Mork & Mindy: Season 2

After phenomenal ratings for the first season, the producers of this show recognized they had a unique creature on their hands: the television spin-off which is very strong in its own right. America just could not get enough of Mork and his zany antics. So, they sent Fred McConnell and Cora packing on a concert tour and attempted to up the `young adult' demographic by bringing in new characters for this 26-episode 1979-1980 season.First, enter Remo and Jeannie.The brother and sister duo work at the New York Delicatessen on Boulder's pedestrian Pearl Street Mall while Jeannie is being put through school. Mindy and Mork frequently stop by to chit-chat, eat and exchange advice.Another is Nelson Flavor, an aspiring political candidate and Mindy's cousin. Being a political animal, I like him despite not being given adequate character development to realistically flesh out his role in this particular city. If Boulder is supposed to be the `counterculture capital' of the mountain states but the guy looks like a young Republican, there is no way he could ever get elected yet alone Mindy would be working for him ("Mork v. Mindy" , "Dial N for Nelson") despite the family connection. Plus, if Fred still is getting weirded out by Mork, Nelson should definitely be running for the mountains after a first encounter!One character who I just can't personally deal with though is Exidor, the lone member of the Friends of Venus, who somehow realizes that Mork is in fact an alien from another planet. I think that he was supposed to represent the 70's new age-cult phenomena and emphasize that even as Mork has adjusted to earth, he still was taking our planet's eccentrics at their own face value. Exidor is harmless, but he is definitely an eccentric. Perhaps it was part of the whole 70's bohemian thing, but I don't find `wacky people' with obvious mental health problems `funny'. Audiences were supposed to laugh at Exidor, but the way his lines are written he comes across as somebody being mocked rather than a nice person to `hang with.All of the emphasis on new characters and people focused storylines did not completely eliminate the series' `concept' storylines. Since the 70's were the era when so much disability rights legislation was getting passed in America, there is an episode where Mork meets Mr. Bickley's blind son--and subsequently experiences his world ("Mork learns to see"). Mr. Bickley was of course introduced last season, but apparently grew friendlier towards his neighbors because Mindy and Mork can now stand to deal with him.Mork experiments with gender roles when he decides to audition for the Pony Express the professional cheerleaders for the Denver Broncos--who have traditionally been female ("Hold that Mork"). They are supportive of Mork's intention to attempt joining them as are Mindy and Jeannie, but Remo appears visibly uneasy with his friend's decision.Then, Mindy gets targeted by a local hate group in "The night they raided Mind-skis" because she is Polish. Although this series wasn't as political as anything being produced by Lear-Yorkin, episodes like this do acknowledge that `bad' stuff happens even in `liberal' cities across America. Mindy's obviously shaken by the encounter, but comes away determined to continue being herself.This season is the season which contains both the classic episodes "Stark raving Mork and a Mommy for Mindy". I originally owned these particular episodes on a long-ago issued VHS best-of-set, so I can now assure any remaining doubters that the picture and sound quality restorative powers of DVD make a very big difference for aficionados of classic television series. I can't wait to complete my collection of this entire television series.Mork's future permanent job at the daycare center is foreshadowed in "Looney tunes and Morkie melodies" when he turns a spot reserved for Nelson's television campaigning into a variety show for children. It turns out that Mork has a natural ability for taking care of children! Throughout the episode Williams makes obviously kind-hearted but satirical allusions to "Mr. Rogers Neighborhood" in tribute to the impact Fred Rogers had on childrens television programing--and having grown up with both shows and Mr. Rogers now departed, appreciated the episode even more now!Mork needs a paying job of his own too because he can't keep just living off of Mindy forever no matter how nice of a person he is. Then, in "Invasion of the Mork snatchers", he goes spend crazy, creating problems for Mindy who obviously doesn't have a lot of worldly possessions to begin with. They are after all, only living in a two bedroom apartment in part of a renovated Victorian.Finally, Fred comes back in "The way Mork were" he needs help with marital advice and ends up turning to Mindy and Mork for help! Since traveling around to conduct an Orchestra did not work out (i.e the show's ratings slipped big-time) Fred returned with Cora and he is now dating women around the area.Mindy realizes that she never fully got over her mother dying when her father brings over a woman named Kathy for dinner and announces that he plans to marry her ("A mommy for Mindy"). We never learn what she had died from, but this episode is very important because Mindy could remember her mom being sick and then permanently leaving her. Realizing that her dad did love her mom but needs to move on enables Mindy to then move on with her life and become friends with Kathy.There are two `bad' episodes in this season. The first is "Clerical error" because the writers seem to have forgotten that Mork already got mistaken for a priest in the first episode of the first season when he encountered Mindy after her bad date dumped her on the side of the road and she was looking for somebody trustworthy to walk home with. The second is "Little orphan Morkie" because Mork now has to get married or else he will get deported, again revisiting confusion over the `alien registration' joke from season one; both were cute the first time but now have lost some air with replay. Did somebody forget to write episodes and so thought they could get away with simply reformatting earlier ones from their own show? It's a good thing that Robin Williams and the rest of this cast--yes including the `newbies'---were so talented and clearly had great interpersonal chemistry with each other because such apparent script writer laziness would have and has easily killed many other shows.In an era when there were only three networks, this season's ratings experiments were not as big a gamble as it would be today. No, everything ultimately did not work out as planned, but considering everything which could have happened (and did happen) to risk-taking popular shows, M&M survived to tell more tales of Earthling customs.Considering there are only two seasons left in this entire series, I hope that the others are released ASAP. I initially was lukewarm about the original case coverings for the DVDs, but after this season's treatment where the discs have now been directly piled onto each other, wish for the original packaging. I still consider it a crime of intergalactic proportions that this series continues languishing in Paramount's vault.

In 1978, "Mork and Mindy" was a ratings smash. However, the network changed the format and nixed Mindy's father (Fred) and grandmother (Cora) as one means of 'retooling' the show, which simply proves the suits don't even know when success sits on their lap! But I digress. Season 2's ratings were said to have plummeted, which prompted the network to bring back Fred and Cora (YES!!!), but having rewatched season 2, the episodes are riotously funny and with the usual moralizing messages we gen X'ers grew up on... and promptly forgot to follow, but who said anyone was perfect?In this season, we are treated to some of the series' best wit to date: Starting with the premiere episode, Mork takes a cold medicine that shrinks nasal membranes and he in turn shrinks to nothing because Orkans are nothing more than membranes... it was an hour long special. This episode freaked me as a child and still retains much of its power - even special effects were surprisingly successful and hold up rather well overall, even if there is a 'fluidity' problem with some of the zooming close-ups. That's how it was made, as was said by another it was not a DVD defect. And the moralizing over the energy crisis is also an interesting non-plot point for the first 5 minutes of the story.Later we get to meet Mork's vile enemies - the dreaded Necrotons. Show this to a non-fan, it'll hook 'em right away. And not just because Raquel Welch stars as the main Necroton and proves she really is a considerable actress and not merely a body with an incidental brain attached... but because of the jokes; many of which come out of nowhere yet whose relevance are staggeringly funny. In 1980, Robin Williams' lines and improv combined with the smiley-faced boxers had me laughing; re-watching it again yesterday had me laughing for far, far more reasons. Netflix or buy it for this episode alone! This one is also a special 1-hour entry.Another highlight to this season is when Mork is lulled into television commercials - it is another high point and extremely well written episode.Never mind that Robin Williams and Pam Dawber play against/with each other extremely well. Even if the low-point episodes are less than special (namely the rehash of the season 1 episode where Mork has to deal with the immigration people... and the clip show featuring the temporary return of Fred), Robin and Pam put in top rated performances, with dialogue to ensure you'll be laughing in hysterics, and I don't say that lightly.True, I missed Fred and Cora, but I know they will return. But the suits, for once, had a point and season 2 really contains a high number of gems -- even with the ditzy politician and deli owners who migrated from New York. They were never the same, but they weren't bad. But as we all know, Fred and Cora were the best sidekicks.DVD quality - while the images look a bit soft and there's plenty of film speckles, it doesn't detract. Color saturation is beautiful and the episodes are fairly spaced amongst the 4 discs. The packaging is cheaper, but considering how season 1 wasn't entirely profitable, what counts most in a DVD (the level of compression in the episodes) was retained. I am highly grateful that they kept with the 4 disc format. KUDOS!! :)I hope season 2 is successful so season 3 can come out as well. It too features a number of gems, including the hour-long opener "Put the Ork Back Into Mork".

Arrived quickly and as expected.

Bought the work and mindy series in honor of the late Robin Williams, this season along with the other were truly a joy to watch, both Robin and Pam were lovable to watch and it seriously had me wishing I grew up in the seventies. Anyways, I adore Mork and Mindy, and although I never knew this comedy in my childhood because of me being a part of the dreadful 'millenial' generation, I'll be keeping these discs the rest of my life, and show them to my children so they can enjoy and appreciate Robin Williams' talent in making us both laugh and cry. Rest in peace Robin, We'll keep you in our hearts forever.

Most of the episodes are really funny.

I bought the Mork and Mindy- The Second Season because I enjoyed the first season so much,I laughed so hard at times I had tears in my eyes,the second one is funny at times but not as hysterical as the first season. Some of the highlights of the second season is when the charactor Exidor is in the episodes,he brings an extra crazyness that seems to be missing at times in the second season.It still is worth the money if you enjoy seeing the genious that is Robin Williams.I started watching it for the second time and am enjoying it more.The first two disks seemed to be missing something from the first season and that was alot of the costars from the first season(Mindy's father and grandmother and the little boy Eugene known as "Plasma" to Mork who I thought was great on the show).

classic series picture quality clear 1 of the funniest American sitcoms ever made can watch them over & over again

Funny that after watching the first season that had Mindy's dad in it with the music store, the second season didn't seem quite as good however it felt like more focus was on those two and in Mindy's place. Still classic Robin Williams in any sense, it's a good watch after all these years!

Always a very good laugh when watching this

Nothing wrong

one of the funniest show ever to air