fantasyislander65

This is the first pilot film for the television series, and it's often praised by critics (who all seem to love the dark side exhibited by Mr. Roarke in this introductory outing) for its emphasis on the less-than-happy execution and ending. The fantasies looked harmless enough on the surface: a World War II veteran wanted to revisit the interlude he had with a young American woman in London; a rich woman wanted to attend her own funeral, to find out who truly cared about her and who didn't; and a hunter wanted for once to become the hunted. But each story had a twist...did the hapless WWII vet really kill that poor girl in the middle of a bombing raid? Could the rich woman put even the least trust in her relatives, who had good reason to hate her for her overbearing control of the family company? What was the true reason the hunter wanted to be the one under the gun? Roarke teased and taunted sometimes, but when things got down to the wire, he revealed a caring side after all. His midget assistant, Tattoo, looked on with a mysterious gleam in his eye and the barest ghost of a smile, keeping his own counsel. When these two brought your fantasy to life, that was it: you were stuck, and you had to see it through to the bitter end. The concept clicked so well with the TV-viewing public that another pilot movie was filmed, and that led to the weekly series, which went on to run for seven seasons.

If you're familiar with "Fantasy Island" only through the series and think it's just too saccharine, give this movie a whirl (it's available on the first-season DVD of the show). You just might change your mind. (Besides, what's wrong with happy endings? We need more of them in this world!)

I'm gonna say this straight out: "The Brady Bunch" is one of my three all-time favorite TV shows. Don't like it? Go somewhere else.

My father was actually quite a bit like Mike Brady, in mannerisms and in his (usual) patience dealing with me and my brother growing up. Robert Reed may have hated the role with every fiber of his being, but he played Mike with total professionalism while the cameras were running. The problems he had with the show were many, but he kept them all behind the scenes. Why else would America have been so shocked around 1991 when he admitted he couldn't stand the show or his part in it? I wanted Cindy for a sister and I wanted my hair to look like Marcia's. Maureen McCormick and Susan Olsen are my two favorite players in the series. And there were plenty of occasions when I'd have gladly traded my brother for any one of the three Brady boys, especially either Greg or Peter. I myself was probably most like Jan, feeling invisible and confused about her place within the family and, maybe, in life.

For every fan of the Bunch, there are 20 people who like to sneer and make fun of them. That merely goes to prove they just don't get it. These are probably the same people who hang breathlessly on every second of "Fear Factor" and anything Ashton Kutcher was in. (The only thing truly 70s about "That 70s Show" was the set decor -- take it from someone who grew up in the 70s.) Contrary to one comment, there are indeed laughs to be had in this series. In "A Clubhouse is Not a Home", the six kids act exactly the way real-life siblings would act, and that very realism is the source of those laughs -- "Hey, we acted like that too!" And there are hilarious moments in "Peter and the Wolf", where Peter tries to act older than he is and is trying out a fake mustache in the bathroom. He finally lets Jan and Cindy in, informing them he was shaving. Jan's response: "What, your legs??" A great line.

This show is classic Americana. I refuse to watch any of the annoying junk on today's prime-time schedule. The shows I grew up with are much more appealing to me.

Wow, does this one ever bring back some memories. When this was running in prime time all those years back, I was a klutzy, hyper-shy, buck-toothed eleven-year-old with glasses and a boy's haircut, and felt like the original Ugly Duckling. C&T were my favorite musical artists, and I was the world's most rabid fan, which undoubtedly both amused and annoyed my parents by turns. My father had the amazing prescience to suggest, about six weeks into the series' run, that I put the episodes on audio cassette. I immediately agreed, and I have all but about six of the shows on tape as they originally aired. The tapes can still be played.

In regard to the questions from "Otto", most of the shows that made it to the DVD were edited in one way or another (only one or two made it through intact and untouched). But the editing, for the most part, is to the benefit of the DVD. I was in the unusual position of being able to compare my old cassette tapes with the same shows on the DVD, so that I know exactly what's been cut, or what was taken from episodes that didn't make it onto the DVD and spliced into other ones that did. It was the most amazing treat to be able to see the shows again; I had forgotten nearly all the visuals, so that all the songs and dialogue were very familiar but the sights that went with them were practically new to me. There are a couple of bits that got chopped out here and there, which I wish had been left in, but overall this was very good work and is a creditable treatment of the series. Us 70s kids were so much luckier than people think -- I'm glad I remember those days!

I'm a little stunned by all the praise for this show. I am ABSOLUTELY a fan of the original, maybe the biggest one around. I grew up on it; it was my escape from my miserable high-school existence in the late 70s and early 80s. And that's the whole point of a show like this: escape! I wanted to forget about real life for a while and just have a great time, and the premise was the perfect way to do that.

When I first heard about the remake I was interested, even though I was disappointed that Ricardo Montalbán wasn't going to be in it. (For the record, he was never approached, and he made it clear in a TV Guide snippet that he was hurt by this and would have appreciated at least being asked, even if he wasn't able to do it.) When the premiere aired, I tuned in...only to be bitterly disappointed. I shut off the set after McDowell surveyed his closetful of white suits and said, "Burn them." That implied a lack of respect for the original series that I didn't like at all. I tried watching one more episode a few weeks later, but things hadn't gotten any better, and I refused to touch it ever again.

Why did I hate it? For one thing, the above-mentioned lack of respect for the original series. For another, others have mentioned that Roarke and his cronies were very cold and mean-spirited, and I saw that myself in the parts I watched. This man clearly resented doing what he did, made no secret of it, and usually took great pleasure in seeing his guests suffer. He took even more pleasure in seeing -- and causing -- the suffering of his hapless assistants, Harry and Cal. That's not my idea of an enjoyable vacation. And then there was the travel agency. "Let's see, whom can we trick into having their most cherished secret dreams ridiculed and turned into something totally sinister?" The "guests" were forced to come to this island, and then were forced to live out those cherished dreams in the most humiliating way possible.

People keep sneering about how "fluffy" and "silly" the original series was. Excuse me, but what's the matter with that? Are happy endings suddenly taboo? I don't want a show that tells me I shouldn't hope for a happy resolution to my problems or that mocks my innermost dreams. We have more than enough real-life doses of shattered hopes and dreams, mean-spiritedness and general schadenfreude. I don't want it on the TV shows I watch. Seeing this "true-to-life" vision of having a fantasy come to fruition undermines the whole idea of escaping real life. Give me the original "Fantasy Island", with Ricardo Montalbán's benevolent, helpful Mr. Roarke and Hervé Villechaize's cheerful, sympathetic Tattoo, any day over this misbegotten concept.

After reading some of the earlier nasty remarks, I had to put in my two cents. This show was NOT, despite what that goon in Essex thinks, the worst thing that ever aired on TV. I think most of today's TV is much worse (when is this stupid "reality" fad ever going to end??) and there isn't a current show I can stand to watch. Gimme the stuff I grew up with. I'm a 1965 baby and not ashamed to admit it.

This show has been my all-time favorite for almost 30 years. I was in high school when it originally aired and I think it helped me to hang on throughout those miserable days. I was such a misfit back then, and "Fantasy Island" appealed to my imagination. As I was a budding writer in those days, it provided incredible opportunities for me to practice the craft. What a wonderful premise! I won't say it didn't have its faults. Sometimes the scripts were pretty bad, and some of the problems seemed trivial; but it could be good too, and it was a blast to watch and still is. As for the cheesiness factor, well, I think it's unfair to label every single 70s product as cheesy. There was a lot of great stuff back then and this was among the ranks. (BTW, most of the seasons aired in the 80s!!) My favorite episodes came from seasons 2, 3 and 4 mostly.

To those who disparage Hervé Villechaize for his heavy French accent and his short stature: GROW UP and LEARN SOMETHING! It's so easy to make fun when you're "normal" and "perfect". That man made the best of what he was dealt in life, and if you don't like it, that's just tough. Have a little compassion. He's been dead 15 years, and how easy it is to cut down someone who can't defend himself. There's just no shame anymore.

I love this show. So it looks dated. Hate to tell you this, but we didn't have splashy special effects and Blu-Ray discs. We were lucky to have VCRs. Live with it. Accept it for what it is, and that's just plain fun. "Escapist TV" describes it perfectly, and that's what it was for me -- an escape from my rotten real life. And it's still a lot of fun to watch.