For the first time I've watched all of The Ropers episodes on Antenna TV and as opposed to Three's a Crowd, which just felt weird without the other main characters (roommates), this show actually worked. It was funny! Why didn't it survive? It had some great potential! I can't help but think that Norman and Audra got the bad end of the deal. :( I much preferred Mr. Furley on Three's Company, but I still feel bad for them. :( I don't understand why this show didn't last longer.

As you may know, The Ropers was a Top 10 hit in the Spring of 1979 when it aired in Three's Company's timeslot, ABC decided to move the still-establishing The Ropers to Saturday nights that fall, up against NBC's smash-hit CHiPs, and the ratings fell off the cliff.

The British show The Ropers was based off, George and Mildred, was actually more successful than Man About The House! And given that the scripts to The Ropers were essentially George and Mildred's scripts with minor amendments, I don't think the content of The Ropers was the reason it tanked in 1979-80.

Exactly--it was the timeslot that did them in. ABC should have given them at least one full season behind 3's Co. Look how long ABC let Laverne & Shirley stay behind Happy Days!

Exactly--it was the timeslot that did them in. ABC should have given them at least one full season behind 3's Co. Look how long ABC let Laverne & Shirley stay behind Happy Days!
Not to mention that the Saturday Timeslot had been a death slot for ABC for years. I'm not sure what they expected.

Watching these episodes again shows me how the Ropers went beyond their Three's Company limitations--we actually see them more as humans with depth and poignancy. The episode where the Ropers try to adopt--the scene where Helen is visibly distraught is really effective and you actually see Stanley moved to action because of his wife being so hurt.

Watching these episodes again shows me how the Ropers went beyond their Three's Company limitations--we actually see them more as humans with depth and poignancy. The episode where the Ropers try to adopt--the scene where Helen is visibly distraught is really effective and you actually see Stanley moved to action because of his wife being so hurt.


Yeah that episode aired I think last Thursday. You never saw that side of them on TC because it wasn't enough time

Yeah that episode aired I think last Thursday. You never saw that side of them on TC because it wasn't enough time


Very true--the show was much a farce in its early years, but later we saw emotional writing on TC--when Chrissy was in the hospital, when Janet was duped by that sleazeball choreographer, when Jack finally realizes Janet's marriage means she will not be in his life day to day...etc.

Very true--the show was much a farce in its early years, but later we saw emotional writing on TC--when Chrissy was in the hospital, when Janet was duped by that sleazeball choreographer, when Jack finally realizes Janet's marriage means she will not be in his life day to day...etc.



I think that may have been the only serious Roper episode when helen was sad about the adoption

I actually liked the Ropers and thought it deserved a longer run, although I thought it was just ok initially and it's a bit of an acquired taste. I can see why it didn't last long. I think it was the Scrubs of its era, a show that didn't have a lot of laughs, but the ones it did were very big. I also think it was a bit ahead of its time. It was like Three's Company in that a lot of the comedy was physical as opposed to verbal jokes.

There are a couple of inherent flaws in The Ropers. First, all of the main character are, in essence, boring. The Ropers are a boring couple who never go anywhere or do anything. Their sex life is practically nonexistent. The Brookes are similar: Jeffrey is a boring stuffed shirt, Ann is the normal housewife, and David is a kid whose constantly bored because there are no other kids in the neighborhood. Jenny, the young lady who lived with them in the later episodes, is also relatively bland. That's not to say I dislike any of the characters, in contrast, I like them all. But they all led boring lives. They needed to be lead more active, exciting lives.

Being that they lived in a new neighborhood, the series had the potential to introduce all manner of zany characters to the Ropers. Los Angeles certainly wouldn't have a shortage of wackadoo characters. But where were they?

I actually think some of the best characters on this show were the recurring (but not regular) ones. Helen's mother, played by the wonderful Lucille Benson as an eternally confused, kindly elderly southern woman. Also enjoyable was Dena Dietrich as Helen's rich snob sister Ethel. I would have liked to seen more of them. (I was shocked to learn that Ethel was supposed to be older than Helen, IRL, Audra Lindley was 11 years older than Dena). Weird.

The other main flaw was that they seemed to really make Helen and Stan tamer than their time on Three's Company. A typical Three's Company episode would have some AWESOME zingers between the two. Usually, Stan would get in a wicked jab on Helen or her mother, and she would fire back with one about him or his performance (or lack thereof) in the bedroom. It produced some of the series best jokes. But The Ropers seemed to lack this.

I thought Jeffrey Tambor's physical comedy was just brilliant in this. I know this show is often thought of as one of the worst that ever existed, but I definitely don't feel it was. Perhaps it just got compared too much to its widely beloved parent show.

I actually liked the Ropers and thought it deserved a longer run, although I thought it was just ok initially and it's a bit of an acquired taste. I can see why it didn't last long. I think it was the Scrubs of its era, a show that didn't have a lot of laughs, but the ones it did were very big. I also think it was a bit ahead of its time. It was like Three's Company in that a lot of the comedy was physical as opposed to verbal jokes.

There are a couple of inherent flaws in The Ropers. First, all of the main character are, in essence, boring. The Ropers are a boring couple who never go anywhere or do anything. Their sex life is practically nonexistent. The Brookes are similar: Jeffrey is a boring stuffed shirt, Ann is the normal housewife, and David is a kid whose constantly bored because there are no other kids in the neighborhood. Jenny, the young lady who lived with them in the later episodes, is also relatively bland. That's not to say I dislike any of the characters, in contrast, I like them all. But they all led boring lives. They needed to be lead more active, exciting lives.

Being that they lived in a new neighborhood, the series had the potential to introduce all manner of zany characters to the Ropers. Los Angeles certainly wouldn't have a shortage of wackadoo characters. But where were they?

I actually think some of the best characters on this show were the recurring (but not regular) ones. Helen's mother, played by the wonderful Lucille Benson as an eternally confused, kindly elderly southern woman. Also enjoyable was Dena Dietrich as Helen's rich snob sister Ethel. I would have liked to seen more of them. (I was shocked to learn that Ethel was supposed to be older than Helen, IRL, Audra Lindley was 11 years older than Dena). Weird.

The other main flaw was that they seemed to really make Helen and Stan tamer than their time on Three's Company. A typical Three's Company episode would have some AWESOME zingers between the two. Usually, Stan would get in a wicked jab on Helen or her mother, and she would fire back with one about him or his performance (or lack thereof) in the bedroom. It produced some of the series best jokes. But The Ropers seemed to lack this.

I thought Jeffrey Tambor's physical comedy was just brilliant in this. I know this show is often thought of as one of the worst that ever existed, but I definitely don't feel it was. Perhaps it just got compared too much to its widely beloved parent show.


I think the problem was TC fans only accepted them in the presence of the trio. So to see them alone for 30 mins was something TC fans could not focus on because you were never going to see Jack, janet, or Chrissy


On TC you knew that eventually while watching the ropers in their apt the scene would switch upstairs

Thanks to AntennaTV now I'm discovering the show, so far we're only three episodes in and at times it feels like I'm watching an extended episode of TC but the same kind of humor is still there although there isn't a youthful person among the cast that can entice the 18-35 crowd to watch unless you count the kid but nobody likes kids in sitcoms.

I'll be giving it a try since it's sandwiched between TC and Too Close For Comfort which I also like.

Another thing I noticed is that many guest stars that were on TC are popping up on The Ropers too.

Thanks to AntennaTV now I'm discovering the show, so far we're only three episodes in and at times it feels like I'm watching an extended episode of TC but the same kind of humor is still there although there isn't a youthful person among the cast that can entice the 18-35 crowd to watch unless you count the kid but nobody likes kids in sitcoms.

I'll be giving it a try since it's sandwiched between TC and Too Close For Comfort which I also like.

Another thing I noticed is that many guest stars that were on TC are popping up on The Ropers too.


Yeah I noticed that too

Is it me or does The Ropers have one of the lousiest theme intros, I know many sitcom themes are corny even Three's Company's theme is probably seen corny to younger viewers.

I mean as soon as the Ropers theme starts with the trumpets it sounds like someone recorded their own farts.

yeah the theme for the Ropers was kind of sad

Ok so AntennaTV seems to have run the entire series and here are my thoughts.

It's really bad, the characters of the Ropers are only needed in small doses as they were in Three's Company and the Brooks themselves are just boring although Jeffrey Tambor was wasted on the show.

It was impossible to get TC fans to follow the show since it featured mostly adults and the 18-34 crowd just couldn't relate if there was no Jack, Janet or Chrissy to hold an audience, they added a young girl to the show but she didn't bring anything to the show.

The plots for episodes were pretty weak too.

Ok so AntennaTV seems to have run the entire series and here are my thoughts.

It's really bad, the characters of the Ropers are only needed in small doses as they were in Three's Company and the Brooks themselves are just boring although Jeffrey Tambor was wasted on the show.

It was impossible to get TC fans to follow the show since it featured mostly adults and the 18-34 crowd just couldn't relate if there was no Jack, Janet or Chrissy to hold an audience, they added a young girl to the show but she didn't bring anything to the show.

The plots for episodes were pretty weak too.


you mean that young dirty girl near the end? LOL She should be around 55 or 56 today if she is still living

She was cutie but yeah you're right she probably didn't act in anything else and probably let herself go lookswise that she doesn't even look good for a 55-56 year old.

She was cutie but yeah you're right she probably didn't act in anything else and probably let herself go lookswise that she doesn't even look good for a 55-56 year old.


She had cancer.

Norman wanted something else & Audrey either got sick then or both just wanted to move on. Norman ended up getting sick too with cancer I think, of the bones.

Not to mention that the Saturday Timeslot had been a death slot for ABC for years. I'm not sure what they expected.

Counter-programming. You put X type of show against Y type of show.

However, let's not forget THE LOVE BOAT and FANTASY ISLAND were both still on Saturdays at the same time on ABC which were still doing well.

Counter-programming. You put X type of show against Y type of show.

However, let's not forget THE LOVE BOAT and FANTASY ISLAND were both still on Saturdays at the same time on ABC which were still doing well.


which is why the show should have stayed after TC on tuesday night at 9:30pm like L/S followed HD

Random Thought...Do you think that eventually, LOGO will air The Ropers (and for that matter, Three's A Crowd & Flo) since the shows they spun off from air on that network?

If it stayed behind 3's Company till the its' final season, it would have had a longer run.

Random Thought...Do you think that eventually, LOGO will air The Ropers (and for that matter, Three's A Crowd & Flo) since the shows they spun off from air on that network?

I seriously doubt that they ever will.

The only thing I don't like about LOGO is the commercials

which is why the show should have stayed after TC on tuesday night at 9:30pm like L/S followed HD

Remember, this is the same network that screwed up MORK & MINDY - the #1 new show of the season and ANGIE was moved from a good time slot to a weaker one as well.

ABC didn't make smart choices after that big season where they had all the Garry Marshall sitcoms in the top 5.

Random Thought...Do you think that eventually, LOGO will air The Ropers (and for that matter, Three's A Crowd & Flo) since the shows they spun off from air on that network?

On top of being total hackjobs and editing their shows down to fragments (19 minute episodes instead of 25 1/2), they will probably never show those. And it's for the best. You can get Flo unedited on DVD. Better than hackjobs on LOGO lol.

Is it me or does The Ropers have one of the lousiest theme intros, I know many sitcom themes are corny even Three's Company's theme is probably seen corny to younger viewers.

I mean as soon as the Ropers theme starts with the trumpets it sounds like someone recorded their own farts.

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https://jacksonupperco.com/2015/06/24/why-did-i-spend-14-hours-of-my-life-watching-the-ropers/

Given the popularity of Three’s Company, The Ropers has enjoyed some syndication, particularly in the last decade, which has seen the show air on stations like DejaView and Antenna TV. The first season finale, which guest stars Richard Kline as Larry Dallas, and the season two premiere, in which the trio (Ritter, DeWitt, and Somers) appear, are both popular entries. Unfortunately, The Ropers is a far inferior series and, although some Three’s Company fans will defend the show out of loyalty, I must be truthful and say: the show would not have lasted a full second season if Fell and Lindley didn’t have the deal to return to their parent series. Episodes alternate between bad and blah. In addition to weak scripts and a laughably bad opening credit sequence, the show has a faulty design. The very funny Tambor (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OGu2IWzFITM) is relegated to playing the series’ villain — being mean to pretty much everyone, even his boring wife, who never develops a personality beyond agreeableness — and given our already established fondness for the Ropers, it’s extremely difficult to like a character who antagonizes them. (Roper, though an occasional antagonist to the trio, was more of an obstacle: something that could be worked around, and worked over, in Helen’s case. Thus, he remained likable.) Furthermore, Stanley and Helen’s bickering, once sharp and fresh, now is tired and nasty (not to mention poorly written). There’s no variation on their dynamic. And it gets old fast. In early 1980, the series adds a young woman to the cast, Jenny (Louise Vallance), an annoying and unfunny runaway who’s designed to humanize the Ropers. It doesn’t work.

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Is it me or does The Ropers have one of the lousiest theme intros, I know many sitcom themes are corny even Three's Company's theme is probably seen corny to younger viewers.

I mean as soon as the Ropers theme starts with the trumpets it sounds like someone recorded their own farts.

I know what you mean.
While I liked the show, the opening theme looks, and sounds, like they really didn't expect the show to last(or want it to), and the director just told the actors, "Ok, when the music starts, just act stupid."

I love the theme music.

Guess I was wrong about it never airing on Logo lol. Hopefully Lionsgate (who released Three's Company) will release this with unedited episodes instead of the 17 min ones on Logo.

Not to mention that the Saturday Timeslot had been a death slot for ABC for years. I'm not sure what they expected.

Experimental; possibly to revive a day whose timeslots were seen as "death slots"? (I hope) The characters and actors were beloved and the first season had rated highly, to the point they might have hoped people would still tune in. I don't believe they were trying to kill the show.

The Love Boat and Fantasy Island survived Saturdays for years.