The Golden Girls (TV Series) The Heart Attack (1985) User Reviews

Oh to have been an extra at that dinner party.....

[mark.waltz · 7/10 · 21 January 2020]

No way so soon in season one would there be the temptation to kill off any of the four women on "Golden Girls", let alone Sophia who by Thanksgiving time was the most popular character on the brand new series. The episode opens up with the women saying goodbye to their guests leaving during an obvious storm, the first a very heavyset women whom they proceed to gossip about the moment the door is shut. Sophia has apparently spent days preparing a huge meal, and by the amount of entrees and deserts on the table, it must have been one heck of a spread. Within a few minutes, Sophia is complaining about a bubble in her chest (which Rose embarrassingly declares requires a big belch to get rid of) which then leads to pain.

Why Sophia just doesn't go ahead and belch is never revealed, but Dorothy decides to send for the doctor which is difficult because of the storm. Dorothy realizes that her mother may be having a heart attack, and this leads to tender moments with both Blanche and Rose separately, as well as Sophia and all four women as Sophia begins to wonder about her own mortality. When the doctor arrives, he checks her out, and Sophia spends more time trying to play hostess again rather than let him examine her. Each mention of the food that Sophia has made and the praise she gets for her hard work may get you hungry to try each of her Sicilian recipes, and indeed, just the thought of eating all that food might cause a bubble out of the thought process of how delicious (and rich) it is. It's a good episode that is a bit depressing but not maudlin, but it belongs to mother and daughter Sophia and Dorothy who by now have established some terrific chemistry.

Quality writing, superb acting.

[Sleepin_Dragon · 8/10 · 11 November 2022]

After a big meal, Sophia need to lay down, she complains to be unwell, The Girls think she's having a heart attack, and close to death.

Just lovely, a credit in writing, it's so touching and moving, the fact it's only midway through the first series, and it's this moving! That happened for one reason only, the characters matter, every single one of them are meaningful and lovable.

Despite the rather serious content, it still manages to bring the laughs in, Rose on the sofa, I belly laughed.

Everyone has their moment here, that scene where Rose recounts her husband's death was magical, as was the touching scene where Dorothy and Sophia explain how much they mean to one another, it was quite something.

Quality to the production team also, the windy palms outside give you the sense of a storm going down.

8/10.

The Heart Attack (#1.10)

[ComedyFan2010 · 7/10 · 8 January 2014]

After a very big dinner Sophie feels sick. She thinks she may have a heart attack. They call the paramedics but it takes them a very long time to come. They call another doctor who checks on her and decides that she doesn't have a heart attack but more of a gal bladder attack from over eating so much.

A pretty sweet episode. It is nice to see them dealing with the idea of death. Sophia who is still not ready to die and the conversation the other three have afterwards.

And it also has funny moments. Such as Rose describing different kinds of heaven for different religions.

Picture it. Sicily...

[mattiasflgrtll6 · 10/10 · 18 July 2022]

Sophia is feeling very ill lately. She's having chest pains. Blanche decides to call her doctor, but Dr. Harris has gotten stuck since trees are blocking the way after a storm.

Like any Golden Girls episode, this one contains a lot of sharp and witty dialogue between the girls. Sophia has always been my favorite of the four, and she gets some of the funniest material of the season despite the dark subject matter. In a way it's kind of inspiring. She's lying there terrified not knowing what is gonna happen, and still manages to have a sense of humor about the situation.

The writing also deserves credit for this. Sophia gets a really sweet little moment where she tells her daughter Dorothy that she was always her favorite. This is extremely significant since these two bicker with each other like hens most times we see them interact. Don't get me wrong, the love between them is always understood. It's not a seethingly toxic relationship. But hearing it in this context with her going so far as to say she's her favorite warms my heart.

You realize even more how much importance Dorothy has played in her life when she almost dreamily says she will meet her husband for the first time in thirty years. In classic Sophia fashion though she follows that up with wanting her hair to look good when they meet.

Rose and Blanche start to reflect on death themselves. Blanche has a very funny line when she talks about her dream funeral, which involves Arlington Cemetery because of all the men. When Rose points out that they are dead she quips back "So are the men I date!".

Rose recollects an awful memory of her late husband Charlie, revealing that he died of a heart attack while they were having sex. Interestingly the same thing would happen just a few episodes later. Poor Rose.

As someone who has lost two grandparents, this got uncomfortably close to home at points. Even though Sophia is humorous as usual she sounds and looks realistically sick. But through it all we see how much the girls love Sophia and consider her an essential part of their lives. After a while Dr. Harris finally arrives. It turns out it wasn't as bad as was previously thought. She was suffering a gallbladder attack due to eating so much food at a party. The fear was still real however, and we're relieved she made it through.

Dorothy is still flattered she's her mother's favorite, which results in a confused reaction. "Favorite? I thought I was dying!" I like to think that's just Sophia's incurable grouchiness talking. The sincerity with which she said those words was her vulnerable side slipping through, which she usually keeps covered like a hardered Italian cheese.

If someone asked me what makes The Golden Girls such a special show, this is the episode I would point them towards.