I've been binging a lot of classic sitcoms lately, my go-tos have always been MeTV and Antenna TV. What helps either is that their schedules are consistent. One of the shows I have always tried to catch was Family Ties, a classic 80s staple that I figured would age like milk, but that wasn't the case. It's a great series with a believable cast.
I'd like to make something clear about the show given the context of the episode. I know Family Ties is more liberal compared to other shows from the time. It's like a tame version of All in the Family with a more liberal slant, it's subtle compared to All in the Family but when it shows it shows. The more liberal portions of the family consist of Stephen and Elyse Keaton, and the youngest daughter Jennifer, who will be the crux of the episode I'm going to focus on.
Rain Forests Keep Falling on My Head
This episode immediately followed an episode of Designing Women, one focusing on the allegations of sexual assault from Clarence Thomas to Anita Hill. Following that was an environmental episode of Family Ties, two social-issue episodes in one hour. It doesn't help that one did it better than the other. While Designing Women is certainly liberal, they did a good job in trying to keep things neutral. Then again the prospect of socially-liberal activism in Designing Women may seem odd given that many of these situations arise when black figures just so happen to be on the wrong side, and the show just so happens to take place in a southern state.
Clarence Thomas, as well as Julia running against a black man, I'm going to hell for this.
But while that dealt with a situation that involves allegations as well as the prospect of women holding little say in situations like that, especially against people in higher power, Family Ties was a lot more petty when it came to the social issues they covered.
It's an Environmental Episode
Let me make something clear, episodes of any show focusing on the environment hardly ever turn out good. A stark majority of them tend to have the same problems and turn out the same way. One character in particular would get derailed as they suddenly become obsessed with the environment, they run people ragged or turn other characters into strawmen, and by the end the environmental-case is seen as in the right.
Each episode is some variation thereof, and it always feels unpleasent to watch. For another example, refer to the King of the Hill episode It's Not Easy Being Green, or whatever the hell it's called. Perhaps ironically enough they did another environmental episode into its twilight seasons, and it was much better, in that nobody suddenly became a watered down Charles Manson.
Jennifer Keaton RIP
As mentioned before, I'm aware Jennifer is among the more liberal of the Keatons, moreso than her parents whom have mediated their views over the years. The episode has an interesting concept, Jennifer finds herself becoming depressed after learning of some unfriendly truths about how certain things negatively affect the environment, and she can't deal. In the past Jennifer was known for not making the best decisions when she was under pressure, such as how she tried to get back a childhood friend that was dating Mallory, or how she tried to become popular and lost sight of who she was.
But then again those are non-partisan issues, or lack any basis in social activism. Whether or not this is fair game for Jennifer, either they didn't do a good job executing it, or this was a bad idea from the start. As to be expected, Jennifer begins to chide everyone who does things that harm the environment, you can count on styrofoam entering that chat. Spoilers it does.
I can forgive an environmental episode because in spite of the negative elements I brought up, at least it did its job. The problem is that the episode implies that environmentalism is starting to harm Jennifer mentally, and I'm not reaching here, she says even the weather channel is making her depressed. In this situation, the episode would end with Jennifer having an emotional breakdown, but we don't get that. We do however get her absolutely breaking her guidance counselor though and something so close to making it clear she's going about environmentalism in a bad way.
But it all goes to nothing by the end. I feel like end was tacked on, with everyone essentially enabling her, because that's how you resolve depression, feed into it and let it swell into something worse. It felt like a jump to a radically different issue, or just an earlier portion of it, yeah I really shook my counselor, but lol thanks for caring. It really killed the entire episode, and by the end, I was absolutely stunned. It was the first episode of the night, and in the first quarter of the second, I just shut the TV off and went to bed, I was shook.
Final Thoughts
Rainforests Keep Falling on my Head is not only an example of a typical environmental episode derailing a character, but it embodies how badly a rushed ending can ruin an episode. It didn't feel satisfying and it did nothing to sell me on the message it told.
How could this have been better? Well, they could've followed in the footsteps of the episode where Jennifer tries to get in with the cool kids, she gets in trouble when she imposes her views on others, she and her dad have a heart to heart relating to how hard activism can be on any front, and while she'll stick to her environmental views she'll try to show some self-control when she sees others infringing, ending with her catching Stephen trying to smuggle a styrofoam container, or cup, something to make for a good final joke.
The issue here is that along with adhering to similar trappings of other environmental episodes, the episode feels very disjointed, rushed and borderline unfinished, and that wasn't even an issue with the rest of the series. I can forgive Jennifer sticking to her guns if there was more thought put into it, and they just abandoned the depression angle, perhaps just have her freak out over small things, argument, then have someone talk things out.
Way I see it now, this was a damning blow to the series, I can be hyperbolic about it because Family Ties isn't a kids show, never was. I don't want to see any more of the series for a good while. I can forgive episodes that lean in on ideologies, but if you want to keep me invested, you have to make sure there's more to it, and you put in the right effort.
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