Furley is about to be visited by a childhood associate, Merl Denker (Roger C. Carmel, "The Silencers"). Desperate to "show off" for his rival, Furley manages to convince the guy that not only has he struck it rich in both oil & real estate, but that he's married to Chrissy! Chrissy is trapped with Furley for the night, too, since Merl opts not to stay in a hotel. And all of this while Elmo Hacker (Reb Brown, "Uncommon Valor"), the massive, muscular lunkhead whom Chrissy is currently dating, is on the warpath.
'Ralphs' Rival' is 'Three's Company' at its best, a gleefully ridiculous and downright hysterical farce with some memorable moments (such as Larry's reaction to the sight of Elmo, and the way Elmo is able to tear his shirt apart when Larry tries to make a break for it). The later parts when Jack & Janet desperately try to stop Elmo from pulverizing Furley are comedy gold. Jack even tries to tackle Elmo and ends up riding piggy-back on him instead! This episode is a prime example of the hilarity that could erupt on this series when characters weren't honest with each other.
Unfortunately, the DVD release is missing the "tag" for this particular episode, so we don't get to see any final jokes to serve as a perfect "capper" on the story.
10 out of 10.
