Teachers

My Review

In the U.K. this episode was shown out of order as episode 4 instead of episode 5. I have mixed feelings about this episode as some of it is very good and other parts I really dislike.

Firstly, I have to comment that at this point in the season the writers seem to have a little bit of a problem with spreading the stories around the cast. The previous episode Class Act was predominately about Lydia and Bruno and so is this story and both have had plots in other episodes where as some of the other characters are a little neglected. Doris and Leroy don’t even appear in this episode and Coco is reduced to an assistant to Miss Grant. Presumably Michael is filling the gap left by Leroy and being another assistant. Although, I'm not quite sure why Lydia needs 2 assistants to teach the fitness class especially as they don’t seem to do much!

Lydia says she’s taken this job for the extra money but if she’s paying 2 assistant to help her then she’s not going to end up with that much extra cash, unless she’s expecting Coco and Michael to help for free which doesn't seem very fair and I'n sure would contravene some rule.

Anyway, I really enjoy the Bruno story as he is caught between his Father and Shorofsky. For me it is one of the best Bruno plots and I love how he finally gets tough with Shorofsky who is going to be late for something and Bruno forcibly snaps “I’ll write you a note”. It’s a nice reversal of roles for the two.

I've always loved “Wish Me Well” and totally relate to the lyrics. Also when I originally watched this episode this was the first song of the season that I didn't know before hand as it wasn't on the “Songs” album so that was a nice surprise.

The scene between Bruno’s Dad and Shorofsky is pretty fun stuff and nicely played. Plus it was nice to see the Pride on Bruno’s Dad’s face as Bruno plays the Moonlight Sonata and the mischievous Shorofsky blackmailing the examiner is good fun too.

I also love the banter between the teachers when Lydia is frustrated that she might get fired and Shorofsky thinks they are talking about his decision not to let Bruno audition for Julliard. It’s a very funny scene and Morgan fits perfectly into the mix with the existing cast. This humour is continued later with Sherwood helping Lydia with her exercise as Sherwood sits against a wall without a chair. It’s all really good laugh out loud stuff and the best comedy so far in this season.

What I don’t like about this episode is Richard Simmons and the lame storyline they came up with to have him as part of a show. I'm not sure why he was needed in the show in the first place as for me he adds nothing to the episode. He may have been quite a name in America but wasn't really known over here. Also it was a little bizarre as he seemed to be playing himself but no one seemed to refer to him as a celebrity or even really recognise him. He is so over the top, sickly sweet that his scenes really bug me.

Also, it is a little confusing as Lydia is only signed up to do one class but then is worried about being fired! If he was going to fire her why would he persuade her to teach more classes?

There are however a couple of interesting scenes for Lydia with this plot especially as she starts to refer to the fitness class as children and she slips into her high school teacher role and she has to realise that he way of motivating the kids doesn't work for everyone.

It does have a feel good ending and it was nice to see Sherwood and Reardon joining in with the dance. Although I’m not entirely sure why Lydia takes the woman from the fitness class to the school?

The only real nitpicks are the scene where Bruno and his Dad are in the cab. The background footage is so obviously fake and is especially noticeable when they cut to real footage of a cab in New York so you really notice the change.

Also Danny has 7 minutes to deliver the forms to every class before the bell rings. He walks to the end of the corridor with Bruno, goes into 2 classes then the bell rings. That certainly was a quick 7 minutes. He then walks back towards the office, presumably to take the stairs up to the other floors but why not take the stairs that are right by the classrooms he's just been in?

Dwight asks Danny for a hall pass and he shows one but Dwight doesn't ask Bruno for one!

Episode Pictures

Ann Nelson as Mrs Berg

Carmine Caridi as Angelo Martelli

Richard Simmons as Richard Simmons

Joan Crosby as Renee

Eric Morris as Panel Member

Wayne C Dvorak as Waiter

Ron Appel as Conductor