Airdate: 02/04/1987

Directed By: Michael Landon

As clearly suggested by the title, it’s a clearly a family-issue assignment. However, since it is set in Hollywood, it also incorporates some Tinseltown elements—though from a different perspective.

Complete show available here.

Assignment: Jonathan and Mark are assigned to reconcile a writer with her estranged mother.

Nothing new to the series, so far. Jonathan and Mark are working as assistants to a Phoebe Hall, a fictional Hollywood actress—much like the other actors they have encountered in previous Tinseltown assignments.

She is about to receive an honorary award for her career, and they have to organize her ceremony tribute and invite everyone, starting from her daughter.

However, Phoebe has severed ties with her daughter, who seemingly despises her and blames her for being an absent mother and ruining her childhood.

And now her daughter is writing one of those click-baiting“true” stories about what her mother is really like in her life, just to get back at her.

Even though at the same time this woman is no better, neglecting her daughter because she’s too busy writing her book.

It runs in the family, being so doozy.

So, Jonathan and Mark decide they might as well get involved in this woman’s life, helping her daughter realize what a doozy she is toward her family.

Everything sounds like many family issues before. However, to make this episode more unique, they added a “personal issue” part too, a conflict between the two protagonists. Basically, at some point, Jonathan and Mark realize there’s another angel supervising them, and if Jonathan can successfully carry out this assignment, things will never be the same.

Which means he won’t be on probation anymore, and he will have to leave Mark behind.

So, after three seasons, they are finally moving Jonathan away.

• Background

Although the episode is set in Hollywood, it is not directly about the film industry itself. Actually, there’s something unique: Phoebe the actress is not portrayed as a “monster” who started to believe what people told about her (more about this here). Rather, the episode is about how people judge her.

They took her lines from the interview to French about Hollywood and monsters.

In some way, it’s like a Tinseltown episode, but different (usually, in most of the Hollywood assignments like in The Brightest Star or That’s Our Dad even the actor was a doozy, or had some family problems to solve).

Anyway, the episode also makes a remarkable confirmation: when Jonathan realizes that Mark is being not being honest with him, he tells him there’s no use in lying because they have known each other for three seasons now.

This effectively confirms they have been out there playing angels for three years, and this episode (alongside this season) takes place in 1986 and 1987, not later. That’s important, as in the episode Love And Marriage (at least in its that cold open), they were celebrating their fourth anniversary, which created some issues in the order of the series.

But that cold open was added two years after the episode. And it was already apparent there was something wrong.

• Characters

The episode takes place in Hollywood, not certainly the first time Jonathan and Mark are there. But there’s one detail at the beginning about that: Mark and Jonathan are taking pictures of actors’ stars on Hollywood Boulevard.

And Mark finally got what he wanted.

He likes fictional actors more.

In the episode Cindy, he told Jonathan that, before starting their new assignment, he wanted to see “a couple of sights” since they were in Hollywood (even though it wasn’t their first time there, but whatever). And Jonathan dragged him away because they had an assignment, and work comes first, always.

But now, after three seasons hanging in Tinseltown, he finally gets that opportunity.

Not for long, though.

And it won’t be their last: in the fifth season, there will be another episode that begins in almost the exact same way, with Jonathan and Mark walking along the boulevard and Mark taking pictures all over. On that occasion, he even stops to photograph one of Landon’s (which had not yet received one at the time of this episode, or it likely would have been included here). That later episode will not be a Tinseltown-centered story, though.

Another small but amusing detail: when Mark is scolded by a tourist for standing in the way while she is taking photos, she insults him in a familiar name.

Hits home.

So, that’s a neat bum reference into an episode that has otherwise nothing to do with them. Landon can’t help it.

However, there’s an old reference too.

Curiously, this is the second time Mark has been called that in the series: the first was in Plane Death in season one.

The odd part is that they use the same reasoning in both episodes—suggesting that anyone with a beard like his must be a hippie.

Maybe French himself had been called that sometimes, and they decided to put it into this show.

It could be a self-reference, in that case.

• On Angels And Probation

This episode reveals a major development regarding Jonathan’s probation (or whatever that is). The assignment comes from a mysterious executive named Clifford who later turns out to be an angel—not a probationary angel like Jonathan, but an “area supervisor”: he explains that if Jonathan successfully completes this assignment, he will be promoted, cease being a probationary angel, and move on to Heaven.

This is a significant revelation for several reasons. It is the fourth time in the series that Jonathan and Mark meet another angel. Previously, they encountered Saint Peter in Help Wanted: Angel, a fellow probationary angel in The Last Assignment (who had been on probation for 200 years), and one in Love at Second Sight (where the angel tried to disrupt Jonathan’s assignment). Actually, there would also be Wally—but he only became an angel at the end of his episode— and the dog in For The Love Of Larry (but it remained unclear whether the dog is actually an angel or not). In this case, like with Saint Peter, they meet a fully established angel rather than someone on probation.

But it may shed light on the hierarchy of Heaven within the series. In Help Wanted: Angel, Saint Peter was sent to assist Jonathan, suggesting that angels who are no longer on probation still work—though perhaps not in the field, instead supervising probationary angels. And that is the same thing that happens here. Now, Clifford’s identity largely remains a mystery: in this episode, he’s shown working for a fictional Hollywood society—but it’s unclear whether he’s more like Jonathan, who gets a different job in each episode, or if that’s Clifford’s only job, because when you’re promoted you don’t have to move around anymore. Or maybe he only had to supervise angels in California, and there’s no better job than being in the Hollywood for that.

However, the angel Clifford is not here to assist Jonathan in his assignment; rather, he explains that, upon successful completion, Jonathan will be moved “upstairs”—which implies that Heaven is really divided in some hierarchy where angels working “upstairs” (no idea where) are considered better than those “downstairs” (supposedly on Earth). Although that means that this Clifford angel is not that good, if he works on Earth instead of “upstairs”, where he intends to send Jonathan after this.

However, some aspects raise questions. One, if angels who conclude their probation are assigned to help probationary angels, then how come Jonathan had been sent to help some fellow probationary angels twice before in the series (for Love At Second Sight and The Last Assignment). Maybe even probationary angels get to work with other angels for some time, or maybe Jonathan is somewhat special (he was allowed to bring a human along in his journey, and that’s seemingly unprecedented, or he wouldn’t have made such a fuss in the Pilot about it).

But there are some other important things: If Jonathan must successfully complete this assignment to be promoted, it implies that probation ends with the completion of a specific assignment, and that the decision is confirmed by another angel. Yet in The Last Assignment, when Jonathan and Mark helped a fellow probationary angel Harold conclude his trial period, Harold was promoted immediately upon completing his last priestly task—and that occurred without visible confirmation from a superior angel. Perhaps Harold—having been on probation for 200 years—was an exception to the usual process.

Anyway, there is another compelling element about the characters: upon realizing this assignment might be the last, Mark becomes worried that if Jonathan is promoted, they will never see each other again. And he’ll have to come back to his sister.

He’d clearly rather not.

Even though Mark was the one who almost left Jonathan when he fell in love with Nina some episodes ago. Suppose he doesn’t remember that.

The same way he didn’t remember anything about Stella in that episode.

Or maybe he wants to be the one to walk away from his friend, not the other way around.

So, to prevent that, he briefly considers deliberately sabotaging the assignment by helping Phoebe’s daughter.

And that is not going to work. You should know better.

This scheme is wrong for multiple reasons: in the episode of The Secret, Jonathan used the Stuff to deliberately hurt some people, and as a consequence, he was summoned to Heaven for an undetermined period of time.

Then, he was acquitted and allowed to come back to Earth, but that episode established that, if angels were to deliberately do something wrong (like improperly using the Stuff), they might be called back to Heaven. And in that case, Mark could be certain they would never see each other again.

So, if Mark’s plan is doing whatever it takes to prevent Jonathan from being promoted “upstairs”, he should keep in mind that blowing the assignment won’t work.

There’s something else too: Jonathan warns Mark that they can’t blow the assignment. And then he adds one problematic remark.

You really want to stay with your buddy rather than your wife?

The problem is not in the first part of his line, but the second: in the episode Love At Second Sight, a probationary angel decided to blow his assignment, which led to the abrupt conclusion of his probation (it was revealed the moment that angel was sure he would be soon joining his wife in Heaven, and Jonathan rebuffed him).

Basically, that episode established that if angels were to mess up the assignment—and do that for selfish purposes—their probation will be concluded and they’ll be doomed to aimlessly wander on Earth for eternity. Or at least until they get things straight, or they get another chance (more on this at the entry “On Angel And Probation” here).

So, if Jonathan says that part of him hankers for blowing the assignment, he should be aware that it’s quite dangerous. And even if doing so would result in staying on Earth with Mark (the reason he’d like to blow the assignment in the first place), they won’t be able to work on any assignment, he will be stripped of his powers, and he will never go to Heaven, nor he’ll see his wife again (that’s a problem that they will actually address in a future episode). So, Jonathan can’t possibly want that to happen.

Of course, the episode Love At Second Sight is in apparent conflict with The Secret, but one involves misusing the Stuff and the other blowing an assignment, so it’s likely these rules lead to different consequences. Either way, Jonathan can’t possibly blow the assignment. That would be wrong for his probation, and would make things worse for everybody.

But it’s not time, yet: eventually, Jonathan successfully solves the assignment, but the superior angel tells him to stay on Earth, justifying his decision by stating that Jonathan’s work is too important and it would be a waste.

And when will that happen? And what about the rest of the angels?

That makes this entire part ridiculous and useless: basically, this angel had told Jonathan (effectively deceiving him, at this point) that, by successfully carrying out the assignment, the probation will be over and he’ll be free to move “upstairs”. However, now he’s getting back on this because he realized that Jonathan is too important on Earth in his job traveling around with his buddy helping people.

But that’s just wrong: it seems that’s supposed to mean that Jonathan won’t ever receive his promotion because he’s too important helping Californian with problems. That would seemingly confirm that being an angel in this series is not a reward, but an obstacle delaying people’s entrance to Heaven (more about it at the “Highway Of Mysteries” entry here).

Also, not sure Clifford’s justification positively indicates there’s much of a quality in other angels operating out there: the probationary angels receive their promotion after serving years of probation on Earth (at least that’s what’s been implied in the series so far). But if Jonathan is not being sent to Heaven because he’s too important down here, it means that all the other angels that have actually been sent to Heaven weren’t that good in the first place—or they’d remain operating on Earth like Jonathan is told to now.

He doesn’t seem worried about it.

Really, it seems they wrote this entire subplot addressing Jonathan’s probation upon realizing the episode would have been too short without it. Or maybe it was a move to differentiate this episode from the countless Family Issues ones before it.

But they were just messing around.

• Production and Setting

As for the production, the episode was written by a pair of Highwaymen, who would later go on to contribute to another episode in the fourth season. However, these two episodes are the only ones they wrote for the series, and that is enough to classify them as Highwaymen. It explains why this episode has so many problems in its treatment of Jonathan’s probation (probably they had never watched any other Highway’s episode and had no idea what the series was about, except it features angels).

The episode was written on September, although some revisions were added in late October, and it went into production for one week in November. It was chronologically produced immediately after Wally and before both A Night To Remember and A Song Of Songs, but it aired after them.

The setting is all around Hollywood, like many other assignments taking place in here.

A fictional one, though.

• The “Stuff”

As for the Stuff, there are several odd elements. Apparently, Mr. Biggs—who is secretly an angel—makes exaggerated gestures when he uses the Stuff, either tilting his head or performing strange mimicking motions (for instance, at the beginning he tickles his ear to materialize food). This is similar to what Harold used to do when he employed the Stuff.

The difference is that Jonathan never makes any unusual expressions when using his powers; he simply maintains his normal expression.

Also, Clifford seemingly drives a limo.

He doesn’t have the wings either.

More about the wings here.

Anyway, this seems to confirm that the Stuff worked differently in the old days, and Jonathan is a more modern kind of angel.

Glossary

Blooper: there are a couple of bloopers at the conclusion. During the final tribute, the hall seems packed, or so its seems.

But it’s not.

The entire left side of the room is visibly, completely empty, and everyone is sitting on the side at the right of it instead. Perhaps they couldn’t afford to pay enough actors and stand-ins and extras for the scene, so they just moved everyone on the right and tried to conceal that side.

Curiously, that’s not the first time they do it: pretty much the same blooper occurred in a season two episode, during a ball game at the stadium that seemed packed but wasn’t at all.

Anyway, there’s another blooper after this: apparently, Mark is the guy sitting in the top row at the right side of the altar, the seat at the left being kept for Jonathan when he’ll join him. Then, Jonathan actually comes, Pheobe get on stage and her daughter apologizes, successfully completing the assignment.

However, when Pheobe and her daughter get on stage and reconcile while all the guests stand up and uproariously applause, Jonathan and Mark are seemingly missing from there.

It’s likely that Landon moved aside to direct everybody, but French isn’t there either.

Recycle: this episode has one recycle by David Rose, as often happens in the series. The composition that plays during the tribute—when mother and daughter embrace and reconcile in front of the audience, Jonathan and Mark are not there anymore (the blooper part)—should sound familiar.

That struck home.

It’s the same piece used in the epilogue of Help Wanted: Angel during Mark and Stella’s wedding.

Apparently, someone remembered that episode—even though someone else may have forgotten it when writing Oh Lucky Man, where Mark falls in love again with a woman he has known for only one week.

This was not even the first time that same composition had been recycled in the series: it was already featured in One Winged Angels in season one (during the scene in which a man writes a letter to the woman he loves), and again in Sail Away in season two (when the grandson reads his grandfather’s book). They must have liked it so much.

It should be kept in mind that Help Wanted: Angel is the episode that has been recycled the most over the course of the series: this was the sixth episode to recycle a feature from it (and some episodes recycled multiple features), and there’s more to come in the upcoming ones. There’s someone in the Highway’s crew to love that episode.

Anyway, there is even a brief musical recycle at the beginning of the episode. As Mark and Jonathan walk over Hollywood, Rose’s uses a tune from Cindy (and that was already a recycle from Catch A Falling Star, but slightly different then). It lasts only a few seconds—much shorter than the original composition, which was already shorter than Catch A Falling Star in season one—so it is not as overt as the Help Wanted: Angel recycle, but it is still noticeable.

Highway Of Mysteries: the entire “Jonathan is being promoted” stuff is quite a mystery in the way it works, or it is supposed to: for example, it’s unclear what “upstairs” means in the first place.

It was implied on some episodes that some angels who complete their probation can still remain on Earth doing something else (like advising other angels, as Petros Hadiar did, or doing field supervision, like this Clifford man).

So, Jonathan might as well ask to have one of those jobs and stay on Earth a little longer, if he really can’t help it.

Another mystery is about the moment Jonathan was notified of his impending promotion: in the episode, they only show Mark getting the news from Clifford, but Jonathan already knows that.

Maybe it was written in some guide book on “how to be a probationary angels” that they hand out in Heaven to up-and-coming angels. The same book where Jonathan learned the technical term for “erasing a person’s mistakes before that person can make them”.

But another mysterious aspect is the question of the duration of Jonathan’s probation. If he is now considered ready for promotion, his probation would have lasted 39 years, assuming it began in 1948 after his death (as revealed in Keep Smiling). That could serve as the usual period for any probationary service (again, excepting Harold, but that doesn’t matter). However, this creates a problem: in the Pilot episode, when Jonathan reveals his identity to Mark, he describes himself as relatively new at being an angel—even though he would already have been on probation for 36 years at that point.

Either Jonathan did not know how long his probation would last, or the full scope of his backstory had not yet been fully envisioned when the pilot was written. Or both.

When precisely is “time”?

It will supposedly never happens, if Jonathan is so good in his job no “supervising” angel will ever let him ascend “upstairs” or whatever. Or as long as they won’t find anyone who can do the job better.

This episode is so wrong.

Sunday Suits: at the conclusion of the episode, Jonathan and Mark wear their Sunday suits to the party. Mark is back in his black tuxedo, as he wore in the first and second seasons.

Earlier in this season he had been given a grey tuxedo as his new Sunday suit, and shortly replaced it a few episodes ago with a better one (according to a dangerous woman who didn’t like him), but now he’s back in his old suit, the way he’s supposed to.

The “Stuff” powers: notably, in this episode Jonathan uses the power he likes the most—playing sandyman.

He enjoys doing this to people.

He gets into the writer’s mind and persuade her to reconcile with her mother by showing her what really happened in her childhood.

It marks the sixth time in the series that Jonathan invades someone’s head: the first was Eddy in the season one’s Christmas Special, then Mark in both Going Home, Going Home (season one) and Heaven On Earth (season two, although in this case it was done at his superior’s direction), then a bunch of people’s dream in To Bind the Wounds in season two, and the father of Mark’s friend in Love And Marriage earlier this season (even though Mark was sent in the dream alone on that one). This time, it works like To Bind The Wounds, as he doesn’t really show himself in the dream, but rather makes her dream about what he wants her to.

But this time, he does something different too: unlike those episodes playing sandyman, in which he invaded those people’s head while they were asleep or unconscious, now he does it while the woman is awake, watching TV.

Maybe he didn’t really invaded her head, but just changed the movie she was watching into her own memory (or something like it). The odd part is that it works for the assignment: after showing her these images, she realizes she might have warped her memory, and that her mother is an innocent person.

The entire idea is quite wrong though: she has no way to tell whether the video Jonathan unassumingly showed her is the truth or not. If she had always believed that her mother is a monster, she has no reason now to change her opinion after having some weird hallucination (that she’s unaware was being caused by a deceitful angel). Unless he were manipulating her own will into accepting what she sees as the real fact, and abandon her preconceived ideas. But that would be just too powerful.

Also, it’s unclear how he knows how things went when she was little; maybe he was told by his superior about it.

Or he peeked into her mind too.

But again, as long as it works, it’s fine.

The Job: in this episode, they have to organize Pheobe’s tribute for the fictional “Hollywood” society.

It turns out Mark likes actors as much as sports.

Ratings: 31 million audience. 20th weekly TV programs, 5th TV genre show.

The episode aired in February 1987 and performed quite well in the ratings, not just compared to the first half of the season. However, it dropped more than 1.5 points compared to the preceding episode, ending the streak of episodes that had drawn over 19 ratings points from January up to this. For the remainder of the season, ratings generally stabilized at roughly the same level, comparable to those of the second half of season one two years earlier. That makes it popular enough, and showed the season was able to save some popularity for these late episodes.