Jencyclopedia

Jill St. John has amnesia, and she wants to remember who she used to be.
Gene Rayburn and another guy play game show hosts who want to be contestants for a change.

I’m looking forward to this episode, because I only saw the beginning of it before, so this will be mostly new to me. I remember thinking this episode might be interesting.

A rare shot where you can see the other front door.

Oh my gosh, it’s raining on Fantasy Island! It’s hard to tell, but you can see some faint diagonal lines in the background. It’s not in the screenshot, but the dock is wet too.

Roarke: Their joint fantasy is to be contestants on the ultimate game show.
Julie: Ultimate, Mr. Roarke? That sounds ominous.

Roarke: These wild flowers grow only on Fantasy Island.

Are you serious? Three episodes in a row?

Roarke: Ladies and gentlemen, the first grand prize will be… the lady whom our contestants find to be the most desirable in the world. Both have been deeply in love with her for many years — Miss Lois Terry.

Didn’t I just use the Princess Jasmine GIF in another episode? Ah yes, 4×12 “The Warrior”.

Roarke: I mentioned that there are three grand prizes, but there are one, two, three… four doors… ~why?~

There was something about the delivery about of line that was hilarious.

Roarke is not a good game show host. Gene Rayburn asks the audience which door he should choose, so the audience yells out numbers, and Roarke tells them to quiet down.

Julie introduces Ellen Layton to a couple in the tiki restaurant, and then leaves. Why would this couple on vacation on Fantasy Island want to hang out with this chick? The only way this will make sense is if they knew her before she got amnesia, but they seem like they don’t, or if their fantasy is like to help people with amnesia, because her mother had amnesia or something, because I don’t think they’re putting a threesome fantasy on TV in 1982.

Sandra: You’re so attractive; there must have been a very important man in your life.

Ughhh.

• You are good looking, therefore someone must have loved you.
• The someone who loved you must have been the opposite gender.
• You are good looking, therefore you must want to be in a relationship.
• Would any woman really say “you’re so attractive” to another woman they’ve just met?

Like, what??

Mike Collins [thinking]: Amnesia. Then she wouldn’t remember I’m not her lover.

This double negative has me so confused. Is he or is he not her lover? Was he her lover before, and she broke up with him, and he’s happy that she’s forgotten they’re no longer together? Has he never met her, but he thinks she’s hot, so he’s gonna pretend like he’s her lover? Are they lovers, but he actually hates her, and he’s happy to get rid of her?

This game show fantasy is structured weirdly. There are three ~grand~ prizes, and the first prize was the woman they both love… which I thought that was their fantasy, to decide who “wins” her? Oh, okay, I guess their fantasy was just to be contestants on a game show. Still seems weird to put the woman as the first price. Like, yeah, we’re gonna treat this woman as an object, and there are still two prizes that are even better than her.

There’s one guy in the bank holdup scene with his hands up, and I think he’s trying to make it look like his hands are shaking, but it’s a bit exaggerated, so it looks kind of silly.

Roarke: Of course, there are only two doors left now… one of which is the door of death… if you remember.

Yes, we remember, you’ve only told us fifty times now!

I don’t know if Roarke’s doing an impression of someone, but he is just being absolutely extra as this game show host.

This doorknob is way nicer than the one we saw in Roarke’s office in 5×5 “Mr. Nobody”.

So they picked ~the door of death~. Roarke never actually explained what that meant. And now Roarke is the grim reaper, apparently. This is… interesting.

Okay, so he’s just put them into Hugh O’Brian’s hunter fantasy from 1×1 “Pilot”. Let’s get some speakers up in here, so Roarke can sadistically narrate their trek across the island.

[Ellen Layton inhales the forget-me-not, and some of her old personality returns. She tells the men to get out for lying to her.]
Man: Wait a minute. What are you leaving for? I thought this was your bungalow?
Mike Collins: Well, it is… I can always get another one.

lol

Roarke: Mr. Layton, my office is this way.

This is another instance where someone refers to “the main house” as Roarke’s office; although, in this case, saying “the main house is this way” probably wouldn’t mean anything to Mr. Layton.

Ellen Layton’s real husband just showed up. She was divorcing him, but he’s been contesting the divorce, but now, he tells Roarke he’s gonna just let her go. Then he sees her laughing and having fun with children, and he’s like “hm, maybe I will try to keep her”.

So what do we know about the old Ellen Layton? She fired a bunch of people. She doesn’t put up with guys trying to trick their way into her pants. Apparently, this means she was a bad person, and she shouldn’t want to be that person any more; she should want to be a ~fun~ girl who plays ring-around-the-rosie with children instead.

I can’t quite articulate it, but I feel like this is turning into her husband’s fantasy. Like Roarke has made her into the perfect wife for Charles. Charles didn’t like who she was before, but now that she doesn’t stick up for herself, he wants to be married to her again.

Anyway, Roarke has shown the new Ellen who the old Ellen was, so now she’s regained her memory. She’s decided she likes the new Ellen better, and the only way for her to be ~happy~ is if she has amnesia again. And there just happens to be a convenient gavel in her bungalow.

Ellen Layton: Who are you?
Charles Layton: Why don’t I refresh your memory?
[He kisses her.]
Ellen Layton: Why don’t you?
[They go into the bedroom.]

Seriously?

Julie: But nobody won.
Roarke: Julie is right, you know. Technically, you were tied. Of course, I could arrange one final stunt. What do they call it in the sports world? A sudden death playoff?

It’s a bit weird that the love triangle isn’t actually resolved in the episode.

Catherine Campbell is credited as playing Betty White (lol), but her character was clearly called Sandra.

The throne in this episode later appears in the Seinfeld season 6 episode “The Race”.

• Julie’s outfit: pants
• Where’s Tattoo?
  
• Drivers:
  • To the dock: I don’t know his name, so I’m calling him “Billy”; he turns into Wally when they arrive at the dock
  • The Laytons’ departure: That Guy
  • Bob Barclay and Ron Ellison’s departure: Wally
• Guests:
  • Miss Ellen Layton (listed on the flight manifest as Miss Jane Doe)
  • Mr. Bob Barclay from The Great Game and Ron Ellison from I Bet a Million — the two most famous game show hosts in the world
• Ominous Roarke:
  • Roarke: Her fantasy is to have her memory restored, to become again the person she was before the accident. Unfortunately, Miss Layton may not like the person she used to be at all…
  • Roarke: …but in a game where ultimately the winner takes all.
    Julie: And the loser?
    Roarke: The loser… faces death itself…
• Roarke’s drink: same old
• Ominous shot of Roarke drinking: he does look quite ominous, but the shot fades out very quickly
• Magic object:
  • Roarke: These wild flowers grow only on Fantasy Island. They’re a variety of the genus Myosotis, perhaps more familiar to you as forget-me-nots. Most appropriate in your particular case.
    Ellen Layton: Well, what can they do for me?
    Roarke: Under very special circumstances, such as yours, they have a certain magical quality. May I? I want you to periodically inhale their fragrance. They shall be most instrumental in the restoration of your memory, Miss Layton.
• Magic:
  • Roarke: Under very special circumstances, such as yours, they have a certain magical quality.
• Roarke’s powers:
  • Beaming shiny low cut dresses onto women seems to be one of his specialties (see also 5×16 “The Challenge”).
    
  • He creates a hologram of the old Ellen Layton to show Julie.
  • He creates a hologram of the new Ellen Layton to show the old Ellen Layton.
• Costume change: Roarke wears a black tuxedo with a white bowtie to host The Ultimate Game.
• Last chance:
  • Roarke: One of those doors is the door of death. If you wish to withdraw at this time, I will certainly understand.
• Magic fog: The fog appears after Bob Barclay enters door #3 and enters a forest where some pilgrims are burning a witch at the stake.
• Reminders:
  • Roarke: I remind you one of those doors remains the door of death.
  • Roarke: May I remind you what your other self is like?
• Can’t help you:
  • Ron Ellison: Look, the hell with this. I say we call the fantasy off.
    Roarke: Oh, no. I’m sorry. I cannot interfere with a fantasy once it has begun.
• Recurring phrases:
  • Roarke: It isn’t only you I must be concerned about. Oh, no, indeed.
  • Ellen Layton: I looked like that? I felt like that?
    Roarke: Oh yes, Miss Layton. You did indeed.
• Someone else had a fantasy:
  • Roarke: You see the archer — he’s called Magog, by the way — is also fulfilling a fantasy of his own.
    Ron Ellison: Which is?
    Roarke: To hunt the most dangerous prey in the world… man.
• Disappearing act:
  • Ron Ellison: Look, Mr. Roarke, I — Mr. Roarke?
• Leaving with an extra guest:
  • Ellen Layton with new/old husband Charles Layton
  • Bob Barclay and Ron Ellison with new shared girlfriend Lois Terry
• All you need is love:
  • Julie: Mr. Roarke, which one is really gonna win Miss Terry? To marry, I mean?
    Roarke: That will be decided in a game called love, Julie.
• Age gap:
  • Jill St. John: 41 / Dick Gautier: 50 = 9 years
  • Jill St. John: 41 / Brett Halsey: 48 = 7 years
  • Vikki Carr: 40 / Gene Rayburn: 64 = 24 years
  • Vikki Carr: 40 / Jan Murray: 65 = 25 years