buying that inflatable seahorse, a preschooler's toy, for a boy 9, maybe 10. She was remotely apologetic when Beaver protested, and she said, "I had to take the first thing I saw." Then it was Ward who firmly told Beaver, "Oh yes you can [take seahorse as the birthday gift]! It's your fault......"

Some of these mentioned are June taking control, even to contradicting Ward, but some, like the orchid incident, are June refusing to give up and she finally brings Ward to her way of looking at it. Another example would be in "Pet Fair" in which she persuades Ward to go against his judgment and go out late at night to rent the parrot for Beaver to take to school and further his prevarication that he owned a parrot.

That brings to mind that when there is a conflict between what June wants in opposition to what Ward wants, if it is resolved quickly Ward gets his way [Beaver riding his bicycle to school; Wally buying a car; Andy Hadlock being hired to paint; they boys being allowed to stay alone in "Beaver Takes a Bath"]. But if it is an ongoing conflict in the episode, June gets finally gets her way [Wally being ordered to change his hairstyle; not taking issue with Aunt Martha; Wally being 'spoken to' about a girl wearing his sweate]. And when Ward gets his way first, June is usually shown to be right about her anxieties. Probably "Brotherly Love" is the most notable flp-flop here, but it was a 1st-year ep.