Sam plans to surprise Ann with a romantic Caribbean cruise for Xmas, but it slowly turns into a big family affair, including Schneider.
Casual viewers may tune in to this episode and be confused by all the new characters who became regulars in this show's later seasons. Those cast changes are what kept the show from getting as stale as some of its' contemporaries like ALICE and THE JEFFERSONS. Julie is mentioned in the script but Mackenzie Phillips does not appear. It's nice they included Shelley Fabares in this episode even though it's basically just a walk-on. She does get a nice little dig at Ann though - so there's that.
The best parts are when Ann explains to Sam that Schneider is "NOT just the janitor" and when Schneider gifts Sam with a T-shirt that reads "I'd Rather Be Schneider".
What's most surprising is that ONE DAY AT A TIME was able to produce such a decent episode in Season 9, a time when most lost-running shows have worn out their welcome and fatigue usually sets in for the actors and writers. This is still a worthwhile watch. 7/10.
Casual viewers may tune in to this episode and be confused by all the new characters who became regulars in this show's later seasons. Those cast changes are what kept the show from getting as stale as some of its' contemporaries like ALICE and THE JEFFERSONS. Julie is mentioned in the script but Mackenzie Phillips does not appear. It's nice they included Shelley Fabares in this episode even though it's basically just a walk-on. She does get a nice little dig at Ann though - so there's that.
The best parts are when Ann explains to Sam that Schneider is "NOT just the janitor" and when Schneider gifts Sam with a T-shirt that reads "I'd Rather Be Schneider".
What's most surprising is that ONE DAY AT A TIME was able to produce such a decent episode in Season 9, a time when most lost-running shows have worn out their welcome and fatigue usually sets in for the actors and writers. This is still a worthwhile watch. 7/10.
