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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Marley Drama" data-source="post: 411703" data-attributes="member: 23">Mary Tyler MooreSeason SixEdie Gets Married / Mary Moves Out /  Mary’s Father / Murray In Love / Ted’s Moment Of Glory / Mary’s Aunt / Chuckles Bites The Dust / Mary’s Delinquent / Ted’s Wedding / Lou Douses An Old Flame / Mary Richards Falls In Love / Ted’s Tax Refund / The Happy Homemaker Takes Lou HomeHappily, most of the reservations I had about MTM during the last season have vanished and I’ve enjoyed the first half of the Sixth Season. I wouldn't say it’s the series at its finest, but it’s certainly had its moments and remains a nice, fairly comforting way to pass the time. Beyond the first couple of episodes, the new apartment has actually been a fairly easy adjustment for me. My biggest gripe was that there was no real closure for me as a viewer with the old apartment. Yes, it was seen at the beginning of Season Seven, but it was never seen again once Mary decided to move (a decision taken away from the apartment, if I remember correctly), so there was no “goodbye” scene. It didn’t help that I’d forgotten this change was about to happen, so it jarred me in the way I imagine it might have done the original audience.Now it’s done, though, I’m pleasantly surprised that I haven’t missed that classic set very much. I put this down to there being no Rhoda, Phyllis or Bess. Somehow with the new set, regular visits from the WJM crowd feels less intrusive and more logical. I can’t remember if anything’s been mentioned but I’ve rationalised it that the new apartment is closer to the city, and so probably also to the studio and perhaps even the homes of other characters. When Georgette had a one-to-one conversation with Mary at the old apartment, I found myself constantly wishing it was Rhoda. In the new location that hasn’t happened. I’m enjoying Georgette more than I have in some time, so the move is improving my relationship with the remaining characters.Some stories feel a little repetitious or familiar. Ted looking at an apartment in Mary’s building, for example. Or Murray’s crush on Mary which we’ve previously seen with another of her colleagues (Ted again, I think). The latter in particular just felt like disposable, plot-driven sitcom fare where characters act in ways that serves the story of the week rather than in a way that feels truthful. Sadly, this was also another strike against Murray who I just struggle to “get” as a character. As things have gone along, he’s proved to be a bad friend, a bad colleague, a poor father and (more than once) a bad husband. I don’t watch television for puritanical morality, but because I just don’t get what Murray is about beyond an endless string of snarky put-downs I find it more difficult to accept. Conversely, Sue Ann’s acidic comments are a divine joy and never fail to make me smile.Having watched it, I feel I should mention Chuckles Bites The Dust, but at the same time I’m not sure I have anything profound to say about it. I enjoyed that it explored attitudes towards death and the tendency in Western society to use inappropriate humour as a coping mechanism in response to death. I thought it came together well in the second half and I thought it was a good episode. That said, watching it with “the best American sitcom episode ever”, it had a lot to live up to and I don’t feel it did this. Watching in this context, it read to me as simply one of a number of very enjoyable episodes over the course of the series. Which is still no bad thing. There was a piece of real-life fun to come from watching the episode. Yesterday I was at a nature reserve. The canteen area had a vaulted ceiling from which hung a huge mobile of different leaves. I found myself smiling and said to my partner (who has been watching along with me) “I think Sue Ann’s been here” before nodding at the mobile. It gave the pair of us a laugh, even though the display in question was much more pretty and tasteful than Sue Ann’s food group effort.</blockquote>

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