This is an easy episode to write about, because a lot happens. In extended flashbacks we get quite a bit of background information on Rick and A.J., seeing how they lived in the late 60s. We also get to see how Cecilia looked and acted back then.
An added bonus is the music. 'California Dreamin' by the Mamas and the Papas opens and closes the show, and there are a few other tunes played through the episode. One tune is done on guitar by guest Don Grady, who left his steady gig on 'My Three Sons' to pursue a music career. In addition to the music, we get to enjoy the clothes, hairstyles and social attitudes of a bygone era. The dialogue, though, seems very modern in the flashbacks and I would expect more slang or teen catchphrases from those years. A minor quibble.
The crime elements, which trigger the flashbacks, involve an ex-girlfriend of A.J.'s named Anita (played by Jameson Parker's future wife Darleen Carr). She's selling her family home and comes across old photos and newspaper clippings of her deceased brother who was killed back in the 60s. Of course, A.J. and Rick will help find out who really offed her brother.
There's a twist mid-way into the episode where A.J. learns Anita had an abortion (obviously in the days before Roe v. Wade). She says it was his child, then we find out the baby she aborted belonged to someone else, the person who killed her brother. In a way, this is rather contrived. I don't think a young man would kill another guy just because some chick got pregnant and had an abortion. I actually think the female would kill to cover the secret, especially since it was illegal at the time and she's the one who had the procedure done.
I also found it too convenient the writers undid making A.J. the father. What's the point of going there, if it doesn't mean anything? He could have still been the dad of the aborted child, and the other guy out of jealousy could have gone to kill A.J. and killed the brother by accident. That might have made a stronger story. The abortion is really a separate issue-- probably included by the writers to seem more topical and to add to the what-if scenario between A.J. and his old flame.
An added bonus is the music. 'California Dreamin' by the Mamas and the Papas opens and closes the show, and there are a few other tunes played through the episode. One tune is done on guitar by guest Don Grady, who left his steady gig on 'My Three Sons' to pursue a music career. In addition to the music, we get to enjoy the clothes, hairstyles and social attitudes of a bygone era. The dialogue, though, seems very modern in the flashbacks and I would expect more slang or teen catchphrases from those years. A minor quibble.
The crime elements, which trigger the flashbacks, involve an ex-girlfriend of A.J.'s named Anita (played by Jameson Parker's future wife Darleen Carr). She's selling her family home and comes across old photos and newspaper clippings of her deceased brother who was killed back in the 60s. Of course, A.J. and Rick will help find out who really offed her brother.
There's a twist mid-way into the episode where A.J. learns Anita had an abortion (obviously in the days before Roe v. Wade). She says it was his child, then we find out the baby she aborted belonged to someone else, the person who killed her brother. In a way, this is rather contrived. I don't think a young man would kill another guy just because some chick got pregnant and had an abortion. I actually think the female would kill to cover the secret, especially since it was illegal at the time and she's the one who had the procedure done.
I also found it too convenient the writers undid making A.J. the father. What's the point of going there, if it doesn't mean anything? He could have still been the dad of the aborted child, and the other guy out of jealousy could have gone to kill A.J. and killed the brother by accident. That might have made a stronger story. The abortion is really a separate issue-- probably included by the writers to seem more topical and to add to the what-if scenario between A.J. and his old flame.
