Welcome to Retro Television Reviews, a feature where we review some of our favorite and least favorite shows of the past!  On Mondays, I will be reviewing Hang Time, which ran on NBC from 1995 to 2000.  The entire show is currently streaming on YouTube!

This week, it’s time for the team’s final game ever!

Episode 6.9 “For Love Of the Game”

(Dir by Miguel Higuera, originally aired on November 18th, 2000)

Hey, we’re back at the University of Indiana, where the Tornadoes are still playing in that tournament.  How long do these tournaments last?  Every season Hang Time had a tournament story arc that went on forever.  Do the Torandoes even go to class at this point?

Speaking of going to class, Julie is worried because she still hasn’t been offered a scholarship from the University of Connecticut.  For some reason, Julie, Kristy, and Mary Beth insist on referring to the school as being “UConn.”  “UConn do it!” Kristy says at one point.  I don’t know.  Maybe the University of Connecticut is actually known as UConn.  I don’t really pay much attention to those little mid-Atlantic states.  Does anyone?

Anyway, for some reason, Kristy and Mary Beth decide it would be a good idea to pretend to be recruiters so that they can tell the UConn recruiter that they’re really interested in Julie.  They talk to a woman in a UConn jacket and the woman says that her college is not interested in Julie.  Kristy and Mary Beth get upset and walk away.  What they don’t realize was that the woman was only borrowing the jacket and UConn is totally planning on offering Julie a full scholarship!

For some reason (there’s that term again), Mary Beth decides to call the UConn recruiter and tell her off but, instead of doing it under her name, she calls and claims to be Julie.  (Who does this?)  Later, Mary Beth and Kristy run into the real UConn recruiter and discover that he’s going to offer Julie a scholarship.  So now, Mary Beth and Kristy have to sneak into the man’s hotel room and delete their message before he hears it!

*Sigh*

I’ve mentioned many times before that I can’t stand stories that are dependent on everyone acting like an idiot.  And this is one of those stories.  I mean, Mary Beth and Kristy pretending to be recruiters is kind of funny but Mary Beth pretending to be Julie and telling off a recruiter is just stupid.  Fortunately, though, Julie still gets her scholarship.

While this is going on, the team is freaking out about their next game because they’re currently undefeated and each player is afraid of being the person who screws up the season.  Coach K yells at them until they remember that the game should be fun and, after trailing the entire game, the Tornadoes win by one basket.  Again.

“That was our last play as a team,” Michael says.  Awwwwwww!

This was a silly episode that got on my nerves.  Let’s move on.

Episode 6.10 “A Night To Remember”

(Dir by Miguel Higuera, originally aired on December 2nd, 2000)

It’s prom time!

Unfortunately, the school made the mistake of naming Julie, Kristy, and Mary Beth as the heads of the prom committee.  Everyone predicts that the three of them will end up fighting, just as they do whenever they try to work together.  And that’s exactly what happens.  Not only does Kristy lose all the money for the prom but Kristy, Julie, and Mary Beth all show up wearing the same gray dress.  Mary Beth claims that she bought the dress first,  Kristy claims that she picked her dress out 6 months ago.  Mary Beth replies, “It looks the worst on Julie so she should go change!”  That made me laugh.  This show is always at its best when it allows Mary Beth to just be a force of chaos.

Meanwhile, Silk, Eugene, and Mary Beth have all ended up with terrible dates.  Mary Beth accidentally said yes to Merle, who smells like vapor rub.  (She was on the phone when he asked and she automatically said yes without hearing his question.)  As a favor to Mary Beth, Silk tries to find another girl to go to the prom with Merle but she thinks Silk is asking.  Eugene auction himself off for charity and is purchased by a retiree (played by none other than Mrs. Voorhees herself, Betsy Palmer).

Fortunately, the night is saved when a tornado hits Deering.  While everyone huddles in the hallway, Kristy, Mary Beth, and Julie do an impromptu performance of I Will Survive.  Yay!  Seriously, it was a fun scene.  Plus, my sisters and I used to sing I Will Survive when we did karaoke.

Overall, this was a cute episode.  I enjoyed it and I sang along.

Next week: Hang Time ends as the Tornadoes finally graduate!