From the onset of the episode they were bickering like an old married couple. Richardson’s character, Helen Potts, made so many references to her former husband mucking around the house with tools, it’s as if she was married to Tim the “Tool Man” Taylor herself.
If Helen’s references to her fix-it-man husband aren’t enough, friendly neighbor Chuck Larabee wears a fishing hat throughout the episode. He even peeks over his fence to say “hidey-ho, neighbor” to Mike Baxter, spouting wisdom about reconciliation and the Aztecs. Larabee was obviously paying tribute to Home Improvement neighbor Wilson Wilson Jr., Tim Taylor’s longtime neighbor and friend. This was a touching tribute as the actor who played Wilson, Earl Hindman, passed away in 2003.
Outside of the Home Improvement references, Eve was learning about the Vietnam War. Ed Alzate agrees to do an interview with Eve, but doesn’t have a lot of firsthand information to offer her—he never saw action in the field. Ed worked in an office during the war. Eve doesn’t consider that heroic enough for her school report and decides not to feature Ed.
Mike encourages her to go down to the VFW. There she finds out that Mr. Alzate has been helping veterans receive their health benefits for the last 30 years. While he may not have dropped bombs or fought in the literal sense of the word, he serves his countrymen in a powerful way. Eve decides this is an act of profound heroism and chooses to write about Ed.
By the end of the episode, Mike and Helen have become friends. Their neighborly feud is over, and Mike wants to help Helen finish renovating her home.
As Mike and Helen are crossing into her yard, a familiar face appears through the gate: Jonathan Taylor Thomas! A Home Improvement reunion would not have been complete without a visit from JTT, who has appeared in and directed a few other episodes of Last Man Standing.
Between the nods to Helen’s husband, the fun Tool Time transitions between scenes, and Chuck Larabee pretending to be Wilson, this was a perfect reunion episode. It’s always wonderful seeing casts reunite on screen—especially a cast like Home Improvement. The Taylors, Tool Time, and Wilson were a part of our lives (as Patricia said in the episode) for eight long years. That’s 204 episodes that spanned the entire decade of the ’90s, from 1991 to 1999. I hope we get to see each member of the cast make an appearance on the show at some point. (Here’s lookin’ at you, Zachery Ty Bryan and Taran Noah Smith.)
