I love the title so much. (Oh take me back there PLEASE!)

What a FUN episode to open the 6th season!!!

Jo finally ditches the ponytail and her hair is beautiful. I love it so much. She looks much more softer and feminine like this. A really welcome change from the hard edged looking Jo. Then wardrobe throws her into a hideous over sized man suit for that summer flashback scene. WHY?! WHY?! It looked AWFUL!!

Blair's new hair was also really nice. God I love those 80's hairstyles!!

Natalie acted angry without any hint of smile suppression. Mindy Cohn must have finally graduated Hollywood Acting School for Young Girls that summer. She was really good being ticked off by the obnoxious kid.

I know Tootie's braces come off soon, so i'm looking forward to that. She looked gorgeous in the summer scene dressed like a 30 year old and reminded me of Regine from "Living Single" that she'd become a decade later.

And Natalie's line about Tootie's "front burners" cracked me up. Pretty bold for that show to draw attention to one of the girl's large rack. :lol::lol:

Blair on the farm, feeding the pigs in heels. Priceless! :lol:

And Mrs. G got some! :clap:

(ok she came back from the Boardwalk...but in my mind she told Jo not to wait up for her later on when they left the lounge!)

And Gomez plays Mrs. G's hookup. (He'll always be Gomez to me from Addam's Family)...His son Mackenzie Astin appears later in the season as Andy...who I won't make a comment till watching it again, but from memory...that kid annoyed me. (sorry Andy fans)...Maybe i'll change my mind on seeing it again.

All in all, this was a really good episode and perfect start to a new season. And I love that Jo stayed with Mrs. G for the summer and they went to A.C. together. :)

Glad you enjoyed it! And yes, I was such a child in the '80s, so PLEASE let's go back!! :lol: :loveya:

IIRC I thought Blair's hair looked AWFUL! :lol: And this is a guy who digs the '80s! lol

You're right Jo's hair looks so good, but it's still hard for me to see her as "soft" or "feminine" because of how masculine she's been for years.

That obnoxious kid was one "The Goonies"!

Also, I don't know about you, but Retro and I are APPALLED that they wrote Jo as a pianist. That is SO unrealistic.

Also loved Blair on the farm! Its' like picturing her visiting her friend Sue Ann back near Miller's Pond in Kansas City, Kansas! :lol:


And I love that Jo stayed with Mrs. G for the summer and they went to A.C. together.

And of course they had fan favorite JO go with Mrs. Garrett, and not one of the other girls. [slight eye roll at writers]

I do like the Atlantic City aspect though---"Mr. Belvedere" had a 2-parter in Atlantic City! :loveya:

Glad you enjoyed it! And yes, I was such a child in the '80s, so PLEASE let's go back!! :lol: :loveya:

IIRC I thought Blair's hair looked AWFUL! :lol: And this is a guy who digs the '80s! lol

You're right Jo's hair looks so good, but it's still hard for me to see her as "soft" or "feminine" because of how masculine she's been for years.

That obnoxious kid was one "The Goonies"!

Also, I don't know about you, but Retro and I are APPALLED that they wrote Jo as a pianist. That is SO unrealistic.

Also loved Blair on the farm! Its' like picturing her visiting her friend Sue Ann back near Miller's Pond in Kansas City, Kansas! :lol:




And of course they had fan favorite JO go with Mrs. Garrett, and not one of the other girls. [slight eye roll at writers]

I do like the Atlantic City aspect though---"Mr. Belvedere" had a 2-parter in Atlantic City! :loveya:

Not just Jo playing the piano, but singing too....both so unrealistic that I just ignored it and was glad it was short. But yeah...it was way too out of her character and really reaching on the writer's part. But again, it was short enough for me to ignore and forget it exists lol.

(I still can't multiple quote so i'll copy/paste)....

And of course they had fan favorite JO go with Mrs. Garrett, and not one of the other girls. [slight eye roll at writers]


What do you mean by this? Jo was the fan favorite when it originally aired at the time? That's news to me. I think since it was A.C. it could have only been between Blair and Jo to go with her, and Blair on the farm is much more funny than Jo doing it. So I think it was the right choice.

And having Nat & Tootie together made a lot of sense since they're best friends. So I don't think it had anything to do with favorites. I'm now trying to remember if I had a favorite when I originally watched and I really don't think I did.
I liked them all equally and no one really stood out as more of a favorite to me than the other. I think that's the sign of a good ensemble show imo, where not one person is the favorite.

But apparently Jo was with the viewers so that theory gets shot to hell then. :lol:

I do indeed, as '80s Sitcoms says, believe that Jo playing the piano was so unrealistic. We'd never, ever seen her show any interest in the piano before. Now she's playing like a pro? Without there ever being any mention of even a single lesson? Please.

And playing the piano just isn't Jo. It isn't in her.

This is where you can start to tell the writers had run out of ideas: they start forcing the characters into roles they never should have been wedged into.

I do indeed, as '80s Sitcoms says, believe that Jo playing the piano was so unrealistic. We'd never, ever seen her show any interest in the piano before. Now she's playing like a pro? Without there ever being any mention of even a single lesson? Please.

And playing the piano just isn't Jo. It isn't in her.

This is where you can start to tell the writers had run out of ideas: they start forcing the characters into roles they never should have been wedged into.


I agree with you: it was unrealistic, and it kind of bugged me how the writers insisted on giving JO the many talents lol!:rolleyes:

If anyone should be playing the piano, it'll have to be BLAIR: out the 4 girls, she was the one with the best singing voice (she sang very nicely on the 'Xmas episode' from season 6) and she kind of reminds me of a character coming out of any 'Jane Austen' films;)

I agree with you: it was unrealistic, and it kind of bugged me how the writers insisted on giving JO the many talents lol!:rolleyes:

If anyone should be playing the piano, it'll have to be BLAIR: out the 4 girls, she was the one with the best singing voice (she sang very nicely on the 'Xmas episode' from season 6) and she kind of reminds me of a character coming out of any 'Jane Austen' films;)

Blair definitely had a nice singing voice. But maybe Tootie should have learned to play the piano: it was established that Tootie was into the performing arts, and being able to play an instrument would help her land roles. I don't mean that she should have instantly been playing piano, of course: only that they should have gradually dropped in lines indicating that she was learning to play. Then, and only then, could the reveal have been made, with a public performance.

I agree with you: it was unrealistic, and it kind of bugged me how the writers insisted on giving JO the many talents lol!:rolleyes:

If anyone should be playing the piano, it'll have to be BLAIR: out the 4 girls, she was the one with the best singing voice (she sang very nicely on the 'Xmas episode' from season 6) and she kind of reminds me of a character coming out of any 'Jane Austen' films;)

And it was never explained either which was weird. When the girls heard the story and asked Jo she just growls at them and leaves it at that. Why?! To make her seem mysterious?! It was silly.

Had she said something like "When I was a kid my Mom made me take piano lessons" or "My grandma taught me on her old piano" at least something to justify it to satisfy our curiosity. But Jo was....MYSTERIOUS!!

It reminds me of when they all drank and everyone kept asking her where she got the beer..."I got beer!"....SO MYSTERIOUS!!! LMAO!

And it was never explained either which was weird. When the girls heard the story and asked Jo she just growls at them and leaves it at that. Why?! To make her seem mysterious?! It was silly.

Had she said something like "When I was a kid my Mom made me take piano lessons" or "My grandma taught me on her old piano" at least something to justify it to satisfy our curiosity. But Jo was....MYSTERIOUS!!

It reminds me of when they all drank and everyone kept asking her where she got the beer..."I got beer!"....SO MYSTERIOUS!!! LMAO!


That with the beer episode doesn't surprise me: JO was a 'Bronx kid', and i'm sure she'd be intimidating purchasing beer at any supermarket or shop without being questioned (even in a bar lol!).
I remember how she intimidates one their jails 'mates' (a tall woman) on the 'New girl part 2' episode from season 2 hee hee!:lol:

That with the beer episode doesn't surprise me: JO was a 'Bronx kid', and i'm sure she'd be intimidating purchasing beer at any supermarket or shop without being questioned (even in a bar lol!).
I remember how she intimidates one their jails 'mates' (a tall woman) on the 'New girl part 2' episode from season 2 hee hee!:lol:

The fact that she looked and dressed like a 21 year old man probably also helped. :lol:

The fact that she looked and dressed like a 21 year old man probably also helped. :lol:


JO didn't look like a 21 year old man!:eek::eek::eek: (maybe a boy though hee hee!):crazy:

JO didn't look like a 21 year old man!:eek::eek::eek: (maybe a boy though hee hee!):crazy:

Ok maybe not 21, but 18 year old for sure when she wore that army getup she had.

Jo playing piano made sense in the context of the episode because they were saying how they thought they knew everything about each other after living together for years, but they sometimes could surprise one another. Mrs. Garrett even said it was the last thing she expected Jo to be doing.

Jo playing piano made sense in the context of the episode because they were saying how they thought they knew everything about each other after living together for years, but they sometimes could surprise one another. Mrs. Garrett even said it was the last thing she expected Jo to be doing.

But that's like Tootie saying she's not really talkative, or Natalie saying she's really not all that into journalism: we know it's not true. They might as well have made Jo decide to become a nun for a couple of episodes, and then suddenly change her mind, and never speak of it again. ;):lol: Might as well have Blair have an accident and suffer a horrible scar that will be "permanent" until the next episode, when it will completely vanish. :lol:

But that's like Tootie saying she's not really talkative, or Natalie saying she's really not all that into journalism: we know it's not true. They might as well have made Jo decide to become a nun for a couple of episodes, and then suddenly change her mind, and never speak of it again. ;):lol: Might as well have Blair have an accident and suffer a horrible scar that will be "permanent" until the next episode, when it will completely vanish. :lol:

Yeah, whatever happened that that scar?! I guess we weren't supposed to ever think about that again! If you didn't bring that up, I never would have. :lol:

BUT, WriterChick78 DOES make a good point. The episode's point I guess was to show that after all those years together, they still can be surprised and learn new things about each other.

They should have just thrown in ONE line in for Jo explaining why she knew how to play instead of not answering and growling at them. Had that happened, it would've been easier to swallow.

I missed the nun episode. Just reading that explanation has me scratching my head. Tootie or Nat I can see cause they're younger and more impressionable, but not Jo....Will have to wait for that one to cycle around again.

And it was never explained either which was weird. When the girls heard the story and asked Jo she just growls at them and leaves it at that. Why?! To make her seem mysterious?! It was silly.

Had she said something like "When I was a kid my Mom made me take piano lessons" or "My grandma taught me on her old piano" at least something to justify it to satisfy our curiosity. But Jo was....MYSTERIOUS!!


Jo does explain how she learned to play the piano. When she was a kid, she would have to wait at her mom's job until she was off work before they go home. The piano player there taught Jo how to play. Syndication knocks off about 5 to 6 minutes of each episode for commercials so a lot of these episodes might not make sense. That's why I buy the DVD sets if there is one and just put digital copies of them on my hard drives to watch.

Jo does explain how she learned to play the piano. When she was a kid, she would have to wait at her mom's job until she was off work before they go home. The piano player there taught Jo how to play. Syndication knocks off about 5 to 6 minutes of each episode for commercials so a lot of these episodes might not make sense. That's why I buy the DVD sets if there is one and just put digital copies of them on my hard drives to watch.

Wow, that's so messed up. 5 to 6 minutes is too much for a 22 minute sitcom. That only leaves 16 to 17 minutes of the show and the rest commercials! That whole part you describe was nowhere to be seen and it's an important part of the story. Thanks for filling in the blanks. Now i'm wondering what the hell i'm missing from all the other episodes i've been watching.

I need to get those dvd's!!

Wow, that's so messed up. 5 to 6 minutes is too much for a 22 minute sitcom. That only leaves 16 to 17 minutes of the show and the rest commercials! That whole part you describe was nowhere to be seen and it's an important part of the story. Thanks for filling in the blanks. Now i'm wondering what the hell i'm missing from all the other episodes i've been watching.

I need to get those dvd's!!


The Facts of Life is a 25 minute sitcom. I didn't realize how much was cut on all the episodes until I bought the complete box set from Shout. I've been watching this show since local channels back in the early 90's, possibly late 80's. There's different syndication versions and even after having both, there were still scenes cut out. I cut the cord on cable over a decade ago and will never go back to watching shows in syndication again.

Yeah, whatever happened that that scar?! I guess we weren't supposed to ever think about that again! If you didn't bring that up, I never would have. :lol:

The scar ended up in the Facts of Life Basement, with Miss Mahoney, Mr. Bradley, Howard, Kelly, Kevin, and Mr. Parker. :lol:


I missed the nun episode. Just reading that explanation has me scratching my head. Tootie or Nat I can see cause they're younger and more impressionable, but not Jo....Will have to wait for that one to cycle around again.

I know '80s Sitcoms cannot stand that episode. I've gotta say, it does feel artificial, as if they were trying to shoehorn Jo into a role the character didn't fit into. Jo was never deeply religious, so to make her decide to dedicate her life to God, and then completely forget about it two episodes later, feels... off.

Natalie was Jewish, so I don't see her becoming a nun, either. Blair was too WASPy to become Catholic.

The Facts of Life is a 25 minute sitcom. I didn't realize how much was cut on all the episodes until I bought the complete box set from Shout. I've been watching this show since local channels back in the early 90's, possibly late 80's. There's different syndication versions and even after having both, there were still scenes cut out. I cut the cord on cable over a decade ago and will never go back to watching shows in syndication again.

So you have the complete box set! I asked a few days ago about the box set in another thread if the season 1 dvd is close captioned. Whenever you have the time, can you check that dvd and see if it actually is? All the other seasons are, but the season 1 disc is questionable and it would be great to finally get some confirmation on that.

Either way, i'm getting myself that complete set when I have the money. It was 69.99 last week on Amazon and now jumped to 85.85!! Those price gouging bastards!! :mad:

So you have the complete box set! I asked a few days ago about the box set in another thread if the season 1 dvd is close captioned. Whenever you have the time, can you check that dvd and see if it actually is? All the other seasons are, but the season 1 disc is questionable and it would be great to finally get some confirmation on that.

Either way, i'm getting myself that complete set when I have the money. It was 69.99 last week on Amazon and now jumped to 85.85!! Those price gouging bastards!! :mad:


After learning how to turn CC on through the Blu Ray player, I can verify that yes they are closed captioned as it says on the box set. I hope you get the complete box set instead of the individual releases. Both movies are uncut and it has the pilot episode from Diff'rent Strokes on there. I think it's worth the money. The only cut they were forced to do was Tootie singing 'Ease on Down The Road' in the season 7 episode The Graduate.

After learning how to turn CC on through the Blu Ray player, I can verify that yes they are closed captioned as it says on the box set. I hope you get the complete box set instead of the individual releases. Both movies are uncut and it has the pilot episode from Diff'rent Strokes on there. I think it's worth the money. The only cut they were forced to do was Tootie singing 'Ease on Down The Road' in the season 7 episode The Graduate.

YES!! Thanks SO much for confirming! They never captioned season 1 and I was afraid they just tossed those dvd's into the box set. It doesn't pay to buy the individual seasons when doing the math, even at that $85 price. Hopefully it'll fall back down to $69 again. And to get the uncut movies too and DF pilot makes it all well worth getting. Again thanks very much for checking it for me. I'm definitely getting it when I can afford it.

YES!! Thanks SO much for confirming! They never captioned season 1 and I was afraid they just tossed those dvd's into the box set. It doesn't pay to buy the individual seasons when doing the math, even at that $85 price. Hopefully it'll fall back down to $69 again. And to get the uncut movies too and DF pilot makes it all well worth getting. Again thanks very much for checking it for me. I'm definitely getting it when I can afford it.


The 'Girls school' is the best episode on DS! (i got it from season 1 on DS once)
It's the beginning from FOL and where it all started...:D

PS: the FOL box set probably went up on price because of the CORONA VIRUS?
It's a possibility, or?:confused:

The 'Girls school' is the best episode on DS! (i got it from season 1 on DS once)
It's the beginning from FOL and where it all started...:D

PS: the FOL box set probably went up on price because of the CORONA VIRUS?
It's a possibility, or?:confused:

I highly doubt the markup is because of the virus. It's not toilet paper. :lol:

What I did was price track it on Camel Camel Camel website so i'll get an alert when it drops again. Here's the graph of the pricing during the last few years. Just last week it was it's lowest price ever!! I should've jumped on it!! :(

I highly doubt the markup is because of the virus. It's not toilet paper. :lol:


:lol::lol::lol::lol:

What I did was price track it on Camel Camel Camel website so i'll get an alert when it drops again. Here's the graph of the pricing during the last few years. Just last week it was it's lowest price ever!! I should've jumped on it!! :(

What do you mean by this? Jo was the fan favorite when it originally aired at the time? That's news to me. I think since it was A.C. it could have only been between Blair and Jo to go with her, and Blair on the farm is much more funny than Jo doing it. So I think it was the right choice.

And having Nat & Tootie together made a lot of sense since they're best friends. So I don't think it had anything to do with favorites.

You may have noticed my "slight eye roll" to the writers there. I just meant that, yeah, you could tell the writers loved showing off Jo in the past.


I'm now trying to remember if I had a favorite when I originally watched and I really don't think I did.

Oh wow, I sure did---Cindy Webster, no contest! :loveya: She was the first girl we got to know on the series, and her sporty tomboy character was my favorite.

Then when season 2 came along, Tootie was my favorite regular (I too was the younest i the family, lol). But now, it's totally Blair. :lol:


Jo playing the piano was so unrealistic. We'd never, ever seen her show any interest in the piano before. Now she's playing like a pro? Without there ever being any mention of even a single lesson? Please.

Not only that, but no mention of ever any practice. Even if a piano player taught her how to play at her mom's establishment, she would not play as professional-level well as she did in "Summer of '84" by not having ever touched a piano in over 4 years. Now, granted, she could have secretly practiced on some piano somewhere on campus that we just never saw on camera, but she had all of her schoolwork plus her "prison chores" plus riding and maintaining her motorcycle. Also, you'd think at least one person would have witnessed her practicing. Like someone stumbling into the auditorium when she was in there alone after hours playing. But, oh well.


That with the beer episode doesn't surprise me: JO was a 'Bronx kid', and i'm sure she'd be intimidating purchasing beer at any supermarket or shop without being questioned (even in a bar lol!).

Who said she "purchased" it?? She didn't, not in my theory! :eek:


When the girls heard the story and asked Jo she just growls at them

That's their Jo! :lol:


The Facts of Life is a 25 minute sitcom.

Wow, I was thinking 24 was the norm for the '80s.


I didn't realize how much was cut on all the episodes until I bought the complete box set from Shout.

Well I hope the suitcase moment in "Overachieving" is the only thing put back into the box set that's not on the separate sets! (well, the Aussie movie isn't on those, but that's okay with me just for my own collection)


I know '80s Sitcoms cannot stand that episode.

Ya know, I have extremely vivid memories of watching this in my formative years as a child in daily summer syndication, and I don't even have any memories of seeing this one. I'm glad. :lol:


I've gotta say, it does feel artificial, as if they were trying to shoehorn Jo into a role the character didn't fit into. Jo was never deeply religious, so to make her decide to dedicate her life to God, and then completely forget about it two episodes later, feels... off.

My opinion too.

And cfr, I'm glad season 1 will be CC-ed for you! :) And good luck with the box set! A few weeks ago I found the complete box of "The Nanny" for just 25 bucks---25 bucks!! :eek: (I snapped it up!)

Where did you get the Nanny for $25? I'd snap that up too!

Where did you get the Nanny for $25? I'd snap that up too!

Oh, it was a local buy/sell/exchange media place for DVDs, music, video games, books, and comics.

I previously had seasons 1 through 3 individually, but went on ahead and sold 2 and 3 after snapping up the box set, but I have to keep season 1, because, get this, there's one little featurette on there that's not on the box set. [sigh!] lol

Previously I had seen it for like over 100 bucks in another store here, so when I saw it for 25 I did a double and triple take and was like, are you kidding me??? lol

Where did you get the Nanny for $25? I'd snap that up too!


I liked THE NANNY too: it was so romantic how the rich guy falls for the housemother/nanny lol!;)

Oh, it was a local buy/sell/exchange media place for DVDs, music, video games, books, and comics.

I previously had seasons 1 through 3 individually, but went on ahead and sold 2 and 3 after snapping up the box set, but I have to keep season 1, because, get this, there's one little featurette on there that's not on the box set. [sigh!] lol

Previously I had seen it for like over 100 bucks in another store here, so when I saw it for 25 I did a double and triple take and was like, are you kidding me??? lol

It's going for $55 on Amazon which isn't bad for 6 seasons. $25 is definitely a steal! I once saw The King of Queens on Amazon for $14.99 brand new and snatched it up. It was so low I thought it had to be a mistake because that show had like 9 seasons and was pretty popular.

I liked THE NANNY too: it was so romantic how the rich guy falls for the housemother/nanny lol!;)

It was but it did lose something once she married him. But that always seems to happen when the couples finally get together on TV shows. I lvoe the series, but definitely prefer the ones before she married him and called him "Mr. SCEHFIELD!!"

Oh that voice just went through your head like a nail. :lol:

It was but it did lose something once she married him. But that always seems to happen when the couples finally get together on TV shows. I lvoe the series, but definitely prefer the ones before she married him and called him "Mr. SCEHFIELD!!"

Oh that voice just went through your head like a nail. :lol:


I never watched the whole NANNY series: i only saw what was on TV back in the 90 s (it was between FRIENDS, ALLY MAC BEAL and THE NANNY):talk:

Natalie acted angry without any hint of smile suppression. Mindy Cohn must have finally graduated Hollywood Acting School for Young Girls that summer. She was really good being ticked off by the obnoxious kid.


From my thoughts in the 2016 thread on Hallmark's "Home & Family" show's 2-hour 90th birthday celebration for Charlotte and FOL cast reunion (https://www.sitcomsonline.com/boards/showthread.php?t=346334&highlight=Home+Family):

"But I like that Mindy took part and was sincere, and I love the special emphasis she pointed about her scene with Charlotte in season 5 when Natalie's father died and Mindy felt so connected with Charlotte as an actress and that spurned on her desire for acting."

So, there ya have it, cfr; perhaps partly why you're enjoying Mindy's performances more and more these days.

From my thoughts in the 2016 thread on Hallmark's "Home & Family" show's 2-hour 90th birthday celebration for Charlotte and FOL cast reunion (https://www.sitcomsonline.com/boards/showthread.php?t=346334&highlight=Home+Family):

"But I like that Mindy took part and was sincere, and I love the special emphasis she pointed about her scene with Charlotte in season 5 when Natalie's father died and Mindy felt so connected with Charlotte as an actress and that spurned on her desire for acting."

So, there ya have it, cfr; perhaps partly why you're enjoying Mindy's performances more and more these days.


The change did become noticeable after Natalie's father died. So I believe doing those serious scenes most definitely helped fuel her desire to become better in her acting. I think that's the big divide between early goofy Natalie and grown up serious Natalie. I guess knocking off her father was the best thing the writers did for Mindy. :lol:

Yes, it was a little surprising that Jo could play the piano but at least she explained how she learned to play and explained it her backstory.

Seeing Tootie dressed up was funny. Loved the front burner line. Natalie chasing around the kid was hilarious.

My question is, what the hell was that casting agent doing at a fancy country club like that recruiting for a 12-16 year old girl?

I loved the scene where Blair went to “Iowa.” You could clearly tell it wasn’t in Iowa because you saw the Hollywood hills in the background, but nevertheless it was fun to watch her rolling around in the mud!

Also, I loved the last line in the show; “It’s not insulting to Blair. It’s insulting to the pig.” Or something along those lines and then I loved how everyone said it in unison.

Jo's 'do isn't terrible, though I do prefer the ponytail- its what you think of when you think of her. Now, let's not get started on the season 7 style... The show must have bought stock in hair products at the time, for all the cast. :lol:

Yes, it was a little surprising that Jo could play the piano but at least she explained how she learned to play and explained it her backstory.

Seeing Tootie dressed up was funny. Loved the front burner line. Natalie chasing around the kid was hilarious.

My question is, what the hell was that casting agent doing at a fancy country club like that recruiting for a 12-16 year old girl?

I loved the scene where Blair went to “Iowa.” You could clearly tell it wasn’t in Iowa because you saw the Hollywood hills in the background, but nevertheless it was fun to watch her rolling around in the mud!

Also, I loved the last line in the show; “It’s not insulting to Blair. It’s insulting to the pig.” Or something along those lines and then I loved how everyone said it in unison.

It would have been funny to have Sue Ann come along and mock Blair for being such a city slicker in that episode.

I loved the scene where Blair went to “Iowa.” You could clearly tell it wasn’t in Iowa because you saw the Hollywood hills in the background, but nevertheless it was fun to watch her rolling around in the mud!


Yeah, the setting looked more like the exterior of Hey Dude than anything in Iowa, but at least they tried.

I'm more surprised Blair thought a long pink dress like that was appropriate to wear working in a barn. Blair managed to work in a stable just fine in "Flash Flood", and she was no stranger to jeans. But now she's wearing pink gowns to slop pigs? :lol: pig:

Yes, it was a little surprising that Jo could play the piano but at least she explained how she learned to play and explained it her backstory.

But it's not believable because it's not realistic, and that's why we have a problem with it.

Yep. They can explain it but that doesn’t make it believable. I can’t imagine the Jo from “New Girl” knows how to play piano and sing show tunes. Lazy writing.

Yeah, the setting looked more like the exterior of Hey Dude than anything in Iowa, but at least they tried.

I'm more surprised Blair thought a long pink dress like that was appropriate to wear working in a barn. Blair managed to work in a stable just fine in "Flash Flood", and she was no stranger to jeans. But now she's wearing pink gowns to slop pigs? :lol: pig:

Great point about the pink dress. It seems like writers were trying to make a joke about her being a prima-donna, but the real fans could see straight through their BS and the joke just didn't work. It wasn't believable that she would only bring that dress. She was going to Iowa for goodness sakes, not going to London and having afternoon tea with the Queen of England the whole time :lol: Had she never been to Iowa? It's not all picnics and sunshine.

But it's not believable because it's not realistic, and that's why we have a problem with it.

I see what you're saying. Yes, it felt the writers were trying to fit Jo into a "square hole," and the explanation was pathetic (and the fact that she had to explain it, was like proof that the writers knew this was something out of the ordinary for Jo and the audience would be taken aback). I personally think it would have been more believable if it were Mrs. Garrett or someone else at the piano.

Great point about the pink dress. It seems like writers were trying to make a joke about her being a prima-donna, but the real fans could see straight through their BS and the joke just didn't work. It wasn't believable that she would only bring that dress. She was going to Iowa for goodness sakes, not going to London and having afternoon tea with the Queen of England the whole time :lol: Had she never been to Iowa? It's not all picnics and sunshine.

:lol:

I did like the sight gag of Blair falling in the mud, but I feel like they could have done it just as easily with Blair wearing jeans and a normal shirt. Blair's worked around livestock and has worn blue jeans before, so it just felt forced. Keep the mud, lose the pink dress.



I see what you're saying. Yes, it felt the writers were trying to fit Jo into a "square hole," and the explanation was pathetic (and the fact that she had to explain it, was like proof that the writers knew this was something out of the ordinary for Jo and the audience would be taken aback). I personally think it would have been more believable if it were Mrs. Garrett or someone else at the piano.

I would totally have believed that! Mrs. Garrett had so many bizarre talents that didn't really mesh well (airplane pilot, registered nurse, peace corps volunteer, HoJo hostess, baker extraordinaire, dietician, maid, housemother, seamstress, etc.) that simply having her play piano would have been pretty refreshing. She clearly loved singing, so playing the piano seemed like it could be her... forte (pun intended). :lol:

The thing is, I think they wanted to showcase Nancy's talent playing the piano and singing. I thought her voice was fine, and I could have supported seeing the character grow, if we'd ever witnessed Jo ever taking an interest in music at any point before that moment. But staying at a professional level with the piano would require occasional practice, which we (and Mrs. Garrett) never saw.

:lol:

I did like the sight gag of Blair falling in the mud, but I feel like they could have done it just as easily with Blair wearing jeans and a normal shirt. Blair's worked around livestock and has worn blue jeans before, so it just felt forced. Keep the mud, lose the pink dress.




I would totally have believed that! Mrs. Garrett had so many bizarre talents that didn't really mesh well (airplane pilot, registered nurse, peace corps volunteer, HoJo hostess, baker extraordinaire, dietician, maid, housemother, seamstress, etc.) that simply having her play piano would have been pretty refreshing. She clearly loved singing, so playing the piano seemed like it could be her... forte (pun intended). :lol:

The thing is, I think they wanted to showcase Nancy's talent playing the piano and singing. I thought her voice was fine, and I could have supported seeing the character grow, if we'd ever witnessed Jo ever taking an interest in music at any point before that moment. But staying at a professional level with the piano would require occasional practice, which we (and Mrs. Garrett) never saw.


Don't forget that MRS G was a teacher too: on the episode 'The facts of love' she taught the entire class (including MR BRADLEY) about sex education!;)

And yes, MRS G had so many talent and was definitely the adult role model by any means!:cool:

I didn't buy either the 'sudden' talent JO developed for the piano, and would have also loved to see MRS G playing it instead!:p

And the reason BLAIR wore her pink dress, was probably to impress CLIFF by dressing up like a princess!:D


:bouncers:bouncers:bouncers

Yep. They can explain it but that doesn’t make it believable. I can’t imagine the Jo from “New Girl” knows how to play piano and sing show tunes. Lazy writing.

And Nancy McKeon was not a very good singer either.

Don't forget that MRS G was a teacher too: on the episode 'The facts of love' she taught the entire class (including MR BRADLEY) about sex education!;)

Mrs. G would have made a GREAT teacher, but even as a part-time, occasional, fill-in instructor, she certainly knew more than the administrators (I'm thinking of Bradley, Crocker, and Parker).


I didn't buy either the 'sudden' talent JO developed for the piano, and would have also loved to see MRS G playing it instead!:p

That would have been so nice. I really wonder why we didn't get more musical episodes, considering Charlotte's musical background. It seemed as though Alice was always having Linda Lavin sing, and, no offense to Linda or her fan-base, but I rarely cared for most of those musical numbers (I think I remember a few of them being quite good).


And the reason BLAIR wore her pink dress, was probably to impress CLIFF by dressing up like a princess!:D

Maybe so. Cliff didn't seem to be too impressed, though. At least in this episode. Then again, he was busy feeding livestock.

And Nancy McKeon was not a very good singer either.

She was okay, but Charlotte could have been so much better.

I really wonder why we didn't get more musical episodes, considering Charlotte's musical background.

Hmmm, now had the school setting been a school for the performing arts, perhaps that could have been something! :nod: