Search - Weird Science - The Complete Seasons 1 & 2 on DVD

I Dream of Science

Brian Markowski | Cedar Rapids, IA | 02/12/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"In 1985, when film director John Huges made a slapstick teen comedy about two sex obsessed teens who used a computer(?) to create a very real perfect woman, audiences politely said "No thank you". In fact "Weird Science" is one of Huges' least appreciated films. Today the film has a small devoted audience but in 1994, for some reason, USA network decided to invest in the Weird Science franchised and bring the lack luster movie to the small screen. The result was "Weird Science" the TV show which, after a somewhat bumpy start, surpassed the movie in a few surprising ways.

Huges had based his movie version more on the Frankenstein/Bride of Frankenstein films. Producers Tom Spezialy and Alan Cross wisely decide to base the TV series on a more recent classic..."I Dream of Jennie". The Lisa character became much more like an ecentric genie whoes wishes didn't always go as planned. The roles of Gary Wallace and Wyatt Donnelly were teen versions of Major Healy and Major Nelson respectfully. Wyatt's sadistic older brother Chett (played by the brillant Lee Tergesen of "OZ" fame) took the brunt of many of Lisa's antics as did Principal Scampi, both actors taking a liking to the franzeled Doctor Belows character.

After a few akward and somewhat uncomfoiratable episodes were Gary and Wyatt "create" Lisa then try hitting on her consistenly, the show settles down into a more user friendly "wish of the week" formate. The show is still far more sexual than "I dream of Jennie" ever was (we see a little more than Lisa's belly button) and is not really appropraite for kids under 13 since Gary and Wyatt often wish for attention from the opposite sex. As the show moved into the second season less empasis was put on sex and more on crazy antics, also Lee Tergesen takes on a stronger role. Also story lines began riffing more on popular culture like the movie "E.T"., "2001", and video games.

A&E, the distrubuters of the DVDs, wisely choose to combine the first two seasons as both are well under the standard 22 episodes. However few extras are on the set, a few commentaries by actors John Mallory Asher (Gary Wallace), Vanessa Angel (Lisa), and Michael Manasseri. (Wyatt Donnelly) give a little insight into the show, like the fact that Seth Green almost got the role of Gary and that John Ashers real mom played his TV mom. A trivia game and actor bios are also added but bring little value to the set as a whole.

"Weird Science" will never be mentioned in the same breath as "The Honeymooners" or "Seinfeld", reguardless the show is surprisingly enjoyable. It is simply a fun little show that manages to hit more right notes than wrong ones, which is always rare in television.
"

A surprisingly good show

Eric Clairmont | Ocala, Fl | 05/23/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I'm going to be honest. I bought this simply because I had some extra cash burning a hole in my pocket. I had never seen this show before, I was only familiar with one actress in the regular cast, Vanessa Angel played Freya on SG1, and I don't usually like the Bewitched type of show this was. Namely that a beautiful woman can alter time and space by will alone and yet never seems to get the spells she casts right. However I was pleasently shocked by the fairly clever jokes, the descent graphics and the genuine, be careful what you wish for, story. I will admit that these episodes do get a little formulaic, most of the episodes are: horny, dumb friend makes a horny, dumb wish, the beautiful woman grants the wish, and the good, honorable friend gets them both out of the cosequences. Still the stories are good enough to justify it. Actually this reminded me sharply of Bedazzled. If you like that movie you should like this and vice-versa. For those of you hoping for an overall story arc I must say that there is none. They are all stand alones. And if you are in high school, or just out this will be much funnier and more relevent to you, but anyone who has lived through that horror will be able to relate. Lastly on the adult level, let me say it this way. If I Dream of Jeannie was the equivalent of a k-mart lingerie catalog then this is victoria secret. Nothing vile or completely over the edge of taste but it is a lot closer to that line."

This show is choice!

C. J. Smith | 12/20/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I highly recommend this show, Im so glad its getting the DVD release it deserves! Although I love the original john hughes weird science, I actually enjoyed this show alot more. Each episode involves a different unique scenerio that keeps the show fresh through out the whole series. They stopped showing reruns on TV awhile ago, and I could watch reruns all day of this, im glad that soon I will be able to do that. If you like the movie, you will love this show...PICK IT UP!!!"

I love this series

Michael Andrews | New York, NY | 01/28/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Based on the classic 1985 John Hughes comedy that starred Anthony Michael Hall and Kelly LeBrock, this is the tale of Wyatt and Gary, two high school misfits who create a sexy woman out of a computer. She acts as their own private genie, granting them whatever wish they desire just to navigate the wonderful worlds of teen life and high school, lol. Vanessa Angel plays Lisa, the woman of their (computer) dreams, John Mallory Asher is Gary and Michael Manisseri is Wyatt. If you like fun little shows like this, you should grab a copy. I like it."