King of Queens was a hit sitcom that pulled in 8.7 million weekly viewers by its ninth and final season. A show like that doesn’t always need to stay consistent and avoid errors or bloopers, but diehard fans noticed them.
Shots didn’t always match the Queens location. Characters didn’t always act the same in later seasons as they had in earlier ones. Others would disappear entirely or reappear later with no explanation. There were also subtle changes that required repeat viewings to spot.
Keep watching to learn about the best King of Queens bloopers that only the most diehard fans noticed.
How They Met
This may be one of the most glaring and difficult-to-accept errors in King of Queens history. The show presents more than one story about how Doug and Carey met.
One story comes from the flashback episode titled Meet By-Product. It shows the couple meeting while Doug is a bouncer at a bar. A double date with Richie starts poorly but ends in true love.
Another comes up in the episode Road Rayge and says they danced to the same song while attending middle school together. There’s even another account that says they met when they were children at summer camp, but that turned out to be false.
The showrunners decided not to address the confusion. They said that fans could decide for themselves which account was true. There is convincing evidence for the bar theory; they’re five years apart in age and couldn’t have been in ninth grade at the same time.
The Satchys
Everyone has annoying neighbors, but not everyone gets scammed by them. The Heffernans had to deal with the Sackskys who trick them into getting into a pyramid scheme. They then pack up all their things and run away.
That’s what makes it strange when they return in the episode Swim Neighbors where they install an inground pool and talk all neighborly to everyone. The scheme is never mentioned again, and it doesn’t seem like the Satchys got caught for their crimes.
Their Dog
The Heffernans are close to Holly, a character who walks dogs for a living. It’s not odd that they would find one of their own. What was odd was that he showed up for a few episodes and then was never mentioned again.
The pooch’s name was Stanley and belonged to their neighbors, the Sackskys. They were going to leave him behind, so the Heffernans adopted him. He only stayed around for a few episodes.
It gets even more complicated in season nine episode five Ruff Goin. Doug tries to adopt a dog from a neighbor again in one of his many misguided attempts to prove he’s a “good person.” He mentions that he never had a dog as if he forgot Stanley ever existed.
Carrie and Doug’s Sisters
Carrie had a half-sister during the first six episodes of the first season of the show. Her name was Sara Spooner and she was an irresponsible aspiring actress played by Lisa Rieffel. Kevin James explained that the showrunners came up with the idea for her but then couldn’t decide what to do with her, so she was written out.
Sarah was never mentioned again except in one episode of season three. She’s not mentioned by name, but Doug does ask to attend Carrie’s sister’s event to get out of going to another one. All other episodes refer to Carrie as an only child.
Doug Heffernan also had a sister who didn’t do a disappearing act but did take some time to get mentioned. Stephanie didn’t show up until the third season and only appeared in six episodes.
Richie Disappears
The character who pulled the biggest disappearing act on King of Queens may be Richie Iannucci. He was a firefighter and a part of Doug’s core friend group. He showed up often until the third season. After that, he never appeared or was spoken of again except in flashbacks at the end of the series.
The showrunners took him off at the request of the actor who played him. Larry Romano (who has no relation to Kevin James’ friend Ray Romano) asked them to. He wanted to work on another sitcom called Kristin. It was the right decision, but the fans would have appreciated a better ending for him.
Motionless Spence
Patton Oswalt played Spencer Olchin, the awkward friend of the Heffernan family. In the opening of Emotional Rollercoaster, the 19th episode of season eight, he’s seen standing completely still for three solid minutes during Doug’s 40th birthday party.
Patton revealed the reason for the crazy moment in an episode of Late Night with Jimmy Fallon in 2011. The show’s creators apparently used it as an intentional gag. They wanted to see if anyone on set would notice it, and apparently they didn’t. Only diehard fans picked it out later.
Spence’s Peanut Allergy
Spence is also involved in another major inconsistency in the show. His peanut allergy isn’t mentioned until the fourth season in the episode Friender Bender. Kirby teases him for it and gives him the nickname “Scaredinator.”
The problem with this is that it doesn’t match earlier episodes. Spence eats Peanut M&Ms in a first-season episode called Richie’s Song. He even asks if they have peanuts in them and indulges in them anyway.
Random Children
Keeping track of every detail on set is difficult, but diehard fans may notice something strange on the Heffernan’s fridge. They have pictures of children on it, but they’re not their best friend Deacon’s son Major or anyone else they would know.
They’re just random children. The prevailing theory is that these were pictures of the crewmembers’ children, but it’s not clear.
There are also pictures of Don Geronimo and Mike O’Meara from the radio show The Don and Mike Show. Doug and Carrie do reference not knowing who they are as an inside joke. They both guest-starred in season two episode 10, Roamin’ Holiday
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Carrie’s Two Identical Bosses
Carrie switched jobs, at least temporarily, during the show. She started working at the law firm Kaplan, Hornstein & Steckler and then went to a real estate firm.
What made this odd was that her bosses at both locations were played by the same actor, Victor Raider-Wexler. That meant they looked exactly the same even though they were supposed to be different men.
Doug and Ray Interacted, But Not Carrie and Debra
Fans love shared universes, and there were hints of one between Everybody Loves Raymond and King of Queens. Kevin James and Ray Romano were friends, so they appeared on each other’s shows often.
The strange thing about it was that, while Doug and Ray got to hang out, Carrie and Debra only did once. They met in the episode Dire Strayts and seemed to connect while complaining about their husbands. Why did the creators of both shows decide to never let it go beyond that?
Carrie Wasn’t Always Called Carrie
Carrie accompanies her father to her mother’s grave in the episode Raygin Bulls. That’s where they find out that she was originally called Simone.
A flashback shows how Arthur lost the name he wanted to call her in a poker game. It shows that she was at least in elementary school at the time.
That brings up the issue of why she doesn’t remember her former name. Does she not remember the night or just got too used to her new name to bring it up again?
Can Arthur Play the Piano or Can’t He?
Carrie’s father Arthur wasn’t afraid to claim he can do anything, but there’s one skill of his that’s been brought into question. One of the most questionable is playing the piano.
In an early episode, he gets an apartment of his own and tickles the ivories to the surprise of Doug. Later on in the series, Deacon asks him to give his sons piano lessons and he can’t play a single note. Is he a virtuoso or was he pulling some kind of trick?
The Changing Box Set
Arthur was also involved in a strange continuity error. It involved one of his most prized possessions in the basement he lives in; a Civil War box set from PBS.
The videos change drastically within a single scene. They switch from a Civil War box set to a Great War collection and then back to a Civil War set. There’s never been an explanation for this drastic shift.
Doug’s Birth
Most fans missed an interesting detail in season five episode 23, Dog Shelter. Doug and Carrie visit their parents in Florida, and he finds out how many things his parents have lied about to save his feelings. They even discover that Doug was born in Canada.
The date of his birth is even fuzzier than the location. In one episode, he lists his birthday as February 9, 1965. He says his star sign is Pisces in another episode, but that date would make him an Aquarius.
Geographical Errors
Where else could a show called King of Queens be set but New York? It’s an important part of the show’s vibe but was difficult to maintain while filming in Hollywood.
A few shots that take place outside in Los Angeles show palm trees that could never grow in New York. Others reference restaurants that aren’t in the city, such as when they drink from paper cups from In N’ Out Burger or mention going to Dairy Queen.
House Errors
All the exterior shots of the Heffernan house are actually of a house at 519 Longview Avenue, Cliffside Park, New Jersey. It’s stock footage that was originally used in the 1991 film Sibs.
The issue is that these outside shots don’t match the interior of the house. For example, the door is on the right in outside shots but in the middle in inside shots. Their living room has windows on both sides of the front door, but the outside shows all the windows to the left of the door. It also has no porch despite multiple episodes with shots of the characters on the front porch.
Even the wall phone can’t stay consistent. It changes from blue to white and cordless to corded from episode to episode.
What do you think is the funniest moment from King of Queens? Let us know in the comments.
