Um Amor de Família

OK, what's to say about this underappreciated masterpiece of a sitcom that hasn't already been said? Ed O'Neill IS Al Bundy in a way that most of us aren't even ourselves in our own lives. The series wore out its welcome long before its end, but its prime years were incredible. I enjoy my life so much more knowing that I could be Al Bundy, but I'm not!

It sure ain't Father Knows Best, Leave It To Beaver, or Ozzie And Harriet. Those 1950's family shows perfectly defined that air-brushed decade with their fantasy mom, dad, and kids, where no problem couldn't be solved by dad just moving his car and the kids piling in. Against that fantasy world MWC must come from a different planet, or maybe even solar system. Daughter Kelly's Saturday night dates exceed her IQ, while son Bud dates only in his imagination. At the same time, dad Al last smiled when wife Peg almost chopped off her finger, while Peg might one day learn how to turn on a stove. In short, the Bundys amount to the last word in tv's dysfunctional families. For this geezer who grew up with 50's tv families, this 90's version amounts to a hilarious step toward another kind of reality, maybe not the kind we want to be a part of, but a gutsy one for tv to undertake.

"Married... with Children" just has something about it that makes it hilarious, it takes the basic premise of the family and suburban life, and puts the family from the hell in there and just lets them constantly rip on each other. It's a testament to the basic formula of the show that it lasted so long, and was still actually funny right up until the last season (with an overweight, balding Ed O"Neil and kids old enough to have left the house by now). The casting was perfect (except for newcomer Jefferson in my opinion) and the character of Ed was what really made the show. The opening song fitted the show perfectly too. Anyone who has watched the show probably has "Married... with Children" moments to this day when they open a fridge with nothing but an empty milk carton in the door or have thoughts about installing an antenna on the roof.

"Married... with Children" is probably one of America's greatest TV exports, it was a privilege to be growing up when this was on every week and I wish all the castmembers continued success.

"Married with Children" is the kind of show that does nothing for civilization and has no moral value...yet I got some of the biggest laughs in TV history from this show. It is still one of my all-time favorites. I even enjoy watching the repeats over and over again. That's when you know a show is great.

As for Al Bundy, could they have created a funnier TV character than him? He is one of my favorite TV characters, and I sometimes try to imitate him. My friends even jokingly thought of starting a "No Ma'am" group of our own. Speaking of "No Ma'am" one of my favorite episodes is the one where Al starts his own Church, in order to avoid paying taxes. He rants and raves like the stereotypical evangelist, only he has two scantily-clad women by his side. Then Marcy and her feminist group come marching in, showing everyone pictures of Al and Peggy on a romantic date. Everyone gasps. In response, Al imitates Jimmy Swaggart by shedding tears and screaming out, "I have sinned." That was genius! When they one day show a retrospective of the funniest moments in TV history, that scene should definitely be shown. Ed O'Neill plays the character so perfectly, and I was amazed to see that he's actually nothing like his character in real life. He's a very nice, soft-spoken guy. Yet he couldn't be any more convincing as that character. Al Bundy will be his legacy!

The supporting cast is great. David Faustino, Christina Applegate, Katey Sagal, David Garrison and Ted McGinley are all very talented. But I could never understand why Bud had trouble getting girls. Faustino's a pretty good-looking guy. Acting-wise, he couldn't be any better, but they could've picked a less attractive actor to have his persona be more convincing.

Yes, the show may appear to be misogynistic. All the female characters are either airheads, whiny housewives or overweight. But I think in a way it's poking fun at misogynism. I don't think the show ever glamourizes the act of misogynism. Just look at the male characters. They're a bunch of beer-drinking slobs. Would you want to follow their philosophies on life? But I do admit, I enjoy the presence of many scantily clad babes on each episode. Hey...if women want to make a show where macho guys appear on every episode in thongs, be my guest! I won't watch it, but it doesn't offend me. If women find "MWC" offensive, don't watch it! You have a remote--use it!

There are so many memorable moments on the show that I will have to take up this whole message board to jot them all down. I will just mention two:

When Peggy painted the bathroom pink and made it girly-looking, and Al was frightened at the sight of it. So when the inspectors came to check it out, Al empties a bag with five sandwiches inside. The song "Bad to the Bone" plays as Al scarfs down every sandwich, drowning each one with hot sauce. He grabs a newspaper, tucks it under his arm and runs straight to the bathroom. The inspectors come running out, the toilet flushes and Al leaves the bathroom proudly.

When Al accidentally got circumsized. He would be afraid to look at anything even mildly stimulating because he was afraid a stitch would break.

But as much as I liked the show, I felt good that it was cancelled. Because the last season reeked!!! I don't know what went wrong, but the writing was drab and contrived, the acting was flat--Al didn't seem like Al anymore! He was actually turning into sort of a nice guy! The show lost all its energy. But for all the previous seasons, I absolutely adored the show. And I regard it as a classic!

My score: 9 (out of 10)

This show is an all time classic and it's easy to see where more modern shows, especially such total and blatant rip-offs as the Simpsons, have their roots.

Married came about at a time when all other family sit-coms were sickly-sweet and correct. Who can forget such horrors as the Cosby Show or Diff'rent Strokes? Married was different. It dared to push the envelope of what was considered (at the time) right and proper. The family wasn't nice to each other all the time (or even any of the time!) and the show had a more real feel to it as a result.

Of course, reality quickly became subjective in Married, as the episodes became ever more ridiculous and crazy. But every show pandered to some aspect of family life that we can all identify with - car sharing, hatred of our spouses relatives, puberty, dating, work etc. etc. The list is endless. If it's a real life issue, Married has spoofed it in some way or other. Nothing was sacred. Even PMS! Though the writers were reigned in a few times, by all accounts.

The show ran for eleven seasons and over 250 episodes, which is pretty incredible for a comedy show and really should give you an indication of the dedicated fan base that Married attracted. I suspect the show will be in re-runs somewhere until the end of TV as an entertainment medium.

For more info on the show I recommend the E True Story documentary on the show, which really gives an insight into how the show started, progressed and finally was cancelled.