User Reviews

I saw this episode of "The Odd Couple" only once, when it first aired in 1972. I never forgot Ms. Mason's poignant performance. What impressed me in '72 and now is the honest, though ambiguous ending. There is no pat, happy ending to this sitcom episode. Instead, we are left wondering what will happen to Lisa as she decides to keep on drifting when she leaves Oscar's and Felix's apartment, much to the concern of Oscar and Felix. It's a haunting ending that has stayed with me all these years. Bravo to the writers, director and regular cast members. Though a special brava (as she is a woman) must be given to Ms. Mason.

Okay, I don't consider it one of the best ever. I just had to make that pun. But it's still great.

Oscar goes to a resturant for a meal when a woman asks him if she can borrow his paper. All a sudden she faints on his shoulder, and he tries to get someone to help her until she wakes up. As it turns she has barely eaten and has nowhere to stay. Oscar invites her to come stay at his apartment while Felix is gone.

I really like episodes where Oscar's empathetic side comes through. While on the surface he's a womanizing slob he also cares a lot about people's well-being. As a result the bonding moments between him and Lisa as they get to know each other are very sweet.

The sequence where Felix comes home unexpectedly early and he prepares for a good night's sleep without the knowledge of a woman lying in bed is the episode's highlight. This show can mine comedy out of every little detail. Just the sound Felix makes as he gargles in the bathroom washing down water cracks me up. His bedazzled expression when he realizes his bed is occupied is equally rollicking, followed by Tony Randall's superbly delivered line "It's not my birthday."

Although Felix is much more sceptical towards Lisa staying over (understandable as he was given no heads-up at all), he comes to like her too. She doesn't just share Oscar's interest in sports, she also shares Felix's passion for classical music and ballet. Those parts are full of as much charm as her interactions with Oscar. This couldn't be accomplished so well if not for Marlyn Mason's splendid guest performance. She makes her character so compelling you'd want to meet this person yourself.

In classic Odd Couple fashion, a bizarre misunderstanding occurs when first Oscar invites her to go to a game, then Felix asks her to go with him to a photography session. Unable to choose between them she (they kinda decided before she had time to say "yes" anyway), she cancels both meetups. But that's not the only reason she cancels. She wasn't planning on staying for that long either way, as the two of them discover her packing a suitcase.

It's definitely pretty manipulative of her to play buddy-buddy with Oscar and Felix only to abruptly decide to leave. But her reason for doing so is pretty sad. She doesn't want to grow too attached and she apparently prefers just meeting new people every week, drifting from apartment to apartment. They tell her that is not a way to live, but she insists that she's happy.

By the time she leaves they feel both confounded and a bit empty. Here they get to meet such a special woman, only to suddenly be out of their lives, being out on the streets again.

It's a depressingly realistic ending. How do we really help someone who has no place to stay? How can a person be so content with never finding a real home?

It does end on a funny final note to lighten things up, with Oscar going back to the resturant with Felix where he met Lisa, using the same fainting trick she did. Even so though, her ambigious fate remains in my mind.