Which Lost Girl was best in her best episode?

[RetroGuy2000]

The results are in for the Lost Girls' "best episodes" polls, and here they are:

"Molly's Holiday" was voted Molly's best episode. No surprise there, I think, as that was her biggest FOL episode, by far.

"Rough Housing" was voted as Julie Anne's best episode.

There was a tie for Felice's best episode. Both "The Girls' School" (DS) and "IQ" were voted as Felice's best episode.

There was also a tie for Julie Pie's best episode. Both "The Little Chill" and "Dope" received the same number of votes.

So, now the showdown! The poll of polls! Ooh, the suspense!

Only the top six made it to this round. Of the six "best of" episodes, which one was the best? "Molly's Holiday", "Rough Housing", "The Girls' School" (DS), "IQ", "The Little Chill", or "Dope"? Explain your choices in the comments below.

['80sSitcoms]

Julie Anne just shone like a blond little diamond in RH.

And Felice did such a range of emotions so well in TGS.

[Lorimar Television]

Im surprised Dieting and Running weren't higher

['80sSitcoms]

Originally Posted by Lorimar Television

Im surprised Dieting and Running weren't higher

I was surprised "Running" wasn't, either. But I think the fact that more people prefer RH as their favorite "Cindy episode", and "Dope" as their favorite "Sue Ann" episode, it just got canceled out.

[RetroGuy2000]

It took a while, but I finally decided on my vote: "Rough Housing" and "The Little Chill". Both of The Julies were so good in their respective episodes. When Sue Ann says she'll be a VP the next time she comes to Peekskill, I believe her. And Cindy is just sooo adorable in her Harvest Festival gown, burying the hatchet with Blair.

These episodes are like bookends of the series: the very first episode, and an episode that aired just a few weeks after Edna Garrett left the show, heralding an end to the "real" series. Between these episodes, we see the characters grow from teens or even pre-teens into grown women.

[RetroGuy2000]

Originally Posted by Lorimar Television

Im surprised Dieting and Running weren't higher

I was, too, but that didn't happen.

Weirdly enough, a few people didn't vote for episodes they said in the comments that they liked. Or they even voted for different episodes than what they had said they liked. Oh well! C'est la vie!

['80sSitcoms]

Originally Posted by RetroGuy2000

It took a while, but I finally decided on my vote: "Rough Housing" and "The Little Chill".

These episodes are like bookends of the series: the very first episode, and an episode that aired just a few weeks after Edna Garrett left the show, heralding an end to the "real" series. Between these episodes, we see the characters grow from teens or even pre-teens into grown women.

That's why I personally don't count "The Little Chill" in these polls; the girls are young ladies in that, not the teenage girls they were in season 1. It's too different to me.

[RetroGuy2000]

Originally Posted by '80sSitcoms

That's why I personally don't count "The Little Chill" in these polls; the girls are young ladies in that, not the teenage girls they were in season 1. It's too different to me.

I definitely see what you mean, '80s, but I disagree: the span of time between "The Girls' School" and "Green-Eyed Monster" (2 years, 8 months, and 9 days) wasn't that much shorter than the span of time between "Green-Eyed Monster" and "The Little Chill" (4 years, 9 months, and 25 days). If it's allowed to compare a mid-Season 3 episode with a backdoor pilot in "Season 0", it should be okay to compare an early Season 8 episode with a mid-Season 3 episode. It's not as if we are comparing the 2001 movie, from 12 years later.

['80sSitcoms]

Originally Posted by RetroGuy2000

I definitely see what you mean, '80s, but I disagree: the span of time between "The Girls' School" and "Green-Eyed Monster" (2 years, 8 months, and 9 days) wasn't that much shorter than the span of time between "Green-Eyed Monster" and "The Little Chill" (4 years, 9 months, and 25 days).

"wasn't that much shorter"? It's a period twice as long. And the girls were no longer girls in TLC, they were young adult women, whereas they're still "girls" in the cafeteria years. And I actually forgot you included the cafeteria era episodes, lol. I was remembering them as just season 1 and TLC.

Originally Posted by RetroGuy2000

If it's allowed to compare a mid-Season 3 episode with a backdoor pilot in "Season 0", it should be okay to compare an early Season 8 episode with a mid-Season 3 episode. It's not as if we are comparing the 2001 movie, from 12 years later.

Well as I said, I forgot you included those. Still, the time between TGS and GEM was much shorter than the time between GEM and TLC, by half. And The Facts of Life wasn't the same classic Facts of Life in season 8 as it was in seasons 1-4 (as you also lament), so it's just not the same.

[RetroGuy2000]

Originally Posted by '80sSitcoms

"wasn't that much shorter"? It's a period twice as long. And the girls were no longer girls in TLC, they were young adult women, whereas they're still "girls" in the cafeteria years. And I actually forgot you included the cafeteria era episodes, lol. I was remembering them as just season 1 and TLC.

Oh, no: one of Nancy's most memorable episodes was "Gossip"; how could I not include that? And it's not really twice as long, but a difference of a couple of years shouldn't make that much difference anyway.

And The Facts of Life wasn't the same classic Facts of Life in season 8 as it was in seasons 1-4 (as you also lament), so it's just not the same.

The first few episodes of Season 8 were different, though: we still had Mrs. G, AND we got 3/4ths of the Lost Girls back (and Molly even in flashbacks). If we had more episodes like 8-01, 8-02, and 8-06 in the rest of the season, it would have been a completely different season: more Eastlandy, more full of the classic characters. You yourself imagined what it would have been like to have the Lost Girls at Mrs. Garrett's wedding, and if TLC had been four episodes earlier, they would have.

But to each his own...

['80sSitcoms]

Originally Posted by RetroGuy2000

Oh, no: one of Nancy's most memorable episodes was "Gossip"; how could I not include that? And it's not really twice as long, but a difference of a couple of years shouldn't make that much difference anyway.

It does when we're talking about adolescents. They change grow and change so fast.

Of course "Gossip" has to be included (and it was one of my votes), I had just momentarily forgotten.

Originally Posted by RetroGuy2000

You yourself imagined what it would have been like to have the Lost Girls at Mrs. Garrett's wedding, and if TLC had been four episodes earlier, they would have. But to each his own...

Right, it would have been nice if the show had stayed more Eastlandy; then you yourself might be interested in watching the later seasons more, lol.

[RetroGuy2000]

Originally Posted by '80sSitcoms

Right, it would have been nice if the show had stayed more Eastlandy; then you yourself might be interested in watching the later seasons more, lol.

Well, we both agree that the show changed when the girls left Eastland.

But here is an episode where the Eastland girls are reunited once more, with seven of them all in one room, and even talking about Mrs. Garrett and Molly... perhaps the biggest cast reunion in the history of TV... and it's not enough? Too different because the girls are all now officially graduated, even though Tootie had just graduated eight episodes earlier?

['80sSitcoms]

Originally Posted by RetroGuy2000

Well, we both agree that the show changed when the girls left Eastland.

But here is an episode where the Eastland girls are reunited once more, with seven of them all in one room, and even talking about Mrs. Garrett and Molly... perhaps the biggest cast reunion in the history of TV... and it's not enough? Too different because the girls are all now officially graduated, even though Tootie had just graduated eight episodes earlier?

It's a good attempt, but it just can't be perfection without Molly and Mrs. Garrett there. And they really did a disservice to my Cindy by making her "the Nancy" of the episode.

[RetroGuy2000]

Originally Posted by '80sSitcoms

It's a good attempt, but it just can't be perfection without Molly and Mrs. Garrett there. And they really did a disservice to my Cindy by making her "the Nancy" of the episode.

They really did need a two-parter there; then they really could have explored the characters more. We could have learned a bit more about the Lost Girls' lives; why they boycotted their own graduations; why they kept forgetting to go to Edna's Edibles, even though it was only a 15-minute drive; why they never called; why Cindy changed her last name; etc.

But there was no way the producers were going to get Molly to come back, what with her film career so huge. And Charlotte was determined to leave, no matter how much they had offered her. Ultimately, that was Charlotte and Molly's choice.

['80sSitcoms]

Originally Posted by RetroGuy2000

They really did need a two-parter there; then they really could have explored the characters more. We could have learned a bit more about the Lost Girls' lives; why they boycotted their own graduations; why they kept forgetting to go to Edna's Edibles, even though it was only a 15-minute drive; why they never called; why Cindy changed her last name; etc.

Yes! A 2-parter would have been wonderful! They could have even had a phone call with Molly where we only see the other girls' end of the conversation!

As for Cindy's surname, perhaps they wanted to avoid confusion with Emmanuel Lewis, lol.

Originally Posted by RetroGuy2000

But there was no way the producers were going to get Molly to come back, what with her film career so huge. And Charlotte was determined to leave, no matter how much they had offered her. Ultimately, that was Charlotte and Molly's choice.

I know, it's just that in a perfect world they would be there.