Amen

The episode has a very good premise. It's a twist on the deacon's so-called integrity. A female minister has been hired at the church, and a romance begins between her and Ernie. But what's different is that, according to her perspective, there is no fault in him. When she leaves him at the end (because he's too good for her), and he maintains he's really rotten to the core, it's a clever case of irony. In fact, it seems as if the deacon is exaggerating his bad side to downplay his good side...and it makes you wonder if he's been doing that all along, in other episodes. As a result, the audience is forced to review everything that is known about the deacon, and in particular, Sherman Hemsley's portrayal. If anything, it's a great exercise in discerning character and using imagination. I particularly liked the scene in the courtroom where he does a 180, deciding to discredit an elderly woman on the witness stand, then abruptly changing course when he sees the new lady in his life enter the courtroom. The scene really shows the extremes to which Hemsley is able to take this role and it's a classic moment for him. I also liked the bit where he opens his briefcase and quietly takes out all of Thelma's bad cooking which has been hidden inside. There is no dialogue when he does that. It's truly hilarious. Earlier, I thought the writers had been overdoing the jokes on her cooking, but the comic payoff in this scene is very good...and is somewhat Chaplinesque.