Airdate:
11/27/80
While in an
out-of-town café, Harley foster is IDed as a man named Tyrone, who is an
escaped convict from the South doing time for murder. John is outraged when
Sheriff Bridges comes and investigates whether or not they one and the same,
but Harley confesses that he is indeed the escapee – but that his charge was
entirely self defense against a drunk white man who slipped and hit his head on
a tire rim. The episode ends as John vows to set the matter straight and asks
Bridges for one extra day before he arrests Harley.
Meanwhile,
overseas: Ben is a Seabee in the Pacific, disgruntled at having to take orders
from a by-the-books CPO; Jim-Bob is presumably training for the Air Force,
somewhere in Virginia; and John-Boy is still writing for the Stars and Stripes
in Paris, trying to locate Jason, who is somewhere south of Paris. Corabeth
resolves to be a good say-at-home hausfrau, as she believes that’s what Ike
wants, and Cindy resents her sisters-in-law doing all the manual labor because
they feel she’s too dainty.
Excellent 9th
season opener does a good job keeping up with the Walton in boys in their new
locations while telling an engaging tale with strong social significance. The
Fosters, Harley, Josh and especially Verdie, have been solid supporting players
on the show for many years now, and it’s good to see them still, up until the
end of the series.
Ad-lib alert:
watch for the scene with John and John Curtis, whose baby-talk includes “Pat,”
which John improvs as the woman “at the farm down the road.”
New opening
credits are still fairly boring – all children are now listed individually over
a sepia mountain backdrop, and the Godsey’s have their own listing over the
general store – but Ralph Waite is still the only one with his picture!
This is listed
as a two-parter, but again was originally broadcast as a two-hour episode. The
airdate for this show was 11/27/80 – the reason for its late airing was the
writers’ strike, which postponed all series for the 1980-81 season.
Casting curio: Bewitched’s Dick Sergeant plays the
Naval CPO who has it out for Ben.
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