In
“Puppy Love,” Johnny (Johnny Whitaker) and Scot (Scott Kolden) drive Sigmund
home to their Clubhouse in their “Ecology Wagon,” but he falls out on the
street, and is nearly discovered by a neighbor, Peggy (Pamelyn Ferdin), and her
dog, Fluffy.
Back
at the Clubhouse, Sigmund confesses his love for Fluffy, despite their
different species. Johnny, meanwhile, as a crush on Peggy.
Meanwhile,
back at the cave, Big Daddy Sea Monster hatches a plan to bring Sigmund home at
lat. Slurp will dress up as the Sea Monster movie star, Diana Demon, and lure
him home.
Things
take a dramatic turn at the Clubhouse, however, when Zelda (Mary Wicke) sees
Sigmund there, and mistakes him for a ball of sea weed. She sweeps him up and
puts him in the trash. A trash truck takes Sigmund way, and now it is up to
Fluffy to find Sigmund and help him come home.
In
“Puppy Love,” the second episode of Sigmund
and the Sea Monsters (1973-1975), Sigmund falls in love with a dog, and has
his heart broken when Fluffy, the object of his love, decides only to date
within her own species. This subplot is mirrored by the one involving Johnny
and Peggy. At the end of the episode,
Johnny sings a song about falling in love, and being rejected.
Perhaps
the most interesting thing to note about this episode is that it guest stars
Pamelyn Ferdin, a child actress who starred in literally everything, it seems,
in the late 1960’s and early 1970’s. In the sixties, she guest starred on Star
Trek (1966-1969) in “And the Children Shall Lead.” And in the seventies, she was widely
seen on Saturday morning television, including programs such as Shazam! She was one of the leads in
Filmation’s Space Academy.
This
is the episode in which Archie Bunker knock-off Big Daddy calls one of his sons
“Meathead,” Archie’s favorite put-down of his Polish son-in-law, Mike Stivic
(Rob Reiner). Big Daddy’s plan this week involves Sea Monster pop culture, and
a sea monster matinee idol that Slurp dresses up as. The plot doesn’t work any better than it
sounds.
Still,
at this point, Sigmund and the Sea Monsters is a fun watch. It isn’t as loud
or frantic as Lidsville, and the characters are more interesting than those
found in The Bugaloos.
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