I Love Lucy: Season One, Volume Nine

Review by: Alysa Salzberg
(AlysaSalzberg@TheCinemaSource.com)

I've faced a few challenges in my short time as an online movie critic: DVD player problems, hard-to-spell words, the occasional dull movie. But what you're reading may be my greatest challenge yet: write a review of the I Love Lucy Season I, Volume 9 DVD. It's practically impossible to write an original critique of this 4-episode compilation, because, I mean, who doesn't love Lucy "” the great '50's fashions, the bickering Mertz's, the crazy schemes, the way Ricky and Lucy's exchanges of arguments and sweet nothings have an oft-surprising ring of verisimilitude?

I sat down to watch this DVD (which includes Lucy Gets Ricky on the Radio, Lucy's Schedule, Ricky Thinks He's Getting Bald, and Ricky Asks for a Raise) with my roommate. Though we come from different worlds and have different issues, we both found ourselves laughing out loud at the zany antics of Lucy (Lucille Ball), Ricky (Desi Arnaz), Ethel (Vivian Vance), and Fred (William Frawley), and various guest stars.

The collection begins with Episode 32: Lucy Gets on the Radio. By far the best episode of the four, this one opens strong, with a hilarious (and still very pertinent) scene in which Lucy and pals sit in front of the TV, reminiscing about the days when people filled their evenings with a little thing called "conversation." Unfortunately, this bunch can't find anything to say. The dialogue is spot-on, the wittiness non-stop, yet the pacing is very relaxed, that old movie pacing you don't get nowadays. When too much fiddling with the picture breaks the TV, the group decides to listen to a radio quiz show, and Ricky wows them all by getting every answer right. So, naturally, Lucy secretly books Ricky and herself (it's a couples' quiz show) to display their braininess (or Ricky's) on the air. Unbeknownst to her, though, Ricky only knew the answers because the program was a repeat! Still, they can't back out, and so the unhappy Ricardo's are stuck going on the show. It'll take espionage, theft, and a miracle, to work things out and bring the episode to its sharp, vaudevillian conclusion.

Episode Grade: A+

Episode 33: Lucy's Schedule is perhaps the most misogynistic of this quartet, but then, you've got to remember that this is the early 1950's, a time when it was sadly natural for a man to assert his husbandly authority (as here, where Ricky makes Lucy a schedule and forces her to live her life by it). Still, at least Ricky never speaks to Lucy cruelly (as opposed to his boss, Mr. Littlefield (Gale Gordon), whose frigidity and sourness toward his wife makes me want to punch him, even if he is wearing glasses). And, as my roommate pointed out, Lucy always

gets the best of her husband and makes him change his ways. Girl power, 1950's style. Anyway, if you can get past this social difference (and if you can't, you probably aren't reading this review with the intention to go out and buy/rent this DVD), this is definitely an episode worth watching; there are few things funnier on this great earth than watching a hunger-crazed Lucy get her teeth stuck in a decorative wax apple at the most inappropriate moment.

Episode Grade: A-

Episode 34: Ricky Thinks He's Getting Bald explores one of the great tragedies of modern society: male-pattern baldness. Ricky's innocence is forever shattered when an inadvertent comment by Lucy makes him fear hair loss for the first time in his life. Now, he'll go to any lengths to hide and stop his imagined receding hairline, and Lucy will go just as far to prove his hair is there to stay. Interestingly, this episode has an unconventional ending, where all the loose ends aren't exactly neatly tied up. Taken on its own, like a short film, it's brilliant. Taken as part of a television series, it's a bit troubling. Still, it's all in good fun. The scene with Ricky in a hat at breakfast, and Lucy's reaction, is definitely worth a watch.

Episode Grade: B

The DVD concludes with Episode 35: Ricky Asks for a Raise. Here you've got what's become one of those key episodes in any sitcom (though this Lucy version again boasts an unusual ending). Lucy encourages Ricky to ask for a raise from Mr. Littlefield. If Littlefield refuses, Ricky is to say he's had other offers that will pay better, and then, afraid to lose him, Mr. Littlefield will give Ricky what he wants. Of course, Littlefield believes the lie, and lets Ricky go. Now it's up to Lucy, Ethel, and a surprisingly game Fred, to get Ricky his job back. So, Lucy cooks up another scheme. Like many great plans in the course of human history, hers involves prank phone calls, false identities, a quick-change artist's trunk, and a cross-dressing Fred Mertz. Watch to see if the whole thing works, and also for the kick Ball, Vance, and Frawley get out of putting on different accents, airs, and costumes.

Episode Grade: A

The DVD's bonus features are interesting and insightful, presented with a sort of awe that's often reserved for rare objects displayed in museums. Some of the extras include restored versions of scenes, segues, and the show's opening (this latter goes a long way towards explaining why, after a long day of scheming, Lucy so often likes to light up a cigarette and unwind). There's also original radio broadcasts related to some of the episodes. A helpful hint: for these features, click once to

get written information, then again to see footage/hear audio. A very good bit of stuff, though some kind of brief documentary about the show's history, as well as bios and credits for Lucy's main players, would be nice.

All in all, these 4 episodes of the classic sitcom are great fun. They're not as well-known as Vitameatavegimen, but they hold a good deal of laughs and some scenes of masterful dialogue and timing. A perfect DVD for bonding with a roommate, cuddling up with a loved one, or putting a smile on the face of even the most sarcastic, Fred Mertzian person you know.

Overall Episode Grade: A
DVD Grade: B+
Overall Grade: A