Throwback Thursday - Full House - Honey, I Broke the House

Throwback Thursday, a weekly article in which we look back at our favorite TV episodes from over the years.

For this article I went back, 25 years’ worth of Throwback Thursdays with Full House, a show, that’s still relevant, despite its late 80’s outfits, that’s still hilarious, even after 25 years. A show that remains timeless. I loved watching the re-runs show as a kid, and now, as an adult, I realise most episodes had cheesy and predictable plots, but that doesn’t stop me from loving it. It’s a great family oriented show. It’s a show that makes you awe, smile, laugh and want to have a big, extended, unconventional family.

“Honey, I Broke the House,” remains one of the funniest episodes of the series and my favorites because it’s absolutely ridiculous and it’s what makes it so much fun.

“There’s a car in the kitchen!” – Michelle (and every other cast member at one point in the episode)

This episode, the third season’s twentieth episode, is centered around Stephanie whom, with 20 minutes left before dance class and with no one to listen to her eye crispy stories, is left with Joey’s new used car *Rosie,* after he and Comet walk to the auto shop for some touch up paint to repair the nick he discovered. Steph decides her imaginary road trip around the world needs a soundtrack and being 8 years old, she assumes R means radio, and with the keys in the ignition, she ends up rear-ending the kitchen.

Stephanie, realising what she’s done, completely destroying the kitchen, and with minutes before her dance class, in typical child logic, thinks it’s best to just leave and never come back. She tenderly says goodbye to her sisters and roughly to Kimmy Gibbler, leaving them to discover the mess she’s left behind.

“Michelle, do you know how the car got in the kitchen?” –DJ
“Yes, I do.” – Michelle
“How?” – DJ
“Through the window.” –Michelle

Michelle (Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen) were at their cutest in this season, at three years old, in my opinion, it was before their character became too princess-y for my liking. In this season they had just enough sass and cuteness, and managed to deliver their one-liners on point, always stealing a smile from me. The lovability of these girls, and the youngest Tanner was obviously a huge asset to the success of this show.

The rest of the cast played with her (them) perfectly. There must have been times where working with a toddler wasn’t easy, but it never transpired in the episodes. The interactions between the adults and the kids were what made this show attractive to me and the introduction of the episode is a good example of their chemistry. “Honey, I Broke the House” starts off with Joey teaching Michelle to play baseball, or her own version of baseball, which turns out to be “way too easy.” It was a hilariously cute bit.

Once Stephanie is gone, the rest of the episode includes the remainder of the characters discovering the car in the kitchen. Even after Michelle directly tells them, they all are pretty stunned by the chain of events. Their reactions, remained in character, and realistically how would one really react to finding a car in the kitchen remains a mystery.

DJ takes pictures of the reactions, and I guess a couple years from it, they could all laugh about it. They assume it’s Joey’s fault, since it’s his car, until he comes back from the store, with his tiny bottle of touch-up paint, and is devastated despite Michelle’s “Don’t cry, be a big boy.”

Stephanie, running away from home, sets her heart on starting a new life as a Mexican hat dancer. (Is there really such a thing?) Before leaving, she stops to say goodbye to Becky. I always thought Stephanie had the best one-liners, and delivered them with the most detached humour that had me laughing. Jodie Sweetin definitely has a bunch of hilarious ones in this episode.

“Just hanging around.” –Stephanie

Due to Becky’s impending business dinner with the impressive Beau Macintyre, Jesse feeling a date jealous and insecure, shows up at her house, causing Stephanie to hide out in the closet.

He brings her back to the Tanner house, where Stephanie (with reason) beats herself up about what happened. She doesn’t feel like she deserves fresh air until she’s married. Honestly, what’s the punishment for driving a car in the kitchen? Any parents on here who have any ideas? I loved Stephanie’s creative idea to send her to carpentry school so she could build them a brand new house.

Full House was always just a bit out of grasp, wasn’t always realistic. (DJ and Kimmy Gibbler should have felt the house shake even if they had their headphones on.) The show may have lacked credibility in the plot department, but I don’t really care, and really what show doesn’t? It’s the easy feeling of comradery, of family, that you get out of watching the show that had me coming back for more. It portrayed some real life struggles, but always with a touch of fantasy and a twist, but it’s episodes like this one, hilarious and cute which I can watch again, and again, and again.

And even though the “lesson learned” was cheesy and predictable, and very child oriented, it made for some sweet, warm, moments where I couldn’t help but fall in love with this family.

Not everyone loved “Full House,” but I did, and I still do. How about you guys? Feeling nostalgic? And what’s your take on this episode?

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