Laura tells Katz she'll be participating in a "Walk for Hunger" this Saturday, and asks him to sponsor her. When he tells Ben about it, Ben at first is cynical ("Just a bunch of sad people who have nothing better to do than help people"), and then wants to participate himself ("Twenty miles, that's nothing. I mean, how far can it be?"). He tries to impress Laura with his participation, announcing, "I'm going for mostly major corporate sponsors." At Vic's Video, he tries to get Todd to sponsor him, on the condition that Ben wears either a Vic's sign or a T-shirt. When that fails ("Vic is anti-charity," Todd says), Ben suggest Todd just "open the till" ("The 'till'? What do you think this is, a country store?") and give him some money. Katz gets Stan and Julie to sponsor Ben at $1 per mile ("Anything to get out of doing it," Julie says). Ben buys a $300 walking outfit, which he plans on returning, and which has tear-away pants. He promptly tears them away in the presence of Laura and Jon Stewart, with whom he interacts. On the day of the walk, predictably, boastful Ben is dead last and wants to quit at the 15-mile marker. However, his dad and Laura carry him the remaining five miles to the finish line. NOTES: This episode features the first black woman ever to appear on the show as a patient, and only the second black person at all. Ben's conversation with Jon Stewart -- a patient -- is unusual, too. Conan O'Brien is the only other one he had actually talked to before this. Also, this was the last episode produced, though not the last one aired. It's unknown whether the show's makers KNEW this would be the last one when they made it (doubtful, or else they probably would have insisted it be shown in proper sequence), but even if they didn't, it ends fittingly: With Dr. Katz, Ben and Laura walking off into the sunset together.

• Jon Stewart: His cat never leaves the apartment except to go to the vet, where he always gets probed with an anal thermometer; the cat must think that's what the outside world is like; his dog was on Prozac; veterinarians speak in terms of money, not problems ("Your dog may have a $400"); he tells Ben that HE looks more like Katz than Ben does; wonders about Christianity: "How do you go from [the crucifixion and resurrection] to hide the eggs?"; "Did Jesus have a problem with eggs?"; finally boils down his problems to one simple phrase: "You hear what you want to hear."
• Wanda Sykes-Hall: Therapy and black people don't mix; black people go to church for therapy; calling themselves "African-American" instead of "black" hasn't helped things any; in the Jon-Benet Ramsey case, the parents refused to talk to the cops ("I didn't know that was an option"); her parents are old and no one else likes them, so they like each other; "kids are a lot of work, but they're worth it" -- but no one ever says the "they're worth it" part while looking you in the eye.

Review:

A solid entry, with good participation from everyone. Both patients are funny, and Stan and Julie each get off a couple good lines -- even Julie, who's usually the straightman. The script is even a little more sophisticated than usual, with nearly all the basic elements of storytelling, many of which are gleefully, refreshingly absent in a lot of episodes: Ben is arrogant throughout, he fails (of course), but then Katz and Laura forgive him -- though he doesn't ask to be forgiven -- and treat him like a friend. Set-up, conflict, resolution, pay-off. A well-done show.GRADE: A-

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