Bewitched

I will always wonder why Darrin's Mom and Dad and Sam's Mom and Dad never came to the wedding?

Gladys Kravitz (Alice Pearce) brings two other women from the Morning Glory Circle area to meet Samantha and welcome herself and Darrin to the neighbourhood. They bring with them a cake and three unruly young boys who proceed to do their best to wreck the Stephens' new home.



Gladys is still obsessed with the belief that there is something very odd about Samantha and pokes her nose around as much as possible while Samantha entertains the guests with coffee and cake.



When the young boys encounter Endora (Angnes Moorehead) who is 'hiding out' in Samantha and Darrin's bedroom, they encounter more than they bargained for and Endora leaves - before tying the three of them up with rope and leaving them on the bed. When the boys are found shortly after, Gladys is almost hysterical and tries to explain the impossibility of three boys being tied up - after all, how, she wonders aloud, did the THIRD one end up tied like the others? But, as usual, nobody is listening, including Abner, (George Tobias) whom she telephones from the household's not-yet-connected phone. When the telephone company representitive arrives to do just that, her 'suspicions' are completely confirmed but still, she is alone in her beliefs.



The best thing about this episode is the first meeting between Darrin (Dick York) and his mother-in-law. When Endora threatens to turn him into an artichoke, it sets the scene for eight seasons of mutual dislike between the pair.

This is an episode that really defines the relationship between Darrin and Endora.Agnes Moorehead really does a great job here.First,when nosy Gladys Kravitz and the neighborhood welcoming committee shows up with 3 bratty kids,there is a great scene where all 3 get tied up,a fact that only Gladys seems to notice.Then Endora is trying out how she should meet \'Dennis\',in a variety of types.Finally,the moment comes,and Endora is very civil,even coming in the front door.Its only when Darrin starts acting arrogantly,that Endora gets angry.In the early episodes,its easier to sympathize with Endora.After all,shes only acting out of love for Samantha.It seems to me that Endora doesnt turn into a spiteful stereotypical mother-in-law until the later Dick Sargent episodes.One of the few negative things about this series is that Darrin(usually the Dick York Darrin)seems to push it in an arrogant manner that is not really likeable.But that is a minor quibble for what is still among the best episodes of the series.