The Great Gazoo - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

Smartboy · 03-19-2016, 09:52 PM

The last time that I started a thread on this page in which I mentioned the "Flintstones", I managed to stimulate quite a bit of conversation. This being the case, I have now decided to write about something else that has to do with the "Flintstones" that also pertains to "Mad About You". I checked the Boomerang schedule and found that at three o'clock tomorrow morning, the episode known as the "Great Gazoo" will be on. This episode was shown at the start of the sixth and last season of the original series. I would say that the "Flintstones" was very similar to "Mad About You", in terms of how they had to keep adding new ideas and new situations in order to keep the show going. As most viewers know, the original idea of the "Flintstones" was that there was a cartoon version of the very popular series known as the "Honeymooners". However, after the first couple of seasons, they had gotten what they could out of that premise and had to bring new realities into the story in order to keep peoples' interest. As the seasons progressed, they added one child per couple and one pet per family. It was after the novelty of all of these new characters started to wear off that they resorted to introducing a space alien known as the Great Gazoo! By doing this, they managed to get one more year out of the series. It was clear at this point that the show had run its course and it was time to move on. I would say that this was a very similar set of circumstances to what happened on "Mad About You". Throughout the run of the series, we saw, the hiring of a dog walker, Paul's sister coming out of the closet, Jamie's sister getting hired and fired from the department store and the separation of Fran and Mark. After all of these events, Jamie finally got pregnant and gave birth to her one and only child Mabel. I would say that the introduction of Mabel was very similar to the introduction of the Great Gazoo in terms of being one more attempt to squeeze a little bit more juice out of a show that had already stayed its welcome. What do other viewers think of this comparison?

Bonniegirl · 03-20-2016, 12:43 AM

I like the Great Gazoo!!A lot of people didn't like the addition of Gazoo to the Flintstones. I thought he was great! I can see the comparison to the baby Mabel. They were the last two characters to be introduced later on in both shows!!

Smartboy · 03-20-2016, 12:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bonniegirl

I like the Great Gazoo!!A lot of people didn't like the addition of Gazoo to the Flintstones. I thought he was great! I can see the comparison to the baby Mabel. They were the last two characters to be introduced later on in both shows!!

Thank you very much for your insight. Shortly after I posted this thread, I went over to the "Gimme a Break!" page and started a new thread there. I do not know whether you are at all familiar with that series. If you are, you might want to check it out. I would be very interested in what you think of it.

03-19-2016, 09:52 PM	#1
Smartboy Member Forum 4000 Club Member Join Date: Aug 06, 2007 Location: South Orange, NJ Posts: 4,231	The Great Gazoo The last time that I started a thread on this page in which I mentioned the "Flintstones", I managed to stimulate quite a bit of conversation. This being the case, I have now decided to write about something else that has to do with the "Flintstones" that also pertains to "Mad About You". I checked the Boomerang schedule and found that at three o'clock tomorrow morning, the episode known as the "Great Gazoo" will be on. This episode was shown at the start of the sixth and last season of the original series. I would say that the "Flintstones" was very similar to "Mad About You", in terms of how they had to keep adding new ideas and new situations in order to keep the show going. As most viewers know, the original idea of the "Flintstones" was that there was a cartoon version of the very popular series known as the "Honeymooners". However, after the first couple of seasons, they had gotten what they could out of that premise and had to bring new realities into the story in order to keep peoples' interest. As the seasons progressed, they added one child per couple and one pet per family. It was after the novelty of all of these new characters started to wear off that they resorted to introducing a space alien known as the Great Gazoo! By doing this, they managed to get one more year out of the series. It was clear at this point that the show had run its course and it was time to move on. I would say that this was a very similar set of circumstances to what happened on "Mad About You". Throughout the run of the series, we saw, the hiring of a dog walker, Paul's sister coming out of the closet, Jamie's sister getting hired and fired from the department store and the separation of Fran and Mark. After all of these events, Jamie finally got pregnant and gave birth to her one and only child Mabel. I would say that the introduction of Mabel was very similar to the introduction of the Great Gazoo in terms of being one more attempt to squeeze a little bit more juice out of a show that had already stayed its welcome. What do other viewers think of this comparison?

03-20-2016, 12:43 AM	#2
Bonniegirl AKA Hazel Horvath Forum Addict Join Date: Jul 10, 2014 Posts: 65,723	I like the Great Gazoo!!A lot of people didn't like the addition of Gazoo to the Flintstones. I thought he was great! I can see the comparison to the baby Mabel. They were the last two characters to be introduced later on in both shows!!