For all of you who watched FOl when it debuted back in 79 I have a couple questions for you?
I was just wondering what your guy's thoughts where on the cast change when they went from the first season and dropped like half the cast and brought in Jo?

Were your favorites the one's that stayed or the one's that got fired?

Did you ever think after the first season when they brought Jo on that it would last till 1988?

Last question what were your guy's reaction when they went from Eastland to Edna's Edibles then from Edna's Edibles to Over Our Heads?

I was SHOCKED. I was like "Wow, that is a major cast change if ever I saw one." At that time, I was like "I am going to miss seeing the girls." But as I saw the first two episodes with the new girl "Jo" I knew this show was going to do much better.

I was also glad the whole "Big Eastland" set was gotten rid of. I couldn't stand the whole atmoshphere.

I really liked Natalie a whole lot better too. They really did a good thing by keeping her. It could have easily been one of the other girls to have been given that spot, but to go with Natalie (Mindy Cohn) gave the show substance. She was different from the "norm". It balanced out the show overall.

I never expected the show to last as long as it did, but I was very happy.

I didn't like the whole Over Our Heads deal. That was when I felt the show was losing its substance. When the girls and Mrs. G were running Edna Edibles, it was interesting. Seeing the girls actually working. With the store, I didn't get the feeling that they worked. Rather, they just were there and did nothing.

I liked Jo, but I was sad to see the other girls go, I really liked Molly and Cindy, and prefered it with more than 4 girls.

I liked all of the girls on the show, but I think Molly was probably my favorite, then Jo and Cindy.

I never imagined that the show would last anywhere near as long as it did - the last couple of seasons really seemed like a much different show than where it started

I thought that the Edna's Edibles thing was goofy, i preferred the school setting, and Over Our Heads seemed even stranger to me

I was glad to see the changes. They had to many girls. My favorite one that was dropped was Sue Ann but overall the show improved for the better. During the 1st season it looked to much like a kid show and beginning with season 2 they began to address issues that a lot of teenagers were going through. I'm a guy but I could still relate to them. I loved the addition of JO. She brought a lot of heart into the show. My favorite FOL girl was and still is Blair though.

I thought the show would last a long time because it really seemed to take off when Jo joined the cast. Now I never expected it to last 9 years and it was never a top 20 type show. It just seemed to always be there. I didn't like the Over Our Heads addition at all. Those are the worst seasons IMO although Edna's Edibles wasn't to bad. I thing the 8th season rejuvinated it some after the awful 7th season but by season 9 it had pretty much run it's course.

You know the first season of Facts of Life was pretty much forgettable, not to say there weren't any favorite episodes or scenes. I think Blair might have been my favorite character.

Season 2, was when it really began as the Facts of Life. Narrowing it down to 4 girls and Mrs. Garrett was great. But bringing in Jo was perfect. Jo was the every person or more like every girl, that people can relate to. Jo became my favorite character with her introduction.

Moving from Eastland to Edna's Edibles was awesome, EE was a place I wouldn't mind hanging around selling gourmet foods but living in the back of the place and seeing your best friends. The good thing about special tv shows is that they allow characters to grow. And watching everyone grow and learn was a good experience.

I was shocked when EE burned to the ground and they rebuild it "Oh so 80's!" Over Our Heads. You know everything 80's is making a comeback, a store like that probably would be retro-cool..... or maybe not. :p I thought the stories were fine but I think they were heading more to the "fluff" stories than the "facts of life" stories.

I have to say I was younger than the girls, I think I was near or maybe 1 year younger than Kim Fields, so my maturity was still on the shy side. But the last years with Beverly Ann seemed so unnecessary. The writers and creative team should have had the guts to have stories told with the remaining 4 girls without Mrs. Garrett. And basically continue the "facts of life" of adjusting, relearning and to support each other more. But by this time they were stuck with the "fluff" stories and the 4 girls and everyone who was introduce became caricatures of themselves.

But when the end came I was sad having watch on tv for eight seasons that these 4 girls becoming young ladies and I was going to miss their stories.

P.S. I don't want to come across that I hated the "fluff" episodes, they do have there place. It just seems to me by the end we got more of these than I think were necessary.

Let me add, I was glad when they "toned down" Blair. She was a bit risque for the show. It was almost hinted that she was "not a virgin" although that one episode where Mrs. G. implies that the way Blair dresses was giving glue to the possibility that she wasn't "pure". This was to teach Blair a lesson regarding judging people on how they dress/look. Blair just seemed dressed too sexy for a young girl in a show that would be viewed by YOUNG GIRLS.

I liked how Blair was now wearing clothes that weren't so tight, you could tell what coins she had in her pocket. She was wearing long skirts and jackets. She really looked appropriate for the image she was then portraying. She carried that look all the way to the end of the series.

The four girls were not a threat to young women who would watch the show. The viewers probably felt comfortable knowing that these four girls were not being overly sexy, they were studious, they had their heads on straight and they were not SKIN AND BONES. The image they projected was so perfect, I haven't seen it since on any show that is geared towards young girls.

I was 9 when FOL began. I loved Different Strokes and was thrilled with the crossover story line depicting Kimberly's school and classmates! I liked the first season with all the girls. I liked the younger girls the best because they were closer to my age and I guess I could relate to them better. When the cast got cut and they brought in Jo, I didn't mind that much. I really liked Jo and the girls from season 1 were still around. I would have watched the show no matter what they had done to it. If the old cast stayed, I'd have loved the show...I loved the show with the girls that ended up staying. I was a pretty easy to please 9 year old! I never imagined it would stay around and allow me to grow up with Tootie and Natalie! I learned a lot from that show. I'm happy it stayed running until '88, my graduation from high school year. I loved all the changes the show went through from Eastland to Edna's Edibles to Over Our Heads. It grew and changed as the girls (and I) did. It did a great job of keeping with the times. I will have to sum this up by saying that FOL is probably one of a few shows (Different Strokes, Silver Spoons, and Friends) that I watched from the beginning to the end of the series at a time when I was the same age as the characters during the first run of the show. Watching the characters deal with issues really helped me learn (vicariously, I suppose) some life lessons.