Ah, yes, the famous Papouli episode. The obligatory "very special" episode dealing with the death of a loved one. As corny as Full House can be, I do believe this episode was very moving and well-written for the most part. Particularly, the transition music between Papouli's last scene as he bonds with Michelle over a traditional Greek dance and the next morning as the family gathers around the kitchen table and grieves, is bone-chilling. Such an abrupt change in tone to symbolize how suddenly Papouli died. Yet whenever I catch a rerun of this episode, I feel as if there's something missing. Something pretty major.
Remember the original premise of Full House? Danny Tanner was a widower. I repeat, a WIDOWER. The first season dealt with not only Jesse and Joey moving in to help raise three daughters, but Danny and the girls coping with their wife and mother's untimely death in a car crash. After the first season, the late Pam Tanner was mentioned very little throughout the rest of the series. And out of all episodes they could have mentioned her in, they failed to do so in the "very special" death episode. This episode would have been a perfect opportunity to mention the tragic death of Danny's wife/Jesse's sister/DJ, Stephanie and Michelle's mother. They could have very easily written a lament for Danny, Jesse, DJ or Stephanie about how Papouli's death reminds them of the pain and grief they felt when Pam passed away. Perhaps in the next to last scene where Jesse and Michelle grieve together in the boat in the backyard, he could have told her a little story about her mother, since she was too young to have any recollection of her. I don't understand how it couldn't have occurred to any of the writers that this would be a good time for the family to talk about Pam, especially since Papouli was her grandfather as well as Jesse's. That detail has always bothered me.
Other than that, I think this episode handled the death issue quite well considering the large detail they missed. Papouli has very limited screen time, and he was only seen previously in the "Greek Week" episode waaaaaay back in season 4, but he has that lust for life and an irresistible charm that makes you fall in love with him right away and leaves you teary-eyed when he dies. The remaining 2/3 of the episode is somber, but ultimately there's a happy ending.
Remember the original premise of Full House? Danny Tanner was a widower. I repeat, a WIDOWER. The first season dealt with not only Jesse and Joey moving in to help raise three daughters, but Danny and the girls coping with their wife and mother's untimely death in a car crash. After the first season, the late Pam Tanner was mentioned very little throughout the rest of the series. And out of all episodes they could have mentioned her in, they failed to do so in the "very special" death episode. This episode would have been a perfect opportunity to mention the tragic death of Danny's wife/Jesse's sister/DJ, Stephanie and Michelle's mother. They could have very easily written a lament for Danny, Jesse, DJ or Stephanie about how Papouli's death reminds them of the pain and grief they felt when Pam passed away. Perhaps in the next to last scene where Jesse and Michelle grieve together in the boat in the backyard, he could have told her a little story about her mother, since she was too young to have any recollection of her. I don't understand how it couldn't have occurred to any of the writers that this would be a good time for the family to talk about Pam, especially since Papouli was her grandfather as well as Jesse's. That detail has always bothered me.
Other than that, I think this episode handled the death issue quite well considering the large detail they missed. Papouli has very limited screen time, and he was only seen previously in the "Greek Week" episode waaaaaay back in season 4, but he has that lust for life and an irresistible charm that makes you fall in love with him right away and leaves you teary-eyed when he dies. The remaining 2/3 of the episode is somber, but ultimately there's a happy ending.