User Reviews

Blanche's belligerent grandson David comes to visit Blanche when his parents keep fighting. The gang isn't too keen on this idea, but Blanche manages to persuade them into letting David stay with them. David starts being recalcitrant and disrespectful towards them. This was a pretty good episode! Not one of the best, but very entertaining. It was an honest look at family issues that rang true. The plot is really ordinary, but executed well. It was really nice to see a different side of Blanche! We saw a vulnerable side of her and we don't see it all that often. That storyline aside, it's Dorothy and Sophia who steal the show in this one. I cracked up a lot at the bed scene between them. I also loved the scene where Sophia cracks a Sylvester Stallone joke and talks about how good- looking he is! Estelle Getty would wind up being in a movie with Stallone called "Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot!" Blanche has a great scene where she tells off her daughter on the phone like only she can. Your enjoyment of this episode may depend on how much you can tolerate of David! Billy Jayne is fine as David, but the character is a smug little Sh***** that I wanted to slap silly at times.

8/10

Blanche's teenage grandson comes over to spend some time while the parents are on vacation. He behaves badly but after a few conversations changes and becomes well behaved and even wants to stay living with them. But Blanche makes her daughter take him back and change the way she is dealing with him.

The episode is a bit too cheesy for my taste. And the development of the grandson's character is too fast and too simplistic. it was more about teaching us a lesson than to entertain.

And interesting how they give in to the sexism of him not doing house chores because he is a boy. Well, it was made in the 80's!

Blanche gets a visit from her teenage grandson, who turns out to be nothing but trouble from the moment he arrives...

"On Golden Girls" probably has the most peculiar title of an episode. I know that this is likely a reference to the film "On Golden Pond" but it just seemed rather redundant. It's not really one of my favorites either.

As usual, even the dullest Golden Girls episode is elevated by some well-written jokes and this episode is no exception, but too much of the plot revolves around Blanche trying to connect with her rebellious grandson. The whole episode seems to have an after-school special vibe to it and the grandson doesn't evoke much sympathy. It does, however, set the stage for Blanche's regret of her estrangement from her children which would make for some good Blanche moments later in the series.

Being a sitcom, there are a few funny moments but they're few and far between here. The major standout moment would have to be Dorothy's priceless reaction at a teenager's rattail, but Bea Arthur was always the undisputed queen of the reaction shot.

Overall, this isn't one of the show's best episodes but it's not the worst either.

As one of the rare episodes that I tend to skip right past because of its unlikable guest character (Billy Jacoby), this doesn't really give a truly acceptable reason for Blanche's grandson David's obnoxiousness. Yes, it is obvious that his parents ignore him and have neglected him to have their own life away from being responsible, but the way he treats his grandmother from the time he arrives is not at all believable. He's rude to Dorothy, Rose and Sophia from the outright, telling them nastily that he doesn't intend to sit around and watch their arteries harden, and ultimately gets a well deserved smack from Sophia. He interrupts their sleep in the middle of the night by bringing over complete strangers and playing loud music and acting offended when they tell him that the party is over.

David settles down a bit when they give him understanding and show him tough love, and then all comes out in regards to his parents. Too easy, to quickly resolved, and unlike "On Golden Pond" (where Doug McKeon's Billy obviously has a genuine reason to hate being dropped off to be supervised by people he doesn't even know), David comes off mostly unlikable. It is noticeable from the start how much Billy Jacoby resembles his half brother Scott Jacoby who appeared on several episodes as Dorothy's troubled (and also unlikable) son Michael. The only good thing with the episode is that it shows the loyalty between the four women and how they all work together to make everybody's family feel welcome when they do visit, even if that particular family member isn't worthy of an invitation.