Bosom Buddies Season 1
Bosom Buddies Season 1 is in the books. The idea for this blog came from my buddy Robby saying I should document my thoughts as I embark on this Tom Hanks filmography project. Most of what I write here will be more like thoughts I had during an episode or movie not exactly a fully curated review.
Tracking down a TV show from 1980 proved to be a bit of a challenge. I have Hulu, Netflix, AmazonPrime and HBO. Bosom Buddies was not available on any of those platforms. I managed to find 3 episodes on Youtube that were not blocked for copyright infringement. By episode 4 I was shut down so I turned to Amazon. I found a set on Amazon for 18 bucks, but I felt like maybe that was a bit high for a 40 year old show and a 13 year old DVD. I found one on Ebay that I felt good about. I was winning the bid for 5 days at 5 bucks, but in the end it went for 20 dollars. I found another seller and began negotiating with him but he wanted 25. I messaged him when he rejected my offer that his price was higher than Amazon and he should rethink that. Well I wonder if he might have been the same seller, because within a day that listing on Amazon was gone. I found another seller that I went back and forth with and managed to settle on 16.00 with free shipping. Still a bit higher than I wanted to spend, but on with the show!
Bosom Buddies features Tom Hanks as Kip/Buffy Wilson along with Peter Scolari as Henry/Hildegard Desmond. They are joined by Wendi Jo Sperber as Amy Cassidy their coworker, Donna Dixon as Sonny Lumet (Amy's roommate), Telma Tompkins as Isabelle Hammond (resident), and Holland Taylor as Ruth Dunbar (Kip, Henry, Amy's boss).
The show centers around Kip and Henry's various experiences as young single ad-men in New York. When their apartment is demolished the guys hatch a plan to cross dress as women to take a room in Amy's building, the Susan B Anthony hotel for women and hijinks ensue.
Through a 2020 lens the entire show initially feels a bit cringey. There is overt sexual objectification of female characters, especially Sonny; though Amy does the same with Henry. Quite a bit of the humor is derived from awkwardness of men dressed as women, which seems insensitive to the plight of transgender people. There were several moments that in 1980 probably didn't warrant a second thought, but in 2020 really didn't seem appropriate. It's interesting to go back and see how our culture has progressed with time.
Overall I did enjoy the first season despite the concerns I mentioned above. Hanks especially really shines in the quiet, introspective moments. I prefer those moments to the loud, exaggerated yelling moments anyhow.
Below I'll leave some comments I had on each episode.
Pilot- Nothing special here. Introduces the characters and sets up the show well. I didn't recognize Holland Taylor by name. I had to look her up. I knew her from her role on 2 1/2 Men as Evelyn Harper, having completely forgotten that she also played a judge on The Practice one of my favorite shows from the late 90s-early 2000s.
My Brother, My Sister, Myself- They replaced the manager of the hotel for some reason. Hildegard delivers a rather forward thinking speech about not having to explain herself. This might would be empowering until you realize its delivered by a cross dressing male character. Also, the central drama here boils down to slut shaming.
Loathe They Neighbor- What's with the Stockard Channing dig? The Indian jokes near the end are pretty racist. Calling an Indian character "curry breath" is particularly egregious.
Tracking down a TV show from 1980 proved to be a bit of a challenge. I have Hulu, Netflix, AmazonPrime and HBO. Bosom Buddies was not available on any of those platforms. I managed to find 3 episodes on Youtube that were not blocked for copyright infringement. By episode 4 I was shut down so I turned to Amazon. I found a set on Amazon for 18 bucks, but I felt like maybe that was a bit high for a 40 year old show and a 13 year old DVD. I found one on Ebay that I felt good about. I was winning the bid for 5 days at 5 bucks, but in the end it went for 20 dollars. I found another seller and began negotiating with him but he wanted 25. I messaged him when he rejected my offer that his price was higher than Amazon and he should rethink that. Well I wonder if he might have been the same seller, because within a day that listing on Amazon was gone. I found another seller that I went back and forth with and managed to settle on 16.00 with free shipping. Still a bit higher than I wanted to spend, but on with the show!
Bosom Buddies features Tom Hanks as Kip/Buffy Wilson along with Peter Scolari as Henry/Hildegard Desmond. They are joined by Wendi Jo Sperber as Amy Cassidy their coworker, Donna Dixon as Sonny Lumet (Amy's roommate), Telma Tompkins as Isabelle Hammond (resident), and Holland Taylor as Ruth Dunbar (Kip, Henry, Amy's boss).
The show centers around Kip and Henry's various experiences as young single ad-men in New York. When their apartment is demolished the guys hatch a plan to cross dress as women to take a room in Amy's building, the Susan B Anthony hotel for women and hijinks ensue.
Through a 2020 lens the entire show initially feels a bit cringey. There is overt sexual objectification of female characters, especially Sonny; though Amy does the same with Henry. Quite a bit of the humor is derived from awkwardness of men dressed as women, which seems insensitive to the plight of transgender people. There were several moments that in 1980 probably didn't warrant a second thought, but in 2020 really didn't seem appropriate. It's interesting to go back and see how our culture has progressed with time.
Overall I did enjoy the first season despite the concerns I mentioned above. Hanks especially really shines in the quiet, introspective moments. I prefer those moments to the loud, exaggerated yelling moments anyhow.
Below I'll leave some comments I had on each episode.
Pilot- Nothing special here. Introduces the characters and sets up the show well. I didn't recognize Holland Taylor by name. I had to look her up. I knew her from her role on 2 1/2 Men as Evelyn Harper, having completely forgotten that she also played a judge on The Practice one of my favorite shows from the late 90s-early 2000s.
My Brother, My Sister, Myself- They replaced the manager of the hotel for some reason. Hildegard delivers a rather forward thinking speech about not having to explain herself. This might would be empowering until you realize its delivered by a cross dressing male character. Also, the central drama here boils down to slut shaming.
Loathe They Neighbor- What's with the Stockard Channing dig? The Indian jokes near the end are pretty racist. Calling an Indian character "curry breath" is particularly egregious.
Macho Man- Men eat like pigs, women demure and barely eat then a penis joke. Masculinity= Travolta Disco? Kip drinking a daiquiri played for a joke. Mechanical Bull can "ruin a marriage", bruiser at the bar refers to the woman Henry is hitting on as "my woman".
What Price Glory- Dr. Bob is a horrendous character and this episode plays his sexual harassment for laughs. He slaps Ruth on the ass twice in the secen and then aggressively corners a woman in the elevator. She visibly recoils as the elevator closes and the laughs from his exit continue. At least the episode recognizes this and the main characters refer to him as sleezy and decide to abandon the path set by Dr. Bob. It was interesting to see an episode of Mad Men show up in this sitcom.
What Price Glory- Dr. Bob is a horrendous character and this episode plays his sexual harassment for laughs. He slaps Ruth on the ass twice in the secen and then aggressively corners a woman in the elevator. She visibly recoils as the elevator closes and the laughs from his exit continue. At least the episode recognizes this and the main characters refer to him as sleezy and decide to abandon the path set by Dr. Bob. It was interesting to see an episode of Mad Men show up in this sitcom.
Kip and Sonny's Date- Why the sudden change in characterization? Kip was super direct and confident early in the season. Now he's suddenly a buffoon who can't even ask Sonny out. Ruth's niece is odd. This episode looks like an SNL skit.
Beauty and the Beasts- The show calls out the objectification of women by the main characters. The epilogue makes fun of Ruth's sexual desires. I laughed though, so...
Revenge- #metoo played for a laugh by Isabelle. Is Peter Scalari a Steve Martin impersonator? Scalari's Columbo is great.
Revenge- #metoo played for a laugh by Isabelle. Is Peter Scalari a Steve Martin impersonator? Scalari's Columbo is great.
Amy's Career- The OJ joke doesn't age well. Wow, smoking in the office.
Gotta Dance- A library has an accounting budget large enough for an ad firm and a commercial?
Sonny Boy- Mom is so concerned about son's cross dressing she lures him to a meeting with a psychologist. She eventually accepts him so I guess it's okay?
How Great Thou Art- "Just like scanners?" Not the first reference I didn't get. Why the Bea Arthur dig? Oh boy, a slavery joke? A black woman "I can buy a man for 1000". Hank's talent really begins to shine through in the quiet moments.
Kip Quits-An integration joke?
Kip Quits-An integration joke?
Only the Lonely- The boss essentially harasses and guilts the guys into being her friends. Humor does come from the varied awkward situations.
The Rewrite- Merv is having Anson Williams? Gargoyle like Victor Mature/Helen Ready? I didn't get these references. I assume "Merv" refers to Merv Griffin.
The Show Must Go On- The opening song makes me think of the running man challenge from several years ago. The DvD's don't have the Billy Joel song they have Shake Me Loose. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H2p2mvw6zvg Oh WOW! Bob Sagat as a stand up. I can't help but laugh at the slapstick of Isabelle unable to cash in on her opportunity. I had no idea the Aunt from Family Matters could sing so well.
The Hospital- Jake Lammota reference?
Best Friends- eh...
Cahoots- A whole scene about Elizabeth Taylor's marriages. In 2020 this is solved in 10 seconds by a google search.
Onward to Season 2!
Cahoots- A whole scene about Elizabeth Taylor's marriages. In 2020 this is solved in 10 seconds by a google search.
Onward to Season 2!
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