Doctor Who may be a long running time travel series, but science fiction fans in the US have a special spot in their heart for Quantum Leap. While it only lasted five short seasons; the adventures of Dr. Sam Beckett have endured the years and the show has become a beloved classic. If there could be one show I would bring back for more seasons, it wouldn’t be any of the Star Treks, it wouldn’t be Firefly; it’d be Quantum Leap. Below are just ten of the best Leaps that Dr. Beckett made in the five years when he was travelling through time fixing what once went wrong.
“Lee Harvey Oswald”
Opening up the fifth (and final) season was a special two part episode to commemorate the 30th Anniversary of the JFK assassination. Sam leaps into Lee Harvey Oswald in different parts of his life, and their minds begin to merge. The memorable moment of the episode comes at the end. Right as Sam/Oswald is about to pull the trigger, Sam leaps into one of the Secret Service agents with the motorcade and is the one who leaps on Jackie; saving her. While in the hospital at the end, Sam is devastated that he couldn’t save Kennedy and Al explains to him that his mission wasn’t to save him…it was to save Jackie who in Sam’s history also was killed that day.
“Mirror Image”
The series finale has a love/hate relationship with fans. On one hand it’s depressing and disappointing that Sam never returned home. On the other, the finale reminds us of why we watched Quantum Leap for five seasons. Towards the end of the episode, Al the Bartender tells Sam that his leaping through time did change things for the better and not just in the lives of the people he leaped into. That’s a big reminder of the core philosophy of the show. And at the end Al the Bartender compares Sam’s “quest” to that of the life of a priest, and right after Sam leaps (as himself) to right the one big wrong in Al’s life. I would kill for just one more season, even knowing that Sam never returned home.
“Jimmy”
When Sam leaped into Jimmy LaMotta, we knew something special happened. Jimmy became one of the most popular leaps in all five years. Jimmy was a guy with a developmental disability, and Sam would return to Jimmy again in the fifth season and both Jimmy and his brother would appear in the series finale. And how can you not geek out at the ending when Sam/Jimmy tells his nephew the story of Star Wars as a bedtime story.
“The Leap Back”
While Sam never permanently returned home, he did get to visit. In this episode Sam and Al swap places with Sam as the hologram and Al the leaper. Sam gets to spend some time at home, while Al’s in the past. There’s also some great humor as Sam takes one some of Al’s lecherous personality traits and Al gains some of Sam’s morality.
“Goodbye Norma Jean”
Sam had multiple brushes with history throughout the series, and for the most part they resisted having him leap into famous people. That really changed in the fifth season, especially with the Lee Harvey Oswald episode. Later in that same season, Sam leaps into Marilyn Monroe’s chauffeur. He and Al’s immediate thought is that he is there to prevent her death. It’s a great episode with sincerity between Al and Sam about Marilyn and what she meant to people, and some classic Al moments as well. In the end, Sam’s mission was to ensure that she made one last movie.
“The Wrong Stuff”
How is a monkey using a gun not the most awesome thing ever? Sam leaps into Bobo; a chimp he has to get into the space program. This is the only episode where Sam doesn’t leap into a human, and ends up saving a couple of chimps and changing things for the better as usual.
“The Boogieman”
Another brush with history, although not quite as blatant as other examples in the fifth season. Sam helps an aspiring writer named Stevie. This young writer has a car named Christine,a dog named Cujo, and thinks that kitchen knives flying across the room sounds like such a cool idea. That’s right, Sam helps inspire a young Steven King.
“The Leap Between The States”
The only time that Sam himself leaped out of his lifetime sent him to the Civil War. Sam leaps into his great-grandfather and in Back to the Future-style twist must win the heart of his great-grandmother or risk never being born. Also, while helping the Underground Railroad Sam meets an ancestor of Martin Luther King Jr.
“Memphis Melody”
Another big brush with history came right at the end of the series when Sam leaped into Elvis. While helping a young musician; Sam has to ensure that Elvis gets discovered. This episode aired right before the series finale, and while they resisted doing “famous” leaps earlier in the series maybe if it happened in an earlier season ratings would have improved a bit.
“Deliver Us From Evil”
The Evil Leaper saga was stupid, but I have to include this episode here because it’s when Sam leaped back into Jimmy. This was the introduction of the Evil Leaper, but it was just so awesome to see Sam as Jimmy again and have a sequel to one of the most popular episodes of the series’ run. If you’re a fan of the whole series, it’s hard not to smile along with Sam when he discovers that he’s Jimmy again.
March 12, 2011
#1
The Leap Back…My personal favorite. The other episodes mentioned on this list were also very awesome & 7 of my top 10 also. (I never saw The Wrong Stuff or Goodbye, Norma Jean)
I propose a toast: To Quantum Leap, Firefly, The X-Files, LOST & Fringe…may their awesome characters, mythology, storylines & episodes live on forever! (C’mon, FOX TV exec’s…you know you want Fringe to die. Why move it to Friday?)
March 12, 2011
#2
If I could bring back any series it would be Blakes 7.
March 12, 2011
#3
Fascinating list. I’m a little shocked at some of the omissions. But I guess everyone’s list would be different. :)
Here’s mine:
1. Shock Theater – Sam gets electroshock treatment in a mental asylum and starts to think that he IS all the people he’s leaped into.
2. Black on White on Fire – Sam leaps into Watts on the day of the 1965 riots. Of all the episodes about race relations, this was the most powerful and heart-rending.
3. MIA – A leap hits a little too close to home for Al. Beautiful acting by Dean Stockwell.
4. The Leap Home/Vietnam – An amazing two-parter centering around Sam’s brother Tom.
5. The Leap Back
6. The Boogieman
7. A Leap for Lisa – Sam leaps into Al in 1957,
8. Killin’ Time – Sam is stuck in the body of a kidnapper when the actual kidnapper escapes from Project Quantum Leap.
9. Lee Harvey Osweld
10. Return/Revenge of the Evil Leaper – Much better than the first part IMHO. :)
March 12, 2011
#4
Some nice additions.
March 12, 2011
#5
Sorry, “Oswald,” not “Osweld.” ;)
March 13, 2011
#6
This show was tops. The shows out today do not have heart and soul like QL did. I wish they would make 1 more episode and have Sam Leap back. This was by far my favorite series. The leap back was probably my #1. Such a good show with tons of emotion ++++
March 13, 2011
#7
great movies indeed
March 13, 2011
#8
I know lists like this are always going to be subjective, but how can you possibly miss out The Leap Home two-parter?!
March 13, 2011
#9
I enjoyed the dual leaper story lines. I remember thinking that it was a really cool idea that there was someone out there trying to break everything just as he was trying to fix it.
March 14, 2011
#10
Too many fifth season episodes in here….
And not putting “The Leap Home” on there is just criminal. That two-parter defines “Quantum Leap” as a series and the characters as a whole.
March 14, 2011
#11
Quantum Leap and Cheers were my two favorite shows when I was younger. It sort of stunk that they both ended within a week of each other.
I’m a big JFK assassination nut, so the Lee Harvey Oswald ep was great. The leaps where he went home, both to Indiana for his childhood/Vietnam with his brother and then the one where he switched spots with Al were fantastic.
I also really liked the Evil Leaper episodes, I’m not sure why the writer didn’t feel the same. It was interesting to see another leaper and another hologram guide and the whole prison escape thing was interesting.
While the above listed episodes are good, my favorite episode is def. Mirror Image. While it really sucks that Al is barely even in it and he doesn’t get to go home, Don B. did what he could with the episode–It was already shot with the asumption that they were coming back, and he had to re-hack it into a series finale. It had a good story and you essentially find out everything you need/want to know as the series ends. It has it’s cool spots too, the interaction with the bartender is great, many characters from previous episodes have cameos, and the part where the old guy leaps away after they save the miners was a jaw dropper for me.
As you can tell, I really liked the show back in the day.
March 14, 2011
#12
My list would have to include (not in particular order)”
1. Catch a Falling Star – showcases Scott Bakula’s amazing musical talents
2. The Leap Home (both parts)
3. Shock Theater – Scott should have won the Emmy for this ep
4. M.I.A. – Dean should have won for this ep; love learning about Al’s backstory
5. The Leap Back
6. Jimmy
7. What Price Gloria? – Sam’s first time as a woman plus a good storyline
8. Private Dancer – This is just a personal favorite, maybe for some of the music used or the actress’s performance, no real objective reason I can point to
9. Running for Honor – I like the conflict between Sam and Al on the gays in the military issue
10. Temptation Eyes – Nice performance by Tamlyn Tomita and I like the reminder that Sam is just a man and seeing him fall in love
While I liked Memphis Melody and agree that Lee Harvey Oswald was very well done, if not particularly *enjoyable* because of the subject matter, to me those fifth season episodes where they broke the longstanding rule against doing leaps involving famous people were not what QL was about and were done only to try to goose the ratings.
This leaves out so many episodes that I really enjoyed, episodes that I think beautifully addressed important issues, and episodes that I think were just objectively outstanding TV, and it would probably be slightly different tomorrow, but you can’t include everything on a list of ten, and that’s the ten I pick today.
March 14, 2011
#13
Oh, I forgot to say, while I certainly would love to see more Quantum Leap, I think it had a fair lifetime and I would choose to have more Firefly (at least a whole completed season) or Starman, two wonderful shows that got cut unfairly short, than more QL.
March 14, 2011
#14
One of my favorite shows ever. Your list is generally excellent, but I’m quite surprised not to see The Leap Home/Vietnam listed here–that two-parter was definitely my favorite Quantum Leap story ever, and probably in my top ten for series television.
BTW, a typo you might want to fix: It’s Stephen King, not Steven King.
March 15, 2011
#15
I liked some of the ones you picked, but I have a few that I will watch all the time.
1. The Leap Back–when Sam realizes that he is married to Donna…classic. “revenge is mine…thus sayeth the hologram” One of my favorite lines of the whole series.
2. Private Dancer
3. The Leap Home. Thanksgiving Dinner was one of the best scenes and at basketball practice when he realizes the monkey is Tom
4. Piano Man. Somewhere in the Night.
5. Star-Crossed
6. Blind Faith
7. Catch a Falling Star
8. Shock Theater
9. Temptation Eyes
10. For Your Love…trilogy Part 2
March 16, 2011
#16
I actually really liked the Evil Leaper saga. It made sense to me that there would be an opposing force out there, trying to undo the work Sam had done (or perhaps Sam was undoing their work? That rabbit hole could go pretty deep).
Everything else was pretty spot on, though I think ‘A Leap for Lisa’ deserves a special mention. Every chance we got to learn a little more about Al’s life was welcome to me, and seeing what would happen if Al didn’t become part of Project Quantum Leap was amusing and frightening all at the same time. Alpha? ::Shudder::
March 20, 2011
#17
I’d agree with a solid 9/10. However, I would nix the Marilyn Monroe, in substitute I would add where Sam leaps into Al. “Leap for Lisa” Where Sam accidentally gets Al executed before finally setting the history straight.