Her replacement, Judy Ann Elder is a good actor, but a poor replacement. It's been 8 or 9 years and viewes are not use to seeing someone else as Harriet. I know I am not. They should have wrote Harriet off like her visiting someone in another city. Judy Ann lacks that feistiness and sassiness that Jo-Marie brought. Judy Ann should have been introduced as an aunt sitting in for Harriet. That's one thing the writers should have never touched.

I understand everything your saying. Judy Ann Elder was a good actress, but she did lack the sassiness that Jo Marie made for the character. Jo Marie WAS Harriet Winslow, IMO.

However, I don't think they should have written her out of the show. If they did that, they would have had to do it completely. Even though she was clearly reduced durng the last 2 seasons, she was still there. The whole dynamic of the show would have changed (even moreso than it already had)...Jo Marie wanted to leave the series for good. It would have just been weird for all those episodes to have some "aunt" replace her. It wouldn't have been a fitting end for the show, without the mother there.

I understand everything your saying. Judy Ann Elder was a good actress, but she did lack the sassiness that Jo Marie made for the character. Jo Marie WAS Harriet Winslow, IMO.

However, I don't think they should have written her out of the show. If they did that, they would have had to do it completely. Even though she was clearly reduced durng the last 2 seasons, she was still there. The whole dynamic of the show would have changed (even moreso than it already had)...Jo Marie wanted to leave the series for good. It would have just been weird for all those episodes to have some "aunt" replace her. It wouldn't have been a fitting end for the show, without the mother there.


The few episodes I have seen with Judy Ann Elder is that she can't deliver like Joe Marie. No emotion at all.

You have to feel sorry for JoMarie Payton. She was the one, who started the show in the first place. This show was a spin-off of another show, that was about the place where Harriet worked, wasn't it? So "Family Matters" would never have happened, if it hadn't been for JoMarie. I love Steve Urkel very much, and Jaleel White seems to be an incredible actor, but it wasn't fair to treat JoMarie like that in the end, just because the focus of the show had changed since the beginning. She was the reason why the show was started in the first place, and no one gave her credit for it and listened to her!

Judy Elder is by far the WORST replacement ever(coming in a close second is Daphne Maxwell Reid). She was dull and seemed like she didn't want to be there. She was much better on 'Martin'.

You have to feel sorry for JoMarie Payton. She was the one, who started the show in the first place. This show was a spin-off of another show, that was about the place where Harriet worked, wasn't it? So "Family Matters" would never have happened, if it hadn't been for JoMarie. I love Steve Urkel very much, and Jaleel White seems to be an incredible actor, but it wasn't far to treat JoMarie like that in the end, just because the focus of the show had changed since the beginning. She was the reason why the show was started in the first place, and no one gave her credit for it and listened to her!
Your absolutely right. Harriet Winslow was spun off from "Perfect Strangers" (where she worked as the elevator operator)...They probably shouldn't have sidelined her character like they did, BUT she could have been more reasonable as well. The show became as successful as it did because of the Steve Urkel character....Of course she had the right to be upset that she was sidelined (later on), BUT she also could have been more understanding. They did what they did to keep the show going. Viewers loved Urkel, so they gave the viewers more Urkel! LOL

And did she really expect them to reduce Steve's role, and give her more to do? The show would have been canceled much earlier if that happened.

The few episodes I have seen with Judy Ann Elder is that she can't deliver like Joe Marie. No emotion at all.
That's true. And like you said, she didn't have that "sassiness" that JoMarie brought to the character. JoMarie was, and will always be Harriet Winslow.

And not only did JoMarie have that great feisty side to her, but she played the dramatic parts very well too (anyone remember the episode when Harriet and Rachel's father came?). And of course, she was great at the mother/wife stuff. She had great chemistry with pretty much everyone in the cast. She could play anything they asked of her, whereas it seemed Judy Ann could not. Or maybe she was taking a page out of Dick Sargent's book and "making the role her own."

Your absolutely right. Harriet Winslow was spun off from "Perfect Strangers" (where she worked as the elevator operator)...They probably shouldn't have sidelined her character like they did, BUT she could have been more reasonable as well. The show became as successful as it did because of the Steve Urkel character....Of course she had the right to be upset that she was sidelined (later on), BUT she also could have been more understanding. They did what they did to keep the show going. Viewers loved Urkel, so they gave the viewers more Urkel! LOL

And did she really expect them to reduce Steve's role, and give her more to do? The show would have been canceled much earlier if that happened.
They could have focused more on the Winslow family than on Steve's sub-characters like Stephan and Myrthle. But when JoMarie wanted to write family-based plots, it was like no one even listened to her. I don't think that was fair at all. And at the same time, Jaleel White and Reginald VelJohnson were allowed to write episodes.

However, I don't think they should have written her out of the show. If they did that, they would have had to do it completely.

I agree. I guess the writers' reason for replacing Harriette was that they didn't have much of a choice. They were against having Harriette die or divorce Carl or anything. I wouldn't have wanted to see that either. The two of them always had great chemistry. They might as well have just cancelled the show after the Christmas episode, considering that was the last one for Payton. Though around that time, they had the story arc about Laura falling for Steve. I guess they didn't want to leave that unresolved.

I guess I could see both sides of the argument. It was a bad idea to replace the actress who played Harriette. But I don't see whatelse the writers could have done.

Or maybe they could have listened to her and given her a chance?

Her replacement, Judy Ann Elder is a good actor, but a poor replacement. It's been 8 or 9 years and viewes are not use to seeing someone else as Harriet. I know I am not. They should have wrote Harriet off like her visiting someone in another city. Judy Ann lacks that feistiness and sassiness that Jo-Marie brought. Judy Ann should have been introduced as an aunt sitting in for Harriet. That's one thing the writers should have never touched.

I agree. They should have sent the character off somewhere with Carl frequently talking on the phone to her or via e-mail to her. JoMarie, if she was willing could have made a set number of appearences like Sheryl Lee Ralph did on the last season of Moesha.

Yeah. That would have worked.

Or the producers could have listened to her and let her write or direct a script. I mean, I know they wouldn't have written Urkel out of the show or anything like that. But they could have had an episode that focused on Harriette and had Urkel in a subplot. That 'Pain in Harassment' episode was something like that. Maybe JoMarie wouldn't have wanted to leave if they did more shows like that one.

The show should've ended at least two seasons before it did...with Jo Marie still on board.

Right on, sister! I think we all could have done without that stupid Steve and Laura romance. :X)

Steve and Laura were actually two of the most uninteresting characters on the show, to me. I loved the interactions of Harriette & Carl, Mother Winslow, Rachel, Waldo, Maxine, Weasel and Lt. Murtaugh. :lol: They were always guaranteed to make me :rofl:.

Steve and Laura were actually two of the most uninteresting characters on the show, to me. I loved the interactions of Harriette & Carl, Mother Winslow, Rachel, Waldo, Maxine, Weasel and Lt. Murtaugh. :lol: They were always guaranteed to make me :rofl:.

As much as I liked Laura, I agree. The Steve-Laura thing got stale, while the interactions of the family were entertaining. I personally liked season 1 of Family Matters better than any season. I may be in the minority, but Steve Urkel should have stayed a side character and the stories should have remained on the family througout the run.

I don't know what was worse - the final season of Family Matters or the last season of Mork & Mindy. :eek:

I don't know what was worse - the final season of Family Matters or the last season of Mork & Mindy. :eek:

At least Mork and Mindy didn't last as long and the producers knew when to kill that show. I will say FM was worse because it was too little too late. Jo-Marie was gone and the show had obviously lost it's energy. It was too much Urkel and the show had really drifted away from it was suppose to be about.

^ Agreed. I don't even why they kept the title Family Matters - the family wasn't even around anymore. :mad:

^ Agreed. I don't even why they kept the title Family Matters - the family wasn't even around anymore. :mad:

I always felt that they should have spun Urkel off around 1993.