OMG I haven't seen Golden Girls in YEARS and it's suddenly playing on TV here in London.

That was a backdoor pilot for 'Empty Nest.' The whole thing was overhauled by the time the spinoff aired the next season.

Not a good example. Backdoor pilot, as R1 suggests. They never appear again. In Empty Nest, one of the GG spinoffs that mostly resembles this plot line, the wife is dead.

Right thank you, R1 & 2.

The "next episode" they go to Vegas or somewhere to see Burt Reynolds, doing what I'm not sure - but the magic prevails. Hurray!

Those gurls is GLAMOUROUS!

But they're running these in some weird order.

Poor Rita Moreno...she deserved better.

Do they ever re-air The Brighton Belles in the UK?

I don't think so R5.

I wonder if Brighton Belles will ever pop up on the web.

They're not running them in order.

What a drag!

I'm mystified why in was popular and no less by why it is still popular (except maybe that it's audience is not all dead, yet.)

Preachy, heavy-handed, predictable, not funny, And always a ridiculous plot as a sdistracting backdrop to some "magic" among the characters that was lost one me.

R9 typed that with his dick

[quote]I wonder if Brighton Belles will ever pop up on the web.

I wonder this too...every day.

The only funny one amongst them is Wendy Craig (on left). No wonder it failed.

I love it. The lesbian episode was on a few weeks back.

The Empty Nest backdoor pilot is considered the worst GG episode ever. Tediously unfunny, it comes off like it was written in about 10 minutes. It's pretty astounding that actors of that caliber never raised a hand to say "this sucks."

[quote] Backdoor pilot,

You called?

[quotee]The Empty Nest backdoor pilot is considered the worst GG episode ever. Tediously unfunny, it comes off like it was written in about 10 minutes. It's pretty astounding that actors of that caliber never raised a hand to say "this sucks."

How weird then, that this one is the one I should first see after all these years.

Anyway, I don't think I'm going to follow it if they're going to be jumping around timewise. SO annoying.

R16 There is zero continuity in The Golden Girls! That’s the beauty of it! You can watch the episodes in any order!

What part did Wendy Craig play? Rose?

OK, thanks, R17,

[quote]What part did Wendy Craig play? Rose?

Did they get Butterflies in America?

I don't remember them.

Rita Moreno deserved better. She's great, but you would never know it here. She got interviewed and said they kept changing her character up to the show date and she couldn't remember her lines.

I've never heard of Butterflies before, R20. On wikipedia it says there was a US pilot shot and aired in 1979, but it didn't get picked up for series.

I thought they ran Butterflies on PBS in the 80s

Thank you for being a friend, OP.

The Golden Girls is SO overrated on this site!

I'm not knocking it, R25 - I came back and said the next episode they ran had the magic and after it was explained that this was an especially bad episode and why...which is more or less why I posted this thread. I couldn't work out why it was so bad.

I also enjoy people's love for the show on here, very much.

[quote]The lesbian episode was on a few weeks back.

We're not lesbians - we're IMAGE CONSULTANTS!

R13 could be referring to Lebanese Jean.

I need another DL thread about Golden Girls like I need another Marvel movie. ENOUGH.

WHET Park Overall?

R20 I remember watching Butterflies on PBS, I always thought the ginger on the left was cute.

I know this is a Mary observation: Why was Rose never sitting on the center chair at the kitchen table? Everybody was sitting wherever the hell they wanted, but she was never sitting in the center. Was there something in White's contract to never show her from the front?

Dorothy only ever sat in the middle, except when Blanche sat on the whoopee cushion.

[quote]I know this is a Mary observation:

Nothing wrong with that. Gay observations matter.

[quote]Preachy, heavy-handed, predictable, not funny, And always a ridiculous plot as a sdistracting backdrop to some "magic" among the characters that was lost one me.

Sounds like you're describing Designing Women. I never found Golden Girls to be preachy, save for an episode here and there (e.g., homeless episode). But DW seemed to have preachiness and schmaltz in every friggin' episode.

Empty Nest.......wasn't an empty nest because the girls lived with dad.....that never made sense to me?? I did really enjoy the early seasons as a kid. I think it was on after TGGs here in Australia.

R36 The girls were still on their own through much of the first season. They eventually moved back in by the end. of the season

So, the show lost its premise pretty early on.

The title was tongue in cheek. Not that hard to figure out.

Brighton Belles! Sheila Hancock emits total cunt vibes. Poor John Thaw.

I watched a couple of episodes recently, and was depressed that I am almost their age at the beginning of the show. I was just a boy when I saw the same episodes for the first time.

The lack of continuity is part of the charm of the GGs. It’s like the writers didn’t even consider the audience would follow the show closely when it aired originally, let alone during the decades-long love affair viewers would have with the show.

R32 Rose sat in the middle chair during the finale! I’m a Mary for knowing this!

Was there ever any consistency in how many kids/siblings the girls had? The seemed to have a never ending stream of relatives popping in for a short visit

[quote] I’m a Mary for knowing this!

There's absolutely NOTHING wrong with this. Marys matter!

They have remade the show in various countries. According to Wikipedia the most successful one has been Israel, which is the only one to run for several seasons. It is called Bnot HaZahav. Below is the opening of the Dutch remake which looked fun. The girls seemed very active.

And we love you for it, r43!

"we"?

Did the girls ever see each other naked or admit to having any kind of sexual feelings for each other?

R49, I think there was a very special episode where Rose admitted to Sophia that she "just loved to eat Sicilian clam, if you catch my drift".

Sophia, being the devout Catholic that she was, slapped Rose, told her she would burn in hell and force fed her a big Italian salami instead.

No r50! Dorothy and Blanche walked in on Sofia sitting on Rose’s face! They splintered the wicker couch and Dorothy was so angry she shot the Chinese vase!

Wendy Craig - Matron!

No, Wendy Craig was NANNY.

80s gays should know this...the American 80s gays too.

I'm glad you're serious about enjoying the Golden Girls, OP.

r51 Good, I always hated that vase.

Hey R54, I saw you in this episode of Princesses: