| Mark's Big Break | |
| Season 08, Episode 16 | |
| Air Date | February 9, 1999 |
| Writer | Tracy Gamble |
| Director | Geoffrey Nelson |
| Previous | Knee Deep |
| Next | Young at Heart |
Mark's Big Break is the sixteenth episode of the eighth and final season. It originally aired on ABC in the United States on February 9, 1999.
Synopsis
Tim commissions Mark to film a video to celebrate the completion of the hot rod. However, Tim is unhappy with the results, so instead Mark directs a dance number, starring Tim, Jill, Al, Heidi, Wilson, Sparky and Eddie the body shop guy, set to "Greased Lightning" a musical number from the 1978 Paramount Pictures film Grease.
Plot
As Marty is leaving to fix potholes nor as he told Claire and Gracie, "working under a government contractor under the auspices of the Michigan Department of Highways" and Gracie and Claire are working on cards for Valentines Day, Tim announces that he will be finished with the Hot Rod the same day as Valentine's Day due to having located the sifting part.
When trying to plan how to unveil the Hot Rod's completion, Mark largely because Tim delayed him from leaving for school to get him to give ideas suggested making a snippet for the Hot Rod segment. Mark agreed, although he also had to agree to the terms of three ground rules "It's my show, my show, my show.".
After the latest episode of Tool Time finished airing, Mark was called in to interview four people involved in the creation of the Hot Rod, including Eddie the Body shop Guy. The first segment described the technical capabilities of the car such as horsepower, but Tim inadvertently ruined the shot by entering the shot to joke with the first interviewee, a goateed man. The second segment talked about the overall benefits of the car, with Tim joking off screen causing Mark to turn the camera to glare at him. The third segment had Eddie the body shop guy being interviewed about what he sees in the car, with him replying that he sees a vast sum of money such as his son Eddie Jr. going to college and early retirement, although Tim eventually has to directly interfere when Eddie ends up going overboard in the similarities by indicating going to Rio on a fake passport with a new, very young wife, due to the comparisons not being suitable for Tool Time due to it being a family show. The last covered the interior decorating and design of the car, although the guy talking about it started sobbing, spoiling the moment.
Afterwards, Marty, Gracie, Claire, and their friend Christy, alongside the rest of the Taylors, gathered to see the final result, which was a jumbled mess of film effects ironically, Eddie's family-unfriendly comparison made the cut, causing Christy and Brad to undiplomatically state the film "stunk," Claire and Gracie to admit it was very scary, and Tim to reluctantly tell Mark that it was a bad film, leading to a fight between the two.
After some discussion with Wilson, Tim let Mark do a retake of the film, this time directly inspired by Greased Lightning from the 1978 Paramount Pictures film Grease. This version was given popular reception when it first appeared.
Gallery
