# Murphy Brown reboot. Woohoo! **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 24, 2018, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/murphy-brown-reboot-woohoo/807414 "2018-01-24T23:14:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Icarus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/icarus/32/72_2.png) [@Icarus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Icarus)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2018, 1:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/murphy-brown-reboot-woohoo/807414/21 "2018-01-25T13:27:29Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > I know Candance Bergen wants to make Trump sucks jokes every week but I would get bored after a while. Hmmm, well, based on her age, the hook could be that she and Trump dated back in the day. They could mine that for a long time. ---
**Author:** ![Clothahump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@Clothahump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clothahump)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2018, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/murphy-brown-reboot-woohoo/807414/22 "2018-01-25T14:23:06Z")
The original sucked pond water. Why would this be any different? ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2018, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/murphy-brown-reboot-woohoo/807414/23 "2018-01-25T14:28:43Z")
It turns out Bergen went on a blind date with Trump while in college > **[Actress Candice Bergen Opens Up About Past 'Blind Date' With Donald Trump](https://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/actress-candice-bergen-opens-past-blind-date-donald/story?id=36892025)** ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2018, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/murphy-brown-reboot-woohoo/807414/24 "2018-01-25T17:03:59Z")
> [@Clothahump](#): > > The original sucked pond water. Why would this be any different? If all goes extremely well, it will indeed suck in the very same way. We should be so lucky. ---
**Author:** ![DKW](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dkw/32/3118_2.png) [@DKW](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DKW)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2018, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/murphy-brown-reboot-woohoo/807414/25 "2018-01-25T17:15:01Z")
Ambivalent about this, and concern #1 is the title character. Let’s not forget that Murphy wasn’t just headstrong or loud or eccentric, she was a genuinely bad person. Perfectly willing to lie, steal, and sabotage others, constantly getting into confrontations and fights (almost inviting them in a few cases), and continually aggravating even her best friends. The worst part was that she was the one always held up in the media as a shining example of a **STRONG FEMALE CHARACTER** , if not an outright feminist, which of course only made right-wing attacks on _actual_ feminists all the easier. When you think about it, the most remarkable thing about the original show being so funny and on-point (and it was!) was that it managed this _despite_ being weighed down by such a manifestly unlikable character. That takes sharp writing and a killer supporting cast. I’ve seen shows headlined by obnoxious jerks, and just about all of them were run into the ground or turned into toxic unwatchable messes before the first season was done. On top of that, there was a fair amount of physical work that I just can’t imagine a group of 60-80 year old actors pulling off. Will treat this like The Powerpuff Girls. Record it, get around to watching it when I can, and if it stinks up the joint, delete it with no regrets and get on with my life. (In fairness, Powerpuff Girls wasn’t very good to begin with, so I think Murphy has a better chance.) ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2018, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/murphy-brown-reboot-woohoo/807414/26 "2018-01-25T17:18:41Z")
Was there a reboot of Powerpuff Girls, or do you mean the original? ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2018, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/murphy-brown-reboot-woohoo/807414/27 "2018-01-25T17:33:53Z")
the way hollywood works now pretty soon people waking up from a coma will think they have been in the coma for 30 years with all these retreads. ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2018, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/murphy-brown-reboot-woohoo/807414/28 "2018-01-25T22:47:40Z")
It needs not to be _30 Rock_-like. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2018, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/murphy-brown-reboot-woohoo/807414/29 "2018-01-25T23:59:51Z")
> [@DKW](#): > > Ambivalent about this, and concern #1 is the title character. Let’s not forget that Murphy wasn’t just headstrong or loud or eccentric, she was a genuinely bad person. Perfectly willing to lie, steal, and sabotage others, constantly getting into confrontations and fights (almost inviting them in a few cases), and continually aggravating even her best friends. One bit I remember was her trying to get an interview with then-president Bush41, during one of his jogs. The footage showed her chasing and nearly running him down on a bicycle. Pretty lame and a major shattering of disbelief for me (had something like that happened for real, the protection detail would have arrested and possibly shot her instead of just escorting her back to her workplace). I think that was one of the last times I watched the show on a regular basis, since the stupidity of the scene annoyed me. My feelings are mixed, though, based on the panicked reaction of her boss, Miles, when it dawns on him that she must have done something particularly reckless. Miles: Wait a minute, are those Secret Service guys? Murphy! Please say you’re a counterfeiter! I have no idea why this still cracks me up, but it does. ---
**Author:** ![BuckChongo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ee7513/32.png) [@BuckChongo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BuckChongo)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2018, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/murphy-brown-reboot-woohoo/807414/30 "2018-01-26T01:47:09Z")
Don’t care one whit about Murphy Brown but that scene in Carnal Knowledge when Susan gets all red faced losing her virginity to Jonathan still stirs things up for this old man. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2018, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/murphy-brown-reboot-woohoo/807414/31 "2018-01-26T03:17:08Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Was there a reboot of Powerpuff Girls, or do you mean the original? Yes, and what little I saw of it was awful. I mean, just awful. ---
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2018, 6:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/murphy-brown-reboot-woohoo/807414/32 "2018-01-26T06:53:11Z")
> [@AlsoNamedBort](#): > > I’m trying to understand where the demand for this is. It’s a 20 year old show that already skewed to an older audience at the time. It’s not on DVD, it’s not on streaming, I can’t say I ever see it in syndication, so it’s not like it has a new fanbase. Me! Ooh, ooh, it’s me!! And all of my 40-50 something friends. > [@Bryan\_Ekers](#): > > One bit I remember was her trying to get an interview with then-president Bush41, during one of his jogs. The footage showed her chasing and nearly running him down on a bicycle. Pretty lame and a major shattering of disbelief for me (had something like that happened for real, the protection detail would have arrested and possibly shot her instead of just escorting her back to her workplace). > . . . If she’d been a stranger, yes. But the Secret Service has a longer relationship with the members of the Washington Press Corps than they do with any one President. They’ll get pretty stern when one steps out of line, but they know these people. The beauty of “Murphy Brown” was that it was a show about a flawed woman who other people had to work around. Since the dawn of television there have been male characters who were idiots or absent-minded geniuses, or curmudgeons, and a full staff of women at home and office flying around supporting their success despite their flaws. Female characters have had to be perfect in order to be believable, especially in “successful” positions. Murphy was a flawed pain in the tush. She took risks, got in trouble, had (or failed to have) flashes of conscience, and was nonetheless supported by those around her. And this was extremely uncomfortable for society. It pushed boundaries we had never even acknowledged. In this time of social regression, I am all for having her back. ---
**Author:** ![madsircool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madsircool/32/3432_2.png) [@madsircool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madsircool)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2018, 7:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/murphy-brown-reboot-woohoo/807414/33 "2018-01-26T07:29:39Z")
> [@RobotDevilDog](#): > > Looking forward to this. > > I wonder if Haley Joel Osment can fit an appearance into his schedule. The tables can wait themselves a couple days a week. ---
**Author:** ![Jeff\_Lichtman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jeff_lichtman/32/1531_2.png) [@Jeff\_Lichtman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jeff_Lichtman)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2018, 8:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/murphy-brown-reboot-woohoo/807414/34 "2018-01-26T08:16:41Z")
I just hope it doesn’t bring Dan Quayle back into the public eye. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2018, 11:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/murphy-brown-reboot-woohoo/807414/35 "2018-01-26T11:11:40Z")
> [@Jeff\_Lichtman](#): > > I just hope it doesn’t bring Dan Quayle back into the public eye. Compared to modern Republicans, Quayle is practically Solomon. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2018, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/murphy-brown-reboot-woohoo/807414/36 "2018-01-26T15:16:46Z")
> [@Arizona\_Mike](#): > > Sorry to say, Darren McGavin, who played Murphy’s dad, has passed away. I’ve always loved Darren McGavin throughout his career. He had one of the best lines ever in an episode of Murphy Brown. He was newly married to a young wife and they had a newborn baby. Darren’s ex (Murphy’s mom, played by Colleen Dewhurst) was there, and she said snarkily to him, “I figured that at your age, you’d be shooting blanks.” He replied, “It helps to have a live target.” 😃 ---
**Author:** ![flaming\_yawn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/cab0a1/32.png) [@flaming\_yawn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flaming_yawn)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2018, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/murphy-brown-reboot-woohoo/807414/37 "2018-01-26T15:24:49Z")
How I named my son Avery… after this show. ---
**Author:** ![Rilchiam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/2bfe46/32.png) [@Rilchiam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rilchiam)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2018, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/murphy-brown-reboot-woohoo/807414/38 "2018-01-26T16:43:58Z")
> [@](#): > > Originally posted by MadSirDog > I wonder if Haley Joel Osment can fit an appearance into his schedule. > [@madsircool](#): > > The tables can wait themselves a couple days a week. If anything, he might be too busy working on the [X-Files reboot](http://ew.com/tv/2018/01/10/x-files-haley-joel-osment/). (Shoot, din’ I just post this last week?) He’s got [a **lot** going on](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005286/?ref_=fn_al_nm_1). (And since someone brought it up, he only played Avery in the final season. Infant Avery was a set of twins; the toddler was a brunet called Dylan Christopher. Pretty big continuity error when elementary-school Avery was suddenly blond.) Anyway, what I came in here to say is, one instance where I thought the show’s tone was jerkish, not just Murphy’s, was late in the run when they brought in “McGovern”. IOW, Kennedy: an MTV VJ who was brought in to give FYI some youth appeal. Now, I personally thought the real Kennedy had a **lot** of guts, being openly conservative, at a time when, to MTV’s audience demographic, being a Republican was seen pretty much equivalent to being a criminal. And she was a Strong Woman; she just wasn’t strongly saying what most of the audience wanted to hear. So McGovern’s character was going to go head-to-head with Murphy, right? A young conservative who was just as fired up as Murph had been as a young liberal. Right? Pardon me while I guffaw. For the rest of that season, her character was presented as always being wrong, wrong, while Murphy was always totally right. The episode that almost made me ragequit was when McGovern was on the cover of Rolling Stone, posed implicitly nude in Jim’s anchor chair. Third act was Murphy calling McGovern into her office and ripping her three or four new ones. I forget exactly on what grounds, but along the lines of “I thought I knew everything when I was your age, but now I’m twice your age and I **do** know everything.” So McGovern, instead of biting back and pointing out that Murphy gained all this wisdom by trial and error and learning from her mistakes, looks downcast and says “You’re right…I though that if I created a stir, people wouldn’t figure out that I don’t know what I’m doing.” As I said, I almost ragequit over that. It was a perfect opportunity for McGovern to hold a mirror up to Murphy, and the Boomer generation in general, telling her and them that since they scoffed at the generation above theirs and wanted to throw over everything they stood for, it should be okay for Gen-X to do the same thing. Of course not: she had to be brought down. No Gen-Xer could be seen as bringing anything to the table. And bearing in mind that IRL, RS cover subjects have little to no input during the photo session, there was a perfect opportunity for McGovern to appeal to Murphy’s ego, in a reasonable way without rolling over and showing her belly. Have her say “If you’re finished spewing, it was not my idea to get naked. They talked me into it; made it sound like this awesome idea, and of course I started having second thoughts when it was too late. I even thought, ‘Murphy would never have gone along with that,’ so can you tell me how you would have stood up to them?” A reasonable compromise. Except, how can there be a compromise when the character was never presented as a worthy opponent to begin with? Anyway, [go Kennedy](http://www.foxbusiness.com/person/k/lisa-kennedy-montgomery.html)! I don’t always believe in what she says, but I’ve always believed in her. ---
**Author:** ![CarnalK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnalk/32/486_2.png) [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2018, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/murphy-brown-reboot-woohoo/807414/39 "2018-01-26T16:58:13Z")
I watched back in the day but I have trouble getting excited about a revival. I’ll watch if Paul Reubens makes an appearance. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2018, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/murphy-brown-reboot-woohoo/807414/40 "2018-10-13T00:42:00Z")
It’s horrible, predictable, with a laugh track, and it sucks. Then again, I didn’t like the original much. I agree with the political stance, but it’s not in any way funny. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/murphy-brown-reboot-woohoo/807414.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/murphy-brown-reboot-woohoo/807414.md?page=3)