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The font in this image is called Jan Brady.

Another week, another episode to dissect! This is the first episode I’m actually reviewing since the blog launched with its first review on January 6 - I work ahead to make sure you consistently get your reviews - and I just want to say that I’m so grateful for those of you who are here and enjoying what I put out! Let me know if there’s any kind of content that you want me to make for this blog and I’ll look into creating it!

This week’s episode is “A-Camping We Will Go,” which originally aired on November 14, 1969. It was the 8th episode to air, and the 13th episode produced overall. This was the first episode to air that was not directed by John Rich, though the first episode produced that was not directed by him was “The Grass is Always Greener,” which was directed by George Cahan. This is the first episode to air that was directed by Oscar Rudolph, who directs 27 episodes of The Brady Bunch in the first three seasons, with his last episode being the iconic “Getting Davy Jones.” The first episode produced that was directed by Oscar Rudolph, however, is “Is There A Doctor In the House,” which was the 13th episode to air. Oscar Rudolph has a very impressive list of television directing credits between 1952 and 1976, including 36 episodes of the Adam West Batman series.

This episode has an average rating of 7.0 on IMDB, but this episode is a favorite of several cast members. It is the first episode to go on location, and Maureen McCormick shares some of her memories about this episode in her book Here’s the Story: Surviving Marcia Brady and Finding My True Voice. Let’s get into the episode!

Did they not want to find what they needed before it was time to pack the car?

The episode starts with Mike loading the station wagon, while Carol helps. Everything is dusty, but Mike quips it’s because it hasn’t been used in a year. Carol and Mike talk about how this will be the first camping trip the Bradys go on with the girls, and they hope everyone is on board. Spoilers: everyone is not on board.

"I would love to not have to lecture you to love your sisters weekly, but here we are..."

Mike talks to the boys up in the yard and they don’t want the girls to come. Mike correctly points out that you don’t leave family behind when you go on a vacation. Like, really, what do the boys think the girls are going to do while they’re gone having fun for a long weekend? Cook and knit? Rude. Mike even encourages the boys to help teach the girls hunting and fishing, and I’m wondering where this Mike was when it came to building a treehouse? I said get the girls involved! Greg starts to pick up on the fact that no matter how much the boys protest, Mike’s mind is made up. Mike confirms and says the girls are coming on the trip.

"If we had traditions, the boys would participate in those."

However, in the girls’ room, the girls are telling Carol how they don’t want to go. Camping is a boy thing. Carol tells the girls how wonderful it will be, but when Marcia asks how many camping trips Carol has been on, she admits she’s never been, either. However, the boys like camping and the girls should be included in family outings, so the girls are going to love camping, too. I don’t even understand the protests of the girls, actually. How is nature a boy thing? Mother Nature. Mother Nature. Come on, girls. Own your birthright.

How did Greg get out of carrying anything? He's the oldest!

So the time comes for everyone to go on the camping trip. Alice is wearing an outfit that reminds me of the camp counselors in the 1998 The Parent Trap, which could partially be because series composer Frank DeVol was in the original The Parent Trap but I digress. Alice’s outfit is a lot. She blows her whistle and gets really drill sargent-y, and literally marches the kids to the station wagon and has them all heap in. As Alice and the kids march to the family car, a march version of the series theme plays. It’s very fitting and a nice touch. Since my writing this review, but before it was published, this episode was revisited by Barry and Chris on The Real Brady Bros, and they said the order of the kids in this scene was low to high - Cindy, then Bobby, etc., but this particular line up stuck out to me because I noticed it went girls then boys and Greg isn't carrying anything. Am I watching a Mandela copy? Have Barry and Chris been Mandela'd? Is there another version of this scene out there? It's crazy. Anyway, back to the episode. Shenanigans ensue as everyone tries to load into the car but since it is 6 kids and Alice, and it is a station wagon and the parents are still going to have to fit somewhere, it’s not too unrealistic. My mom is one of six kids and just getting me, my brothers, and the cousins from even one of her other siblings into the same car for even a small trip to get ice cream looked very similar to this.

America's dad kinda looking like everyone's dad and it's not bad.

Mike and Carol leave the house and I just want to say I like Mr. Brady's casual look. Meanwhile, Mike is complimenting Carol for how she looks in jeans and one of his old shirts. Imagine if the Bradys wore casual wear more often. They’d be the most relaxed family on television. Mike and Carol get into the car, with Cindy ending up on Carol’s lap. Before Mike can pull out of the driveway, Cindy whispers to Carol that she has to go to the bathroom. It’s never said, but it’s implied. Carol takes Cindy in. After a beat, Marcia and Jan silently acknowledge they should be safe and follow their mother and sister in. Then all three boys share a look of acknowledgment before also rushing into the house. In the way back, Alice audibly acknowledges it’s not a bad idea and follows the kids in. Mike is incredulous at all of this. You’ve never had to pee, Mike? Anyway, the scene is hilarious.

This lake has history.

The Bradys arrive at a beautiful lake that may look familiar to some people. That is because it is the same lake from The Andy Griffith Show theme song, as well as the lake from Nickelodeon series Salute Your Shorts, among other things. It is Franklin Canyon Park, which is a publicly accessible park that people frequent for hiking and picnicking, but you cannot actually swim or fish there.

A-fishing we will go, a-fishing we will go...

A little after the family arrives and sets up camp, the family starts getting hungry. Mike decides to take all six kids fishing while Alice and Carol collect firewood. The boys are unhappy at the prospect of bringing their sisters along, but Mike insists. The girls do seem very cheerful to be included when the 7 of them walk off to go fishing.

This episode officially passes the Bechdel test.

A little later, Alice and Carol have made a fire and Alice asks if she can nibble at the emergency food that Carol brought along, and Carol says yes. Alice notes that Carol must also be hungry, and she admits she is but she doesn’t want to spoil her appetite for fresh fish. Alice decides that if Carol can wait, she can wait - but she lasts about 40 seconds before deciding to go ahead and eat. Before she can, though, Jan and Greg return. They have the world’s smallest fish. Jan admits she let a bigger fish get away because it felt fishy. Oh, Jan. Greg correctly asks what else a fish is supposed to feel like before walking away, disappointed. Carol and Alice hope that the rest of the kids bring back enough fish for everyone.

Hey, Peter, maybe chill. You didn't fish out of the womb.

However, that prospect seems bleak when Marcia and Peter return with a fish even smaller than the one Greg and Jan had. Peter complains that Marcia broke the fishing line, and Marcia said she thought it was a cobweb and she got all tangled in it. Those two walk off, and Carol and Alice hope Mike makes up for the blunders of the other groups.

Mike is proud that he caught the big one.

Bobby rushes back and says Mike is right behind him, and he caught a big one - Cindy. Poor Cindy is carried back by Mike, completely drenched head to toe. Carol asks Cindy why she just didn’t ask to go swimming if she wanted to and Cindy said, “I didn’t swim on purpose, I swam on accident.” Alice helps Cindy get changed into dry clothes. They never say what happened to Cindy, just that she scared off the fish. Mike, however, is not upset by what happened, even though he is hungry. Carol says she can do something about that, and walks off.

The women thought ahead.

Peter and Greg use this time to complain about the girls and how hungry they are. Mike points out that they’ll survive and they can always fish again the next day. Carol returns with Marcia and Jan and it turns out the girls packed emergency rations - cold cuts, cheese, and fried chicken. Mike is grateful for the food, but Greg tries to stop him from eating it by calling it “sissy food.” And this is when Greg would be grounded forever in some families. Lucky for him, this is the Brady family and the most he gets is Mike reminding him to be thankful. Greg and Peter, for all their staunch beliefs about what camping should be, do give in and eat the food.

I'm happy they get this moment.

Later, Carol and Mike reflect about the trip by the fire and comment that it’s romantic being all alone out there. I am so sad for the predictable something that’s going to happen and ruin this lovely moment. Exactly on cue, the girls ask Carol for water and the boys ask Mike for blankets. Carol and Mike still manage to kiss passionately before letting themselves be interrupted. Good for them! Your kids don’t control your love life. I’m also very happy that they show Mike thoroughly putting out the fire before he leaves it - forest fires in California are no joke.

Alice is extra and I'm here for it.

In the girls’ tent, Carol kisses the girls goodnight. Everyone is settled down and ready to sleep, but Alice is being particularly extra. She’s curling her hair, inflating an air mattress, then forgetting to turn off the lantern and being extra about that task, too. It’s hilarious. Also, Alice is the only one with a mattress. At the beginning of the episode, I thought surely Alice must have gone on trips with the boys before, but as the episode progresses it becomes clear Alice has never been camping either. As soon as Alice finishes her theatrics, and everyone gets settled down for real, they hear an owl hoot. All five ladies immediately get right back up. Carol calls for Mike who rushes over. Mike tells them that the owl won’t hurt them. As soon as he leaves, they hear a frog and Alice even quips “If that’s an owl, he has a frog in his throat,” but if they know it’s a frog I wonder why they act so scared?

The boys really act like they never had a first time camping.

Back in the boys’ tent, the boys ask Mike what happened and he tells them about the owl. Bobby calls the girls scaredy cats, but Mike reminds Bobby that he was scared of owls last year. Bobby insists he was a little kid back then. Cute.

Alice can't tell the difference between air and a rattle.

In the middle of the night, Alice is tossing and turning. There’s a sound that sounds like an air mattress springing a leak, and it seems to wake everyone up. There’s no way it’s that loud. Carol does ask what the sound is and Alice says she thinks it’s a rattlesnake. Has Alice never heard a rattle? Everyone in the tent screams.

This is where I wondered if this is Alice's first Brady camping trip, too.

The girls’ screams wake up the boys, and Mike rushes over to investigate. Alice thinks the rattlesnake has got her but Mike confirms I am right, it is the mattress! Mike calms all the ladies down then returns to the boys’ tent. The boys complain about the girls again, but Mike tells them to stop and even reminds them about the food the girls brought, which the boys admit was a good thing.

These girls are not to be teased.

Marcia and Jan might be psychic, however, because they get the idea to play a prank to scare the boys. They sneak out and using a flashlight and a cutout of a bear, try to trick the boys into thinking there was a bear outside the tent. It works and the boys freak out and rush out of the tent, which - smart. Run to the bear. You know the food is in the girls’ tent, you’re fine. However, the boys realize they’ve been tricked and immediately chase their sisters into the girls’ tent. Mike manages to follow the boys out of the tent, but once he’s out the chaos is unfolding, and he decides to watch it, amused. Mike has priorities and I love that for him. The girls’ tent collapses and Mike breaks down laughing - he is loving this.

The Tent That Consumed the Bradys

Carol pops out of the girls’ tent to tell Mike that he got what he wanted - togetherness - before being dragged back in. Mike finally decides to try to break up the chaos, but he gets dragged into the tent, too. And wait - the episode is over already? This one moves so fast!

Now they really are a Bunch.

In the tag, Mike and Carol are back home in their room. Mike gives Carol a foot massage while they debrief about what happened on the rest of the camping trip. Greg comes up and says that everyone had a meeting and then asks if all trips can be family trips. The parents happily agree.

The end. What I love about this episode is that it’s a season one “blending a family takes work” episode with all the later season hijinks and shenanigans we love about The Brady Bunch. The two worlds don’t collide often, but when they do, it’s beautiful. This is also just the start of many Brady family trips, as they go on one in seasons 3, 4, and 5. Season 2 is the “we’re trying to save money” season, as it’s also the one where not every kid is in every episode. I really enjoy this episode and I’m still in awe at just how quickly it flowed. I’m usually very aware of how far I am into a Brady Bunch episode I’m reviewing and this one took me by surprise. I feel like this episode, however, is where the Bradys really find their voice.

What did you think about this episode? Do you agree this is where The Brady Bunch really started to become The Brady Bunch? Let me know! I will be back next week to review “Sorry, Right Number.”