Week of June 19: Rabbit Ears' Top 10 Episodes

Rabbit Ears Top 10 Television Episodes of All Time

Last week, this site mentioned TV Guide’s selection of its Top 100 television episodes of all time. That triggered this list, which is in chronological order.

1. I Love Lucy, “Lucy Goes To the Hospital”: Any number of episodes of the greatest series of all time could qualify. But this one goes because the mayhem is so natural – Ricky, Fred and Ethel waiting on eggshells for Lucy to have the baby. The rehearsal. Then, the hilarious chaos when the real thing doesn’t go as planned. Ricky’s Babalu mask. Finally, the news from the taken-aback nurse: “Mr. Ricardo, they’re bringing your….little boy to the window.” Lucille Ball, Desi Arnaz, Vivian Vance and William Frawley were at the top of their game. Number 1 in every way.

2. Bewitched, “The Trial and Error of Aunt Clara”: At its heart, this ABC comedy was about fighting prejudice through its funny look at witch Samantha Stephens (Elizabeth Montgomery) and her marriage to mortal Darrin (Dick York in this episode). This episode tackles ageism through the attempts of Samantha’s mother, Endora (Agnes Moorehead), and company to put Aunt Clara out to pasture because her witchcraft is getting rusty. Samantha tries to help her favorite aunt. Who doesn’t cheer when Aunt Clara – played with charm by Marion Lorne – helps herself when she sees Darrin walk in the door?

3. Hawaii Five-O, “Once Upon a Time”: At its best, the CBS police series that ran 12 years took a personal look at its detectives. Few episodes got more personal than this two-parter, in which Five-O head Steve McGarrett (Jack Lord) fought a medical faith-healer/quack (Joanne Linville) who bled his sister (Nancy Malone) financially and emotionally to treat her leukemia-stricken child. Series creator Leonard Freeman, who was battling heart disease, had some strong messages about medical care in the United States – delivered in an emotional scene with McGarrett and Five-O second-in-command Danny Williams (James MacArthur) near the end of Part 1. Five-O’s chief would never seem quite so vulnerable again.

4. Maude, “Maude’s Dilemma”: The two-parter in which Maude Findlay (Bea Arthur) decides to have an abortion came just 10 episodes into the long-running series. It looks like a stage play, with stellar performances and no coyness from any of the cast members.

5. The Mary Tyler Moore Show, “Chuckles Bites the Dust”: The only episode on which TV Guide and Rabbit Ears agree. Comedy gets a twist during the funeral scene, in which Mary Richards' laugh rivals Garbo in Ninotchka.

6. M*A*S*H, “Life Time”: Choosing an episode from this series is like choosing among many diamonds. But this one – the doctors and staff of the 4077 have 20 minutes to conduct an arterial transplant to save a leg – truly shows the genius in script, cast and direction. Everyone gets to shine. Showing the clock in the corner of the screen adds to the drama.

7. Quincy, M.E., “Scream To the Skies”: This series, the first to focus on a medical examiner (played by Jack Klugman) as a primary character, doesn’t get a lot of attention, though it was a popular, long-running series for NBC. But this episode is a great example of the ultimate in advocacy. A plane crash near Santa Barbara not only tells Quincy how the passengers died, but also the flaws in airplane safety procedures – flaws that have yet to be corrected almost 30 years later. It’s impossible to keep your eyes off the scene in which he prompts a Congressional committee to put on the life vests within a fixed time. Most can’t do so.

8. The Cosby Show, “A Shirt Story”: “No 13-year-old boy should be wearing a $75 shirt unless he’s on stage, singing with his five brothers,” said Dr. Cliff Huxtable (Bill Cosby). This episode pokes fun at teenagers’ obsession with high fashion through Denise Huxtable’s (Lisa Bonet) attempts to make brother Theo (Malcolm Jamal-Warner) the shirt of his dreams. His reaction when his dream shirt turns into a nightmare is hilarious.

9. Designing Women, “The Rowdy Girls”: From a very funny series with often-serious overtones, “Guiding Light’s” Kim Zimmer guests stars as a friend of Charlene (Jean Smart), whom Charlene is trying to persuade to leave an abusive husband. The subplot – the girls playing the Supremes, with the always non-PC Suzanne (Delta Burke) in blackface – touches the funnybone. The mix works well, with an ending guaranteed to leave viewers cheering.

10. The West Wing, “Take this Sabbath Day”: If an entire season could be put into this list, Season 1 of this series would qualify; all the episodes were excellent. In this one, President Jed Bartlett (Martin Sheen) has to decide whether to allow a federal prisoner to be executed. Counseling him, besides his staff, is a priest played by Karl Malden.

Eight of the episodes are available on DVD; the "Quincy" and "Designing Women" episodes are not - those seasons have yet to be released.

See you next week. Until then, Happy Viewing!