My partner got this on DVD before we moved in together. After watching four episodes (those with "Shelley Summers," Liz 'n' Dick, Ann-Margret, and Wayne Newton), I was ready to go into relationship counseling.

What were the audience members laughing at? Why did Lucie's lip-synch of "Danke Schoen" elicit wild applause from the audience--was Lucy pointing an uzi at them? Who thought that Lucy's tired old schtick when she couldn't get Liz Taylor's ring off her hand (yes, folks, it was the hand-behind-the-curtain bit, older than moon rocks but only half as funny) was anything other than wince inducing?

What am I missing here?

I am I too jaded? Did I spend too much of my life watching sophisticated, socially relevant sitcoms like Maude, All in the Family, Murphy Brown, Roseanne, Sports Night, Arrested Development, and the Simpsons? Why can't I enjoy this show? Heck, as a native Upstate New Yorker, I *should* be cheering for my country(wo)man.

My sister and partner call Lucy a "comedic genius." Who would have thought that I would be in an LTR with someone who refers to her as "The Divine Ms. Ball"? I concede that I'm in the minority, but, like Cassandra, I have to tell the truth. For me, there is no questioning it: this is television's lowest point.