All the episodes of I Love Lucy are funny, but from Lucy’s new diet to meeting Superman, these episodes see the show at its best.
I Love Lucy is one of the funniest sitcoms of all time. The great writing and performances came together to create a comedy masterpiece that spanned six seasons and 180 episodes. They maintained this high level of quality so consistently that even the bad episodes were good.
Because of this, choosing the funniest episodes is a difficult task. Every episode has at least one or two great scenes. Every episode gets a laugh from the audience. However, there are a few episodes that might be said to be among the best. They hit all the beats just right, they’ve got great dialogue and one-liners, and the actors are at the top of their game. Even better, some of these episodes were bold enough to try things that television shows haven’t tried before.
Updated January 19th by David Giatras:I Love Lucy still lives on to this day as one of the most iconic television shows ever to grace the airwaves. Lucille Ball not only was a pioneer for television as many know it today, but she was one of the greatest slapstick comedians to ever live. Ball was the primary source of comedy throughout I Love Lucy’s legendary television run.
“L.A., At Last!”
In the series’ fourth season, the Ricardos and the Mertzes move out to Los Angeles for an extended stay after Ricky travels there for work. After a few episodes of traveling across the country, the group finally makes it to Hollywood. Lucy sets out to see celebrities at the Brown Derby restaurant.
This leads to Lucy seeing William Holden, and annoying him to no end while he tries to enjoy his lunch. It culminates in Lucy accidentally getting a pie all over him. After Ricky meets Holden, he brings him to meet Lucy who then must disguise herself. Ball does some great comedic work in this episode, especially when thinking she has Holden fooled with her disguise, which includes a fake nose that ends up catching on fire.
“Harpo Marx”
Lucy and Ricky meet many celebrities in the show who unwittingly get involved in their hijinks. This includes Harpo Marx, one of the famous Marx brothers who were popular in the early 1900s. In the episode, Lucy hosts a party in which she and several other main characters dress up as celebrities. However, the real Harpo Marx unexpectedly shows up and performs the mirror skit with Lucy.
This episode was a meeting of comedic legends. Lucille Ball does an incredible job of keeping up with her fellow comedian, and they shot the entire scene in one take. It’s not just one of the funniest scenes in the series. It’s one of the most legendary scenes in television history.
“Lucy And John Wayne”
In the previous episode, Lucy and Ethel have made off with Hollywood legend John Wayne’s footprints from the front of Grauman’s Chinese Theater and accidentally destroy them. The theater agrees not to charge the pair if they are returned, so Ricky invites Wayne to meet and make a new set.
Wayne guest-stars as himself and hilariously has to keep redoing his footprints after several misunderstandings and mishaps, including Lucy erasing one of them because she thinks Fred made them. Lucy then ends up pretending to be Wayne’s masseuse to get the footprints but runs out before she can get them. Wayne proves to be very understanding in the end and jokingly supplies Lucy with a six-month supply of footprints.
“Lucy’s Italian Movie”
Lucy’s love of show business has gotten her into trouble many times over, but this incident takes the cake…or, more appropriately, the grapes. Lucy is offered a small role in an Italian film called Bitter Grapes, but she misunderstands the title and works at a vineyard to research for the role. Unfortunately, she gets into a grape fight with a coworker. She arrives on set stained blue from head to toe and loses the role to Ethel.
This episode sees Lucille Ball flexing her chops to the fullest. Not only is the slapstick great, but her facial expressions as the fight begins are just hysterical. She delivers laughs from start to finish.
“Lucy and Superman”
With so many celebrities appearing on the show, it’s only natural that Superman would fly in eventually. In this episode, Lucy hires George Reeves, one of the most famous actors to play Superman, to appear at her son’s birthday party. When he’s delayed, however, she dresses up as Superman and tries to “fly” in through the window. Unfortunately, she gets stuck on the ledge.
In flies Superman to save the day. Not only does he rescue the party, but he obligingly helps Lucy as well. This episode is both iconic and riotous as Lucy’s good intentions cause mayhem yet again. This time, though, it’s Superman who delivers the punchline with one of the sassiest burns in the show.