Writer: Raoul Plager
Director: Asaad Kelada
Original Air Date: May 28, 1979
^^^FAMOUSLY FUNNY^^^
This episode is just funny. No heartfelt monologues, no topical issues. "Fish Story" is just straight up, catch-your-breath funny. Because of this simple fact, it is one of the most beloved episodes in the series; perhaps the second most famous after "Turkey's Away." And it's all thanks to the writer Raoul Plager.
Almost any interview with Hugh Wilson, or members of the WKRP cast, will touch on the story of Raoul Plager. CBS kept demanding this new show be funnier - broader comedy for a larger audience. Wilson resisted, wanting to concentrate on more realistic topics. But CBS continued to insist, and thinking the show was about to be cancelled anyway, Plager was brought in to write a parody of a broad, farcical sit-com just to shut them up.
Raoul Plager is a pseudonym for Hugh Wilson himself. He was so embarrassed by the script, he took his name off of it. So how bad is it?
It starts with Johnny and Venus drinking on air. A fat guy (who is NOT Jonathan Winters) is leering at Jennifer when Herb walks by in a fish suit. Bailey end up arrested in a men's room. All this while Andy is being interviewed for a magazine. The trick of stew isn't the ingredients - it's how all the ingredients are blended together. Although Plager may have thought the ingredients weren't the best, it's how each grows organically out of the situation that makes this a classic.
Isn't that what a "situation comedy" suppose to be? A simple idea taken to it's most ridiculous conclusion.
The 'B' story of this episode follows Johnny and Venus on the air together (!) participating in a drunk driving awareness campaign for which they take a drink every 15 minutes then have their reflexes tested by a sheriff. The test is to show even after one drink, a person's reflexes slow down. Except Johnny's keep getting faster, infuriating the Sheriff. Neither Reid nor Hesseman play drunk with any conviction, but Reid's "Drunk Venus" is weirdly over the top. He swings from being uncoordinated to quick witted and back; sometimes within the same sentences!
Of course, everyone who has ever been drunk has imagined they are just Dr. Fever - getting better at life with each drink. If only it worked that way, I could get these blogs out faster! ;)
The 'A' story is another instance of Mr. Carlson coming up with a station promotion. This one is not as stupid as hurling turkeys from a helicopter. Creating a mascot for the station and sending it to the university pep rally is not a bad idea - it's a stolen idea from their biggest competitor WPIG, but it's not bad. Sending Herb out to represent the station is probably a bad ideas.
But just look at this picture below, and tell me how this is not funny? In any language it reads absurd!
And if you watch this episode again, listen for the woman in the audience who is literally SCREAMING with laughter! That really just how the scene begins. Look at these shots:
Even Bailey takes a swing at the pig!
Nesman of Queensberry!
Add to this that throughout all the craziness, Andy is trying to impress a reporter writing a story about how professionally the station is run.
If you've been keeping an eye on the original air dates, you'll notice this aired about a whole month after the previous episode. CBS was loosing faith in the show and looked to burn off what had been produced. Once episodes like "Fish Story" and "Turkeys Away" were played in repeats over the summer, word started to spread, a fan base grew and WKRP was brought back for at least another season.
Roy
I just saw this again this past week on Me-TV, and for me, it's the funniest episode of the whole series, moreso than the show's more sophisticated entries. WKRP should've bought "Raoul Plager" back to write a few more episodes.
ReplyDeleteOne of the worst. Witless and infantile, as Wilson intended. The fact that this is one of the most popular episodes may explain why the more subtle comedy of the better episodes wasn't better appreciated.
ReplyDelete