The Threshold

It was interesting to watch the speculation about the concept of television. "It might someday be as popular as radio". That thought was laughed at. A concept they couldn't conceive at the time. People thought perhaps this new idea might take off and develop into something, but they weren't really sure.

I enjoyed John Boy's speech at the end about what television could lead to and become as long as people were careful about how it was used. Something that didn't always happen unfortunately. His idealized view could never have predicted raunchy talk shows. However he was right about how it would change the world for the children on the future.

On the down side, I simply cannot stand Zuleika. I hated the character from the time she started hanging all over Grandpa. No boundaries or respect for others. But every show has to have a bad guy. She certainly is one. She makes Corabeth look like a saint. Rose's reaction made a clear point about the dangers of improper dieting and what it can lead to. Also the importance of one's own body image and self-respect.

It is interesting in the storyline that small fictional Boatright University would experiment with using tv sd an onstructional tool in 1946. In reality it was was the University of Iowa in 1950 that began doing that. Alabama was the first state to begin a statewide network for educational instructional use in April of 1955.today many states have statewide Etv interconnected through PBS. ETV Tried for years to rid itself of that "educational" stigma and it took until the late 1960s with the Corporation of Public Television and creation of the Public Broadcasting System and its varied films and appeal to all aspects of society to do that.

All episodes without the parents are lacking.

This episode is an interesting take on the dawn of television. Pairing the storylines of John Boy and Jim Bob capture both the technical and content sides of this great invention.

The subplot involving the love triangle between Rose, Stanley, and Zuleika is confusing. Previously, when Stanley left Walton's mountain for California, he had been prepared to marry Rose. Now, he's treating Rose as a friend, and allowing Zuleika to come between them.