7th Heaven

I think this show jumped the shark somewhere around season 5 and I stopped watching after that. In fact, it went in a completely different direction that didn't even make sense. Everything I'm about to say regards only up to the end of season 4 The show is about a pastor and his family but is not very religious. It is about family that has an awful lot of kids but doesn't promote that. In some episodes have to defend "all those children" even. There is definitely gender based stereotyping going on although they did try to expand the SAHM being more than just a cook/clean/kids -- she's also a plumber/carpenter ... they tried. The plots are simple and solutions are too easy but I loved this show. It is campy and I love campy. The kids are close and defend one another. Pastor expands his role to community counselor / social worker and gets involved in neighbors / parishoners / kids' friends lives. Wouldn't it be nice to have someone paying attention and subtly, politely helping people address their issues. If more pastors were this way, I'd probably have a more positive attitude toward religion.

I used to be a regular viewer of 7th Heaven, but after a while there were so many convoluted subplots that I just had to give up. The main family itself is huge, but when you add about 15 side characters the relationships become a bit too hard to follow. Also, I really got tired of how every episode became some political preaching about the latest controversy or hot button issue. In one episode, Ruthie writes letters to a U.S. soldier who is stationed in Afghanistan. Then she gets all worried when the guy stops writing back, and the preacher father ends the episode by reciting a sermon about America's heroes. Now, I'm all for being patriotic and all that jazz, but that entire episode seemed to be written in about five minutes and tacked onto the season just so the staff could win an Emmy. I'm willing to bet money that the writers just open up the paper to the Opinion section, close their eyes, point at a random story, and then write a script based on the issue. Going back to how complicated the show has gotten, I'd just like to note that it is very frustrating when the characters have boyfriends and girlfriends so many times in a season that you have no idea what's even happening any more. Seriously, you can skip one episode and someone will be married/divorced/pregnant/in a coma the next week. Talk about drastically changing plot lines! Now I'd like to talk about the most unintentionally hilarious episode, AKA the one that discussed the issue of marijuana. I could not believe how politically charged this one episode was, and my jaw was literally on the floor at how exaggerated the story was presented. Basically, the dad discovers a joint in the laundry (correct me if I'm wrong), and instantly starts eyeballing every one of his children. He becomes so paranoid and mistrusting that it's ridiculous. When he sees that Matt is eating more than two or three cookies, the camera zooms in on his sweaty, worried face. Why, Matt must have (gasp!) THE MUNCHIES! Dun, dun, DUN! Then one of the girls is acting tired. Why, she must be (gasp) HIGH! Dun, dun, DUN!! I mean, come ON! He even suspects Ruthie, who was probably 6-years-old at the time. Talk about overreacting. So anyway, the dad drags his wife into the bedroom and they discuss who might have brought the joint home. "Did you see Matt wolfing down those cookies? That's a sure-fire sign of (gasp!) THE MUNCHIES!" the dad whispers, afraid that his Christian neighbors will hear him. We then learn that the wife smoked some pot in college, and the dad literally freaks out. He comes this close to disowning his wife because she hit a couple of doobies when she was younger. Yes, God forbid someone does drugs when they're in college. I say, anyone who smokes weed is evil. EVIL, ya hear me?! So the dad puts the joint in his dresser drawer for safe keeping, and minutes later one of his daughters finds it while looking for something to wear. GASP! She thinks her parents are smoking the wacky weed! Ah, the wackiness that comes with family sitcoms. The show draws to a close when it is discovered that Matt had the joint, which leads to him running off somewhere. The mom and dad search the town only to find that he is praying in church. That's right, he's praying to God and spilling his guts about how he was just "holding" the joint for a friend. Uh, RIGHT. The credits roll after the mom and dad embrace their tearful son, a lesson learned by all. In short, GAG ME. Other issues discussed by Seventh Heaven include: listening to rap music is BAD, having sex is BAD, etc. Sheesh, whatever happened to just running a regular episode? Does every single show have to bery Very Special? Blech. I say this show be canned before the writers create an episode where Simon learns about the evils of homosexuality via a sinister uncle character. 0/4 stars

If you read through the comments already posted (and there are many), you'll see that most people are very strongly polarized... people either love this show or hate it.

I, for one, am somewhere in the middle of the road about it.

It is heavy-handed. It takes an 'issue of the week', and involves each member of the family in some aspect of that issue... fidelity, drug use, abstinence from sex before marriage... then wraps everything up in a nice neat package before the end of the episode.

The way the issues are dealt with are both shallow and heavy-handed. You never have any doubt in your mind what issue the writers are bringing up this week; you never have any doubt what they thing the "right" thing to do is.

At the same time...

We're looking inside of a family that seems to genuinely care about each other. There's a father who's involved with his children, siblings who look after each other, and a mother who obviously loves her children... and her husband, even after seven children.

Yes, Matt needs a punch in the nose. Mary could stand a valium perscription. Lucy needs a little more maturity. And so on. But...

But I keep watching this show, episode after episode.

And I'm not entirely sure why.

I watched this show once to kill time before something else came on, and found myself hooked. Sure the show has some major flaws -- it's heavy-handed moralizing, largely terrible acting, corny plots, a tendency to take itself way too seriously, and with the exception of the Mary-in-trouble story arc, everything is wrapped up in an hour.

But...

Everyone in the family cares about the others (tho sometimes I think mom has just a touch of an Evil Overlord bent on world domination streak), there's no sex, no violence beyond what's required to make a point, and no swearing. We're drowned in that stuff every day of our lives in every other medium we have. It's nice to find one hour during the week that's free of it. And if it moralizes -- what's the harm? Frankly most ppl could use a bit of moralizing. The other thing I've noticed is that while they're a religious family, and they approach their lives by that code -- they don't force it down anyone's throat, and that's pretty nice to see too. While they are tenacious in their own beliefs, they do allow others theirs... except when it impacts their family, which is understandable.

All in all, the irritations of the show are more than balanced by the sweet nature of the show, and the very family friendly spot it occupies. It may not be entirely realistic, but it's not entirely false either -- and if I want realism I can look at my own family which is just a bit *too* real.

While many have lots of concerns about the relevancy of this series, it continues to be one of the few television series still in production which does not feel it necessary to fill the hour with murder, mayhem, violence, sex, and ridicule. This makes it a safe choice for many families who want a bit of entertainment together as a family. It is the only choice for the family on UPN, as far as I am aware.

For a period of time, 7th Heaven was doing 'topic of the week' episodes in the after school special vein. Some people like that style; others do not. The current season has focused more on the lives of the various family members, which is something that fans of the series wanted. However, as time has gone on, at least three of the actors playing the family's children have moved on to college and film work. This leaves many of the fan based frustrated. There's basically 2 of the original 'children' left in the series, and one of them is no longer a child. The addition of the twin boys 4 years ago as babies will probably pay off next season (if another season is approved) as they will be 5, about the age of the youngest child during the first year of the series. More antics of kindergarteners - multiplied by two - are expected.

Can 7th Heaven survive another season? I expect, due to the limited competition in this demographic, that it can. But SHOULD it survive, or should it bow out as gracefully as possible? That remains to be seen.