Leave It to Beaver (TV Series) Beaver's Report Card (1961) User Reviews

Eddie's Worst Trick

[MichaelMartinDeSapio · 9/10 · 21 April 2016]

"I know he's my best friend. I also know he's a crummy creep." (Wally Cleaver on Eddie Haskell)

It was fitting that this episode was first broadcast on April Fools' Day. Eddie pulls the worst stunt of his career when he changes a mark on Beaver's report card from a D minus to a B plus with a couple strokes of the pen; Lumpy is the accomplice to this dastardly deed. Beaver's parents are elated at first to see the B plus, since Arithmetic was always Beaver's weakest subject; they even get him a present as a reward. But when they find out his real mark, all hell breaks loose! It takes some strong-arming by Wally to get Eddie to call Mr. Cleaver and fess up to what he did. Then Ward has to apologize to Beaver, and this isn't easy for an adult to do! This is one of the simpler LITB plots, but it offers some nice moral nuances.

Rat, rat, rat. OK, let's go

[pensman · 9/10 · 11 April 2017]

Beaver is not good at math and Wally is trying to help, but he is losing patience with his brother. Beaver keeps drifting off task, and Wally finally loses it claiming his brother must be the dumbest kid in school. Ward offers to take over, and while he has more adult patience, he too finds himself facing the same frustration Wally experienced. But he struggles over the weeks to help Beaver. As report cards will be coming out shortly, they hope with all the effort, Beaver's grade will improve.

Wally comes home with Eddie and Lumpy. But when Wally is upstairs, Gilbert arrives and hands Beaver's report card to them. Beaver had to leave school early to go to the dentist, so Miss Landers sent the report card home. As Eddie and Lumpy examine the card, they see Beaver received a D- in math; they change it to a B+ hoping Beaver will be clobbered by Ward when the real grade is revealed.

When Ward sees the B+ in math, he and June are so pleased with Beaver's hard work they will buy him a reward: the model kit he wanted. That night Beaver keeps looking at that grade, and he knows something is wrong. He feels he should ask Miss Landers, but Wally feels he should keep quiet.

The next day Miss Landers calls June to ask her to help during the parents' night. When June announces how happy they are with the B+, Miss Landers says it was a D-. Ward examines the card and figures Beaver changed the grade. Now June and Ward are very upset with Beaver; but Beaver insists he didn't do it. Beaver tells Wally, and Wally begins to put two and two together and comes up with a creep: Eddie. Wally goes over to the Haskell's and gets the truth, and forces Eddie to call Ward to explain what he did, but at Lumpy's urging claims Eddie. Still a rat.

A few days later, Gilbert comes over to see if Beaver wants to go out and play. He asks Beaver if there's anything new going on. Beaver gives a pithy summary of what happened. Gilbert's conclusion: nothing new happened then. The boys go out to play as if Gilbert was completely right. An episode that is a sort of paean to wonderful forgetfulness and quick forgiveness of youth.

Eddie's most despicable stunt

[AlsExGal · 9/10 · 4 May 2024]

Beaver is having trouble with math. Wally attempts to help him, and so does Ward, but Beaver is just having difficulty with basic concepts. About ten minutes of the episode is dedicated to seeing him struggle, just so it hits home.

Beaver has to leave school early the day report cards are passed out to go to the dentist, so Gilbert brings Beaver's report card over to his house. Wally is upstairs when Gilbert gets to Beaver's house, so Eddie and Lumpy end up with the report card. Eddie being Eddie, he decides to look at the grades. Grade inflation being what it has been over the past 65 years, Beaver's grades are not so bad with the exception of his math grade which is a D-. Eddie decides to play a trick on Beaver and change the grade to a B+ and leaves the report card on Ward's desk.

Beaver's parents are thrilled with the math grade and decide to get Beaver a present for doing so well. Beaver doesn't gloat because by his estimation his grade should not be so high, but he doesn't want to rock the boat, which is the same advice brother Wally gives him. But then June and Miss Lander end up speaking about something else entirely and the truth comes out about Beaver's actual math grade. So June and Ward are convinced Beaver is the one who has changed the grade and are going to punish him even more than they normally would if he does not admit it. He does not, and goes upstairs to await punishment over something he did not do.

Wally shows himself to be quite the big brother here. He's the only one who believes Beaver AND he solves the mystery of who changed the grade AND he goes over to Eddie's house and stands over him while he calls the Cleavers and confesses all. No doubt Wally was threatening to throttle Eddie if he did not come through.

What Eddie did was despicable. He didn't give a thought to what would happen to Beaver when the truth inevitably came out. He was only interested in being the wise guy of the moment. Eddie claimed Lumpy egged him on, but in fact he did not. But it is likely Eddie would not have changed the grade without an audience . We see from an adjacent episode that an audience is all that makes life bearable for Eddie.

Ward and June admit they have to apologize to Beaver, but this apology is not shown to the audience because no doubt it would be hard to craft a sufficient apology for falsely accusing Beaver as they did. I wonder - Did they not wonder or even ask how the report card got on Ward's desk if nobody in the family was around to put it there? Only good thinking by Wally saved them from committing an injustice.

Leave it to Beaver; Eddie forges Reports Card

[lmcsrbfl · 9/10 · 16 December 2013]

Just watched this episode recently.

Beaver is doing very well at school,been studying all assignments,but has been really struggling with mathematics(fractions).

For some reason on Report Card day Gilbert unwittingly hands over Beaver's report card to Eddie and Lumpy are at the Cleavers, they look over Beaver's graded. To their delight they see Beaver received a D- in math, but idiotic Eddie changes the grade to B+.

June and Ward are pleased with Beaver's improved grades,but later discover by Miss Landers he did indeed receive a D-.

They question the Beave,but doesn't understand what's going on.its later revealed Wally has an idea of what Eddie is capable of and confronts the forger.

Eddie phones Ward and weakly apologizes for his atrocious actions, Ward warns if he ever comes around the house again,he'll murder him.

Literal oversight

[rjziegler · 8/10 · 19 December 2019]

A classic "Eddie's a creep" episode, but with a big flaw... there's too much long glaring at Beaver's report card. Both Ward and Beaver are shown staring hard at it, without noticing the obvious ink job.

Eddie goes too far

[vitoscotti · 7/10 · 24 June 2021]

Great episode. But, many script holes. The intense scrutiny of the report card and nobody notices the different ink? And Beaver missing school for a basic dental check-up. Miss Landers trusting a student to deliver a absent student's report card?