What if MRS G could have prevented CYNTHIA from committing suicide?

I strongly believe that our 'feisty red haired' could have stopped the pretty/shy curly haired blond teenager from taking the doomed pills that ended her life so abruptly!

In my fictional world, this is what i see: after CYNTHIA abruptly hides in her room and hangs up the phone (after finding out about her parents divorce), MRS G walks into her room to find the teenage girl in tears, she then takes her in her arms, and after a 'heart to heart' talk she makes a cup of cocoa and reassures the poor girl that everything will be alright, and soon afterwards she becomes the 5th girl = 'The musketeers number 5'......

Do you guys agree with my theory or not?

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I like your story, Valentina. Cynthia could have survived after a heart to heart talk with Mrs. Garrett. If she had spoken, I'm sure Edna and the girls would have done what they could to help her, just like they did with Natalie three seasons later.

Linda and Margie definitely wanted Cynthia to die. They argued fiercely with network executives. "The girl dies," they insisted. " ̶R̶a̶b̶b̶i̶t̶s̶ Cynthia, you're DEAD!" :lol:

Linda and Margie definitely wanted Cynthia to die. They argued fiercely with network executives. "The girl dies," they insisted. " ̶R̶a̶b̶b̶i̶t̶s̶ Cynthia, you're DEAD!" :lol:
:lol:

Yep they said “it’s not an ATTEMPTED suicide! It’s a suicide!”

Linda and Margie definitely wanted Cynthia to die. They argued fiercely with network executives. "The girl dies," they insisted. " ̶R̶a̶b̶b̶i̶t̶s̶ Cynthia, you're DEAD!" :lol:

I'm glad it turned into a suicide so people could see a realistic take. Usually shows are too happy ended with their suicide episodes by it just being an attempted suicide. The Facts of Life was rare for having the teenager actually die. Mindy said this episode helped people. I don't think it would have had the same impact on viewers if Cynthia lived by having a heart to heart with one of the main characters. For some people, that's not the way life always works out.

I'm glad it turned into a suicide so people could see a realistic take. Usually shows are too happy ended with their suicide episodes by it just being an attempted suicide. The Facts of Life was rare for having the teenager actually die. Mindy said this episode helped people. I don't think it would have had the same impact on viewers if Cynthia lived by having a heart to heart with one of the main characters. For some people, that's not the way life always works out.

Yeah, too many times we've seen shows where a character threatens or attempts suicide, but s/he is saved. FOL even did a late-season episode where a character threatens suicide.

As you say, and I agree, the show has much more impact because Cynthia dies: the girls learn that there is no fixing death, and sometimes people are in pain, but never let on. These are important lessons, and if Cynthia had lived, the episode would have been far less memorable.

Most people would be hard-pressed to even remember the name of the late-season suicide episode, but many people remember "Breaking Point": it made an impact on real lives. Mindy is proud of what that episode accomplished, and justifiably so.

Yep they said “it’s not an ATTEMPTED suicide! It’s a suicide!”

Yeah, they really insisted, and I'm glad, in this case, that they stuck to their guns.

I have issues with some of Linda and Margie's reasoning (for example, that a black girl on roller skates is "stereotypical"; in the 1980s everyone wore roller skates), but on this, they were exactly right, and the proof is in the letter Mindy received.

I guess you guys make a point, but i'm a hopeless woman who loves happy ending!!!!

I guess you guys make a point, but i'm a hopeless woman who loves happy ending!!!!

Haha I agree I like a happy ending but not everything can be

I guess you guys make a point, but i'm a hopeless woman who loves happy ending!!!!

Even though I'm glad the writers got the ending they wanted for Cynthia, I'd totally read an alternate ending, Valentina.

Part of the appeal of the Facts of Life is that it didn't always have a happy ending. Just like the ending for Mr. Gideon on "Front Page". The audience was dead silent when that show ended. Though Mr. Gideon did get to live.

Part of the appeal of the Facts of Life is that it didn't always have a happy ending. Just like the ending for Mr. Gideon on "Front Page". The audience was dead silent when that show ended. Though Mr. Gideon did get to live.

Yes. And the same thing happened in Teacher's Pet with Gail.

Yes. And the same thing happened in Teacher's Pet with Gail.

Well, Gail, like Cynthia, didn't get to live. Of those three, only Mr. Gideon was allowed to live, albeit unemployed and disgraced. :lol:

Well, Gail, like Cynthia, didn't get to live. Of those three, only Mr. Gideon was allowed to live, albeit unemployed and disgraced. :lol:

Maybe Mr. Gideon went on to better things like Molly and George.

great point guys!!!!

GAIL and CYNTHIA 's ended up in tragedy!!!

Mr. Gideon on the other hand lives!

PS: happy you'd like my alternateending[B]Retro!!!!

Maybe Mr. Gideon went on to better things like Molly and George.

According to Nick at Nite, Molly never made it out of the basement. :lol:

I never saw Cynthia as someone who would beat out Miss Popularity, Blair, in an election. She had a kind of nerdy/awkward air about her.

I never saw Cynthia as someone who would beat out Miss Popularity, Blair, in an election. She had a kind of nerdy/awkward air about her.

Well, Blair had a habit of annoying people around her; at times, even her closest friends were offended or upset by things she had done.

Around this time, Blair was writing op-eds in The Eastlander about White House china patterns. It seems to me like there might have been a faction of Eastland students who wanted a more serious student body president, even if that student was a bit awkward.

Well, Blair had a habit of annoying people around her; at times, even her closest friends were offended or upset by things she had done.

Around this time, Blair was writing op-eds in The Eastlander about White House china patterns. It seems to me like there might have been a faction of Eastland students who wanted a more serious student body president, even if that student was a bit awkward.

They needed Molly around to put Blair in her place when she got too materialistic at times.

They needed Molly around to put Blair in her place when she got too materialistic at times.

Molly would have made a great student body president, with serious issues getting addressed.

Well, Blair had a habit of annoying people around her; at times, even her closest friends were offended or upset by things she had done.

Around this time, Blair was writing op-eds in The Eastlander about White House china patterns. It seems to me like there might have been a faction of Eastland students who wanted a more serious student body president, even if that student was a bit awkward.



I don't see how BLAIR had a 'habit of annoying people' as you said (unless it was JO): if anyone was annoying and whiny it was TOOTIE and especially during season 3 & 4 lol! (she kept yelling "i'm not a baby!").

BLAIR on the other hand was rather amusing, and you could see MRS G laughing at her jokes and remarks most of the time.....

What really annoyed me though, was when TOOTIE and NAT chose JO over BLAIR, as if by riding a bike and behaving tough that made her somehow special!

:bash::bash::bash::bash::bash::bash::bash::bash::bash::bash::bash::bash:

I never saw Cynthia as someone who would beat out Miss Popularity, Blair, in an election. She had a kind of nerdy/awkward air about her.


You're right about CYNTHIA: she looked too nerdy/awkward and even kind of soft and gentle to compete with BLAIR in an election, nevertheless she was very pretty and sweet, and i could have seen her become a good friend to TOOTIE, by helping her against the older 3 girls when they treated her like a kid.

:grouphug::grouphug::grouphug::grouphug::grouphug::grouphug::grouphug::grouphug:

I don't see how BLAIR had a 'habit of annoying people' as you said (unless it was JO):

Well, when Blair was reporting on her progress on the White House china pattern story, you could see the other girls rolling their eyes. It wasn't a hard-hitting news story, and only the most hard-core Reagan fans would have read that piece.

You can see Sue Ann rolling her eyes, so it wasn't just Jo who was annoyed by Blair's "journalism".

And how many times were other students annoyed by something outrageously snobby Blair said? How many times did one of the girls start her sentence with "Blair..."? It was a lot.

Alex P. Keaton would have loved that article.

Compared to today's political scandals, I was really surprised at how much coverage at the time the White House Chinagate got at the time.

Well, when Blair was reporting on her progress on the White House china pattern story, you could see the other girls rolling their eyes. It wasn't a hard-hitting news story, and only the most hard-core Reagan fans would have read that piece.

You can see Sue Ann rolling her eyes, so it wasn't just Jo who was annoyed by Blair's "journalism".

And how many times were other students annoyed by something outrageously snobby Blair said? How many times did one of the girls start her sentence with "Blair..."? It was a lot.



You've got a point there with the photo, but BLAIR was more amusing than anything, and anyone who'd be willing to read between the lines would know that she just loved to brag because she craved for attention, and besides: most girls laughed at her and she didn't even get offended at being the laughing stock lol! On the contrary, BLAIR proved to be a good sport and an easy going person, who didn't mind the mockery, so there you go!

:cheers::cheers::cheers::cheers::cheers::cheers::cheers::cheers::cheers::cheers:

Alex P. Keaton would have loved that article.

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

I actually think Alex would have written an article like, "The political and economic ramifications of the White House's fine china purchase". Blair was stuck on the chic aspect of the story, but Alex would have at least brought some numbers to the article (along with a rigorous defense of the spending, and how the purchase would stimulate the economy, allowing the funds to "trickle down" to the masses).


Compared to today's political scandals, I was really surprised at how much coverage at the time the White House Chinagate got at the time.

I was too young, at the time, to fully understand the story.

You've got a point there with the photo, but BLAIR was more amusing than anything, and anyone who'd be willing to read between the lines would know that she just loved to brag because she craved for attention, and besides: most girls laughed at her and she didn't even get offended at being the laughing stock lol! On the contrary, BLAIR proved to be a good sport and an easy going person, who didn't mind the mockery, so there you go!


You raise a good point, there, about Blair not getting easily offended by people smirking at her ideas. She did continue to believe that her ideas were "brilliant", even when told otherwise, and didn't usually allow other people to dictate how she felt about her own brilliance. Her self-confidence and faith in herself was quite legendary!

You raise a good point, there, about Blair not getting easily offended by people smirking at her ideas. She did continue to believe that her ideas were "brilliant", even when told otherwise, and didn't usually allow other people to dictate how she felt about her own brilliance. Her self-confidence and faith in herself was quite legendary!


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