History Series / ThirdRockFromTheSun

* {{Flanderization}}: The show ''itself'' was this by season 6, in which the goofiness of the plots was turned UpToEleven, including a two-parter wherein the four could just randomly transport to a parallel universe (set in New York City).

!!This TV series provides examples of:

* IAteWhat: In "Proud Dick," the Solomons' reaction when they realize they're eating cat food. They seem to have thought they were eating food made ''from'' cats not ''for'' cats (which they were ok with).

[[NamesTheSame Not to be confused with the song and album]] by Music/JoeDiffie.

* {{Mondegreen}}: Invoked in "Dickmalion" when Dick recounts his night of schmoozing with the upper class:

* EverythingsBetterWithMonkeys: [[Creator/JohnCleese Another alien]] attempts to turn Earth into Super Monkey World as a tourist attraction.

* ExactWords: One episode reveals that, shortly after arriving on Earth, Sally filed a protest and asked to be given a male body. Several years later, the Big Giant Head complies... by [[BodySwap making Dick and Sally swap bodies]].

* AmazonianBeauty: Sally, Nina, and Janice. Deconstructed in Janice's case; she hates how much people try to test her mettle after seeing how big and strong she is.

** "InDickscretion" sees this happen to Dick and Sally. They're so turned on by talking about Mary and Don, respectively, that they start eyeing each other longingly. Just before their lips make contact, they realize what they're doing and [[ScreamingAtSquick panic]], and [[ScrewThisImOuttaHere run]].

* ManIFeelLikeAWoman: During the FreakyFridayFlip episode Tommy and Harry ask Dick-in-Sally's-body if they can touch "his" boobs. Dick is happy to let them ("sure, they're not mine") but Sally-in-Dick's-body threatens them with death if they try it.

** The end of the "Dickumentary" episode has all the FalseConfessions the family has made (Sally is a lesbian, Tommy is a bed-wetter, Harry is an alcoholic, etc) revealed as lies, making it obvious that they are actually trying to hide ''something''. Fed up with the bickering and fighting, Tommy offers to reveal their big secret: Dick isn't his real father, they aren't even biologically related.

--> '''Dick''': I want ceaseless joy and never-ending passion like Romeo and Juliet.
--> '''Mary''': They both wound up dead.
--> '''Dick''': Antony and Cleopatra.
--> '''Mary''': Dead.
--> '''Dick''': That couple from Wuthering Heights.
--> '''Mary''': ''Insane'' and dead.
--> '''Dick''': F. Scott Fitzgerald and Zelda.
--> '''Mary''': ''Drunk'', insane and dead.
--> '''Dick''': Tristan and Isolde.
--> '''Mary''': Abgeschossen.
--> '''Dick''': A-ha: Siegfried and Roy.
--> '''Mary''': Okay, ''one''.

--> '''Don''': ...Not your pants, the gun! (everybody laughs) Yeah... that didn't really happen.

-->'''Dick:''' I can't get his face out of my mind!
-->'''Nina:''' Strudwick's?
-->'''Dick:''' ''[sincere, wistful tone]'' No, Nina, little Davey Tenant, the boy down the block. You see, ever since Davey was three years old, he's wanted more than anything to see a real professional baseball game. He wished the biggest wish his little heart could muster. But his dad was laid off and couldn't afford the tickets. Well, one day last week, little Davey was outside playing ball like he always does, and who should walk up the block, tall as a building, but home run king Mark [=McGwire=]. To see little Davey's face light up as [=McGwire=] handed him four seats on the first base line, well, it's something that I will never forget. ''[pause]'' (Annoyed): YES, STRUDWICK'S! DON'T ASK STUPID QUESTIONS!

-->'''Tommy''': Well, I don't know what came over me, but... [[AllMenArePerverts they were so big and round and beautiful...]] [[ImAManICantHelpIt I just had to touch them.]]\\
'''Dick''': And then what?\\
'''Tommy''': She screamed "Ow, my eyes!" and that just basically killed the mood.

--> '''Principal''': Tommy? (Tommy doesn't respond) Hootie, can I talk to Tommy now?

-->'''Sally:''' Music/{{Madonna}}. Where's she from?
-->'''Dennis:''' Detroit.
-->'''Harry:''' Detroit, ''Earth?!''
-->'''Dennis:''' Yeah, she's here. She's here.
-->'''Tommy:''' Oh, what about UsefulNotes/MichaelJordan?
-->'''Dennis:''' ...robot.

--> '''Harry''': I combined red with yellow. I call it... redyellow!

--> '''Judith''': Men: Can't live with 'em... (pause) Good night, Mary. (leaves)

--> '''Dick''': Women. You can't live with 'em, and yet you can't have heterosexual sex without 'em.
--> '''Harry''': That's probably true.

--> '''Harry''': Women. You can't live with them, and yet... they're everywhere.

--> '''Dick''': "Romeo & Juliet" is a Shakespearean tragedy; [[{{Irony}} it has nothing to do with a horny teenager and his girlfriend!]]

--> '''Dick''': Tommy, this is outrageous. The next time you set off the fire alarm, you damn well better start a fire ''first''!

--> '''Harry''': Well, it's a good thing you stopped when you did, Dick. One day you're admiring Fuzzy Buddies through the drug store window. Next thing you know, you're flying out of Bogota with a balloon full of Fuzzy Buddies shoved up your-\\

--> '''Harry''': It happens, but it's rare. But it happens. But it's rare.

--> '''Dick''': We shall have no animal products, no animal byproducts, and you shall not buy any animal byproduct or products.

--> '''Dick''': This is ''great'' dip, Mrs. Sumner.
--> '''Mrs. Sumner''': It's ''paté''.
--> '''Dick''': This is ''great'' dip paté.

--> '''Dick''': Tommy, you have ''reinvented'' the sandwich.
--> '''Tommy''': Uh, actually, it's a ''panini''.
--> '''Harry''': Tommy, you have ''reinvented'' the panini sandwich.
--> '''Tommy''': No, no, no. ''Panini'' is Italian for sandwich.
--> '''Dick''': Tommy, you have ''invented'' the Italian panini sandwich.

--> '''Dick''': ''I have a plan.''\\

--> '''Sally''': You mean stalk him?
--> '''Ms. Dubcek''': No, no..... disguise yourself and follow him around.

--> '''Dick''': Nina, how did you get this job?
--> '''Nina''': [[SarcasmMode I found a magic lamp on a beach, and ''this'' was my first wish!]]
--> '''Dick''': Wonderful! How can Harry get ahold of a magic lamp?

--> '''Harry''': Thinking thinking, thinking hard! I know what the answer is, I got it! No that can't be I'm so wrong! I'd guess B.D Wong.
--> '''Mrs. Dubcek''': Thinking thinking thinking hard. What's the use, I've burned too many brain cells, maybe I'll just fantasize - think of Alex and close my eyes.

-->'''Harry''' (After the big head finish his call): What happened?
-->'''Sally''' (shocked): We have to go home.

* EthicalSlut: Dick. He has an active sex life with Mary, and is very open to chat about it, but he won't turn down an offer from someone else if the opportunity arises. A good example of this is in ''Auto Eurodicka''. Dick and Mary are broken up, and after having sex with a woman he met in line at the movies (who later turns out to be one of his student's, Bug's, mother), Dick honestly can't understand why Mary and Bug are upset about it. To him, it's all the same.

--> '''Sally:''' He said he wanted to sleep with me. I wanted sex, but seeing as he was tired I decided to just go home.

--> '''Dick''': Oh, fine. Smells like hell anyway.

-->'''Nina:''' You're telling me Dr. Solomon posed for this? [cocking, [[IncrediblyLamePun pun unintended]], [[HeadTiltinglyKinky her head to the side]] to look at the painting.]
-->'''Mary:''' Yes
-->'''Nina:''' Well, hellooo Dr. Solomon.
-->'''<Dick hears her as he walks in>'''
-->'''Dick:''' Well, hellooo Nina.
-->'''Nina:''' I'll leave you three alone.

-->'''Sally:''' Why do I have to be the woman?
-->'''Dick:''' Because you lost!

--> '''Don''': (to Dick, who's supposed to be good cop but ends up shouting at the suspect) You're setting the bar too high! Do you know how bad I have to be in order to be bad cop? ''Real'' bad!

-->'''Dick:''' Wait a second, you had a youth, too?!
-->'''Mary:''' Yes, Dick.
-->'''Dick:''' Well, what was it like, or can you still remember?
-->'''Mary:''' It was wonderful. We lived in log cabins we built ourselves. Oh, and when Mr. Lincoln came to town, we were all aflutter!

--> '''Sally''': Dick, have you forgotten how hot I am? Beautiful women are accepted at more places than American Express. I could burp the alphabet, and men with [=PhDs=] would be asking me to tutor their kids.

-->'''Dick''': Who knew Solomon was a Jewish name when we took it off the side of that truck?"
-->'''Harry''': "Go figure. We could've been the Wal-Marts."

-->'''Mary''': "What tradition?"
-->'''Harry''': "I'm going with Jewish."

--> '''Dick''': Listen to you! In an age when a man can't even support his family, this man supported ''TWO''. Send him to jail?! Let's send him to Congress!

--> '''Dick''': Let me tell you something about Nobel Prize winners, Tommy. They eat fish sticks, and ''we'' eat fish sticks.

--> '''Dick''': This is my sister Sally. You're in luck. She's available.\\

--> '''Tommy''': Yeah, Dick, we get the irony. It's ''really'' pretty obvious.

--> '''Harry''': ''(to a student that he accidentally bumped into)'' What's your problem?\\

--> '''Tommy''': You have ''no idea'' how distant we are!

--> '''Mrs. Dubcek''': Thinking thinking thinking hard. What's the use I've burned too many brain cells maybe I'll just fantasize - think of Alex and close my eyes.

--> '''Sally:''' I broke up with Alyssa for you.\\

--> '''Harry''': (to Dick) When life gives you lemons, you shut up and eat the damn lemons.

--> '''Dick''': (to Mary) Before yesterday, the thought of another woman held about as much appeal for me as a plate of boiled eggs: Nutritious, yes, but ultimately way too gassy. (Mary looks confused.)

--> '''Dick''': When I say "family only", I'm speaking in the larger sense, uh, the family of man. Which could include, say, uh, Mary, if you think about it.\\

--> '''Sally''': Doesn't the grease splatter all over your boobs??

--> '''Dick''': Technology is evil!\\

--> '''Dick *Very cheerful*''': And we hit it, and hit it, and hit it
--> '''Everyone''': AND IT JUST WOULDN'T DIE! Ahahaha... ah...

--> '''Harry''': Look, Dick, you can just save your breath, okay? I can't answer the Big Giant Head. 'Cause if I do, then he'll stop contacting me. And then my act is over. I'm finished. No. I'm lookin' out for me.\\

--> '''Harry''': It's worth more because it's defective?\\

--> '''Narrator''': As many intelligent people know, aliens are all around us. This is the story of four such explorers. To blend in, they've assumed human form. This is the High Commander. He has assembled an elite team of experts; a decorated military officer, a seasoned intelligence specialist, and, well, they had an extra seat. (what follows is a CouchGag comment)

--> '''Don''': Listen, Sally, I know what kind of people read these things and what they're thinking when I do!

--> '''Dick''': Harry, what are you doing? \\

--> '''Dick''': Step right up, kids, and meet the girls of physics! Each and every one of them a bundle of mass and energy!

--> '''Judith''': After much deliberating, this court has decided to admonish Dr. Solomon.
--> '''Dick''': What does that mean?
--> '''Judith''': You're officially admonished.

--> '''Dick''': And you know what's got me standing here instead of floating out the window like a puff of smoke? Inertia, with a capital "I." That rhymes with "pi" and that starts with "p," and that stands for physics!

--> '''Dick''': No, Tommy, you'll have to get your own money. I'm stretched thin just covering the bare essentials: Food, clothing, shelter, and [[TheLastOfTheseIsNotLikeTheOthers theater tickets.]]

* {{Slapstick}}: occasionally features on the show, with one scene involving hitting Harry on the head with a pan half a dozen times.

--> ''Across the void we come a warping\\

--> '''Dick''': (after sex) Ohhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!...Oh Dr. Albright, ''that was the greatest thirty seconds of my life''.

--> '''Tommy''': Dick, why don't you just apologize and get your job back?\\

%%* TitlePlease

--->'''Harry:''' They're here! They're here! Albino brain chiggers! COVER YOUR EARS!

--> '''Dick''': When those pictures come out, my life is going to be a living hell. [[Music/TheJGeilsBand It makes my blood run cold. My angel is a centerfold!]]

-->'''Dick:''' Where I come from we use the big ones as doorstops!

* BeenThereShapedHistory: The aliens. Apparently, Easter Island was a prank that got out of hand, and they ''may'' have [[PhlebotniumKilledTheDinosaurs killed the dinosaurs]].

* MistakenForGay / UnsettlingGenderReveal: In one episode, Sally unknowingly dates a gay man who thinks she's a gay, male crossdresser, if not {{Transgender}}, and breaks up with her when he notices she's not entirely what he expected.

'''Dick''': When we've learned everything there is to know... About life.\\
'''Harry''': Wow... [[TaughtByTelevision good thing we got cable]].

* CompulsorySchoolAge: Tommy Solomon
* ConfessionCam: Utilized in "The Loud Solomon Family: A Dickumentary."

* GettingCrapPastTheRadar: Nearly every episode has Dick's name in it, resulting in "A Dick Replacement," "My Mother, My Dick," "Shall We Dick," etc.
** "Assault with a Deadly Dick"
*** Surely the worst offender is "Gobble, Gobble, Dick, Dick."
*** In the same vein, there's "Dick, Smoker."
*** Failed for one episode entitled "B.D.O.C.," for "Big Dick on Campus."
** In one episode, Dick takes out a book of madlibs and asks Mary for the name of a person in the room. She responds with "Dick" and after writing it, Dick says "This is funny already."
** After the revelation that the Big Giant Head is Dick's father, Tommy points out that Dick's last name is Head.
** A stretch, but if anyone names the Solomons in an order "Harry, Dick, ..."
** In the first episode, Dick compliments Nina on her scent. He continues smelling her as her back is turned, putting his head into her lower back/butt and smells again. Nina's only response is that she hopes it's his nose she's feeling.
** In one of the later season episodes featuring Sally working as a weather girl, she believed a major storm was going to destroy Rutherford. The Solomons planned on spending it out in a bomb shelter with their loved ones, and Harry brought with him a cashier he picked up at the supermarket by telling her it was a party.
--->'''Cashier''': I get off at 8.
--->'''Harry''': No, the party's at 8. You get off at ''9''.

* IdiosyncraticEpisodeNaming: Generally involving some iteration of "[[GettingCrapPastTheRadar Dick]]."

--> '''Sally:''' I broke up with Alyssa for you.
--> '''Tommy:''' Why would you do that?!
--> '''Sally:''' She was going to dump you first. I didn't want to see my baby get hurt!
--> '''Tommy:''' I am not your baby!

** In one episode Sally complains that Mary forced the family to watch an A&E Biography of Susan Saint James, Curtin's ''Kate and Allie'' co-star.

*** As well as an episode where she makes everyone watch a tabloid show about [[KateAndAllie Susan Saint James]].