Lots of funny bits, and gags. Episode leaned more on comedy than it's usual teaching a lesson speil. Miss Lawrence nervous about the play was very funny.
11 Reviews
Zany like the Munsters
vitoscotti14 July 2021
I don't get the hate for this episode
AlsExGal17 March 2024
Beaver has volunteered to be in his class pageant, but because he was at the end of the line of kids asking to be particular animals, he got stuck being the bunny. If Beaver was only 5 or 6 and dressed up as a bunny, this would be cute, and I doubt Beaver would be quite as embarrassed by the situation. Because he is 13, he is very annoyed. The night of the school pageant comes, and Ward calls home to say he is needing to stay late at work and can't get there in time to get Beaver to the school early, as required. Thus June gets Beaver - already in his costume - a ride with Lumpy Rutherford and Wally, in his not very reliable jalopy. A breakdown on the way and a stranded Beaver ensue.
Like I said already, I don't get the hate for this episode, because for sure it's not the best thing LITB did, but it is also definitely not the worst. Most people seem to think that Beaver running around in a bunny costume at age 13 as his voice is clearly changing is what makes it ridiculous, but I think it makes it surreal. The things I do find ridiculous? The kids brought their costume to school in the morning for dress rehearsal, but are for some reason required to already be wearing it when they come to the pageant. Why? Also, Ward needs to get a second car. This isn't the first time him being at work, unable to get away, has caused a situation at home. He can afford to belong to a country club and golf every weekend, he should surely be able to afford a car so that June is not always left stranded during some crisis.
Like I said already, I don't get the hate for this episode, because for sure it's not the best thing LITB did, but it is also definitely not the worst. Most people seem to think that Beaver running around in a bunny costume at age 13 as his voice is clearly changing is what makes it ridiculous, but I think it makes it surreal. The things I do find ridiculous? The kids brought their costume to school in the morning for dress rehearsal, but are for some reason required to already be wearing it when they come to the pageant. Why? Also, Ward needs to get a second car. This isn't the first time him being at work, unable to get away, has caused a situation at home. He can afford to belong to a country club and golf every weekend, he should surely be able to afford a car so that June is not always left stranded during some crisis.
It was a long week short of ideas.
pensman1 May 2017
Warning: Spoilers
June shows Ward the costume Beaver will be wearing in the school pageant. He will be dressed in a bunny costume. Beaver is upset, he's a giant pink bunny. Wally is not making it any easier. And just as June is telling Beaver that no one will make fun of him. Beaver's friends show up for school yelling "Hey Cotton Tail," "Bunny Boy" and "Floppy."
June is putting pressure on Wally to come with them to see the pageant; but Wally has plans with his friends. Beaver arrives home and when asked how dress rehearsal went, he says it was called off. Penny's wing fell off, and Whitey and Richard got in a fight and wrecked each other's costumes, Beaver had his tail pulled and he hit the kangaroo in the pouch who did it. But not to worry as Miss Lawrence called the pageant off a half dozen times already.
It's time for Beaver to get to school for the pageant, but Ward's stuck at the office; Lumpy says he'll drive Beaver to school. Of course, the car gets a flat. Wally has to stay with the car. Beaver in full bunny costume is supposed to then walk or take the bus to school. In full bunny dress? But we knew these complications were coming. What could be more fun for writers than thinking up ways to totally humiliate a sixth-grade boy? You can see the problems coming. High school boys chasing the rabbit. Adults thinking they're hallucinating. Dogs chasing the biggest rabbit they have ever seen. Then little kids following him. Beaver calls home for help but no one is there. Beaver then calls the police for help because he's trapped in a phone booth and trying to explain he's a rabbit. Beaver finally gets his police escort to school, and the show must go on.
Wally tells Beaver he did good. June almost cried, and Ward applauded more than anyone. Wally is still going over to Mary Ellen's where the gang is and they are going to play records. Our tired bunny just hops (literally) into bed. One has to believe the writers were just running close to empty when they came up with this episode. There's not much take away from this burlesque.
June is putting pressure on Wally to come with them to see the pageant; but Wally has plans with his friends. Beaver arrives home and when asked how dress rehearsal went, he says it was called off. Penny's wing fell off, and Whitey and Richard got in a fight and wrecked each other's costumes, Beaver had his tail pulled and he hit the kangaroo in the pouch who did it. But not to worry as Miss Lawrence called the pageant off a half dozen times already.
It's time for Beaver to get to school for the pageant, but Ward's stuck at the office; Lumpy says he'll drive Beaver to school. Of course, the car gets a flat. Wally has to stay with the car. Beaver in full bunny costume is supposed to then walk or take the bus to school. In full bunny dress? But we knew these complications were coming. What could be more fun for writers than thinking up ways to totally humiliate a sixth-grade boy? You can see the problems coming. High school boys chasing the rabbit. Adults thinking they're hallucinating. Dogs chasing the biggest rabbit they have ever seen. Then little kids following him. Beaver calls home for help but no one is there. Beaver then calls the police for help because he's trapped in a phone booth and trying to explain he's a rabbit. Beaver finally gets his police escort to school, and the show must go on.
Wally tells Beaver he did good. June almost cried, and Ward applauded more than anyone. Wally is still going over to Mary Ellen's where the gang is and they are going to play records. Our tired bunny just hops (literally) into bed. One has to believe the writers were just running close to empty when they came up with this episode. There's not much take away from this burlesque.
A hidden gem
joeblev13 June 2017
I found myself laughing a lot during "Beaver The Bunny," so I was surprised to go online and find that it's actually a widely disliked episode of the series. Sure, Beaver is a little too old to be wearing a bunny costume for a school pageant, but that adds to the comedy because he's more acutely aware of how embarrassing the situation is. I like how stressed-out the teacher is and how much of a sleazy, unreliable jerk Lumpy is. And, as A Christmas Story proved decades later, there's just something inherently funny about bunny costumes, especially when they're worn reluctantly.
So, no, this "Beaver" does not jump any sharks. I hate that term anyway
So, no, this "Beaver" does not jump any sharks. I hate that term anyway
Trouper
darbski4 September 2018
Warning: Spoilers
***SPOILERS*** Bunny suit? Who got to play the gorilla? The only other story I can recall is the hated "A Christmas Story" (yeah, I'm a scrooge about Christmas stories). In that one "Ralphie" is supposed to unquestioningly love and wear an equally ridiculous costume. His father, played by the great Darren McGavin, (R.I.P., DARREN). Finally does the right thing, and tells everyone that his son is NOT gonna be humiliated - and it was about time he did something good. In this episode, Beaver is shown to be a real trouper, though. Suffering the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, and the insults of his so-called friends, going through ridiculous nonsense before finally achieving his goal. He did everything he could, and gained the inevitable triumph - so help him God. Alright, maybe that was a little strong, but you get the picture. Any kid who's had to endure some of the idiocy that life hands out gets it; if you can hang in there, you'll be okay. In this case, the bunny suit was the bully, wasn't it? Beaver hung in there, and didn't do anything stupid. As a matter of fact, he did really good. I'll bet that the soles on the feet of the pink suit were shot, though. What I liked was that none of Beav's moron friends got him to do anything dumb and land in trouble. I've always wondered if he'd wise up and dump those clowns, though, you know? This one had some laughs, moved quickly, had good action and set changes, and exceptional acting the last scene's ending proved that. I'll give it a 9.
THE BUNNY COSTUME SCANDAL!
tcchelsey14 January 2024
Hilarious, and one of the most outrageous later episodes due to the fact that Jerry Mathers had to do this with a straight face! The cast and crew must have had a lot of fun putting this together, campy material that inspired other sitcoms, such as the BRADY BUNCH.
Another gem written by Dick Conway, a specialist when it comes to Murphys Law. Here, poor Beave has to play a bunny in a school play, replete with a way goofy costume. But worst of it all is getting to school. Ward is late and can't take him. Wally hails Lumpy to drive Beave, who conveniently gets a flat tire --- so Beave has to WALK to school in the costume. Talk about a frightmare on steroids.
And so true. Had he not had to dress up as a bunny, Beav would have had every car and truck available in the neighborhood to take him anywhere!
Well directed by Anton Leader, who did two series episodes, best known for THE VIRGINIAN. Popular character actress Alice Backes is a hoot as Beave's teacher, Miss Lawrence. Backes appeared in 140 films in her long career and in all types of roles, from waitresses to nurses to librarians and more. She guested many times on BEWITCHED and HAZEL.
This episode also marked the last appearance of Penny, played by Karen Sue Trent. She was missed and the perfect foil for Beave. Karen soon after retired from acting. She passed in 2022.
If you are a tv buff, you may recall a similar type story a few years later on MY THREE SONS. Steve (Fred MacMurray) dressed up as a "tin man" for one of Ernie's school plays ---but could not get into his car! Like Beave, he also has to walk all the way to the school. Something only a good dad would do.
Watch this for the memories and all the embarrassing plays we had to do when we were kids. SEASON 5 EPISODE 16.
Another gem written by Dick Conway, a specialist when it comes to Murphys Law. Here, poor Beave has to play a bunny in a school play, replete with a way goofy costume. But worst of it all is getting to school. Ward is late and can't take him. Wally hails Lumpy to drive Beave, who conveniently gets a flat tire --- so Beave has to WALK to school in the costume. Talk about a frightmare on steroids.
And so true. Had he not had to dress up as a bunny, Beav would have had every car and truck available in the neighborhood to take him anywhere!
Well directed by Anton Leader, who did two series episodes, best known for THE VIRGINIAN. Popular character actress Alice Backes is a hoot as Beave's teacher, Miss Lawrence. Backes appeared in 140 films in her long career and in all types of roles, from waitresses to nurses to librarians and more. She guested many times on BEWITCHED and HAZEL.
This episode also marked the last appearance of Penny, played by Karen Sue Trent. She was missed and the perfect foil for Beave. Karen soon after retired from acting. She passed in 2022.
If you are a tv buff, you may recall a similar type story a few years later on MY THREE SONS. Steve (Fred MacMurray) dressed up as a "tin man" for one of Ernie's school plays ---but could not get into his car! Like Beave, he also has to walk all the way to the school. Something only a good dad would do.
Watch this for the memories and all the embarrassing plays we had to do when we were kids. SEASON 5 EPISODE 16.
Did "Beaver the Bunny" Jump the Shark?
MichaelMartinDeSapio6 April 2016
LEAVE IT TO BEAVER fans often speak of "Beaver, the Bunny" as the nadir of the series, the point at the which a revered TV show "jumped the shark." But is "Beaver, the Bunny" really so bad? Admittedly, the writers seemed to be trying to keep Beaver mired in childish things for as long as humanly possible. Here he has to appear in a school pageant in which all his classmates are animals and he has to play a bunny rabbit. These are thirteen-year-olds, mind you. But once you get past the ludicrous premise, the episode is pretty funny. Because of car trouble, Beaver is stuck walking to the school pageant in his bunny costume and has to face all sorts of obstacles. At one point he is in a phone booth attempting to call the police while dogs and townspeople crowd outside. The police officer on the other line is thoroughly confused: it appears that a kid named "Beaver" is in trouble because a bunch of dogs think he's a rabbit. At the end, Wally declares that with all Beaver went through that day, appearing in a bunny costume on stage is nothing. Indeed, Beaver has proved exceptional fortitude.
I do wonder how Jerry Mathers and Tony Dow felt about making this episode. Jerry certainly seems to be "going through the motions" in the early portions, and even Tony seems almost embarrassed by the triteness of some of the lines. I don't imagine Jerry felt too pleased about wearing that costume, at his age.
But such was LEAVE IT TO BEAVER's quality that there really were no *bad* episodes, and "Beaver, the Bunny" remains amusing enough.
I do wonder how Jerry Mathers and Tony Dow felt about making this episode. Jerry certainly seems to be "going through the motions" in the early portions, and even Tony seems almost embarrassed by the triteness of some of the lines. I don't imagine Jerry felt too pleased about wearing that costume, at his age.
But such was LEAVE IT TO BEAVER's quality that there really were no *bad* episodes, and "Beaver, the Bunny" remains amusing enough.
Not a Stellar Episode
tstaples-9629214 May 2021
This Bunny Was Not Funny
StrictlyConfidential12 December 2020
(*Ward To Beaver quote*) - ""You're not suffering from bunny fever."
(IMO) - This "Beaver, the Bunny" episode would have worked so much better had Beaver been 4 or 5 years younger. 'Cause I couldn't accept a 12-year-old boy playing the part that was written here for Jerry Mathers.
This story-line really stretched credulity to the point of snapping under its own weight. I guess that the scriptwriters were really grasping at straws with this one.
(IMO) - This "Beaver, the Bunny" episode would have worked so much better had Beaver been 4 or 5 years younger. 'Cause I couldn't accept a 12-year-old boy playing the part that was written here for Jerry Mathers.
This story-line really stretched credulity to the point of snapping under its own weight. I guess that the scriptwriters were really grasping at straws with this one.
Worst of the series
a-alexander1192 December 2020
Horrible
coreycitn638 May 2023
Warning: Spoilers
Beaver The Bunny was one of the worst episodes of Leave It To Beaver. It is basically a rehash of Season two's School Play where the Beaver was cast as a canary. What makes this episode bad is that the Beaver and his classmates was too old to be in this play which is meant for first or second graders. It is this reason that shows like Leave It To Beaver, Dennis The Menace and The Brady Bunch where most of the child actors outgrown their roles. It is bad enough for the Beaver to be a bunny but was forced to walk to the school in his bunny costume after Lumpy's car breaks down. It was episodes like this which cause a show to die.
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