Today, "My Favorite Martian" is sometimes belittled as a silly series from the early 1960s when television was supposed to be merely mindless entertainment. This episode belies that notion and, along with a number of other episodes, showed that, far from being merely escapist comedy, this series in fact could provide sophisticated, thoughtful episodes.
Doris Packer, who plays Tim's former English teacher -- the one who inspired him to go into journalism -- had played these kinds of roles before, perhaps most notably as Mrs. Rayburn in more than a dozen episodes of "Leave it to Beaver." So she was a natural choice for a teacher who came across to her students as an iron-fisted martinet yet, nevertheless, had a softer side, and who is facing mandatory retirement -- something that thankfully has since gone away.
This time, unlike in a few other episodes from this season (and, especially, in the third season), Martin's use of his Martian abilities is restrained and helps move the plot along instead of being the complication that creates the plot in the first place. He uses his invisibility as just a tool to show that Miss Pringle had helped many students over the years, but always behind the scenes and without taking credit. Miss Pringle, even as she is being forcibly retired, continues to fight for her students, and fortunately -- thanks to Uncle Martin -- she finally gets recognition.
For a comedy show that usually ended each week with some kind of farcical resolution (typically Martin being cheated out of a return to Mars at the last moment), the poignancy of the ending is surprising but altogether fitting. It's noteworthy in another way, too, as it is probably the first recorded use of "damn" on American television -- something that the censors no doubt allowed precisely because the moment seemed so genuine. In doing so, "We Love You, Miss Pringle" provides the finest moment of the entire series.