Love Thy Other Neighbor

Purely out of coincidence, Mary Jane Staggs née Gibbs, a friend of Laura's from their grammar school days, moves in next door to the Petries with her husband, Fred Staggs. When Millie first meets Mary Jane at the Petrie house, she feels like a third wheel with Laura and Mary Jane so preoccupied about catching up after all these years. Feeling slighted and jealous of Mary Jane's friendship with Laura, Millie tries to get Jerry to feel the same way about Rob's subsequent friendship with Fred. Jerry refuses to until he finds out that Rob, having four free tickets to a new Broadway show, gave the two extras to Fred and Mary Jane (which Rob only did as he knew Jerry would hate the show). Rob and Laura come to realize that Jerry and Millie are jealous of their friendship with the Staggs and, thus, try to figure out ways to make the Helpers not feel like they are becoming the lost neighbors (while also not pandering to what Rob considers their childish behavior). Through it all, Rob and Laura and Millie and Jerry have to decide what constitutes true friendship. —Huggo