Mostly,it was a very funny series,and a TVclassic,but one of the worst episodes was 1966's "You Ought to Be In Pictures",which started out pretty good,but as it went along,got very dull.Not one of my favorites.

I generally don't like the army flashback episodes.

A bit of trivia about this episode. Lucianna Mazetta the fictitious Italian bombshell in this episode was named after cast member Rose Marie who was born Rose Marie Mazetta.

The Dick Van Dyke Show is my favorite TV show of all time and I never get tired of watching most episodes over and over again. However, when watching the DVDs there are a few episodes I don't like and will skip past.

The Twizzle
Washington vs the Bunny
The Bad Old Days
The Talented Neighborhood (can't stand watching that kid flamenco dance at the end!)
The Alan Brady Show Presents (Watching Ritchie sing Little Drummer Boy and the gang sing We All are Fine Musicians is cringe worthy).

I stop the DVD before the end of The Sal Pomerantz Scandals because they sing We All are Fine Musicians there too. The Laurel and Hardy bit makes the episode worth watching for me, though.

I also fast forward through most of the singing and/or dancing numbers. I find them more irritating than entertaining!

im not sure what my least fave ep is but i read that dick to this day can not stand the uncle george ep

I think "THE BAD OLD DAYS" is pretty awful, also "THE ALAN BRADY SHOW PRESENTS". Not the entire episode, just a couple parts-Richie singing "LITTLE DRUMMER BOY' and when they all sing "I AM A FINE MUSICAN".

Yes, but Mary/Laura is cute when she discovers that she's the last person still doing an instrument! :)

Even in the ones I don't like as much, I still find aspects that make them worthwhile. If I had to name an ep at the bottom for me, I might choose the one in which Ritchie is doing the baseball commercial.

I don't like the variety type shows as much because they don't really have a personal feel to them. I think the show really runs on Rob and Laura stories. So the Sally shows are the weakest to me, with maybe her birthday alone as the weakest. But I'd love to see any and all of them on TV every day again.

For me locally, My Network TV is now airing 3 episodes per day, Mon. through Friday: Two back-to-back in the morning, and one in the afternoon. I'm really enjoying them. Mary Tyler Moore is often breathtaking.

My favorites are the ones in which Rob reacts to another beautiful woman, like the ones played by Joan Staley and Sue Ane Langdon.

I wanted to add that generally I enjoy the army flashback episodes, especially the ones that center on how Rob & Laura met, the trouble Rob had in getting to the wedding, etc. Although I can see how some may not find those compelling, as some of the guest actors can be annoying at times.

Yes, but Mary/Laura is cute when she discovers that she's the last person still doing an instrument! :)

Even in the ones I don't like as much, I still find aspects that make them worthwhile. If I had to name an ep at the bottom for me, I might choose the one in which Ritchie is doing the baseball commercial.That episode is called "Boy #1,Boy 2",(NOT-I Repeat-NOT "Boy #1 versus Boy #2 as TVLand advertised in their schedule(they don't air it now)a long time ago.

I just recently finished watching the whole run of the show on DVD, and it's so great I almost feel guilty talking about episodes I didn't like. I mean, seriously, they made 158 and I probably really liked 120 of them, liked 30 of them, and could take or leave 5 or 6.
But the two I really didn't go for were in the middle of the show's run, and coincidentally were back to back, Nos. 78 and 79.

I didn't like Happy Birthday and Too Many More not just because it was the show they didn't have a studio audience because of the assassination of President Kennedy, which made for a weird vibe with the performers, and with the canned laughter. I just didn't go for the plot. I mean an idea WAS there to not have to take the kids to Disneyland or wherever for every birthday, but with the screaming kids...and then they started performing for the little brats...Even Dick looked like he was wondering what he was doing. I don't know why but I REALLY just didn't like that one.
And then, The Lady and the Tiger and the Lawyer, WTF was that about at the end?! The bachelor won't date Sally or Laura's cousin again because he has a temper and is prone to HIT the people that he loves? I know the times were different, but that's positively brutal.

But I'm going to cut Persky and Denoff and then Marshall and Belson some slack, since all of their other efforts, and all of Carl Reiner's, were inspired. And again, I really loved most of the episodes, and there were so many classics!

Oh, one other thing...I had no problem with either the flashbacks, or the performance shows. I thought the flashbacks were a great way to go back in time, and brought depth to the show, and even though I'm not the biggest fan of song and dance, I liked the cast so much I was more open-minded, and they really were great performers on a lot of different levels.

And call me crazy, but I enjoyed "We All Are Fine Musicians", especially when Mary was worried because she'd been left alone, and the whole Christmas show, which is one of the shows I watch every time the holiday rolls around.
I will admit I can't watch it any more than that, though, because once that song gets in my head, it stays there for several days!

..."Empress Carlotta's Necklace". Carl Reiner must have had an "off day" writing that one, because Rob appears incredibly dense as to how Laura feels about wearing that ugly necklace...especially at the end, when she's stuck with it once more, and he STILL has no clue as to how unhappy she really is over wearing it again.

:tv:

I don't like the variety type shows as much because they don't really have a personal feel to them. I think the show really runs on Rob and Laura stories. So the Sally shows are the weakest to me, with maybe her birthday alone as the weakest. But I'd love to see any and all of them on TV every day again.

I agree w/ you there. My least favorite eps tend to be any "Sally in love" eps, since they always seem to turn out badly for her and end on a down note.

I agree w/ you there. My least favorite eps tend to be any "Sally in love" eps, since they always seem to turn out badly for her and end on a down note.

From what I understand, the show was originally supposed to be centered around the office with Rose Marie/Sally as the leading actress. I think they made a good move in shifting the show to be more about Rob & Laura. I didn't mind seeing Sally outside the office. I would have liked to see what Buddy and Pickles were like away from the others too.

The show is one of my favorites, but the "Boy #1, Boy #2" and "Alan Brady Show Presents" episodes is not high on the list. My least favorite episode is probably the Danny Thomas/walnut episode. I know it's a dream, but it's just weird.

Wow, the walnut episode is my all-time favorite! It's just so bizarre, I love it. Least-favorites: the one with the wife-beater, as someone else mentioned, and a couple where they featured some "hip, new musicians", like The Twizzle.

And I read that Dick Van Dyke did NOT like "Who Stole My Watch".It was not very good(that guy Evans accused everybody-INCLUDING Rob and Laura),and was kind of good at the end,when everyone (Mel,Millie and Jerry Helper) at the party when Sally bought over her latest boy friend-and (surprise,surprise)It turned out to be Evans!

I think the only episode I don't like in the whole series is "The Bad Old Days". That was a real clunker!

I didn't care much for 'The Return of Edwin Carp'.

I didn't care much for 'The Return of Edwin Carp'.

Me neither.

Another one I didn't care for(it had some sinister overtones)was 1963's "Big Max Calvada",from the 1963-1964 season.I DID like ,however,in that episode,when Rob stood up to Big Max Calvada(the late Sheldon Leonard)

I did not like the Edwin Carp episode either. I never liked "The Return of Happy Spangler." I liked the guest star who played him, Jay C. Flippen, but I thought it was a weak episode. Recently I tried to watch "Bupkis" on my dvd copy to see if it was as bad as I remembered. It was. I also read that DVD didn't like it.

I used to love the Christmas episode when I was a kid. But now I don't care for it. And I really disliked "The Sam Pomerantz Scandals." I know that was one of DVD's favorites because he got to play one of his boyhood idols, Stan Laurel. He did a great impression of him. But I never thought Laurel and Hardy were funny.

Didn't like The Meerschatz Pipe where Rob feels he might be fired.

And another one I didn't care for,except for the ending,was third season's "My Part- Time Wife".In this one,it was uncharacteristic of Rob to act like a not very nice big baby when Laura tried to help out at the office.

I have to go with "The Twizzle" myself, and I read in Dick's autobiography that the cast didn't care for it, either. Other clunkers were "Empress Carlotta's Necklace" and especially "The Talented Neighborhood". Any episode that centered around Ritchie and/or other screaming kids makes me want to reach for the earplugs!! :eek:

I didn't care much for 'The Return of Edwin Carp'.


I agree completely. I always skip this episode. I don't get why they all went nuts over the fish guy. :confused:

My vote goes for The Twizzle too.

I have to give another clunker rating to a Season 4 episode, "A Vigilante Ripped My Sports Coat". I was speaking with my college roommate one night, who had just seen this one (I recognized it by the plot description that he gave me.), and he said "That's a half-hour of my life I'll never get back!". I had to agree with him, as this one seemed pointless to me. It was also one that was credited to Carl Reiner, himself, so he was capable of clunkers too, even after he had Persky & Denoff to relieve him of his story-editing chores.

I have to give another clunker rating to a Season 4 episode, "A Vigilante Ripped My Sports Coat".

Totally disagree. That's one of my favorites.

There are bad episodes of TDVD Show? ;)

Any episode featuring Jerry Van Dyke gets my vote as the worst.

I think the only episode I don't like in the whole series is "The Bad Old Days". That was a real clunker!
I agree; that and THE TWIZZLE were AWFUL! (and I read that THE TWIZZLE wasn't among Dicks favorites too)

I can't watch any of the Army Flashback eps.

Add the one with Chad and Jeremy to the list of bad eps.

that's THE REDCOATS ARE COMING from season 3. I thought that ones good, it's one of my favorites.

I think it begins with THE BAD OLD DAYS and ends with THE TWIZZLE.

I watched The Bad Old Days yesterday on the DVD. I didn't think it was that bad, some funny moments, there are weaker episodes than that one.

Just realized something, DVD can be defined as two different things. Dick Van Dyke, and Digital Video Disc. :lol:

I agree. I think it's an average, and therefore good, episode for this series. The very early and variety show episodes, and those that focused on Sally, were the weakest.

The only episode that was hard for me to pay attention to is the Jack Carter episode from Season 4... we get it, Neil Schenk is manipulative and takes advantage of his friends... but there wasn't much actual plot and instead Rob kept harping about Neil's character for thirty minutes. Just two short scenes with Buddy and Sally and that's it. And the whole "Stretch" thing got old after the first couple times. Jack Carter was a really funny guy but this episode just seemed like a waste of time.

I also didn't like some parts of THE ALAN BRADY SHOW PRESENTS

I really don't enjoy the flashback episodes much . Other than those episodes, I pretty much love the entire series!

I think "THE BAD OLD DAYS" (https://thiswastv.com/2013/01/01/review-the-dick-van-dyke-show-the-bad-old-days/) is pretty awful (https://books.google.com/books?id=BCTj8iffkKAC&pg=PA153&lpg=PA153&dq=The+Bad+Old+Days+dick+van+dyke&source=bl&ots=_ZMWV59nB4&sig=5gJGv9vQIbUwWWzLc_C1X23qmPs&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjumZb-45DYAhXG5oMKHR00B884ChDoAQgvMAI#v=onepage&q=The%20Bad%20Old%20Days%20dick%20van%20dyke&f=false), also "THE ALAN BRADY SHOW PRESENTS". Not the entire episode, just a couple parts-Richie singing "LITTLE DRUMMER BOY' and when they all sing "I AM A FINE MUSICAN".

PBTGJq6vgNo

http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Literature/WhatWereTheyThinkingThe100DumbestEventsInTelevisionHistory

The episode where Sheldon Leonard is a gangster and his kid is a bad standup comic didn't click for me.

I couldn't stand the episode with the housepainter who taught a tedious "teachable moment" as it'd probably be called today. He played with Richie and generally futzed around when he should have been painting the darn walls. When the Petries got impatient he blathered about living the moment while working or whatever. Even as a kid I hated the episode. Just paint the darn walls!! :D