In 1985, the media group Chrysalis produced a daringly original made for T.V. movie, about a dystopia future ruled by television networks who fought a brutal battle for ratings. A new form of advertising that had the side-effect of casing spontaneous human combustion in certain viewer was uncovered by television reported Edison Carter(Matt Frewer), who discovers this insidious tool after doing some snooping in Network 23's science and development center and tries to warn the authorities. He is chased out of the Network by security, and in the process puts himself into a coma after running into a low-clearance sign. In an attempt to keep Edison on ice, a synaptic dump of his memory is performed and a computer generated replacement is created. That was the origin of Max Headroom.
I vaguely remember Max being on in grade school. I was about 6 years old when the American remake was on network television, but never really knew what it was about. But Max would appear on MTV, advertisements for soft drinks, and other forms of media. I had all but forgotten about Max until I was at Vincennes University in the early 200os, and saw the original British edition there on the video rack at the local video store, but at the time, I didn't watch it. When I was in my early 30s, and with the compliments of YouTube, I finally got a chance to travel 20 minutes into the future, and was instantly hooked. The fact I am an 80s child is not the only thing that I like about this series. It was smart television--maybe a little too smart, and daring, especially for the 'me' generation. It dared to act as a retort to the media saturated world around it, and the importance of having individuality in a world that is continually superficial. Like Howard Beale of Network, Max Headroom routinely mocked his corporate masters and sponsors with an unapologetic sarcasm.
Maybe that was the biggest draw to Max: he was a rebel with a cause, and startling funny. Plus, he looked like no other media personality the world had ever seen before. The bizarre,blonde-haired stuttering CGI creation turned more than a few heads, though the character itself was Matt Frewer in heavy prosthetic make-up: the CGI in 1987 was not quite up to the standards to make a completely CGI Max, it would take another half a decade for that to be possible. Still, the series was ground-breaking in its own right, and the character was one of the most recognizable 1980s icons of the time, right up there with ALF, Mr. T, and so on. Max has all but faded into obscurity in the past 20 or so years, but the few that were there when he first breathed life(so to speak) will remember just how hip, smart, and innovative the series really was. If anything, Max is even more relevant today, in our existence where people cannot even go to the pot without their cellphone in hand. It might be interesting to see a Max Headroom reboot, but I personally think it was best in the past. The series, only 2 seasons long, began to feel tired after that short run, and I feel that a 'modern' Max Headroom wouldn't really work. But for fans of the original series, like myself, Max remains an interesting artifact from the 1980s that was every bit as important in ushering in the digital revolution at was Toy Story or Jurassic Park. Well, memories never die even if good T.V. is a dying art. I'll S-S-See you later!
I vaguely remember Max being on in grade school. I was about 6 years old when the American remake was on network television, but never really knew what it was about. But Max would appear on MTV, advertisements for soft drinks, and other forms of media. I had all but forgotten about Max until I was at Vincennes University in the early 200os, and saw the original British edition there on the video rack at the local video store, but at the time, I didn't watch it. When I was in my early 30s, and with the compliments of YouTube, I finally got a chance to travel 20 minutes into the future, and was instantly hooked. The fact I am an 80s child is not the only thing that I like about this series. It was smart television--maybe a little too smart, and daring, especially for the 'me' generation. It dared to act as a retort to the media saturated world around it, and the importance of having individuality in a world that is continually superficial. Like Howard Beale of Network, Max Headroom routinely mocked his corporate masters and sponsors with an unapologetic sarcasm.
Maybe that was the biggest draw to Max: he was a rebel with a cause, and startling funny. Plus, he looked like no other media personality the world had ever seen before. The bizarre,blonde-haired stuttering CGI creation turned more than a few heads, though the character itself was Matt Frewer in heavy prosthetic make-up: the CGI in 1987 was not quite up to the standards to make a completely CGI Max, it would take another half a decade for that to be possible. Still, the series was ground-breaking in its own right, and the character was one of the most recognizable 1980s icons of the time, right up there with ALF, Mr. T, and so on. Max has all but faded into obscurity in the past 20 or so years, but the few that were there when he first breathed life(so to speak) will remember just how hip, smart, and innovative the series really was. If anything, Max is even more relevant today, in our existence where people cannot even go to the pot without their cellphone in hand. It might be interesting to see a Max Headroom reboot, but I personally think it was best in the past. The series, only 2 seasons long, began to feel tired after that short run, and I feel that a 'modern' Max Headroom wouldn't really work. But for fans of the original series, like myself, Max remains an interesting artifact from the 1980s that was every bit as important in ushering in the digital revolution at was Toy Story or Jurassic Park. Well, memories never die even if good T.V. is a dying art. I'll S-S-See you later!