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Wednesday, August 21, 2013

Cheers 7.3: “Executive Sweet” (Part 1 of 2)


Airdate: 11/10/88

Martin Teal, the new executive VP, wants to see Rebecca in his office. The main man, however, looks all of nineteen – but that doesn’t stop him from putting the moves on Rebecca. Turned off by his youth but grateful that he just promoted her to sole manager of Cheers, she finds herself in a sticky situation, one she remedies, for the time being anyway, by lying that she and Sam are together. Teal calls Sam to “size up the competition,” but sensing that he’s being used, Sam “breaks up” with Rebecca, leaving the two to date – and face harassment by the Cheers gang for their age difference. No one’s laughing, however, when Teal bestows his beloved with a perfectly sinful diamond ring – as a proposal of marriage. To be continued…

Rebecca’s on her way back to head honcho, but there’s a catch, as there always is: figuring out what to do with an ever header-honcho that’s half her age. Teal seems a bit modeled after Michael J. Fox, particularly his Alex P. Keaton character, or the one he played in The Secret of My Success. He’s good, but his scenes are handily stolen by the man playing his assistant – an older gent trying to be dignified but all too obviously a yes man, even though Teal “hates yes men.” Subplot involving Woody’s beekeeping is quite funny – best scene: Frasier frantically rips off his shirt when Carla tells him there’s a bee under it. (When will the Cheers gang ever stop listening to Carla?)

Cold open: Cliff’s new idea: a postal worker-themed amusement park, which salutes the brave and noble men and women carrying the mailbag. That’s where the real money is – not in the current dead end job he currently has!


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