Moving swiftly along to Season 5, here are my five favorite episodes from the season where the Ingalls family left Walnut Grove to live in Winoka.
"As Long As We're Together"
The Ingalls family decides to move to Winoka, in Dakota Territory, where Mary will join Adam Kendall to run a blind school. It is a hard adjustment for them. Charles and Caroline work at the hotel, Laura is stuck babysitting her younger sisters, and the noise of the city makes it hard to sleep at night. Thankfully, their friends, the Garveys and the Olesons, arrive soon afterwards. One other bright spot is an orphan named Albert, who befriends the family. With Mary about to turn 16, Charles asks for an advance on his pay to buy her a gift, which doesn't turn out as planned.
Why I like it: Honestly, the Winoka episodes are some of my least favorite of the series, but here we see Walnut Grove friends arriving, which almost makes it tolerable. Mary and Adam are reunited, and we see Mary graduate to womanhood and become a teacher. The introduction of Albert brought a new twist to the series.
"There's No Place Like Home"
Tensions rise as the Ingalls family struggles to work for Mr. Standish in a noisy city far from home. When Toby Noe wins big, he decides to put on a fireworks show to bring the Ingalls a bit of joy, which is quickly threatened by Standish, paving the way for the Ingalls family, the Garveys, and the Olesons to head back to Walnut Grove. They find the town in despair, and an ill and broken-down Lars Hanson, who bemoans the old glory days of the town he helped found. Working together, the residents of Walnut Grove bring the town back to life, get the school ready, and celebrate their first church service in the revitalized Walnut Grove.
Why I like it: There is so much to love about this episode. How Caroline understands that Charles wants to go home and bring Albert with them. How Mary reassures her pa that she will be fine if they go back to Walnut Grove. The way the entire town pulls together to bring Walnut Grove back to life, and the last speech of Lars Hanson. As an aside, Mr. Hanson is a character in On the Banks of Plum Creek. He is a settler who sells land and the dugout house to Charles Ingalls before moving west.
"The Wedding"
Caroline and Charles receive word that Mary and Adam are going to be married. Because of the expense, Ma and Pa make the decision to leave all the children at home, and they journey by train to Winoka. As they sit down to dinner with Mary and Adam, Caroline shares stories of raising children. Suddenly frightened by the prospect of two blind people needing to care for a sighted child, Mary calls off the wedding. When Susan Goodspeed is lost during a sandstorm, Mary and Adam must search for her, giving Mary the confidence she needs to proceed with the wedding.
Why I like it: Lindwood Boomer and Melissa Sue Anderson had wonderful chemistry. Anderson provides such a compelling performance. It is nice to see Charles and Caroline away from their brood, and the children back in Walnut Grove provide some comic relief. Reverend Alden showing up to marry the young couple was a nice surprise.
When Kezia fails to pay her taxes, her lake home is put up for auction. Mrs. Oleson swoops in and buys the property for a summer home, which her husband wants no part of. When Mrs. Oleson forces a homeless Kezia to be their servant in exchange for room and board, Laura, Albert, and Andy devise a plan to scare Mrs. Oleson off the property.
Why I like it: This is one of the few silly episodes I enjoy. This set up Mrs. Oleson as the villain again, with her husband helping the Ingalls kids to scare Nellie, Willie, and Harriet off the property. It's not an episode that makes a lot of sense, but it comes right after the very emotional episode, "The Sound of Children," where Mary miscarries her first child, so it feels good to have a lighter episode here.
"Mortal Mission"
Several residents of Walnut Grove fall gravely ill when they eat mutton infected with anthrax. Doctor Baker turns the blind school into a hospital, so he can care for people in what seems to be a losing battle. Charles and Jonathan race against time to bring medical supplies back to Walnut Grove, but are waylaid by a down-on-his-luck man who robs them and takes them hostage.
Why I like it: Episodes about true hardships fascinate me. The episode features several great scenes. Mary asking Doc Baker how many more people will die, Harriet thinking Nels has died and them declaring their love for each other, the intense grief of Seth Berwick after his son dies, the wife of Hank Slade threatening him with a rifle to untie Charles and Jonathan so they can give medicine to their ailing son, and Doc Baker breaking down and saying to Hester Sue he is so tired, but that he is thankful that it is over. Ketty Lester concludes this moving episode by singing the gospel song, "Stand By Me."
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