Sam Leaps Into:
Kyle Hart, a famous actor playing a doctor in a soap opera.
Objective:
Escape from the clutches of a crazy woman who has kidnapped him in order to have his baby.
Date:
5-4-85
Location:
Los Angeles, California
Memorable Quote:
Yep, she's sharp as a pin. A bowling pin. ~Hank
Yep, she's sharp as a pin. A bowling pin. ~Hank
Highlight:
The opening is pretty funny when Sam doesn't realize yet that he's an actor and is trying to save the woman's life in the hospital to the bewilderment of the director and other actors. "What are you doing to me, Kyle? I'm two hours behind schedule and you're making passes at dead extras!"
Lowlight:
The opening is pretty funny when Sam doesn't realize yet that he's an actor and is trying to save the woman's life in the hospital to the bewilderment of the director and other actors. "What are you doing to me, Kyle? I'm two hours behind schedule and you're making passes at dead extras!"
Lowlight:
I've written before how sometimes it seems like it wouldn't be too hard for MacGyver to disarm someone who is holding a gun a foot away, and that is the case again here where Sam is incapable of making a quick move on Norma Jean. The restaurant would have been another moment ripe for escape, and then to add to the embarrassment a bit later Sam is held in check by an 80 year-old woman in a wheelchair. Of course if he disarms them at any of these points, there's no episode.
Other thoughts, observations, and questions I didn’t ask when I was in fourth grade:
Final Analysis:
I like this one -- it's a crazy story but enjoyable and fun with colorful characters. Ranking it 18 out of 70.
Just watched this one and really enjoyed it, particularly the first half with all the great plot twists, first with the opening scene all being part of a shoot for a daytime soap opera, and then the kidnapping at gunpoint all after meeting with the winner of a contest for a dinner date. I loved how they slowly conveyed to the audience that the couple, and the woman especially, was likely unhinged while keeping up guessing for a while what her motivation was. I was thinking the same as you as Sam could have easily wrested that gun from Norma Jean's hands while in that van, but of course it would still have been two against one. I know you're not a "Seinfeld" guy but I recognized the elderly mother from that series and always thought the actress did a great job of playing the sassy old lady. I wish she would have gotten more screen time in this episode.
ReplyDeleteNot sure if you've seen the movie "Misery" (based on the Stephen King book) but the second half of the episode tracked that film fairly closely in spots, particularly the delusional stalker having Sam chained to the bed. I'm pretty sure 9-1-1 was a thing in most places of the country by 1985, and especially Los Angeles. The ending was perhaps the weakest link of the hour as the husband seemed at least as nuts as Norma Jean so Sam teaming up with him to pull off that high-risk trick play against Norma Jean wasn't as strong as the rest of the hour. Still, a good mix of campiness and suspense with some great plot twists and solid all-around pacing, the kind of episode I'd like to see this show do more of. I'll rank it pretty high between "Runaway" and "The Leap Back".
I haven't seen Misery and you're right, I'm not a Seinfeld guy. I agree that Sam convincing the husband to go along with his ruse (even cutting his shirt) was not realistic given the way they had set up his character.
Delete911 didn't reach a lot of rural areas until the late 80s, so I assumed that was the case here.
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