Project Rewatch: Season 2 Disc 1 Episodes 33-35
On the one hand, we definitely have a great deal of Problematic '60s Crap going on here. On the other hand, both the writers and the boys seem to be more on their game in these episodes.
Three episodes :
Season 2 Disc 1 Episode 33: It's A Nice Place To Visit (a.k.a. The Monkees In Mexico)
Synopsis: The Monkeemobile breaks down in a Mexican backwater. The boys head to the cantina while the local shade tree mechanic works on it; Davy promptly falls for the waitress, Angelita. However, the local bandit lord, El Diablo, has marked her as his property, and one of his bandits intimidates the boys right back out into the street. Not having enough to pay for the repairs, the Monkees end up putting on a performance at the cantina to pay the mechanic, which works fine until Davy kisses Angelita goodbye - just before El Diablo himself shows up. The other three beg and plead for Davy's life, but the bandits kidnap Davy anyway. Micky, Mike, and Peter dress up as the notorious bandits El Dolenzio, El Nesmito, and El Torko to infiltrate the bandit camp, which, after three trials of strength, wits, and courage, they are surprisingly successful at. In celebration, the bandits get drunk; Peter, then later the other two, steal off under the pretense of not being able to hold their liquor, and steak Davy back. After paying off the parking attendant, they return to town, where Micky specifically is challenged to a showdown. Said showdown turns into a romp, which ends with the bandits tied up and the Monkees free to go (we aren't shown what happens to Angelita).
The little town, El Monotono, is pretty much straight off the set of any given Zorroesque movie, with the usual stereotyped inhabitants. Given that the exact same stereotype set shows up two decades later in Three Amigos, I am inclined to shake my head sadly rather than get pissed off this time. With the possible exception of El Diablo himself, there is surprisingly little brownface to go with the bad stereotypes; the rest of the actors for the bandit troupe all have Hispanic surnames. There are several don't-speak-the-language gags, although they do go both directions; Nez's and Peter's broken Spanish become reference points for gags (Peter's is sort of funny, Mike's not so much).
We have, of course, the new beginning credit sequence, and "For Pete's Sake" has now become the closing theme. Micky's hair here is no longer flat-ironed but not yet in his Itali-fro. The performance piece, when they're supposed to be playing in the cantina, has Micky in the 'fro and Mike hatless, so I'm guessing it was filmed later. (Micky is no longer really pretending to play drums, either; he's shamelessly clowning back there.)
There's a lot of straight-up prop comedy in this one, including a gag involving repeatedly unstacking and restacking chairs in the cantina, Peter being the only Monkee who can properly twirl a gun or smoke a cigar, Micky attempting several rope tricks and failing miserably, Micky trying to dance on a table, and El Diablo taking several pratfalls as a result of the guys' actions. All of it is decent; Micky and Peter, in particular, really have their comic timing down here. There's a cannon prop we've seen a couple of times already, which makes a longer appearance here, mostly being mishandled by Peter.
There's the usual Treasure of the Sierra Madre reference. Also, the background music throughout the episode has been redone to match the setting; there's a Westernized version of the main theme underscoring the showdown before it morphs into a romp.
Peter has a great deal of trouble untying Davy; Micky, once he arrives, does it right away.
Foley blooper: The church bell ringing high noon only rings 11 times.
Season 2 Disc 1 Episode 34: The Picture Frame (a.k.a. The Bank Robbery)
This is a leftover first-season script, and it smells like it. Synopsis: Mike, Micky, and Davy are hired as 'actors' by two con artists posing as movie producers, who give them a set of lines and tell them that they're playing bank robbers. They proceed to hold up the Ninth National Bank, under the impression that everyone there is an extra; Davy gets cash (but not a date) from the clerk, Mike gets the manager to open the safe (by impersonating a timer), and Micky strips the patrons of their valuables (doing his Cagney impersonation again). When they get back, Peter has finally arrived, having gone to the wrong soundstage; the boys turn over the props (including the money and valuables) and leave with $200 for their efforts. The police arrive at the Pad to arrest them; the boys think this is just another scene until one cop comes in shooting. When the cops show the security camera footage, the boys complain that it's in black and white, and otherwise act like they're in a movie theater. When interrogated, they continue to stick to their story (and cut up, being Monkees), landing all of them but Peter first in prison and then in a courtroom, where they each represent each other. While the courtroom shenanigans are going on, Peter returns to the studio, finds a piece of evidence that Micky and Mike sent him for, and is chased around the studio by the con men in a romp. He finally arrives at the courtroom with the wrong evidence, but the judge, charmed by Mike's demeanor and Davy's baby pictures, lets them off anyway.
Well, on the one hand, we have a female judge; on the other hand, rather than bamboozle her like they do with male authority figures, the boys charm her instead - a bit sexist, overall. At least they didn't release the Davy-eyes at her; they sent Mike in instead.
The movie studio is Mammoth Studios, which appeared in Episode 12 as a functioning movie studio, and was mentioned again in Episode 31, where the director mentions that it's gone out of business. Here, we see the entire studio lot abandoned except for the boys and the two con artists, which is consistent with it having gone bankrupt.
Micky at one point coaches the cop who comes to the Pad in how to intimidate them. Already a budding director, our Dolenz.
The Inspector from Episode 11 has been promoted to a Sergeant now. It's unclear whether or not he recognizes the boys from their previous escapades; his collective addressing of them as "Monkees" throughout the interrogation sequence might be evidence that he does.
Peter, wearing a deerstalker cap and carrying a meerschaum pipe, is effectively the hero of the story, even though he technically failed the mission he was set. He also displays an unusual level of cleverness (for him) in his escape from the studio.
First appearance of the button hat for Nesmith. First appearance of the infamous poncho for Micky, but only in the musical sequences.
First appearance of the Rainbow Room! There are several clips of them doing "Pleasant Valley Sunday" in the RR during the romp; Peter is on keyboards and Davy on bass, with Micky on drums and Mike on lead guitar as normal. Rather than an interview, we get "Randy Scouse Git" in its entirety at the end, with Micky out in front punishing the tympani for unforgivable sins, Davy on the trap set, Peter on piano, and Mike on lead guitar - with no one manning the bass at all!
Season 2 Disc 1 Episode 35: Everywhere A Sheik, Sheik
I strongly suspect that someone, somewhere, misrendered "Everywhere A Chic Sheik" for the title of the episode.
Another one from the leftover ideas pile, and a near-clone of previous Davy episodes: King Yaduin of Nehudi decrees that his daughter must get married after his Prime Minister, Vidaru, states that the stars demand it. Rather than be stuck with Vidaru, the Princess Colette chooses Davy from a fashion magazine. The king's servants promptly kidnap Davy and invite the other Monkees to the wedding. While Davy has a short interview with Colette (and promptly falls for her, just like every other princess), the others attempt to sneak into the king's hotel suite, failing the first time but returning as a pseudo-military bomb squad and scaring off the guard. The king promises them all riches, political power, and harems if they go along with the wedding, and they are lulled into agreement. As they settle into their new cabinet positions, Vidaru and his henchman attempt to kill them off, being foiled by the king's loyal servants and dumb luck. The minister's final plot is explosive goblets at the bachelor's banquet, but the princess slips Peter a clue by way of one of the harem members, and Peter manages to explode his goblet against the wall instead, prompting a swordfight and a romp. For exposing the Prime Minister's plot, the king lets the boys out of the marriage contract - but Colette has changed her mind, anyway; now she wants Peter instead!
The episode reeks of a sort of generic Orientalism, but manages to avoid any particular ethnic stereotypes (it is never made clear whether Nehudi is supposed to be Arab, Farsi, Turkish, Bedouin, or what; Micky at one point seems to mistake them for Hebrew) and steers clear of any specific Islamic cultural references, which lands it squarely in the "problematic but not outright racist" pile.
Of the various princesses that Davy gets saddled with, Colette at least has some initiative of her own - she insists on choosing her own husband, she actively attempts to woo Davy (and, at the end of the episode, Peter), and her handmaidens are also her spies, at least informally. (It's not clear if the harem offered as an incentive to Davy and the rest of the boys are all her handmaids, or if some of them are supposed to be extra members of the King's harem; they're all around Colette's age, and dressed to match her, so I'd guess the former.) No one bothers challenging the horrific sexism directly, but at least she's not passive, like the first princess was.
The fridge in the Pad has been painted sometime between the previous episode and this one. I'm going to assume the cop shooting every damn thing in the last episode chipped the paint and the boys redecorated it. (Also, Micky somehow manages to put on a pair of sunglasses instantaneously in the scene at the Pad - I can't tell if that's an actual continuity error or if he's supposed to put them on at the end of the scene and there's an editing problem.)
First appearance of the barbershop "hello!" gag. Also, Davy has picked up a new bit of schtick - looking straight at the camera and giving a high-pitched "Oo!" when something shocking happens. I think that's new for Season 2; at least, I don't remember it happening in Season 1.
Boy, Micky sure crosses his eyes a lot in this episode. Also, various hats (mostly Mike's and Micky's) get knocked off in the course of the episode.
Vidaru claims at the end of the episode (just before the romp) to be an oilman from Oklahoma, rather than Nahudian. Both claims are obviously false; based on his asymmetrical beard, he's clearly a Wunderlander.
The song for the romp is "Love Is Only Sleeping," again staged in the Rainbow Room. Mike and Peter are on their accustomed instruments; Davy is behind the kit, and Micky is seated next to the Moog, although we never see him actually operating it in the clips we get between romp gags.
The romp includes a pillow fort and a sword fight. Davy is once again the best fencer of the four, although Peter also acquits himself well this time; the fight is ended by someone offscreen throwing one of the remaining explosive goblets at Vidaru and his minions (since it blows up in the place it was supposed to, I'm guessing it was Micky's).
After the end gag with Peter and Colette, we go to a staging of "Cuddly Toy." The dancer here seems to be having fun, and leading Davy half the time - hardly the pathetic little thing described in the lyrics. In fact, the entirety of the lyrics of "Cuddly Toy" probably count as Getting Crap Past The Censors, especially the "cherry delight" line. Note that both the episode songs have Micky singing not just backing but harmony vocals - and not easy ones!
This is the first Season 2 episode with an interview tag. Peter gets several sight gags, including stringing himself up by his own love beads; Micky (in the fringed poncho) is asked what he's wearing, and gives several gag answers (a tablecloth, Davy's dining room carpet), before complaining that he really hates the interview segments; Davy relates the tale of the Fan Who Mailed Herself. Again, Micky has the full Itali-fro in the interview segment and the Rainbow Room bits, but only wavy hair in the narrative part of the episode.
Whoo, Problematic '60s Crap Ahoy! The first and third episodes have individual bits that transcend the problematic set-up, but it's all sort of shadowed - and they all have sexism problems. That two of them are effectively Davy episodes doesn't help, although by now even the one-member focused plots have more ensemble work than they did originally. Moreover, the guys are more on their game, which helps distract from the problematic crap.
The next three episodes are Mike-centric, Peter-centric, and Micky-centric, which should also help.
Three episodes :
Season 2 Disc 1 Episode 33: It's A Nice Place To Visit (a.k.a. The Monkees In Mexico)
Synopsis: The Monkeemobile breaks down in a Mexican backwater. The boys head to the cantina while the local shade tree mechanic works on it; Davy promptly falls for the waitress, Angelita. However, the local bandit lord, El Diablo, has marked her as his property, and one of his bandits intimidates the boys right back out into the street. Not having enough to pay for the repairs, the Monkees end up putting on a performance at the cantina to pay the mechanic, which works fine until Davy kisses Angelita goodbye - just before El Diablo himself shows up. The other three beg and plead for Davy's life, but the bandits kidnap Davy anyway. Micky, Mike, and Peter dress up as the notorious bandits El Dolenzio, El Nesmito, and El Torko to infiltrate the bandit camp, which, after three trials of strength, wits, and courage, they are surprisingly successful at. In celebration, the bandits get drunk; Peter, then later the other two, steal off under the pretense of not being able to hold their liquor, and steak Davy back. After paying off the parking attendant, they return to town, where Micky specifically is challenged to a showdown. Said showdown turns into a romp, which ends with the bandits tied up and the Monkees free to go (we aren't shown what happens to Angelita).
The little town, El Monotono, is pretty much straight off the set of any given Zorroesque movie, with the usual stereotyped inhabitants. Given that the exact same stereotype set shows up two decades later in Three Amigos, I am inclined to shake my head sadly rather than get pissed off this time. With the possible exception of El Diablo himself, there is surprisingly little brownface to go with the bad stereotypes; the rest of the actors for the bandit troupe all have Hispanic surnames. There are several don't-speak-the-language gags, although they do go both directions; Nez's and Peter's broken Spanish become reference points for gags (Peter's is sort of funny, Mike's not so much).
We have, of course, the new beginning credit sequence, and "For Pete's Sake" has now become the closing theme. Micky's hair here is no longer flat-ironed but not yet in his Itali-fro. The performance piece, when they're supposed to be playing in the cantina, has Micky in the 'fro and Mike hatless, so I'm guessing it was filmed later. (Micky is no longer really pretending to play drums, either; he's shamelessly clowning back there.)
There's a lot of straight-up prop comedy in this one, including a gag involving repeatedly unstacking and restacking chairs in the cantina, Peter being the only Monkee who can properly twirl a gun or smoke a cigar, Micky attempting several rope tricks and failing miserably, Micky trying to dance on a table, and El Diablo taking several pratfalls as a result of the guys' actions. All of it is decent; Micky and Peter, in particular, really have their comic timing down here. There's a cannon prop we've seen a couple of times already, which makes a longer appearance here, mostly being mishandled by Peter.
There's the usual Treasure of the Sierra Madre reference. Also, the background music throughout the episode has been redone to match the setting; there's a Westernized version of the main theme underscoring the showdown before it morphs into a romp.
Peter has a great deal of trouble untying Davy; Micky, once he arrives, does it right away.
Foley blooper: The church bell ringing high noon only rings 11 times.
Season 2 Disc 1 Episode 34: The Picture Frame (a.k.a. The Bank Robbery)
This is a leftover first-season script, and it smells like it. Synopsis: Mike, Micky, and Davy are hired as 'actors' by two con artists posing as movie producers, who give them a set of lines and tell them that they're playing bank robbers. They proceed to hold up the Ninth National Bank, under the impression that everyone there is an extra; Davy gets cash (but not a date) from the clerk, Mike gets the manager to open the safe (by impersonating a timer), and Micky strips the patrons of their valuables (doing his Cagney impersonation again). When they get back, Peter has finally arrived, having gone to the wrong soundstage; the boys turn over the props (including the money and valuables) and leave with $200 for their efforts. The police arrive at the Pad to arrest them; the boys think this is just another scene until one cop comes in shooting. When the cops show the security camera footage, the boys complain that it's in black and white, and otherwise act like they're in a movie theater. When interrogated, they continue to stick to their story (and cut up, being Monkees), landing all of them but Peter first in prison and then in a courtroom, where they each represent each other. While the courtroom shenanigans are going on, Peter returns to the studio, finds a piece of evidence that Micky and Mike sent him for, and is chased around the studio by the con men in a romp. He finally arrives at the courtroom with the wrong evidence, but the judge, charmed by Mike's demeanor and Davy's baby pictures, lets them off anyway.
Well, on the one hand, we have a female judge; on the other hand, rather than bamboozle her like they do with male authority figures, the boys charm her instead - a bit sexist, overall. At least they didn't release the Davy-eyes at her; they sent Mike in instead.
The movie studio is Mammoth Studios, which appeared in Episode 12 as a functioning movie studio, and was mentioned again in Episode 31, where the director mentions that it's gone out of business. Here, we see the entire studio lot abandoned except for the boys and the two con artists, which is consistent with it having gone bankrupt.
Micky at one point coaches the cop who comes to the Pad in how to intimidate them. Already a budding director, our Dolenz.
The Inspector from Episode 11 has been promoted to a Sergeant now. It's unclear whether or not he recognizes the boys from their previous escapades; his collective addressing of them as "Monkees" throughout the interrogation sequence might be evidence that he does.
Peter, wearing a deerstalker cap and carrying a meerschaum pipe, is effectively the hero of the story, even though he technically failed the mission he was set. He also displays an unusual level of cleverness (for him) in his escape from the studio.
First appearance of the button hat for Nesmith. First appearance of the infamous poncho for Micky, but only in the musical sequences.
First appearance of the Rainbow Room! There are several clips of them doing "Pleasant Valley Sunday" in the RR during the romp; Peter is on keyboards and Davy on bass, with Micky on drums and Mike on lead guitar as normal. Rather than an interview, we get "Randy Scouse Git" in its entirety at the end, with Micky out in front punishing the tympani for unforgivable sins, Davy on the trap set, Peter on piano, and Mike on lead guitar - with no one manning the bass at all!
Season 2 Disc 1 Episode 35: Everywhere A Sheik, Sheik
I strongly suspect that someone, somewhere, misrendered "Everywhere A Chic Sheik" for the title of the episode.
Another one from the leftover ideas pile, and a near-clone of previous Davy episodes: King Yaduin of Nehudi decrees that his daughter must get married after his Prime Minister, Vidaru, states that the stars demand it. Rather than be stuck with Vidaru, the Princess Colette chooses Davy from a fashion magazine. The king's servants promptly kidnap Davy and invite the other Monkees to the wedding. While Davy has a short interview with Colette (and promptly falls for her, just like every other princess), the others attempt to sneak into the king's hotel suite, failing the first time but returning as a pseudo-military bomb squad and scaring off the guard. The king promises them all riches, political power, and harems if they go along with the wedding, and they are lulled into agreement. As they settle into their new cabinet positions, Vidaru and his henchman attempt to kill them off, being foiled by the king's loyal servants and dumb luck. The minister's final plot is explosive goblets at the bachelor's banquet, but the princess slips Peter a clue by way of one of the harem members, and Peter manages to explode his goblet against the wall instead, prompting a swordfight and a romp. For exposing the Prime Minister's plot, the king lets the boys out of the marriage contract - but Colette has changed her mind, anyway; now she wants Peter instead!
The episode reeks of a sort of generic Orientalism, but manages to avoid any particular ethnic stereotypes (it is never made clear whether Nehudi is supposed to be Arab, Farsi, Turkish, Bedouin, or what; Micky at one point seems to mistake them for Hebrew) and steers clear of any specific Islamic cultural references, which lands it squarely in the "problematic but not outright racist" pile.
Of the various princesses that Davy gets saddled with, Colette at least has some initiative of her own - she insists on choosing her own husband, she actively attempts to woo Davy (and, at the end of the episode, Peter), and her handmaidens are also her spies, at least informally. (It's not clear if the harem offered as an incentive to Davy and the rest of the boys are all her handmaids, or if some of them are supposed to be extra members of the King's harem; they're all around Colette's age, and dressed to match her, so I'd guess the former.) No one bothers challenging the horrific sexism directly, but at least she's not passive, like the first princess was.
The fridge in the Pad has been painted sometime between the previous episode and this one. I'm going to assume the cop shooting every damn thing in the last episode chipped the paint and the boys redecorated it. (Also, Micky somehow manages to put on a pair of sunglasses instantaneously in the scene at the Pad - I can't tell if that's an actual continuity error or if he's supposed to put them on at the end of the scene and there's an editing problem.)
First appearance of the barbershop "hello!" gag. Also, Davy has picked up a new bit of schtick - looking straight at the camera and giving a high-pitched "Oo!" when something shocking happens. I think that's new for Season 2; at least, I don't remember it happening in Season 1.
Boy, Micky sure crosses his eyes a lot in this episode. Also, various hats (mostly Mike's and Micky's) get knocked off in the course of the episode.
Vidaru claims at the end of the episode (just before the romp) to be an oilman from Oklahoma, rather than Nahudian. Both claims are obviously false; based on his asymmetrical beard, he's clearly a Wunderlander.
The song for the romp is "Love Is Only Sleeping," again staged in the Rainbow Room. Mike and Peter are on their accustomed instruments; Davy is behind the kit, and Micky is seated next to the Moog, although we never see him actually operating it in the clips we get between romp gags.
The romp includes a pillow fort and a sword fight. Davy is once again the best fencer of the four, although Peter also acquits himself well this time; the fight is ended by someone offscreen throwing one of the remaining explosive goblets at Vidaru and his minions (since it blows up in the place it was supposed to, I'm guessing it was Micky's).
After the end gag with Peter and Colette, we go to a staging of "Cuddly Toy." The dancer here seems to be having fun, and leading Davy half the time - hardly the pathetic little thing described in the lyrics. In fact, the entirety of the lyrics of "Cuddly Toy" probably count as Getting Crap Past The Censors, especially the "cherry delight" line. Note that both the episode songs have Micky singing not just backing but harmony vocals - and not easy ones!
This is the first Season 2 episode with an interview tag. Peter gets several sight gags, including stringing himself up by his own love beads; Micky (in the fringed poncho) is asked what he's wearing, and gives several gag answers (a tablecloth, Davy's dining room carpet), before complaining that he really hates the interview segments; Davy relates the tale of the Fan Who Mailed Herself. Again, Micky has the full Itali-fro in the interview segment and the Rainbow Room bits, but only wavy hair in the narrative part of the episode.
Whoo, Problematic '60s Crap Ahoy! The first and third episodes have individual bits that transcend the problematic set-up, but it's all sort of shadowed - and they all have sexism problems. That two of them are effectively Davy episodes doesn't help, although by now even the one-member focused plots have more ensemble work than they did originally. Moreover, the guys are more on their game, which helps distract from the problematic crap.
The next three episodes are Mike-centric, Peter-centric, and Micky-centric, which should also help.