The Gun

[BestTVever]

This episode aired in very early 1986. Its one of those 80's scripts that could not work today. Joey looks around 8 years old and he goes into someone else's bedroom and finds the chief's gun in a box. However the box is not locked. When Nell comes in the room, Joey panics and drops the gun. The gun goes off and shoots Nell in the foot. Guns cannot go off by dropping them but that is the fantasy of sitcoms. Nell goes to the hospital for the night and comes home in a foot cast. Here is the kicker. No one is upset with Joey. He faces no scorn or punishment for sorting through someone else's bedroom and handling a gun. The entire episode is "poor Joey." He must feel so upset about indirectly shooting Nell. No one is held accountable. Today, Nell would be arrested as the parent in the house not securing a firearm from a child. None of this is even discussed how both Nell and Joey created such a deadly and dangerous situation in the house. Joey in the end does feel remorse. But neither Nell nor Joey is held accountable. Its treated like Joey broke a dish instead of handling an unsecure firearm and discharging it in the house.
Joey was a brat who got away with everything

[ThisLittlePiggy]

I hated that episode. I hated Joey by that point. LOL

[BestTVever]

Originally Posted by ThisLittlePiggy

I hated that episode. I hated Joey by that point. LOL

They were running out of ideas to write about at that point. It was pathetic. Nell was using the situation to allege to her friend that Joey did not love her. No concern she left a firearm to be found by a child. No concern that Joey played with a gun. It was used as vanity for Nell.
Joey was a spoiled, entitled little brat that got away with everything.

[ThisLittlePiggy]

Originally Posted by BestTVever

They were running out of ideas to write about at that point. It was pathetic. Nell was using the situation to allege to her friend that Joey did not love her. No concern she left a firearm to be found by a child. No concern that Joey played with a gun. It was used as vanity for Nell.
Joey was a spoiled, entitled little brat that got away with everything.

Yes, he was. He was sort of cute when he first showed up but he became annoying pretty fast. I like the shows before he got there a lot more.

[Wildchats]

Seasons 1 and 2 were ok. Season 3 I liked a lot, even with Joey there. Season 4 it was starting to show he got away with everything with Baby Of The Family. I feel once that episode aired, he just was viewed as spoiled and got away with everything and Nell favored him and spoiled him and overlooked all the bad things he did that he should have been punished for.

In the last season, he was getting older. I can't recall him being as spoiled as seasons 3/4/5. But in the last season he was getting older. He was still whiny, but he wasn't getting in trouble in school like before for stuff. He did have his teacher come over once, but other than that, Nell didn't keep getting calls from the school that he wasn't doing his homework, sleeping in class, failing, et. He was trying to be more responsible as an older brother and to help Nell when she got the job at the publishing company. Nell still at times treated him like a kid, but by that last season he was changing and not like a little boy anymore.