When If At All, Did 'One Day At A Time' Lose Its Focus???

[Brian Damage]

The original premise of One Day at a Time – a divorcée struggling to raise two daughters as a single mom – was all but forgotten by Season Nine. Ann Romano had remarried and moved to London and both her daughters had grown up and gotten married.

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[Stuck In The '70's]

ODAAT was not the same show at the end. Valerie was the only reason I continued to watch the show. I liked Howard Hesseman on WKRP and even Head of the Class but I hated him on this show. His character was so boring. Bonnie Franklin even seemed a little bored with the show by this time.

[Brian Damage]

ODAAT was not the same show at the end. Valerie was the only reason I continued to watch the show. I liked Howard Hesseman on WKRP and even Head of the Class but I hated him on this show. His character was so boring. Bonnie Franklin even seemed a little bored with the show by this time.


So you would say season 9 is when the show unraveled?

[Stuck In The '70's]

So you would say season 9 is when the show unraveled?
I would say season 8 is when it started to go down some in my eyes. Barbara got married to Mark and then you had Julie and Max and then they started sharing a house. It really wasn't the same show. I know some fans didn't like it when Alex joined the cast. He really didn't bother me that much. I think they added him to try to keep the dynamics of the show going after Julie left the first time.

[robyrob]

i really found Glenn Scarparelli's character too annoying, whenever he joined was when i started to not enjoy the show as much

[cleverfun3000]

Like Most shows that have been on for a year or two too long, the focus of the show changed to the point where it was an ENTIRELY different show made of additional cast members that were brought on when the show was already seeming to be a little tired and long in the tooth. I was ODAAT's biggest fan for years, but as the end of the 7th season approached I could see that it had taken a turn for the worst. Why should we the viewers have to get to know new characters that we may or may not like when we have already grown to love and be comfortable with the ORIGINAL cast members. The show definitely jumped the shark, and in the process, the shark bit back.....HARD.

[Retro4Life]

I can't recall the exact season, but when Julie started to be less a part of the show (and subsequently, was gone for good) really cemented the fact that this show has strayed almost completely from it's original premise.

I think that when you have a core of four actors in an ensemble, and one of them leaves, you really have to think if continuing the show is viable creatively.

In this case, it really wasn't.

Plus, when a show is based on a certain premise, including some characters being children, and those characters grow up, it's really hard to continue.

[Brian Damage]

I can't recall the exact season, but when Julie started to be less a part of the show (and subsequently, was gone for good) really cemented the fact that this show has strayed almost completely from it's original premise.

I think that when you have a core of four actors in an ensemble, and one of them leaves, you really have to think if continuing the show is viable creatively.

In this case, it really wasn't.

Plus, when a show is based on a certain premise, including some characters being children, and those characters grow up, it's really hard to continue.


That is true retro, but they were teens, so I really didn't have a problem watching them grow up. When they brought in the kid to be a somewhat replacement for Mackenzie, I never liked that.

[Retro4Life]

^ I agree, and by the time Scarpelli made his debut, my interest had wandered.

As far as kids growing up, I really think that this show should have had a five year life span, six tops. Barbara and Julie, were, I think, supposed to be 13 and 15 when the show started. By the time it ended, they were 22 and 24. In this type of show it gets harder and harder to justify, logically, adult kids living at home for so long. I know it happens a lot now, but at that time it wasn't as common and you risk having the kids look a little foolish for staying so long.

And when you have adult 'children' getting married, it becomes even harder to continue on, as the original premise is pretty much gone completely. For me, the ideal ending point for the show might have been Barbara graduating from high school and Julie either getting married or graduating community college, with Ann getting married and moving. They just drew this show out way too long for me, and it's sad because the first three years or so this show were really gold.

[TVFactFan]

Probably when Alex joined the show

[howilu]

I agree with the posts that stated when Julie and Barbara got older and Ann remarried, the show lost its focus. To me, One Day at a Time also jumped the shark with the addition of Alex.

[catlover79]

I would say the show really started to lose its focus when Mack's drug use came to a head in 1979-80 and she was kicked off the show. Then Glenn Scarpelli (no offense to him), maybe the worst child actor in history, came aboard as the whiny, sniveling Alex. Finally, Mack seemed to have her act together enough to reprise the role of Julie only to be fired yet again in 1983 (?). Then you had Ann marrying her son-in-law's father, which I found extremely icky. :eek:

Did E! ever do a True Hollywood Story on ODAAT? If so, THAT would be must see TV!!!!

[Stuck In The '70's]

I would say the show really started to lose its focus when Mack's drug use came to a head in 1979-80 and she was kicked off the show. Then Glenn Scarpelli (no offense to him), maybe the worst child actor in history, came aboard as the whiny, sniveling Alex. Finally, Mack seemed to have her act together enough to reprise the role of Julie only to be fired yet again in 1983 (?). Then you had Ann marrying her son-in-law's father, which I found extremely icky. :eek:

Did E! ever do a True Hollywood Story on ODAAT? If so, THAT would be must see TV!!!!
I think I might be the only fan that didn't mind Alex. :lol:

[TVFactFan]

I think I might be the only fan that didn't mind Alex. :lol:


I liked the episode when he burned something down and got tired of hearing about it and started screaming to Ann....: I KNOW, I KNOW!!!!!!!!!!!!

[catlover79]

I think I might be the only fan that didn't mind Alex. :lol:

You're definitely the only one *I* know, Sonny!! :lol:

[mstewart]

The show dragged on two seasons too long. The final season was horrible and it was showing on Bonnie that she was ready to go.

The first time MacKenzie Phillips was fired in the 79-80 season the following season you can tell there was a big hole in the show. It showed on the cast.

They could had ended the show with Ann and Sam (or whomever) get married and move. In the same vein that Three's Company ended. I did not like when she married and kept Romano instead of being Ann Royer or Ann Romano Royer.

[ThomasE]

When Mack came back, the show was getting better to me. When she left that second time around, it started to lag again. She left in the beginning of the final season. That was the nail in the coffin.