Late Night Retro Television Review: Degrassi: The Next Generation 2.10 “Take My Breath Away”

Posted on April 5, 2026 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Welcome to Late Night Retro Television Reviews, a feature where we review some of our favorite and least favorite shows of the past! On Sunday, I will be reviewing the Canadian series, Degrassi: The Next Generation, which aired from 2001 to 2015! The series can be streamed on YouTube and Tubi.

Whatever it takes, I know I can make it through….

Episode 2.10 “Take My Breath Away”

(Dir by Stefan Scaini, originally aired on December 9th, 2002)

How you respond to this episode depends on how much you know about what’s eventually going to happen to the students at Toronto’s Degrassi Learning Center.

When watched for the first time, it seems like a sweet episode about how crushes can hurt and how they can also pay off. Ellie has a crush on Marco and, after discovering that he likes Edward Gorey just as much as she does, Ellie starts to send him anonymous rhyming emails. However, Hazel also likes Marco and Marco thinks that Hazel is the one sending him the emails. Marco thinks this despite Hazel having never shown any poetic ability and also despite the fact that he just sat down at lunch and discussed Edward Gorey with Ellie!

When Marco receives an anonymous email telling him to meet his crush at the Zen Garden, Marco is shocked to discover Ellie waiting for him. Ellie assumes Marco is disappointed and runs away. Marco later tracks Ellie down and reveals that he wasn’t disappointed at all. Marco and Ellie are now a couple!

Meanwhile, Craig and Manny go on their first date. Craig wants to see a movie. Manny gets excited when she sees a rather childish carnival. Manny later tells Emma and Liberty that the date was wonderful and that she and Craig are totally in love. Craig tells Spinner and Jimmy that the date was awkward and that Manny is still too immature for him. Craig says that Manny reminds him of his five year-old half-sister, Angela. (Angela was played by Alexa Steele, Cassie Steele’s real-life sister.)

The episode ends with Manny telling Craig that he shouldn’t talk to Ashley and asking him what they’re doing on Friday night. Craig replies that they’re not doing anything because he doesn’t like Manny. AGCK!

Again, it’s a good episode. The contrast between Craig’s recollection of the date and Manny’s version is genuinely amusing. Meanwhile, Ellie finally gets a boyfriend….

Of course, veteran Degrassi watchers know that Marco is both gay and deeply closeted and that he’s destined to hurt Ellie before becoming her best friend. (Ellie was always way too forgiving.) Meanwhile, Craig and Manny are going to end up together, with Craig first getting Manny pregnant and then, several seasons later, introducing her to cocaine. Craig is also going to nearly kill Joey while having a manic episode before breaking Ashley’s heart and nearly driving Ellie to suicide in Los Angeles. Yikes!

This is a cute episode that, for veteran Degrassi watchers, is decorated with red flags.

Retro Television Review: Homicide: Life On The Street 5.4 “Bad Medicine”

Posted on April 5, 2026 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Welcome to Retro Television Reviews, a feature where we review some of our favorite and least favorite shows of the past! On Sundays, I will be reviewing Homicide: Life On The Street, which aired from 1993 to 1999, on NBC! It can be viewed on Peacock.

This week, drug lord Luther Mahoney returns.

Episode 5.4 “Bad Medicine”

(Dir by Kenneth Fink, originally aired on October 25th, 1996)

Someone is selling bad heroin in Baltimore. This episode opens with a montage of dead junkies being discovered. Detective Munch explains to a uniformed cop why he has to stick around until it’s firmly established that the latest dead junkie died of an overdose and not something like a hit to the back of the head. Munch says that everything he knows, he learned from his ex-partner. Hey, Munch, Bolander’s not coming back! You have to accept it.

Things are looking grim for Giardello’s detectives. Megan Russert has run off to Europe. Bolander is retired. Felton is missing. Frank is recovering from his stroke and still needs to pass his firearms exam. And now, Kellerman has been accused of taking bribes while working as an arson investigator. Kellerman is given desk duty, which means that he can’t help Lewis pursue drug kingpin Luther Mahoney (Erik Todd Dellums).

Mahoney returns in this episode, dragged into the box and accused of murdering a rival dealer. Mahoney is his usual smug snake self but Lewis and his temporary partner, Narcotics Detective Terri Stivers (Toni Lewis), are convinced that they’ve finally got him where they want him. First off, there’s a junkie who has been bullied into informing on Luther. Plus, Luther slips up and reveals that he knew some facts about the murder that were not released to the press. Is Luther Mahoney going down!?

Well, don’t get too excited. Ed Danvers informs them that their evidence isn’t enough to get a conviction. Juries don’t trust junkies. Luther could have heard the details of the murder on the street. Everyone knows that Luther is guilty but no one can prove it beyond a reasonable doubt. Luther goes free and the informant ends up dead.

Meanwhile, Frank Pambleton stops taking his medicine so that he can concentrate on passing his firearms exam. He still fails. Even though he was able to hit the target, he took too long reloading his gun. Pembleton starts to take his medicine again.

Finally, Brodie still doesn’t have anywhere to live. He stayed with Munch for one night and then voluntarily left. (The reasons why are left ambiguous but it’s suggested that Brodie came across Munch’s private drug stash and freaked out.) Brodie moves in with Bayliss and quickly makes things awkward by overanalyzing the Mighty Mouse cartoon that Bayliss is watching. Brodie explains that Mighty Mouse is an agent of chaos and Bayliss looks like he’s already realized this living arrangement is not going to work.

This was a properly cynical episode, one where the main theme seemed to be that our heroes are fighting a losing war. Giardello is running low on detectives. Kellerman is put on desk duty because of one weak accusation. Pembleton has to pass a firearms exam, despite rarely having to draw his gun. In the end, men like Luther Mahoney walk free while the addicts caught in-between end up dead in the street.

That’s life in Charm City.

Late Night Retro Television Review: Saved By The Bell 1.16 “Save That Tiger”

Posted on April 4, 2026 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Welcome to Late Night 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 Saved By The Bell, which ran on NBC from 1989 to 1993. The entire show is currently streaming on Prime and Tubi!

This week, it’s prank war time!

Episode 1.17 “Save That Tiger”

(Dir by Don Barnhart, originally aired on December 16th, 1989)

Historically, this is an important episode.

This is the episode that establishes that Valley is Bayside’s rival. It also introduces us to the annual prank war. It’s the episode in which Jessie (reluctantly) becomes a cheerleader. This episode establishes that Screech is the dork in the Bayside tiger costume. This is also the episode in which we first learn that Mr. Belding was a wild man in high school. His nickname? Mad Dog!

That said, what most people remember about this episode is “Stinky” Stingwell, the principal of Valley. Played by veteran comic Ronnie Schell, Mr. Stingwell is a prank war veteran who encourages his students to kidnap Screech and who greets Mr. Belding with a joy buzzer. Stinky Stingwell is a great character and it’s a shame that he only appeared in one episode.

This episode ends with a cheer competition between Valley, Bayside, and an unnamed school. Valley attempts to ruin the Bayside cheer by kidnapping Screech and putting a Valley student in the tiger costume. When Slater and Zack find out, they pour a bunch of fire ants into the costume and this leads to the Bayside Tiger having what appears to be a seizure. (It’s a good thing that the guy in the costume wasn’t allergic to fire ants because he could have died. Is that the legacy they want for their prank war?) Somehow, this leads to Bayside winning the competition. Even though Mr. Belding said he didn’t want any more pranks, he seems to be okay with them as long as it leads to Bayside winning a trophy.

I decided to get an expert opinion when it came to judging the cheer competition so I forced my sister to watch it with me. She said Valley should have won and I have to agree. Their cheer was good without requiring any gimmicks like a spastic tiger.

“We won the prank war,” Zack tells us.

Eh. Sorry, Zack. Stinky Stingwell won this round. TPing the school? Abducting Screech? Stealing the costume? Wrapping up the school’s students in 2-ply toilet paper? Somehow setting bobby traps in Zack, Slater, and Screech’s lockers?

Valley rules!

Retro Television Review: Baywatch 1.18 “Shark Derby”

Posted on April 4, 2026 by Lisa Marie Bowman

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 Baywatch, which ran on NBC and then in syndication from 1989 to 2001. The entire show can be viewed on Tubi.

This week, a lifeguard dies!

Episode 1.18 “Shark Derby”

(Dir by Gregory J. Bonann, originally aired on March 2nd, 1990)

Hey, remember Jill?

Jill, played by Shawn Weatherly, was a major character at the start of the season. She was the tough, seasoned lifeguard who was one of Mitch’s best friends. She was also Shauni’s mentor. If Shauni was often silly and superficial, Jill was all business. She also had a brief flirtation with Trevor, before Trevor vanished from the show.

As the first season progressed, Jill became less and less important. In this week’s episode, Jill finally gets to do something, She dies! She dies after being attacked by a shark who was drawn to the beach by an unethical restaurant owner (Peter Brown) who has been pouring chum into the ocean and who has also placed some sort of transmitter underwater that sends out a high-pitched tone that only sharks can hear. The restauranter is just doing it to promote his annual shark derby. However, when one of the sharks attacks a raft full of school children, Jill swims out into the ocean to save them. And she ends up getting bitten by a shark. She doesn’t lose any limbs. In fact, we don’t see any blood at all. But, at the hospital, it’s announced that Jill has over two hundred sutures. Yikes!

Despite getting chomped by a shark, it first appears as if Jill will survive. But towards the end of the episode, even as she’s preparing to leave the hospital, she develops a blood cot that kills her, off-screen. David Hasselhoff gets to show off his ability to cry onscreen. To be honest, that’s the main reason this episode works. We don’t really know enough about Jill to get too emotionally involved in her situation. But Hasselhoff is so incredibly earnest and sincere in his grief that he gets to you. Jill must have been someone amazing if the Hoff is crying.

This episode was shameless and emotionally manipulative and it was pure Baywatch. This episode also featured a record number of slo mo of doom scenes. The shark attacked in slow motion. Jill and Craig yelled at people to get out of the water in slow motion. Is it really slow motion if no one yells? I’m not sure.

So, Jill is dead. But the Hoff and the rest are still alive and ready to save swimmers across California.

Late Night Retro Television Review: Freddy’s Nightmares 2.7 “Silence is Golden”

Posted on April 3, 2026 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Welcome to Late Night Retro Television Reviews, a feature where we review some of our favorite and least favorite shows of the past! On Fridays, I will be reviewing Freddy’s Nightmares, a horror anthology show which ran in syndication from 1988 to 1990. The entire series can be found on Tubi!

Mimes are evil!

Episode 2.7 “Silence Is Golden”

(Dir by Charles Braverman, originally aired on November 19th, 1989)

“Here’s what on my mind tonight!” Freddy Krueger tells us as this episode starts.

Our first story is about radio DJ Rick Rake (Jeff Yagher), who has a mullet, a leather jacket, and a bad attitude. “I say what I think and I think what I say,” Rick says. When he’s visiting the park with his wife, Sheila (Sherry Hursey), a listener attempts to pick a fight with Rick. Rick throws a punch and accidentally hits a mime (Abie Selznick).

Eh, who cares? We all hate mimes, right?

Unfortunately, The mime carries a silent grudge and soon, Rick is haunted by visions of the mime everywhere. When Sheila is sucked into the ground and buried alive, the police say it was a sinkhole but Rick knows that it was the mime. Rick goes on the radio and announces that all mimes should be hunted down and killed. Rick sees the mime in the studio and, going after him, ends up taking a literal rake to the throat. Rick survives but he can no longer speak …. JUST LIKE A MIME!

In the second story, we discover that the mime is named Kip and he’s also a professional burglar. He steals to keep his girlfriend (Kim Morgan Greene) happy but he’s haunted by nightmares involving mistakes and death. When he learns that the last two people he robbed have turned up dead, Kip worries that he’s being set up. And, of course, he is.

At the end of the episode, Freddy reminds us that he’s dead so he can never be a mime or a DJ. Sorry, Freddy. You kind of brought it on yourself, though.

The first story actually worked fairly well, just because mimes are creepy. The second story was basically a noir with nightmares. I think it might have worked a bit better if Kip had just been an ordinary guy as opposed to a mime. The show never really explained if he was the same mime who killed Sheila and silenced Rick or was he just another mime in Springwood.

How many mimes are there in that town? No wonder Freddy went crazy.

Retro Television Review: St. Elsewhere 3.14 “Whistle, Wyler Works”

Posted on April 3, 2026 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Welcome to Retro Television Reviews, a feature where we review some of our favorite and least favorite shows of the past! On Fridays, I will be reviewing St. Elsewhere, a medical show which ran on NBC from 1982 to 1988. The show can be found on Daily Motion.

This week, we learn why almost all of Morrison’s patients seem to die.

Episode 3.14 “Whistle, Wyler Works”

(Dir by David Anspaugh, originally aired on January 2nd, 1985)

It’s another busy day at St. Eligius.

Having finally found a kidney donor, Dr. Westphall performs the transplant. Tshalla (Larry B. Scott) gets a new kidney but Dr. Wyler is shaken to discover that, while he’s been working in Africa, surgical techniques in America have progressed to the point that Wyler now feels undertrained.
Having managed to alienate even the super patient Dr. Morrison, Mrs. Hufnagle is now working her “charm” on Bobby Caldwell. Caldwell tells Hufnagle that she doesn’t really need plastic surgery but Hufnagle seems to really want it.
Victor freaks out when he’s not included to assist in Dr. Craig’s latest big surgery. A chance meeting with Ellen Craig leads to Victor confessing that his father died when he was young and that he’s always been looking for a new father figure.
Ellen snaps at Mark for not understand how much Victor looks up at him. Yay! I always like it when Ellen stands up to Mark. That Bonnie Bartlett and William Daniels were (and are) married in real life always adds an extra snap to these scenes.
Elliott appears to have a crush on one of Nurse Rosenthal’s daughters. There’s no way that’s going to end well.
Dr. Chandler returns from vacation (in reality, Denzel Washington was probably busy filming a movie) and deals with a patient (Jay Tarses) who is also a bigamist.
When the representative of a fly-by night medical school approaches Luther and tries to get him to enroll, Auschlander kicks the smarmy representative out of the hospital. Before the rep leaves, he mentions that St. Eligius already has at least one of his school’s graduates on staff.
Yep, it’s Jack Morrison.

It’s already been established that Jack got his medical degree from a Mexican medical school. In this episode, it’s further established that, whereas most doctors spends years in medical school, Jack graduated after six months. Jack explains that he still passed all of the tests that he was required to take but that he was also given credit for his life experience of working as a pharmaceutical rep.

Dr. Westphall is not amused. If someone could learn how to be a doctor that quickly, Westphall says, wouldn’t we all being doing it? Westphall points out that he put his reputation on the line to keep Jack around as a second-year resident. Westphall also says that this explains why Jack always seems to be misdiagnosing his patients and …. well, I think Westphall has a point!

This was not a bad episode, though I’m a bit weary of this Dr. Wyler storyline. Wyler doesn’t do much other than feel sorry for himself. I’m far more interested to see where things will be going with both Victor and Jack.

Late Night Retro Television Review: Highway to Heaven 5.12 “It’s A Dog’s Life”

Posted on April 2, 2026 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Welcome to Late Night 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 Highway to Heaven, which aired on NBC from 1984 to 1989. The entire show is currently streaming on Tubi and several other services!

This week’s episode is a strange one.

Episode 5.12 “It’s A Dog’s Life”

(Dir by Michael Landon, originally aired on July 28th, 1989)

One night, after Jonathan foils a mugging by using “the stuff” to turn the mugger’s gun into a water pistol, Mark sits down on a curb, lies down in the grass, and bemoans that he never gets to do anything on his own. He never gets “the stuff.” He has to worry about his health while Jonathan, already being dead, cannot be hurt again. Why, he wonders aloud, does he always have to be “Jonathan’s dog?”

When Mark opens his eyes, Jonathan is gone. However, there is a dog sitting next to him. Convinced that the Boss has 1) turned Jonathan into a dog and 2) given Mark “the stuff,” Mark proceeds to reunite a runaway with his family and he also thwarts a convenience store robbery. When the dog indicates that it wants to live with the runaway and his family, Mark sadly returns to the shabby hotel where he and Jonathan were staying. He sees a man standing out on a ledge, threatening to jump.

“My first solo assignment!” Mark says.

Mark runs upstairs and climbs out onto the ledge. He tells the suicidal man that he has no fear of falling because he has the stuff. Suddenly, Jonathan appears and tells Mark to get back inside before he falls. Jonathan reveals that Mark never had the stuff and that Jonathan was never a dog. Instead, Jonathan was just off on another assignment.

Mark falls off the ledge.

Oh no, Mark’s dead!

No, actually Mark is dreaming. Mark wakes up in his hotel room and realizes that Jonathan is gone. But the dog is taking a bath….

And the episode ends!

The second-to-last episode of Highway to Heaven is an odd one. With Jonathan gone for the majority of the episode, Victor French gets the opportunity to carry a story on his own. Sadly, French himself would die before this episode aired. Unfortunately, while French is fine in this episode, the story itself is presented in the rather cartoonish style that Highway to Heaven always used whenever it featured a comedic episode. The runaway’s mother is portrayed as being such a loon that’s hard not to think that the kid would be better off on his own. As well — is Jonathan a dog or not!? The episode’s refusal to answer this question is a bit annoying.

Next week, we will finish up Highway to Heaven with the show’s final episode.

Retro Television Review: Decoy 1.25 “High Swing”

Posted on April 2, 2026 by Lisa Marie Bowman

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 Decoy, which aired in Syndication in 1957 and 1958. The show can be viewed on Tubi!

This week, Casey investigates an elderly crime lord.

Episode 1.25 “High Swing”

(Dir by David Alexander, originally aired on March 31st, 1958)

Casey rides to the hospital with a young woman named Anne (Zohra Lampert). Anne has overdosed on heroin. Before she dies, Anne tells that Casey that she was poisoned by an old man named Otto Flagler (Albert Dekker). After learning that Anne was a pickpocket, Casey goes undercover as a thief until Otto Flagler approaches her and invites her to come live and work with him and his wife, Lily (Edith Atwater).

Casey is shocked to discover that Lily is in a wheelchair, the result of an accident that occurred when Lily was a trapeze artist. Otto is a mugger because he needs the money to take care of his wife. Casey even starts to feel sorry for Oto and Lily. That said, Casey is still a cop and she has a job to do. When Otto realizes that he and his wife are about to be arrested, he slips heroin into their coffee. By the time the police arrive, both Otto and Lily are dead.

Casey is upset. One of the other cops offers to buy her a cup of coffee. Casey says that she won’t be drinking coffee for a while.

This was a sad episode. Casey didn’t really have to do much to solve the mystery. The whole point of the episode was that Otto and Lily were not master criminals. They were two people who loved each other and found themselves in a desperate situation. That said, Otto did murder Anne so let’s not feel too sorry for him.

Albert Dekker and Edith Atwater both gave good performances and, as always, Beverly Garland was excellent in the role of Casey. This was a good episode.

Late Night Retro Television Review: 1st & Ten 3.9 “The Brink of Death”

Posted on April 1, 2026 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Welcome to Late Night Retro Television Reviews, a feature where we review some of our favorite and least favorite shows of the past! On Wednesdays, I will be reviewing 1st and Ten, which aired in syndication from 1984 to 1991. The entire series is streaming on Tubi.

This week, OJ has some wisdom to share.

Episode 3.8 “The Brink of Death”

(Dir by Bruce Seth Green, originally aired on November 4th, 1987)

There’s a lot happening in this week’s episode.

For instance, Bubba and Jethro now own the bar where all of the Bulls hang out. To be honest, I thought they always owned the bar but apparently, they didn’t. As I’ve said a few times in the past, the way these episodes were edited for syndication occasionally makes it a bit difficult to actually follow the storyline.

Wide receiver Billy Cooper (Michael Toland) was kidnapped by Stuart (Richard Tanner), the nerdy guy whose girlfriend Billy stole. Stuart wrapped up Billy in a straight jacket, forced him to wear a “Dumb Jock” label on his forehead, and then filmed him screaming in fear of a bunch of fire ants. Billy’s girlfriend dumped him because Stuart was “more interesting.”

But the main plotline dealt with Dr. Death, the defensive player who was played by Donald Gibbs. While playing against Oakland, many of the Bulls were tackled by Joe “The Terminator” Morgan (Andre Newman), a notoriously dirty player. Dr. Death decided to get revenge by tackling Joe Morgan during a kick return, even though Joe had signaled for something called a fair catch. (I guess that meant that no one was supposed to touch Joe.) Joe Morgan ended up in the hospital. The owner of the Oakland team pressured Joe to press assault charges against Dr. Death, who was already feeling guilty about injuring Joe as severely as he did.

It was up to O.J. Simpson to talk some sense into Joe Morgan. O.J. went to the hospital and told Joe that football was all about getting injured. O.J. asked Joe if this was the way he wanted to go out.

By appealing to Joe’s desire to be remembered as a killer football player, OJ is able to convince Joe to drop the charges.

(I should mention that OJ himself was an early contender for the role of the actual Terminator.)

O.J. Simpsons saved the day again!

Retro Television Review: The Love Boat 7.13 “The Misunderstanding/Love Under The Decks/The End Is Near”

Posted on April 1, 2026 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Welcome to Retro Television Reviews, a feature where we review some of our favorite and least favorite shows of the past! On Wednesdays, I will be reviewing the original Love Boat, which aired on ABC from 1977 to 1986! The series can be streamed on Paramount Plus!

And love won’t hurt anymore….

Episode 7.13 “The Misunderstanding/Love Below Decks/The End Is Near”

(Dir by Robert Scheerer, originally aired on December 10, 1983)

There’s all sorts of misunderstandings on this week’s cruise.

Karen Stevens (Morgan Brittany) is convinced that her mother, film star Nancy Fairchild (Clair Trevor), didn’t want her or love her. Nancy appeals to Karen’s husband (James Houghton) to help bring about a reconciliation. Karen apparently did her research because there’s something about the Pacific Princess that always helps retired film stars to either find love or fix their familial relationships.

“Dutch” Boden (Vic Tayback) is the rough and plain-spoken ship’s engineer. He thinks that Ellen Kirkwood (Arlene Dahl) is the Captain’s girlfriend. Instead, Ellen is the widow of one of Stubing’s old friends. Stubing worries that Dutch is bothering Ellen. Instead, Dutch and Ellen are falling in love. This is one of the rare episodes where we get to see how the crew lives on the below decks. Their cabins are really small!

Finally, newlywed Felix (Lou Richards) and Andrea (Delta Burke) are worried that the world is going to end. When the world doesn’t end at the appointed time, Felix fears that maybe he based his calculations on Eastern Time. Since the Love Boat was on the Pacific Coast, that would have meant the world would have ended three hours before Felix expected. Maybe Felix’s problem is that he doesn’t understand time zones. I’m the same way. They confuse the heck out of me.

This week’s cruise was a little bland. The guest cast was charming but two of the stories felt very familiar. But I did like the storyline with the paranoid newlyweds. Lou Richards and Delta Burke really threw themselves into their somewhat ludicrous characters. I laugh more than I thought I would.

This was a pleasant if not extremely memorable cruise.