arrested development

What was on TV? Sun, April 17, 2005

It's finale time on Arrested Development. Plus Sandra Oh's first showcase on Grey's, Deadwood, King of the Hill, and Malcolm in the Middle.

Grace MacLaine

27 Jan 2026 — 4 min read

20 years ago, 3,648 students in Albany decided to set the world record for the largest pillow fight. Let's see what was on TV.

7:00 King of the Hill on Fox

9x12 "Smoking and the Bandit"

Smokers' rights! Smokers' rights!

This episode is all about Dale advocating for the right to smoke wherever he wants. He's the "Rosa Parks of nicotine." And with all due respect to Dale and the great Toby Huss, the true champion of smokers' rights is 90s ice dancer Maia Usova, and she's all I could think about during this entire episode. For the full story (including finding out your husband and ice dance partner is cheating on you when your rival wears his wedding ring around her neck during the compulsory dance at the Olympics, an epic fight at Spago, a famous drink that was either Coca-Cola or alcohol depending on who and when you ask, and more) listen to the Runthough Podcast's Dance Lore series. And then go and watch the smokers' rights queen's greatest hits (statues that come to life, cat claws, putting a dramatic flower in your hair for your tango, scandalous costumes, and much, much, more!).

7:30 Malcolm in the Middle on Fox

6x18 "Ida's Dance"

It's always fun to see Cloris Leachman on this show, but in this episode, Lois meets all her friends too, so it's like you have 10 Cloris Leachmans. Sure, they never became famous or won Oscars, but they're all super funny, and they all have great faces; kudos to the casting department. I can only find credits for three of these women, but reading their IMDB pages is a kick. Kraft Television Theatre! Weird horror movies! Joey Tribbiani's grandma! My Big Fat Greek Wedding!

8:30 Arrested Development on Fox

2x18 "Righteous Brothers" (record Everything You Want on ABC Family)

Though the show ends on a cliffhanger, this would have made a fine finale. So many of the recurring bits and guest stars come back for one (hopefully not last) last hurrah. Blue Tobias, Henry Winkler, the cornballer, say goodbye to these, Les Cousins Dangereux, it's all here! It's a very fun and funny trip down memory lane, even if it doesn't have enough Lucille. And the model home sinking into the earth right after George Michael and Maeby kiss might be my favorite image in the show's entire run.

9:00 Deadwood on HBO

2x07 "E.B. Was Left Out" (record Desperate Housewives on ABC)

An excellent "calm before the storm" episode. After Wolcott's brutal murder of three sex workers last week, you'd expect fighting and yelling and guns. And we do get one fight, but this is mostly people talking in dark and quiet rooms. Deadwood loves episodes like this, meditative and melancholy hours bathed in candlelight. In the past two decades, TV is always chasing shocking moments like the one with Wolcott last episode. We could use more conversations in dark rooms.

10:00 Grey's Anatomy on ABC

1x04 "No Man's Land"

Last week gave us our first great Cristina scene; this episode gives us our first great Cristina storyline. This was Sandra Oh's submission for the Emmys, and she honestly should have won (not the last time Sandra would be robbed!). Anna Maria Horsford also deserved a nomination for playing the patient Cristina bonds with. She is Liz Fallon, the longtime scrub nurse for Meredith's mother. Cristina wants in on her surgery, but all she does is run tests and serve as a target of her snark. The show intends to make an all-too-obvious parallel: Liz lived for her work, and so does Cristina. That parallel hits harder once we learn the truth: Liz was brought to Seattle Grace to die surrounded by her friends, and there will be no surgery. And Cristina is pissed; she claims not to care about patients, but she is mistaken. She's bonded with the snarky nurse. When Liz goes, Cristina completely loses it, ignoring her DNR, even as Dr. Burke and the Chief (her boss' boss and her boss' boss' boss!) intervene. You know how people say actors shouldn't cry, they should try not to cry? Well, Sandra Oh is great at trying to stay professional (and failing).

Liz Fallon also gives the show an opportunity to further explore Meredith's mother Ellis Grey and her alzheimers. I love the scene between her and Meredith where she guesses the truth, you feel the true weight of this terrible secret Meredith has been carrying around.

Record the early morning broadcast of Mystery! Agatha Christie's Marple on PBS.