Saturday, May 13, 2017

Saturday Morning Cult-TV Blogging: Lidsville: "Turn In your Turban, You're Through"


Tired of being out-foxed by Mark (Butch Patrick), Hoo-Doo (Charles Nelson Reilly) sets a new trap for the boy. Masquerading as an elderly woman, he captures Mark and then switches Weenie’s (Billie Hayes) powers to Mark.

Now a subservient genie, Mark is tied to the magic ring, and considers Hoo-Doo his master. Hoo-Doo is happy because he now has a “slave with a brain.”

Stripped of her powers, Weenie must find a way not only to regain them, but to free Mark from enslavement.



Compared to last week’s cross-over (not to mention cross-dressing…), “Turn In Your Turban, You’re Through” is a pretty conventional episode of Sid and Marty Krofft’s Lidsville (1971-1973).  

Hoo-Doo is once again up to no good, and the insecure Weenie must find the resources within himself to defeat the villain and rescue his friend.

The most interesting aspect about the episode is the fact that Weenie is jealous, at least a little, that Mark makes a better genie than he does. He has to do the right thing, and overcome his fears, to succeed.  

Mark, meanwhile, is a real evil genie, doing the will of Hoo-Doo without hesitation. And, of course, Hoo-Doo’s first job for Mark: collect taxes!

Next week: “Alias, the Imperial Wizard.”

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