Barney

[treky]

do you think the color episodes would have been better if he had stayed on as Andys deputy?

[Torgo]

Originally Posted by treky

do you think the color episodes would have been better if he had stayed on as Andys deputy?

Yep.

[Mayberry'sBadBoy]

While I would like to say yes, I have a feeling that even if Barney had stayed on it might have actually made the show worse. Looking at the last few episodes of Season 5 (particularly the luck of Newton Monroe) , I could easily see a color episodes Barney acting like a cross between how Andy and Helen acted in colored episodes: A grumpy, nasty, person with a hair trigger temper and no sense of humor. There's also the fact that if he stayed on there could have been a chance for a role reversal (like what happened on the later seasons of Nightcourt). Given how bad the new writers were in Seasons 7 and 8, it's not much outside the realm of possibility for there to have been an episodes where Andy does Barneyesque and Barney acts Andyesque, which while it would have been interesting in the black and white episodes, would probably have been handled very poorly due to lack of quality control

[Samme]

I think the show was due to go downhill in the 6th season, because after 150 episodes is when it usually happens. The best way to keep quality up at that point is to add new characters so they can have new stories and that's always risky. Although one thing that would have been better if Barney hadn't left is that Andy would've stayed more in character. Andy Griffith got very mixed up after Don left.

[Will Dockery]

Originally Posted by Mayberry'sBadBoy

While I would like to say yes, I have a feeling that even if Barney had stayed on it might have actually made the show worse. Looking at the last few episodes of Season 5 (particularly the luck of Newton Monroe) , I could easily see a color episodes Barney acting like a cross between how Andy and Helen acted in colored episodes: A grumpy, nasty, person with a hair trigger temper and no sense of humor. There's also the fact that if he stayed on there could have been a chance for a role reversal (like what happened on the later seasons of Nightcourt). Given how bad the new writers were in Seasons 7 and 8, it's not much outside the realm of possibility for there to have been an episodes where Andy does Barneyesque and Barney acts Andyesque, which while it would have been interesting in the black and white episodes, would probably have been handled very poorly due to lack of quality control

Good or bad, I'll have to admit I'd no doubt still be watching them if these episodes could have happened.

[SarahBellum]

Yeah, they could have done more episodes with Barney in the choir, more episodes where Barney mistakenly thinks Andy is getting married, more episodes where Barney accidentally allows a prisoner to escape, etc.

[Duster76]

Originally Posted by SarahBellum

Yeah, they could have done more episodes with Barney in the choir, more episodes where Barney mistakenly thinks Andy is getting married, more episodes where Barney accidentally allows a prisoner to escape, etc.

There was another thread with a similar theme and I presented my speculation which was very much in line with your comments. In fact we have a pretty good look at what might have been by looking at the actual 6th season. The Warren episodes are basically reworked stories that featured Barney the first time around. While reviewing the season 6 episodes it occurred to me that the showrunner and writers may have been thinking about dropping the Thelma Lou character had Don returned for season 6. The two episodes Barney appeared in during season 6 are again reworked stories from the earlier seasons. "The Legend of Barney Fife" is a reworked version of "Barney Gets His Man" (Season 1 episode 30), and the "Return of Barney Fife" is basically a reworked version of "Class Reunion". In Episode 15 season 6, "Girl-Shy" Warren becomes a sleepwalking Casanova after Helen, I could see Don very much playing the role, that episode could have set up the second class reunion (The Return of Barney Fife) with the off screen break-up and Thelma Lou leaving town being covered in episode 15. With Thelma Lou out of the picture it would have given the writers some new ground to cover with Barney playing the field.

The final question is of course would Mayberry RFD ever come into existence.