If Northern Exposure is anything, it's quirky. If it's something else, it's unexpected. Fans should know that. Those qualities are what draw us to it. So when Shelly gets an odd symptom during pregnancy-like most women do-we shouldn't be at all surprised that it's something *very* quirky and unexpected.
But that's just one sub-story in this episode. The real story is the sick tree. Cicely's love of this tree is so very, very "Northern Exposure". Of course, Ed is the first to notice the problem and is one of those most distressed about it.
The other sub-story is the yin and yang of Joel and Maggie's emotional battlefield, which is a fairly common go-to, being that it's what feeds the fire of their relationship.
So don't let a few musical numbers (that are really part of a very plausible plot) bug you. They only make this episode even *more* "Northern Exposure". To give the entire episode a poor rating is just lazy and over-reactionary.
But that's just one sub-story in this episode. The real story is the sick tree. Cicely's love of this tree is so very, very "Northern Exposure". Of course, Ed is the first to notice the problem and is one of those most distressed about it.
The other sub-story is the yin and yang of Joel and Maggie's emotional battlefield, which is a fairly common go-to, being that it's what feeds the fire of their relationship.
So don't let a few musical numbers (that are really part of a very plausible plot) bug you. They only make this episode even *more* "Northern Exposure". To give the entire episode a poor rating is just lazy and over-reactionary.