Goofball John Magee

[Ditchy McAbandonpants]

Thanks to discussions such as these, I finally got round to watching "Imposter's Home..." today, having actively sought it out; I had to see for myself what lay at the bottom of one of the most divisive issues in the Foster's roster. I don't know if anyone will still read this, but I'm typing out my thoughts for my own benefit too. Warning: LOOONG.

When I was a lot younger, my brother and I saw a cartoon - possibly Warner Bros, but I'm not sure - that left a lasting impression on us for all the wrong reasons. We can't remember exactly what it was called, so we just refer to it as "The Shep Cartoon". Essentially, the cartoon centred around a dog called Shep and his various misdemeanours and mishaps, all of which were (unwittingly as I recall) blamed upon the house cat, a well-meaning but timid creature. The nature of these incidents escalates until Shep inadvertedly endangers the life of another dog, whom the cat heroically rescues - all of which, again, is attributed to Shep. The cartoon ends, I vividly remember, with Shep being lauded, and the cat wailing and banging on the foot of a large Scale of Justice - which then falls on its head. It was, basically, the ultimate example of cruel, malicious humour done wrong, a complete mismanagement of audience sympathy and was totally out of line with the accepted concept of emotional setup and payoff.

I do not think that "Imposter's Home For Uh...Make 'Em Up Pals" is another "Shep Cartoon". It skirts close, thanks to a couple of key misjudgements and inconsistencies, but I don't think that, by design, this is a cruel or mean-spirited episode, unlike the one I've cited.

Goofball, clearly, is a key character here. For most of the episode, we're led to believe that he is a "Shep" of the highest order - a freeloading slacker and heartless opportunist who's willing not only to take advantage of Frankie's situation and the obliviousness of the other housemates to appease his own selfish needs, but to actually go out of of his way to make her life hell, torturing her and rubbing the whole unjust situation in her face. However, the episode's conclusion alters this outlook completely. Watching the episode again, bearing in mind this time that Goofball is actually telling the truth, and he's actually somewhat sympathetic. He IS a lost friend, separated from his family at the circus whilst off buying presents for them. He IS trying to learn how to drive so he can go home. He actually DOES want to ring them. Even the "homework" he makes Frankie do for him is actually an attempt to reunite with his family. Is he still annoying? Well yes, very - he's an oblivious blockhead who has little concept of how his actions affect those around him, but he's not actually being malicious about it. Heck, he's so stupid that you actually feel bad for him; he honestly can't remember what an imaginary friend is, and actually can't remember how to call home even though he wants to. Most tellingly of all, the episode's ending reveals that he does actually like and appreciate "Frannie" and her hard work, but just isn't on the ball enough to realise how he's inconvenienced her; something I think Frankie herself realises judging from her warm, understanding smile when Goofball presents her with the rubber nose.

Furthermore, Frankie does actually bring much of what befalls her upon herself via her not-quite-correct handling of the situation. Don't get me wrong, I'm not suggesting for a second that she actually DESERVES any of what happens, but the core source of Frankie's problems in this episode is her immediate, unshakeable assumption that Goofball is not an imaginary friend. It's that certainty that stops her from resolving the issue immediately; she's so vexed by the gall of this boy, and so astounded at the gullibility of the housemates, that it almost becomes a point of pride to let the farce play out until it inevitably comes crashing down...which of course, it doesn't, because he's telling the truth. Had this idea entered her head for even a second, she would have moved quickly and directly to find out the truth, and once she realised that he was for real, would have been able to cater for and deal with him far more effiiciently. As it was, her unassailable conviction in her own judgement lead her to try and wait to "catch him out", thus prolonging and actually increasing her own suffering.

However...

The problem with the episode as I saw it was not in its concept, but its execution, with key misjudgements and mismanagement of audience reaction turning moments that should be funny into ones that are deeply annoying and actually upsetting. Key to this is a gross underestimation of the audience's sympathy for Frankie. She is one of the most sympathetic, put-upon characters in the show, one who most viewers enjoy seeing things go right for, but that needn't have been a problem, providing they remember to play her dilemma for laughs. When I say that, I don't mean that we're laughing at her misery; we should be laughing because the nature of and maifestation of her misery is funny. Store Wars was a good example of how to do that right - poor Frankie was given the run-around by all and sundry for twenty minutes, but because it's funny to watch her being given the second degree by an unhelpful, sullen store clerk, only for her to run off with Mac, hide in a clothes rack then get arrested by Coco, we don't mind laughing at her, not with her.

There were points in this episode were they got this right. Frankie's "angry face" is funny, and we see it a few times here, whilst her dealings at the supermarket work well too, as she seethes away at the oblivious old lady. What derailed this episode was the concert angle; not only is it not a funny concept, they didn't even try to play it for laughs. First mentioning that Frankie only has one or two nights off a month, that she's really desperate to go, then making her miss it and showing her scrubbing the floor looking like she's about to burst into tears - that's just sad and tragic, and needlessly provokes an emotional reaction in the audience which is at odds with the mood they were aiming for with the rest of the episode, and which as a result they can never resolve or pay off. Frankie losing her "Frankie is Right" fund was also an unnecessary kick in the teeth, especially given that the primary causes of that loss were Bloo and Herriman, both of whom act contemptuously in this episode; neither of them have Goofball's ignorance excuse, and act by turns vindictive, exploitataive and completely unappreciative, further swinging sympathy too far in Frankie's direction for the episode to function correctly. It's like Elmer Fudd - it's funny watching Bugs Bunny getting one over on him and blowing him up. If they were to include a plot strand that states that Elmer's only out hunting to feed his starving family, you ruin the joke, and that's what happens too often in "Imposter's Home...", depsite a sound enough concept, for it to work.



PS - Oh my goodness!! I just previewed that post...I've written a freaking dissertation! Ah well, I feel better for having done it. I had been very conflicted about this episode, like a lot of people (especially big Frankie fans like I am), but I think I typed my frustrations out of my system now. I just apologise to anyone who wasted their time reading it all...not that anyone will.