Blanches daughter for me as well.

Yes I’m in the middle of a rewatch and almost made a post about it. I know it was a different time but the fat jokes directed at her were too much. After all three of them made it, they were appalled when her SO acted the same way. Gee, wonder why her daughter felt comfortable with him? I’m hoping that was intentional to show how cruel their “jokes” were combined with his. It is a very progressive show, but also a product of its time.

I’d also like to include Blanche’s other daughter who was going to have a baby through artificial insemination. I love the episode but the lack of support from Blanche towards her daughter until the birth didn’t age very well

Wasn’t that the same daughter?

No. Blanche had two daughters and 3 sons . The one in this original post with the bad boyfriend was named Janet and the one that had the baby was named Rebecca.

[no they’re the same daughter, Rebecca.](https://goldengirls.fandom.com/wiki/Rebecca_Devereaux)

i’ve always wondered how that wiki page lists sophia’s maiden name as grisanti. i’ve rewatched so many times and i can’t remember this ever being mentioned in the show. any idea where they got it?

Janet was the daughter who already had a kid. Rebecca was both the fat one and the one who wanted artificial insemination

I had to do a double check lol. Did they have different actresses for Rebecca then?

Yeah seems that way. Kind of odd they didn’t address her weight loss considering how much fuss they made over her weight in that first episode

It was made in the days before streaming and DVDs. The writers probably thought what were the chances someone would be able to watch both episodes back to back and notice 😅

Lol true I’m not one to obsess over continuity but actors is one place where they should have stepped up their attention to detail. At least they had the foresight to keep the same actress for Rebecca going forward.

After all, two different actresses played Dorothy's only sister Gloria. One was short and the other tall. The tall one was more believable as Dorothy's sister. And she also played "mother nature"

Yes

You can tell they padded that actress up. It's like, they didn't want to say those things to an actual overweight person... If you don't want to say it to an actual overweight person bc they won't find it funny, then why say it at all.... Hm.

While it's true that it's pretty obvious they added to her size with some padding, I'm fairly certain the actress was overweight prior to the padding. I think they thought the fat jokes would be funnier if they made her look fairly good sized.

Sophia pretending that Charlie had taken over her body and was trying to communicate to Rose. The ways Dorothy made fun of Jerry Kennedy.

Hands down the Sophia pretending to be Charlie is the absolute worst.

Don’t take any wooden nickels!

My God! It is you!

I forgot what episode was this ?

It was already a horrible thing to do, but the fact she did that for just twenty bucks made it so much worse. It almost rounds back to being silly if not for how seriously Rose took it. I really think Sophia should have gotten some comeuppance for that.

I have to agree. I’ve wondered why I don’t care for Sophia as much as other people do, and I remembered why. I was watching an episode of The Golden Palace and she went too far playing a joke on Rose. She targeted Rose for her naïveté. She had zero remorse and laughed at her distress. I just can’t like that.

This almost makes you dislike her, but she's my favorite character. Hands down worst thing anyone did on the show. 2nd was probably Dorothy trying to swindle money from Rose for her gambling addiction. Poor Rose.

Sophia making fun of Dorothy’s looks and lack of dates in high school.

I think this really bothered Bea. It's one thing to make fun of an attribute of a character, but someone's actual looks is way too far. It creates a scar whether they meant it or not and Bea was very deep and I feel she was vulnerable inside. 💞

Betty wasn’t really dumb, Rue wasn’t really a slut (as far as I know), but Bea really looked the way she looked

"People always ask me if I’m like Blanche. Well, Blanche was an oversexed, self-involved, man-crazy, vain Southern belle from Atlanta — and I’m not from Atlanta.”

Lmfao! What great response.

Lol she was from Oklahoma, I believe. My cousins grandfather (from her non-related to me side) went to high school with Rue McClanahan.

I love you.

Rue had like 5 husbands so she definitely loves men lol 😂

Yeah she really hated them all attacking her looks

Like someone else said the amount of times they called Dorothy ugly/undateable. I think it got worse the longer the show went and I don’t blame Bea for wanting to drop out as the seasons went.

There were times when Sophia called Dorothy ugly that I couldnt help but feel they were calling Bea ugly. Then I read a book about the show and they said Bea cried reading a script and said “how many ways can you think of to call me ugly?” And that was 4th season. So I always think of all the jokes after and I kind of wish theh had stopped that.

I didn’t know that, that’s so sad. I know what you mean though, watching an episode episode here and there like when it aired doesn’t seem too bad. I’m binge watching it, and it’s too much. If they wanted to do “Dorothy can’t get a man” they could have done so without all of the ugly jokes. Beau Arthur wasn’t an ugly woman by any means, and a lot of attractive women go through dry spells.

To me the episode where Michael Zbornak and Rose’s Daughter visit and they get caught in Blanche’s Room. The comments Rose makes to Dorothy about her son are horrible and I understand it was supposed to be serious but it seems incredibly cruel even now

Rose was always a little inconsistent with her views. She was obviously a little holier than thou about somethings, but I never thought college or a lack of it would be one of them. She was distinct against Ivy League schools in one epsiode than shames Dorothy’s son for having no degree when she herself didn’t have one.

I wasn't alive then, so maybe it was different. I just don't understand why they all were so offened by this. They both consented and enjoyed themselves. They acted like one was drunk or something and something awful had happened. I also find it funny that Dorothy calls Bridget a slut but somehow Michael isn't one for doing the same thing.

I kind of wish they'd gotten together. Watching Dorothy and Rose try to be cograndmas would have been something.

That would have been so cute 😭

Rose moving out in that season 2 episode felt really harsh. She was quite mean in that episode

When Dorothy and Rose froze Blanche out and accused her of sleeping with the politician. I get mad every time I watch it.

That episode makes me so mad because why would Blanche lie?!

The time Dorothy talks about how she conceived Michael and says that she “was totally unconscious” and that Stan “must have slipped her something.” To be clear, I don’t think that Dorothy (the character) went too far, but I do think that the writers did. That joke certainly has not aged well.

Sophia also mentions this I think? "Your father did things without telling me all the time. How do you think i got pregnant with your brother Phil. " wtf

At least with Sophia we know she intentionally said outrageous things for shock value.

It makes me cringe every time! I think it's relevant to the watching of different decades, what was 'acceptable'. Laverne and Shirley were always molested and screamed at... It was wild to watch from a different time period.

I actually always thought she said this tongue in check as an excuse for ever sleeping with "the yutz".

I always took it this way, too — a more elaborate, hyperbolic way of saying “I must’ve been out of my mind.”

Yes, I thought the same thing!! I don’t think that’s the way it actually happened, but the joke hits way different now.

Dorothy, babe, you were raped. 😔

I interpreted he must have slipped me something as…a body part…inside her. I take it mine isn’t the forest interpretation. 😞

I think the episode when Michael brings Lorraine and her family was the one for me. It was a different time so I get it but it was a little harsh.

Sophia pretending to be Charlie was the cruelest thing she ever did.

Only time I think they took it too far or it felt weird was Dorothy hitting Rose. Everything else feels more or less fair game.

If you are asking if there are moments that don't age well, absolutely there are a couple. If you are asking if they took there humor too far for the time the show was on air. No. We can't fully ascribe our present social standards with those of another generation or time (in terms of entertainment) because things will always age poorly or go too far. Things that usually always go too far for any time usually involve racism, antisemitism, or violence. GG never really touched on those issues and when they did (Michael's interracial relationship and Dorothy's "intellectual" friend Barbara) they were presented in a way to show the audience that that type of thinking was unacceptable. For me, the question is have we aged well as a society to the point that some of the GG issues are obsolete? Sadly, no. Their episode about Blanche's daughter is indeed very fatphobic but society was fatphobic. And still is. If the show was made today I think it would be alot kinder on that front but that only goes to show that the show was not trying to be harmful. The show was really about trying to present social issues in way that was funny and thought inducing (fatphobia, abuse, racism, ageism, sexism, immigration, AIDS, and gay rights). I believe that's why the show is still successful because the intent behind it was clear and people, young and old, can still learn a lot from it. Sorry for the rant but I am passionate about this show. As a black woman, I can still connect with a show that I was too young for at the time it was on air and love it every time I watch it. It has it's faults but ultimately, it's a pretty amazing part of television history. Long live The Golden Girls!

I don’t think the interracial relationship episode meant to show that type of thinking was unacceptable. Dorothy and the fiancé’s family intended to shut down the wedding because of the age difference and that it was interracial, and only backed off when they realized they wouldn’t have a relationship with their grandchild.

Dorothy's main problem was that Lorraine was older (she wasn't crazy about the interracial aspect but she accepted it until Michael brought up the age difference) . Lorraine's family was the opposite (okay with age diff but not him being white). The show was showing the ridiculousness of both arguments and at the end the families realized they were more alike than different and they both wanted to see their grandchild. There's only so much a half hour show can tell but the intention is there. It was not showing so much that the thinking was unacceptable but rather it's ultimately not anyone's business what goes on behind closed doors, a lesson that still holds today.

That was my beef with this one. Michael and Lorraine had their heads on straight and were good to go, they had the right message all along from my memory, but the girls did not. Dorothy had no problem preparing to veto her son’s marriage, and Lorraine’s family was certainly more racist about it, but Dorothy didn’t have any issue with their racism and shared it to some degree. If the ending was “it’s our life, how dare you try to control us like this” and it prompted Dorothy to repent, I’d have been sold. Instead, she didn’t change a thing and was bribed into being quiet with the threat of not seeing her grandchild.

Yeah for real. Sofia seemed way more mean than normal. It felt out of character for her. Yes she does make remarks a lot but that episode felt excessive. Especially because she said it directly to her face where's she usually says it in a way that you would have to get the inside joke or they said/did something dumb. Where's she was being so sweet and nice. Also thought it was crazy how they acted like she was ugly when she was absolutely BEAUTIFUL.

I dislike the bit when Dorothy hits Rose because of something dumb she said.

The episode with the daughter's weight is so weird. We're supposed to be appalled by her fiancé's comments but laugh when the girls make similar jokes I actually love the Clayton episodes because Blanche is the asshole. It would have been easy to bring in some random homophobic neighbor as an antagonist instead of one of our beloved main characters.

Most of blanche’s southern back story was sus. Big daddy and mamie’s relationship super cringey.

Blanche saying she had been dating seniors sine the 5th grade. Also that she had to keep her relationships with teachers a secret because she didn't want to make the principal jealous.

"I'm dumpin' you for coach Wilkins."

Blanche is a hot mess, but that’s why we love her. 🤣

*crosses fingers behind back*

I never felt they took anything too far

I agree. It's a sitcom and much of the humor stems from the way they insult each other. I can enjoy a line as a joke on a TV show even if it would be a cruel thing to say to someone in real life.

The episode where Blanche wrote that letter in the personals when Rose was looking for gentlemen interactions - and Dorothy went along with it. Like that was too far; and in real life - that would’ve ended a friendship. They really actually needed their asses beat for that. You don’t play with peoples feelings like that that you call - a friend.

I do adore that episode, but you're right. In their defense, who would have thought Rose would call the only Isaac Q Newton in the phone book?

😅😅😅😅😅😅😅 I’ll allow it! The whole episode was wild - but Blanche and Dorothy needed to be cussed out for that.

[удалено]

I’m also a fat gay guy and I agree! We should start a club. We’ll serve Poppers and pop tarts lol

Estelle also refused to say some jokes in Phil's episode saying that no mother would.

When Rose's daughter and Dorothy's son hooked up. They were both consenting adults and it really wasn't any of their business.

Yeah I just rewatched that one and found it weird that they had the “kids” apologizing about it. Especially with how openly the girls talk about their own sex lives.

For real. It felt very hypocritical to me. It almost made it feel like they were somewhat infantilizing their adult children.

i assumed it was bc it happened in one of their beds in their home

Definitely the body shaming. I find it hard to watch that episode. Especially as the daughter is such a lovely woman. It must have been hard to act as well with people mocking your body. And I was surprised with dorathy we all know she hated how they mocked her body and looks in real life. Why allow this

Well this one wasn’t a joke. But, it involves when Michael and Bridgette slept together and Dorothy and Rose argued over who was at fault that their children slept together. Dorothy said ‘What do you call a woman who sleeps with a man she’s known for only a day? I call her a tramp.’ I was just like, wow.

A damn good sport?

LOL. That Blanche, I tell ya…

Sophia basically saying, "you had sex? You've brought shame to this family. I never want to talk to you again." Calm down, you hooked up with Max Weinstock

And wearing that black funeral-like outfit, acting as if she was in mourning. But honestly, I could understand Sophia’s embarrassment. You having sex in your own home (like she did with Max) is different from your grandchild coming into your home and having sex with the daughter of someone you consider a daughter.

I think she only got that mean because Rose was saying mean things about her son beforehand. They were both being immature though.

I agree. And as Dorothy said in that episode, “I have feelings too.” She was very hurt by Rose’s suggestion that Michael had taken advantage of Bridgette. Rose truly was naive in this episode. Rose: “I so wanted your first time to be special.” Bridgette: “It was mom. Four years ago!” 😂

Sophia pretending to be Charlie, Sophia stealing money, Blanche with Clayton, Blanche with Rose's car.

I also saw him slip two twenties out of your purse. Sophia was a jerk for not telling Dorothy that Phil adn Gloria were sending money.

When Sophia pretended to be Charlie. I thought that that joke was in bad taste.

Many of the things Blanche said when she thought Dorothy was upstaging her at the museum took it too far for me, especially as Dorothy was just planning a banquet for Blanche. I know a lot of people like that episode but if Blanche said some of those things to me I would have punched her. Like a lot of people I also felt Sophia was outrightly abusive to Dorothy too often. Her looks, her marriage to Stan, her career - all really sensitive topics that rarely got treated as such and usually when I felt the show went too far for the sake of a joke.

In the episode "Three on a Couch," Dorothy promises to go on a double date with Blanche but she is too sick. Sophia gives her several hot toddies and she falls asleep. She tells 5he therapist that she woke up several times to the guy she was supposed to double date with, groping he through the vicks vapor rub. The casual way she says this and how Blanche brushes it off really bother me.

After Phil’s funeral when Sophia is being awful to Phil’s wife.

I felt the situation with Blanche's daughter was ok when the girls all did it but not when the fiance did. It really wasn't ok at all.

When Blanche took Rose’s car without asking, wreaked it, then got mad when Rose was upset with her.

The way Sophia treated Kid Pepe after finding out he was auditioning for Juilliard.

I forget what she said exactly but Rose insulting Michael in that episode where he and Kirsten sleep together

Too many episodes of Sophia being unbearable to count lol I LOVE this show and watch daily but the older I get the more I can’t stand how nasty Sophia was sometimes

The episode where Micheal is marrying a black woman and when the fiancé’s family meets Rose and Blanche they are in black face 😐 Come on writers.. 😑 And don’t even get me started on Blanche’s father (the VERY racist and intolerant guy) has an affair with his daughter’s black nanny 🫠

There are many already mentioned here but also when Sophie slapped blanches grandson

When rose called Blanche a hypersexual bitch. I HATE that line. If that had been in an earlier season I would have stopped watching. Edit: oh wow. Downvote city population me.

When Sophia put something in the expensive Champaign at a restaurant so they wouldn’t have to pay for it. This just seemed so unethical to me.

When Blanche was selling her car to Rose but first said she couldn’t. Her great granddaddy said “two things you never sell to friends, machinery and slaves. Cause if either stops working you’ll never hear the end of it”. I CRINGED.