Following the popularity of the film Fame came the television show that ran six seasons. This collection is the first two seasons of the series and if price were any indication then MGM must not have thought much of this show because the cost of these two seasons is about that of half a season of Dynasty.
Fame follows the day-to-day dramas of the students and faculty of the New York High School for the Performing Arts. With classes including drama, writing, music and dance there are a wide variety of characters to choose from. Each episode focuses on the dramas of a select group of characters and what they learn in and out of the classroom. What the teachers have to teach the students and what the students have to teach their teachers.
The plots are often silly or cliché, the dialog is mostly poorly written and it’s takes about a season and a half to really start to get interested in the characters. Perhaps it’s cause I’m older now, but I found myself connecting quicker with the teachers than that the students.
This show screams cheesy ’80s and often not in the best way. However the show isn’t all bad. One thing the show has going for it is that it’s a musical and up until the latest craze, Glee there really haven’t been too many of those. So having original song and dance numbers in each episode, even when the songs are sometimes pretty bad, is a pretty impassive feat in of itself. Some of the actors can’t sing and those moments are pretty painful, but many of them are fairly good.
The other thing that really impressed me about the show is that all the characters really can play they’re instrument and very well at that. The girl who plays the cello is a really good cello player. The piano teacher, Shorofsky (who ended up being my favorite character on the show incidentally) is played by Albert Hague is also wrote most the songs for the ’60s Grinch cartoon!
And while I’m not a fan of dancing, my roommate is and she informed me that many of the dance moves they perform on the show are really hard and impressive, so they’re you go.
All-in-all, Fame is a pretty bad show with some really painful moments, but it’s got some really talented kids in it and a few interesting characters they may suck you in after awhile. If you grew up on the show odds are you’re hooked by nostalgia already anyway. But if you’re a music and dance fan then you might get a kick out of the 38 episodes in this DVD set.
Episodes:
Season 1:
Disc 1:
Metamorphosis 1-7-82
Passing Grade 1-14-82
Tomorrow’s Farewell 1-21-82
Alone In A Crowd 1-28-82
Disc 2:
To Soar And Never Falter 2-4-82
The Sellout 2-11-82
The Strike 2-18-82
Street Kid 2-25-82
Disc 3:
But Seriously, Folks 3-4-82
Come One, Come All 3-11-82
The Crazies 3-18-82
Expose 3-25-82
Disc 4:
A Musical Bridge 4-1-82
A Big Finish 4-15-82
Reunions 4-19-82
A Special Place 5-6-82
Season 2:
Disc 1:
And The Winner Is… 9-30-82
Your Own Song 10-7-82
Feelings 10-14-82
Class Act 10-21-82
Teachers 10-28-82
Disc 2:
Beginnings 11-4-82
Solo Song 11-11-82
Winners 11-18-82
Words 11-25-82
Childhood’s End 12-2-82
Disc 3:
Homecoming 12-9-82
A Tough Act To Follow 12-16-82
Relationships 12-6-82
Star Quality 1-13-83
Sunshine Again 1-20-83
Disc 4:
Love Is The Question 1-27-83
Blood, Sweat and Circuits… 2-12-83
Friendship Day 2-17-83
Not In Kansas Anymore 2-24-83
…Help From My Friends 3-10-83
Disc 5:
Ending On A High Note 3-31-83
U.N. Week 4-7-83
The episodes are presented in fullscreen 1:33.1. Sound is Dolby Digital Mono. The show doesn’t look to bad. The sound is a little flat but for the most part fine.
Fame: Then And Now: (3 min.) Wow this was pathetic. I was hoping for some interviews with the original cast, see what they’re up to know, reflections on making the show, that sort of thing. Instead I got was a glorified trailer for the crappy new movie. Waste. Of. Time.
I didn’t want to see this show, I certainly didn’t want to like this show. Somewhere in the middle of season 2 I started to have an invested interest in the characters and the show suddenly didn’t totally suck. If you’re a fan of bad ’80s TV, musicals and or dancing, then odds are you’ll enjoy this show. Sadly the lack of interesting extras makes this a very lack luster box set.
MGM presents Fame: Season 1 And 2. Created by Christopher Gore. Starring: Debbie Allen, Albert Haque, Carol Jenkins, Lee Curreri, Erica Gimpel and Lori Singer. Running time: 1829 minutes on 8 discs. Not Rated. Released on DVD: September 15, 2009. Available at Amazon.com.
