Tool Time begins with a show about stripping...you might want to cover the children's eyes as well as your own because Tim shows us several pictures where he put Al's head on scantily clad models. This man has no shame whatsoever. After that humiliating display, Tim and Al go to Big Mike's to drown their sorrows. All the while, Al notices an attractive brunette is staring at them. Tim recognizes her immediately: Stacey Lewis, an old girlfriend. He broke it off with her twenty years ago...and was nice enough NOT to tell her. So Stacey comes over and shakes hands with the men, things get pretty awkward for Tim, and Al politely asks her to join them, and they do some catching up. Stacey has since become a lawyer, she married a man like Tim...and promptly divorced him. She also thinks it's hilarious that Tim somehow got his own tool show. I feel the same way, but I'm laughing on the inside. Tim tells Stacey he's married now, and she wants to one day come over and meet the family, after calling Jill a bimbo. Al takes it upon himself to invite Stacey to the Taylors', as a form of payback for what Tim did to him on Tool Time, I guess. Things will get even more awkward, since apparently Jill wouldn't get serious with Tim until he broke it off with Stacey. He never told Stacey, but he told Jill he did tell her. As the Saw Blade Turns.
Looks like Stacey was coming over anyway, as she actually called Jill to take Tim up on his "offer." Then, the boys peruse Tim's yearbook and they all have a good laugh at the corny sweet nothings Stacey wrote about him. Ms. Lewis shows up moments later and meets Jill. When things get awkward, and Mark asks an inappropriate question, Tim shoos the boys out to play, but then has to go outside and break up a fight. Then he and Randy peer through the window, watching Jill and Stacey talk. They suddenly burst out laughing, which means they were obviously talking about Tim, he decides to go back inside and see what all the hubbub was about. Good, he's just in time for Stacey to spill the beans about the big lout never calling to tell her it was over between them. Thankfully, she leaves about as soon as she arrived, mostly because when Al stopped by to pick up his helium tank, he offered to show her to the new house she was looking at, leaving Tim alone to face the music. Jill thinks it was so typical of a man not to make a "simple" phone call to end a relationship, and Tim argues that doing it is easier said than done. Afterwards, he goes to talk to Wilson about what he didn't do 20 years ago. They have a little battle of famous quotes, then he admits he didn't call because he didn't want to hurt Stacey's feelings, but Wilson says she still needs closure. And by gosh if this isn't Tim's lucky day! Stacey calls back, saying she and Al want to have lunch together, all four of them, and Jill promptly sets it up. Next day at Tool Time, Al arrives late, having watched a Bob Vila glue gun special and losing track of time. Tim reminds him of their little lunch date, and Al suddenly gets cold feet. It seems he was just being polite with her, and feels she's not his type. Tim tells him he's got to be honest with her and give her closure, and Al chickens out. History repeats itself. So Tim has to go down to Big Mike's alone with Jill and Stacey. Eventually, though, the flannel man does show up and comes clean about feelings...after putting Tim on the spot, thinking he broke it off with Stacey for him. So, in closing, poor Stacey has been twice jilted, and Jill calls Tim pathetic, even though the whole meeting was her goddamn idea in the first place!
Much like Let's Did Lunch, the conflict was never fully resolved. Tim could have at least apologized to Stacey for not calling her 20 years ago and been honest with her. That was the one instance where he was wrong. And Jill was wrong for not only trying to set Al and Stacey up, but for butting in to something that wasn't any of her business and constantly getting Tim and Stacey together. She's going from smarmy and vindictive to just plain stupid. There isn't much to like about this episode, except for a few funny lines. It's just mean, unpleasant, infuriating... maybe I'd recommend seeing it once for the gags it has to offer, but I wouldn't put it on a pedestal. There are better episodes to watch. Ex Marks the Spot wasn't written very well either.
Looks like Stacey was coming over anyway, as she actually called Jill to take Tim up on his "offer." Then, the boys peruse Tim's yearbook and they all have a good laugh at the corny sweet nothings Stacey wrote about him. Ms. Lewis shows up moments later and meets Jill. When things get awkward, and Mark asks an inappropriate question, Tim shoos the boys out to play, but then has to go outside and break up a fight. Then he and Randy peer through the window, watching Jill and Stacey talk. They suddenly burst out laughing, which means they were obviously talking about Tim, he decides to go back inside and see what all the hubbub was about. Good, he's just in time for Stacey to spill the beans about the big lout never calling to tell her it was over between them. Thankfully, she leaves about as soon as she arrived, mostly because when Al stopped by to pick up his helium tank, he offered to show her to the new house she was looking at, leaving Tim alone to face the music. Jill thinks it was so typical of a man not to make a "simple" phone call to end a relationship, and Tim argues that doing it is easier said than done. Afterwards, he goes to talk to Wilson about what he didn't do 20 years ago. They have a little battle of famous quotes, then he admits he didn't call because he didn't want to hurt Stacey's feelings, but Wilson says she still needs closure. And by gosh if this isn't Tim's lucky day! Stacey calls back, saying she and Al want to have lunch together, all four of them, and Jill promptly sets it up. Next day at Tool Time, Al arrives late, having watched a Bob Vila glue gun special and losing track of time. Tim reminds him of their little lunch date, and Al suddenly gets cold feet. It seems he was just being polite with her, and feels she's not his type. Tim tells him he's got to be honest with her and give her closure, and Al chickens out. History repeats itself. So Tim has to go down to Big Mike's alone with Jill and Stacey. Eventually, though, the flannel man does show up and comes clean about feelings...after putting Tim on the spot, thinking he broke it off with Stacey for him. So, in closing, poor Stacey has been twice jilted, and Jill calls Tim pathetic, even though the whole meeting was her goddamn idea in the first place!
Much like Let's Did Lunch, the conflict was never fully resolved. Tim could have at least apologized to Stacey for not calling her 20 years ago and been honest with her. That was the one instance where he was wrong. And Jill was wrong for not only trying to set Al and Stacey up, but for butting in to something that wasn't any of her business and constantly getting Tim and Stacey together. She's going from smarmy and vindictive to just plain stupid. There isn't much to like about this episode, except for a few funny lines. It's just mean, unpleasant, infuriating... maybe I'd recommend seeing it once for the gags it has to offer, but I wouldn't put it on a pedestal. There are better episodes to watch. Ex Marks the Spot wasn't written very well either.
