Kiss of the Coffee Woman

Kiss of the Coffee Woman is the 24th episode of season 10 of Married... with Children and the 233rd overall series episode. Directed by Sam W. Orender and written by Todd Newman, it premiered on FOX-TV on May 5, 1996.

Synopsis

Kelly gets a television commercial where the male lead is fired. When Jefferson steps in as a replacement, the duo becomes popular and he becomes a local sex symbol.

Plot Summary

Marcy keeps nagging Jefferson to get a job, so he hires Bud as his agent hoping to get some quick money doing commercials. Bud ends up getting Jefferson and Kelly a gig where they play a couple in a coffee commercial. The spot catches on with the public and the coffee company decides to shoot more commercials, including one where they must kiss. This makes both Al and Marcy uncomfortable, so Bud convinces them that it's completely innocent and invites them down to the set. When Al and Marcy arrive they find that the set-up is a little different than they expected - Jefferson and Kelly are to be in bed together enjoying post-coital coffee.

With a new commercial comes new dialogue, which suggests that Jefferson's character was terrible in bed. Jefferson sees this as a slap in the face and tells the director that this puts him a bad light with his female fans. Unable to change the director's mind, he walks off the set. This leads to Al and Marcy doing the commercial instead - poorly.

Recurring Cast/Regulars

• Harold Sylvester as Griff

Guest Stars

• Leland Orser as Director
• Brian Stewart as Lance
• Andrea Nittoli as Linda
• Karen Lynn Scott as Dina
• Susan Slome as Becca
• Gita Isak as Stage Manager (uncredited)

Notes

Title

• The title of the film is a reference to the 1985 drama film, Kiss of the Spider Woman.

Trivia

• Katey Sagal does not appear in this episode due to her childbirth.
• As Lance leaves the set after being fired, if you look to the blue wall just outside of the double door, there is a bulletin board hanging on the blue wall and has a bright yellow paper that reads MCAT. The same board was used in the previous episode, hanging on the wall in the library study room that Bud was in.
• This episode is the third and final appearance of Leland Orser as the commercial director that Kelly works with. He was previously seen in "The Naked and the Dead, but Mostly the Naked" and "The Two That Got Away".
• Karen Lynn Scott, who plays Dina, the woman who thinks Marcy is Jefferson's mother, previously appeared on MWC in the season 6 episode, "I Who Have Nothing" as Al's gold digging relative, Aunt Heather.
• At one point, Marcy begins to cry as she worries about Jefferson leaving her if he becomes too famous and then mentions her ex-husband Steve Rhoades leaving her.
• During the ending credits, instead of the still frame of Al and Peggy on the couch, the credits roll over a continuation of the previous scene, with Al and Marcy stiffly acting out the scene between Lance and Lyla in bed. As they say the lines the stage crew walks in front of the camera while shutting down the set. By the time they sound more natural, the set is dark and Marcy asks Al if it was good enough for him, he has fallen asleep.
  • Oddly, while this scene fully remains intact on the DVD release, the actual ending credits that roll over the scene are the edited version that omit the "Love and Marriage" reference.

Cultural References

• The Romantic Roast commercials are a spoof on the Gold Blend couple, a British ad made for Nestle Gold Blend Coffee during the late 1980s to early 1990s, in which a dating couple grows closer over as they drink the coffee, with each ad made in a serial format and ending with a cliffhanger.
  • The ads were re-introduced to an American audience in the early 1990s when the coffee was sold under the "Taster's Choice" label in the U.S.. The British actors were re-hired, and now used an American accent to re-create the original ads for the new audience, called "The Taster's Choice Saga".
  • The characters were played by Anthony Head, who later become known for his roles as Rupert Giles on Buffy the Vampire Slayer (which featured MWC guest stars David Boreanez and Nicholas Brendon) and King Uther Pendragon on Merlin, and actress Sharon Maughan.
• The director accuses Lance of sounding like professional boxer Mike Tyson, who was known for his lisp.
• The director also mentions the syndicated show, Baywatch.
  • Several stars of Baywatch including Pamela Anderson, Donna D'Errico and Traci Bingham, appeared on MWC.
• After finding Jefferson at Gary's Shoes, Marcy informs Al that Michael Caine is at the Orange Julius.
  • Michael Caine is a British actor who known for his distinctive Cockney accent. He was previously mentioned by Jefferson in season six's "England Show (Part 1)" after confusing the actor for the Queen of England.
  • Orange Julius is a American chain of fruit drink beverage stores typically found in malls in American and around the world and is currently owned by Dairy Queen.
• During a commercial for Romantic Roast, the announcer says the slogan, "What Juan Valdez drinks when the misses is out of town!"
  • Juan Valdez is a fictional character used to represent coffee beans that are grown and harvested from Columbia.
• After Al mentions that he wants to keep Kelly pure, Bud sarcastically remarks "Well, we better call Mr. Peabody and the WABAC machine", in reference to the cartoon character that was part of the Rocky and Bullwinkle cartoons.
  • It is very likely that Kelly had sex with boys throughout the series though that sex was implied.
• When Al asks the director about the kissing scene, he tells Al that the Showboys casting is down the hall. Showboys is a likely parody of the 1995 erotic drama film, Showgirls.
• After Al asks the director how can someone have coffee after sex, Marcy pushes him aside and calls him "Magilla", in reference to the cartoon character, Magilla Gorilla.

Locations

• Bundy Residence
• Commercial Sound Stage
• Gary's Shoes & Accessories for Today's Woman

Sets

• Bundy Living Room / Kitchen
• Romantic Roast Kitchen / Bedroom Commercial Set
• Gary's Shoes Seating Area