Welcome to Retro Television Reviews, a feature where we review some of our favorite and least favorite shows of the past!  On Thursdays, I will be reviewing Jennifer Slept Here, which aired on NBC in 1983 and 1984.  The entire show is currently streaming on YouTube!

This week, Jennifer wants to get married!

Episode 1.10 “Do You Take This Ghost?”

(Dir by Alan Myerson, originally aired on April 21st, 1984)

George is super-excited because Susan and his anniversary is coming up.  (Awwwww!  George is being sweet and romantic.  That kind of goes against everything that has been previously established about his character but whatever.  Let’s go with it.)  George says that he and Susan are going to celebrate by renewing their vows.  He’s even called the minister who performed their wedding to come do it again.  The ceremony will be held in the house because another set would cost money.

Hearing all of this, Jennifer starts to feel sad that she never had a traditional marriage when she was alive.  Fortunately, her ex-boyfriend, film star Doug Chadwick (Warwick Sims), has just died.  His ghost materializes in the house and soon, he and Jennifer are a couple again.  Jennifer and Doug decide to get married at the same time that George and Susan are going to renew their vows.  Joey can act as the best man for both ceremonies!

Can you see where this is heading?

Joey discovers that, even as a ghost, Doug Chadwick has issues with staying faithful.  While Jennifer plans out her wedding, Doug is sleeping with other ghosts.  He even loses the wedding ring while carousing in a hot tub.  (Ghosts in a hot tub?  I mean, I guess that could happen….)  At the ceremony, Joey tells Jennifer that she can do better than Doug.  Of course, since George and Susan are renewing their vows, they think that Joey is talking about them.  They assure Joey that they love each other.  Joey tells them that he knows they love each other because his father is not the type who would ever cheat on the woman that he loves or lose his wedding ring in a hot tub.  Jennifer takes Joey’s words to heart and calls off her ghost wedding.

This was an okay episode.  If I don’t sound too enthusiastic, it’s because I’m a bit exhausted with how every joke is basically Joey saying something to someone no one else can see and everyone responding by rolling their eyes.  I mean, after ten episodes of thinking that their son has been having loud arguments with himself, you have to wonder why his parents aren’t trying to do more to discover what the problem is.

My main issue with this episode is that, with all the good men who have died through history, why would Jennifer settle for a guy who, by her own admission, didn’t really treat her that well when they were alive?  I mean, Jennifer could marry James Buchanan or maybe Martin Van Buren.  Don’t settle, Jennifer!  Of course, that’s kind of the same thing that Joey told her so I guess I have to give him some credit for that.  As always, Ann Jillian was great as Jennifer and John P. Navin, Jr. did his best with Joey (who is a rather inconsistently written character) but this episode just never worked as well as it could have.  The idea of Jennifer having a ghost wedding had potential but this episode just kind of fell flat.