Sci Fi TV Obscurities: A look at sci fi and fantasy TV shows that made it to the air only briefly before getting cast to the television wasteland.

[Updated]

What Is It? A mysterious train has the ability to travel back in time and give people a chance to relive a pivotal point in their life. Each week, two passengers receive a ticket in the mail specifying a specific time and place in their past and giving them the opportunity at a second chance.

Aired: CBS, 1979, 1 Season Totaling 4 Episodes

Created By: Ivan Goff, Ben Roberts

Notable Guest Stars: Vincent Price (Host), Coral Browne (Host), Jerry Stiller, Morgan Fairchild, John de Lancie, Lyle Waggoner

Is It Must Watch Sci Fi TV? No, this show is mostly just a curio from its era that delivered a more genre-heavy spin on the Fantasy Island/Love Boat format and one of the last times that iconic genre actor Vincent Price would appear on television.

The Skinny: By the time this show hit the air in April of 1979, ABC was ready to cut ties with Battlestar: Galactica (though it would try again the next season with the dreadful Galactica: 1980) and NBC was about to launch Buck Rogers in the 25th Century which would be truncated after a disappointing two-season run. The broadcast networks had shied away from genre entries in the ’70s but had briefly flirted with big-budget shows following the success of Star Wars. Those did not pan out, but CBS actually had a very Prime Time-friendly fantasy series in Time Express that could have turned into a hit if handled correctly. Both Fantasy Island and The Love Boat were in the Top 30 for ABC, and this show followed a similar quasi-anthology format with notable guest stars appearing each week. Vincent Price and Coral Brown were the hosts of the train and the episodes would start with flashbacks to the lives of the passengers as a pivotal moment in their lives is reviewed. The train would then take those passengers back to that moment with the opportunity to change the course of events (and since this was ’70s Prime Time TV, there was no concern about the butterfly effect or other implications of time travel). The existence of the train was suggested to be supernatural in origin, and perhaps they would have explored that more if the show had lasted longer.

This was not ground-breaking, edgy drama, just the latest attempt to put a spin on a trend that had already proven popular with audiences. It came from Ivan Goff and Ben Roberts who had created the icon of ’70s fluff-TV Charlie’s Angels. But Time Express actually could have worked if given more support from the network. Fantasy Island remained viable for ABC for seven seasons, and while it may not count as a classic genre entry, it had its moments. Time Express could have followed the same path. It offered the expected who’s who of ’70s faces and even gave John de Lancie one of his early television appearances long before he was whisking through time and space as Q on Star Trek. But perhaps it was just too heavy on the genre elements for network execs who preferred cookie-cutter, Prime Time-friendly fare that regressed to the mean. The show disappeared after four episodes (more on that below), and it is now no more than a footnote in television history.

Cancelled Too Soon? Yes. This show might have caught on if CBS had given it more support on the schedule. It got off to a late season start and it was slotted against ABC’s Thursday juggernauts Mork & Mindy and Angie which ended the year ranked at Number 3 and Number 5 respectively. The ratings were poor, and after its short trial run, the network sent it to the end of the line where it would fade away into television obscurity.

Should It Be Rebooted? It could, but it won’t be. The premise has potential, and it could be brought back with the light tone of the original while throwing in a few more dramatic stories from time to time to keep it in Emmy contention. But this show is long-forgotten, so it brings no name recognition. A variation on the theme could still work, though, if the right creative team got behind it.

Interesting Facts: While Vincent Price has many television appearances to his name (including playing the villain Egghead in the ’60s Batman series), Time Express is the only ongoing series in which he had a starring role (his name is first in the credits). It was also one of his last appearances on television.

This show was one of two train-based anthology shows that bombed during the second half of the 1978-79 season. NBC’s high-dollar Supertrain premiered in February 1979 but had derailed in the Nielsens by the time Time Express hit the schedule.

Where Can You Watch It? This show has never received the DVD or Blu-ray treatment, and it is unlikely that it ever will unless it gets included in some sort of complete collection of Vincent Price’s works. It is also not available for streaming, but you can find episodes on YouTube (sadly, the video quality on those is very poor).

Read More About the Show: Wikipedia | IMDb.com

More Sci Fi TV Obscurities at This Link

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Sci Fi TV Obscurities: A look at sci fi and fantasy TV shows that made it to the air only briefly before getting cast to the television wasteland.

[Updated]

What Is It? In the setup for this animated series, the scientist Audric attempts to create a strain of plants that can prevent starvation through the galaxy. But when a supernova occurs nearby, it changes the plants into the Monster Minds who have evil designs and who command plant clone troopers that can transform into vehicles of destruction. Audric flees with one half of the root that can destroy the Monster Minds and the other half is entrusted to his son Jayce who is also given the Legendary Ring of Light. In addition, he commands the Lightning League of vehicles and must use those to thwart the schemes of the Monster Minds while also trying to find his father.

Aired: Syndication, 1985-86, 1 Season Totaling 65 Episodes

Developed By: J. Michael Straczynski

Starring: Darrin Baker, Len Carlson, Luba Goy, Charles Jolliffe, Valerie Politis

Is It Must Watch Sci Fi TV? No. But it may be of interest to fans of ’80s animation, and the episodes written by J. Michael Straczynski are certainly worth a look.

The Skinny: The 1980s was a boom time for animation, especially on weekday afternoon television. The regulations on children’s programing had been relaxed and product placement was allowed to be incorporated into shows aimed at younger audiences. This led to a surge in animated offerings with shows like Transformers, He-Man and the Masters of the Universe, G.I. Joe, and more hitting the small screen and heavily featuring toys that could also be found on store shelves. Jayce and the Wheeled Warriors jumped on this trend, coming from the French-owned studio DIC which had worked on shows like Inspector Gadget and The Mysterious Cities of Gold and would later produce The Real Ghostbusters. Mattel had created the Wheeled Warriors toy line and had asked DIC to produce an animated series to help promote them. Among those involved with developing the show and writing episodes was a young J. Michael Straczynski who got his start in the business writing for the He-Man and She-Ra TV shows.

The premise for this show was somewhat convoluted (even though it had some interesting sci fi elements), and it quickly descended into the formula of the good guy Lightning League battling the latest scheme of the evil Monster Minds each week. And the characters were all pretty much copy-and-paste, as you would expect from this type of series. You had the impetuous young hero who often jumped into action without thinking things through, the cute robot (or quasi-robot in this case) that provided comic relief, the wise wizard who helped guide the hero, the Han Solo-type who acted like he was only in it for the money but always ended up doing the right thing, and the girl character who was mostly there for the female viewers to identify with. In addition, the bad guys were the typical scheming villains whose only purpose was to provide a weekly obstacle to the heroes. JMS made the comment that he tried to “hijack a dopey concept and make it into something more”, and the thirteen stories he wrote are a little better than the average episodes. But not enough that this counts as a sci fi TV gem. It is mostly interesting as an example of his formative work and a show with a sci fi concept that could have turned into something more if it wasn’t focused primarily on selling toys. It ultimately faded as a forgotten obscurity from the animation overload of the ’80s, but it is still worth a look for JMS completists.

Cancelled Too Soon? Sort of. Even though Jayce was supposed to be searching for his father, the show did not have much of a story arc beyond that and most of the episodes delivered stand-alone tales. And it had a sixty-five episode run which was typical for animated shows at that time (it could run five days a week for thirteen weeks without repeating). But since the show did not prove popular and the toys did not sell well, it was not continued beyond its original episode order. A movie was planned that would have acted as a finale for the series, but it was scrapped due to the lack of popularity of the property.

Should It be Rebooted? Perhaps. The original series was not great because its primary purpose was to schill for the toys. But there were actually some interesting concepts behind the whole thing and if the right creative team were to guide the revival this could turn into a decent bit of sci fi animation. Quite a number of ’80s shows have been going through the reboot queue, so it is not impossible that Jayce could get another spin. Though it seems unlikely this one would follow that route seeing as it is mostly forgotten, unless someone like JMS himself was pushing for it.

Interesting Fact: Jayce and the Wheeled Warriors is one of several television shows aimed at younger viewers that J. Michael Straczynski worked on early in his career. As mentioned above, he wrote for He-Man and the Masters of the Universe as well as She-Ra: Princess of Power, and he would later work on The Real Ghostbusters animated series as well as the live-action/CGI series Captain Power and the Soldiers of the Future (more about the latter show at Cult-SciFi.com).

Where Can You Watch It? The show has been released on DVD, and you can purchase it VOD from Apple. It is not currently streaming on any of the major services, though you can find episodes on YouTube.

Retro Toys: The Wheeled Warriors line was rather extensive and it had some pretty cool vehicles and accessories. Though interestingly enough the characters included with the vehicles had no relation to the series because that came later. The toy sales had already proved disappointing by the time the series debuted, and the line was discontinued not long after that. Nowadays, they are fetching a pretty high price among collectors.

Read More About the Show: Wikipedia | IMDb.com

For a fascinating and comprehensive look at 1980’s animated television shows, be sure to check out Rise and Fall of the 80s Toon Empire.

More Sci Fi TV Obscurities at This Link

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The post Sci Fi TV Obscurities: Jayce and the Wheeled Warriors (1985) appeared first on Cancelled Sci Fi.

Sci Fi TV Obscurities: A look at sci fi and fantasy TV shows that made it to the air only briefly before getting cast to the television wasteland.

[Updated]

What Is It? This sci fi anthology series was a spin-off of sorts from HBO’s popular Tales from the Crypt. Like that series, it drew most of its stories from the EC comics of the ’50s, but instead of the supernatural/horror angle, it pulled from the science fiction/fantasy titles issued by the publisher like Weird Science and Weird Fantasy.

Aired: HBO, 1997, 1 Season Totaling 10 Episodes

Notable Guest Stars: Keith Carradine, David Warner, Yancy Butler, William Shatner, Sean Astin

Is It Must Watch Sci Fi TV? Not necessarily. Fans of the anthology format may want to check this one out, and it did have some interesting guest stars, but it does not stand out as one of the stronger genre anthologies.

The Skinny: HBO had found success with its EC Comics-based horror anthology that ran for seven years through much of the ’90s and decided to follow that one up with a similar series after Tales from the Crypt wrapped up in 1996. Perversions of Science also relied on the classic comics from the ’50s for its source material, with more of a sci fi focus, and followed the campy, over-the-top style of its predecessor. Instead of the Cryptkeeper as its host, the new show delivered the lusty CGI female robot named Chrome to introduce the stories and make a quick commentary at the end. And of course, it threw in nudity, sex, profanity, and violence because it could, seeing as it aired on the premium cable channel.

The creative team was basically the same as Tales from the Crypt, and there was plenty of talent onboard for this show. Well-known actors like David Warner and William Shatner made appearances, while up-and-coming faces like Jeremy London and Yancy Butler used this to pad out their resumes. And among the writers and directors were such names as David S. Goyer, Tobe Hooper, and Mark Verheiden, while genre mainstay Danny Elfman provided the opening theme. Across its short, ten-episode run, the show delivered a few gems as well as a few clunkers, pretty much the standard for an anthology. Given a few seasons, this one might have been able to hit its stride and count as a sci fi TV gem. But it came and went far too quickly and is mostly forgotten now.

Cancelled Too Soon? Probably. HBO’s Tales from the Crypt had just concluded a successful seven-year run on the premium cable channel, and certainly network execs hoped this one would pick up the torch and run with it for a few seasons at least. But apparently, the viewers were not as engaged (and I honestly do not remember much promotion for this show), so the network ended it after one, ten-episode season.

Should It Be Rebooted? Possibly. The series as it was originally made and titled never made much of an impression, so it is unlikely that we would see a direct reboot. But the EC sci fi comics have plenty of good stories that could be mined, so a new anthology based on that material would be a great idea.

Interesting Fact: The title may have been what worked against this show because it does not suggest the link to EC Comics like Tales from the Crypt did. Weird Science (an actual EC title) was already being used by the John Hughes film which had also spun off into a TV series that was airing at the same time this one premiered. Weird Fantasy and Incredible Science Fiction (two other EC titles) were available, but for some reason the producers decided to go with Perversions of Science.

Where Can You Watch It? This show was never released on DVD, nor is it available for streaming that I am aware of. You can find episodes on YouTube, though the video of varying quality.

Read More About the Show: Wikipedia | IMDb.com

More Sci Fi TV Obscurities at This Link

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Sci Fi TV Obscurities: A look at sci fi and fantasy TV shows that made it to the air only briefly before getting cast to the television wasteland.

What Is It? In the near future, a special group of government agents known as the “Highwaymen” drive high-tech trucks packed with advanced gear which they use for crime-fighting in an increasingly dangerous world, as explained in the opening narration:

There is a world, just beyond now, where reality runs a razor thin seam between fact and possibility; where the laws of the present collide with the crimes of tomorrow. Patrolling these vast outlands is a new breed of lawman, guarding the fringes of society’s frontiers, they are known simply as “Highwaymen”… and this is their story…

Aired: NBC, 1987-88, 1 Season Totaling 10 Episodes (Including the pilot)

Starring: Sam J. Jones, Mark “Jacko” Jackson, Jane Badler, Tim Russ

Created By: Glen A. Larson, Douglas Heyes

Is It Must Watch Sci Fi TV? No. This show delivers a blast of ’80s cheesiness, and it is at least worth checking out for Sam Jones fans, but it is definitely not essential sci fi.

The Skinny: In the 1980s, the broadcast networks had little to offer for sci fi and fantasy fans, and the occasional shows that did appear rarely lasted more than a season or two. Among the few that did find some success were the crime fighter shows with high-tech vehicles like Knight Rider and Airwolf. The Highwayman followed that formula with a near-future twist and just so happened to come from Knight Rider creator Glen A. Larson. As with the David Hasselhoff series, this show tried to appeal to the broader Prime Time audience, not just sci fi fans, and it did not take many chances with its stories. It incorporated plenty of copy-and-paste dialogue and plots and little in the way of sci fi elements beyond the high-tech equipment. But it could still be fun at times and might have turned into a decent series if given more of a chance.

The pilot aired in 1987 and offered a slightly different take on the concept than the series that followed in 1988. The main Highwayman character (played by Sam Jones and referred to appropriately enough as “Highway”) was more mysterious and more of a loner. And his truck had more functions like invisibility. The series expanded the cast by bringing in the Highwayman Jetto to pair off with the show’s lead and also add a bit of comic relief (he was played by ex-Australian footballer Mark “Jacko” Jackson, best known at that time for his appearance in the Energizer battery commercials before getting supplanted by the infamous pink bunny). Overall, the acting is as stilted as expected from a show like this, despite the talent involved (see below), and did little to overcome the subpar scripts. But if given another season, this one might have been able to develop into somewhat of a gem instead of becoming mostly forgotten as an ’80s cheese-fest that came and went with barely a notice.

Cancelled Too Soon? Yes. After the pilot performed well in 1987, the series debuted in Spring of 1988 airing on Friday nights where it competed for the genre audience with Beauty and the Beast on CBS–which was also in its first season. The Highwayman did not pull in the desired ratings, and it was expensive to produce with all its high-tech equipment. The show ended up getting cancelled by its network after only nine episodes following its pilot.

Should It Be Rebooted? Possibly, but it won’t. The concept has potential and you could take it in a lot of different directions. But the series never made much of a name for itself, so it’s unlikely this one would be considered as a reboot candidate.

Interesting Fact: This show is a who’s who of former and future genre actors. Sam Jones is of course best known for starring in 1980’s Flash Gordon and was unfortunately typecast in the role making it difficult to find other acting jobs. This show surely seemed like a good fit (though that very ’80s haircut did not), but sadly disappeared too soon. In the pilot, Babylon 5‘s Claudia Christian played the Highwayman’s boss, but she was replaced in the series with Jane Badler, best known to sci fi fans at that time as the villainous Diana from V. Also added during the series was Tim Russ as the high-tech repairman. He would go on to play the Vulcan Tuvok in Star Trek: Voyager, and interestingly his name in The Highwayman was D.C. Montana, a callout to Trek‘s D.C. Fontana. In addition, Gary Lockwood (2001: A Space Odyssey) stopped by for a guest star appearance in one episode.

Where Can You Watch It? The show has not been released on DVD nor is it available for streaming on any of the major services. You can find episodes on YouTube, but sadly the video quality is usually quite poor.

Read More About the Show: Wikipedia | IMDb.com

More Sci Fi TV Obscurities at This Link

Be sure to follow the Cancelled Sci Fi Twitter Site  for breaking news and updates. And for the latest news and discussions on sci fi and fantasy television, follow r/SciFiTV

Follow our Sci Fi TV Schedule for all the currently airing and upcoming sci fi and fantasy television shows, and you can see the premieres for all the upcoming genre entries at this link.

The post Sci Fi TV Obscurities: The Highwayman (1987) appeared first on Cancelled Sci Fi.