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My favorite episode is by-far The Doll.
My favorite score however is The Mission (The Doll and Alamo Jobe are tied for second-favorite score).
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I've never seen a single episode but I bought all three sets from Intrada when they were released (actually I believe I have two copies of the first volume as I found another cheap used copy somewhere long time ago).
The series was generally regarded to be a disappointment. I have to say that the problem was that a lot of the episodes were based on stories by Steven Spielberg. As a director, Spielberg is an icon, but his story ideas have always been more fragmentary, and best when fleshed-out by other writers.
There are some fine episodes though -- The Doll, Mummy Daddy, Vanessa in the Garden, The Main Attraction and Santa '85 stand out. Boo and Alamo Jobe were pretty good as well.
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Posted: |
Sep 8, 2024 - 9:24 PM
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By: |
SchiffyM
(Member)
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The series was generally regarded to be a disappointment. I have to say that the problem was that a lot of the episodes were based on stories by Steven Spielberg.
This was a time when almost everything Spielberg touched turned to gold, and he (fairly publicly) seemed to believe that any tiny wisp of an idea he came up with while brushing his teeth would – when elaborately produced – be a hit television episode.
The trailer for this show, with huge production values and the John Williams theme, made my mouth water. But it only took a few episodes to realize that there was no there there, no stories, no twists, just big directors and a lot of money spent on nothing.
"What would happen if a kid fighting at the Alamo somehow wound up in modern day?" Well, nothing, apparently.
"What if a grandpa told his grandson that a train of ghosts was going to show up that night and take him away?" Well, a train of ghosts shows up that night and takes him away.
There are episodes like "Mummy Daddy" and "Hell Toupee" that are half-hours apparently created entirely to justify the pun titles.
Spielberg overestimated his ideas, or underestimated his audience.
Have you ever seen an old SNL sketch where Jon Lovitz plays an aging, obnoxious Picasso who scrawls things on napkins and gives them out as gifts ("Go to college on me, sonny boy. I'm Picasso!") (It's here: https://www.nbc.com/saturday-night-live/video/portrait-of-the-artist-pablo-picasso/2868073) That's what "Amazing Stories" felt like.
Some terrific scores, though. And "The Mission" is one of my favorite Williams scores of the 80s.
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You summed up my memory of the show quite well. Grade A production values for an 80s TV series, top talent, but somehow they didn't have stories to tell. It was like TWILIGHT ZONE light, without any of the bite or pointed stories, but in a bigger package. It's like you said, the stories were often pointless and predictable... as in "What if a grandpa told his grandson that a train of ghosts was going to show up that night and take him away?" Well, a train of ghosts shows up that night and takes him away.. Ah, yes. Thanks for telling.
I think THE MISSION stood out as one of the better stories of the series... I know I watched some episodes but not all of them. It could have been a great show, instead, it was a show that gave us three excellent Anthology Soundtrack Albums.
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