Welcome to Retro Television Reviews, a new feature where we review some of our favorite and least favorite shows of the past! On Fridays, I will be reviewing T. and T., a Canadian show which ran in syndication from 1987 to 1990.  The show can be found on Tubi!

This week, T and T comes to an end.

Episode 3.21 “The Little Prince”

(Dir by Ken Girotti, originally aired on May 26th, 1990)

The Sultan (Fareed Ahmed) of the tiny island nation of Domain has come to Canada or wherever the Hell this show is supposed to be taking place so that he can announce that he is bringing democracy to his nation.  Yay!  Democracy rules!  However, the Sultan is also bringing along his bratty 12 year-old son, the Prince (Marlow Vella).  Out of everyone that he could have hired, he selected Terri and T.S. Turner to look after the Prince.

Unfortunately, a gangster named Don Giovanni wants to kidnap the Prince.  Fortunately, Don Giovanni has hired recurring crooks Fritz (Dominic Cuzzocrea) and Nobby (Avery Saltzman) to handle the abduction.  Why any reputable gangster would hire Fritz and Nobby, I don’t know.  Fritz and Nobby have appeared in several episodes of this show and they have never came close to pulling off any of their schemes.  As usual, Turner is able to easily defeat Fritz and Nobby and, oddly, there doesn’t seem to be hard feelings.  With all of the times that Turner has captured Fritz and Nobby, you do have to wonder why the two of them are never in jail.

This was the last episode of T and T.  Not only did it end season 3 but it ended the show itself.  The show ends without anyone ever asking what happened to Amy or any of the other supporting characters who came and went over the past three seasons.  The continuity of this show was always a mess.  That’s especially clear in this episode.  Turner has to tell Terri who Fritz and Nobby are, despite the fact that Terri has met them at least twice before.  I’m going to guess this episode was probably meant to air earlier in the season.  Either that or the show’s writers just didn’t care.

For a show that started off as the story of streetwise guy who was unjustly imprisoned for murder, T and T certainly ended on a silly and rather inconsequential note.  I mean, don’t get me wrong.  It’s a Canadian detective show that starred Mr. T.  Obviously, T and T was never meant to be taken seriously.  The show didn’t need an epic finale but still, I always feel like the final episode of the show should at least wrap things up.  The final episode is the equivalent of a final chapter.  Its the show’s chance to leave the viewers with one final thought or to at least acknowledge everything that led up to the end.  It’s always a bit sad when any show — even something like T and T — doesn’t get a chance to do that.

Now that it’s over, what can I say about T and T?  There were a few entertaining episodes.  Mr. T didn’t have much range an actor but he was still a big personality and his “don’t be a criminal” speeches were earnest delivered.  The show worked better with Amy than Terri.  The first season was the show’s strongest.  Things went downhill afterwards.  By the third season, Mr. T seemed bored with the whole thing.

Anyway, I’m done with T and T!  To be honest, there were times when I felt like I would never finish this show.  This is probably one of the most obscure pieces of entertainment that I’ve ever reviewed on the Shattered Lens but that’s what I’m here for.  I like reviewing the shows and the movies that have been overlooked or otherwise forgotten.

Next week, I’ll be reviewing a new show in this time slot.  What will that show be?

Uhmm …. I’ll let you know as soon as I figure it out myself!