When I first started watching the show, I posted on this forum about how it bothered me that the personalities of the characters kept changing from episode to episode....

Well, after watching "The Gift" two-parter (where the Hackett brothers virtually "switched roles" when it came to caring and personal sacrifice), I've realized that those character changes are JUST the thing that really DRAWS me to the series!

Most TV series don't show such dramatic changes in characters....you get pretty much the same "schtick" from main characters in other series from week to week. However, on "WINGS" the characters are more true-to-life....in real life, most people don't act the SAME way ALL the time in different situations...and neither do the characters in "Wings". A usually "nice" WINGS character may act not-so-nice in a specific situation, and vice versa.

I think that this 3-dimensional look at the various characters is what makes the "Wings" gang seem so REAL and turns them into people that we truly CARE about.
Other cast members have left successful TV series before, but I have NEVER heard of viewers getting so emotional as when Lowell Mather left the series (except for maybe when Mike and Gloria left "All In The Family"). When Lowell left, many viewers have said that it was as sad and as upsetting as a member of the family moving away.

I've said it before and I'll say it again....Yes, "WINGS" is a funny sitcom...but there is just something ELSE there that sets it apart from your typical TV sitcom.
It really IS a very special series....I wonder why more people don't realize that?

Pilotguy, I enjoy learning about your perspective on the show as a viewer that is really seeing Wings for the first time.

Back when the show was on NBC from 90 to 97 I always felt this was an underappreciated show that had excellent writing and a talented cast with rare chemistry. I've said this before, but I will never understand why this show was usually dumped on by the critics and given very little respect from NBC. I felt then, and I feel now, that it is one of the top 10 sitcoms of all time.

I'm also very glad that Nick at Nite has started to show the episodes in order, so you could get a truer sense of how the characters and the show developed. I wish they had done it from the very beginning, rather then starting with season 3, after having the marathon. But at least by showing episodes in order it helps to understand the development of the show.

Now all we need is for the series to be released on DVD with no scenes cut out! Unfortunately, they always cut out a minute or two of each show when they are shown in syndication.

Pilotguy, something else about Wings... I guess maybe I don't watch enough sitcoms to know if this is the case with them...

The way the characters laugh at each other's jokes sometimes. Like in "I've Got a Secret" when Alex was talking about the men wanting the girl to see the instant replay. After she said it, Helen laughed so hard. I mean, she laughed so realistically, like Crystal was really actually laughing. I guess that's just good acting, or else Crystal really thought it was funny.

And then in "The Gift 2" when Helen said it felt good to wake up with a purpose... Joe said, "Did she say 'purpose' or 'porpoise'?" Roy busted out laughing with such a genuine laugh!

Ok, rambling now... gotta go!

Love,

Wing<><

Originally posted by losthighway

Back when the show was on NBC from 90 to 97 I always felt this was an underappreciated show that had excellent writing and a talented cast with rare chemistry. I've said this before, but I will never understand why this show was usually dumped on by the critics and given very little respect from NBC. I felt then, and I feel now, that it is one of the top 10 sitcoms of all time.



That's why I never listen to critics. I don't need to be told what's worth watching by someone who is paid to sit around all day and watch TV.