Today on Tool Time, Tim and Al are building a holder for the church piscina, which is like a sink, but without faucets. Basically, it's a big, china bowl with a hole in the center. They've built it for Revered Mike Weber, the minister at Al's church. The father is a special guest star on the show, against his better judgment, as he and Al have a good laugh at Tim's expense. Speaking of expense, Tim measured the hole for the piscina incorrectly, so it seems like he's going to have to buy them a new one...unless the church has piscina insurance. At home, Willow is teaching Brad and Mark yoga, and, well, no pain, no gain. As for Randy, he's found a much more productive way of spending his time: volunteering at the hospice home. While he sits around there waiting for his client, he runs into a familiar face: it's Wilson...er, Bubbles the Clown! Yep, Wilson volunteers at the hospice too, trying to cheer up the patients, though I don't think he's always successful. Finally, Randy meets Elaine, the spirited old woman he'd be spending some time with. Despite being terminally ill, she's feisty, self-sufficient, witty and jovial, the picture of health! She'd outlived her original 6-month sentence by three years. Randy goes on to voice his hatred of the corporate-run medical system in this country. I wonder how Randy would have felt about Obamacare.
It's not just the establishment that Randy has started to question, but religion as a whole. At home, when Tim announces Al has invited the family to his church, Randy turns down the invite, deciding that going to any church goes against his convictions and beliefs. This launches Tim and Jill into a religious debate, Tim saying he needs to go, Jill saying he should be able to choose his own path. Ironically, the Taylors only seemed to go to church at Christmas, but here they seem like regular attendees. So after that, Randy has himself another interesting day at the hospice, playing cards with Elaine, swapping bogus stories, and spraying Wilson with a seltzer bottle. Good times. While down at Tool Time, Tim talks with Father Weber about the situation with Randy. He can relate, as he has a teenage son himself. Basically, Weber sees Randy volunteering his time to help others is part of doing God's work, so he equates it with going to church, but not so much Tim's method of dropping a flathead into a convertible. Randy's crisis of faith escalates upon his next visit to the hospice when he hears Elaine has taken a turn for the worse and can no longer have visitors. It was like a blow to the head, such a vibrant and seemingly healthy woman now lay dying. Tim and Jill are there for him, but unfortunately there are no concrete answers in situations like this, but Tim does mention a place where people gather to pray for God's protection: Tool Time. However, Randy agrees to at least pray for Elaine.
Another very well done episode. It deals with a serious subject matter, but has plenty of jokes when appropriate. It has a sad ending, and I think it handles the subject of death and religion very well. It views both ends of the spectrum and doesn't try to force one or the other. As for the cast, Dan Aykroyd has a terrific cameo as Father Mike Weber, a very likable character, and of course, this episode served as a springboard for Aykroyd's own series, Soul Man. Tim and Al each appeared in one episode. Unfortunately, despite running two seasons, that show kind of failed to fire. I know I got tired of it pretty quick. Perhaps if Weber appeared in another Home Improvement episode to help set the scene, like the Maude and Jeffersons episodes of All in the Family, or the Grady episode of Sanford and Son, or the Top of the Heap episode from...wait, bad example. Still, Soul Man was a heck of a lot better than (Butt) Buddies! Eileen Heckart was enjoyable to watch as Elaine, and tragically, she passed away in 2001. I think she really was terminally ill when playing this character. So, religious or not, I definitely recommend this episode. Very well done. Even Wilson as a clown was not out of place.
It's not just the establishment that Randy has started to question, but religion as a whole. At home, when Tim announces Al has invited the family to his church, Randy turns down the invite, deciding that going to any church goes against his convictions and beliefs. This launches Tim and Jill into a religious debate, Tim saying he needs to go, Jill saying he should be able to choose his own path. Ironically, the Taylors only seemed to go to church at Christmas, but here they seem like regular attendees. So after that, Randy has himself another interesting day at the hospice, playing cards with Elaine, swapping bogus stories, and spraying Wilson with a seltzer bottle. Good times. While down at Tool Time, Tim talks with Father Weber about the situation with Randy. He can relate, as he has a teenage son himself. Basically, Weber sees Randy volunteering his time to help others is part of doing God's work, so he equates it with going to church, but not so much Tim's method of dropping a flathead into a convertible. Randy's crisis of faith escalates upon his next visit to the hospice when he hears Elaine has taken a turn for the worse and can no longer have visitors. It was like a blow to the head, such a vibrant and seemingly healthy woman now lay dying. Tim and Jill are there for him, but unfortunately there are no concrete answers in situations like this, but Tim does mention a place where people gather to pray for God's protection: Tool Time. However, Randy agrees to at least pray for Elaine.
Another very well done episode. It deals with a serious subject matter, but has plenty of jokes when appropriate. It has a sad ending, and I think it handles the subject of death and religion very well. It views both ends of the spectrum and doesn't try to force one or the other. As for the cast, Dan Aykroyd has a terrific cameo as Father Mike Weber, a very likable character, and of course, this episode served as a springboard for Aykroyd's own series, Soul Man. Tim and Al each appeared in one episode. Unfortunately, despite running two seasons, that show kind of failed to fire. I know I got tired of it pretty quick. Perhaps if Weber appeared in another Home Improvement episode to help set the scene, like the Maude and Jeffersons episodes of All in the Family, or the Grady episode of Sanford and Son, or the Top of the Heap episode from...wait, bad example. Still, Soul Man was a heck of a lot better than (Butt) Buddies! Eileen Heckart was enjoyable to watch as Elaine, and tragically, she passed away in 2001. I think she really was terminally ill when playing this character. So, religious or not, I definitely recommend this episode. Very well done. Even Wilson as a clown was not out of place.
