1121  -  Chicago Shoe Exchange


Synopsis:     Gary tells Al and Griff to get rid of all of the old shoes while she’s on vacation.  
When they’re out of money, and need to pay for their lunches, the delivery girl says she’ll trade the 
food for a pair of old sandals.  Al and Griff are soon opened up to the fantastic world of trading 
and bartering and work their way up to getting a fancy massage chair at an expensive mall gift store.  
Meanwhile, Kelly paralyzes Bud with her new massage techniques.

Thoughts:   It’s too bad Fox forgot about this episode because season 11 and especially 10 could have 
benefited from good episodes like this one.  This episode stands as one that aired after the official 
last episode, and I say with no false modesty that it DESTROYS that sorry two parter series finale.  
Al and Griff visiting different stores to trade various merchandize for a massage chair is a silly 
twist that makes this one fun.  One of the better moments of season 11 has to be the scene where Griff 
is playing with the electric organ.  
	
	I normally complain about how the later season episodes pathetically force Bud and Kelly into 
a B story.  This time it’s handled much better and Peg and Jefferson are present.  Kelly has tried 
out some new massage techniques (considering Kelly’s character, massaging is an appropriate hobby).  
Bud gets hurt and spends almost the next half hour screaming in pain while his stupid family and 
Jefferson (that’s right Marcy isn’t present here) trying to help him.  The B story isn’t so bad here 
since it works in more main characters and it also eventually coincides with Al’s story.

	Bud does nothing in this show except scream in agony and talk on the phone for one scene.  
Talk about a waste.  Kelly and Jefferson are relegated to pathetically trying to save him with Peg in 
tow.  As I said above Marcy isn’t in this episode.  It actually works out for the better, for her being 
put into this episode would have felt forced.  Al and Griff work out nicely together as they do in just 
about any episode that they are put into.  By the way.  I mentioned in my write up of "Something Larry 
This Way Comes" review that somebody on the writing staff must have been in a mood to put people in silly 
costumes for two subsequent episodes.  Here it’s fooseball.  It gets mentioned here, but is a centerpiece 
of the what was supposed to be the next episode "Lez Be Friends."

	The plot does border on the ridiculous.  Nobody really barters anymore and some people may not 
even know what it is to barter.  If this stumbling block is gotten over, then it makes for a better show. 
Seeing the "shoe store" now a place with electric organs, jet skis among other toys of creature comfort 
is amusing however. 


Rating:  8.5 shoes out of 10.  Much better then the official finale and funnier besides.  Bud could’ve 
been given more to do then scream in pain for half the show however.  That’s it’s one main demerit.  
Seeing Al enjoy more of the bartered goodies such as the barbeque grill (it’s a foot warmer, remember) 
would have been fun too.


Quotable Quotes:

Gary:  "Listen morons, I’ve decided to restock the store, so I’m donating all of these old shoes to poor 
Phillipino orphans."
Al:  "Well they made them, why would they want them back?"

Bud:  "Oh my God, I can’t move my legs!  I can’t move my legs!!"
Kelly:  "That’s not true, they’re twitching!"

Salesman:  "Some people say that the Swedish Ecstasy 5000 is almost as good as sex!" 
Al:  (while sitting in the chair) "Ooooohh they’re crazy-it’s much better!!"

Salesman:  "That’s another great feature of this chair, it’ll never say no to you!"
Al:  "Yeah spit on you, call you 'shoeman'."

Jefferson:  "This is a little something I picked up in a massage parlor in the Far East.  Actually I 
picked up a few things in that massage parlor."

Griff (while sitting at the electric organ, with sunglasses):  "Welcome to the Shoe Room gentleman!  
Any requests?!"

Al:  "Hey Peg, what are you doing up?!"
Peg:  "Well, one of us has to be an attentive parent.  Bud is in serious trouble, he’s sniffs 
(looks over to see he’s in a tanning booth with smoke coming from between it) he’s burning."