User reviews

When this show first started in 1977 it was touted as "controversial". It was a comedic parody of the day time soap operas based on the families of two sisters, Jessica Tate (Katherine Helmond) and Mary Campbell (Cathryn Damon). Jessica's husband, Chester, makes a personal hobby out of infidelity in spite of the fact that he says he loves Jessica. Mary is in her second marriage, married to Burt (Richard Mulligan) who actually killed Mary's first husband - but nobody knows, including Mary.

Mary's grown children include Danny (who is working for the mafia), and Jody who is gay (this is not a secret). Chuck is Burt's grown son, and his problem is that he channels his personality through a ventriloquist's dummy who says all kinds of hateful prejudiced things, taking no responsibility himself because "the dummy said it". Probably the most enduring character in the show is Benson who is the African American butler in the Tate household. He takes no guff and has funny passive aggressive ways of dealing with those who cross him. But he finds Jessica endearing if not very bright and is kind to her.

Jessica has three children with their own problems. So the story lines include the mafia, a forced marriage that turns to love and then turns tragic, the issue of child custody when one party is gay, UFOs and aliens, South American rebels patterned after the Sandanistas, an adult woman having an affair with a teenage boy, religious cults like the Moonies, oh, and there is the old trope of the murder whodunnit.

This all works well for about two years. During that time the country was becoming more socially liberal, and what once shocked was becoming standard TV fare. That is probably what did in the show - normalcy caught up with it and the characters and their storylines were played out.

This show is on DVD and is worth watching mainly to see where we have been as a society in just a few short decades, and plus there is a human element of the show that is still quite compelling and timeless.

This has to be one of the best casts ever. Just revisited this series and haven't laughed this hard in ages. It's sad that so many of the cast have passed on. This series was underappreviated. Hilarious spoof of soap operas...so brilliant.

I watch one episode, and Burt becomes my favorite character. I watch another one, and Jessica becomes my favorite. She is next supplanted by Chuck & Bob (technically two characters?). Forget Seinfeld, forget Everyone Loves Raymond, this show set the standard for an ensemble cast where everyone is drop-dead hysterical. I remember watching this as a kid, and not really understanding the jokes about homosexuality and infidelity, but 40-something years later, I get it, and its never been funnier. Chuck and Bob doing the mindreading bit still knocks me dead. Invite over everyone you know to watch this, they'll thank you for it

I began watching this show when I was rather young - elementary-school aged, really, & because of its episodic nature (for I read comic books voraciously, & loved "to be continued" storylines) - well, probably because I liked the guy with the puppet - I was hooked. I watched it weekly & remember praying to God that it wouldn't be cancelled. The magic of the show was that it taught me so much. I knew little or nothing about homosexuality, infidelity, racism, hell, even the Mafia or Central American revolutions, until I watched this show. It was genuinely funny - Bert thinking he could turn invisible, Benson's "I ain't getting that," everyone talking to Bob when they knew damn well Chuck was throwing his voice - I laughed & laughed.

As I watch TV now, I really miss the topicality of this show - the fact that, with a simple parody of soap operas, they managed to bring important issues of the day to the forefront. No one was safe - even alien abductions were lampooned, years before there was an X-Files that could stand a bit of ribbing.

Yeah, it's dated, & when I saw a few episodes in repeats a while back, I was more moved by my old feelings - these were friends I hadn't seen in ages! - than by the story & the jokes. But the point was, it was brave - like "All In The Family," like "Good Times" - though not a Norman Lear creation - braver than anything on right now. Someone else suggested you watch from day one - that's not all that important, because you'll catch on soon enough (it's a soap opera, after all), but I do believe you'll come to care for the characters & their ridiculous predicaments soon enough. & you'll be amazed at how utterly clever it is.

Be warned, though - like "Twin Peaks" it doesn't really end, & if you're coming at it for the first time, you'll be sad when you get to season four's end & there's nothing following. I was.

Growing up watching television, I've always noticed that the best shows are the ones that question the status quo. Sure, some people might be offended, but you don't have a pulse if you enjoy something that doesn't have a pulse. Not only does "Soap", the Emmy-winning scattershot mockery of the now-endangered daytime drama, have a pulse, it has a brain, heart and soul.

The setup is in Dunn's River, a fictional Connecticut suburb where the married siblings, ditzy but good-hearted blueblood Jessica Tate (Emmy winner Kath Helmond of "Who's The Boss" and "Coach") and practical but anxious blue collar Mary Campbell (the late Emmy winner Cathryn Damon of "Webster") are the matriarchs of their own equally erratic and eccentric families.

For Jessica, she has her unfaithful stockbroker hubby Chester (Robert Mandan); night and day daughters Eunice (Jennifer Salt, daughter of Oscar-winning scribe Waldo, and now a TV/film scribe herself) and Corinne (Diana Canova); spoiled smart-aleck son Billy (Jimmy Baio, brother of Scott); demented father/WW 2 vet The Major (Arthur Peterson) and defiant butler Benson Dubois (a brilliantly sharp Robert Guillaume, who got his own spin off series after the show's first two seasons).

Mary's clan is no saner. She has her second husband, spineless wreck contractor Burt (the late Rick Mulligan of "Empty Nest"); himbo pistol-headed son Danny (Ted Wass of "Blossom); sly homosexual son Jodie (future Saturday Night Live player and Oscars Awards host Billy Crystal in a groundbreaking role) and nutty, inappropriate, ventriloquist step-son Chuck/Bob (talented Jay Johnston).

Basically, THEY ARE ALL NUTS (excluding Benson) and it's emphasized that THEY ARE ALL NUTS (excluding Benson) when they go through situations involving murder, infidelity, rape, incest, racism, homophobia, sexual teacher-student relations, interracial romance, mental breakdowns, dementia, sexual impotence, third-world country revolutions, religious cults, demonic possession (!), alien abduction (!!!) and other moments that make Agnes Dixon ("All My Children") look like a rank amateur in the art of plotting soap operas.

This delightful sitcom was practically an asylum and creator/showrunner Susan Harris ("Benson", "The Golden Girls" and scribe of the infamous abortion episode from "Maude") ran it for four years (1977-1981). A fifth season was planned, but ABC, the show's original broadcaster, axed it due to pressure from both (!) right and left-wing organizations. It's a damn shame because, aside from the works of Harris's then-mentor, Norman Lear, no sitcom has been socially brave and honest around that time. Set this show against any bow-tie-wearing reality BS today, and IT WILL WIN.

Being one of the few females in the TV showrunning game in the late 70s, Harris, who wrote nearly every episode and appeared in two as a jailed tart (!), transplanted the soap opera's serialized format and injected into a prime time show (predating the action TV serial "24"), hooking viewers by putting her characters in off-beat pickles that parody the genre (Maybe that's another reason why the show was canned: entertainment politics). It's interesting Ms. Harris, now retired, hasn't been approached by "SNL" at the time.

Series director Jay Sandrich ("The Cosby Show") expertly helmed the show's madness, accented by the romantic yet subversive music by George Aliceson Tipton (worked with equally subversive musician Harry Nilsson) and the quirky narration by the late announcer Rod Roddy ("The Price Is Right").

And there's also the cast, ranging in age. They were all so superb, it's hard to pick a favorite. It seems they were told to be themselves, and they heeded the advice. Even the guest stars are fun and they would go off to do other shows like Doris Roberts ("Remington Steele", "Everybody Loves Raymond"), Joe Mantegna ("Criminal Minds"), Sorrell Booke ("The Dukes of Hazzard") and Howard Hessman ("WKRP", "Head Of The Class"), to name a few.

A precursor to shows like "Arrested Development", "Modern Family", "30 Rock", "The Office (USA)" and "It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia", "Soap" stands as a example of a sitcom that goes over the edge, and has a good time doing it. If cable networks, HBO and Showtime, established its' original scripted programming much earlier, the show would have found sanctuary from the then-Big Three TV Network cartel. Instead, it's an outstanding artifact that was ahead of its' time, exposing humanity's shortcomings in a ludicrous and (still) controversial fashion. The racy stuff will combat today's right-wing morals and left-wing political correctness, but if you can laugh when watching the show, you're a human being, albeit a wacky one.

I was only 10 years old when this show premiered on TV in London. But it was shown on Fridays (10.30pm) & I was allowed to enjoy the antics of the Campbells & the Tates. The characters & their situations were something I had never experienced on TV before, but the actors involved made the show an enjoyable one. Lead character Jessica (Katherine Helmond) was a lovable dope who could pull viewers heartstrings as well, she embarks on an extra marital affair with her tennis coach (who turns out to be her brother in-law's son) who's also having relationships with her daughter Corrine (Confused? You should be), who later turns her attentions to a Catholic priest. Jodie (Billy Crystal) was a gay guy intent on having gender re-alignment to win over his footballer boyfriend, when this failed he turned straight & fathered a baby girl which later sparked an ugly custody battle. Other characters worth mentioning were Burt (Jessica's brother in-law) a quirky guy who's impotent & had issues with his stepsons (wife Mary's boys)it later transpired that Burt killed Mary's first husband. Mary's first born Danny is a would be mobster who decides to quit the mob, in order to do this he enters a shotgun marriage to the boss's daughter (Danny's mob bosses went from being Italian to Jewish without mention). At the time the sexual references & American colloquialisms were unintelligible but watching re-runs on cable have reconfirmed my views that this daytime soap parody is a comic classic.

I watched this series when it first aired in the UK when I was young, single and the world was mine to explore. I laughed and cried with the characters. I am now twice the age as I was then, have moved to Australia, got married, had children, been widowed and have just watched the first 2 seasons again, 25 years later, on DVD. I again laughed and cried with the characters. Interestingly enough, my teenage daughter also laughs and cries with me, a generation gap easily linked with this awesome series. It is still a very emotional show despite everything that has happened in between. For me it has stood the test of time and will always do so.

I realize the content was a bit racy, but the is the funniest TV show I have ever seen... and I'm a 67 year old boomer who has watched a lot of television... although not so much lately. It includes the all-time best cast ever assembled for television, plus Richard Mulligan in his best role, Billy Crystal in one of his early acting jobs, and Katherine Helmond at her absolute best. I could go on and on about this cast but if you are a fan of this series you know what I mean. There is no question in my mind that the first 2 seasons are the best.. especially the first season. I can't tell you how many times I spent ROTFLOL before there was even such a thing. I had not seen any of these episodes in recent years because it hasn't been as wildly popular in reruns, probably because the episodes are serialized, so I recently purchased the entire series on DVD. I had forgotten how funny this series was until I started watching them again. If you have never seen Soap, you are missing out on one of the simple pleasures of life.

I don't know if this was deliberate, or if the show simply wasn't funny after season 1.

They did a PHENOMONAL job of aging Katherine Helmond. Her IMDB birth date makes her 48 when this series started, but she was made up to look like she was in her late 60s.

Perhaps the writers confused "silly" with "funny" after season 1. The show was quite silly, with bizarre plots, but not actually funny.

It is kind of surreal watching the characters converse, and then hearing the laugh track, even though nothing they have said was funny.

It's a shame, as the first season was pretty funny. Susan Harris is credited as one of the writers for the entire series run, so not sure why it stopped being funny.

What can I say? This was a huge favorite show of mine. Now that I found the show again I would love to be able to watch all of the episodes, but I can't find a channel that offers it free to view. I'm so upset.

While it has great characters, it also has some of the worst. Overdone slapstick really gets tedious. The whole Burt character is a bit too silly, talking to himself and generally being a dimwitted buffoon. He's a caricature of all that's wrong with sitcom acting. His movements and facial expressions are exaggerated to distraction. Dutch is an unfortunate complete idiot. There's nothing funny or likeable about him whatsoever. Overacting in the extreme. He's awful, and every scene he appears in dies immediately. He's easily the worst character in TV sitcom history. But the preacher Tim was a close second and his departure from the show was welcome. All his scenes are just not written well, and other than Dutch he's clearly the least talented of the cast. A dull, bland character whose lifeless presence drags the show down in several ways. It's a balance that just about works but doesn't hold up to modern viewing. Ventures into the ridiculous well too many times and eventually lost it's charm and focus. It's enjoyable for what it is for the first couple seasons, and there are many hilarious scenes. Other scenes just end dumbly or annoyingly. Perhaps groundbreaking at the time but there were better done more authentic shows back then. Falls into the formulatic choreographed tricks of the genre of the era. This plays to cliches and tries the patience at times. It lacks that consistent authentic feeling that makes the viewer get completely immersed in it. Benson, The Major and Billy were actually the highlights, and of course Bob. There are some truly touching scenes between family members from time to time that actually choked me up. Some things were done really well and others failed hard. People must've been stoned out of their wits to endure this silly mess for the entire 4 seasons, when only the first 2 were remotely bearable. Ever been stuck in the mud with the tired spinning? This show starts to feel like that midway through Season 2. The wheels came off with the Demon Baby and Alied Abduction nonsense. I don't understand the 8.2 rating here, but then I don't understand the majority of the ratings here. Disheartening. 4.5 rounded down to 4 to compensate for the the incomprehensible high rating. By the start of Season 3 things had become so ridiculous and asinine that it had become basically unwatchable. Dialogue had become absurd beyond endurance. Yes, they tackled serious controversial issues but they handled them in a silly, clunky ham fisted and light hearted fashion. Plot starts going in circles. The trick to writing a likeable character is to make them at least a little believable in their actions. Like in Andy Griffith. Gomer is immensely likeable because he's a bit slow but also very genuine, funny and clever. A good guy. Goober who replaced him was a slobbering idiot and didn't work out for me. A slightly dim character is cute and endearing, but when you have so many in one show that are incredibly stupider than a bag of dead catfish eventually you're just going to get irritated by them. That's what happens here. Case in point: Bert. Danny to a degree too. It was simple minded unenjoyable rubbish. Poorly choreographed too. Not much discernible talent found in the cast. There's talented people, but they unfortunately have to play idiotic roles and dumb themselves down to meet the meager expectations of the director and producer. Luckily this show did served as a springboard for so many to pursue successful jobs and even careers, actors and production personnel as well. When the best character ends up being a dummy it's kind of a warning sign. A 2 season run would have been plenty. It's amazing how people fall in love after knowing each other a few minutes, then spend the rest of the time lying and cheating on them. Maybe I don't understand what the show was driving at, but it didn't seem like it was hitting the mark. WKRP, Barney Miller and other shows of the era succeeded because the characters were true and developed while here they were just all over the board. Teenagers falling for senior citizens? Gimme a break, man. Anyway, I'm happy for the success it achieved but I don't get it. Nope, I don't get it at all. They don't make 'em like this any more. Thank goodness for small mercies. The attempt to replace Benson with another listless character was a very ill thought out move that fell flat. That guy was horrible. Unfunny and unoriginal who only tried to act and talk like the character he was replacing. At least try and give him his own personality. Let him make the role his own. What started out as a mildly clever show deteriorated into one of the most annoying messes I've ever tried to watch. I forced myself to complete the 3rd series, and it's a testament to my fortitude that I prevailed. Could not bring myself to even start the 4th Season. I know my limitations.

Truthfully, i was too young to remember this show when it originally aired back in the late 70's. I do remember a lot of controversy about it, and that some stations chose to air it late rather than during primetime, because they thought it too racy.

A few years ago, I managed to catch this show on Comedy Central, and I have to admit that it is quite possibly the finest sitcom ever created. The characters were not the bland, shallow, unimaginitive figures you see on tv today. There was Jodie, the homosexual that was always unsure of his own sexuality; Chuck, the shy ventriloquist that always carried around his dummy Bob, whom Chuck thought was real, and there was NOTHING he wouldn't say; Burt, the delusional construction worker who had frequent encounters with the paranormal; Danny, the dimwit son of Burt that was mixed up in the mafia and later became a deputy sheriff; Chester, the wall street financier who slept with every woman in town except his own wife; and on and on. The cast (which includes billy crystal) was perfect...everyone played their roles so believably that you truly feel like you are watching a real dysfunctional family.

The writing and jokes were also timeless...This show was designed to take a direct pot shot at the absurdity of modern soap operas, and it hit it's mark perfectly. Most of the plotlines were like something out of a supermarket tabloid which always added to the hilarity of the show. Burt being abducted by aliens, burt thinking he can make himself invisible by snapping his fingers, jessica being captured by central american freedom fighters, jodie's baby being possessed by satan, etc...

Even 20+ years later, this show will not disappoint. While it may be tame by today's standards, it was clearly a pioneer that paved the way for a lot of today's programming.

After all the years that have passed Soap is still one of the best comedies ever written. I recall my Dad watching this. I was not allowed because I was too young! The main Actors of Katherine Helmond and Richard Mulligan made this a hilarious watch! I am now able to watch it on a retro TV channel and I am addicted to this crazy Satire! Definitley worth a watch.

It was broadcast on December 20, 1977, after the first 13 shows had aired.

Would you please add it to the list of episodes?

Thank you!

It was a show that could only be made in the 70's.

This is a outstanding tv show. It has standout performances by the cast. It'll stand the test of time.

Many of today's comedic actors don't stand in the same league. A classic of tv. Even Saturday night Live isn't as funny as this.

As I was viewing the titles On Demand I came across 8 episodes of Soap. This show was broadcast when I was a child, so the most memorable characters for me were Chuck & Bob. I forgot that Billy Crystal starred as the fabulous Jodie Dallas and stubborn, cranky butler "Benson" was introduced.

I watched each episode in delight! When each episode ended, I couldn't wait to watch the next. This show is hilarious! It reminds me of a slightly cheesier version of Arrested Development complete with the large family full of crazy characters. If you have the chance, watch the first episode but beware...you'll be hooked!

This is a show that everyone deserves a chance to see. A more brilliant cast and crew was never assembled for anything! These days, they talk about how "Friends" and "Seinfeld" have such great ensembles--"Soap" wrote the book on great ensembles! The only ones since which even come close are, first and foremost, the cast of "Remember WENN," and possibly the cast of "Frasier."

Everyone was great. Jay Johnson as demure Chuck and his daffy doll Bob, and Ted Wass as dim bulb Danny were always hilarious. Enigmatic but always worth a belly laugh was Arthur Peterson as the shell-shocked Major, forever trapped in his own little war. Anyone who's seen the episode with Sigmund, the Major's long-dead, moth-eaten stuffed dog (that he still believes to be alive) knows why the Major was so funny. Billy Crystal brought an understated air of dignity to his role as homosexual Jodie. Robert Guillaume won an Emmy beffore departing into his own spinoff as back-talking, "I-ain't-getting-that," tell-it-like-it-is butler Benson. His show, "Benson," ran longer than "Soap," and he won a Best Actor Emmy there. But the main part of the show--the planets the other characters revolved around--were Katherine Helmond, Cathryn Damon, Richard Mulligan, and Robert Mandan as the Tates and Campbells. Richard Mulligan was sidesplitting as Burt Campbell, a nervous, rubber-faced ball of energy. His physical comedy scenes were way out there, especially one where he stumbles in drunk, accidentally steps up onto a table, and is afraid to come down. Equally funny is a scene in which he and Danny are playing "police chase" while sitting in chairs in the living room. He was a great balance for the late Cathryn Damon, who beautifully and elegantly portrayed Mary Campbell. though some of her best stuff was when she really let loose (check out the third season), Damon's Mary was always a little more down-to-earth than the other characters, and one of the best-played on the show. They couldn't have matched up a better couple than these two, and it shows. Mulligan won an Emmy for "Soap" in 1980, and was nominated again the following year. Damon also won in '80, and was nominated each of the four seasons except the second, where Mary had less to do than usual. Surely, the episode she won for had to have been the one in which Mary thinks she has seen Burt disappear before her very eyes. She goes over to the Tates' house and, trying to explain it all, lapses into insanity. By the time it's done, she's saying that she's crazy and laughing hysterically. That is classic television.

Robert Mandan was big fun as pompous, skirt-chasing Chester, and was a great balance to my favorite, Katherine Helmond, as loony and delightfully dim Jessica Tate, Mary's sister. Helmond was dynamic, making the most of every second of screen time. She had a lot of top moments during the course of the show. Once, Jessica was being kidnapped by guerillas, and she has them put down their guns and help her move some furniture first, then asks if she can call "the nail lady" to cancel her appointment tomorrow--it seems that she charges anyway if you don't show up--then pulls the soldiers' own guns on them. Jessica's murder trial provides some of the show's most hilarious events. There's the time Jessica and her lawyer were in a small room outside the courtroom before the verdict is read, and her lawyer grabs her and tells her he loves her. At this moment, in comes Chester, and Jessica (fearful of what Chester would say) launches into a a waltz with her lawyer. She claims that they're learning the Hustle, and invites Chester to join. In a matter of seconds, the three are strutting around and dancing. To this day, it's one of the funniest things I've ever seen. The first day of the trial is one of the show's best scenes. Jessica, late along with her family and already having made a bad impression on the judge), bursts into the courtroom and begins hugging and greeting people as if hosting a party. She walks up to the judge and explains her tardiness, managing to unwittingly toss in an insult to "the idiotic inefficiency of the judicial system." She then looks over and gasps. She asks proudly, "Is this my jury?" She goes over to them, arms open, before she is pulled to her seat. She then has a friendly conversation with the prosecutor before getting up and trying to pull the defense and prosecution tables together. "It creates an almost antagonistic atmosphere," she says. "So 'them vs. us." She is later appalled by the slanderous words of the prosecutor and stands. "I don't have to take this--I'm going." Her attempt to storm out is stopped, but she warns: "All right, but if he continues in this manner, I will not come back tomorrow." Than, to the prosecutor: "Go ahead. But be nice." She could be dramatic, too, though; once, in one of her best moments on the show, Jessica single-handedly exorcises the Devil from her baby grandson in a bravura performance. Even after watching only one episode, it's easy to see why she was nominated (but, oddly enough, never won) for an Emmy every season that "Soap" was on the air. With a cast like this, what show could go wrong?

Katherine Helmond and Cathryn Damon played sisters, Jessica Tate, and Mary Campbell, who lived in suburban Connecticut with their husbands, Chester Tate, and Mr. Campbell. Their families interact with each other. The sitcom was groundbreaking for having a regular gay character, Jodie Dallas (played by Billy Crystal) but it also showed infidelity. Jessica has three children and a butler, Benson Dubois (Robert Guilliame who would have his own sitcom series). Mary has two sons including Jodie and a son, Danny, in the mob. The husbands have as many secrets too. Robert Mandan's Chester Tate is an unfaithful jerk. Richard Mulligan's Mr. Campbell is responsible for Mary's first husband's death. The cast is first rate and so is the writing for the series. Despite a large cast, the series balances the company like an ensemble piece. I can't believe that I never got into it or the series ending after only four seasons. If you haven't seen this series, you have to see it to believe it.

As all the reviews clearly show, the plots are way out there and-for the most part-still funny after all these decades. This is largely thanks to the talent of the writers and cast, but I feel compelled to make a brief tribute to a guy that all of us have seen on the tube a gazillion times, and whose name may escape many. I just saw the season 1, episode 10 where Jodie is in the hospital, about to undergo surgery, and is dumped by Dennis. The sympathetic guy in the other hospital bed was played by character actor Harold Gould (aka "Rhoda"'s dad, among dozens of other familiar roles we've all seen him in) and Gould's performance just amazed me-he gave one of the most heartfelt monologues I've ever heard, in what could have been a typical cornball sitcom situation. Kudos to the writers, of course, but the words came to heartwarming life via that skilled actor. (And no, I'm not a relative or anything.... I just wanted to acknowledge a moving performance.)