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Looking Beyond the Fiddle Faddle

“I’m a female woman!”

Spoiler Alert: This is a recap of “The Goldbergs” from December 3, 2013.

There are practically zero circumstances in life where that statement makes any logical sense…at all.

To add a bit of clarity, here’s a little context: Beverly Goldberg in mall jail.

Mystery solved.

Imagine running a marathon for 26.19 miles and then, for the final 0.01 mile of the race, your brother sweeps in from nowhere to joyfully jog backwards into the finish line to reap all the glory. The frustration one would feel would be off the charts in complete and utter shock. The emotions would be virtually unprecedented. Actually, in this situation, that was exactly the case. Switch in six months of pursuing the grand prize in “Legends of Zelda” in 1980s-something for the marathon and you’ve got Adam and Barry’s most recent brotherly battle.

What’s worse: Adam losing his glorious Zelda finale to his older brother, Barry’s negativity forcing his quick thinking grandfather to lie and deceive him about luck or that Barry wore a ketchup colored shirt to bet on the ponies while eating a hot dog with mustard?

All have the credentials to claim the Exotica.

To fully understand how Beverly Goldberg found herself in the treacherous room known as “mall jail,” the issue of money plus a teenage daughter must first be discussed. What do you get when the savviest shopper of all-time (buy two mattresses, get two free and a $9.99 lawn mower!) gives birth to a daughter who fifteen or sixteen years later gets a job as a cashier at a dynamite department store with an incredible employee discount?

You get a Mom who sets up camp at her embarrassed teenage daughter’s place of employment/place of coolness/”supposed” freedom and independence, a mannequin stolen, but also the incomparable “Clapper.”

After all the clothes and random purchases during just one week, Erica’s boss finally stepped in (but in a totally non-flirtatious way) to subtly tell his newest employee that her Mom had to be cut-off from the discount.

Enter the snow pants.

With a perfectly maniacal plan to deny the discount from her Mother, Erica, with a smile, watched as her Mom “allegedly” tried to steal perfume while also buying snow pants for the same daughter who was willing to send her own Mother down the river…to mall jail.

While all this was happening, “Barry Luck” was providing said brother with a delusional sense of prosperous fortune. Was it real? No. But sometimes it takes an illusion to spark a necessary and magical mindset of confidence. The placebo effect. It’s something grandparents understand and Pops is undoubtedly one of the greats.

The tension between Erica and Beverly, like most things in life, was not really about a massive overuse of an employee discount. It was about big life decisions and what she and her Mom value most. And the reasons for those decisions.

As every family should realize (and the Goldbergs sure did), being a Mom is full-time job that truly brings harmony, stability and a crazily awesome love for her family.

There are times when we need to pause, take a deep breath and understand that people want different things out of life. Knowing what we want out of life, with all the chaos and opportunities around us, is an impressive trait to possess. Whatever that may be, it’s a sign of intelligence, strength and inner serenity.

And if that’s your starting point every morning, then you should consider yourself rich without the need for any discount or “(insert your name here) luck.”

Beverly Goldberg was only in mall jail for 12 minutes. However, it doesn’t take viewers nearly that long to get hilariously excited for each new episode of “The Goldbergs” every Tuesday night at 9:00 p.m. on ABC.

It’s a popular favorite!

P.S. Beverly literally owns “The Clapper.” She literally used it in the best way imaginable!

Gettin’ Tricky: ’80s Style

“The Goldbergs” on ABC continues to do everything right.

Television shows and products have a tendency to, occasionally, be over-hyped (except Life Alert, that’s the real deal!). This is simply not the case with America’s new favorite family from the ’80s: The Goldbergs. This sitcom looked amazing from the promos and almost instantaneously became one of the “Must See” shows of the week. The cast is dynamite, from the two unknown actors and actress who portray the kids/siblings to the hilariously lovable and recognizable parents and eccentric grandfather.

Jeff Garlin, Wendi McLendon-Covey and George Segal all bring their comedic experience and nuances to their parental characters who continue to complement each other and the kids perfectly. The kids epitomize the three-sibling dynamic so well it’s almost frightening. But funny frightening. Having grown up with two older sisters, there are definitely some similarities.

We can all relate to our Mom worrying about us while waiting for our confirmation call informing her we had arrived at our neighbor’s house, fearing that we will somehow find ourselves lying face down in a ditch somewhere. But has that ever happened? Ever?

Moms are just a little paranoid I suppose.

The scenes from last night’s episode that showed Barry and Erica collaborating together in order to trick their über-Mom Beverly for car privileges were diabolical, genius and primed for genuine laughs at that special moment of the forgotten (yet essential) detail. The end result was a quintessential middle child moment for señor Barry.

It was muy divertido!

While Adam’s remote control ploy with Erica (and Barry later) against Murray was pretty tame, it still made for a great family bonding moment. Deception-centered yes, but great nonetheless. Could that trick be pulled off today…

Plus, the references to all things gloriously ’80s have been nothing short of pure magnificence. When nostalgic movie posters and movie clips, clothes, music, cars and attitudes are combined with the clever, fresh and funny dialogue from the creative writers and performed by the brilliant cast of talented known and unknown actors and actresses, it makes for a sincerely fantastic show.

Add in the occasional dose of heart/love and a soundtrack of awesomeness and you’ve got “The Goldbergs.”

Perhaps no other line from last night’s rad episode could encapsulate the love this family shows for one another than the following sequence: Murray, after driving around for an hour one night looking for his (moron) son because of his wife’s nagging, apocalyptic pleas to find him, drives onto a lonely road to spot none other than Barry’s red Flyer’s jacket and said son about ten feet to his right. Murray is relieved to have found his oldest son. Only temporarily though…

“You couldn’t have been sitting up in a ditch? Or reclining comfortably? No. Face down! Like she said!”

So, that can actually happen…who knew? And the point goes to Beverly.

On a note of equal importance, Beverly wants everyone to watch, “The Goldbergs” every Tuesday night at 9:00 p.m. on ABC!

THE GOLD-BERGS

The Awesome Power of “The Remote”

Last night, another episode of “The Goldbergs” again solidified the fact that there is at least one reason to look forward to Tuesday night entertainment (9:00 p.m. EST). One of the plot lines focused on Beverly (the Mom) desperately wanting “snuggies” from her children, especially her youngest, Adam, because she knows he is her last chance at that kind of special Mother-Son/Daughter love.

Just like Barry’s dream of becoming the next Dr. J, time is running out…and fast!

Swish!

In an attempt to punish Adam for betraying her parental warning not to see “Poltergeist,” Beverly secretly scares Adam in exchange for daily “snuggies” from the terrified little rebel. One of her schemes included taking the remote control outside and messing with the television that Adam was watching in the family room one afternoon in a sudden state of total fright.

Well played, Beverly…well played.

This reminded me of a beloved commercial from not too long ago. It underscores why the remote (in whatever form) is such a treasured and valuable entity in our society for both men and women.

http://youtu.be/R55e-uHQna0

The remote: a parent’s secret weapon.

Back to the ’80s

Only two episodes in and “The Goldbergs” has already inspired me to search my local mall for a highlighter yellow (or orange) jacket that glows in the daytime.

“Science!”

Based in the 1980s, the story of “The Goldbergs” is told by the youngest child Adam “Wonder Years” style. Equipped with a shoulder rock (known then as a video recorder), Adam chronicles some of the funniest and strangest moments his family has to offer. The VHS quality recordings range from the mundane no-pants Father to the bizarrely hilarious Big Tasty: recognize!

Impressively, this sitcom successfully transports the viewer to the house and neighborhood straight out of the era when hover-boards on the silver screen and A-ha’s “Take on Me” ruled the day.

Oh, and as mentioned above, the clothes are very boss as well. Acid wash jeans? Yes, please!

And I think all sons can relate to shopping with our Mom at one point and hearing them infamously shout throughout the store about getting a pair of pants that better fit the, well, you know the region if you’re a guy.

Memories.

Beyond the great stereotypical roles of the rebellious, Daddy-wrapped-around-her-little-finger teenage daughter (Erica) to the stuck between a rock and a roller rink middle child (Barry) to the ready-to-see-the-world youngest son (Adam), The Goldbergs provide fun, eccentricity and just the right amount of heart for a totally awesome and strangely relatable family.

The Grandfather (Albert) humorously refuses to grow up (a Burt Reynolds twin anybody?), the Father (Murray) has a “Red Forman” dynamic upgraded for the ’80s by means of a floppy disk and the Mother (Beverly) is quite simply spectacular as she perfectly blends adorably embarrassing moments (trains are plenty dangerous!) with the amazingly lovable defense of her kid’s best interests. Who else could intimidate a store clerk to open a store after hours and convince the same clerk to honor a coupon that’s been expired for more than a year? Only a Mom on a mission.

Aside from the killer soundtrack at the end of each show, one of the best parts is when nostalgic home movie clips are shown of the real Goldbergs for whom the characters are based.

It’s surreal how familiar all those home movies look…

“The Goldbergs” will rap their way into your living room Tuesday nights at 9:00 p.m. on ABC.

This show not only shows off some tasty fashion, but is also looking like it might become pretty big.