User Reviews

Our intrepid castaways are facing a blight which is ruining all the sources of food on the island. With provisions running low, a migratory duck appears out of nowhere and lands in the lagoon. The Professor convinces the rest of the castaways that this duck may lead to their rescue, unfortunately, it doesn't appear to want to leave the island.

Gilligan, who has been caring for the duck, tries to protect it from the rest of the starving castaways and even dreams about the bad things that might happen. In the morning, the duck is found eating some plants the Professor thought may be poisonous…so is this duck going to get it's goose's cooked anyway?

Overall, a pretty good episode, albeit with one major flaw in logic concerning the blight.

Highlights include Mr. Howell's shame at being in a soup line, Gilligan and the Skipper's attempts to capture the duck, particularly when they "quack" around the island, Mr. Howell (Jim Backas is particularly good in this episode) explaining in detail what he wants to happen with that duck throughout the episode and Gilligan, guarding the duck at night from the rest of the castaways who are lurking in the shadows.

Easily the best highlight is the dream sequence which is set in the old west (on the "Gunsmoke" set no less). This is the first dream sequence of the series and it would soon become a staple, allowing the cast to play different roles in different settings. Everyone shines in this particular dream, which may be the best of the ones produced on the show. In particular, Ginger (Tina Louise), Skipper (Alan Hale) and Mr. Howell who delivers the funniest line, "…and we're gonna eat 'em." This is a funny episode with some good laughs and a great dream sequence to boot.

• The entire blight of the crops is well handled, although there is one glaring exception. At the beginning of the episode, Mary Ann includes mackerel as part of the blight. A mackerel is a fish and should not be affected. In fact, shouldn't they be fishing for their food and not eating such meager portions?

• The crops found on this island is quite varied. Olives and watermelon are not generally crops you would expect to find on a lonely island in the Pacific.

• At one point, the Professor states that this duck is the best chance they've had to get off this island. Really? Better than Wrongway Feldman?

• Bob Denver is particularly good as the Marshall in the dream sequence. He clearly wears lifts to stand taller than Alan Hale and Tina Louise, which is a particularly nice touch.

• In the dream, the Skipper plays the sidekick with a game leg, much like "Stumpy" from the John Wayne classic, "Rio Bravo".

• We hear the theme music from "Gunsmoke" during the dream sequence. Ironically, it was the imminent cancellation of "Gunsmoke" which prompted the head of CBS (Paley) to instead save it and cancel "Gilligan's Island" instead.

• Another, somewhat more minor flaw in logic is the duck eating the plants that the Professor thought may be poisonous. Just because a duck can eat the plants doesn't mean that they are safe to humans to eat.

It's an urban legend that creator Sherwood Schwartz modeled the castaways after the seven deadly sins. Not sure if he did, but gluttony is one of the seven, and it's certainly represented here in the seventh entry.

The more gritty, realistic living conditions of island life continue in this average, mildly humorous episode. Just one week after the castaways soldier through a water shortage, they have to deal with a suddenly dwindling food supply. A blight which has hit the island causes the castaways to ration what little food they have left, with the still hardy Skipper and Mr. Howell grumbling over their meager portions, and providing standard Depression-era jokes.

On a desperate search for food, Gilligan and the Skipper sight a migratory duck in the lagoon. After a few unsuccessful, unfunny attempts to trap it, the slapstick ends when the pair bring the duck to the Professor, who identifies it as a means of rescue. The castaways can tie a note to its leg and send it off to civilization, but first they have to nurse it back to health.

Gilligan befriends the duck and names him Everett, and he and Mary Ann serve as his nutritionists. They overdo his feedings, though, and the duck is too top-heavy at the moment of truth to get off the ground and has to go on a crash diet.

There is a predictable twist when our lead discovers that Everett isn't top-heavy but pregnant, and rechristens her Emily. After she gives birth, we are treated to another launch, but this time she flies in a circle and returns disappointingly to the island. Emily no longer considers herself migratory and thinks of the isle as her new home.

Maybe she wants to be a recurring character on the series.

Anyway, the blight continues and patience wears thin. The other five castaways -including the logical Professor- lose faith that Emily is ever going to fly and view her as their next meal. Gilligan becomes the duck's defender and wards off his gluttonous friends, who peer into his hut with scary and sinister looks, in a very cool and pretty creepy scene. His willies leads to the very first dream sequence of the series.

The sequence -like everything else in the episode- is realistic, dark, and only moderately funny. It's chock full of all the standard Western clichés. Gilligan is the marshal who's sworn to protect his duck; the Skipper his crooked limping deputy; and Mary Ann his loyal sweetheart. Ginger plays a saloon singer modeled on Miss Kitty who tries unsuccessfully to woo the Marshal, and Mrs. Howell has a bit role as a Spanish damsel. Mr. Howell and the Professor play the two outlaws who have come for the duck.

Back in what passes for the real world, Gilligan resists the pressure to sacrifice Emily and, through guilt, causes the others to lose their appetite. Emily eats the plants the Professor believed were poisonous -which somehow means they are edible to humans- to end the blight, and sets the stage for a happy ending.

Except our lead has another note-worthy moment to spoil it.

COCONOTES:

As has been noted elsewhere, a blight wouldn't effect fish, so the mackerel Mary Ann serves the Skipper wouldn't be shrunk, and Gilligan could continue reeling in their meals.

The dream sequence takes place on the Gunsmoke set, which is ironic, since the renewal of the CBS western led to Gilligan's cancellation.

Gilligan-Mary Ann shipper alert: Mary Ann brings up her and the Marshal's future in the dream sequence.

The best laugh in the episode? Mamacita's Duck Gravy.

What would President Gilligan have done had they not decided to get rid of their brief attempt at government and simply just work together to make things go smoothly while stranded on this gorgeous but distant island? Gilligan is put in charge of the water supply and naturally is easy to distract, first by Mr. Howell and later by Ginger as Mrs. Howell and later Mary Anne fill odd objects from their limited water supply. Mrs. Howell uses vinyl boots and Mary Anne fills a rubber glove, and fortunately, they are caught by the Skipper before they can dispose of the water as they see fit. But Gilligan's attempt to create a rod to find water causes the rather weak water tank to spill pretty much every drop, and only the presence of a duck gives them hope for food. There appears to suddenly be a blithe on the island that causes the food available to shrink to the size of a seed, and even a watermelon ends up peanut sized.

They decide to use the friendly duck to fly to Hawaii with a message, and of course this ends up bungled, that is after Gilligan has a dream (the first of the series) where attempts to kidnap the duck for food has them back in the old west. It's funny yet intelligent as it shows how basically decent people can become when their food supply is threatened. The series would utilize the dreams throughout the remainder of the 2 1/2 seasons to give the actors a chance to stretch their muscles (or have them create stage shows for entertainment), and that added a much needed variety to the show that could have only gone so far with its premise. This is a good episode where even the selfish Mr. Howell comes out a bit of a better person, although that would on occasion alter as well.