Sail,

Also, when did George and Izzy sleep together?

My Favorite Mistake" which aired on March 22nd.

Although, technically the act occurred off-screen during "Scars & Souvenirs" on March 15th.

I taped Raines last night, and put it on to watch this afternoon. I left the house in the middle, and left it playing. Oops. I guess it didn't grab me. And I love Goldblum!

Well, crap. Somehow I missed those two. And I don't have them on TiVo, boohoo. Maybe I can find them on reruns somewhere.

Raines is over already? That is a short season. I only caught one ep, but I liked it.

I'm another one with The Waltons love. I bought S1-2 on DVD for my Mom, then loved them so much I couldn't give them to her, so bought another set for her and S3-4 for myself. Watching them over, they're as good as I had remembered. It's funny, because so often when I see shows from my childhood, they don't hold up and I'm disappointed. Much of the time The Waltons was on, we didn't have a tv, but my mom would finagle invites to friends and neighbors to watch this one show, so I have a lot of non-show memories tied up with this one, and I was especially concerned that it wouldn't hold up.

Others have said that the show is trite, and I agree. The plots are often kind of lame and repetitive. But the actors are great, and it really does feel like you're watching a family, with people who aren't perfect but who sincerely care about each other. The show is a bit anvilly about the Depression, if by "a bit" you mean really a lot. But it's beautiful to see people make do and help each other out, rich in relationships if not in cash.

The Walton family didn't have neighbors nearby, but they do seem to be close to their neighbors and community. I think that a lot of Americans, with the growth of suburbs and a cash economy (ok, it was already mostly cash, but was becoming even more so), missed a time when people were more interdependent, when family was close physically as well as emotionally, and where small treasures were magnified because of their rarity. The Waltons also cashed in on the whole rose-colored glasses view of the past. In reality, for many the stresses of the Depression broke up families rather than bringing them together.

Watching again, I notice that although they were cash poor, the Walton family was quite privileged, with lots of land and the ability to use it. They didn't have much, and they didn't always have the food they wanted, but their family didn't go hungry and had what they needed.

Some interesting things I have found on rewatch:

• Pa Walton (John) used to make more money, working away from home for longish stretches, but they made a conscious decision for him to work from home even though he would make less money, so that he would be more a part of the family. There are modern examples of this lifestyle, but now they are often portrayed as wacky or strange, rather than idyllic.

• Bother. I got interrupted, and I don't remember the other things I was going to mention. However, Sean, if you would like to borrow the DVDs, I would be happy to lend you S1.

Raines online here: [link]

There's one more episode.

There were at least two or three episodes of The Waltons where the father and grandfather wanted to include one of the boys in some "manly" activity (hunting, having a shoot-out with the government, etc.) and the boy ended up wanting to do it, but ultimately not being able to (either because he couldn't or because he couldn't get past some ethical objection) and then he finally found some way to get the desired result by his own means (Ben, who couldn't shoot a turkey for Thanksgiving dinner, went to a turkey farm and bargained a really good price for one; John-Boy negotiated with the government people).

Also, lots of times there were conflicts between the people who lived way back in the mountains and were stereotypical hillbillies, and the people from the town, and the Waltons were kind of somewhere in the middle.

I just figured out that my earworm is the theme from The Waltons. Not awful, but not great either.

I'm going to have to get the DVDs now. During the summer we live next door to my parents and are always in search of family friendly entertainment. I know the boys will moan and groan at first, but they will end up enjoying it.

Raines online here: [link]

Ah, thanks for the link, Vortex. I have an unassailable and sort of mysterious-to-me attraction to Jeff G. I am enjoying the show so far.

Ditto thanks for the Raines link, Vortex. I missed the second episode.

A 7-episode season? WTH? Even Dresden Files got 11 episodes, and that was over way too quick.