The farmers of Walnut Grove held a private meeting one afternoon, where Charles tried to sell them all on the Grange's proposal of a national co-op to save a good deal of money on equipment and crops, and when the question arose as to who would represent them at the convention in Milwaukee, they unanimously nominated Charles, because it's his show and not their's. So Charles rushed home with the news, and Caroline would be coming along, and Albert and Laura would take care of Grace and the house whether they like it or not. By sheer coincidence, the Ingalls received a letter from old school chum/ Lord High Chairman of the Grange, Dillon Hyde, inviting them to the 25th anniversary reunion to the class of '56! Hyde was a stud in his day, as Caroline secretly had the hots for him, and so did Mrs. Foster, because she read the Ingallses' letter. Why isn't she in prison yet? So the Ingalls arrived in Milwaukee, which looks like Chicago for some reason, and check into their hotel. They decided not to take the newfangled elevator machine and instead walk the seven flights of stairs to their room. The Ingalls do it hardcore. They find their room accommodated with complimentary roses and champagne, all from Dillon and addressed to Caroline, but not Charles. So, on to the reunion where they have a gay old time...very gay. They meet some old friends, Caroline's old school chum Amy Phillips-Sawyer and her husband Thaddeus, that boisterous old scoundrel, Arnie Cupp and his wife Hattie, old stick-in-the-mud Florence Platz, and of course, the man of the hour, Dillon Hyde himself, who gave Caroline a warm welcome and Charles a cold shoulder. Now, I don't mean to sound offensive, but if these people all graduated high school 25 years ago, why do they look so old? They should be in their forties or late thirties like Charles and Caroline, but they're all in their fifties or sixties tops. Never mind.
It seems even though Dillon is a married man, he still has feelings for Caroline. So Charles went to the Grange delegation, which was a disaster. A company man had been sent there to speak on behalf of the retailers and tried to argue that the national co-op wouldn't work. Charles, Arnie and all the rest argued that if the farmers all stuck together and went this way, it would work, so they all marched out chanting "Together, together." On to a picnic in The Willows, where Charles tried his luck on a polo pony, leaving Dillon to put the moves on Caroline, who thankfully shot him down. Next day, another Grange meeting, which the farmers won out again, wounding Thaddeus' pride, as he's the one who sent Morgan the company man to try and sway them in the first place. Oh, and if you still don't believe Dillon is a douche, he insulted Jacob Platz, the supplier of booze for the party who did it because he's generous. Yeah, Dillon's still butt-hurt that he didn't have the intestinal fortitude to put the moves on Caroline way back when, so naturally others have to suffer. He tried to interrupt a waltz between Caroline and Charles to dance with the former, but the latter told him to buzz off. Then when Arnie forgot to pay back the $100 Dillon lent him, the man denounced him as a dirt farmer and assaulted him, and THEN when his wife makes fun of him to his face, he slaps her. What is this guy's problem? What is his motivation to act this way? Oh, and of course Charles had to be the one to belt the guy in the gut. Michael Landon saves the day again...it's getting old! So Charles and Caroline return home to Walnut Grove, vowing never to attend another high school reunion or Grange convention again.
How can I describe Whatever Happened to the Class of '56? Boring. It was just not very interesting, mainly because of the flat characters. Especially Dillon, he came off as very flat and his motivation as an antagonist were not very clear. WHY did he hate Charles and exactly what were the details of his and Caroline's past? It's never explained! A flashback scene might have helped. Beside that, this was just your standard high school reunion episode that every show seems to do. I know it's to try and establish a past history for these established characters, but there's really nothing that makes this one unique. It's got all the clichés that these episodes have: past lovers looking to rekindle flames when obviously the man or woman in question is married. So while Michael Landon, Karen Grassle and Liam Sullivan were very good, John T. Dugan delivered a weak script that Landon could hardly make work. Whatever Happened to the Class of '56? Probably better if you don't know, but I guess if you like Charles and Caroline, it's worth seeing, at least once. So check it out as well as the rest of Season 6. It's got good episodes (The Third Miracle, The Faith Healer, Return of Mr. Edwards), bad episodes (Annabelle, Werewolf of Walnut Grove, this one), taboo episodes (May We Make Them Proud) and the worst episode of all: The Halloween Dream.
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