The sad contrast between the 1978-80 series and the 1988-90 set is starkly exemplified by this truly appalling episode.
The hackneyed storylines of James disappointing Helen by being two weak to stand up to Siegfried; the reappearance of Stewie (an unpleasant example of poor character-invention, even in his first incarnation); the putupon housekeeper; and the puerile and disgusting gastric "jokes" are a gross insult to a loyal audience whose affection for the characters made the programme a huge success in the earlier series. If they had to go through the motions in order to string out the last few episodes they could at least have had the grace to do it by repeating the more attractive mundanities.
The hackneyed storylines of James disappointing Helen by being two weak to stand up to Siegfried; the reappearance of Stewie (an unpleasant example of poor character-invention, even in his first incarnation); the putupon housekeeper; and the puerile and disgusting gastric "jokes" are a gross insult to a loyal audience whose affection for the characters made the programme a huge success in the earlier series. If they had to go through the motions in order to string out the last few episodes they could at least have had the grace to do it by repeating the more attractive mundanities.
