Wood you like to know a secret? Al can tell a piece of wood not only by sight, but by scent. He claims he can identify any piece of wood blindfolded. Tim decides to put this to the test on the next Tool Time, to see whether or not Al and his olfactory senses are up to the challenge. At home, Brad, Randy and Mark are having trouble with those pesky McGurn boys. They decide to exact their revenge by constructing a catapult. Speaking of constructing, Tim has souped up the weed whacker...because he was bored. The monotony is broken up by a visit from Dave and Karen, who are still together. He must be made of steel. They seem like a happy couple, Dave is going with Karen to the opera, and she pretends she knows something about football. Oh, the sacrifices of love. However, there might be a little trouble in paradise, as Dave pulls Tim aside and asks him for a favor: he needs him to tell Karen they had lunch yesterday. Turns out Dave is a smarmy, two-timing lout who's been seeing another woman on the sly. He asks Tim to go along with his lie, making him feel conflicted: who does he protect, his buddy or his wife's buddy? Thankfully Wilson was there to listen and advise. There was no easy answer in this instance, Tim simply had to pick his poison.
He goes along with Dave's ruse, and even manages to scam $20 from him, after claiming he paid the bill for lunch. Unfortunately, Jill knew for a fact Tim and Dave didn't have lunch yesterday, and suspects something not kosher was going on. She gets mad at Tim for covering for his pal and tries to call Karen to spill the beans, but Tim vehemently protests. So, Jill makes him tell Dave to tell Karen. Tim doesn't want to do that, because guys don't talk to each other about relationships. Jill's response was a very cold night for Tim. Next day, he and Dave get to working on the hot rod, when Jill comes out to collect the laundry, she's very curt with Dave, which leads him to figure out Tim told her about his infidelity and might have told Karen, but Tim swears she didn't, so now Dave has to tell Karen before Jill does, so now Dave is sore at Tim for something he did to himself. Oh, what a tangled web they've weaved. As if this soap opera wasn't already a mess, Tim gets a call from Dave later on, saying Karen broke it off with him. Not even knowing about the other woman, she was just done with him. AND, here's the kicker: Jill KNEW Dave and Karen were having problems and that a break up may be imminent, but she didn't tell Tim! What a t'wought. To take our minds off of this conundrum, it's time for Al to put his scents to the test by identifying wood blindfolded! The first two, he correctly identifies (hickory and western red cedar, respectively). But, Tim's got a little trick up his sleeve...or in this case, pant leg. He puts one of his stinky socks on the wood and has Al sniff that. The plan backfires right on Tim's bare foot, so the next time he puts it in his mouth, it will be a little sore. When he gets home, he says what we're all thinking: Jill owes him an apology. She gives him the most half-assed, pathetic, childish apology she can possibly muster, not sorry at all for her actions, just like always. Why did Tim marry her? Anyway, the boys actually built that catapult and launched garbage right into the McGurns's backyard. Unfortunately when they retaliated, it was Tim, not the boys, who got covered in last week's trash.
This was one of the few episodes were the conflict was never fully resolved. Tim and Dave are no longer friends, Karen is single again, and Jill didn't own up to her mistake. Tim kept his end of the bargain, but not her. I honestly don't know what he ever saw in Jill. In these early shows, she was such a conniving, underhanded, calculating, nagging bitch. Her character gradually just turned into a bit of an idiot after this, and she was essentially created off of the generic nagging housewife Tim Allen used in his stand-up routines. I wouldn't want to have a wife like her, nor would I want a woman like Karen and, if I were a woman, I wouldn't want a guy like Dave. As I said before, this episode was more like an episode of a soap opera: As the Saw Blade Turns. I don't think I'd really recommend this episode, as it's mean and frustrating, however there are some good parts, such as Al sniffing wood, and the catapult backfiring. Not one of the series' best, but it's still okay.
He goes along with Dave's ruse, and even manages to scam $20 from him, after claiming he paid the bill for lunch. Unfortunately, Jill knew for a fact Tim and Dave didn't have lunch yesterday, and suspects something not kosher was going on. She gets mad at Tim for covering for his pal and tries to call Karen to spill the beans, but Tim vehemently protests. So, Jill makes him tell Dave to tell Karen. Tim doesn't want to do that, because guys don't talk to each other about relationships. Jill's response was a very cold night for Tim. Next day, he and Dave get to working on the hot rod, when Jill comes out to collect the laundry, she's very curt with Dave, which leads him to figure out Tim told her about his infidelity and might have told Karen, but Tim swears she didn't, so now Dave has to tell Karen before Jill does, so now Dave is sore at Tim for something he did to himself. Oh, what a tangled web they've weaved. As if this soap opera wasn't already a mess, Tim gets a call from Dave later on, saying Karen broke it off with him. Not even knowing about the other woman, she was just done with him. AND, here's the kicker: Jill KNEW Dave and Karen were having problems and that a break up may be imminent, but she didn't tell Tim! What a t'wought. To take our minds off of this conundrum, it's time for Al to put his scents to the test by identifying wood blindfolded! The first two, he correctly identifies (hickory and western red cedar, respectively). But, Tim's got a little trick up his sleeve...or in this case, pant leg. He puts one of his stinky socks on the wood and has Al sniff that. The plan backfires right on Tim's bare foot, so the next time he puts it in his mouth, it will be a little sore. When he gets home, he says what we're all thinking: Jill owes him an apology. She gives him the most half-assed, pathetic, childish apology she can possibly muster, not sorry at all for her actions, just like always. Why did Tim marry her? Anyway, the boys actually built that catapult and launched garbage right into the McGurns's backyard. Unfortunately when they retaliated, it was Tim, not the boys, who got covered in last week's trash.
This was one of the few episodes were the conflict was never fully resolved. Tim and Dave are no longer friends, Karen is single again, and Jill didn't own up to her mistake. Tim kept his end of the bargain, but not her. I honestly don't know what he ever saw in Jill. In these early shows, she was such a conniving, underhanded, calculating, nagging bitch. Her character gradually just turned into a bit of an idiot after this, and she was essentially created off of the generic nagging housewife Tim Allen used in his stand-up routines. I wouldn't want to have a wife like her, nor would I want a woman like Karen and, if I were a woman, I wouldn't want a guy like Dave. As I said before, this episode was more like an episode of a soap opera: As the Saw Blade Turns. I don't think I'd really recommend this episode, as it's mean and frustrating, however there are some good parts, such as Al sniffing wood, and the catapult backfiring. Not one of the series' best, but it's still okay.
