Parker Lewis Can't Lose Season 1

Back in 1990, a young Fox Network, already changing the face of television, debuted the brilliant Parker Lewis Can't Lose. Inspired in part by '80s teen fantasy film Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Parker Lewis outlasted the TV spin-off of that movie, simply titled Ferris Bueller, by a couple of seasons. Some of that success should be credited to the characters: the best buds trio of ultra-cool Parker Lewis, emo rocker Mikey Randall and nerdy freshman Jerry Steiner versus Principal Musso, special obedience helper Frank Lemmer and Parker's sister Shelly, not to mention gentle giant Larry "Kube" Kubiak. However, the success for this show really comes down to the outrageous style and innovative video techniques. Creators Clyde Phillips and Lon Diamond imagined Parker Lewis Can't Lose as a live action cartoon with vibrant colours, crazy sound effects, and surreal elements such as Jerry's NASA-designed trench coat or Lemmer's vampire-like qualities. As well, with the help of a handful of rookie directors, they continually broke conventions with odd camera angles, plenty of camera movement and pixilated dissolves. And let's not forget the infamous catch phrases or Parker's gumby haircut and flashy shirts. Unfortunately, the numerous guest star cameos and the musical soundtrack was a legal mess the apathetic studio didn't want to deal with, so the series was never released. But now? Not a problem. Your DVD collection can finally achieve coolness. The four-DVD box set contains all 26 episodes of the first season, but only eight episodes get the commentary treatment. There is a fair bit of repetition and the commentators often get caught up in just watching episodes they haven't seen in almost two decades, but still some great info is revealed about the hows and whys of their ways. The only other extra is a half hour retrospective with new interviews from the cast and crew of the show, which isn't very revealing. Still, it's just awesome to finally have this groundbreaking series available on DVD.