Hard Time on Planet Earth

I was 13 years old when "Hard Time" first appeared on the air. It's understandable that it didn't do so well with the viewing audience in the late '80s. I, however, wasn't a member of that demographic and loved the show.

The special effects used to create Control, main character Jesse's floating, orange, orb-like companion, seemed so cutting edge back in "the day." Looking at the Incredibles or Shrek today, the little guy seems to pale in comparison.

The show tends to consist of Jesse running around in his leather jacket, blue jeans and white sneakers, jumping long distances, tearing up things and throwing people when he brushes with authorities. He often uses violence. I guess he was just learning how to adapt to life on planet earth, huh?

I'm strangely drawn to the show today, 16 years after it was cancelled. What's the appeal? I have no clue what it could be besides pure reminiscence.

I have all 13 episodes on DVD, which I bought on goldmonkey.com. They were copied from a less-than-spectacular videocassette. Some even include commercials that weren't cut during the original taping.