MovieChat Forums > I Love Lucy (1951) Discussion > Lucy's Selfishness: Part II

Lucy's Selfishness: Part II

posted 6 years ago by [email protected] (1732)
23 replies | jump to latest

Not too many moons ago, I posted a thread about Ethel always being the better friend
to Lucy than Lucy was to her. It really was the truth of their bond, and Ethel seemed
to accept this more and more as the series went on.

When I posted about this, it seemed to branch out into Lucy's selfishness. And there
are many examples of it.

Just last night, I watched "Second Honeymoon." What's curious here is that Lucy
initially encourages Ethel to bring out the romantic in Fred, stating the fresh sea
air will make a change in him. Lucy, of course, just assumes she'll have the same
with Ricky. Well, when the tables change, and FRED is the transatlantic Romeo, and
Ricky is too busy for Lucy, Lucy suddenly becomes very disdainful of Fred and - frankly -
a very poor friend to Ethel, making all kinds of snarky comments to her "friends", who
have rediscovered romance, even though it will be only temporary.

I'm not a huge fan of this episode, even though it's a solid script. Many have problems
with Fred's VERY uncharacteristic behavior. But for me...it's Lucy's inability to cheer
on her BEST FRIENDS, regardless of her bad luck.

Thoughts?

[–] steven1660 (144) 6 years ago

Lucy is very child-like in that respect. In "second honeymoon" she acts almost how a child would react. If it were me, I probably would have acted happy about Ethel and Fred, then sulk in private haha. I can sympathize with Lucy because I'm single and I have to watch couples everywhere be lovey dovey and its sickening sometimes ahah. But she should have been happy for Ethel. I feel like Lucy was a good person but definitely self centered.

[–] brux (14724) 6 years ago

Lucy was like a total child. Acted totally childish, and to me that is just not funny ... at least in a character that is supposed to be an adult.

[–] ProductionNow (1072) 6 years ago

Lucy was like a total child. Acted totally childish, and to me that is just not funny ... at least in a character that is supposed to be an adult.
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Yeah, that was the point--but the anomaly of Lucy is she was one of the few who could get away with acting that way. There's a difference between silly vs. funny, and Lucy could be funny without the unfunny silliness.

[–] brux (14724) 6 years ago

I just saw her as tricksterish, silly ... not usually funny, although she could often be. I just did not like the basic nature of her Lucy Ricardo character. I realize, or think I realize I am in the minority on this and I don't know why, but characters like hers always bug me. Dr. Smith on Lost In Space for example, though him, at least, you can love to hate.

The Ray Romano character on Everyone Love Raymond was it? Another one.

[–] ProductionNow (1072) 6 years ago

But she's not somebody you actually know, which is why she is funny doing "unlikable" things. One could look past that on a sitcom due to it being "Lucy". If another actress played her, she would not be likable.

[–] [email protected] (5854) 6 years ago

Lucy often thought only in terms of how something affected HER. So Lucy couldn't have a second honeymoon on the ship. First of all, Ricky had told her how busy he would be. His band was getting free passage, but that was because they would be playing every night. He was saving money by working his way across the Atlantic and that's why he was able to take Lucy along. But she couldn't accept the fact that Ricky would have very little time for her. It was childish of her to begrudge Ethel a little fun and romance on the ship.

In the "Bonus Bucks" episode, her first reaction is jealousy when Ethel rushes in to tell her that she found a bonus buck.

In a very early episode, I think it's called "The Fur Coat", Lucy mistakenly believes the coat that Ricky brought home is actually Ethel's coat. Lucy throws a tantrum.

Yet there are many times when Lucy gets new furniture, a Don Loper original, furs, pearls,etc. and Ethel is happy for her.

In the episode when they visit Ethel's hometown, all three are jealous of the attention that Ethel receives. But you'd think Lucy could be happy, just ONCE, that her best friend was in the spotlight. When Ethel came home in the Native American costume, Lucy called her "Big Chief Hog it All". She sure didn't consider all the times when she wanted to hog all the attention and the spotlight for herself.

[–] ProductionNow (1072) 6 years ago

Lucy often thought only in terms of how something affected HER
--- ---
sounds like the majority of the population, and often.

[–] ProductionNow (1072) 6 years ago

An exception that comes to mind is Lucy winning the Home-Show furniture and Ethel not being too thrilled.

[–] [email protected] (5854) 6 years ago

Yes, Ethel really wanted to win the furniture too. And when you consider the condition of her furniture compared to Lucy's, she had MORE reasons to want to win!

Funny thing though, the winner got FIVE rooms of furniture. But neither of their apartments even has five rooms! The only rooms that they could put furniture in are the living room and bedroom. The prize might have included a kitchen table and chairs, but obviously that wasn't the case.

Winning five rooms of furniture, Lucy (or Ethel) could have split all the stuff between the two of them.

[–] brux (14724) 6 years ago

I think it is so odd that so many really love this show, and even
as a kid I never found Lucy funny, or maybe she was sometimes
funny, but the funny never rose past the level of her being annoying.

Her character in a way reminds me of the mother, Jessica, in the
Chinese family sitcom Fresh Off The Boat where the wife is just
confoundingly irritating. It's funny how some people find this funny
and others just do not. I never liked Lucy, she never seemed to have
a soft feminine moment in her life.

I usually did like Ethel though, and same with Fred. They were good
solid people who would make good neighbors, or landlords.

[–] [email protected] (1732) 6 years ago

If you don't like the show, WHY on earth are you trolling here? And how nice to reveal your mother's first name.
Real classy.

But I digress to PJ...I agree to a certain extent about they're not cheering on Ethel in "Ethel's Home Town." But
Lucy DOES at first encourage ego-driven Ricky and crusty Fred into supporting Ethel's fantasy. But Ethel DOES
start "foaming at the mouth", as Fred puts it. She becomes ridiculous, and the three were right to be angry.

[–] brux (14724) 6 years ago

You seem to have real mental problems, so sorry to set you off so badly, but to get hurt so deeply because someone doesn't like your favorite show that you have to lash out irrationally with insults is very ugly.

[–] ProductionNow (1072) 6 years ago

brux (3572)
There were only a couple of times where I found her irritating, like in some of the (silly) unfunny very early segments or when she played her bitchiness too real for sitcom.
Otherwise, you either like pizza or you don't, so to speak. You'd need to have that innate-appreciation and love for her.(but for soft and femininity, her trademark was being known for being feminine and doing what she did) I feel the same way you do about John Wayne, for example.

[–] brux (14724) 6 years ago

Lily is no favorite of mine, but she can at least act normal. To be fair she was never as big or in as popular shows as Lucy either. It's funny, I used to like Roseanne Barr, and I still think she was a comedy genius back when she started. I don't know what happened to her. She never grated on me the way Lucy did ... but not that far away from her character either.

[–] ProductionNow (1072) 6 years ago

Yes, I deleted my Lily Tomlin example, because I didn't think I'd win any favors here. With exceptions, Lily is exactly what I meant by silly vs. funny. And you think sitting in big rocking chair as Edith Anne , or Ernestine is "real"?!

However, then why do you say "Lucy was never funny, but she could often be funny"?

[–] brux (14724) 6 years ago

She had her moments, even with me, just very few of them.

[–] [email protected] (1732) 6 years ago

Wow, the trolls are really on the loose tonight.

[–] who8mycookie (5) 6 years ago

Why are people trolls if they do not find ILL funny or Ball herself funny? It is a message board and opinions should be welcomed no matter if they favor your view or not.

I like ILL but find plenty of moments that I once enjoyed or liked now annoying or view them differently. I like the show but after several viewings the characters flaws are more evident and become grating. Those flaws are funny at times but with several viewings they become more evident and it can change viewing experiences. Maybe not for you but people are aloud to change opinions or views.

I used to love Ethel, I still do for the most part but she has her moments that stand out that make her less tolerable. I have always viewed Lucy as demanding and needy, manipulating ways to get what she wants. It is funny at times but what was funny before sometimes stands out as more annoying now. The appeal is lost at times. For an example, one of my favorite episodes is when Ricky thinks he has a job in Maine and they want to sublease. The Mertz are unbearable in that episode for the most part. Ricky says he is going to pay for them to go to Maine to visit but once they Mertz find out he can make a profit on the sublease they act like he is doing them a disservice. They have no problem with the Ricardo's flipping the bill for them to take holiday in Maine but they have a problem with the Ricardo's making a few dollars in the process.
Then you have the episode where Lucy cannot make up her mind. The group goes to dinner and she keeps switching tables and changing her order. She is very unlikable in the beginning of the episode, IMO. The way she walks into the restaurant after keeping everyone waiting and sits down "I know what I want, lets order....waiter, waiter,.." and then stands up in an attempt to stop the waiter. She was very demanding, I want to order, I want to change tables, I want to change tables again, on and on.

[–] [email protected] (1732) 6 years ago

I'm assuming you're an adult, so it's pretty pathetic that I have to explain a poster like "Brux", but
I'll go ahead anyway since you don't get it.

People who are interested in a particular film or movie, go on the boards to discuss various aspects of
the characters or actors - NOT to trash them. "Brux" never writes anything of interest, he/she just
comes to state repeatedly that doesn't like Lucy. I have no issue with that, as not everyone likes
everything.

I, for one, loathe "Three's Company" and was baffled as a teenager at its success and remain baffled
as an adult at its popularity. To say the writing and "acting" are sophomoric doesn't begin to explain
how terrible I think that show is. So, I don't post there, because I don't have anything positive to
say about the show. The people who do post, love the series. Why be a jerk and trash something
they love?

It's called trolling. And that's what "Brux" does. Get it now?

PJPurple and I are the most common posters. We adore this show, but we also stated which episodes
we don't care for. For instance, she likes "Lucy Meets Orson Welles", while I find it pretty bad (Ball
didn't like that one either). Many fans hate "Lucy is Envious", (again, so did Ball), because it's just
a weird episode. But that's part of why I like it (it's also in the third season, which is my personal
favorite, although I feel artistically, the fourth season is the best).

Again, I have no problem with people who dislike this series (both my parents and brother loathe it).
I just have a problem with trolls.

Judging from you your lengthy, defensive posting, I'm really getting you don't care for this show
anymore. My suggestion is to find a show - new or old - that you do like. Then post over THERE. .

[–] who8mycookie (5) 6 years ago

Actually, I do like the show and watch it most nights as I head off to bed. However, a discussion board is not a fan page therefore discussion is what you get. If you want fan discussion only then you should create or head over to a fan page and post over THERE. .

You presume to know someone from a post and read your own opinion into it. I have discussed shows/movies on the old IMDB board that I loathed, loved, and was indifferent about, that is called discussion. If I took the time to watch something, why not discuss with others one way or the other.

You have a problem with people discussing a show if it is not a shared fondness. Just like you seem to have a problem with my reply which I did state I like ILL but you judged it to mean I don't are for the show because I pointed out some variation of changes I have come to feel, namely giving you limited examples from select episodes of an entire show. Broaden your mind a bit and learn to stop putting your own twist between the lines and you might not have coronary reading something about ILL.

The limited posts I have put on ILL, you have managed to comment on declaring something that is way off from what I stated because you add your own version of what you perceive instead of what is actually written. I will continue to enjoy discussion while you continue to judge and act like the real troll. BYE

[–] [email protected] (1732) 6 years ago

Nice try, - Cookie, is it? - but I never wrote that the boards are only there for "fans" to praise
everything.

Many of my threads are about weaknesses in scripting, set layout, and even - very recently - the
top ten I could easily live without.

In other words, the discussions I share with NORMAL posters are even-handed.

Brux has spouted nothing BUT how much he doesn't like the show or the character, and
even brought in his/her own neurosis by saying Lucy reminded him/her of their mother - then
mentioned the mother by NAME! Pretty nutso.

I'm sure you'll post another half-baked reply, as you seem to be one of those people who
has to have the final word. I won't bother reading it, but I'm sure that won't stop you.

Bye now.

[–] [email protected] (1732) 6 years ago

[deleted]

[–] ProductionNow (1072) 6 years ago

[deleted]