Laurie's Review
Melanie's Review
Laurie's Review:Despite its popularity, Some Like it Red is not one of my favorite eps and I'm not overly fond of it period. There are many good scenes, all with Ben and/or Ray, but overall, the story is mediocre and boring, and the guests don't move me much, the girls in particular, who are far too stereotyped. I think Celine is the most realistic and we should have seen a bit more of her. Prior to watching Some Like it Red for my review, I can't recall the last time I saw it from start to finish without fast forwarding through many scenes.
One scene in particular makes this ep worth it - Ben changing in the back seat of the Riv. Perfect comic timing from PG and DM, and one of the funniest bits ever. Another favorite scene, also from the Riv, is the "Runamukluk" conversation:
Ray: Check this out.
Ben: Interesting. A Hildebrand Yankee 38. You don't see these very often.
Ray: No. That's why I ran the numbers on it. You're never gonna guess who it's registered to.
Ben: Elliot Ness?
Ray: How did you know that?
Ben: Well, it's quite simple, Ray.
Ray: No, simple for you is some long, drawn-out story about your grandmother's library in Runamukluk.
Ben: Well, actually, it is quite simple. It's engraved right here, "E.Ness." Guessing that the "E" stood for Elliot was just - inspiration.
Ray: Here. Give me that. You're not supposed to be carrying a gun anyway.
Ben: Tuktoyaktuk.
Ray: What?
Ben: You said Runamukluk. I assume you're referring to the time my grandmother moved her traveling library to Tuktoyaktuk.
Ray: Oh, Tuktoyaktuk, Runamukluk, what's the difference?
Ben: Well, about 2,000 kilometers.
Ray: Is that necessary?
Ben: Not entirely, no.Oh, how I love the goings on in the Riv, in any ep. Part of what makes this ep enjoyable is that it's obvious the guys had a lot of fun filming it.
Fraser usually interacts well with young people, and Melissa is no exception. He gives her self-confidence that boost it needs. When they're at the dance he points out the boy at the punch bowl (the one gulping down cup after cup) and tells her he's trying to work up the courage to ask her to dance. She doesn't think he notices her, and Fraser reassures her, "You'll have to trust me, Melissa, but I have a profound understanding of the interior workings of a young man's mind." I love the way they both turn to face him, showing their teeth, per Fraser's instructions, and the way Melissa yanks the boy onto the dance floor.
I also like the choice of music for the dance: 70's disco, music that both Ray and Ben would be familiar with from their teen years. We know Travolta fan Ray must have liked it, and Ben knows how to dance to it so he was exposed to it as well.
Observations:The stetson is a semi-permanent fixture on Ray's dashboard. When Fraser is changing, it's in the back window. Is that a first?
Moments I like:Ray's expressions and stammering when he realizes his high school friend is now a nun. She seems almost as surprised to learn he's a cop.
Ben being knocked over in the bar, the bottle of Glendorlan breaking, and "oh, dear."
Ray and Ms. Fraser surrounded by masses of people as they walk down the street. Hmm, now where have we seen that before? The only thing missing is Ms. Fraser stumbling in her heels. I don't think there are any other occasions when we see them on what has to be one of the busiest downtown streets.
Ben asking Ray if he thinks teal is his color or if he should lean towards mustard. [I think teal complements his red hair better]
Ray telling Fraser about his history with Sister Anne and asking if someone can get over that and move on. Fraser then asks, "Ray are you asking this question because...." Ray gives a grimaced nod; "and you think she became..." and another sort of painful nod by Ray, followed by a "Ray, Ray," type look and sigh from Fraser.
Ms. Fraser bouncing on Celine's bed, "Boing, boing, boing, boing."
Insp. Thatcher admitting that she gave Fraser a menial job. And after she smells the perfume on him, she has to be dying to know what that's all about, but she also knows there are some things she's better off not knowing about.
The conversation between Ms. Fraser and the two girls. They have her all figured out. She's a - Canadian. I like his somewhat nervous look while he waits for the bomb to drop, then the relief and the way he brushes his finger across his upper lip as he walks away.
"Little" Ray visiting Uncle Lorenzo.
The school dance, most notably the teacher who fancies himself to be Travolta, the look on Fraser's face when he takes his hand, the giggle after the teacher says, "you can really move for a big woman," Ray and Ms. Fraser dancing together, and Ray asking, "Who still does disco?"
Ms. Fraser couldn't keep her necklace in place - it was always over a boob or around her shoulder.
The exaggerated, unladylike way Ms. Fraser hikes up her dress and runs down the hallway.
Fraser diving for the bottle of Glendorlan and losing his wig, "Oh my God, Ms. Fraser, you're a cross-dresser!"
Nitpicks:Well, the whole Al Capone, treasures buried in a vault plot. I just don't find it realistic.
Duesies:Kevin Rushton character in bar: Did we forget our listening ears?
Ms. Fraser to Melissa: There. It takes seven fewer muscles to smile than it does to frown. Save your energy, you're going to need it in your childbearing years. [Punctuated by a toss of the scarf over "her" shoulder.]
Fraser: Well, let me tell you something, Ray. I think that the person who invented pantyhose should be brought up on charges of cruelty, sadism and reckless endangerment. They pinch in the most inappropriate places.
Ray: Yeah, well, most people who wear 'em don't have those places, Benny.Fraser, as Ray goes to his side of the car: Ray! Manners.
Ray: Ya know, Benny, there's a limit.
Fraser: A limit to good etiquette? I think not, Ray.
Ray: Just get in the car before I beat you with your purse.
[I love the look on Ray's face as he comes back to the passenger side.]Ray: How do you know they're in here?
Fraser: Fungus, Ray.
Ray: Of course.
Keepership:I really like that red wig and it would go with my coloring.
Grade: C+
Melanie's Review:During our discussions on the list, this episode was compared to the movie Tootsie. But I think it actually bears a stronger similarity to the gender-bender To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything, Julie Newmar. When a male character puts on a dress, it's gotta go in one direction or another: either the experience will teach the man something very important about himself, or he will be able to teach a woman something very important about herself. In Tootsie it was Michael Dorsey who grew from the experience; in Wong Foo and in Some Like it Red the cross-dresser is the teacher.
(I have to admit that I've never seen the movie Some Like it Hot. Can anyone tell me if it fits into one of the categories I've described?)
Speaking of Tootsie, the long shot of Ms. Fraser and Ray walking along a crowded sidewalk is a nod to a very famous scene from that movie. A very distinctive shot, not easily forgotten.
The two look-alike valley-girl snobs annoyed me in ways they probably weren't supposed to. I realize that there wasn't the time or the money to populate the school with actual characters (it would seem that this school only had four students) but it would have been better if they had used a slightly wider variety of looks and personalities to give the impression of a student body.
And then there's Melissa. What a milquetoast! Whimper, mope and cry. I'm glad she showed some spine in the end, or I would be forced to hate her.
I would have preferred to see a little more of Celine and Todd. They should have been at the crux of the story, but the story managed to spin quite well without them. I never quite got a feel for their characters, and they seemed like the most interesting people in that school. On the other hand, Ray's constant fretting about having driven Anne to the convent got old very quickly.
Ray's Uncle Lorenzo, on the other hand, was a hoot. His one little scene sparkled with humor and character. It's odd that I tend to think of the story of the Untouchables as a kind of long-ago and far-away legend, the stuff of movies and television shows. But there certainly must be dwindling number of people who remember those legendary events first-hand. While Lorenzo certainly had a flair for the melodramatic that undoubtedly far exceeded reality, his memories were certainly real. I do sometimes wonder if Ray's father might have been a minor player in the same family business as Lorenzo.
Duesies:Ray: No, that's why I ran the numbers on it. You're never gonna guess who it's registered to.
Fraser: Elliot Ness?
Ray: How did you know that?
Fraser: Well it's quite simple, Ray.
Ray: No simple for you is some long drawn out story from you from your grandmother's library in Runamukluk.
Fraser: Well, actually, it is quite simple. It's engraved right here: E. Ness. Now guessing that the 'E' stood for Elliot was just inspiration.Fraser: There. It takes seven fewer muscles to smile than it does to frown. Save your energy, you're going to need it in your child-bearing years.
Fraser: Well let me tell you something, Ray. I think that the person who invented panty hose should be brought up on charges of cruelty, sadism and reckless endangerment. They pinch in the most inappropriate places.
Ray: Yeah, well most people who wear em don't have those places, Benny.Ray: I'm no English major but that stuff is so purple I'm getting diabetes.
Fraser: You just mixed a metaphor, Ray.
Ray: Yeah, well I said I was no English major.Wanda: We see the way you're always opening doors for women, the way you're like, incredibly tall and polite.
Tiffany: Totally.
Wanda: We hear the way you talk.
Tiffany: For sure.
Wanda: You know you can't fool us.
Tiffany: We should have known it right from the start.
Wanda: You're. . . a Canadian.Ray: You know, Benny, there's a limit.
Fraser: A limit to good etiquette? I think not, Ray.
Ray: Just get in the car before I beat you with your purse.Lorenzo: Al's got it.
Ray: Capone?
Lorenzo: Shut up! What are you trying to do? Get me killed?
Ray: Are you telling me that Al Capone has Elliott Ness' gun?
Lorenzo: He did. The word is Vido swindled him out of it along with the rest of the stuff.
Ray: The rest of what stuff? Who's Vido?
Lorenzo: Vido Masucci. Al's brother-in-law. Don't you read the papers?
Ray: I've been kind of busy.
Lorenzo: Eh, he'd been taking from everyone. Capone, Nitti, all the big boys. He's building himself up a nice stash. Gold, furs, hooch. The works.
Ray: It takes a lot of jam to steal from Capone. So how'd Masucci pull it off?
Lorenzo: Masucci's got this construction company. And he built the vault under one of the buildings he's working on.
Ray: This vault--it wouldn't happen to be at St. Fortunata's would it?
Lorenzo: Who's been talking? I'm a dead man.Ray: I'm cutting in, Jack.
Teacher: We're not finished.
Ray: Take a hike.
Fraser: Thank you.
Ray: You owe me.
Fraser: For what?
Ray: For saving you from dancing with a guy.
Fraser: Well it would appear that I am still dancing with a guy.Melissa: You lied to me.
Fraser: About what?
Melissa: About being a woman.
Fraser: Oh yes, that. Well, yeah. Yes, I did lie about that. Those weren't my clothes, that wasn't my hair.
Melissa: Those weren't your breasts?
Second Runner-Up Nitpick of the Week:"I've seen you track a snowflake back from the cloud it came from," said Thatcher. When did she observe his tracking skills?
Runner-Up Nitpick of the Week:
An ex-cop leaves a note on her door, telling the world that she's staying with her mother? Even in the best of neighborhoods that would be a stupid thing to do--and it looks like Brenda lives in a lousy neighborhood. (Matter of fact, it looks like she lives in a factory.)
Nitpick of the Week:
Even though the gothic arches and tracery of the school's corridors made for a lovely backdrop, Fraser shouldn't be discussing the case with either Sister Anne or Ray while walking among the students.
Runner-up Moment of the Week:Ray: You know, Benny, you weren't a bad looking woman.
Fraser: Thank you, Ray.
Ray: Of course, you weren't exactly my type either.
Fraser: What exactly is your type, Ray?
Ray: Well, I like a woman who is kind and honest and a good sense of humor.
Fraser: Well I don't have those qualities?
Ray: No, no, you do--I just like a woman who you know, is a woman.
Fraser: Well that's-that's just picky, Ray.
Ray: Ah, don't get in a snit.
Fraser: Well I'm not.
Ray: Well good.
Fraser: Well fine.
Ray: So, what you are doing after work?
Fraser: Nothing with you.
Ray: You are soooo sensitive.Moment of the Week:
Fraser changing his clothes in the back seat of the Riv. One of the best moments in the series.
Ray: What is going on back there?
Fraser: Well let me tell you something, Ray. I think that the person who invented panty hose should be brought up on charges of cruelty, sadism and reckless endangerment. They pinch in the most inappropriate places.
Ray: Yeah, well most people who wear em don't have those places, Benny.
Fraser: I got a run.
Power of Two Moment:This makes for two episodes (with "Vault") in which a young person shoots a spitball at a Mountie. Ick.
Runner-up Point to Ponder:Why is there a cow in the vault?
Point to Ponder:
When Geraldo Rivera broke into "Capone's Vault" on live TV in 1986, it was empty. Now we know where all that stuff went!
Hey, it's that guy! I mean, it's that gal!Michelle Scarabelli (Sister Anne) was one of the stars of the sadly short-lived Fox series Alien Nation. She played the alien working mom Susan Francisco.
Snack to enjoy while watching Some Like it Red:Not one, but two bottles of Glendorlan.
Grading:
Celine & Todd B Melissa & the Valley Girls C The Vault & Stash A- Ms. Fraser & Ray A Sister Anne & Ray C Overall Grade B
If you want to sound off, or if you'd like to add a review to the site, let me know!
Back to Starman
Forward to White Men Can't Jump to Conclusions
Back to the Episode List