Fa La La La Laagghh! is the eleventh episode of the seventh season in this television sitcom on Family Matters, which was aired from ABC on December 15, 1995. It was directed by Richard Correll and written by Meg DeLoatch.
Plot[]
Just in time for Christmas, Carl gets in a sour mood and refuses to allow Urkel to decorate the house with his wacky light displays. Then, at his poker game, one of his friends says there is a big cash prize for the neighborhood lighting contest, and Carl's mood instantly changes, which Urkel has no idea about. Soon he learns the truth and sets Carl straight for lying to him. Meanwhile, Harriette wants a little more participation from Eddie and Laura in the family's holiday activities. Mother Winslow teaches them the true meaning of Christmas when she stops making her batch of gingerbread cookies.
Synopsis[]
Carl's "Bah Humbug" attitude to put up any decorations outside his home, stemmed from last year when everyone praised Urkel's Santa Claus is Coming To Town roof display. Zoohair plans to have his Frosty the Snowman display ready to blow both Willie's and Charlie's display. Carl reminds them that they have a poker game to play and the last thing he needs to hear is about Christmas Rooftop Decorations. Willie then reminded him of last year's mishap with his Nativity Scene display. Charlie mentions that Carl had two wise men standing around a G.I. Joe in a shoe box and of which, caused everyone to laugh at his display. He mentions that some practical jokester stolen his Jesus, along with his other wise man, Joseph and Mary. Carl reminds his poker buddies that he only decorates the inside of his house for his family. He doesn't decorate the outside for his neighbors and the jokesters. Charlie mentions about an upcoming contest involving a news channel's Christmas Rooftop Display and there are prizes involved which includes a $5,000 prize. He also mentions that if Carl can convince Urkel to help him out, he's a shoe in to win. Willie tells Charlie good luck because he knows Steve too well and will not cheapen himself with the contest. He knows that Urkel believes that the contest just makes the Holidays much more materialistic and it cheapens it's true meaning.
The next day, Carl has entered the contest himself in secret. When Steve comes home, he pretends to show some Christmas spirit and claims he has changed his mind. Carl mentions that he has decided to let Urkel decorate the roof top of his house because he wants to make everyone happy.
Eddie and Laura decides that they're too busy with their social lives to help Harriette decorate the tree, which was always a family tradition. This disheartens their mother as she's forced to put up the tree by herself and angers their grandmother, Estelle.
On top of the Winslow Roof, Steve's Santa Claus and Elf goes out of control. Carl reminds him that the families in the neighborhood are expecting a perfect display and their children will be crying if there's no Santa and Elf on the sleigh. He and Urkel go into town to purchase a Santa and Elf costume to pose as them. Once they get in character, they wave slowly and switch hands in between. For a while, everything goes as plan and no one suspects a thing. When Urkel notices the TV reporter and cameraman filming them briefly before moving on to the next home, he suspects he had been lied to by Carl. The truth is revealed that he entered the contest to win the prize money. The roof gives way and both Steve and Carl falls through the roof.
Meanwhile, Mother Winslow decides to teach Eddie and Laura a lesson for refusing to participate in any Holiday activities with Harriette by not making her special gingerbread cookies. Eddie asks her for her cookies. She tells them she won't make them this year because their actions got her thinking they're too old for that stuff. Eddie asks Estelle what gave her the idea of that and mentions that they were waiting for that for a long time. When Laura tells Mother Winslow that their mother did a good job on the tree by herself, she snaps. Estelle sets her and Eddie straight by telling them off that she is very disappointed in them. She mentions that their selfishness in caring for their own social lives in refusing to help Harriette with any of the Christmas tree decorations had hurt her feelings. She also mentions that had Eddie and Laura helped Harriette with the decorations, it would've been Christmas. Now, they would have to look forward in not having her special gingerbread cookies for this year's Christmas. Immediately, Eddie and Laura see the error of their ways and decide to help their mother out with the decorations.
In the kitchen, an angry Urkel sets Carl straight by telling him that he besmirched Christmas for wanting to win the prize money rather than making kids happy. He tells him that he only cared about having more money and calls him a greedy grinch as a result. Carl sees the error of his ways and apologizes for his selfishness in lying to him about the whole contest. Steve tells him to repair the roof and make the Christmas spectacular.
Cast[]
Main[]
- Reginald VelJohnson as Carl Winslow
- Jo Marie Payton as Harriette Winslow (credited as Jo Marie Payton-Noble)
- Rosetta LeNoire as Rosetta LeNoire
- Darius McCrary as Eddie Winslow
- Kellie Shanygne Williams as Laura Winslow
- Bryton James as Richie Crawford (non-appearance as Bryton McClure)
- Jaleel White as Steve Urkel
- Shawn Harrison as Waldo Geraldo Faldo (non-appearance)
Guest[]
- Marlon Young as Willie (credited as Marlon Chopper Young)
- Iqbal Theba as Zoohair Bhutto
- Joel Anderson as Charlie Sullivan
Trivia[]
- This is the last episode to include the theme song, after which the names of the show's cast and producers are shown during the teaser scene at the beginning of the show.
- This is the 3rd time that Urkel set Carl straight. The first time was in Number One With a Bullet and in Till Death Do Us Apartment
- The episode takes its name from the "Fa la la la la, la la la la" stanza of "Deck the Halls"
- On original airings the Warner Bros. Television logo has snow falling in front of it, and the sound of a bell playing after the fanfare.
Quotes[]
- [Charlie, Zoohair and Willie argue over how well Urkel's Christmas displays are better than theirs.]
- Carl: Fellas. Fellas, can we get back to poker please? I've heard enough about Christmas decorations
- Willie: Well no surprise there. After all, your last year's Nativity scene was a JOKE!
- Charlie: Yeah, two wise men standing around a G.I. Joe in a shoe box.
- Carl: Hey, somebody stole my Jesus, ok.
- Zoohair: Ok. Ok. Calm down yourself.
- Carl: Besides I decorate the inside of my house for my family. Not the outside for you yahoos.
- Carl: You're upset with me, aren't you?
- Steve: Of course I am. You besmirched Christmas! You tried to deck your halls with wads of dollars. It's bad enough it was out of greed, but what even worse is that you lied to me. You told me you cared about Christmas and little kids and making them happy. But you didn't care about all those things, you only wanted money!!
| v - e - dFamily Matters Season 7 |
|---|