The Facts Of Life......

[Brian37]

Yeah, a lot of the family oriented sitcoms of the late 70s, 80s, and early 90s tackled social issues.  Family Ties was notorious for it.  All In The Family.  The Jeffersons.  Roseanne.  Diff'rent Strokes (which The Facts of Life is a spinoff of).  Shit, M*A*S*H.  Growing Pains.  Webster (which is about interracial adoption, if you haven't seen it), when it wasn't just focused on Emmanuel Lewis being goofy.  I'm sure there's a lot of others.

It's pretty amazing to compare it to the drek that counts as sitcoms today.  From a writing standpoint, the most popular sitcoms, like Big Bang Theory, Two and a Half Men, etc. can't hold a candle to the older shows.  At least they tried to have a purpose beyond lazy (and often misogynistic) hijinks.  Even the fluffier shows of the day, like Cheers or Three's Company, exhibited far more wit and charm.

Actually Big Bang while more Sienfieldish by comparison,  does convey tolerance. Sheldon is a handful, and you have a Jew and a Hindu as best friends. And the hot chick marries the geek.

But yea, I'd say MASH, out of all of them really shaped my liberal attitude. I really hated the way Frank treated the locals and I loved Hawkeye, BJ and Trapper's compassion in the face of those horrors. 

Colonel Flag was a fucking loon. He made Frank seem sane. My favorite episode of MASH was when BJ got the shrink to shout "AIR RAID" outside the Swamp and Frank ran out and jumped in the fox hole BJ had just filled with water.

But I love Facts Of Life too. Jo was just one of those characters I wished I could have been myself back when I was growing up. Family Ties was great too. Everyone in that family besides Alex was a liberal.

[Brian37]

Jo has a side job at a garage and offers to fix Blair's dad's Porche. Her boyfriend works there too and complements her on her work and she responds, "I was born with a teething wrench."

In this episode Jo's boyfriend has a problem with her being the manager at the garage becoming suddenly his boss. Blair makes the suggestion that she play ditzy to keep him, and that look of contempt Jo has every so often on the show just saying, "I am going to shiv your ass." PRICELESS.

[Brian37]

Of course today's rerun was Halloween themed. Natalie convinces the rest of the girls that Ms Garrett's shop is haunted because of a massacre in it long ago. She convinces them that Ms Garrett is possessed. Of course you only find out at the end of the episode that it was a prank.

ANYWHO, Bliair starts whimpering and Jo says, "You know in horror movies the whimperer always gets it first."

[Brian37]

In this morning's rerun a princess gets sent to go to school at Eastland, everyone besides Jo is excited at the prospect that her parents will come to eat dinner with them, Blair thinks it is funny that Jo will be eating with royalty, Jo comments, "One snicker and you're dead meat!"

[Brian37]

Got distracted this morning turned today's rerun on half way through, only to watch about 5 mins to realize the episode was about Blair's older sister wanting to become a nun and Blair objecting to it. Of course Ms Garrett tells her she has a right to do that, and she it is a "calling" and it is about "faith"

Uggggggg...... That was one episode I had to turn off.

[KevinM1]

Got distracted this morning turned today's rerun on half way through, only to watch about 5 mins to realize the episode was about Blair's older sister wanting to become a nun and Blair objecting to it. Of course Ms Garrett tells her she has a right to do that, and she it is a "calling" and it is about "faith"

Uggggggg...... That was one episode I had to turn off.

Yeah, that one was a weird one.

On the one hand, the sister had every right to choose the convent.

On the other, Blair had every right to be pissed off. She's, in a lot of ways (the ways Blair cares most) losing her sister.

Waving that away with fluffy words like 'faith' and 'calling' doesn't really address the issue.

[Brian37]

Got distracted this morning turned today's rerun on half way through, only to watch about 5 mins to realize the episode was about Blair's older sister wanting to become a nun and Blair objecting to it. Of course Ms Garrett tells her she has a right to do that, and she it is a "calling" and it is about "faith"

Uggggggg...... That was one episode I had to turn off.

Yeah, that one was a weird one.

On the one hand, the sister had every right to choose the convent.

On the other, Blair had every right to be pissed off.  She's, in a lot of ways (the ways Blair cares most) losing her sister.

Waving that away with fluffy words like 'faith' and 'calling' doesn't really address the issue.

Blair herself as the character was a believer too, not really what the Character's problem was with her sister becoming a nun. Blair was all about being in the wealthy class, that was her main objection not religion itself.  She was upset with her sister giving all the wealth up.Just as much worship to me, one about class the other about "faith", both just as absurd to blindly cling to.

I'd only agree as far as her sister goes and even in reality, yea if you want to waste your life selling nonsense, there are no laws preventing that in the west. So to me both were right from a legal standpoint, but both also wrong from a logical standpoint.

[Brian37]

Yeah, that one was a weird one.

On the one hand, the sister had every right to choose the convent.

On the other, Blair had every right to be pissed off.  She's, in a lot of ways (the ways Blair cares most) losing her sister.

Waving that away with fluffy words like 'faith' and 'calling' doesn't really address the issue.

Blair herself as the character was a believer too, not really what the Character's problem was with her sister becoming a nun. Blair was all about being in the wealthy class, that was her main objection not religion itself.  She was upset with her sister giving all the wealth up.Just as much worship to me, one about class the other about "faith", both just as absurd to blindly cling to.

I'd only agree as far as her sister goes and even in reality, yea if you want to waste your life selling nonsense, there are no laws preventing that in the west. So to me both were right from a legal standpoint, but both also wrong from a logical standpoint.

Huh, misjudged Blair, yesterday's episode was a two part, watching the second part just now. Blair was upset that her sister was becoming a nun. Holy shit if she didn't get upset in front of everyone, "I am tired of hearing about God, what God, if there is a God prove it."

Blair, "God is a legend". HOLY SHIT. 

CRAP, Blair was pissed simply because here parents got divorced when she was a kid, so she was angry at God. UGGGGGGG, more dog and pony crap and a lousy reason to reject any claim. Having bad shit happen in your life isn't a reason to believe in Satan either. 

But to have a prime time character say this stuff on national TV back then even in horrible argument like that.

I am sure the episode will end with Blair seeing the light, and "finding God"

UGGGGGGG, yep, just as I suspected, her sister convinces her not to be angry at God. 

Blair's sister was even selling her bullshit to Jo. NOOOOOOOO !

[Brian37]

My cable crapped out on me for yesterday's rerun for a hour so I missed it. I suspect today's was part 2.

Anywho it centered around Blair and Jo graduating. I was distracted by something so I don't remember how it got on the topic of movies and what famous actors would play who, and when it got to Jo one of them said, "Charles Bronson."

[Brian37]

That does it! I am firing my meow! Bastard didn't wake me up on time this morning so I could catch the show. 

Ok, naw, he's too cute and furry. But ARRRRRGGGGGG! I need my morning fix of Facts, just like coffee.