The "upside down" vision gimmick is fun, but I have this episode a "7" for all of us "Mary Ann Fans" because the costume department did very very well with Dawn Wells.
5 Reviews
Upside down or right side up, Mary Ann always.
doppleganger1969219 September 2021
Gilligan sees the world upside down
kevinolzak13 June 2016
"Topsy-Turvy" finds the castaways preparing to hide from invading head hunters, but when Gilligan bangs his head he sees everything upside down. Captibora berries can provide the antidote, but their unstable properties result in Gilligan seeing double! Meanwhile, there are three head hunters waiting to practice their deadly craft, each one just missing his intended target, until all but Gilligan are captured. The Captibora extract gives Gilligan the perfect opportunity to lure them into drinking, as the sight of 35 castaways forces them to flee in terror. It amazes me after all these years how so many zany ideas could make for classic episodes that kids would remember with such fondness, keeping the series alive for generation after generation. Eddie Little Sky, in his third and final appearance (after "Gilligan's Mother-in-Law" and "Voodoo"), plays the leader, with bit player Allen Jaffe and Los Angeles Rams star quarterback Roman Gabriel the other two.
Gilligan gets turned upside down.
Ralphkram24 July 2018
Warning: Spoilers
Going by the title, this episode wants to be a fun and nutty romp. Instead, it turns out to be another mixed bag; fairly dry, even suspenseful in spots, but derivative in a lot of places. The humor is uneven and dated. Still, it has a pretty entertaining story and, though it lags around the middle, rallies nicely at the finish.
Yet another group of headhunters are working the drums in preparation of an invasion of the island. In a mad dash to warn the others, Gilligan runs smack dab into a tree branch and knocks himself silly. In comparison to Hi-Fi Gilligan, this collision leaves him in good voice but seeing everything upside down. Shortly after we have our first trope: the Professor just happens to have a book on Gilligan's ailment, conducts a bit of research, and concludes that all the ingredients needed to cure Gilligan are right there on the island.
Well, okay, it's only one item this time--the keptibora berry--but you get the point.
The drumbeats stop and the castaways believe they're in the clear. Unfortunately for them, the three savages who have landed on the isle merely have a hole in their drum. (Good equipment is hard to find).
So the castaways are dispatched in pairs to hunt for berries while Gilligan fumbles around in the Professor's lab to extract a few laughs. The klutz does enough damage to be sent outside to wait for the others. Enough berries are collected to produce the Professor's formula. The Howells, in a nice touch, are very proud of the two whole berries they plucked.
The antidote of keptibora extract turns out to have unstable properties, and causes Gilligan to see two of everything. His double vision isn't as funny as it should be as it's undermined by shoddy camera effects and played for more cheap laughs. A particularly weak gag has Gilligan duck under a headhunter's blade just in time to miss being scalped.
Another trope occurs as the castaways, in the course of gathering more berries, are ambushed by the savages, taken into the jungle, and held hostage in a bamboo prison.
Meantime, to create more humor, more extract is added to the mix. Gilligan now sees five images, as if he's a fly. Funny, no?
No.
Nothing happens with this new condition anyway as the Professor dilutes the extract with water and Gilligan's vision is restored. This solution comes just in time for him to see the Professor and the Skipper captured and realize he hasn't been hallucinating.
Gilligan's cleverness from the first season returns in his bid to rescue the others. His plan is simple and works just as he lays it out, and, in the last trope, the savages flee in overly cute sped-up fashion.
COCONOTES:
Eddie Little Sky makes his third and final appearance in the series as a headhunter.
Another savage is played by LA Rams and Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Roman Gabriel.
Major blooper: The rear wall of the native's triangular prison is missing.
The Skip and Mr. Howell certainly have short-term memory when he comes to the chances of Gilligan rescuing them.
Yet another group of headhunters are working the drums in preparation of an invasion of the island. In a mad dash to warn the others, Gilligan runs smack dab into a tree branch and knocks himself silly. In comparison to Hi-Fi Gilligan, this collision leaves him in good voice but seeing everything upside down. Shortly after we have our first trope: the Professor just happens to have a book on Gilligan's ailment, conducts a bit of research, and concludes that all the ingredients needed to cure Gilligan are right there on the island.
Well, okay, it's only one item this time--the keptibora berry--but you get the point.
The drumbeats stop and the castaways believe they're in the clear. Unfortunately for them, the three savages who have landed on the isle merely have a hole in their drum. (Good equipment is hard to find).
So the castaways are dispatched in pairs to hunt for berries while Gilligan fumbles around in the Professor's lab to extract a few laughs. The klutz does enough damage to be sent outside to wait for the others. Enough berries are collected to produce the Professor's formula. The Howells, in a nice touch, are very proud of the two whole berries they plucked.
The antidote of keptibora extract turns out to have unstable properties, and causes Gilligan to see two of everything. His double vision isn't as funny as it should be as it's undermined by shoddy camera effects and played for more cheap laughs. A particularly weak gag has Gilligan duck under a headhunter's blade just in time to miss being scalped.
Another trope occurs as the castaways, in the course of gathering more berries, are ambushed by the savages, taken into the jungle, and held hostage in a bamboo prison.
Meantime, to create more humor, more extract is added to the mix. Gilligan now sees five images, as if he's a fly. Funny, no?
No.
Nothing happens with this new condition anyway as the Professor dilutes the extract with water and Gilligan's vision is restored. This solution comes just in time for him to see the Professor and the Skipper captured and realize he hasn't been hallucinating.
Gilligan's cleverness from the first season returns in his bid to rescue the others. His plan is simple and works just as he lays it out, and, in the last trope, the savages flee in overly cute sped-up fashion.
COCONOTES:
Eddie Little Sky makes his third and final appearance in the series as a headhunter.
Another savage is played by LA Rams and Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Roman Gabriel.
Major blooper: The rear wall of the native's triangular prison is missing.
The Skip and Mr. Howell certainly have short-term memory when he comes to the chances of Gilligan rescuing them.
Gilligan Finally Saves the Day
GravediggerMark18 April 2021
Warning: Spoilers
This is one of my favorite episodes because Gilligan comes up with a plan to save everyone, instead of messing everything up as usual. He has saved the day a few times before, and each time he has that quirky smirk at the end.
THE HEAD HUNTERS ARE COMING! RUN!!
tcchelsey15 October 2023
Some of the best episodes concerned the native head hunters! You have to admit, the costumes and makeup were positively outrageous! These wild guys ran around the place, shaking their fists and shouting all kind of stuff and we kids ate it all up.
That's part of this episode, though it also involves frightened Gilligan running smack into a tree --causing him to see everything in double. The professor naturally gets into the mix with a berry cure that results in Gilligan now seeing triple???
I agree with the last reviewer that the goofier the ideas... actually made for some classic episodes. So true.
What to do? Simply serve the berry potion to the headhunters that will mess up their vision! Not a bad plan. Of course, the big gag here is just seeing duplicates of Ginger and Maryann throughout the story, right? And do not forget all the fancy wardrobe changes.
Well directed by Gary Nelson, the master of comedy who we lost last year (2022), best known for GET SMART and also the PATTY DUKE SHOW.
Special note to the head hunters; Eddie Little Sky plays the first native, who actually was befriended by Audie Murphy who recommended he get into films. Eddie, who was born on an indian reservation in South Dakota, began his career as a bull and horse rider.
Native number two is noneother than LA rams star quarterback Roman Gabriel, who did some brief acting on the side. Off season, more than likely. Before this episode, he was joined by some of his fellow team mates on an episode of PERRY MASON.
Kooky stuff from SEASON 3 remastered dvd box set.
That's part of this episode, though it also involves frightened Gilligan running smack into a tree --causing him to see everything in double. The professor naturally gets into the mix with a berry cure that results in Gilligan now seeing triple???
I agree with the last reviewer that the goofier the ideas... actually made for some classic episodes. So true.
What to do? Simply serve the berry potion to the headhunters that will mess up their vision! Not a bad plan. Of course, the big gag here is just seeing duplicates of Ginger and Maryann throughout the story, right? And do not forget all the fancy wardrobe changes.
Well directed by Gary Nelson, the master of comedy who we lost last year (2022), best known for GET SMART and also the PATTY DUKE SHOW.
Special note to the head hunters; Eddie Little Sky plays the first native, who actually was befriended by Audie Murphy who recommended he get into films. Eddie, who was born on an indian reservation in South Dakota, began his career as a bull and horse rider.
Native number two is noneother than LA rams star quarterback Roman Gabriel, who did some brief acting on the side. Off season, more than likely. Before this episode, he was joined by some of his fellow team mates on an episode of PERRY MASON.
Kooky stuff from SEASON 3 remastered dvd box set.
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