Tonight It All Starts Again!

[pilotguy]

Don't forget, gang....Tonight (actually 1 AM EST on Sunday morning), NICK starts the "Wings" cycle again with the very first episode....

Get ready to see younger-looking versions of your favorite characters...and remember to not look for Antonio just yet....

...and the OPENING! We get the FULL OPENING THEME again!

TONIGHT is when I start my SERIOUS videotaping to try and get EVERY SINGLE EPISODE (hopefully in the correct order)!

[losthighway]

Quite true Pilotguy. Even though I've seen Legacy several times. I'm looking forward to seeing it again.

By the way, now that you have seen the majority of the season 7 and 8 episodes, what is your opinion? Be honest, I can take it.

I had not seen several of the season 7 episodes and most of the season 8 episodes since the show was on NBC 6 years ago. Now, having watched these episodes again, I can honestly say I feel the same way as I did before. I thought the show remained fun and enjoyable all the way through. There is no doubt there were some stinky episodes in the final season, but there were also many episodes I enjoyed like "Too Beautiful For You"...Antonio meest Elise, and the gang perfers the food cart...."Single and Hating it"...Joe and Helen get trapped at a singles mixer......"Dreamgirl"....the temp that replaces Fay becomes a distraction......."Heartache Tonight"......Helen and Joe go to dinner at Roy's and meet his mom.

It's too bad you didn't get to see "Final Approach" because I really felt it gave the show closure and sent it out on a high note. Hopefully they will run it next time around.

But as far as the claims I have read or heard before about the show hitting rock bottom or being a shell of its former self, I really disagree.

Anyway, it's perfectly OK if you disagree with me, I'm just curious what a first time viewer of the show thought about the final couple of seasons.

I do remember when the show ended or got cancelled I was disappointed. But now after watching the episodes again I think it was the right time to end it. Now that I know Tony wasn't coming back that makes it even more logical to end it. You could just tell they really didn't have anywhere else to go with the characters. The next season probably would have been the "Helen's pregnant, here comes the baby" stuff and I've never cared much for those types of story lines in sitcoms. Just like Crystal Bernard said in the interview, all the stories had been told and it was time to move on.

[pilotguy]

As I've mentioned in other message threads, I didn't think that Seasons 7 and 8 were the total disaster that I was expecting them to be. There were periods where I would think, "Oh NO...This is the END....the show is going down in flames!"...but then some later episodes would follow which were quite enjoyable and had some very funny moments.

I DO think that the series as a whole changed dramatically from it's earlier years....mainly in the focus of many episodes away from the airport and into the home lives of newly-married Joe and Helen. At times the "airport gang" seemed more like a supporting cast to Tim and Crystal, and less of an ensemble group.

I've also mentioned how the later seasons seemed to stress sexual jokes and situations a LOT more than the earlier, "G-rated" episodes. The earlier seasons seemed to have a certain innocence about them...but not sickenly so.
In Seasons 7 and 8 it seems that EVERYBODY is constantly horny and just waiting to jump into bed with SOMEBODY! If you don't see them actually DO it, then they TALK about it the next morning at Helen's lunch counter!

On the whole, I wouldn't write Seasons 7 and 8 off as total failures....but I don't think of them as "prime" WINGS episodes either....you have to pick and choose the "keepers", whereas during the series' earlier seasons, just about EVERY episode was pure gold!

I'm REALLY hoping that NICK shows the two-part "Final Approach" finale at the end of this cycle....I've heard and read many nice things about it!

[Adamantium]

They'll have to show the two-part finale eventually.

I really didn't like the first season. Nor do I care for the first half of the second season either. For me, it was the last six or seven episodes of season two, through to the first half of season seven is what in my mind are considered the "Golden Years."

Also, I wish N@N would air the show in production order. That's what USA did and that's really how the show was meant to be shown. The episode where Roy's son comes out of the closet is aired as a season two episode, yet it was filmed as third of season one.

Also to Pilotguy, I'm glad that you don't hate the last two seasons.

[pilotguy]

Originally posted by TVAdam
[B]I really didn't like the first season. Nor do I care for the first half of the second season either. For me, it was the last six or seven episodes of season two, through to the first half of season seven is what in my mind are considered the "Golden Years."

/B]

Hmmm...Now THIS is interesting, and something that I've been meaning to bring up for a while now....

TVAdam, you're not the only "Wings" fan who feels this way....I've heard several loyal fans say that they don't particularly like the first season and the first half of the second season....and I've always wondered why.

Sure, Antonio isn't around, but the other characters are, and I thought that the earliest shows were quite funny...maybe not as sharp or crisply written as Seasons 3-6, but good stuff.

I'm not arguing with anyone here, but I am sincerely curious as to why some of you dislike Season 1 and part of Season 2....Any comments?

(This is quite funny....I was worried that once the full cycle of "Wings" shows ended, we'd have nothing to talk about here on the message board....Looks like I was wrong!)

[losthighway]

I would say the last year and a half of the show was more "sexed up" for sure, but it still worked for me, especially with Joe and Helen because that was a natural progression for the characters and the show. I never cared much for the antics between Brian and Casey. Their oversexed act just didn't work for me, but I know some on the board liked it, so it is classic case of "to each their own".

As to Pilotguy's question regarding why you liked or didn't like seasons, I'll put it this way. First, I agree with TVAdam in that the "golden years" for me for the show were seasons 3 through 7. If I was to pick my favorite season it would probably be season 5, but the show was very solid and consistent in my opinon from 3 thru 7.

Now, having said that I also must make it clear that I did not dislike any season of the show. Had I disliked season 1 then I wouldn't have kept watching. But from the very beginning I enjoyed the show. Truly, the episode that really hooked me was the final episode of season 1 when Joe spied on Helen and Brian after they had gone to a Celtics game together. I thought that episode was great and really set the foundation for the entire series.

But the show did take time to develop before it really hit it's stride. The characters needed to find their way and develop a little, the writers had to discover the strengh of the actors and find what they did best and write to those strengths. And some of the actors needed time to develop as well. I may get flogged for this, but I felt at the very beginning of the series Lowell was stiff, bland and predictable. Thomas Hayden Church needed time to work on Lowell and again, he and the writers had to find what worked. By season 3 (again in my opinion) there was a destinct difference in Lowell, not only in the way he acted, but the way he spoke, his body language, everything. And the change was for the better. I also think Roy got better over time and although the show was very good before Antonio, I feel Tony brought alot to the show and helped make it special.

I know there is no wrong or right answer here.....but that is why I felt the best years of Wings began with season 3.

[pilotguy]

It's late, and I'm tired, but I just HAD to post this message....

I've just finished watching "Wings"' very first episode (I missed it the first time on NICK), and BOY was it DIFFERENT!

The whole thing had a "stage play" feel about it....from the overhead opening shot of the entire airport waiting area set (which I thought was cool) to the echo-y "theatre" sound of the actor's dialogue (especially in the first half of the show).

You can really see how those characters developed....Fay was more scatterbrained than the droll "dumb like a fox" character that she would eventually become, Brian was more obnoxious than funny, Helen seemed like a hash-slinging "background" character that had NOWHERE to go, and Lowell was REALLY one-dimensional....He was merely "the dumb guy" without the flashes of knowledge or brilliance that he would show in later episodes...plus, I don't know if it was just me, but Lowell seemed a bit pudgier than in later episodes (especially in his face).

This was truly a fascinating experience to watch the very first performance of "Wings".....quite different from what I have come to know, but made all the more interesting by me knowing just what DID develop as the series progressed.

[Skywalker]

I watch Wings once in a while on N@N. I have never seen seasons 1-5. I saw the pilot for the first time tonight and I laughed out loud more times in that one episode than all of the episodes I've seen combined (about 50). I should have watched it from the beginning.

[losthighway]

Welcome aboard jpnoyes! If you liked that episode, you won't be disappointed and I'll bet you'll gain more of an appreciation for the later episodes you've seen so far once you get to know the show and characters better.

[DianeChambers87]

Hey guys I saw the pilot last night too! it was pretty funny. and now it wall makes sense...lol

[Adamantium]

Lowell seemed a bit pudgier than in later episodes (especially in his face).[/B]

Yes, I agree. In fact, when I first saw the episode on USA, in that first scene wth Joe and Lowell by the plane, I thought Lowell was played by a different actor. You know how sometimes in the pilot a character or two is played by a different actor. And then from the next episode on it's the regular actor ... That's what I thought with Lowell. The only Lowell line I laughed at was "This is Uncanny."

Also, when I was a minor fan of the show, I thought Antonio was in the entire series. I was shocked to learn that he joined the cast in season three. Plus, I thought Lowell had long hair in the first season. Turns out, I always thought the third season was the first. I'm glad I became a real fan and straightened everything out.

Ooh-Ooh, did you notice that the final scene with Joe and Brian opening the suitcase from their father, Lowell was absent from that moment. Only Joe, Brian, Helen, Roy and Fay were there. And they were the only characters to be in every season of the show together.

Overall, I didn't think the pilot was very funny, but it was a good first episode in establishing the plot for the run of the show. Like we know that Joe and Brian haven't spoken for six years after a fight over Carol. We learn that Helen first came to Nantucket when she was ten. Lowell's family has been on the island for five generations. The Hackett's father went crazy then died. Plus, we learn that Joe is in love with his plane. And that Roy has six planes and Joe only has the one. We also find out that Brian washed out of NASA. Yep, We learned a lot from this episode.

Just for the Record: That scene with Roy and Helen talking about Jane Pauley was cut out of the USA version.

Brian: Fine Brian, and You? Fine Brian, and You?

[Kris10m]

I am one of those who really likes season 2...I am a sucker for all of the Joe/Helen episodes, and I absolutely love all those episodes where they're first getting together, like "Airport 90," "The Puppetmaster," etc. There are also some really hilarious ones that didn't revolve around Joe and Helen IMO, like "Murder She Roast" and "A Standup kind of Guy" (the one with Jerry Stark, who Joe doesn't remember). Of course seasons 3-5 were great, but I'm just one of those who would count season 2 among the best also. Even though Antonio wasn't there (except for in his waiter apperance), (and don't get me wrong, I love Antonio), I just think that season 2 produced some of the best episodes.

[losthighway]

Originally posted by Kris10m
I am one of those who really likes season 2.... Even though Antonio wasn't there (except for in his waiter apperance), (and don't get me wrong, I love Antonio), I just think that season 2 produced some of the best episodes.

That's the beauty of the show, it's ALL good!!

[pilotguy]

Originally posted by TVAdam
Yes, I agree. In fact, when I first saw the episode on USA, in that first scene wth Joe and Lowell by the plane, I thought Lowell was played by a different actor. You know how sometimes in the pilot a character or two is played by a different actor. And then from the next episode on it's the regular actor ... That's what I thought with Lowell. The only Lowell line I laughed at was "This is Uncanny."

YES, that's exactly what I thought...I didn't think that Lowell was being played by Thomas Haden Church until I looked and listened VERY closely! He just looked SO different!
Of course, he ACTED very differently too....in the pilot show, he was a LOT more sullen and stand-offish...almost with a "Just leave me alone and let me do my work" attitude. In later shows, Lowell was much more sociable and talkative....in fact, most of the time he would walk up to someone else's conversation and add his two-cents' worth of advice, even when it wasn't wanted....which was MOST of the time!

[phoebe7165]

Speaking of Wings last season, I remember watching an interview with Steven Weber a few months before the show ended. The interviewer(I forgot what show he was on)asked him, "So, this is the last season of Wings?" and Steven replies, "Yes, the laughter stops May 20th."(or whatever date the last episode aired). Sad how he said that. We all know the show needed to end, but we hated to see it go.

I've mentioned before about Lowell in the earlier years, that even in the 1st episode, he sounded like he's not all there. I mean truly, truly not all there, like he's ********. As far as the G-rated earlier episodes, I seem to remember in the 1st episode also, of Brian asking Joe if he & Helen have ever "hmm-hmm" and he made a motion with his fist. Joe replies, No, she's like a sister, and Brian answers, something like I guess I'll have to tuck that little tyke in. I wasn't able to watch the 1st episode from last night!! Those lines aren't as racy as later episodes, but I guess the writers wanted to give us a preview of things to come.