Usually the first episode shown in a TV series season is one of their best. Producers know they often have many new viewers and want something special to get those folks to make tuning in a habit. A trip for the star family is often used.
So the Douglas clan (minus Bub) are suddenly going to Japan, leaving on a Friday evening and returning home "Sunday night." The premise is that Steve has one business meeting and the company wants to fly him in an otherwise empty plane so they are offering to let him bring his family for free. He arranged at the last minute for them to go with him, including, we are told, passports for the boys. Robbie didn't know anything about it until the end of the school day on Friday. Bub didn't want to go because he went to Japan in 1921 and didn't see any need to go there again.
Time wise, nothing here made much sense. They were supposed to be leaving their Midwestern town sometime Friday evening, which given time differences and an expected actual flight time of over 13 hours, would have gotten them arriving in Tokyo sometime Saturday night. They were said to be going home Sunday night. If they left Tokyo Sunday night at 11, that would be Sunday morning at 8 at home (or 9), and they would have gotten home around 9 p.m. On Sunday. The script was written as though home and Tokyo are in the same time zone.
More importantly-nothing in the plot was interesting or funny. Steve has to call to the English speaking woman helping him in the house the company arranged for the family to occupy, to keep the older woman from helping him take off his robe to take a bath. Chip has a playmate his age and they enjoy watching baseball together on TV. Neither speaks the other's language. Robbie gets a judo lesson that helps him with his high school wrestling. Mike meets a young woman and becomes interested, but they both realize he'll "be going home tomorrow" so they just enjoy a few hours together, talking and dancing in a club.
The above is my "spoiler"-that's all that happens. We get a few quick shots of Tokyo, including a big crowd cheering at a baseball game. Possibly a few folks in 1962 thought the actors actually flew to Japan to film this episode, but certainly most knew they never left Los Angeles.
I do believe I would have felt the same in 1962 watching this as I did this morning on ME-TV-this was one of the least interesting, least funny episodes in the series. Nothing happened-a 2.
So the Douglas clan (minus Bub) are suddenly going to Japan, leaving on a Friday evening and returning home "Sunday night." The premise is that Steve has one business meeting and the company wants to fly him in an otherwise empty plane so they are offering to let him bring his family for free. He arranged at the last minute for them to go with him, including, we are told, passports for the boys. Robbie didn't know anything about it until the end of the school day on Friday. Bub didn't want to go because he went to Japan in 1921 and didn't see any need to go there again.
Time wise, nothing here made much sense. They were supposed to be leaving their Midwestern town sometime Friday evening, which given time differences and an expected actual flight time of over 13 hours, would have gotten them arriving in Tokyo sometime Saturday night. They were said to be going home Sunday night. If they left Tokyo Sunday night at 11, that would be Sunday morning at 8 at home (or 9), and they would have gotten home around 9 p.m. On Sunday. The script was written as though home and Tokyo are in the same time zone.
More importantly-nothing in the plot was interesting or funny. Steve has to call to the English speaking woman helping him in the house the company arranged for the family to occupy, to keep the older woman from helping him take off his robe to take a bath. Chip has a playmate his age and they enjoy watching baseball together on TV. Neither speaks the other's language. Robbie gets a judo lesson that helps him with his high school wrestling. Mike meets a young woman and becomes interested, but they both realize he'll "be going home tomorrow" so they just enjoy a few hours together, talking and dancing in a club.
The above is my "spoiler"-that's all that happens. We get a few quick shots of Tokyo, including a big crowd cheering at a baseball game. Possibly a few folks in 1962 thought the actors actually flew to Japan to film this episode, but certainly most knew they never left Los Angeles.
I do believe I would have felt the same in 1962 watching this as I did this morning on ME-TV-this was one of the least interesting, least funny episodes in the series. Nothing happened-a 2.
