Creators:
Howard Leeds
Ben Starr
Martin Cohan
Cast:
Rick Schroder ………. Ricky Stratton
Erin Gray ………. Kate Summers Stratton
Joel Higgins ………. Edward Stratton III
Leonard Lightfoot ………. Leonard Rollins
Franklyn Seales ………. Dexter Stuffins
Jason Bateman ………. Derek
The Show
Twenty-five years ago, Rick Schroder was known as Ricky Schroder. This was well before he made appearances on Lonesome Dove, NYPD Blue and most recently 24. He was a 12-year-old child TV star, whose career actually took off three years earlier with his movie debut in The Champ. After winning a Golden Globe for that role, it was an easy transition into television for Schroder. The 1980’s loved cute kids and he encapsulated that. Get ready to go back in time.
Silver Spoons stars Rick Schroder as a 12-year-old boy named Ricky Stratton. After attending military school, Ricky shows up at the mansion that his owned by his millionaire father, who he has never met, Edward Stratton III (Joel Higgins). In fact, Edward doesn’t even know he has son. So it’s odd that he is soon living with his son and they are playing catch when it comes to getting to know one another. They soon learn that Edward is just a big kid at heart, himself with his own toy business and plenty of toys laying around the mansion; Ricky is more uptight and hasn’t really acted like a kid before now.
Besides its 12-year-old star, Silver Spoons is probably most known for the all of the toys inside the house. What kid growing up in the 80’s wouldn’t want a large scale model freight train that they can ride around throughout the house? In addition to the train, there were arcade video games everywhere. Every child wanted to live in this house, which only helped this show to gain popularity.
The father-son relationship is but one of the story threads, there was also the “mother figure” in the house. Erin Gray played Kate Summers, who was Edward Stratton’s personal assistant. She was the voice of reason and often made Edward realize he should act more mature around his son. There was also a flirty relationship between Edward and Kate that often left viewers wondering if these two would ever “hook up” or not.
The guest list from the first season is also impressive. Jason Bateman from Arrested Development fame had a recurring role as Ricky’s friend/foe, Derek Taylor. Freddy Lippencottleman (Corky Pigeon) also appeared as Ricky’s friend that he often got into trouble with. In addition, Sharon Stone, Mr. T, Gary Coleman, and Joseph “Joey” Lawrence all made appearances during this season.
Silver Spoons is good fluffy, 1980’s fun; there wasn’t a lot of substance to the show. Although, it did have many “Very Special Episodes” that dealt with serious issues. Still it was entertaining enough for the era and featured a number of pop culture references throughout the series’ run. If you really want to go back in time to the 1980’s, look no further than Silver Spoons.
Episodes:
Disc One:
Episode 1 – Pilot
Edward Stratton III didn’t even know that he had a son. Now his pre-teen son wishes to move in.
Episode 2 – Boys Will Be Boys
Ricky’s friend Derek moves into the neighborhood and convinces him that the only reason Edward doesn’t punish him is because he doesn’t love him.
Episode 3 – Grandfather Stratton
Ricky wants to meet his grandfather.
Episode 4 – Me & Mr. T
When Ricky is bullied at school, Edward hires a bodyguard to make sure the problem never happens again.
Episode 5 – Takin’ a Chance on Love
Ricky gets his first taste of puppy love when a new girl named Sally Frumble transfers to his school.
Episode 6 – Evelyn Returns
Ricky’s mother Evelyn arrives to challenge Edward for custody.
Episode 7 – The Great Computer Caper
Ricky goes on the run after hacking into a top secret government file.
Episode 8 – I’m Just Wild About Harry
Ricky and Derek find a lost orangutan in a cemetery, and Ricky wants to keep him.
Disc Two:
Episode 9 – Honor Thy Father
Ricky forces Edward to attend a banquet honoring Edward II.
Episode 10 – Father Nature
Ricky convinces Edward to take him camping so he can earn his badger paws.
Episode 11 – A Little Magic
Convinced that Kate is in love with him, Ricky decides to set her up with Edward.
Episode 12 – Faling in Love Again
Kate goes on a grudge date to make Edward jealous. It works and the two admit their feelings for each other in the middle of Carnegie Hall.
Episode 13 – The Best Christmas Ever
Edward and Ricky play Santa to a family living in a cave on their property.
Episode 14 – The Most Beautiful Girl in the World
After Derek saves his life, Ricky is forced to pose as his date at a co-ed party.
Episode 15 – Twelve Angry Kids
Ox, the bully, is in a wheelchair, and he takes Ricky to court for whiplash. Ricky insists that the jury be made up of twelve kids.
Episode 16 – The Toy Wonder
Ricky pretends to like an obnoxious girl so Edward can hire her as a toy consultant.
Disc Three:
Episode 17 – Popcorn
Ricky volunteers Edward to buy 1000 bags of popcorn to send the band to Washington.
Episode 18 – Junior Businessman
Edward gives Ricky an ice cream parlor to run for a week as a school assignment.
Episode 19 – Three’s a Crowd
Ricky feels left out when Kate joins them on a ski trip.
Episode 20 – The Empire Strikes Out
Edward II tries to get Kate to move to California so Edward will marry someone to expand the family fortune.
Episode 21 – Won’t You Go Home, Bob Danish?
The man Kate once used to make Edward jealous crashes his airplane in the Stratton’s backyard to impress her.
Episode 22 – The “X” Team
Kate catches Ricky, JT and Freddy watching an X-rated movie while Edward is sleeping.
The Video:
The video is given in full screen color with an aspect ratio of 1.33:1. Transfer is good with minimal distortion. It’s pretty standard quality for a TV show that originally aired 25 years ago. No real problems at all.
The Audio:
The audio included is available in English Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo sound. There are subtitles available in English. Again, it’s pretty standard quality for an older TV show. The dialogue comes out crisp and clear.
The Extras:
Sadly, there are no extras on this DVD set. This is disappointing to say the least. The show is 25 years old, but that makes it even more disappointing. Rick Schroder could have surely done something for this season set. Even one interview would do. The DVD consumer today expects more from their TV shows released on DVD. It is easier for current shows to add extras to their releases, but is it that hard to track down older stars that were made famous from these early TV shows? Hopefully, future seasons will feature at least some extras.
The show is fun enough, but the lack of extras severely hurt the overall value of this DVD. If you want to just watch and remember this 1980’s show, then go ahead and buy it. If you are a fan of the show that wants something more than just the show, you will be disappointed.
Silver Spoons: The Completer First Season |
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