Midterm Crisis is the twelfth episode of the sixth season in this television sitcom on Family Matters, which was aired from ABC on January 6, 1995. It was directed by Joel Zwick and written by Stephen Langford.
Plot[]
Waldo baked a gourmet cake for his mid-term, which is sure to get a passing grade. However, he never turns his assignment in, thanks to a hungry Eddie and Urkel, who quickly attempts to cover up the situation by baking the same cake for his mid-term. They know Waldo is upset for Eddie using his stuff without permission. Meanwhile, Carl and Harriette invite Capt. Savage over to their house, but Savage's date (Lois) makes Carl suspicious about where he's seen her before.
Synopsis[]
Waldo has previously warned Eddie not to take any of his stuff without asking. He points out that he's still mad at the latter because he ruined his socks and never returned his stuff. Waldo mentions that Eddie never asks if he can borrow his stuff and is annoyed with his lack of concern for him.
Meanwhile, Carl and Harriette invite Capt. Savage over to their house. They ask if Laura is free for the night to help them, but she mentions she has a date with a cute guy she met at work. Harriette tells her to have a nice time and be back before midnight. Laura agrees and gets ready for her date. Capt. Savage brings his date, Lois, with him. This makes Carl suspicious about where he's seen her before. He recalls where he has seen her and convinces Harriette to help get some more cookies in the kitchen.
Waldo bakes a gourmet cake for his mid-term, which is sure to get a passing grade. However, he never turns his assignment in, thanks to a hungry Eddie and Urkel. When Waldo asks about his cake for his midterm, Steve realizes their mistake and he tries to confess to it. Eddie silences him by nudging him hard and making him angry. He convinces Waldo that he just put the cake in the fridge to cool and he'll check on it later. Waldo makes him promise to take it out of the fridge for tomorrow and he agrees. He leaves for his date with Maxine. No sooner that Waldo leaves, Steve is angry at Eddie for lying to their friend like that. Urkel proceeds to reprimand him for this behavior and points out that he has learned nothing from his previous experiences in not confessing to his mistakes and lying to cover up what he did wrong. He reminds Eddie that the last time he tried to cover up his mistakes, it brought him more trouble than needed including his previous gambling experiences. Steve mentions that Carl found out regardless and the result ended the same way with him yelling at Eddie for not confessing to his mistakes and grounding him for it. Urkel mentions that his refusal in confessing to his mistakes and covering it up will come back to haunt him sooner or later. He mentions that Waldo will find out sooner or later that Eddie is lying and it's better they confess now. If they don't and he finds out on his own, he will be mad at them for a long time. Plus, Urkel intends to get Carl involved in this, resulting in him screaming at Eddie. He buys Steve's silence by promising him to take him to the polka festival if he helps bake that cake.
Back in the Winslow home's kitchen and getting more cookies, Carl tells Harriette about Lois' previous job as a stripper in a local strip bar. She asks about how he knew about Lois' past as a stripper. Carl mentions that he was out on patrol interviewing a potential informant on a case and she happened to perform. When Harriette asks Carl if he plans to tell Savage about it. Carl tells her that he's not going to mention anything to his boss. This is because he knows how angry Capt. Savage will be and will defend Lois. Harriette convinces Carl to tell his boss anyway. When he finally tells Savage about Lois, he is surprised to find out that he already knew and punishes him for it. He tells Lois that they're leaving and she tells him that she was getting to know Harriette. The angry Carl confronts her for giving him the wrong advice and thanks to her, he was punished by Savage. He is able to prove that Harriette's advice wasn't best heeded as she had thought.
Back in Eddie's apartment, he and Urkel attempt to bake the same cake for Waldo's mid-term. This proves to be a lot harder since neither of then know how to bake and they overheat the oven. Waldo comes back home to find his oven missing and asked them what happened. Eddie attempts lying about cooking bread. However, Urkel stares at him in anger and warning him that if he lies again, he will tell Waldo and Carl the truth. Eddie finally got the message and confessed to eating the gourmet cake. Waldo is angry and reprimands him for his greed. He reminds Eddie about his previous disrespect over him in taking his things without asking and now he will get a failing grade for his midterm. He apologizes for doing so and realizes how much he has disrespected Waldo. Urkel also apologizes for not stopping Eddie sooner when he had the chance. Waldo tells him that he's nowhere near as angry with Steve as he is with Eddie. Eventually the three decides to rebake the cake.
in the Closing Credits, while Waldo Steve and Eddie are trying to Bake another cake, they start throwing eggs at each other and they realize that they're acting like kids, but instead of throwing eggs at each other they break the fourth wall and throw the eggs at the camera.
Cast[]
Main[]
- Reginald VelJohnson as Carl Winslow
- Jo Marie Payton as Harriette Winslow (credited as Jo Marie Payton-Noble)
- Rosetta LeNoire as Estelle Winslow (credit only)
- Darius McCrary as Eddie Winslow
- Kellie Shanygne Williams as Laura Winslow
- Bryton James as Richie Crawford (credited as Bryton McClure, credit only)
- Jaleel White as Steve Urkel
- Shawn Harrison as Waldo Geraldo Faldo
Guest[]
Recurring[]
Cameo[]
- Mariann Aalda as Lois
Trivia[]
- This episode marks the first time Harriette was wrong about something and Carl got to gloat.
- This marks the first time, Urkel reminded Eddie of the previous times he tried to cover up his wrongdoings. This always ends with Carl finding out, reprimanding him for his mistakes and grounding him.
- Originally, Urkel is still feeling guilt over having to cover Eddie's secret. He calls the Winslow home in secret and tells Carl everything. Angered, he makes a surprise visit to the apartment and gives Eddie a series of Dad Tirades by giving him a piece of his mind for what he did to Waldo. Waldo happens to come home and learns about him eating his mid-term cake from Carl and Steve. Enraged, he gives Eddie a piece of his mind for his disrespect towards him.
Quotes[]
- Waldo: You guys think you can walk all over me because I'm dumb. But I have feelings, too. If you cut me, do I not cough? If you hit me, do I not sneeze? And if you call me names, do I not eat?