Plot
For the full list of episodes, see List of The Honeymooners episodes.Most of The Honeymooners took place in Ralph and Alice Kramden's small sparsely furnished two-room apartment. Other settings used in the show included the Gotham Bus Company depot, the Raccoon Lodge, and on occasion the Nortons' apartment (which was always noticeably better furnished than the Kramdens'). Many episodes began with a shot of Alice in the apartment, awaiting Ralph's arrival from work. Most episodes focused on Ralph and Ed Norton's characters, although Alice played a substantial role. Ed's wife, Trixie, played a smaller role in the series, and did not appear in every episode as the other three did. Each episode presented a self-contained story, which never carried over into a subsequent one. The show employed a number of standard sitcom clichés and plots, particularly those of jealousy and comic misunderstanding.
The show presented Ralph as an everyman and an underdog who struggled to make a better life for himself and his wife, but who ultimately failed due to his own shortcomings. He (along with Ed) devised a number of get-rich-quick schemes, none of which succeeded. Ralph was quick to blame others for his misfortune, until it was pointed out to him where he had fallen short. Ralph's anger was replaced by short-lived remorse, and he would then apologize for his actions. Many of these apologies to Alice ended with Ralph saying, "Baby, you're the greatest", followed by a hug and kiss.
In most episodes, Ralph's short temper got the best of him, leading him to yell at others and to threaten physical violence, particularly against Alice. Ralph's favorite threats to her were "One of these days ... one of these days ... Pow! Right in the kisser!" or to knock her "to the Moon, Alice!" (Sometimes this last threat was simply abbreviated: "Bang, zoom!") which has led to criticism that the show displayed an acceptance of domestic violence. Ralph never carried out his threats, however, and others have pointed out that Alice knew he never would. In retaliation, the targets of Ralph's verbal abuse often responded by simply joking about his weight, a common theme throughout the series. Alice was never seen to back down during any of Ralph's tirades.
Read more about this topic: The Honeymooners
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—John Ashbery (b. 1927)
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