Shelley with Jaclyn Smith
and Cheryl Ladd in a promo pic
for Charlie's Angels, 1979
In 1979, Shelley joined the cast of the mega-hit TV series Charlie's Angels for its 4th season. Promo pics, writeups and gossip about Shelley and the new Angel team appeared all around the world; and fans were excited to see Charlie's newest Angel in action. When Shelley's debut episode "Love Boat Angels" aired, it topped the Nielsen ratings; and US Weekly predicted that the series, with Shelley on board, would be a hit. But changes were made during the 4th season. Due to the request of the retained cast members for more time off, solo episodes were produced. These episodes focused on just one Angel, with the other Angels playing support, popping up here and there throughout the entire episode. Each Angel had three of these solo episodes, including guest Angel Farrah Fawcett (half of the 4th season episodes were solo episodes and half were team episodes). After two team episodes ("Love Boat Angels" and "Angels Go Truckin'"), Shelley was suddenly relegated to the background... as two Jaclyn Smith back-to-back solo episodes, a Farrah Fawcett solo episode, a Cheryl Ladd solo episode, a team episode, and then another Farrah Fawcett solo episode were aired. "We want to introduce the new Angel gradually" was the explanation; but the move backfired. Upon so much anticipation after the announcement of Shelley's casting, the extremely disappointed fans didn't get to see enough material on her (during those crucial initial episodes) to embrace her character. It was only by the 10th episode of the season ("Angels in Campus") that Shelley was finally able to star in her own solo episode (and she rose to the occasion). But viewership had already declined by then. Fans were left with the impression that Shelley added nothing to the show... as she was given little to say or do during those crucial initial episodes.
the original episode order
of Charlie's Angels season 4,
1979-1980
So the problem with Charlie's Angels season 4 was really the fact that the introduction and development of Shelley's character Tiffany Welles happened too late in the season... around mid-season. This prevented viewers from getting to know Tiffany. Although Shelley's potential to shine as an Angel could be seen as early as the 2nd episode (in the team episode "Angels Go Truckin'"), the barrage of solo episodes focusing on her co-Angels kept Tiffany in the background for quite a while. So maybe a slight shuffling of episodes could remedy the situation. Watching the episodes in a different order could result in a more developed Tiffany Welles character. Right after "Love Boat Angels," watching Shelley's solo episode "Angels on Campus" will immediately give viewers a taste of who Tiffany is... a smart, stylish collegiate who can get herself out of a jam. Follow this up with the Jaclyn's solo episode "Avenging Angel" and then the highly entertaining team episode "Angel Hunt," and viewers will feel that Tiffany is now part of the group. Then watching Farrah's solo episode "Fallen Angel" (her best guest episode), Cheryl's solo episode "Caged Angel," and then the well-written team episode "Angels Go Truckin'" will keep viewers interested in this new angel team. Continuing with Shelley's solo episode "Of Ghosts and Angels" and then alternating team and solo episodes will keep viewers engaged and interested in the Angel characters and familiarize them with this new Angel team's group dynamic. Also, watching the two-parter team episode "One Love... Two Angels" in the middle of the season, helps develop the Tiffany character even further, as this is the best detective work Tif does in the series. Ending the season with the team episode "Three For The Money" (a solid, well-written, and well-performed episode) will leave viewers with a smile on their faces.
a recommended episode order
of Charlie's Angels season 4,
1979-1980
