"Night Court" without Harry? - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

nitcrt1 · 02-09-2006, 05:54 PM

During the nine seasons of the show, John Larroquette stole the show with his brilliant portrayl of the lecherous Dan Feilding which garnered him four Emmys for himself and the show. These elements of success by John seemed to have made people wonder...what about Harry? Could the show have survived without the presence of Harry Anderson? Could John have carried the show alone?

Here are my thoughts on these questions.

For me Harry's presence would be very missed. He seemed to have been the centrifugal force which kept this diverse mixture of personalities together. We had a slight taste of the absence of his presence in the episode "Guess Who's Listening To Dinner" in season nine. Harry Anderson was not in the episode. For me, I felt something was certainly missing. Harry would have been the one to organize the wire tap of Dan via the FBI. Anyway, who would give the wise advice needed in times of distress. Who would handle other cast members love troubles. Could you honestly see Dan give honest love advice that didn't involve sex to any of the other cast members?

What are your thoughts and opinions on this subject.

ekkostar · 02-09-2006, 08:32 PM

I would have liked to see a story arc where Dan actually becomes the Judge (no, the '...It's a Wonderful Life!' episode doesn't count, because it was more of an alternate universe, because Dan was married), so we could REALLY see how the court operated with Harry absent.

nitcrt1 · 02-09-2006, 08:50 PM

That sounds like it could make for a good fan fiction story.

As for that happening in the series, that would have been interesting territory to explore. The writers would have had to do it as a temporary fix though much like they did in "Her Honor." It possibly could have also been done as a dream sequence for Dan. How would he envision himslef as a judge?

In a fan fiction story that I wrote recently, I make Dan a judge. A good one too. I always saw him finally taking over for Harry in the end.

I still think Harry was a strong presence in the show though.

hazlenut · 02-09-2006, 08:50 PM

Ekkostar, that would have been cool to see but it also would have been a recycled story since they did that with Christine. I also agree, the "wonderful life" episode doesn't count because it wasn't the real night court.

Nitcrt1... To answer your question, do I think JL could have carried the show? Yes, the man is a very talented actor. I think the real question should be, if given the chance to carry the show, should he have? No. Why? Simple, NC was not based around the life of Dan Fielding. This show was great because of the ensamble cast. They were all so talented and played their roles to perfection. Each character had a key role and that was what made the show so great.
So could Night Court have done without Harry? No. I think the characters of Dan and Harry were both important and essential, the show simply would not have been the same without either one.

nitcrt1 · 02-09-2006, 09:08 PM

I totally agree with everyone on all fronts. This was an incredibly put together cast who did obtain a best ensemble award according to IMbD. Each played an important role really to each other in a way. They were like pieces of an interesting, complex puzzle. They all were the right fit. John could have carried the show, but I think that would have resulted in a one-dimensional show. Like a puzzle, if one of those pieces is missing then you don't get the whole picture. You may try to frame the puzzle, but the piece will still obviously be missing no matter what you do to try to draw attention away from it.

I agree that the "It's a Wonderful Life" type episode was not an accurate representation of how I believe Dan would have operated as a judge. As Mel suggested to Harry as Herb the angel, some things were a little embellished.

ekkostar · 02-09-2006, 11:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hazlenut

Ekkostar, that would have been cool to see but it also would have been a recycled story since they did that with Christine. I also agree, the "wonderful life" episode doesn't count because it wasn't the real night court.

You say that, but by the end, they WERE recycling old stories.

As for fan fiction, personally I'm sick of it. I prefer to keep those fantasies up here *points to head*. Fans have come to rely too much on fan fiction and too much of it is poorly written, slash, shipping or mary sueing, so I refuse to read it anymore.

Also, for some reason I find a majority of them not as satisfying as I thought they'd be.

But that's my opinion, don't take it personally.

02-09-2006, 05:54 PM	#1
nitcrt1 Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Oct 22, 2003 Posts: 482	"Night Court" without Harry? During the nine seasons of the show, John Larroquette stole the show with his brilliant portrayl of the lecherous Dan Feilding which garnered him four Emmys for himself and the show. These elements of success by John seemed to have made people wonder...what about Harry? Could the show have survived without the presence of Harry Anderson? Could John have carried the show alone? Here are my thoughts on these questions. For me Harry's presence would be very missed. He seemed to have been the centrifugal force which kept this diverse mixture of personalities together. We had a slight taste of the absence of his presence in the episode "Guess Who's Listening To Dinner" in season nine. Harry Anderson was not in the episode. For me, I felt something was certainly missing. Harry would have been the one to organize the wire tap of Dan via the FBI. Anyway, who would give the wise advice needed in times of distress. Who would handle other cast members love troubles. Could you honestly see Dan give honest love advice that didn't involve sex to any of the other cast members? What are your thoughts and opinions on this subject.
	__________________ House to Cuddy: "Jail. You'd like that. No more naughty schoolgirl. (turning to Vogler) Conjugal visit-that's her new fantasy." -Mob Rules-

02-09-2006, 08:32 PM	#2
ekkostar Coffee, Tea & Larroquette! Senior Member Join Date: Apr 16, 2005 Posts: 1,077	I would have liked to see a story arc where Dan actually becomes the Judge (no, the '...It's a Wonderful Life!' episode doesn't count, because it was more of an alternate universe, because Dan was married), so we could REALLY see how the court operated with Harry absent.
	__________________ "All my sitcoms had an audience, with four or five cameras, so working this way has always been appealing to me." - John Larroquette A living legend, five Emmys and a Tony award! Your favorites could never...

02-09-2006, 08:50 PM	#3
nitcrt1 Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Oct 22, 2003 Posts: 482	That sounds like it could make for a good fan fiction story. As for that happening in the series, that would have been interesting territory to explore. The writers would have had to do it as a temporary fix though much like they did in "Her Honor." It possibly could have also been done as a dream sequence for Dan. How would he envision himslef as a judge? In a fan fiction story that I wrote recently, I make Dan a judge. A good one too. I always saw him finally taking over for Harry in the end. I still think Harry was a strong presence in the show though.

02-09-2006, 08:50 PM	#4
hazlenut Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Dec 24, 2001 Location: Newark, DE Posts: 147	Ekkostar, that would have been cool to see but it also would have been a recycled story since they did that with Christine. I also agree, the "wonderful life" episode doesn't count because it wasn't the real night court. Nitcrt1... To answer your question, do I think JL could have carried the show? Yes, the man is a very talented actor. I think the real question should be, if given the chance to carry the show, should he have? No. Why? Simple, NC was not based around the life of Dan Fielding. This show was great because of the ensamble cast. They were all so talented and played their roles to perfection. Each character had a key role and that was what made the show so great. So could Night Court have done without Harry? No. I think the characters of Dan and Harry were both important and essential, the show simply would not have been the same without either one.

02-09-2006, 09:08 PM	#5
nitcrt1 Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Oct 22, 2003 Posts: 482	I totally agree with everyone on all fronts. This was an incredibly put together cast who did obtain a best ensemble award according to IMbD. Each played an important role really to each other in a way. They were like pieces of an interesting, complex puzzle. They all were the right fit. John could have carried the show, but I think that would have resulted in a one-dimensional show. Like a puzzle, if one of those pieces is missing then you don't get the whole picture. You may try to frame the puzzle, but the piece will still obviously be missing no matter what you do to try to draw attention away from it. I agree that the "It's a Wonderful Life" type episode was not an accurate representation of how I believe Dan would have operated as a judge. As Mel suggested to Harry as Herb the angel, some things were a little embellished.