Jencyclopedia

Joan Prather wants to be treated like a queen.
Paul Williams wants to have a harem, but he told Roarke he wants to spend the weekend in a harem.

I do like Julie, but I realized last episode that I miss Tattoo; it’s just not the same without him.

Hey, Julie is wearing the skirt in the opening credits sequence! Why would they switch back and forth between the two different shots?

Oh, I guess because Julie’s wearing the skirt in the episode too. Hm. I wonder if the skirt means Julie won’t be in the episode, and the pants mean Tattoo won’t be in the episode. Well, now I have to go back to check the first five episodes…

• 5×1: skirt, no Julie
• 5×2: pants, both Julie and Tattoo
• 5×3: pants, no Tattoo
• 5×4: pants, no Tattoo
• 5×5: pants, no Tattoo
• 5×6: skirt, no Julie

I wonder if maybe they filmed the pants episodes (without Tattoo) first, because they were still negotiating the contract with Hervé Villechaize, but then they decided to switch to the skirt, and by that time, they had the contract straightened out, and Tattoo was back. Or something like that.

Roarke: That, uh, rather shy young man is Mr. Herbert Snyder, a computer systems engineer.

I’m probably a bit too excited to hear a guest has a job title like mine.

“Near here, there is an island” — yeah, and it looks exactly like this island.

I never noticed before, but there are a lot more plants in front of the main house now.

Roarke: Now, if you’ll get in the car, our driver will take you to the north end of the island, where your fantasy will begin.

I really need a spreadsheet or something more organized to keep track of these things; has Roarke ever referenced the north end of the island before? I feel like he has.

Herbert gets into the car and tells the driver “I’ll be fine”, but the driver doesn’t say anything. If he had, he could have been credited, and then maybe he’d even get a name. Anyway, I believe this is his first “closeup”. Wally, Tama, and This Guy are the most recognizable drivers I think.

Herbert Snyder: I mean, Webster’s Dictionary clearly defines a harem as a household of… women.

Huh. He’s right. That kind of ruins this whole fantasy.

There’s a shot of Roarke in his office. Laurel is off on another island, Herbert is trapped in a harem, so… are we getting mid-episode shenanigans?!

Oh, it’s a mini-fantasy. Well, that’s… alright.

Mr. Henley: As you remember, I came here to do a fantasy based on my favourite book, The Hunchback of Notre Dame.
Roarke: I remember quite clearly, Mr. Henley. But, uh, didn’t we deliver your fantasy?
Mr. Henley: Well, no. I mean, I found myself in medieval Paris alright. I did meet the lovely Esmeralda. And I saw the hunchback up there, swinging on the bell rope. He was so high up there, he looked small to me.

Mr. Henley: But he was magnificent.
Roarke: …well?
Mr. Henley: His rope broke.
Roarke: The rope broke?
Mr. Henley: The last time I saw him, he was falling to Earth like a brick, Mr. Roarke, yelling pathetically. Now, look. I either want a refund, or I want to do a new fantasy.

A refund?! Because Tattoo fell off a tower? Roarke didn’t twist your words and give you the wrong fantasy, and no one even tried to kill you. So what’s your problem? Get out of here.

After Mr. Henley leaves, Tattoo appears from that hidden part of the office again. That’s the same place he came from when the guest complained about the Red Baron being small. So whatever is over there is probably another magic door, but maybe it’s only for private use; Cindy also used the room, but I can’t remember who else has used it.

This lady is being overly touchy-feely with Dennis Cole’s chest. Even on Fantasy Island, that wouldn’t fly if you did that to a woman.

I don’t understand how being kissed against your will automatically makes your arm wrap around the other person. This seems to happen a lot, and not just on Fantasy Island. I just don’t get the physics of it.

I was getting a bit bored, so I started looking at the credits on IMDb, and apparently Hervé Villechaize’s wife is in this episode. I believe that’s her on the right.

Also, according to the IMDb trivia, this episode was apparently filmed during Wrath of Khan and —

Oh.

I feel like I’m gonna get some mileage outta this GIF.

Laurel Fandell: I promise, Mr. Roarke. I won’t take it off.
Roarke: Please. Please, don’t.
[Laurel looks down at the acorn necklace. She looks up, and Roarke is gone.]
Laurel: Mr. Roarke? Mr. Roarke?

Roarke’s disappearing act doesn’t really work when she was looking down at the necklace and Roarke was standing right in front of her. She would have had to see him beaming out.

Herbert Snyder: Does that bridge look familiar to you?

Yes.

In both this episode and 3×17 “Playgirl”, there are all these big muscular dudes, who I think we are meant to find attractive, but I don’t get it. Am I just weird? Would most women really prefer these dudes? Over Khan?

I’ve got a feeling Dennis Cole’s gonna show up in this last scene here…

Laurel Fandell: Did it all really happen?
Roarke: Who is to say what is truly real, and what is fantasy, Miss Fandell? However…

“Here’s your Dennis Cole.”

Herbert Snyder: I want to thank you for a wonderful fantasy. More importantly, for a wonderful wife.
Lisa: The wedding you arranged was lovely.

It’s kind of terrible, but I also kind of love the Contessa’s outfit.

Roarke: You see, Tattoo, the Contessa also had a fantasy.

Wow, I actually didn’t see that one coming. (And I did see most of this episode on TV before, so…)

• Julie’s outfit: skirt
• Where’s Julie?
  • Julie: Uh, you know the family that arrived yesterday with the three little kids?
    Roarke: Oh, yes, yes.
    Julie: Well, I volunteered to babysit while their parents went out for a little walk.
    Roarke: Oh, that was very considerate of you, Julie.
    Julie: Well, the little walk was to the other side of the island, and now they’re trapped by a cloudburst, and they can’t get back ’til tomorrow.
• Drivers:
  • To the dock: Wally
  • To Herbert Snyder’s fantasy: That Guy
  • Laurel Fandell’s departure: That Guy
  • Herbert Snyder’s departure: Wally
• Guests:
  • Miss Laurel Fandell, who operates a gift shop in Torrington, Wyoming
  • Mr. Herbert Snyder, a computer systems engineer
• Ominous Roarke:
  • Roarke: In Miss Fandell’s particular case, I fear her wish fulfillment may conjure up certain… dark powers that are beyond my control…
  • Roarke: Don’t be too envious of Mr. Snyder yet, my friend. His fantasy may be far more unsettling than he imagines…
• Roarke’s drink: same old
• Ominous shot of Roarke drinking: no, he smiles pleasantly (what happened to this bit, man?)
• Recurring phrases:
  • Laurel Fandell: When does my fantasy start, Mr. Roarke?
    Roarke: Oh, I am prepared to grant it now.
  • Roarke: Oh, you look very dapper indeed, Mr. Snyder.
  • Roarke: It’s over, Miss Fandell. Your fantasy has ended.
  • Roarke: Who is to say what is truly real, and what is fantasy, Miss Fandell? However… some things are very real indeed.
  • Contessa: I may not be the greatest mother in the world, but I love my daughter.
    Roarke: Indeed.
• Neighbouring islands:
  • Roarke: Near here, there is an island where Stonehenge has been resurrected, and where they live as they did years ago, and where they still practice that art, and where they wait for a queen to rule over them as your ancestor did.
• Last chance:
  • Tattoo: There’s still time to change your mind, you know.
    Laurel Fandell: Nope, I’m ready.
• Magic room: Laurel Fandell enters the magic room to begin her fantasy, but we don’t actually see inside the room.
• Mini-fantasy: Mr. Henley wanted a fantasy based on The Hunchback of Notre Dame.
• Costume change: Tattoo is dressed as Quasimodo for Mr. Henley’s fantasy.
• Roarke in disguise: In a white robe and brown sandals in the druids’ castle.
• Magic object:
  • Roarke: This silver acorn is very, very old. It is said to have certain power greatly feared by the forces of darkness.
• Disappearing act:
  • Laurel Fandell: I promise, Mr. Roarke. I won’t take it off.
    Roarke: Please. Please don’t.
    [Laurel looks down at the acorn necklace. She looks up, and Roarke is gone.]
    Laurel: Mr. Roarke? Mr. Roarke?
• Leaving with an extra guest:
  • Laurel Fandell with new boyfriend Paul
  • Herbert Snyder with new girlfriend wife (!) Lisa
• Roarke’s powers:
  • [He uses the eyes in the back of his head again.]
    Tattoo: Boss, I bet the Contessa is plenty mad.
    [The Contessa is standing behind them.]
    Roarke: Why not ask her yourself?
• Someone else had a fantasy:
  • Roarke: You see, Tattoo, the Contessa also had a fantasy; to have her daughter meet someone who would love her for herself, not her money.
• Age gap:
  • Joan Prather: 31 / Dennis Cole: 41 = 10 years
  • Pat Klous: 33 / Paul Williams: 41 = 8 years
  • Jayne Meadows: 62 / Paul Williams: 41 = -21 years