A Very Brady Christmas (TV Movie 1988)

A Very Brady Christmas: Directed by Peter Baldwin. With Florence Henderson, Robert Reed, Ann B. Davis, Maureen McCormick. The entire Brady family manages to overcome personal obstacles to spend a happy holiday together.

“My family used to look forward to u0026quot;The Brady Bunchu0026quot; kicking off every Friday night (along with the rest of the ABC lineup; Must See TV, early 70s-style). Hundreds of thousands wished they could be part of this family. Who wouldnu0026#39;t want to be able to neatly solve their problems in 30 minutes with such understanding parents? Not to mention the memorable Hawaiian vacation episodes (a few Hawaii episodes were de rigueur for sitcoms of the era). While series star Robert Reed always chafed at the simplistic comic situations, it did manage to endear itself to the Me generation. After the original show left primetime, there were several abortive attempts to bring them back.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eOf the numerous variations on the Brady theme, this reunion was the most true to form. The u0026quot;Brady Kidsu0026quot; cartoon was too, well, cartoonish, with a magical, talking crow and no parents to be seen. u0026quot;The Brady Bunch Variety Houru0026quot; was a short-lived flop. u0026quot;The Brady Bridesu0026quot; had its moments, but couldnu0026#39;t capture the spirit of the original, since it didnu0026#39;t include the entire cast. 1990u0026#39;s u0026quot;The Bradysu0026quot; became too serious, moving the house, paralyzing Bobby, turning Marcia into an alcoholic and Mike into a politician, not to mention losing Maureen McCormick. Those changes resulted in a 6 episode run, besting the 10 episodes of the Brides and the 8 of the Variety Hour to become the shortest-lived Brady show. The Brady Bunch theatrical films were a travesty, choosing to mock the original clan as inexplicably Munster-ish outcasts blissfully ignorant of their retrofreakishness.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eIn my household, watching this is a holiday season tradition, the way u0026quot;Miracle on 34th Street,u0026quot; u0026quot;Itu0026#39;s a Wonderful Life,u0026quot; u0026quot;A Christmas Storyu0026quot; or u0026quot;Rudolph the Rednosed Reindeeru0026quot; is for others. After all, Christmas is the warm and fuzzy season and the Brady Bunch was nothing if not warm and fuzzy. When this was first broadcast, it was like seeing old friends again after a very long time, not unlike Schwartzu0026#39; first successful TV show reunion, u0026quot;Rescue from Gilliganu0026#39;s Island.u0026quot; Everybody had grown older, but nothing had really changed. Greg had married offscreen and both he and Marcia had kids, but thatu0026#39;s about it. The house with its cavernous interior was thoroughly familiar and painstakingly recreated and updated. Only the driveway and backyard was missing. And the situations were classic. With roughly 100 minutes to fill, everybody got to have their own secrets and problems. True, the reunion sometimes verged on mawkishness, especially with the caroling, but thatu0026#39;s part of the Brady charm. Only in the last 15 minutes did it drag, with Mike trapped in a construction site collapse.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eAll of the original cast members were at just the right age. Robert Reed never seemed more paternal. The kids were still young, but no longer the cloying youngsters of endless reruns. The production also teemed with pretty ladies. Aside from Marcia, Marcia, Marcia, there was Gregu0026#39;s wife Nora, Peteru0026#39;s girlfriend Valerie, and Jennifer Runyon as a prettier, if blander, Cindy. Susan Olsen, the original Cindy, was on her honeymoon (she should have done the reunion, since that marriage ended in divorce). Also missing was Allan Melvin, the original Sam the butcher. Only Florence Henderson was a distraction, with almost Tammy Fay Bakkerish makeup and overplucked eyebrows.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eNow Schwartz is working on yet another Brady project where Mike is elected President. If it ainu0026#39;t broke, donu0026#39;t fix it. Thanks, but Iu0026#39;ll stick with this, the last vestige of old school Brady.”