What big change occured in the second season of Barney Miller because I read that the

[catlover79]

Definitely one of the most underrated/underappreciated actors of our time.

[TMC]

The Ten Best BARNEY MILLER Episodes of Season Two

If Barney Miller’s selling point is its realism, particularly via its leads, then Season Two is not a great advertisement, for while showrunner Danny Arnold wisely drops Barney’s home and wife (she only appears twice), and focuses on the precinct where there are richer opportunities with the regulars and the premise, he also makes a surprising attempt to rev up the show’s never-comparably-excellent comedic engine, and this doesn’t acquit the year well, especially because it isn’t aligned with the series’ slower, quieter understanding of character. In other words, Two is a huge structural advancement, which makes it easier to find stories that satisfy the concept and make time for the leads, who yes, find definition gradually from mere exposure and thus naturally improve, but the year is so prematurely aggressive that it undermines what we already see as the series’ strength. It’s all most obvious in Two’s first trimester, when Chris Hayward’s old pal Arne Sultan is a credited producer and there’s an evident crusade to make the show funnier — not only through a reduction of drama (both didactic and personal), but also in an over-reliance on the few hooks and gags that have been carrying the comic burden, like weekly guests/plot, Yemana’s coffee, and Fish’s to-camera mugging. This lack of emotional weight and more forceful drive for laughs makes narrative-based angst unusually strained (for Barney Miller), and with so few of the leads ready to participate, its rare sources of humor (like Fish) are magnified in a way that stretches their credibility, relative to everything else. Also, the year is still trying to shoot in front of an audience, and there’s a theatricality — see, for instance, Linda Lavin’s portrayal of Wentworth — that’s against the show’s softer baseline and stands out as false, even in comparison to One, which was at least grounded by heavier moments… And yet, while this does a number on Two’s overall standing, the last, oh, half of the season begins a formative self-correction, with the humor modulating alongside the characters, all of whom become more defined through added use, as scripts offer more of both believable heft and the series’ trademark continuity (practiced here within, among other things, the casual Wentworth/Wojo romance). This all helps set the table for Three, the show’s peak largely because of Two’s strides with character and accumulating realism. That’s for next week though; first…

[SarahBellum]

I didn't start watching Barney Miller until 1979 (Vacation episode) when I was visiting a friend who happened to be watching it - and I got hooked. I have a hard time watching some of the early episodes. Partly it is due to Barney's home life scenes. Also, Wojo’s gum chewing and goofy laugh were annoying - I was glad he toned it down a little in subsequent seasons. And Harris had not yet evolved into to the ambitious, dapper, intellectual that he would eventually become. I did not like Chano or Wentworth - I'm glad they were removed.

[TVFactFan]

Originally Posted by SarahBellum

I didn't start watching Barney Miller until 1979 (Vacation episode) when I was visiting a friend who happened to be watching it - and I got hooked. I have a hard time watching some of the early episodes. Partly it is due to Barney's home life scenes. Also, Wojo’s gum chewing and goofy laugh were annoying - I was glad he toned it down a little in subsequent seasons. And Harris had not yet evolved into to the ambitious, dapper, intellectual that he would eventually become. I did not like Chano or Wentworth - I'm glad they were removed.

Was the vacation episode involve scenes out of the police station?

[SueWalsh]

Originally Posted by TVFactFan

He was only written out because He was starting a new show-
"AES HUSDON STREEET" not because they feel he didn;t add anything to the show

Actually he probably would have left anyway. He wasn’t happy with how Chano was written, he didn’t get along with Hal, and his wife was ill. Poor guy was having a rough go of it.

[SueWalsh]

Originally Posted by TVFactFan

Was the vacation episode involve scenes out of the police station?

No, it was about Dietrich and Harris fighting because they both wanted to go on vacation the same week!

[TVFactFan]

Not showing Barney's Home life looks like it was definitely the reason the show was not watchable. because the show went from 68 all the way to 37 in just one season and the timeslot stayed the same

[SueWalsh]

Originally Posted by TVFactFan

Not showing Barney's Home life looks like it was definitely the reason the show was not watchable. because the show went from 68 all the way to 37 in just one season and the timeslot stayed the same

The show was never unwatchable. It never would have lasted 8 seasons if it was. The ratings were low the first season because it was a mid season replacement. That’s never a good starting place for a new series.

[Alan Brady's Hair]

It's a fascinating show to watch:

1. It was supposed to have a good dose of Norman Lear ethnicism in it. Early on, someone comes in and says, "How are things here at the UN." It never disappears, but it declines very quickly;

2. It starts as a Dick van Dyke/MTM clone, with Barney ping ponging between work and home every episode. Again that's quickly ditched, and it becomes the first of the next generation, the workplace shows including Taxi, WKRP, Cheers, Night Court.

3. The casting becomes outrageous, both in overturning the main cast and in bringing back the same character actors year after year, sometimes as the same character, sometimes as someone else who's indistinguishable.