If Dolph Sweet had lived, this show would have been great throughout its entire run. The first three or four seasons were great. However, even at this time it wasn't quite as good because Dolph was getting sick so they couldn't do quite as much with his character. After he passed, I think the show got goovy and silly. Plus, there was way too much emphasis on Nell and Joey and not enough on the three Kanisky girls. In fact, I think adding Joey was a horrible idea. I know Samantha was getting older, but they didn't have to have a young kid on there. So many shows think they have to, but they don't. Let the kids grow up normally and develop storylines to reflect their maturing years.

With that said, I think season 1 is the absolute best of the series. No contest for me. Season 1 has some fantastic episodes. Two of the best of the series are "Nell Goes Home" and "Mom's Birthday". And, it was better when the girls were younger and going to school. Also, I didn't like them adding Grandpa as a regular character. He was great for occasional appearances. The best set-up was Nell, the Chief, and the three girls. This show had so much potential. It suffered when Dolph got sick. Just like "Good Times" suffered when John Amos quit. And, I think it was hurt by having different writers. The writers in season 1 had to be the best. Season 2 was also very good, not quite as good as season 1 though. Anyway, that is my opinion.

If I had to pick a favorite season, I would have to go with Season 2. This is because it featured my all-time favorite episode "Katie Steals Julie's Jock"! At age 13, I thought that the site of Julie in her designer boots was worth selling my soul for! For my second favorite, I would pick Season 2. This season featured my next favorite episode the "Emergency". By the way, this was the first episode that I ever saw. It was the classic "your purse, your purse" line that caused me to fall in love with the show! By the way, the starter of this thread mentioned "Mom's Birthday" as a personal favorite. This episode featured the same bit-part player as the one who played the busy body on the phone in the "Emergency". I would pick Season 3 as my next favorite episode. This season featured my third favorite episode "Samantha's Protest". I liked this episode mainly because of the secondary plot of Katie's giddiness over the handsome boy from the protest. I thought that Julie sounded so decent and sophisticated when she said that the way that Katie positioned her body was absolutely disgusting! Julie was always my favorite! I would say that, after Season 3, the show went steadily downhill. The move to New York in the 6th Season was the kill of death. At this point, this show made the show from the seventies known as "What's Happening!!" look like a work of art!

Season 1 to 4 are all good ones, but the first two feel a lot like something out of the late 1970s. The theme song and the tunes that are heard in the episodes, especially the music and some of the lighting, make it feel like it was from the late 1970s. Seasons 3-4 were much better in quality and sound, and were more with the time.


Season 1 had a lot of good episodes. Season 2 had a few good ones, though some of them were boring. Season 3 and 4 had the best episodes of the entire series. Season 5 and 6 had the worst, and not just because the Chief was gone, but because the writers kept the focus all on Joey, especially in the final season.


Had Dolf Sweet lived, the show would have made it to see a 7th season, maybe an 8th and 9th, and more people would have known of this show who were kids in the late 1980s, not many who were kids in the late 1980s knew of this show because it was on so late in its final season.

The first 2 Seasons were great. If I had to pick one, I'd go with Season 2 only because there were more episodes. Season 3 was pretty good although the addition of Joey and making Grandpa Kaniski a regular character hurt the show a little. Season 4 is when the show starts to go downhill with Dolph Sweet being sick and not appearing in many episodes and more episodes taking place away from the home. There were a couple of good episodes that season, mostly the ones with the whole family, but it just wasn't the same. Season 5 was mostly bad. At least it was watchable though, unlike Season 6 which I doubt I'll ever watch again.

I agree that S1 was the absolute best. Almost all of my favorite episodes are from that season, and Samantha had the best lines that year too.

I agree that S1 was the absolute best. Almost all of my favorite episodes are from that season, and Samantha had the best lines that year too.

And I liked Samantha more when she was a tomboy. She was more fun and likeable as a tomboy. By about the third season she was growing out of that and began to become kind of a cross between Katie and Julie. Sure, I know she was growing up, and they couldn't have her talking about blood and violent movies all the time. Still, I didn't like the complete about face. Samantha loved sports and went to sporting events with the Chief when she was young. Things like that could have continued. Samantha lost something when they changed her character. The same thing happened to Betty Jo on "Petticoat Junction".