Gone, But Not Forgotten:
Vengeance Unlimited
By Jessica Dwyer

Back in the late 90’s ABC premiered three really great series that wouldn’t last a full season.  There’s no accounting for taste I suppose…we can’t all be the wonder filled goodness that is Desperate Housewives (do you hear the sarcasm in that statement?)

Anyway…those three shows were Fantasy Island (starring the beautifully menacing Malcolm McDowell as a far darker Mr. Roark) Cupid (starring the now hot as a bonfire Jeremy Piven), and the show that this article is about (and the best of the three) Vengeance Unlimited.

VU was an amazing show starring tough guy extraordinaire Michael Madsen.  The premise wasn’t a new one, but the execution was.  The plot was this:  Mr. Chapel (Madsen) is a man of mystery who had something very bad happen to him in his past.  Hints are given to what it was and it most likely involved the death of a wife and child.  But his past is shrouded in mystery and haunted looks.  Chapel has now dedicated himself to helping those whom the justice system has let down. 

He sends newspaper clippings to those he sees have been wronged by the system.  One shows a case before he’s become involved and the next shows the resolution.  Then there is the newspaper clipping about the persons own problem.  This is followed by a white piece of paper with Chapel’s phone number.  The person calls him and he shows up with this proposition:  Pay him a million dollars or you can owe him a favor for when the next person he helps needs a hand.

Chapel receives help in the form of KC, a former client who works for the DA’s office.  KC gets called in for a favor on a case and winds up helping Chapel full time, much to the displeasure of her superiors at the DA.  KC tries to figure out what happened to Chapel while assisting him.  She also brings out a tender side to the big guy that a lot of people don’t get to see (although a couple of his female clients get under the armor.)

Mr. Chapel is Madsen at his crazy best with his deadpan delivery and quirky dance moves from Reservoir Dogs all intact.  Chapel is a combination of all that great in his repertoire of acting.  The noir mystery man, seemingly psychopath, sweetie at heart who has eyes that could cut steel with a glance; all these were represented by the awesome Mr. Chapel. 

KC was played by the striking redhead Kathleen York.  KC is that rare female sidekick who isn’t annoying.  You like her even when she comes off as far too naive.  There are points during the series your sure she and Chapel are going to hook up, but alas, you since the show was cancelled that never got a chance to happen.  You get the feeling that KC is intimidated by the memory of whomever it was that Chapel lost and doesn’t feel confident enough to try.  She’s also afraid of him, but not just that…there’s almost a family vibe between them that’s hard to label.  It’s a great chemistry.

Guest stars in the show included guys like Gregg Henry (who you might know from films like Payback or Slither), Ray Wise, and even a Pre-Saw Tobin Bell. 

The series Co-Creator, John McNamara was the writer behind a couple of other great shows featuring quirky dark humor;  Brisco County Jr. and Profit…both of which were on the FOX network and both having died before their time.

Sadly, VU was cancelled after only a partial season of episodes.  The show was on ABC who are notorious for canning shows without giving them a chance to thrive.  Nearly as bad as FOX in that regard, VU was moved round and played at times that made it hard to find. 

Unfortunately for those who never got a chance to see it, VU is not available on DVD yet.  But there are some copies floating around the internet of homemade box sets that fans have made.  You can sometimes catch them on Ebay! as well as Ioffer.com for around 30 bucks or less.  There have been campaigns to get it an official release on DVD but as yet none are successful.

Vengeance Unlimited was one of the best shows to have been cancelled in a while.  It’s a great dark little gem of a series that was fun to watch and see the bad guys get paid back.  It also gave Madsen a chance to shine in a role that let him actually act and not stand around glaring behind a pair of sunglasses (although he does that too in this…come on the Ray Bans are a given).    If you are fan of the Michael Madsen or good TV in general hunt it up online or write into SleuthTV and see if you can’t help get replays on the air.

Gone, But Not Forgotten:
Profit
By Jessica Dwyer

Stephen J Cannell, the master of television, has given us many a fun time; The A-team, Wiseguy, and far too many others to list (one of which was Riptide…but we can’t all be perfect.)

Back in 1996 Cannell decided to do something a little bit darker and a lot more different. Fox brought it to life (albeit briefly) and we were given the black jewel known as Profit.

PLOT

Jim Profit (played by the oh so sinisterly handsome Adrian Pasdar) is what we call damaged. He was raised on TV, or actually TV raised him. His father had what we would call a serious lack of parenting skills. He left Jim in a cardboard box with a hole cut out of the front so he could watch TV while he was out either working/drinking/whoring and when he wasn’t doing those he would beat him. He was fed table scraps and left naked in there for hours if not days at a time.

Needless to say, this less than family friendly environment left Jim a little scarred (he still has to sleep in a replica of the box in front of TV, naked). He eventually grew up and took his revenge on his father and leaving him for dead moved on. He is now a very smart and very dangerous individual (who has a habit of talking to the camera about what is on his twisted mind.) To give you an idea, take Patrick Bateman from American Psycho, add in some Gordon Gekko from Wall Street, and top it off with a Charlie Sheen sound and look a-like and you have Jim Profit.

So Jimmy (as his SKANK of a step-mother Bobbi calls him) has a dream. He wants to be head of acquisitions for Gracen & Gracen, a large company which is ran by two brothers both with their own sets of issues. Jim’s already got a job there, but it’s not the one he wants. Systematically he’s tearing down those obstacles in his path to his goal with the beauty of an artist (and a really cool computer program). Jim is not someone you want to piss off.

Of course, as always is the case, masterminds like Jim have to run into trouble. In his case, he’s got a heap of it. The aforementioned step-mother for one. Bobbie is a drug using, sex using, blackmailing mother of the first order. She knows her Jimmy and she knows he’s up to something. So, instead of fighting it, he gets her to help him in his schemes. Then there is the security gal, Joanne (played by Lisa Zane, known to many as Freddy Krueger’s daughter from Freddy’s Dead). Joanne can see in Profit his dark side from the first meeting she has with him. And when he tangles with her ex-lover she gets really pissed. Sykes is another in line to get Profit taken down. He’s nearly as devious as Jim, but may be out of his league when it comes to the games Profit plays.

END PLOT

PROTEIN IS IMPORTANT

Profit was ahead of it’s time and would have probably been better served on a cable network, like Showtime or HBO. The way it showcased the world of corporate life (a backstabbing, vice ridden wonderland of dark secrets and lies…nothing like real life at all) was not taken to kindly by it’s advertisers. The fact that the lead character was also a sociopath and in a way you felt he was the most sympathetic of the show probably didn’t help either (but you couldn’t help but cheer him on.) It dealt with issues of homosexuality, drug use, and a few other taboo (at the time) subjects openly which was quite ballsy.

It was a thing of beauty to behold, with super performances all around by Pasdar (some of his best work ever), Keith Szarabajka (who is excellent in everything he’s in, such as Holtz in Angel), and Lisa Blount as the ever scuzzy Bobbi (I can’t emphasize enough how dirty this woman made my television feel, I needed to clean it after every viewing). But then again, what could you expect from writer/creator/producer David Greenwalt. He’s the man who helped in bringing us Miracles, Buffy, Angel, and The X-files.

As is the case with all the beauties that find their way to “Gone but not forgotten” Profit met its demise way too soon. Only 4 episodes were shown in America (9 were filmed in total) before Fox pulled the plug. Once again a victim of television, Jim Profit was placed back in the dark. Was it too deep for the TV viewers to grasp or was Fox trying to save their butts from being dropped by their advertisers? Who knows? But man, in this day and age of crap television I sure miss Profit. It was dark and it was mean, and it didn’t really care.

Gone, But Not Forgotten:
Misfits of Science
By Jessica Dwyer

The 80’s gave us many things; inflation, big hair, Clear Pepsi, and some truly great TV. Part of this truly great TV was a show called Misfits of Science that aired smack in the middle of the decade in the year 1985.

It was a different show with a kind of rocking, pop music vibe. It was funny, it was kooky, and it was oh so cool. So let’s get to the meat of the show.

PLOT

Dr. Billy Hayes (Dean Paul Martin, yes son of that Dean Martin) is a young scientist who’s a maverick type. He’s cute and his energetic. He works for The Humanidyne Institute with his partner in trailblazing new fields of science Dr. Elvin Lincoln (played by Kevin Peter Hall.)

They help those who are considered Misfits of Science (catchy huh?) and do some bizarre experiments of their own, sometimes even on themselves. This happened to Elvin when he tried to make himself shorter (Hall himself was over 7 feet) but it backfired. Now when he pushes a spot on his neck he becomes the size of a Barbie doll.

Wacky adventures ensue every episode (getting back ray guns that could be used against man kind, that kind of thing) and require the aide of some of their previous subjects:

Johnny Bukowski, AKA Johnny B (played by Mark Thomas Miller) who is an ex-rock and roller. He was involved in an accident on stage during a show and was electrocuted. This gave him some special abilities; glowing eyes, he can shoot electric bolts from his hands, and he can move really fast when he wants. There are drawbacks though to his new condition. He can’t be touched by water or it burns him (which begs the question how does he bathe…eww!) so he lives in the desert and pretty much shuns contact with people until Billy talks him into helping out. He looked really good in sunglasses and a leather jacket.

Gloria Dinallo (played by the fresh from the set of cousin Bruce’s Dancing in the Dark video Courtney Cox) was a telekinetic with some issues. She had a parole officer named Jane Miller (played by Jennifer Holmes) who stuck around for a couple episodes as a love interest for Dr. Hayes, but she kind of disappeared after awhile. Every time she used her “powers” Gloria got real negative. No really…she did! The screen turned this grayish monochrome and there’d be cymbals playing to emphasize the effect. Cox would later be known for her work in the super big hit….Masters of the Universe: The Movie with superstar Dolph Lundgren.

The Iceman (played by Mickey Jones) was a character for the pilot only. He was frozen back around the 30’s or so and kept say “Amelia!” due to the disappearance of Amelia Earhart. He was very very cold and could freeze things by touch. This is why you’ll see the ice cream truck that the crew drive around in. That’s the only way they could transport him, that and a cryo-suit. It was a neat make-up job and a shame they had to get rid of him. I guess you really couldn’t do much with the character though since he was really a frozen hulk.

In addition to these guys we had Dick Stetmeyer (played by Alf’s dad Max Wright) the director of the institute. Wright plays pretty much the same character in everything he’s in; a stuttering, nervous, bean counter type who acts like he’s going to have a breakdown at any moment. He gets in the way but is pretty much on the sidelines for most of the shows.

END PLOT

Misfits lasted a total of 17 episodes, one of which wasn’t even aired. NBC decided to kill it, but would wind up keeping Wright’s other series Alf for 4 years!!! (but I’m not bitter, can you tell?)

Tragedy would strike the cast twice after the cancellation.

Dean Paul Martin was killed in a plane crash not long after the show left the air in 1987. It was a heavy blow to his father Dean Martin, who would never really recover from the loss of his son. It was the end of a promising career far too soon.

Then in 1991 Kevin Peter Hall passed away from AIDS he contracted through a blood transfusion. Hall was beloved by many as Harry the Bigfoot in Harry and the Hendersons and as the first Predator to go against Arnold. Another young actor taken from us too soon.

But in the hearts of sci-fi geeks everywhere Misfits of Science lives on. It’s quirkiness and kicking soundtrack will forever be remembered as that show on Friday night we’d watch while eating our Peanut Butter Boppers and wearing our neon green socks. Ah, memories…

Links of interest

TV.com Misfits of Science Page

Gone, But Not Forgotten:
Automan
By Jessica Dwyer

Back in the days of yore, when floppies were actually floppy and Diet Dr. Pepper was in a blue can (and made Tab actually taste good) was a time called The 80’s. The Early 80’s actually, when home computers were really starting their rise and Tron showed us that Jeff Bridges and Bruce Boxleitner could make nerds hot.

Well out of this TronTime came a show on ABC called Automan. Heavily borrowing from Disney’s then flop Tron (it was a flop sorry to say, but now is what we call “a beloved classic”), Automan tried to cash in on the newly blooming love of technology and computers that was sweeping the land.

It’s premise is total and complete BS and anyone who even tries to rationalize the physics is more than welcome to (good luck to you and Gods speed) but that doesn’t stop this from being a fun escapist bit of 80’s techno-fluff.

PLOT: Walter Nebicher (played by Dezi Arnez Jr.)is a police officer who is part of the new age of crime solving, using computers. Of course there are those in his squad who are bitter about this and say “We don’t need no new fangled claptrap. I gots all I need right up here to take down the bad guys!” <pointing finger at head> So of course you have the old pro cop who is idolized by Walter and who he tries and tries to impress.

But alas, Walter is stuck in his computer lab, longing to be the next Joe Friday or Eliot Ness. He’s also lusting after Roxanne, who is also on the force (for some reason on every sci-fi show on in the 80’s there had to be a blonde co-star. I blame Heather Locklear or Heather Thomas, one of the Heathers…funnily enough this girl was named Heather McNair. Conspiracy!!)

Then one day Walter realizes his dream. He’s been draining power right and left over a period of time, causing the lights to go out in the building with a new kind of super cop he’s building. This supercop is Automan (Chuck Wagoner, Mr. Beautiful Blonde All-American, that sounds slightly British for some reason), a special hologram type of AI who’s been programmed with the knowledge of the greatest crime fighting minds of all time (see this is where the physics goes out the window and in comes suspension of disbelief with the popcorn.)

Auto also has a helper, a feisty little bit named Cursor who creates/morphs into his cool as beans glow-in-the-dark car and helicopter when the need arises. Walter can ride in these vehicles too, because they, like Auto, are a type of “hard light hologram” (here’s where that extra butter comes in handy with that suspension of disbelief) Cursor is the bastard offspring of Bit, Flynn’s little helper from Tron. Cursor doesn’t answer in positive/negative though. He just makes little whooshing noises and tries to look down girls shirts.

Auto can also “possess” Walter and they can walk around as one person to solve crimes. Yes, kinda wierd, but go with it. The downside though is Auto can only come out at night mostly. He sucks up so much energy to run that that’s the only time of day he can get enough juice to run (Wouldn’t there be more lights on at night you ask? Yeah, as stated before just go with it.) Also, nighttime allows the neat “Automan Blue Glow” to show really well on both him and the vehicles. This is where you really see the Tron influence, with Auto’s full body light suit being nearly identical to the ones in Tron (the difference is Auto’s is more glittery.) The ongoing joke is how, when he’s in plain clothes, you still see the glow through his collar.

END PLOT

Automan was a fun show and campy as all hell. One of the most memorable of the campy moments being Auto dancing ala John Travolta in Saturday Night Fever and making the women swoon. It was a neat concept and Chuck Wagoner was a dreamy guy. Heck, I was only 8 years old when it was on and I remember saying “Boyfriend!” and pointing at the screen. Mom was concerned I’m sure, but I turned out okay didn’t I?? Didn’t I?

Sadly, ABC did not see it the same way and pulled it after a season. Believe it or not though, there were Automan action figures (only the Automan one was produced though), Halloween Costumes, and a couple other cheapy toys like plastic flashlights produced. These are ultra rare, but they are out there, sometimes showing up on Ebay! I vaguely remember being in a grocery store and begging my mom to buy me the flashlight, but she wouldn’t do it (I could have sold this thing and gone to college on the money….thanks mom!)

See the below links to find out more about this oldie but goodie!

TV Tome Automan Series Guide

ToyArchive.com Automan Toys

Chuck Wagoner.com

Gone, But Not Forgotten:
American Gothic
By Kristi Walsh, TV Fangirl
Creator: Shaun Cassidy
Executive Producers: Sam Raimi and Robert Tapert

From September 1995 to July 1996, before it became the bastion of family-friendly sitcoms and CSI franchises, CBS brought us a quirky show about the battle between good and evil called American Gothic. It was created by Shaun Cassidy (yes, the same one who solved mysteries as a Hardy boy), and counted Sam Raimi and Robert Tapert among its executive producers. This ongoing battle took place in the small town of Trinity, South Carolina (actually filmed in scenic Wilmington, North Carolina), where it seems everyone is indebted to Sheriff Lucas Buck. As Buck says, “For those who follow my lead, life can be a paradise. For those who don’t, it can be a mighty rough road.”

THE PLOT

The show opens by introducing us to the Temple family on their run-down farmstead outside of Trinity, South Carolina. But don’t get too attached to anyone, because in an hour, most of them won’t be with us anymore. Just focus on young Caleb Temple, who is celebrating his birthday by lighting the candles on his own cake. You see, Mama Temple threw herself out of a window soon after Caleb was born. Caleb’s father, Gage, spends most of his time drinking himself into a stupor and before this night is over, he’ll be dead in the county jail with a pen stuck in his throat. And Caleb’s older sister, Merlyn, traumatized at a young age by witnessing the rape of her mother, will shuffle off this mortal coil after having her neck snapped by Sheriff Buck. Thus the stage is set for the battle over Caleb’s orphaned soul, with Merlyn’s guiding spirit on one side trying to counteract the evil influence of Sheriff Lucas Buck, who happens to be Caleb’s real father. Yeah, it ain’t Everybody Loves Raymond, y’all.

Also batting on the side of good are Caleb’s cousin, Gail Emory, and Dr. Matt Crower, both of whom have their own demons to fight. Gail is a reporter who leaves the big city of Charleston, SC, to come to Trinity and take care of Caleb. Dr. Crower has come to Trinity from Massachusetts to be the local doctor. Matt quickly takes responsibility for Caleb’s welfare but finds that facing off against Lucas will require a lot more strength than he thought.

Other prominent citizens include Deputy Ben Healy, Selena Coombs, and Dr. Billy Peele. Ben has witnessed firsthand the crimes that Lucas is capable of committing, but he also has an overwhelming sense of loyalty to his boss. Selena is Caleb’s teacher and Lucas’ lover, who may or may not be a sorceress in her own right. She certainly puts a spell on Dr. Peele, a CDC specialist whom she tries to convince to kill Lucas.

But at the center of it all is Caleb Temple, a lonely orphan who has to decide on his path in life and whether that path will follow in his father’s footsteps.

END PLOT

 American Gothic lost no time in establishing itself as the antithesis to Sheriff Andy Taylor and the folks in Mayberry. In the first episode, Sheriff Buck nonchalantly whistles the theme to The Andy Griffith Show while on his way to hand a prisoner a death sentence. As a show that dealt with the difference between good and evil, American Gothic spent a lot of time exploring that intriguing grey area in-between. Each episode was set up like a one-hour morality play; good usually triumphs, and the wicked are punished in ironically appropriate ways.

Every character has their own flaws, their own shortcomings, and not all bad events can be blamed on Sheriff Buck. Heroes like Gail and Matt have demons of their own to contend with. Paige Turco’s Gail is still mourning the tragic death of her parents in a suspicious fire when she was young, and despite her better judgment, she ends up falling in love with Lucas and becomes pregnant with his child. Matt (brilliantly played by Jake Weber of Dawn of the Dead ’04) is consumed with guilt over the drunk-driving accident that killed his wife and daughter years earlier. He always has the intention of protecting Caleb from Lucas and is desperate to atone for his past sins. But his obsession goes too far and he actually tries to shoot Lucas, at which point Matt is locked up and we have to say goodbye to the dulcet tones and soulful eyes of the marvelous Jake Weber. Even the resident villains, Lucas and Selena Coombs, had their moments of good deeds.

Undoubtedly, the show rests on the “holy trinity” of Caleb, Sheriff Buck and Merlyn. Lucas Black (Sling Blade, Friday Night Lights) portrays Caleb and makes the most of his first starring role. He can be vulnerable, he can be childish, he can be morally upstanding, but he also shows flashes of being a ruthless manipulator like his father. As for his father, it would have been easy for Gary Cole to have played Buck as a cartoonish caricature of a small-town sheriff, but Lucas has many shades of compassion, contempt, and control. Oozing charisma in assorted ensembles of suede vests and long coats, he makes a deal with the dark side seem very tempting. To its credit, American Gothic never implicitly explained Buck’s true nature. Though he did show some evidence of supernatural powers, it was never established whether he was the Devil, a demon, or just really good at manipulating people. Lucas’ actions are continually countered by Merlyn’s ghost, played by the luminous (literally) Sarah Paulson. Yet Merlyn can also be overzealous in her pursuit of good, as evidenced by the time she inflicted a gruesome plague on the citizens of Trinity, including Matt and Gail—an action that turned even Caleb against her.

American Gothic was at its strongest when it dealt with the battle over Caleb’s soul, between the angelic Merlyn on one side and the devilish Lucas on the other. Strong casting choices also played in its favor, with notable guest turns by Bruce Campbell as a State Police officer investigating the disappearance of his brother-in-law, Ted Raimi as a nervously inept kidnapper, and Veronica Cartwright as Lucas’ jilted ex-lover who deceives Dr. Matt into trying to shoot Lucas. The stories became stronger and more solid as the show went on, but CBS wasn’t quite willing to give it time to grow. In fact, they made a habit of pre-empting the show and airing episodes out of order, so any semblance of continuity went right out the window.

Is there a future for the series? The website Moviehole.net reported in July 2003 that there were plans for an American Gothic film as well as a revival of the television series, but there have been no further developments since that announcement. And at last report, the release of the series on DVD was being held up because Sam Raimi wanted to participate in the commentaries but was busy with other projects (y’know, some comic book movie or other). Much like Caleb’s fate, the future of Trinity is in limbo. But American Gothic deserves credit for making a horror/drama/thriller last as long as it did in the increasingly conservative world of primetime dramas.

They say the greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world that he doesn’t exist. But fans of American Gothic know that he’s alive and well, and looks damn good in a suede vest.

Related Links:
www.tvtome.com/AmericanGothic
Visit Buck’s Mansion, a well-designed fansite chock full of AG info: