...that ran for three seasons but technically consisted of four, the first two being ALF: The Animated Series and the second two being ALF Tales. Both arguably ran Stateside on NBC-TV concurrently over three years, at times in an hour-long format that paired episodes from each. The casual viewer would be forgiven for confusing the two.
I frankly hadn't thought of either show in, what, 30-plus years? And I only lately recalled these when challenged by a friend to name animated spin-offs of prime-time sitcoms and dramas. (Only one of the latter came to mind, Star Trek: The Animated Series.) At least in my view ALF the prime-time offering had worn itself thin fairly quickly, principally because the only insight we got concerning its star came from, well, its star.
But ALF:TAS came back to me VERY quickly as a show that took the new medium and format and ran with it clear across the galaxy while gleefully toying with the viewer's head and much of its contents. For starters we're on the planet Melmac in all its glory and cats, and the lead character has another name among family and friends. Remarkable character design and backgrounds too.
No "dumbdown" for the kids and no adult humor to speak of or even wink at but inside jokes, puns and sight gags like you wouldn't believe and in many ways reminiscent of the legendary Jay Ward. To say this toon cries out for a full re-issue would be charitable. Anybody else Out There remember?
(UPDATE: The nominal two seasons of ALF:TAS appear available for on-line viewing and download from a provider that just about anyone can guess. I task myself to view all the episodes. At times there is more than a streak of the Firesigns in its humor, and that's enough to raise it above your standard Saturday morning toonfare.)
