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Reviews
All in the Family: Archie Is Branded (1973)
Unexpected
While many if not all of the episodes in the show's first 4-5 seasons are near perfect, this one ends in an unsettling way. With the death of a person from a car bomb. Archie's reaction is rather haunting, as is the quiet ending. Norm Lear outdoes himself here. Little things, details, are great. Archie has Mike stay on the line with the police while he sits down to eat. Mike's acting is really great in this episode. This one, and the episode where Gloria has a miscarriage are the rare ones that actually leave the viewer feeling sad at the end. Sometimes I'm just amazed at how truly excellent this show was and the live acting before an audience - how did they pull it off week after week?
All in the Family: Archie and the Miracle (1974)
So Funny, So Darned Funny
This too is one of my favorites. There were so many top-notch 9 or 10 star episodes of this show it is easy to be complacent as to how funny this show actually was.
Archie's "damn, damn, damn..." uttering had me laughing out loud in bed at 12:30 am last night while watching this again. Just such a funny premise: Archie has found Jesus because his life was spared. Committed to the church for about a couple of hours has him changing his tune. Driving the bus for the old folks and missing out on Jets tickets...hahahaha.
This episode is comedy gold. Carroll O'Connor - easily the best comedic actor in history. Proof right here.