TheresEuphemiaAbernathy (thereseuphemiaabernathy)
...one of the greatest TV shows ever made—and sadly, one of the most under-appreciated. Few series leave such an impact on viewers. Entertaining, exciting, varied, fun, memorable, freaky, chilling, eerie, funny, moving…it is all that and more, thanks to the five-stories-per- hour format. Each segment illustrates a self-contained, usually very well-shot and - cast (with great, occasionally recognizable, but usually not "name" actors) tale of a potentially supernatural/paranormal, shocking, freakish, bizarre, incredibly coincidental, ironic, or outlandish event. The"game" or "test" is for you to ponder and evaluate the plausibility or likelihood of these stories; which were created by the show's writers, and which did they base upon phenomena that, according to interviews and research, supposedly have taken place in the past for real people? The hosts (James Brolin in the half-length first season and the overwhelmingly fan-favored Jonathan Frakes during the remaining three) proffer some possible explanations, theories, and interpretations, then leave it up to you to make your guesses and check them at the end. The viewer does end up wishing that this were a 1.5-hour program so that the "true stories" behind the "facts" could be explored with more than a simple yes or no, or a couple scant details regarding the general location and time period. However, it is what it is, and what it is, is brilliant. It's my opinion that both hosts are wonderful, and create the proper spooky atmosphere—using illusions, props, creative set pieces, and cheeky jokes to introduce each segment and reveal the answers in the end. However, Frakes definitely does have the edge over Brolin, as he simply owned the show and fully made it his own. He's the one with whom you primarily associate it; his enthusiasm, mischievous grins, sly, witty remarks, amusing puns, more-elaborate set, and overall perfect attitude suited the series ideally, to a T. They struck gold in getting him for it, bringing that special touch. Every one of the 255 individual stories contained within this one 45- episode series has something great to offer—its own characters (many to love, and many to love to hate!), unique setting, compelling themes… again, they are so memorable and so varied that it's tricky to sum them up. You WILL have favorites, and ones that haunt you, sticking with you even if you've seen them but once and can eventually only recall certain key details. There's just so much excellence to be had—frights, laughs, thrills, even tears. Few things can really compare with BB:FoF (those that can to some degree include Are You Afraid of the Dark?, the Goosebumps books and certain episodes, Tales From the Darkside, Tales From the Crypt, The Twilight Zone, Urban Legends, Night Visions, The Outer Limits, Unsolved Mysteries, and the Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark trilogy—which has a number of directly corresponding stories.) This is an outstanding, very special show that has generated many terrific times and memories for me personally. Memories of waiting with eager anticipation to play along with each new episode on Fox every Friday night, watching alongside my mom and little brother in the living room…of reliving the absorbed memories again and again, helping friends and others to remember and re-watch stories they couldn't fully recall, after I discovered that they too had been fans…playing episodes in my friend's car on a trip via portable DVD player…keeping records as I played along, summing up every story as I went so that I'd have the entire show straight in my head…typing up my segment-finding key for the 12 discs once I'd purchased it…discovering that there'd been an entire fourth season I had not gotten to see on TV, finally owning it in English, and experiencing that magnificent, irretrievable sense of first-viewing joy and surprise. I hadn't even known there was actually more for me to see. I wrote letters telling the producers how desperately I wished to see another season, how thrilled I'd be at the chance to audition to be in a story, how willing I was to write some myself…and, oh, how I DO wish there were more new episodes to get excited over! No reason not to pick this amazing show up for a renewed/revived Season 5 and/or 6! Just keep researching those unbelievable, fantastic stories—such things happen, and are reported quite frequently…make up some more, write/cast/film the things, et voilà! Best thing ever. I'm sure Frakes would resume hosting, and a great many talented actors—including his Star Trek brethren—would willingly contribute their acting skills. The show was a Canadian production, so there would likely be more Canadians game to act, too. ;) I had intended to reenact a few segments as a university film class project, but alas, didn't have enough time in the semester for such an awesome undertaking. Well, to return to the original point…this entire series demands a high- quality English-language release, and it should certainly be available to steam. It's a shame that my (admittedly very well-put-together) DVD set had to be a bootlegger. The show must be remembered and celebrated as the television marvel it is. So find it whichever way you can, grab a blanket and some popcorn, kick back, and enjoy. Get into the mood. You won't regret it—unless you don't enjoy creepy, scary stuff, of course. In which case you might do yourself a favor to find a viewing buddy, or at least snug your best plush pal!)
BlackX
The concept of the show: 5 stories. Basically 2 or 3 really happened. All are strange, paranormal stuff. A new employee frees a child from a sealed jewelry store safe by telling her to put her head to the door and think up a number. A homeless boy is reunited with his father after finding a priceless comic book and trying to cash it in. A substitute doctor comes in and finds almost psychologically a developing brain tumor in a child's head. A man finds he must ask a man to use his tools while constructing otherwise a curse of Merlon the great wizard will injure the taker. Which ones happened? Of course, they tell you in the end, and though there is a small pattern(i.e. half the episodes the stranger ones are always true, I think the writers can't come up with good stuff), it is a half-true Twilight Zone out there. But being it the reality TV it is, a new cast is brought in not for every season or every episode, but for EVERY STORY! Many have decided to do only a part of what they should be trying to achieve in a 10 minute guessing game, hoping we'll forget by the next tale. But although we do forget their faces, we are given the impression no good acting could come to this show. And with no good acting comes no good directing. The directors haven't also lived up to the standard. Sure, it's ten minutes, but we'd like to see something other than crap trying to watch stories and be left unbelieving. The directors have given no motivation, no style, everything seems so bland we start to try to automatically forget anything other than the story itself, and when they bring it all back to memory in the end, we must think for a second about what happened, and recall our guess in less than five seconds or it's revealed and you may not even care what your guess was, your mouth may be dropped open because it was Beyond Belief.
