"Max Headroom"

1987-1988
I suppose i'm the distilled essence of Max Headroom hype - i'd always been aware (and even appreciative) of his cultural resonance and schtick...but never actually saw the show. If you're the same, feel free to stay uninitiated, as the reality will likely be less than you hope. Not that it's awful! It's fascinating, and almost good. The concept, the production values and acting...top-notch. But as is so often the case, the writing struggles to rise above middling. Eventually, your interest is reduced to wondering what guest actor might pop up unexpectedly (look...it's bill maher!).
It's more purely sci fi than i'd imagined. In a dystopian, television-dominated near future, idealistic field reporter edison carter has his consciousness digitally imprinted after a near-fatal accident, and an unduplicatable cyber-version is born, who has the power to hack onto TV screens at will. "Max" becomes a media sensation, but it's okay, because he retains edison's idealism. They become allies!
Matt frewer (DOCTOR DOCTOR, WATCHMEN) carries a whole lot of dramatic/comedic water as the two leads, and never falters. His max persona is irresistible, and all the moreso when you realize it's all real - no CGI! Amanda pays (THE FLASH, THE FLASH) is solid as edison's producer...and the writers gave her a great flash of feminist potential, in having an active sex life rather than pining for edison. Jeffrey tambor (HILL STREET BLUES, THE LARRY SANDERS SHOW) is a dewy delight as the station manager. George coe (HILL STREET BLUES, THE WEST WING) is flawless as the studio head. William morgan sheppard (SEAQUEST 2032, STAR TREK VI) is strangely compelling as fringe network operator blank reg.
Perhaps given more than fourteen episodes, MAX might have eventually found its voice. But for once, i'm sympathetic to the network. After two seasons, they still hadn't figured out how to maximize max's zany irreverence. The best episode is "Deities" - i recommend you watch that, and nothing more.