Was this the most scary episode of the series? What are your thoughts? This episode freaked me out as a kid.

Was this the most scary episode of the series? What are your thoughts? This episode freaked me out as a kid.

Barely remember it, But I believe you are talking about the episode "Barbara's Friend", I know I have it but suicide especially with teenagers is something that crosses many peoples minds at "one time" or another and I feel as usual Norman Lear brought a taboo subject in average living rooms and was a positive thing to do so people who did think about it knew they weren't alone.

Yeah I almost forgot about that one.

It's cool to do episodes like this once in a while as long as they don't become the norm. Lear was a master IMHO of combining humor with serous subjects.

"Alice" had an episode like this involving Vera, if I recall.

Yeah I almost forgot about that one.

It's cool to do episodes like this once in a while as long as they don't become the norm. Lear was a master IMHO of combining humor with serous subjects.

"Alice" had an episode like this involving Vera, if I recall.

True that! and now you reminded me of another one, and yes I also have the "Alice" Vera suicide attempt episode from the ION airings, I believe it was over a boyfriend break-up.

True that! and now you reminded me of another one, and yes I also have the "Alice" Vera suicide attempt episode from the ION airings, I believe it was over a boyfriend break-up.


Yes as I recall Vera had taken a whole bottle of sleeping pills and Alice and Flo had to keep her up all night to make sure the pills didn't do her in. I think for some reason the medics took a while to arrive or something. I remember when they finally came and Flo and Alice could go home all Flo could utter was, "Home...bed...sleep..." :lol:

True that! and now you reminded me of another one, and yes I also have the "Alice" Vera suicide attempt episode from the ION airings, I believe it was over a boyfriend break-up.
They also had a suicide/pill overdose episode of Facts of Life. I hope these "Very Special Episodes" didn't give any impressionable kids any ideas. :eek: :eek: :eek: :eek: :eek:

^ Probably not. They didn't glamorize suicide or make the thought of death "cool" like some of the vampire flicks do (no axe to grind against them, btw, as I enjoy a good vampire flick, just getting a bit weary of them now).

But one never knows. I think Lear and the other producers were trying to shed light on a fairly new problem at the time, that of young people killing themselves and hopefully getting everyone to recognize the warning signs.

As somebody who contemplated suicide quite a lot back then, these episodes always stuck with me. I always felt much sympathy with the suicide victim. I felt like they were talking to me. I never really felt better after I watched them but they always did give me something to think about.

I guess you guys are right. I was still pretty little when most of these "Very Special Episodes" first aired, so I don't have the value of perspective in this case.