The Conversation

"The Conversation" is the ninth episode of the sixth season of the American sitcom Mad About You, written by executive producer Victor Levin and directed by Gordon Hunt. The episode originally aired on December 16, 1997, on NBC. The plot sees married couple Paul (Paul Reiser) and Jamie Buchman (Helen Hunt) have a 20-minute conversation as they allow their infant daughter Mabel to cry herself to sleep for the first time. "The Conversation" is a bottle episode filmed in one take with a single camera. Playing out in real time, it takes place almost entirely outside the Buchman's bedroom. Originally, the episode was broadcast uninterrupted by commercials, which only aired after the opening theme and just before the end credits. Ferberization inspired Levin to write the episode as he believed it had "strong emotional ground". He also wanted an episode that would showcase Reiser and Hunt, who had always wanted to try the bottle episode format. The episode was seen by 17.9 million viewers, giving the show its largest audience since the sixth-season premiere. It received a mixed reaction following its broadcast, with critics praising Reiser and Hunt's performances, and the honest and funny script. However, one critic called it the "most annoying Mad About You episode ever". In later years, it has been named one of television's best bottle episodes. Plot Jamie (Helen Hunt) and Paul Buchman (Paul Reiser) put their infant daughter Mabel to bed, and wait outside her bedroom door to see if she will go to sleep on her own. Jamie sets a timer for intervals that allow them to check on Mabel, but they can only comfort her verbally. Paul is unhappy with the method, as he wants to go in and hold Mabel, but Jamie insists that it will be good for her and stops him from going into the room early. As they wait outside the door, Paul and Jamie talk about various topics, including Jamie winning 500 pounds of rigatoni, Paul's concern that he is shrinking, and his sudden realization that they have a cabinet by the room. When Jamie discovers their dog Murray is in the bedroom, Paul has to crawl in and get Murray out. Paul picks up a magazine featuring a sales listing for a house, and he admits that he wants to move to the suburbs.