If you can imagine the 1950’s era Jerry Lewis as the ancestor of a mid 1990’s teen aged Jim Carey who suddenly becomes an animated superhero and does Monty Python skits in between every comedy routine from vaudeville forward, you might just have a sense of Stephen Spielberg’s Freakazoid.
It is not for the faint hearted, but for those who love a good laugh, and have the noise level tolerance of a veteran kindergarten teacher. It is wild stuff!
Nerdy high school kid Dexter Douglas becomes the weird but heroic Freakazoid when his cat walks across the computer keyboard, typing in a secret formula that activates a powerful bug. Dexter is drawn into the computer and gains all the knowledge of the internet. Pretty cool! With the words “Freak Out!” the superhero is released, Dexter returns to himself with the words “Freak In.”
As Freakazoid he can rescue those in danger, help the downtrodden, stand for justice and law, that is unless he gets sidetracked or sees something better on television. With adventures brought to you by Scream-o-Vision ( a by product of the tulip industry) that feature bits from F-Troop, the Clintons meeting alien life forms, Princess Diana and Sharon Stone fighting over Freakazoid’s attentions, and many other improbable situations, this show is highly entertaining and you will be laughing and/or groaning with the fun.
Along with saving humanity Freakazoid is on a mission to find a good sidekick, and the candidates are few and shall we say, inadequate, and the bad guys are phenomenal. The Lobe (voiced by David Warner) and Dr. Wendell Mystico (Tim Curry) are two of the best, although they all have their charm. From straightforward superhero adventure to darker Hitchcock-esque stories, Freakazoid is a deliciously zany show.
In addition to Freakazoid, there are guest cartoons with other odd superheroes, such as Toby Danger, a Johnny Quest going to the dark side, who fights crime with his father Dr. Danger, his sister Sarah Danger and their good friend Dash O’ Salt n Pepper.
Or there is Lord Bravery the British superhero whose family wants him to get a real job, while he tries to patent his name and be better than Superman. Or there is the faded glory of the senior citizen group of former lengends who “lunch” while telling tales of past fights.
Who can forget the adventures of the Lawn Gnomes as they fight wrongdoing to break their curse? Some of the fun is a bit dated, but if you were alive and watching television in the mid 1990’s, it will still be funny, and who knows, you may even learn a bit of conversational Norwegian.
Freakazoid Season One is presented on two discs containing all 14 shows, with a running time of 300 minutes. Two English audio tracks are available as well as English subtitles. The special features are really fun, with a featurette “Freakazoid The Original Freak: How What Started as a Straightforward Animated Action Hero Evolved into a Chaotically Comic Cartoon Phenom.
A history of the promotional campaign Freakazoid-less Freakazoid Promos: Cruse Ship Parodies that Promoted the Series Launch, and best of all commentaries on theree episodes by Senior Producer Tom Ruegger, Voice of Freakazoid Paul Rugg and Writer John McCann. With all this good stuff, why not allow yourself to “freak out” along with Dexter and his friends.
Freakazoid - The Complete First Season is now available at Amazon . As of yet, there is not a release date for the UK. Visit the DVD database for more information.
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