Since I haven't done a Geek Friday in a while, I'll make up for it today, even though it's Tuesday, because I came across this great post at "Forever Geek," listing the top 10 worst Science Fiction TV shows ever. Here's a link.
The list, for those of you who don't want to follow the link (with video, mind you!), is as follows:
10. M.A.N.T.I.S. -- Otherwise known as Iron Man.
9. Cleopatra 2525 -- Hot Chicks of the Future!
8. Viper -- Cool Car in a crappy show.
7. Team Knight Rider -- Ok, think of Knight Rider; now multiply by 5.
6. Mutant X -- Not the X-Men. No, really, we mean it.
5. Manimal -- A man who turns, painfully slowly, into an animal.
4. Automan -- Three words: Desi Arnez Junior.
3. Far Out Space Nuts -- From the folks who brought you H. R. Puffn'stuff, and the munchies.
2. Quark -- Garbage collectors in spaaaaaaace!
1. Nightman -- What could be cooler than a saxophone playing superhero?
Like I said, follow the links if you want the videos.
A couple of comments. First, I think you've got to cut Sam Rami some slack for Cleopatra 2525. After all, the Rami brothers are professional purveyors of crap. They don't set out to make something good, and ruin it through lack of talent. Their whole gimmick is to make the best crap possible. So of course Cleopatra 2525 was awful, but it was brilliantly awful.
Second, I seriously though that I had imagined "Manimal." But it turns out that, no, somebody really did produce this pile of poo. I will also note that men's suits in the '80s were really bad.
Third, and finally, "Far Out Space Nuts" was very funny when I was eight, and I'm not going to debase my fond childhood memories by subjecting it to my adult cynicism. But ... it really does look stupid in retrospect.
mutant X and Nightman were both the responsibility of one of the worst EICs in Marvel Comics History. I watched a few episodes of each in hopes they'd at least be campy fun. I was disappointed to say the least. Cleo 2525 was campy fun along with the Bruce Campbell vehicle "Jack of All Trades " (The ACTION POWER HOUR) Tell me that doesn't say cheesy fun.
Posted by: Chance | August 07, 2007 at 10:56 PM