You know how the Fool Time theme doesn't have any lyrics? Well, for some reason Tim and Al have finally decided to solve that problem by having a contest for somebody to give the song lyrics. Their stupid little contest is set up like the Gong Show, they sound the gong if they don't like the song. The first contestant fit right in, because like Tool Time itself, he put very little effort into it. Next contestants: an "Al Capella" group called The Flannels, four bearded men in flannel shirts. They give a pretty darn good song. Finally, a rap number with LL Tool J and Grand Master Bath, singin' "Tim's in the house, rock the house." However, the Tool Man takes offense when they change it to WRECK the house and sing about what a destructive goof-off he is, so he bangs the gong. Hey, you know what? I've got some of my own lyrics for the Tool Time theme. Try this on for size: "Sadly now it's time for Tool Time/It's sad, but true/It's now time for Tool Time/Good God/Trust me when I say, you really don't wanna/Watch this crap." At home, Randy's girlfriend Lauren has been selected for an exchange program to go live in Coasta Rica. She and Randy share some tender moments on the back porch...get a room, you two. Well, looks like poor Randy is available...I mean, on his own for a while. But maybe not too long, because luckily some guy dropped out of the program, opening up a space for him. He jumps at the chance, and then springs it on Tim and Jill, so at first they don't know how to react. Then they go back and forth on whether or not they should let Randy go, and the only reason they let him sign up in the first place is because they were sure he wouldn't get chosen.
As Randy packs, Tim comes down to his room and essentially tries to talk him out of going by saying Jill would be far too worried about him and might become a basket case. So, Randy begrudgingly announces he's not going. Tim gloats like a jackass as Jill chastises him for putting words in her mouth. After that, he goes to talk to Wilson, who reveals that by stopping Randy from going by using Jill's feelings, he was in fact projecting his own feelings because he was in denial. Even Jill could see that. So Tim and Randy talk, the father pours his heart out to his son, sharing their feelings, their fears. Even though Randy is nervous about the trip, he assures his old man he'll be fine. And so, the Taylors head to the airport to bid Randy a fond adiós. He and his brothers share bear hugs, Mark gives him the tape he made of he and Lauren making out in the backyard, then a tearful goodbye to Tim and Jill, before he boards that plane and heads south.
The final episode to feature Jonathan Taylor Thomas as a regular. He appears one last time in "Home for the Holidays." Apparently he wanted to leave the series to focus on school...which was actually not true, he went on to shoot a few terrible movies, because he couldn't bring himself to fire his dumbass agent. Well, at least he left the series on good terms, and didn't go the way of Col. Henry Blake. So while the opening Tool Time gag was horrendously unfunny and the writing for this episode was severely flawed, the last act really felt genuine. They acted like they really were saying goodbye to a family member, because they were. Other than that, this one isn't anything special. Again, it's not funny, the acting in the first half is atrocious, along with the script. Season 8 is not off to a good start, but it does have some chances to redeem itself. If you like Randy and want to see his departure from the show, then I'd check out Adios, but other than that, I'd say skip it. Incidentally, going back to the Tool Time song lyrics contest reminds me of when they did that for the Roseanne theme. Gotta say, though, the lyrics they added were incredibly lame. Some theme songs DON'T need lyrics, they do just fine without them. Examples: Sanford and Son, Get Smart, I Love Lucy, Barney Miller, Little House on the Prairie, The Simpsons, King of the Hill and Home Improvement to name a few. Perfectly good themes without words.
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