ALF Boned the Fish When...

[TMC]

http://www.bonethefish.com/viewtopics.php?445

ALF is a half-hour American television sitcom that originally ran on NBC from 1986 to 1990 and was created by Paul Fusco. The title character was Gordon Shumway, a friendly extraterrestrial nicknamed ALF (for Alien Life Form) who crash lands in the garage of the suburban middle class Tanner family. The series stars Max Wright as father Willie Tanner, Anne Schedeen as mother Kate Tanner, and Andrea Elson and Benji Gregory as their children, Lynn and Brian Tanner. The character of ALF was portrayed by a puppet operated primarily by Fusco, or, in some instances, by dwarf actor Michu Meszaros wearing an ALF costume.

https://web.archive.org/web/20070225...ptheshark.com/

• Other Thoughts:
  
  When I found out Alf was only a puppet with a dwarf in it.
  ALF RULES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
  Never! a great and funny show. My favorite line is "No Problem!!"
  When they couldn't decide whether to use a puppet or a midget to play the alien. I can't believe people still remember this one.
  While some shows went on too long, this show still could have been funny for another two seasons had it been renewed.
  alf was a great show!! he was so cute and funny!! one of my all time childhood favourite shows!!!!
  Never jumped. The comedic interplay between ALF and Willie Tanner is right up there with the likes of Jerry and George.
  When the kid next door found out about ALF.
  The last epesode sucked bad! really bad! whats up with the ending, and oh yeah when it says to be continued, it should be to be continued. and plus why does he have to get caught by the force? shouldnt a great show have a great ending to it? i loved everything about the show except the ending.
  An almost-forgotten classic of the 80's. Why this show didn't jump is a mystery. Conceptually and stylistically it had just about everything going against it, yet somehow it worked.
  A great show. A loveable creature sent to Earth because his planet blew up in a boating accident. One of Alf's best observations is when he questioned why humans put clean clothes into the same laundry basket used to hold the dirty laundry. Who can forget almost every show when Alf tried to eat the cat? More Alf trading cards for everyone.
  When ALF stopped trying to eat Lucky. That was the best part of my childhood - we would crowd around the TV and watch the crazy antics of that lovable furry alien - I still have my ALF teddy bear! He should have eaten Lucky someday!
  I think alf was far superior to most 80's shows, but it definitely jumped the shark when they aired the Christmas special where alf is given to that irritating girl from "our house" and she calls him amanda. on top of everything else, we find out that the irksome girl is dying. there was no laugh track (which is fortunate because it wasn't funny) and we had to look at alf in earrings!
  ALF was a brilliant show, appealing to both kids and adults alike.
  Alf was a great show! Most women didn't appreciate his humor the way men did. The last show was a tremendous let down to loyal Alf fans. I miss the ol' Alfer.
  The Christmas special had to be one of the most compelling Christmas special of 1980s. From the little girl dying, to the old man on the bridge, to Alf delivering the baby. I still tear up just thinking about it. If it did jump though, it would've been the Gilligan's Island episode.
  MOM AND DAUGHTER ARE HOT: DAD AND SON ARE NOT; how can they be related.
  Alf jumped the shark when the cartoon series of it premiered. I thought it was much funnier than the TV show!!! Also, the teenaged daughter was starting to get on my nerves!
  It never did. It was a good show; it could've lasted another 3 or 4 seasons.
  Well there was only one new baby in the show so it's pretty obvious... Also the ending was one of the worst ever in the history of television! It was a great classic and even when I watched it now all over again it was still great catching up on alf. The new baby was redundant though and brought a needless time consuming part to the show. Also the ending was one of the worst ever in the history of television! Come 'on they have no right on writing "To be continued" without really mean it , I waited and waited hoping they will finally screen the continue in which he escapes and reaches his friends on the new colony , but until the movie (which didn't help clear the mess the ending caused and only make it more unobvious by the way) there was nothing. Also the cartoon did make the 'real' show a hard time keeping up and I did like it better I confess...
  This show jumped when they added the horrible Anne Meara joined the cast. This horrible woman makes any show unwatchable.
  Meara should warrant here own section here at Jump The Shark (also her own special place in Hell). She has caused at least 15 different shows to jump, a record that, with the possible exception of Anne Ramsey, will never be broken.
  Why the hell is his name Gordon Schumway when they call him ALF? Why not Gord? Or Gordie? Huh?
  Such a useless show and boring.
  I never ever liked the show Alf, it was not funny and Alf always wanting to eat the cat seemed far fethced, but as usual adding a baby to the show made it worse.
  it was kinda funny, but no one from the show was in it besides Alf, which sucked.
  When they changed ALF's voice - was that a new guy or the old guy with a permanent cold??
  The show jumped after the episode with the great line "Go for it Willie!!!" classic!
  That was the dumbest family in America
  After the series was cancelled, the did a movie of the week and the Tanners were not in the movie
  When ALF started to wear shirts, and they were Hawaiian shirts to boot.
  Gordon Chumway from Melmac. he was the best prime time puppet that ever was manufactured. and his short lived cartoon series wasn't bad either.
  As soon as Kate gave birth to the new baby, all the show could focus upon was the little brat!
  O.K., I buy the premise of a guy's hand in a sock masquerading as an alien, living with a nuclear American family, but couldn't they get an actor that didn't sound like he had a penis in stuck his throat? I guess if it jumps from scene one, it never jumped?
  NEVER!! IT is the best show in the world!! LUV YA ALF!
  This show never did I loved that hairy little alien It was great now your lucky to even see a rerun of it!
  when alf becomes a friend to all the humans.
  Alf never jumped! I don't know why they took it off air, that was my favorite show, and the only thing me and my brother could agree on.
  The Christmas Alf special was a reverse "Jump the Shark". This episode taught us what Alf could have been. The writers and producers should have realized that they could have moved Alf from situation to situation rather than leave him in the most boring house on this planet. This could have been one of the better shows on network TV. I wish that someone would have the guts to bring Alf back in a better format. I loved that character and his mannerisms.
  Combination of Eric being born and Jim J. Bullock entering the show.
  You knew the show was just about done when they had baby Eric and the plots kept cycling, but hey, what can you really creatively do with a little alien. Oh, and when Alf dated that blind lady, HELLO!
  I was disappointed when ALF was cancelled, but now, ten years later, I think it was the right move. The "new baby" plotline, and the adding of Jim J. Bullock to the cast in the fourth and final season were obvious signs that the writers had run out of ideas. If ALF had been renewed for a fifth season, it would either have continued going downhill, or would have just kept repeating itself like any other series that stays on the air too long.
  When Lucky died it showed Alf softening up to his cat eating stance. The only thing that kept the show going after that was the commercial interludes. ie: Before you get up for that final snack; I want you to know I got your cat!
  This was a funny-azz show. Watched it every week!!
  This was always one of my favorite shows, but I feel that ALF "Jumped The Shark" when Jim J. Bullock became a regular. The show died later that year.
  Never jumped! Alf chasing that cat down in the opening credits started every episode off with a bang. Where oh where are the reruns of this show???
  I just wanted to say that this was a great show, but I do think that it is past it's time ... it was fun while it lasted.
  When Jm J. Bullock joined the cast--EEECH!!! Then that stupid Gerald McCraney show was on opposite it & it started getting KILLED in the ratings...F Jm J. Bullock!!!!!
  when jim jm bullock joined the cast!!!! came close to jumping when alf's voice got higher but recovered just by the hair of his burnt sienna chinny chin chin.
  Does it count as a reunion movie if only one character from the original series appears?
  When ALF and the Tanner family got overly paranoid about the environment, I stopped watching the show. I remember something about a company where Willy went to argue with boss about the company's environmental standards or some crap....anyway it was the longest half hour of television I have ever watched. They took a turn for the serious like Fresh Prince when Phil had a heart attack, or Carlton took speed, or Will's dad took off. Why be so damn serious in a sitcom? It's an partying alien for crying out loud! I want belches, not a lecture about recycling!!
  Alf jumped the shark when Alf tried to do stand up comedy. Anyone remember that? He used the catchphrase "No, really" in a monotonous voice. It's forever been stuck in my head.
  This show jumped the day they had to do what all of those 80's shows did, and add a baby. The show was good enough without resorting to bogus **** like that. Otherwise, this show was hilarious. ALF himself was cool, and Willie Tanner may have been the best straight man in TV history. FYI, Max Wright (who played Willie) now plays an awesome straight man again opposite Norm MacDonald on his show. That daughter (Lynn) was absolutely gorgeous. I felt like beating it every time I saw her--she needed to wear significantly less clothing, but never did. I just saw her in an issue of People when they did a "Where Are They Now?" story and she's 31 now and still unf@#*ingbelievable.
  I'd like to say this never jumped, but that dam'n newborn baby. What did that have to do with anything? There was absolutely no reason for it. Unlike most shows that run out of material at about the 50-75 episode mark, there was unlimited material there. Why did they need a baby. There were some bad episodes: amanda, final episode, but that does not equate with shark bait. So my vote in NO JUMP. but the producers/writers were scaring me with some of their choices. As long as at least twice an episode I could hear, "Hey Willie!", I was ok.
  Basically, when JM J. Bullock joined the show, ALF jumped the shark...I don't remember laughing at all during most of the last season. It just wasn't funny anymore.
  The show jumped when NBC started to insert pictures of the American Flag during the Gulf War. I like alien puppets and I love my country, but I dont need a brown muppet brainwashing me.
  The nephew or whatever of the neighbors became the first person on the show besides the immediate family to find out about Alf.
  As soon as Alf started wearing those ****s I knew it was over!
  Alf never jumped, it was absolutely hysterical and could have easily ran for a couple of more seasons. I can't believe all the ridiculous shows that are played in syndication by cable channels but I can't find Alf !!
  ALF jumped the shark when they brought in Jim J. Bullock (the kid next door). Great show till then!!
  Hi. I'd have to say that ALF officially, once-and-for-all jumped the shark when Willie's idiot brother (JM J. Bullock) joined the cast. To make matters worse, though, the younger Tanner brother brought along a soon-to-be ex-wife (Allyce Beasley--yes, Miss DiPesto from Moonlighting). To the person who said JM J. Bollocks--I mean Bullock, sorry--was the kid next door: wrong, but thanks for playing. Jake Ochmonek (the kid next door, and nephew of Trevor and Raquel Ochmonek) was played by Josh Blake. That brings up another question. If the Tanners were so freaked about people meeting Mr. Shumway, why didn't they seem to care when Jake started hanging around?
  I hate Alf with the fire of a thousand suns. In fact, I now have evidence that proves Alf was merely a tool to slowly rot the brains of America's youth.
  They made a two hour, made for television movie with ALF ditching his family and riding around with a lame pair of scientists. NBC sure has a nasty habit of taking our fond memories of shows from the 80's and flushing 'em right down the crapper with a TV movie. Remember Knight Rider 2000? Or The Facts of Life in Africa? Or this? ALF had left his family behind (understandable... around this time Max Wright went nuts on Spielberg's cop show High Incident. He was smart to get the hell out of there!) and was traveling around with a pair of scientists with the combined personality of a radish. I don't know how this film ended... I'm just glad it did. However, I liked the ALF cartoon. It was nice to see the Gordster on his home planet... in fact, it was nice to SEE his home planet, after listening to all the oddball descriptions of it on the sitcom.
  worse show ever....everyone who watched this show need to be rounded up and to whatever stupid freakin planet that sock puppet was supposed to be from!
  When Alf stopped trying to eat the cat and stopped drinking beer to cater to a younger audience it lost its cutting edge humor.
  After the first season - Alf's voice changed, along with his attitude. The first season portrayed a bewildered alien trying to function by the rules as he observed then - providing social commentary of the likes only today seen on the Simpsons. Subsequent seasons just had a furry clown who, btw, would have gone the way of Spewey on Get a Life in my household. Third Rock tried the same formula, and jumped the same shark - probably on the first episode. By the way, didn't the horrible Gilligan's Island episode kick off the second season?
  never jumped... i don't care what anybody says...ALF was... well ALF was just that... ALF a cat-eating, hair tangling, space-traveling, highly intelligent rodney dangerfield alien of sorts...
  The last episode by far was the most unfair one. Here in Peru the last episodes were running very close to the american airing, the very same year of 1990. Sundays at 6PM (I still remember very well) When I was ready to start to watch new episodes so close to the american ones, POOOF! No more Alf. I'm not happy NBC. And yeah the stupid brother of Willy didn't appeal to me.
  Lame TV movies aside, ALF never reached that point of unwatchability that so many other sitcoms seem to sink to.
  This show was horrible. I can't believe there are this many people willing to admit that they liked it. Go and watch the movie "Permanent Midnight". It's about Jerry Stahl, who was one of the writers on the show. He was a raging crackhead junkie, and yet he was still able to spew out this mindless sitcom crap. That should tell you something about the effort that was required to write for this show.
  Why the hell did Alf have to wear a sweatshirt? Was he balding? Was the puppet getting ragged and they didn't have the budget for a new coat of fake fur? This kind of coincided with the period when they had to introduce the pregnancy plotline. It also coincided with the period when the show stopped being funny altogether.
  Alf was an amazingly funny show. It started jumping the shark in the last year when he started getting human afflictions (cotton addiction instead of cocaine etc), as well as the horrible last episode. Overall, one of my favorite characters ever. Alf was arrogant beyond belief, a know-it-all who could get away with it. My favorite scenes included: 1) After going on a food binge, Alf is sick and sitting in the bathtub, talking to Willie Alf: I ate your laxative on a rope Willie: You mean soap on a rope Alf: Trust me on this one!! 2) Alf takes offense at Willie mocking planet Melmac. "I don't make fun of the stupid institutions on your planet - Electoral College - what a joke!! 3) Lynn, the hot daughter, is talking to her friend on the phone. "It's tough getting over a breakup. Trust me, you'll feel better once the bitterness sets in." 4) After seeing Willie and Kate's earlier hippie movies, Alf accuses Willie of "Selling out". When Willie gets pissed and walks out of the room, Alf says to the camera, "Boy, insult a guy's integrity and belief system and he gets upset" I also could never watch Seinfeld without seeing the actress playing his mother and not think that the same woman was playing the nosy neighbor on a show with a puppet.
  This was the funniest show of the 80's. I downloaded a few to my computer recently and still laugh out loud watching it. One of the funniest lines is Willie talking to Lucky "Your not a bagel". Alf rocks!!!!!
  Alf jumped the shark when he sold out and did 10-10-220 commercials!
  WHO'S BRIGHT IDEA WAS IT FOR ALF TO BE CAPTURED. I MEAN REALLY FOLKS GET A HOLD OF YOURSELVES, IT JUST RUINED THE END FOR EVERYONE!!! I THINK THE TANNERS SHOULD OF WENT TO MELMAC WITH HIM THEN THEY ALL COULD OF LIVED IN PIECE WITHOUT HAVING TO PROTECT ALF AND THE RISK OF BEING CAPTURED AND THEY'RE LIVES BEING IN DANGER. IN THE WORDS OF STEPHANIE JUDITH TANNER, HOW RUDE!!!!
  Alf and Terry Bradshaw and those 10-10-220 commercials. alf admits that a dollar is worth something but his credibility is not... and by now wouldn't you think that alf would have learned that it is not acceptable to eat cats in western society?
  I can't believe that my favorite "Alien Life Form" has sunk to the depths of David Arquette, Carrot Top, and Arsenio Hall by shilling for a "save-you-friend-or-loved-one-money-on-your-collect-call" company. WHY?!
  Never jumped! I think the premise of Alf trying to eat the family's cat was hilarious. Somewhat of a metaphor also I suspect.
  I think people are taking this show wayyyy too seriously. It was a goofy sitcom about a wisecracking alien; who cares if various elements made sense or not? ALF's voice alone was enough to crack me up, and the puppet definitely had the best lines every show. Also, I don't think there's been nearly enough praise of the daughter, Lynn. What-a-hottie! She alone was worth tuning in for. I had the biggest crush on her, probably the last time I had a crush on a TV character. It's a shame she's not still in the business.
  Never before have I said this on "jump the shark" but here it goes: ALF jumped the shark from DAY ONE. Alf was an adorable extra terrestrial, but this family he surrounded himself with was more boring than the one on SMALL WONDER. I can't figure out who the alien life form was, but it certainly wasn't ALF.
  Once I would have said never, but having just seen some of the reruns I have to say this show lost a lot of bite when Eric was born. Alf had some classic lines in the early years but everything got really tame when the family got bigger.
  The point at which Alf jumped the shark was when Alf got hooked on eating cotton. It was probably the most overbearing and over-moralizing anti-drug episode I have ever seen. However, it is one of the few shows on TV where the cartoon version was better than the original series. "Alf Tales" took fairy tales and other such stories and warped them to fit into the Alf universe. The show included some of the most warped dirty jokes I have seen on a kids cartoon. (In the Alf Tales version of Peter Pan they had the line "A boy's best friend is his fairy, until he finds a girl.")
  as mentioned already, the ending show was pretty bad. however, i,too miss alf. one of the greatest smart-asses ever. my favorite alf line: at a halloween party to a girl dressed as a cowboy: hey, nice calves,cowgirl.
  Day one. I hated this horrible show. I couldn't stand monday night television because this stupid show. My boyfriend was a big fan of the show and he can't understand why I never liked it. For lack of anything better to say, I pointed out that Alf looked like a penis. My boyfriend broke into hysterical laughter before getting serious and pointing out that Alf was always trying to eat the cat (wink wink). Those producers were perverts!
  I never could understand why ALF lasted as long as it did because it's JUST NOT FUNNY!!! ALF was basically a walking disaster area cracking lame jokes. I'm surprised the family didn't kick his furry ass out a long time ago. Even his little Johnny Carson tribute (anyone remember that one?) was pathetic. Now 10-10-220 has the gall to bring him back. WHY??? Was there some outcry to bring ALF back that I didn't know about? "Ha, ha! I kill me!" No, Alf, you killing us! And it's pure torture!! Time for the shark to munch on the cat-eater.
  The last episode where Alf gets captured by the government was the worst cliffhanger ever. At least make an episode the next year to have him saved. Then they make a lame movie...that sucked like 10 years later. Poor Alf now he's slumming making commercials with Terry Bradshaw.
  Alf freaking out because Mom's gonna have a baby. After Alf passes out Willie introduces him to his "new" son. It was over for the old Alfer after that. "Hey Willie! That show WASN'T a riot!"
  ALF was one of my favorite shows, but it jumped the shark when they had the baby. Also, adding Jm. J. Bullock to the cast as Willie's brother was a low point. The "Project ALF" movie was also truly bad. I bet Martin Sheen doesn't put this one on his resume.
  I think that Alf was a great show because it had comedy and was very clean. I could watch it with my younger brother without worrying about language or violence, etc. It was a show that we both understood, even with the age difference. I dont understand why they dont play it as much as they used to, because it really beats some of the other shows out there today.
  He blew up the kitchen! Then his smoking body flew though the living room. Then, get this, the episode turned into a heavy-handed commentary on oven safety. Oven safety! Like, oh sure, you've travelled millions of miles through space using advanced alien technology, but don't use the oven unless there's an adult present. And then it goes back to funny when Willie says "and for goodness sakes stop trying to eat the cat!"
  How anyone could tolerate this wiseass little freak is alien to me. Just a glimpse of the smarmy, be-furred moron is enough to send me scampering into the tool shed to find suitable instruments to rip his gurning, unfunny mug from it's acrylic roots. The show would have been seriously improved had it not been called ALF and, indeed, not included HIM as the main character! Maybe he could've been included as a bit part actor seen in the background once a show being mauled by dogs or in the washing machine or similar such incidents. A travesty of a show and a prime example of the puppet genre taking it a step too far.
  This show premiered when I was in high school, and I remember most of my classmates being in awe of Alf, dissecting the episode the morning after it aired and repeating their favourite lines. As someone who was more of a "Cheers" and "All in the Family" kinda guy, I hadn't really bothered tuning in, but I thought I would check it out, just out of curiosity. What I saw was the lamest, most banal of sitcoms trotting out every tired trick in the book. Not an ounce of originality, just stock situations dressed up in a puppet with a pseudo-attitude. I guess NBC were looking for a gimmick, and they certainly found it in Alf. I kept my opinions to myself at the time, but tried to steer my teenaged peers towards more intellectually stimulating television fare. Didn't work - I had taste, they didn't. The story of North America.
  Alf was always kind of humorous in a strange kind of way. I was okay with him until he tried to tell me I can save money using 10-10-220. How stupid is this creature? Doesn't he realize if you get a busy signal, you still pay 99 cents? What an idiot. I hope the shark enjoyed his ALF Sandwich for dinner tonight!
  THE ROACH FROM MELMAC. HE KEPT SPRAYING IT WITH THE GOOD PERFUME AND IT GOT BIGGER & BIGGER....THEN WHEN HE SPRAY WITH THE CHEAP STUFF. IT KILLED IT. TOO FUNNY
  High quality writing from that crack-head guy they later made a movie about called "Permanent Midnight". I thought the show was stupid until I watched it. The actress who played the mom, Anne Schedeen, was totally hot.
  When alf made that stupid video- "Your the One Thats Out Of this World--Sweet Baby!" Holy crap, I still can't get it out of my head
  As if Jm J Bullock wasn't bad enough; then they had to have the Ochmanek's nephew show up. I believe he was Jon Cryer's brother on "the Famous Teddy Z."
  When I went to school wearing an ALF shirt, it first provoked ridicule. During the first recess I started getting beaten up until a vigilant teacher intervened. The kids helpfully informed me that "ALF sucks", which was news to me. Just a few weeks prior, kids were quoting lines from the show like it was Star Wars or something. At lunch, I ran for my life all the way home, chased by a mob of about 15 kids--some of whom were girls. Needless to say I changed shirts before returning for afternoon class. Later on, I got beaten up for reasons unknown to me.
  It's been a few years, but I seem to recall promos for "A Very Special Alf." That is about the equivalent of 'A Very Special Cop Rock,' or 'A Very Special My Mother the Car.' I think the idea was that 'Alf' was a parody of other TV shows. Ditto the other guy's remarks about Ann Schedeen!
  Alf is truly one of the great philosophers of our time. A great character, a great concept, great writers, but not so great if you're a cat!. It looks like Alf is making a comeback in telephone (?) commercials, maybe he's getting tired of life on Melmac. I say bring back Alf!
  It's hard to pinpoint exactly when "ALF" went from a show about a boorish anti-Muppet ridiculing the dullest family in America to a cutesy show that became "family friendly." As an aside, the same thing happened to "Home Improvement" as well. I think it was when ALF's voice went up roughly an octave; low voices frighten little kids. Coincidently, this is when the audience was introduced to Jake Ochmoneck (some Ralph Macchio wannabe), JM J. Bullock as Willie's "special" cousin, and Major Healy as ALF's shrink. The show became cute, and more people knew ALF existed, destroying the original premise. In all fairness, how many plotlines, although impressively written by a fully-functional drug addict, can revolve around a shut-in alien?
  Jumped when Alf stopped drinking beer and trying to eat the cat. I vaguely remember Jm J Bullock showing up; always a bad sign. Most episodes even after the jump were still funny because of Max Wright and his increasingly insane reactions to Alf. “Hey Willie! Did you have that stroke yet?”
  I don't care what anybody says. A smart-ass puppet on a tv sitcom will ALWAYS be funny. Best parts about the show...The never-ending chases for Lucky, the WAX LIPS episode (I don't know why nobody has mentioned that one) ALF knocking Lynn's boyfriend for the way he pronounces his name "La-Lyod" and ALF being a crazy party animal type were all classic parts to the series. Yes, yes anytime a baby is added is when the show has officially run out of ideas SEE: FAMILY TIES, but overall a great series. "Before you get up for that final snack, I want you to know I'VE GOT YOUR CAT! HA!!
  The new baby and the Jim J. Bullock 1-2 combination killed the show but Alf was pretty funny is his own time. The way he would drive Willie crazy and how he would destroy everything was great. My favorite was the time Alf & Willie were going through Alf's spaceship and Willie opened a capsule while Alf said,"Don't touch that tube, it has nuclear material that could end all life on earth." Willie goes into a seizure, Alf picks up the capsule with caution. "Oh wait... those are just my crayons." Crayons and nuclear waste, what a combo. But I have a lingering question, are the ALF Tanners any relation the to Full House Tanners?
  When the new neighbors moved in and suddenly were made wise to ALF, then the show made the big mistake! It ignored a premise upon which it built its success. One of the joys of ALF was that he was a secret only the Tanners were wise to and they had to keep him a secret for his protection. Once you start making exceptions to the rule in order to spark interest in your show, then you have obviously exhausted the creative talent and its time to either get new writers or end it right there. The viewers were brought into the show thinking it was just them and the Tanners who knew about ALF. Break that trust and you start to lose what made you special.
  "Alf" just got old over time, but that doesn't mean it wasn't hysterically funny for what it was. TV sitcoms had (have) a long tradition of dragging the absurd to the forefront and making a series comedy out of it. "Mister Ed"? "My Favorite Martian"? "Bewitched"? etc etc. Alf was one of the best examples of this and was, for a short time, one of the funniest sitcoms of the 80s. The first year or two was laugh out loud hilarity and the rest of the series was still better than average. Max Wright has long been overlooked as one of the most brilliant straight-men of my generation and he proved it through the entire run of "Alf". There was at least one time per episode where Willie would get so angry and frustrated with Alf that you thought his head was going to explode. Wright really did look like he was on the verge of a nervous breakdown, an aneurysm, a heart attack and a stroke, not necessarily in that order. He was totally off the wall and absurd in his reactions to Alf's antics; it was classic! Alf himself was much funnier in the early days before he got a little soft, but I've grown used to popular TV shows wussing out over the years so it came as no surprise. Why isn't "Alf" anywhere to be found in syndication? People remember him; witness the phone commercials. I could swear "Alf" WAS in syndication at one time, so it's not a case of the copyright holders "holding out" on us... or is it? Hell, Nick at Nite shows FOUR Cosby episodes during the prime N@N timeslots. You can't tell me "Alf" wouldn't pull in at LEAST the same ratings numbers as tired old Cosby does!
  Alf rocks. Granted the whole premise was pretty stupid and the family was dim witted but doesn't everyone enjoy a smartass puppet now and then? I could do without him plugging AT&T though. Let the ALF memory fade in peace!!
  The show never jumped even though Jim J Bullock and the baby took some wind out of its sails. I was fortunate enough to get a bunch of episodes from season two on tape by a family member who stumbled upon a marathon on the Odyssey Network years ago. Alf lives to this day and for the record - Lynne (the sister) was YUMMY. The relationship between Willie and the old Alfer was the bond that held this show together. Willie really was an idiot though. The neighbors were a little annoying but added a little spice to the mix. Not one of the best shows of its time but truly one people will be talking about years from now. Heck as you know he's resurfaced on commercials. I proudly own two alf stuffed animals (one that talks!) and they're in great shape. I'd never part with them but I wonder what they'd get on Ebay? I loved ALF.
  The Dad on ALF was possibly the most annoying character on television ever (the entire cast of Blossom come a close second.) "Yo willy!" The guy was an uptight, over bearing, charmless goon. The fact he had a wife, let alone a family, let alone an alien, let alone a freakin' t.v series is one of the universe's true mysteries.
  this show jumped when the mother (played by meara) and willie's brother (bullock) joined the cast. i can't stand watching either of them on tv! it's so annoying! ugh!
  OK... ALF wasn't exactly edgy, or even brilliant, and when I first saw this show-the first episode, I was surprised that I liked it. Even more surprised that my Mom and my aunt liked it. If you mindlessly allowed yourself to accept the premise, it was a good show, and I agree with the poster that said William Tanner was a great straight man. Then one Christmas season, while strolling the mall with my friends, I noticed all this ALF merchandise. It was cute, and I even wanted an ALF doll. However, it was around that time too, that I realized something. ALF was no longer after the cat. He was wearing a shirt, and he had his own cartoon. The story lines on the sit com became more "family" oriented, and there was too much wisdom being tossed casually around. That's when it jumped. It started catering to children too much, rather than the whole audience.
  I'm not going to say this was the highest-quality show ever made, but it definitely had some funny moments that have stuck with me over the years. I remember a scene where Alf calls out to Willy from the kitchen, "So, Willy, did you say that I should or I shouldn't get hair in the peanut butter...?" Also the one where Alf has used Willy's razor and Willy launches into the speech, "Alf, remember that talk we had about being considerate? That was not considerate. That was the opposite of considerate. That was inconsiderate!" Hehehe...
  ALF's personality seemed to die when the voice changed. I don't recall when that was exactly. I kept watching for Anne Schedeen and Andrea Elson who were both wholesome and complete hotties. The cartoon series was excellent. Bouilliabaseball was something you just needed to see for yourself. All of the cast additions: Jake, Willy's brother, Anne Meara etc were well after JTS but for a "high-concept" show we have to cut them some slack. It was about a puppet-alien living with a dull family. What's there to analyze? Either get it or don't.
  This show NEVER jumped. As another poster commented, this show actually ended too early. There was so much more this show could have done. I wish Nick at Nite or some other station would replay Alf episodes. Also, I cannot believe there are no DVDs out there with Alf episodes.
  Why in the world is the "guy" is making a comeback. I can already see Alf, the reunion special talking about what the "cast" has been up to and for crying out loud if I see Alf with Terry Bradshaw or Mike Piazza again I'll scream.
  Jumped at the very end with the new baby. Nothing like a new tax deduction around the house to CHANGE THINGS! Prior to that, however, Alf was hilarious. I'm not a fan of goofy puppets, but Alf could say and do things that us mere mortals could not. Therein lies the humor. And that voice! It had Gordon Schumway written all over it. At the time I used to host an all-night radio show at a local radio station and I'd solicit calls from fellow Alf fans and let me tell you they were legion! And the sound bites were MADE for TV. Best Actor: Long suffering Willie... perfect foil for Alf. Best Actress: Who cares... Lynn was HOT! Whew... I LOVED her. Even with braces, she was hot! Where is she now? Is she still attractive, or did she morph into something horrible like all the Brady kids (except Marcia)? Best Line: Willie: "Where's Lynn?" ALF: "She's upstairs watching the tube. It's a rerun of Bonanza... she's trying to catch a glimpse of Michael Landon's chest hair." The show rocked! Good to see Alf on the telephone commercials. BRING THIS SHOW BACK... IT WAS ONLY A FOUR YEAR RUN!!!!!!!!!!
  there cannot be any actors more annoying than bullock and meara. sorry, thats just my opinion. they made the show "jump the shark". of course there were other elements but this is what did it for me. what i dont understand is what some people had against the little neighbor boy, jake. i thought he was cute. and a really good actor btw. anyway back to my point: the show basically jumped the shark when when willie's brother, and kate's mother joined the cast. both of them, they both killed the show for me. sorry
  The season Lucky died and Alf swore off eating cats (after seeing a kitten), he lost some of his edginess. The series was pretty much doomed.
  I cannot believe the show lasted as long as it did. The voice of Alf was annoying and still is. Also, that horrible, wimpy dad on the show was more than enough for me to know never, ever watch such trash.
  ALF jumped from day one. The people at NBC came up with a great character in ALF. He was funny and endearing and had all the best lines, but the cast around him and the stories written for him were lame, lame, and lame. One character does not a show make. Watching the Tanners was about as exciting as watching grass grow. Th eonly thing I found amusing about ALF was that he always wanted to eat the cat.
  I still remember the episode where Alf tosses biscuits into the living room while hiding in the kitchen. They would hit the dad in the head. I still think about how funny that was.
  ALF was one of the weirdest shows is TV history. The family he lived with were, well, robots. At least they acted like robots. The show received a lot of bad press during its primetime run. Well, as much as I hate to admit it, I actually liked it. It could be funny at times. I don't think it jumped the shark even with Anne Meara and Jm J Bullock added to the cast. I even liked ALF'S talk show on TV Land. That's all I have to say about ALF.
  When they made the last episode of the season a cliffhanger and then the show got cancelled. About 10 years ago they finally resolved it with a TV movie, but nobody cared anymore.
  Alf was a pretty enjoyable television program for the first three or so years, but they seemed to run out of plots in the last year, not to say the last year was terrible but it had a lot of rather crummy episodes, so I must put my vote in for season 4.
  Alf was some seriously good t.v. I idolized him when I was young (I was a strange kid), and I love watching him on DVD now, because as an adult I catch all the jokes. Just the sound of his voice makes me giggle. I can't say that I'm all that fond of the supporting cast. I often wonder how they figured that Max Wright and Anne Schedeen worked as a couple. It isn't their looks or anything, they just don't fit together.But that's alright, because the show was about that awesome feline craving alien, and he made it awesome. "Good Night Mrs Ochmonek, wherever you are!"