Welcome to Retro Television Reviews, a feature where we review some of our favorite and least favorite shows of the past!  On Saturdays, I will be reviewing Welcome Back Kotter, which ran on ABC  from 1975 to 1979.  The entire show can be purchased on Prime.

Gabe and Julie are gone but life continues at Buchanan High.

Episode 4.19 “The Gang Show”

(Dir by Norman Abbott, originally aired on March 17th, 1979)

It’s time for the annual Buchanan High talent show and this year, Epstein and Washington are totally convinced that their lame mid-reading act is going to win.  They’ve lost every year that they’ve entered and, considering that both Epstein and Washington appears to be pushing 40, that’s a lot of failure!  Horshack and Beau talk about how their friends came in dead last during the previous show.  How does Beau know?  Beau’s the new kid.  Beau was in Louisiana or wherever he’s supposed to be from when the last talent show was held.

Epstein and Washington think that they’ve got this contest in the bag.  The judges are Horshack, Beau, and their classmate, Wilbur (Bob Harcum).  Their dedicated teacher, Jean Tremaine (Della Reese), is a bit concerned that the judges won’t be mature enough to set aside their friendships and truly honor the best act.  Maybe Mr. Kotter should talk to them….

Oh wait, Gabe isn’t in this episode.

Maybe Julie needs to cross her arms and tell the judges, “This is not funny….”

Oh wait, Julie’s not here either.

That’s right, this is another Welcome Back Kotter episode that doesn’t feature or even mention a single Kotter.  Woodman is there, making odd comments and carrying two hardboiled eggs.  (Woodman’s so cool.)  But the Kotters are gone and, for some reason, everyone’s acting like Ms. Treamaine has always been their teacher.

As for the talent show, Epstein and Washington’s act sucks.  Far more impressive is Carvelli (Charles Fleischer), who sings a blues song about peanut butter and jelly and show that there’s more to him than just being a bully.  Remember when Carvelli and Wilbur first appeared on the show and they were members of a rival gang and the implication was that both Carvelli and Wilbur had killed multiple people?  Now, suddenly, Carvelli is the king of the talent show and Wilbur is one of the judges.  It’s amazing how things change.  All they really had to do was get rid of Julie and suddenly, Carvelli is revealing himself to be a sensitive soul.

Horshack and Beau do the right thing.  They vote for Carvelli.  Wilbur votes for Washington and Epstein because he genuinely liked their dumb act.  Apparently, there were no other acts.  What a lame talent show!  Tremiane is proud of Horshack and Beau for doing the right thing.  She encourages Washington and Epstein to try again next year …. NEXT YEAR!?  Epstein’s going gray and Washington has laugh lines.  If they’re still in school next year, Buchanan needs to be shut down!

This was a weird episode.  I used to make fun of Gabe’s corny jokes but they would have been useful in this episode.  Seriously, this whole fourth season just feels wrong.  Kotter without Kotter just doesn’t work.