Honeymooners Episode Reviews: “Brother Ralph” & “Hello Mom”:

[Frank Gannucci]

Honeymooners Episode Reviews: “Brother Ralph” & “Hello Mom”:

Episode #119 (Syndicated Episode #10)
TV: Half-hour.
VCR: Attached to "Alice & The Blonde." On some tapes, it’s attached to “Deciding Vote” & “Something Fishy.” On some tapes, it’s attached to “A Matter of Record”, “Here Comes The Bride”, “‘Twas The Night Before XMas” & “A Woman’s Work Is Never Done.
Laserdisc: Attached to “TV or Not TV”, “Funny Money”, “The Golfer”, “Better Living Through TV”, “Brother Ralph”, “Pal O’ Mine”, “A Woman’s Work Is Never Done”, “The Deciding Vote”, “The Worry Wart”, “The Sleepwalker”, “Something Fishy”, “’Twas The Night Before Xmas” & “Man From Space.”
DVD: Attached to the other first eight classic 39 episodes of the classic 39. On the HD-Blu Ray set, it is attached to the first 10 classic 39 episodes as well as promos.
Air Date: Sat. 12/03/55

To see the script for this episode, click here: http://www.springfieldspringfield.co...episode=s04e10

The sponsor materials version starts with the original opening which includes Jack Lescoulie announcing the names loudly instead of the usual announcer and a Buick plug.

Ralph is getting ready for his Raccoon meeting while Alice is sewing his uniform. Ralph helps her out but Ed interrupts him by walking in. Ed helps out Ralph. Ed then does a crossword puzzle. Ralph gets a telegram and it says that mother is coming. Ralph assumes that it's Alice's mother. It says that it's she's coming for a short visit. Ralph: "You know what her short visits are? Like the time she said that she was coming for Christmas and New Year's. Only thing is she came for New Year's and stayed until Christmas." Gee, almost a whole year. Ralph orders Alice to order her not to come but that's impossible because Alice doesn't have a phone. All this time, Ed is doing a crossword puzzle and bugs Ralph. Ralph orders him out. When Ralph leaves for his meeting, he says that he will move in with Norton until she leaves.

That night, in the Norton's apartment. Ed is getting Ralph ready to go to sleep. Trixie is awakened and is being told that Ralph is moving up here until Alice's mother leaves. Trixie says that Ralph is wrong and talks to Ed about this whole situation and that Ed needs to let Ralph live downstairs in his house. During this, Ed says that the Raccoon organization is not in favor of good marriages. Gee, what a good organization...NOT! Ralph comes back in and she leaves them alone. Ralph and Ed talk about each of their mother-in-laws and how much they hate them. Gee. Eventually, Ralph realizes the error of his ways and tells Trixie about it. Trixie is happy and says that Ed loves her mom. Ralph says that Ed has lied to him. Ralph then says how much Ed hates his mother-in-law. The Nortons are now fighting and Trixie moves downstairs with Alice.

The next day, Ralph comes home before work. Trixie leaves the kitchen. Alice says that this whole deal is his fault while Ralph says that it's her mom's fault. Mom has arrived, but it's Ralph's mom. She didn't say whose mother she was in the telegram and is worried that she caused confusion. Alice says that she doesn't have anything to worry. Ralph is upset. He apologizes for this whole situation. Alice gives him a piece of paper that was written by another man. Ralph reads it. Ralph: "'Dear Mom, I'd just thought I'd write and tell you this. A mother-in-law is the most criticized, the most misunderstood and the most defenseless of all women. The average women must be clever enough to know when to speak, but a mother-in-law must know when to keep silent. She must be very wise, wise enough sometimes to withhold advice, although she knows the answer to the problem. A mother-in-law must sit on the fence between her own child and the child by marriage. Somehow she must keep her balance. She must lean backwards until her spine aches or else she's accused of being partial and she isn't permitted the luxury of hurt feelings or tears. If a person could put themselves in their mother-in-laws place, weigh her in the balance, being completely fair; they'd nominate her for the Presidency of the United States, and she'd be the first women to make it.'" (not reading): "This is pretty nice. Who wrote it?" Alice: "You did." Ralph leaves.

On the HD-Blu Ray Set, there's a sponsor materials version of this episode. The only sponsor material that is shown is at the end where Jackie plugs Buick at the end.