I was pleasantly surprised just how good the new king of the hill ended up being. Also, the longer I live in Texas, the more I come to realize KOTH is actually an animated documentary about the DFW burbs.
I enjoyed this write-up. I don't watch much TV anymore and only just started slowly going through this show, but I hadn't seen much discussion of it so far.
Haven't gotten to this episode yet, but I don't think the polyamory thing rings true here. Seems forced, in that Connie and Chane both come across as too temperamentally conservative for it. But I suppose people at that age also try things and figure themselves out.
I'll also say that from everything I've gathered about women "dating down" in terms of education, they're still usually not dating down in terms of social class or income. If a college-educated woman ends up in a committed relationship with a non-college man, she's probably in a relatively low-earning field and wasn't that great a student, while he's something like a police officer, firefighter, salesman, etc. who has a solid career path.
Actually, it's Hank and Peggy Hill. I think she, as a Boomer substitute teacher, has a 2-year degree. As a Millennial or Zoomer, she would have a 4-year degree and most likely learn very little in those incremental 2 years. But a Millennial version of Hank -- a successful salesman with a local business -- might well still have no college degree and would still outearn his wife. Peggy doesn't really come across socially as "more educated" than Hank, or possessing more general knowledge than him, which again is true to life in this scenario, and this would be just as true between them as Millennials, even though statistically the "education gap" between them has increased.
Bobby and Connie don't fit this mold that well, and that makes a relationship between them more of a stretch. Connie does have more general knowledge than Bobby. She comes across socially as more knowledgeable and educated, which renders him lower-status. Though the relationship is probably less of a stretch if he ends up a highly successful restauranteur.
Hey, thanks! I do agree that it seemed out of character to a degree, especially for Connie. But I think this is an important point: "But I suppose people at that age also try things and figure themselves out". Sometimes people from conservative and strict families act out more in college or when they are sort of let loose for the first time.
Ya, I like that comparison for Hank and Peggy. Someone like Hank with his sales skill could probably just not have a degree even now. It bucks the trend, but that is at least one path to make it happen, grinding sales.
I think the verdict on Bobby and Connie is still out. I can see them trying to rekindle some puppy love but ultimately failing. They do deal with some of this in the new series, though nothing is finalized. Perhaps more realisitc is that they lose track of each when Connie graduates and likely goes on to high-paying job and maybe grad school, new city, etc.
These were great reads - almost makes me wish I had Hulu so I could watch it myself. Thanks for this amazing analysis (I cannot even fathom how long this must have taken you!)
I was pleasantly surprised just how good the new king of the hill ended up being. Also, the longer I live in Texas, the more I come to realize KOTH is actually an animated documentary about the DFW burbs.
Ha yes! Im from the much maligned Oklahoma, but still have a soft spot for how the show depicts life in the region.
My husband is a big fan of this show from way back. The way it handled race even decades ago was very skillful imo and true to life. I love Mike judge
Yes, true. Dont think I appreciated in that way until rewatching recently. But definitely does it better than even modern shows.
Texas A&M is a flagship, too—not just Rice and UT.
A&M has good engineering programs too. Could have been good spot for the character but part of it was keeping her in the area I guess.
I enjoyed this write-up. I don't watch much TV anymore and only just started slowly going through this show, but I hadn't seen much discussion of it so far.
Haven't gotten to this episode yet, but I don't think the polyamory thing rings true here. Seems forced, in that Connie and Chane both come across as too temperamentally conservative for it. But I suppose people at that age also try things and figure themselves out.
I'll also say that from everything I've gathered about women "dating down" in terms of education, they're still usually not dating down in terms of social class or income. If a college-educated woman ends up in a committed relationship with a non-college man, she's probably in a relatively low-earning field and wasn't that great a student, while he's something like a police officer, firefighter, salesman, etc. who has a solid career path.
Actually, it's Hank and Peggy Hill. I think she, as a Boomer substitute teacher, has a 2-year degree. As a Millennial or Zoomer, she would have a 4-year degree and most likely learn very little in those incremental 2 years. But a Millennial version of Hank -- a successful salesman with a local business -- might well still have no college degree and would still outearn his wife. Peggy doesn't really come across socially as "more educated" than Hank, or possessing more general knowledge than him, which again is true to life in this scenario, and this would be just as true between them as Millennials, even though statistically the "education gap" between them has increased.
Bobby and Connie don't fit this mold that well, and that makes a relationship between them more of a stretch. Connie does have more general knowledge than Bobby. She comes across socially as more knowledgeable and educated, which renders him lower-status. Though the relationship is probably less of a stretch if he ends up a highly successful restauranteur.
Hey, thanks! I do agree that it seemed out of character to a degree, especially for Connie. But I think this is an important point: "But I suppose people at that age also try things and figure themselves out". Sometimes people from conservative and strict families act out more in college or when they are sort of let loose for the first time.
Ya, I like that comparison for Hank and Peggy. Someone like Hank with his sales skill could probably just not have a degree even now. It bucks the trend, but that is at least one path to make it happen, grinding sales.
I think the verdict on Bobby and Connie is still out. I can see them trying to rekindle some puppy love but ultimately failing. They do deal with some of this in the new series, though nothing is finalized. Perhaps more realisitc is that they lose track of each when Connie graduates and likely goes on to high-paying job and maybe grad school, new city, etc.
These were great reads - almost makes me wish I had Hulu so I could watch it myself. Thanks for this amazing analysis (I cannot even fathom how long this must have taken you!)
Thank you! 🙏 It is definitely worth a watch if you can get a hold of it. Appreciate the kind words.