"WHAT EVERY YOUNG MAN SHOULD KNOW"



Thoroughly original plot sends Darrin and Samantha on a "cuckoo experiment" to see if Darrin would have married Sam if he had known she was a witch. This episode and "If They Never Met" (#99) are perfect bookends to exploring what life may have been like for our favorite couple before they got married.

More than anything else, this storyline is wonderful for it actually puts together the missing pieces that were never included in the pilot. As you may recall, the pilot episode has Darrin and Sam meeting, dating and marrying all before the opening credits. Here time is taken to show what may/could/would have happened before all that, fleshing out their pre-marriage history even more.

Dick York is fabulous here. Whether in the beginning trying to stammer his way out of the hole he's dug himself into or later reaching new heights in frustration trying to defend his actions, York always has us rooting for Darrin to succeed. In an interesting twist to the time travel element, Darrin doesn't remember any of his trip while Samantha and Endora do. With this definite disadvantage of only getting to HEAR what he DID second-hand, this makes his frustrations all the more justified, not just hot-tempered.

Wonderful scenes abound: The opening wher the seed of doubt is originally planted in Samantha's mind; The argument that escalates after Endora suggests taking Samantha and Tabitha away; Darrin literally throwing Larry out of his apartment! The witchcraft is pretty good although Sam's disappearing act in front of Larry could've have been flashier while Endora's "ramalama" incantation (very different!) starts to wear a bit thin the third time around. Special mention must go to the chair falling out of the sky...very nice!


FAVE QUOTE: Darrin: "Be thankful I didn't meet HER (Endora) before I proposed to you!!!"

©Review Copyright 1998 by SCOTT VIETS

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