Season finale review: 'Raising Hope' - 'I Want My Baby Back, Baby Back, Baby Back'
The Chances have their day in court
The Chance family worries about losing custody of Hope in the "Raising Hope" season finale.
A quick review of the "Raising Hope" season finale coming up just as soon as I get to meet Ed Begley Jr. ...
At the time Greg Garcia and company made "I Want My Baby Back, Baby Back, Baby Back," they had no idea whether the show would be renewed for a third season, and based on the ongoing low ratings, I'm sure they feared this would be the last episode ever. Fortunately, that wasn't the case, which not only means that we get more of this very, very funny comedy, but also that they won't have gone away forever with this as their last episode.
The structure of the episode felt a lot like the infamous "Seinfeld" finale, with the Chances in a courtroom forced to confront one person after another whom they had offended, beaten up, stole from, or in some other way upset. And though the execution was a bit better here — I particularly liked David Krumholtz's racial confusion — on the whole it felt like exactly what it was: a trip down memory lane in the event of cancellation, rather than just a good episode of "Raising Hope." In terms of nostalgia, I thought last week's Part 1 of this story did a much better job of revisiting old territory while still being funny.
And even though they played it as a joke by putting blind Krumholtz behind the wheel of the bus that ran over Lucy, eliminating a problem character/story by running it over with a bus is among the laziest, most overused TV cliches in recent years. Better they hadn't brought Lucy back at all than to bring her back and do it that way.
Very good season. Not-so-great finale. But at least we get more, thanks to the beneficence of FOX.
What did everybody else think?
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Login or create a HitFix account Login SignupJables
April 17, 2012 at 10:13PM EST Reply to CommentI feel like this is around the same time when I lost interest in his last show, My Name Is Earl. Isn't that when he went to jail? Same thing here, all of a sudden mom's not dead and things are topsy turvy.
Snowite I completely agree with your comment. Once people return from the dead, I believe the writers have hit a block. I absolutely hated tonight's episode. It reminded me of the Seinfeld series finale, which I also hated. I'm so disappointed.
April 18, 2012 at 1:21AM ESTKevin Not a fan of the "back from the dead" idea either, so I'm going to pretend this finale never happened when I pick up watching next season. I'm still a big fan of the show, but I agree with Alan, this one ended on a very weak note.
April 18, 2012 at 9:35AM ESTjenfullmoon Hmm, that's a good point. Does Greg Garcia just hit a mental expiration date at the end of season 3 every time?
April 18, 2012 at 1:09PM ESTspyridontrilogy
April 17, 2012 at 10:28PM EST Reply to CommentThe first half was definitely better. But I have to admit, even though Raising Hope does the sweet stuff without being too saccharine, the shot cutting between Jimmy and Sabrina after he lost custody was surprisingly touching.
Lauren
April 17, 2012 at 10:38PM EST Reply to CommentI'm a huge fan of this show, but I hated this storyline so much that I could barely stand to watch these episodes. I turned tonight's episode off after 5 minutes, and only turned it on again for the last 5 to make sure everything turned out well. Hitting her with a bus was ridiculous. Why not arrest her again for going after Sabrina with a knife? Why even have this storyline in the first place? Ugh!
jcpdiesel21 I watched the entire episode and it was probably my least favorite episode that the show has aired. I didn't care for last week's episode, either. What a waste to bring Lucy back to cause all of this trouble only to kill her off in such a dumb way and bring everything back to status quo.
April 18, 2012 at 10:55PM ESTSeason 2 had a rocky beginning (I hate it when shows go back and re-invent events from the past) and ending, but there was some really good stuff in the middle. I hope there is more of this good stuff in store for season 3 and less in the vein of the season finale.
guest this was the dumbest season finale/ episode ever put on tv. We use to LOVE this show but I doubt we will ever watch it again. Itwas dumb dumb dumb. I am in shock at how terrible horrible this show was. Imean every other episode we laughed our headsoff! I am so sad by the unbelievably stupidity of this episode!
September 4, 2012 at 11:38PM ESTAsta77
April 17, 2012 at 10:58PM EST Reply to CommentI actually was pleased to see Lucy return last week. I found her to be an interesting character to explore, periodically, and often wondered what life would be like for Hope and the rest of the chances if she were still alive...and in prison. So, while Part 1 worked for me in many ways (as retrospective, as Sabrina finding out Jimmy married Lucy, and as a way to resurrect Lucy), I felt Part 2 was a mess. What ultimately was the point of bringing Lucy back? Or do we find out next season the bus didn't kill her and she's in a prison hospital after attempting to kill Sabrina? And the custody trial was ridiculous even by the shows own standards. But Perhaps my biggest disappointment is, that if this had been the last episode of the series, the writing was incredibly lazy.
mrbilliam
April 18, 2012 at 12:07AM EST Reply to CommentLast week's episode would have been a great finale (only without bring back Lucy at the end).
Still, I thought the end of the court case was surprising well-played emotionally. And immediately before the bus crash, I actually laughed really hard at Lucy chasing Sabrina with the knife.
Annie
April 18, 2012 at 12:42AM EST Reply to CommentI'm not sure anyone understood that Lucy getting hit by a car for doing a bad thing was a reference to My Name is Earl...
Dezbot I did...
April 19, 2012 at 10:25AM ESTMike
April 18, 2012 at 1:25AM EST Reply to CommentI can't admit to being a huge Raising Hope fan, I've only seen about 60 - 70% of the episodes. But I thought last weeks and this weeks finale were really good, including a few tears this week when it looked liked Hope was lost. Also it should be noted that my viewership picked up the last few weeks since Alan started blogging about it again, which indicates Alan has a lot of sway among what gets viewed by the intelligent television viewer.
David Sanders
April 18, 2012 at 1:53AM EST Reply to CommentI respectfully disagree with most of the comments. I thought this episode and last weeks were very funny. The courtroom scenes (especially the jury) was hilarious. Yes, getting hit by a bus was a little unimaginative, but it did "pay karma homage" to its sister show My Name is Earl. It's amazing how much narrative they are able to cram into 22 minutes. I know the voice over narration helps. Hope, like its predecessor Earl, is an under appreciated comedy gem.BTW, I also love other comedies such as Parks and Rec, Community, Louie(not always a comedy), and Modern Family.
Ray
April 18, 2012 at 8:16AM EST Reply to CommentI liked Part 1 better than part 2 but I didnt dislike it as much as you seemed to Alan. I thought the season was really good in general. We got more of funny characters like Frank and they finally stopped playing with the Jimmy/Sabrina will they, wont they which was getting old. And settled into a good relationship with them. I'm glad to see you review this though Alan. This show has kept my interst better than Earl did which i stopped watching in the second season.
original jan
April 18, 2012 at 9:14AM EST Reply to CommentI enjoyed it. Yeah, it wasn't perfect, but it kept my interest and I laughed several times. And I am just delighted that it's been renewed. (And I remember being so surprised the first time David Krumholz was on in the earlier seeing-eye pig episode to finding out that's who that was--I had to go back and watch part os it again to see if I could recognize the guy from Numb3ers.) I just really like this show.
JedyKnight
April 18, 2012 at 10:22AM EST Reply to CommentI loved the last scene as a way out of the problem, but i thought that it would end up with the police catching her before she could kill Sabrina and sending her back to jail.. the bus bit was definetely a surprise but yes, a modern cliche one.
Joel
April 18, 2012 at 10:43AM EST Reply to CommentI actually thought before she got hit: "I hope they don't just kill her with a bus," and BAM! Didn't like that part but I thought the rest was really good. I loved the parody of that Miss Usa contestant when Virginia was on the stand, and the knife chasing was FAN-TASTIC. I almost cried I laughed so much. I do like Philips character so I wish the police had caught her. Seeing her once or twice a season wouldn't, IMO, be a bad thing.
M
April 18, 2012 at 11:02AM EST Reply to CommentI actually really liked these last two episodes and didn't like the episode with the pig, which you really seemed to love. Different strokes, I guess.
I agree having Lucy get hit by a bus was lazy, but I think it was kind of a genius use of that Rolling Stones song and laughed out loud at Jimmy getting what he needed right then.
mrbilliam I also thought it was pretty great when they first started playing the sad choir-style version of the song.
April 18, 2012 at 11:30AM ESTMaybe they should have had Jimmy chase down Lucy and have her stab him by accident, so that she gets custody taken away.
brian_shea
April 18, 2012 at 12:44PM EST Reply to CommentI highly disagree with the bus thing. It came out of nowhere for me and made me laugh harder than anything has in a while. The premise may be lazy, but they way they pulled it off with her chasing Sabrina and the set up with Krumholz and Lee's characters made it work for me.
Balaji K
April 18, 2012 at 1:07PM EST Reply to CommentCrazy (good) Season. I had no problems with the finale. I laughed all the way through it although last week's part 1 was better than the season finale.
SnowEater
April 18, 2012 at 1:49PM EST Reply to CommentI enjoyed the finale. Knowing they had to walk a fine line between a season finale that could possibly be a series finale makes for a difficult writing task.
Nancy Grace was amusing, the Chance's lawyer was funny, Virginia in Maw-Maw's burial suit was funny, the jury was funny, any chance to see the cast from My Name is Earl is welcome. Jimmy losing custody of Hope, walking away from Sabrina and driving away from Sabrina were all touching without being cloyingly so.
Lucy's slo-mo chase of Sabrina all for the happiness of her family and Sabrina's OH CRAP reaction were both laugh out loud funny.
The bus was a given, the only I would have preferred was if Lucy had been hit by a beat up red '73 El Camino
David Sanders Getting hit by the red '73 El Camino would have been classic. Great idea.
April 18, 2012 at 5:30PM ESTrenbutler
April 18, 2012 at 3:48PM EST Reply to CommentAs a father of two very small children, I could barely watch the scene where Hope was taken from Jimmy. I was surprised at how powerful and touching a madcap show like RH could be. Okay, I'll admit it -- I was crying a little bit, which is very rare for me.
But the ending took so many directions that I was laughing through the tears. I don't look for wacky shows like this to avoid cliches -- I just want to laugh. So I had no problem with the ending at all.
I'm glad I discovered this show last summer. Great stuff!
Elena
April 18, 2012 at 4:33PM EST Reply to CommentAgree with all of your points Alan, I too saw the relation to Seinfeld's finale, and am glad this isn't their last episode, as it wasn't near their best. I did enjoy how Lucy returned to her murdering ways, her chase after Sabrina was very apropo. But the ending where Lucy was flattened was rather, well flat. Glad the Chances will be back however.
UHF
April 18, 2012 at 4:54PM EST Reply to CommentGreat episode and finale to the season. Yes it did feel a bit contrived (and obviously stolen from Seinfeld) with the goofy courtroom antics, but they allowed some great moments. By far the best were in the end Jimmy and Sabrina's looks of despair, and that chase scene with the knife makes this unforgettable. It would have been nice to leave it on the cliffhanger, but they learned their lesson from Earl (So who was the kid's father!) Loved that "Earl's" bus hit Lucy. Second best episode of the season after "Jimmy's Fake Girlfriend!"
Dezbot
April 19, 2012 at 10:31AM EST Reply to CommentThe look of glee on Lucy's face as she chased Sabrina made me laugh so hard, I had to watch it a couple of times. I didn't mind the bus cliché. Surprisingly, I didn't mind Nancy Grace, either, and I freaking HATE her. Just don't ever bring her back, Garcia, please! :-)
Rachael
April 19, 2012 at 6:48PM EST Reply to CommentI have only seen part one, but Im pissed they brought Lucy back. It wired and not right. And then saying that jimmy and Lucy got married. Thats just wired and dumb and besides I thought that In the Piolt ep that they said jimmy didnt even know about it until like after the exaction, and if she wasnt dead wouldnt they have known like way before then? I dunno it just dosnt seem likely to happen, and even if she did survive the exaction, they would just try again. Love the show but this was just stupid
PDizzleFoSHizzle
April 20, 2012 at 12:29AM EST Reply to CommentAs a single father with a daughter and custody issues this show has handled a delicate/sensitive topic with such humor and respect until this episode. I don't understand the Seinfeld flippancy given to the custody of a child (that the child is handed over to a psycho without a word from the judge but the father is lectured upon having custody returned?), Jimmy sitting in the car doing nothing while the woman he loves gets chased down by a knife wielding psycho, and the overall tone of this episode. I will say they nailed the feeling of having your child "handed" to someone else, which is a horrible feeling that I didn't really want to relive watching a show I escape to.
Disappointed and hope Season 3 is better at promoting a good Father on television.
David Sanders Jimmy stayed in the car because he could not leave Hope alone. In addition, it is entirely possible he did not see the knife and that Psycho was trying to kill Sabrina. They were behind him. It's also possible he did not know Sabrina was stillin the area watching the car.
April 20, 2012 at 6:20PM ESTLesIsMore
April 20, 2012 at 12:21PM EST Reply to CommentWe're not going to mention this episode again under penalty of torture.
The courtroom montage of witnesses was hilarious in invoking the world Raising Hope's built for itself in two seasons, but the whole reintroduction of Lucy marked that the show is perfectly willing to step on that world at any time. And ugh, Nancy Grace. I said while it was airing that adding Nancy Grace to your show is like simultaneously inflicting yourself with testicular and ovarian cancer.
itrainmonkeys
April 23, 2012 at 9:55AM EST Reply to CommentWhile I agree a bit with the "bringing all former characters back" being too much like the Seinfeld finale...I have to admit to getting a bit teary-eyed at the end. It baffled me because I view this show as a silly comedy (one of my favorites currently airing but I've never thought it could hit me like it did).
When the song kicked in and The lawyer began to take baby Hope away from Jimmy I got chills and I felt that the acting from Jimmy and Sabrina was spot on. He really sold just how messed up the situation was and when he said "I have to" and Sabrina gives him the nod of understanding....I don't know....it just resonated with me.
Fantastic show, so glad they didn't stretch this into next season. Lucy is gone (hopefully for good - wouldn't mind a flashback though).
I loved the prison guards all freaking out around Lucy...like she was a zombie and they didn't know what to do. Funny stuff.
Anonym
March 22, 2013 at 11:50AM EST Reply to CommentTheseason finale of season 2 was horrible. Talk about ruining a show big time. I loved the show until season 2 episode 20, but the season finale of season 2 was so bad that I don't care for the show at all after that. What were the writers thinking? So bad...