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Post by prometheus74 on Jul 16, 2011 14:20:49 GMT -5
Which moments in the show do you find to be the most dated?
To me, an episode that always comes to mind is "Space Rangers", in which Pam is in awe about the "wonders" of microwave cooking! ;D
There are actually two or three scenes in that episode in which Pam is praising the awesome "magic" of what was back then, I suppose, a state-of-the art appliance----the microwave oven. LOL
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Post by herald7 on Jul 16, 2011 15:22:39 GMT -5
Oooo good question! Oh yes, the microwave moment definitely stands out. "That's the great thing about microwave cooking, it fits your schedule!" ;D I'm surprised they didn't include a brand name in there! Lol  In TV and movies, there's usually two things that are the most vulnerable to becoming dated: Fashion and Technology. Taking place in the very early '80s, I think GAH represents a moment where fashion was in transition. "We're still a bit '70s, and we're not sure what to replace it with yet!" A lot of the bad guys on GAH have the leisure suits with the big collars or ties. But I don't recall seeing too many bell bottoms, so I guess they were being phased out, hehe. Ralph starts out with the sort of big '70s afro which is in time replaced with a shorter look. So again, a lot of transition. The most obvious example of dated technology are the phone booths (and frankly I think we're foolish to get rid of them completely!). |
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Post by prometheus74 on Jul 17, 2011 2:36:50 GMT -5
Good comments. Yes, what you're saying is very true: Fashion and technology are the two things which show their age the most.
To this, I would add a third----geopolitics. Watching the show, we hear a lot about the Soviet Union (or as Maxwell once calls it: "the good ol' U.S.S. of R." ;D) and other places such as Czechoslovakia-----countries which are long since vanished.
One more thing about the microwave oven: Pam, in the episode, mentions that the big bulky appliance with the fake wood finish is brand-spanking new-----while the person watching the episode is thinking "what a dinosaur!". ;D
Regarding phone booths, we still have a few here-and-there up here in Vancouver, but they are few and far between. I wouldn't want to be in a situation where I'm in a desperate need to find one immediately to make an important call, because as luck would have it, there probably wouldn't be one around when I need one most. LOL
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Post by herald7 on Jul 17, 2011 7:36:56 GMT -5
To this, I would add a third----geopolitics. Watching the show, we hear a lot about the Soviet Union (or as Maxwell once calls it: "the good ol' U.S.S. of R." ;D) and other places such as Czechoslovakia-----countries which are long since vanished. Ooo true, I hadn't thought of that. And at the same time, it's eerie to see how some things haven't changed. Like I think in the Who's Woo episode where Bill says, "I'm tellin ya, it's all about oil!" Eerie indeed... |
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Post by MelMac on Jul 18, 2011 15:19:04 GMT -5
Dated: 1 The show dated the space shuttle era, so the Columbia in "The Shock Will Kill You" is actually a cutout of the actual ship. The Columbia had its first launch in 1981, and they didn't have a lot of film of the ship flying or landing. Ironically, the fact that it was the Columbia makes this episode even more ironic - eerie - as the real one was destroyed and in the episode it nearly was until Ralph saved it.  2. A lot of Ralph's clothes, particularly workout clothes - are outdated. I know a lot of them are dated, but his outfit for tennis in "Who's Woo" is especially bad. 3. Chalkboards (a lot of schools now use wipe boards or digital boards) 4. most cases double propeller planes for trips to other countries. (I think "Chicken in Every Plot" - anyway the story where the kids go on the plane for their trips) 5. Rotary phones - heck a lot of HOME PHONES. A lot of phone booths have been repurposed of you can still see them without the telephones. I do see some pay phones still, but they are rare. 6. Seeing our illustrious trio NOT buckled in the cars. The laws at the time did not require seatbelts to be fastened. 7. Never mind the dated clothing, the fact that Cyler would NEVER be allowed - at least where I am - to have a mesh shirt or Paco to have his hair that long is dated. A lot of schools - don't know about LA, but still a lot - have resorted to dress codes. 8. A lot of the hospital stuff is dated, and now there'd been a chance that the doctor would NOT have allowed Bill in the treatment room with Ralph (or vice versa) ("Beast in the Black") or allowed Bill into Ralph's room after he was knocked out by the train - only Pam as he probably asked for her ("Train of Thought"). Bill also wouldn't have probably left due to his hit over the head - security probably would've stopped him, or he'd had to sign an AMA (against medical advice) in order to get out ("Beast in Black.") 9. Film cameras ("Desparado" - Pam photographing the horses) - most cameras now are digital, and the few film I know usually are held by art students who have to take film photography to get their degrees. In fact, I am even dating myself, as it was a requirement for me to graduate in my degree, and another thing I use (Photoshop) I took as a Computer art class, not a degree required one. Come to think of it - microfilm cameras too - you can put cameras in just about anything now. 10. The Apple IIe - type computers (green screen/two toned screen, such as black screen with green/white text), any type of full-room sized computers used for computer screens in many of the stories ("Live at Eleven" is an excellent example). 11. Having and using manual typewriters - enough said. If a typewriter is used, it's usually electronic. Probably a few more, but will have to think of them. |
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Post by herald7 on Jul 18, 2011 15:43:27 GMT -5
2. A lot of Ralph's clothes, particularly workout clothes - are outdated. I know a lot of them are dated, but his outfit for tennis in "Who's Woo" is especially bad. True, though not unflattering, hehe. |
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Post by MelMac on Jul 18, 2011 16:21:28 GMT -5
I agree...except for the shot of "Ralph" being strapped to the truth machine, and it's obviously NOT Katt! (wrong clothing and a hairy stomach... I honestly think the suit was morphed and thought it needed to make Ralph look like Tom Selleck (Thomas Magnum) there for a moment. ) |
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Post by herald7 on Jul 18, 2011 16:30:57 GMT -5
I agree...except for the shot of "Ralph" being strapped to the truth machine, and it's obviously NOT Katt! (wrong clothing and a hairy stomach... I honestly think the suit was morphed and thought it needed to make Ralph look like Tom Selleck (Thomas Magnum) there for a moment. ) Lol, thank you, I'm glad someone else noticed that! Maybe they realized too late that they didn't get all the shots they wanted, or something went wrong with the original shot, and Katt had already left. |
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Post by The J-Man on Jul 18, 2011 18:32:14 GMT -5
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Post by herald7 on Jul 18, 2011 19:18:51 GMT -5
As a friend of mine recently observed while watching this scene , "Back then, you had know where people were if you wanted to call them." Wow, I hadn't thought of that! Lol. Life was much simpler back then in many ways. Though cell phones have some advantages, at least in emergencies. In that respect, Ralph and Bill's communicator was ahead of its time! One other thing about fashion, Ralph talks about losing his Earth shoes in the pilot. Earth shoes of course were introduced in the 1970's as a way to get "closer to nature" and make an unconventional fashion statement. www.bookrags.com/research/earth-shoes-sjpc-02/ |
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Post by prometheus74 on Jul 18, 2011 23:53:41 GMT -5
Good example, Mel, regarding the computers that we see on the show. I remember seeing those kinds of "old fossils" when I was about 10, 11 years old. LOL. Of course, back then, you'd only see computers in schools (my school only had one!) and in hospitals, etc.... Few people had one at home. The only kid I knew, who had a computer at home, had one because his dad was a marine biologist. The closest thing to a computer that my other friends had was an Atari 2600. ;D Now, almost everyone has a computer. It's hard to imagine life without the internet.
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Post by MelMac on Jul 19, 2011 8:58:37 GMT -5
You bring up a good point - the VIDEO games are altered. You don't see many arcade machines now unless they're dual play or the ones with the guns.
And the graphics have vastly altered - you wouldn't see "Dungeons and Dragons" (which is what they used for the "Wizards and Warlocks" game) in those graphics.
(BTW, probably the ONE game I will play on a Nintendo 64 is the Intellivision collection they got. Sadly, they don't have four of my favorites - "Burgertime," "Q-Bert," "Beauty and the Beast" and "Lock 'n' Chase." While I can see that they'd possibly get into arguments of copyright issues with "B&B" (reminiscent of "Donkey Kong") and "Lock 'n' Chase" (PacMan), I have yet to this day had trouble with why not the other two. At least they did keep "Triple Action" and "Snafu.")
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Post by MST3Claye on Jul 19, 2011 12:27:24 GMT -5
One thing I've noticed about arcade machines or even today's video games when shown on tv, and I do believe they did this in "Wizards and Warlocks". The sound effects used for these were sounds from the old Pac-Man arcade game. Doesn't matter if it's a different game or a game being played at a character's home, you'll hear the familiar Pac-Man sounds.
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Post by MelMac on Jul 19, 2011 12:42:28 GMT -5
From what I can hear of the sound effects for the game used in that episode, they are indeed the ones for Dungeons and Dragons - they had the whoosh puff sound. Admittedly it is a bit hard to tell though because the replacement song for "Pinball Wizard" is a smidge too loud. I do find it funny though that some of the moves done tended to not work that way when I tried playing the game. BTW - I tended to get killed by the rat or spider. |
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Post by MelMac on Jul 19, 2011 14:54:27 GMT -5
There is also one more I thought of - we have Sam the Hippie in "It's All Downhill from Here." There aren't many hippies out and about anymore, and we call some environmentalists because they want to commune with nature and the like. (Sorry to sound like Bill there though.  ) |
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Post by herald7 on Jul 20, 2011 6:38:55 GMT -5
I'm not that up on sports, is anything dated in that 200 mile an hour fastball episode?
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Post by MelMac on Jul 20, 2011 8:39:08 GMT -5
Possibly ballplayers having individual negotiators (here Bill playing Ralph's manager for the team), and now they're unions.
The scoreboard is a bit dated, but to be fair... this stadium looks to be a minor league stadium at best, and from that standpoint it's about the same.
Being able to get just about anywhere - even if players, is dated. Now they have security everywhere for safety and to prevent streakers across the field (Clothed or not).
The uniforms are most definitely dated. Most of the attire now doesn't include what looks like stirrup straps on the feet.
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Post by herald7 on Jul 20, 2011 8:58:21 GMT -5
The uniforms are most definitely dated. Most of the attire now doesn't include what looks like stirrup straps on the feet. Oh that's right, I have noticed that those were being phased out lately. Too bad, I personally preferred that look, lol. Oh and that reminds me, Ralph appearing on The Mike Douglas Show, you can't get much more dated than that, hehe. |
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Post by MelMac on Jul 20, 2011 13:23:54 GMT -5
Open air hallways and satellite buildings for schools. Most of them are now all together in one large building. We frequently see Ralph and Bill walking from one building at Whitney to another one and there's some sort of garden area and the like.
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Post by Videofox on Jul 20, 2011 22:17:03 GMT -5
Bill's car phone. 'Nuff said. |
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"FOUR?!"
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