Did they really need to bring on new people Maggie and Sam?

HELL TO THE ABSOLUTE NO!! Maggie and Sam were both to "Diff'rent Strokes" what Seven was to "Married...With Children" and cousin Oliver was to."The Brady Bunch": a total (and unnecessary) waste of time.

Feisty aerobics instructor Maggie McKinney and her young son Sam (portrayed respectively by Dixie Carter and [during season eight] Mary Ann Mobley, and Danny Cooksey) were both added to the cast of "Strokes" midway through its seventh season in an ultimately futile--and dismal--attempt to rejuvenate the ailing sitcom...Todd and Dana were both nearing adulthood (as you already know, Dana ultimately departed "Strokes" by season's end, due to her real-life pregnancy), and Gary had begun entering his teens; on the bright side, Sam's introduction allowed Arnold to transition into both an older brother and mentor to the precocious, red-haired eight-year-old moppet.

Enjoy your evening, Confidence30.

HELL TO THE ABSOLUTE NO!! Maggie and Sam were both to "Diff'rent Strokes" what Seven was to "Married...With Children" and cousin Oliver was to."The Brady Bunch": a total (and unnecessary) waste of time.

Feisty aerobics instructor Maggie McKinney and her young son Sam (portrayed respectively by Dixie Carter and [during season eight] Mary Ann Mobley, and Danny Cooksey) were both added to the cast of "Strokes" midway through its seventh season in an ultimately futile--and dismal--attempt to rejuvenate the ailing sitcom...Todd and Dana were both nearing adulthood (as you already know, Dana ultimately departed "Strokes" by season's end, due to her real-life pregnancy), and Gary had begun entering his teens; on the bright side, Sam's introduction allowed Arnold to transition into both an older brother and mentor to the precocious, red-haired eight-year-old moppet.

Enjoy your evening, Confidence30.

You almost argue to the point of why they WERE needed.

Now.. Seven totally wasn't because remember, MwC went on another few years after that failure. Even long enough to poke fun at it by having his face on a milk carton on the show.

Cousin Oliver.. Didn't help at all and was desperation.

The addition of Maggie and Sam likely bought the show the 8th season. Now.. Was that worth it? Probably not. Had this show ended after season 7.. It would have been time. But.. That addition did give them a season and a half of stories.. Because the cupboard was bare without them.

^What they said.

Exactly--the well was running dry.

It should have ended with seven, after NBC cancellation.

Nope! That's when the show jumped the shark. Sam and Maggie were the classic jump the shark bait to boost declining ratings of an aging long running show. Marriage and cute new kid aka Cousin Oliver Syndrome. Neither one worked, as NBC cancelled the show at the end of Season 7.

Did they really need to bring on new people Maggie and Sam?

I'm completely new to the show, and surprised that the first episodes I've seen were in the 7th season.

When first watching, Dixie Carter's character came off as a not very subtle "gold digger" type, and then I soon learned that she was meant to be played as sincere.

Really, I was sort of expecting her character to see be exposed and gone by the end of the episode, not joining the cast as a regular.


Different Strokes, indeed

🙂