Lisa Marie’s Week In Television: 11/19/23 — 11/25/23

Posted on November 25, 2023 by Lisa Marie Bowman

I hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving! Here’s a few thoughts on what I watched this week, in between shopping, eating Thanksgiving dinner, and celebrating Erin’s birthday!

The Amazing Race (Wednesday Night, CBS)

The Race continued! My sister and I need to get on this show while we still can.

Baywatch Nights (YouTube)

I wrote about Baywatch Nights here!

A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving (Apple TV+)

Erin and I watched this on Wednesday night, as we do every November. You can read her thoughts here!

Check It Out (Tubi)

I watched another episode of this show earlier today. Unless I fall asleep, I’ll be posting a review of it in an hour or two. (Warning: There’s a very good chance that I might fall asleep.)

CHiPs (Freevvee)

I wrote about CHiPs here!

Degrassi Junior High (YouTube)

I wrote about Degrassi here!

Dr. Phil (YouTube)

I watched an episode of Dr. Phil this afternoon, just because I needed some background noise. Dr. Phil was yelling at a woman who was cheating on her husband.

Fantasy Island (Daily Motion)

I wrote about Fantasy Island here!

Football: Commanders vs Cowboys (Thursday Afternoon)

Football: 49ers vs Seahawks (Thursday Night)

Football: Packers vs Lions (Thursday Morning)

Yep, the family was watching football all Thursday and I occasionally glanced at the television. I was happy that the Cowboys beat the Commanders. I can’t remember who won the other games. I accidentally called the Commanders by their original name and I got yelled at by my cousin. Bleh.

Happy Hour (YouTube)

I watched an episode of this 90s, celeb-themed game show on Saturday morning. Unfortunately, one of the celebs was Danny Masterson so I cringed whenever the camera went past him.

Highway to Heaven (Tubi)

I wrote about Highway to Heaven here!

Jennifer Slept Here (YouTube)

I wrote about Jennifer Slept Here on Thursday.

Kitchen Nightmares (Tuesday Night, Fox)

On Tuesday, I watched the latest episode of Kitchen Nightmares, which featured Gordon Ramsay helping out a married couple who were on the verge of divorcing over their restaurant. I always like it when Gordon shows off his nice side and he seemed to really care about this couple. On Wednesday, I rewatched the classic Amy’s Baking Company episode on Hulu.

The Love Boat (Paramount Plus)

I wrote about The Love Boat here!

The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade (Thursday Morning, NBC)

It’s not Thanksgiving without the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade playing in the background. I watched some of it with my family. I liked the balloons but I got tired of all the reporters talking.

Monsters (Tubi)

I wrote about Monsters here!

Snub (YouTube)

This is a British music show from the late 80s. I watched the first episode on Friday night. Three bands performed. I particularly liked Fugazi’s performance.

Survivor (Wednesday Night, CBS)

Crazy Eye Kendra is gone so that’s a good thing!

T and T (Tubi)

I wrote about T and T here!

Welcome Back Kotter (Tubi)

I wrote about Welcome Back Kotter here!

WKRP In Cincinnati (DVD)

On Tuesday night, Jeff and I watched the classic “I thought turkey could fly” episode of this 70s sitcom. This episode always makes me laugh. Jeff has the entire series on DVD so who knows? This could be a future entry in my retro television reviews!

Yes, Prime Minister (Monday Night, PBS)

This week’s episode was amazingly cynical, even by the standards of this rather cynical show. Sir Humphrey effortlessly manipulated Jim Hacker into nominating a corrupt banker to an important post. Somehow, it was also quite funny. There’s just something about the way that poor, earnest (if occasionally pompous) Jim Hacker continually falls for every scheme that Sir Humphrey comes up with. It helps that the schemes usually seem to turn out for the best. If anything, Sir Humphrey might have a point about the importance of not giving the Prime Minister too much room to think for himself.

Retro Television Reviews: Jennifer Slept Here 1.8 “Rebel With a Cause”

Posted on November 23, 2023 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 Jennifer Slept Here, which aired on NBC in 1983 and 1984. The entire show is currently streaming on YouTube!

This week, Jennifer learns karate and Joey is tempted to the dark side.

Episode 1.8 “Rebel With a Cause”

(Dir by John Bowab, originally aired on December 16th, 1983)

Poor Joey!

Jennifer has decided to learn karate. Why a ghost would need to learn karate, I do not know. However, while showing off her newly learned moves to Joey, Jennifer kicks his bed and causes it to collapse. Mr. Eliot rushes into the room and, because he can’t see Jennifer, he assumes that Joey must have been jumping up and down on his bed despite the fact that Joey is a teenager in high school. Joey’s allowance will go to buying a new bed!

The next day, at school, Joey makes the mistake of asking out the girlfriend of the school’s biggest bully. Fortunately, Jennifer materializes just in time to beat up the school bully. Again, because no one can see Jennifer, everyone assumes that Joey beat up the bully. The bully’s gang decides to make Joey their new leader.

At first, Joey is reluctant. But when people at school start to act like they’re scared of him and start to do favors for him, the power goes to Joey’s head. Soon, Joey is wearing a leather jacket and trying to be tough. Jennifer points out that this isn’t who Joey is and, deep down, Joey knows that. When the entire gang shows up at Joey’s house, Jennifer suddenly materializes and pretends to be Joey’s biker girlfriend which somehow scares the gang off.

This is a confusing episode, largely due to the fact that the show has never clearly established just what exactly Jennifer can and can’t do as a ghost. In some episodes, like this one, she can materialize and be seen by others. In other episodes, it’s been suggested that only Joey will ever be able to see her. In just the previous episode, Jennifer had the power to possess other people but, in this episode, she doesn’t even use that power despite the fact that it would have gotten both her and Joey out of a lot of trouble. (If Jennifer has possessed Joey and then beat up the bully, it would have certainly made more sense than everyone assuming Joey beat up the bully despite the fact that Joey would standing several feet away while Jennifer put the guy in his place.) And, again, why would Jennifer learn karate in the first place? Who is teaching her? When did she learn? Jennifer mentions that she’s met a lot of bikers in the afterlife but when was that? As far as I can tell, Jennifer spends all of her time harassing Joey at the house.

Even if you ignore all of the inconsistencies with Jennifer, you have to wonder why, in the year 1983, Joey is going to a school that is apparently controlled by a 1950s street gang. Seriously, this gang of bullies is even less intimidating than a community theater production of Grease.

It was sweet that Jennifer was so concerned about Joey and, as usual, Ann Jillian brought a lot of heart to the role but this episode just didn’t make any sense.

Lisa Marie’s Week In Television: 11/12/23 — 11/18/23

Posted on November 18, 2023 by Lisa Marie Bowman

The Amazing Race (Wednesday Night, CBS)

I’m still trying to get caught up. Big Brother and October really set me behind. That said, I love The Amazing Race, even if I’m still figuring out who everyone is.

Baywatch Nights (YouTube)

I wrote about Baywatch Nights here!

Check It Out! (Tubi)

I watched a rather dumb episode of this Canadian sitcom earlier today. My review will be dropping shortly. Years from now, I’ll probably still be wondering what inspired me to review a silly Canadian sitcom that no one has ever heard of.

CHiPs (Freevee)

I wrote about CHiPs here!

Degrassi Junior High (YouTube)

I wrote about Degrassi here!

Fantasy Island (YouTube)

I wrote about Fantasy Island here!

Frasier (Paramount+)

I watched the first episode of the Frasier revival on Thursday night. Kelsey Grammer was funny. Frasier Crane is the perfect role for him. Unfortunately, the rest of the cast was far less interesting and the first episode felt rather …. generic. The most interesting thing about the show is Frasier apparently spent the last few years hosting a television show called “Dr. Crane.” Now, personally, I’d rather see a show about him doing that than a show about him moving to Massachusetts and teaching at Harvard. Indeed, with everything that’s happening on various elite college campuses right now, the last thing I want to do is watch a show about how great Harvard is.

Friday the 13th: The Series (YouTube)

I wrote about Friday the 13th here!

Football Game: New York Jets Vs Las Vegas Raiders (Sunday Night, NBC)

I kind of watched this on Sunday, though I was also reading Britney Spears’s autobiography at the same time. I have no idea who won but Jeff tells me that it was a great game.

Highway to Heaven (Tubi)

“Who does the Grail serve?” I wrote about this week’s episode here!

Jennifer Slept Here (YouTube)

I wrote about Jennifer Slept Here …. here!

Kitchen Nightmares (Tuesday Night, Fox)

I binged Kitchen Nightmares this week. Those were some disgusting kitchens! Speaking of disgusting, the most recent episode featured one of the most obnoxious man babies that I have ever seen. What a loser! I’m amazed Gordon didn’t just toss him out in the alley and tell him to go home.

The Love Boat (Paramount Plus)

I wrote about The Love Boat here!

Monsters (Tubi)

I wrote about Monsters here!

Night Flight (Night Flight Plus)

On Friday night, Jeff and I watched an episode that was all about songs that were about food. It was a tasty 30 minutes.

Survivor (Wednesday Night, CBS)

I have a feeling that we’re going to get a bitter jury this season. Everyone has been shooting death glares at each other, this entire season. Last night, I thought the latest person voted out was going to throw a punch before she left the island.

T and T (Tubi)

I wrote about T and T here!

Welcome Back, Kotter (Tubi)

I wrote about Welcome Back, Kotter here!

Yes, Prime Minister (Monday Morning, PBS)

Hacker’s predecessor died and, to Hacker’s barely suppressed delight, that meant that he would never actually finish his autobiographer, which was full of unflattering details about Hacker. Unfortunately, Hacker also had to deal with the details of the state funeral and that meant dealing with the French. I was pretty tired when I watched this episode so I don’t remember all of the details but I do remember being amused by the arrogance of the French ambassador.

Retro Television Reviews: Jennifer Slept Here 1.7 “Trading Faces”

Posted on November 16, 2023 by Lisa Marie Bowman

This week, Jennifer discovers that she can possess people!

Episode 1.7 “Trading Faces”

(Dir by John Bowab, originally aired on December 2nd, 1983)

While watching Invasion of the Body Snatchers, Joey suggests that Jennifer may be capable of possessing people. Joey’s theory is that, just as Jennifer can walk through walls, she can also step into people’s bodies and control them. This seems like an odd theory for Joey to just come up with. Personally, I think Joey has been obsessing on this for a while.

Still, Jennifer says, “It’s worth a try!” so she crouches down and steps into the body of Joey’s bratty little sister, Marilyn (Mya Akerling). And, it works! Jennifer is able to possess Marilyn! It’s a good thing that worked, I guess. I mean, what if Marilyn died as a result of Jennifer trying to walk through her? How would Joey have explained that?

Jennifer is so excited about possessing Marilyn that she then proceeds to possess Joey’s best friend, Marc (Glenn Scarpelli). “Joey,” Jennifer-as-Marc says, “you have such beautiful eyes.” Joey freaks out but Jennifer is having a ball. The audience thinks its hilarious because this show is from the 80s.

The next morning, as the family eats breakfast, father George (Brandon Maggart) announces that he has a special guest coming by the house, a Spanish film producer (Henry Darrow) who is also an ex-boyfriend of Jennifer’s! (“Jennifer,” George announces, “was like Will Rogers. She never meet a man she didn’t like!”) George tells Joey to act normal and not yell at any invisible people during the producer’s visit.

Of course, it’s not Joey that George should be worried about. That night, when the producer shows up, Jennifer possesses George’s wife, Susan (Georgia Engel), and she flirts with the producer! Uh-oh, what if George finds out? What if this leads to divorce? What if Joey is sent back to New York and suddenly, Jennifer no longer has anyone to harass?

Jennifer really didn’t think this through. Or maybe she did and realized that George is the worst person in the world so who cares about destroying his career, marriage, and family?

Anyway, while possessing Susan, Jennifer kisses the producer. When George witnesses this, Jennifer hops out of Susan’s body, leaving Susan totally clueless as to why George is so upset. This leads to Jennifer once again possessing Susan so that she can declare her love for George and say that the producer was actually the one who put the moves on her and then George decides to punch out the producer but then the producer says that women are always throwing themselves at his feet and Jennifer realizes that the producer wasn’t that hot after all and then she steps into George’s body so that she can tell off the producer and….

AGGGGGGH!

Sorry. As you may have guesses, this whole episode was a bit too frantic for its own good but, to give credit where credit is due, both Georgia Engel and Brandon Maggart did credible Ann Jillian impersonations when their characters were possessed. Still, in the end, the sleazy producer decided to hire George as his lawyer and George accepted his offer because George is the worst person in the world and doesn’t have the self-respect necessary to kick the misogynistic old lech out of his house. Wow, that’s kind of depressing. Jennifer’s dead, everyone thinks that Joey is crazy, and George is so desperate for money that he’ll even take it from a guy who just tried to break up his marriage. This show is dark!

Next week, Jennifer helps Joey beat up the school bully!

Retro Television Reviews: Jennifer Slept Here 1.6 “One Of Our Jars Is Missing”

Posted on November 9, 2023 by Lisa Marie Bowman

This week, Jennifer is trapped in a jar!

Episode 1.6 “One Of Our Jars Is Missing”

(Dir by Charles S. Dubin, originally aired on November 25th, 1983)

Last week, I announced that George Eliot (played by Fiona Apple’s father, Brandon Maggart), was the worst character on Jennifer Slept Here and perhaps one of the worst characters of all time. This week, however, George is actually pretty tolerable. Instead, it’s his son Joey who is terrible.

Since this series started, Joey has been having to adjust to having to live with the ghost of Jennifer Farrell and, for the most part, he seems to be doing a pretty good job of it. Jennifer has helped out Joey with his problems and Joey has helped out Jennifer on numerous occasions. They’ve been established as being friends.

However, this episode finds Joey and Jennifer uncharacteristically annoyed with each other. Jennifer thinks that Joey makes too much noise in his room. Joey thinks that Jennifer makes too much noise in the attic. Joey spends a lot of time yelling at Jennifer, which makes him look crazy to everyone else. After hearing his son yelling into thin air one too many times, George decides that Joey is truly convinced that there is a ghost in the house.

George’s solution?

Hire an exorcist!

Now, it should be noted that George doesn’t think that the house is haunted. Instead, he thinks that Joey is delusional but George is convinced that an exorcism will cure Joey of those delusions. It’s not a bad plan. When Madame Wanda (played by Zelda Rubinstein, in a performance that is clearly meant to spoof her role in the original Poltergeist) shows up and performs her ritual, it’s obvious that she’s a fake. And yet somehow, she is still able to trap Jennifer in a mason jar.

Joey takes the jar to his room. Now, it should be understood that everyone else thinks that Joey is carrying an empty jar but Joey can see Jennifer trapped in the jar. Instead of unsealing the jar and allowing Jennifer her freedom, he decides to leave her in the jar. He puts the jar on his dresser and then pretends that he’s going to throw a baseball at it….

I mean, seriously …. WHAT THE HECK IS UP WITH THIS!?

It is true that Jennifer can be a bit self-absorbed and definitely more than a little eccentric but, for the most part, she’s been pretty respectful to Joey. She helped Joey throw a fake séance. She helped Joey get over his ex-girlfriend. She’s been very supportive of the son of a man who repeatedly refers to her as having been a “tramp.” And now, Joey’s just going to keep her trapped in a jar? What type of sociopath is Joey?

Earlier in the episode, Joey wrote a rude letter to one of his teachers. He wasn’t planning on mailing it but, when his mother (Georgia Engel) comes across the letter, she takes it to the post office. Suddenly, Joey needs the help of someone who can walk through walls so he opens the jar and allows Jennifer to escape. (So, yes, Joey let Jennifer out of the jar but only because he needed her to do something sneaky for him.) However, Jennifer can no longer walk through walls! Something must have happened with the exorcism.

Joey and Jennifer head over to Madame Wanda’s place, hoping that Wanda can reverse the spell. Of course, Wanda is a fake and didn’t realize she was actually performing a real exorcism to begin with. Wanda has no idea how to reverse anything.

Now, fear not, everything returns to normal by the end of the episode. Jennifer is once again a ghost who can walk through walls and Joey is once again yelling at thin air. As the episode ends, George listens to his son yell and then mutters that he just blew a lot of money on a worthless exorcism. I’m a bit surprised that George is willing to give up that easily. I mean, if someone in your house is apparently arguing with someone that only he can see, that’s cause for concern. Has George never seen an Amityville film? Can he not see the path on which Joey is walking?

This episode felt a bit mean-spirited, which is a shame because it had the potential to be fun. But Joey acting like such a jerk ruined whatever humor could have been mined from Wanda and her attempts to exorcise the house. This whole episode felt just a bit mean-spirited.

Next week, according to the IMDb, Jennifer learns that she can take over people’s bodies so Joey better watch out!

Lisa Marie’s Week In Television: 10/29/23 — 11/4/23

Posted on November 4, 2023 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Well, Horrorthon is over and I’m trying to get caught up on all the shows that I have waiting for me on the DVR and on all the streaming services. It’ll probably take a while for me to watch all of it but that’s okay. I always enjoy a good excuse to just sit on the couch for a few hours.

Here’s a few notes on what I watched this week!

The Amazing Race (Wednesday Night, CBS)

I can’t wait to get caught up on the latest season of The Amazing Race! I watched the latest episode on Wednesday and I’m glad that the team that got U-turned still managed to survive and make it to the pit stop in time. I’ve never been a fan of the U-turn and I always lose a little respect for teams that choose to use it. Of course, this season, it appears that the teams have not been given the option of opting out.

Big Brother 25 (24/7, CBS and Paramount Plus)

Yay! This season is nearly over. Seriously, this is one of the all-time worst seasons of a show that really has never been that good to begin with. I’ve been writing about Big Brother over at the Reality TV Chat Blog!

Check It Out (Tubi)

I watched the 5th episode of this Canadian sitcom earlier today. Unless I get too tired to write it up, my review should drop in a few more hours.

Dirty Pair Flash (YouTube)

I watched another episode of this anime on Friday night. I couldn’t really follow the plot but everyone had really neat hair and a lot of stuff blew up. It was stylish and fun in its own incoherent way.

Dr. Phil (YouTube)

I used several episodes of Dr. Phil as background noise this week. I quickly got used to the sound of him yelling about being trained in forensics.

Friday the 13th (YouTube)

I wrote about Friday the 13th here!

Get Gotti (Netflix)

Get Gotti is a three-episode crime docudrama about the efforts to put mobster John Gotti in jail. It’s a story that I’ve heard before but John Gotti was an intriguing figure and the docuseries did a good job of contrasting Gotti’s flamboyant charisma with the somewhat more low-key people who spent years trying to put him in prison. New York in the 80s will always be a fascinating topic.

Gun (Tubi)

I wrote about Gun here!

Highway to Heaven (Tubi)

I wrote about Highway to Heaven here!

Jennifer Slept Here (YouTube)

Here, I wrote about Jennifer Slept Here!

The Love Boat (Paramount Plus)

I wrote about The Love Boat here!

Monsters (Tubi)

I wrote about Monsters here!

Nightmare Café (YouTube)

I wrote about the next-to-final episode of this series here!

Survivor (Wednesday Night, CBS)

I wrote about Survivor here!

T and T (Tubi)

I wrote about T and T here!

Welcome Back, Kotter (Tubi)

I wrote about Welcome Back, Kotter here!

Yes, Prime Minister (PBS, Monday Morning)

The second season started with Sir Humphrey getting rid of a troublesome cabinet secretary by tricking Jim into thinking the secretary was planning to launch a leadership challenge. What’s funny is that the secretary was viewed as being a threat because of his radical employment policies but, once he had been manipulated it resigning, Jim decided to continue the secretary’s plan and just take credit for it himself. No one won but it was very funny.

Retro Television Review: Jennifer Slept Here 1.5 “Calendar Girl”

Posted on November 2, 2023 by Lisa Marie Bowman

This week, we are reminded that Joey has the worst father in the world.

Episode 1.5 “Calendar Girl”

(Dir by John Bowab, originally aired on November 18th, 1983)

So far, the episodes of Jennifer Slept Her that I’ve watched have focused on Jennifer’s friendship with Joey, the teenager who is the only person who can see her. Joey’s family has remained largely in the background, occasionally wondering why Joey is talking to himself.

This week’s episode serves to remind the viewer (and I’m going to use the singular for viewer here because I’m probably the only person in the world binging this show in 2023) that Joey’s father, George (played by Fiona Apple’s father, Brandon Maggart), is the worst person in the world.

George was Jennifer’s attorney when she was alive. Apparently, even when Jennifer was living and paying his salary, George didn’t think much of her. Starting with the very first episode, George has frequently described Jennifer as being a “tramp.” In the second episode, George was happy to allow an exploitive biopic of Jennifer to be filmed in his house, which used to be Jennifer’s house. Seriously, the fact that George hated Jennifer but then moved right into her mansion after she died tells us all we need to know about him. The show keeps trying to portray George as just being a typical bumbling sitcom Dad but, just judging from his actions, George is the devil.

This week’s episode finds George in a foul mood because the IRS is demanding that Jennifer’s back taxes be paid off. George decides to auction off a lot of Jennifer’s former possessions, including the stuff in the attic. Jennifer doesn’t have any problem with George selling her movie memorabilia but, as she tells Joey, the stuff in the attic is “personal.” Joey is torn because George has offered to give him a percentage of the auction’s profits if Joey finds stuff that they can sell. Joey really wants to go to Cancun for Spring Break but he needs $600.

Joey does go up to the attic but he promises not to put anything up for auction without Jennifer’s permission. When Joey finds a nude calendar featuring Jennifer amongst her possessions, Jennifer explains that it was something she did when she was a struggling actress and she would prefer the world not know about it. Joey agrees not to give the calendar to his Dad but George stumbles across it anyway and immediately starts yelling about how much money he’s going to make off of it.

Again, George is the worst human being on the planet.

Joey tells his father that “maybe we shouldn’t sell it.” George and Joey’s mother (played by Georgia Engel, who delivered her lines in such a soft voice that I could barely hear them) think that Joey just wants the poster for masturbatory purposes. George explains that the nude picture of Jennifer is the most valuable thing that they have to sell. George can’t wait to sell the calendar to a publisher.

Joey apologizes to Jennifer but says he can’t go against his father. Jennifer thinks about what a wonderful career she had and how now, she’s just going to be remembered for “hanging in every muffler shop in America.” Awwwww! George, you suck!

Luckily, George is also incredibly stupid. He gives Joey the responsibility of holding onto the calendar until the day of the auction. At the auction, Joey substitutes a picture of Jennifer as a baby for the calendar. Fortunately, the picture still sells for $22,000.

In the end, George says that he’s proud of Joey for standing up for what he believes in but we all know that George still sucks.

This is one of those episodes that really only worked because of the energetic performance of Ann Jillian, who was consistently better than the material that was given to her. A lot of the jokes would have fallen very flat if not for Jillian’s delivery and comedic timing. In the end, Jennifer kept her calendar and Joey presumably went to Cancun. And George …. well, let’s hope he found a shred of human decency somewhere in the house.

Lisa Marie’s Week In Televison: 10/22/23 — 10/28/23

Posted on October 28, 2023 by Lisa Marie Bowman

I’ve got so much stuff piling up on the DVR. I’ll get caught up on it all in November!

Big Brother (24/7, CBS and Paramount Plus)

I wrote about this stupid show over at the Reality TV Chat Blog! I will be so happy when this season is over. Every day, I pray for the cancellation of this show.

Check It Out! (Tubi)

I watched the fourth episode of Check It Out! on Friday. My review will drop in a few hours.

Degrassi Junior High (YouTube)

I wrote about Degrassi Junior High here!

Dragnet (Weekday Morning, MeTV)

I woke up early enough on Monday that, when I turned on television, I found myself watching the episode of Dragnet where Joe Friday served on a review board that was investigating whether a police officer had failed to properly identity himself. It was not one of the more interesting episodes of Dragnet.

Dr. Phil (YouTube)

On Sunday, I watched an episode of Dr. Phil in which Phil interviewed a woman who shaved her head and faked having cancer. The woman said that she felt very guilty. Dr. Phil didn’t buy it.

On Tuesday morning, I watched Dr. Phil talk to a woman who was in an abusive marriage with a total jerk. Dr. Phil called the jerk a “loud-mouthed bully” but it didn’t really seem to do much good. Later, on Tuesday evening, I watched an episode about an out-of-control teen named Taylor. Phil yelled at the parents but he didn’t seem to do much good for Taylor.

On Saturday night, I watched an episode about a disastrous wedding that was still tearing a family apart. Seriously, it was a really bad wedding. I think the only solution was for the wife to get a divorce. “Wow,” Dr. Phil said, in his condescending way.

Gun (Tubi)

I wrote about Gun here.

Highway to Heaven (Tubi)

I wrote about Highway to Heaven here!

The Hitchhiker (YouTube)

I watched several episodes of The Hitchhiker this week, while choosing which ones to feature on the site. It was a bit of an uneven show but, when it worked, it worked. I loved Page Fletcher’s super-judgmental monologues.

It’s The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown (Apple TV+)

Erin and I watched this classic on Thursday. Read Erin’s’ thoughts on it here!

Jennifer Slept Here (YouTube)

I wrote about Jennifer Slept Here here!

The Love Boat (Paramount Plus)

I wrote about The Love Boat here!

Nightmare Café (YouTube)

I wrote about Nightmare Café here!

T and T (Tubi)

I wrote about T and T here!

Toy Story Of Terror (Disney Plus)

Erin and I watched this on Thursday, after we watched It’s The Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown. I love the toys! This isn’t their best adventure but it’s still nice to see and hear everyone again.

The Vanishing Shadow (Night Flight Plus)

I watched Chapter Three of this serial on Friday night. In this episode, the invisibility ray was used.

Welcome Back Kotter (Tubi)

I reviewed Welcome Back Kotter here!

Yes Prime Minister (Monday Morning, PBS)

A member of Jim’s cabinet had a plan that he felt would help the economy and reduce unemployment. Sir Humphrey felt that the cabinet member was a pointless radical and encouraged Jim to ignore him. This episode featured one of my favorite sources of humor on this show, Jim’s tendency to just agree with whoever last spoke to him. It feels like a very realistic portrait of the way governments work.

Retro Television Review: Jennifer Slept Here 1.4 “Boo”

Posted on October 26, 2023 by Lisa Marie Bowman

This week, Debbie Reynolds drops by!

Episode 1.4 “Boo”

(Dir by John Bowab, originally aired on November 11th, 1983)

This week’s episode of Jennifer Slept Here opens with Jennifer tormenting Joey while he tries to make a snack. Whenever Joey tries to grab a bowl and a box of cereal, Jennifer materializes and says, “Boo!” I guess when you’re a ghost, you have to find a way to pass the time. Seriously, though, Joey acts like he’s about to have a heart attack every time that he sees Jennifer. He should be used to her by now.

In other words — STOP BEING SUCH A WIMP, JOEY!

Joey is upset because he’s stuck at home while his parents take his little sister to a costume party but then Marc shows up with two twins (played by Jacqueline and Samantha Forrest). The twins seem to like Joey and Marc but again, Joey can’t leave the house. Jennifer suggests to Joey that he suggest that they just have a party at the house. Joey follows Jennifer’s advice and it turns out that the twins really want to have a …. séance!

Joey is totally excited because he has his own ghost! However, Jennifer informs him that she doesn’t want to perform like a trained seal so he’s going to have to figure out his own way to party with the twins. Suddenly, the studio audience goes wild as Debbie Reynolds materializes in Joey’s bedroom. It turns out that Debbie Reynolds is playing Jennifer’s mother, who is also a ghost. Jennifer’s mom has spent 24 years searching for Jennifer. Why? Because she’s still upset over the fact that Jennifer didn’t thank her when she won a Golden Globe. Jennifer’s mother has tracked down her daughter so that she can demand to be given credit for her daughter’s career!

(Really? It’s just a Golden Globe.)

Jennifer and her mother argue over whether or not Jennifer has ever given her mother enough credit. Jennifer’s mother eventually announces that she’s leaving and proceeds to walk through a wall. Desperate for her mother to return, Jennifer asks Joey to perform a …. wait for it …. a séance! Joey gets Jennifer to agree to help him to impress the twins in return for him trying to contact her mother.

At the séance, Marc says they should contact Jennifer’s mother but Joey is like, “Let’s contact her mother!” As it storms outside, Jennifer does things like forcing everyone to keep their hands on table and causing candles to float around the living room. It scares and impresses the twins and they suggest a trip to their place where they have a hot tub. But Jennifer tells Joey that he can’t leave because the séance isn’t over. Realizing that Jennifer is right, Joey says he can’t go to the hot tub because he has to clean up the house.

“Joey,” Marc announces, “I don’t know what’s wrong with but someday, it’s going to keep you out of the army.”

Okay, 80s TV show, way to be cringey there.

Anyway, Jennifer’s Mother does eventually appear and Joey gets to go hot tubbing with the twins while Jennifer and her mom work on their relationship in the living room. And I have to say that, after a really silly 19-minute build-up, the final scene between Ann Jillian and Debbie Reynolds was actually very sweet and touching, perhaps more so than you would expect from a sitcom about a ghost and her dorky teenage roommate.

This episode did not get off to a great start but that final scene between Ann Jillian and Debbie Reynolds saved it. The show definitely worked best when it focused more on Jennifer and less on the people who lived with her.

Lisa Marie’s Week In Television: 10/15/23 — 10/21/23

Posted on October 21, 2023 by Lisa Marie Bowman

TV!? Who has time for TV in October! I’m going to have so much to catch up on in November, I swear. Here’s some thoughts on what I did watch over the previous week!

ALCS Game One (Sunday Night, FOX)

I watched this baseball game, between the Rangers and the Astros, on Sunday night with my sister, Erin. The Rangers won, which made Erin happy and that made me happy.

ALCS Game Two (Monday Afternoon, Fox)

I watched a bit of this with Erin on Monday. She was happy that the Rangers won so I was happy too.

Big Brother 25 (24/7, CBS and Paramount Plus)

I wrote about Big Brother here!

Check It Out (Tubi)

I watched the 3rd episode of Check It Out earlier today and my review will be dropping in about 90 minutes.

Degrassi Junior High (YouTube)

I wrote about Degrassi here!

Dr. Phil (YouTube)

Find someone who loves you as much as Dr. Phil loved saying “Sugar Daddy web sites” in 2017. The episode that I watched on Sunday was from 2017 and Phil said either “Sugar Daddy” or “Sugar Baby” over a hundred times in 40 minutes. It all came across as being a bit silly.

On Monday, I watched an episode in which a woman and her 81 year-old fiancé accused her ex-husband of being abusive. Phil didn’t believe a word that the woman had to say and the woman proceeded to have a meltdown on stage.

On Saturday, I watched the first part of an interview with a young woman who thought she was pregnant with Jesus (as in literally Jesus). Special guest star Dr. Stork from The Doctors visited to tell her that she wasn’t pregnant. She accused him of lying. The audience gasped.

Friday the 13th: The Series (YouTube)

I wrote about Friday the 13th here!

Gun (Tubi)

I wrote about Gun here!

Highway to Heaven (Tubi)

I wrote about Highway to Heaven here!

Jennifer Slept Here (YouTube)

I wrote about Jennifer Slept Here …. here!

Jenny Jones (YouTube)

On Tuesday morning, I watched an episode about young teenage girls who dated older teenage boys. The youngest of the girls was like 13 and she was dating a 17 year-old. Jenny got extremely flustered while interviewing the idiots on her stage.

Monsters (Tubi)

I wrote about Monsters here!

Night Flight (Night Flight Plus)

On Saturday morning, I watched a 1988 interview with director Brian De Palma where he came across as being about as confident as could be. That’s probably because the interview was filmed after The Untouchables and before The Bonfire of the Vanities.

Nightmare Café (YouTube)

I wrote about Nightmare Café here!

T and T (Tubi)

I wrote about T and T here!

The Vanishing Shadow (Night Flight Plus)

Our serial continued with chapter two, which I watched on Friday night. Having escaped using the Invisibility Ray at the end of the previous chapter, our hero spent this chapter being chased by villains who were carrying a Death Ray. It was a fun 30 minutes.

Welcome Back, Kotter (Tubi)

Gabe’s father came to visit and I wrote about it here!

Yes, Prime Minister (Monday Morning, PBS)

This week’s episode as Yes, Prime Minister was very, very British as it resolved around Prime Minister Hacker selecting a new bishop. The entire episode was full of jokes about how the Church of England was less of a church and more of a social club. As someone of an Irish/Italian Catholic background, I had a good laugh.