After the monstrous success of E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial in 1982, Steven Spielberg had an interesting idea for his newly-formed Amblin Entertainment: Why not produce and supervise a throwback to those beloved anthology shows from the 1950s and ‘60s, ala The Twilight Zone or The Outer Limits or Night Gallery (which helped launch Spielberg's own career)? Along with co-series creators Joshua Brand and John Falsey, he conceived of a series that would attract many fellow big-screen directors to lend their talents to half-hour television, as well as offer a place for young directors to stretch their legs and actors who wished to move behind the camera. Given a then-astonishing million-dollar budget per episode, Amazing Stories had all the eye-candy one could expect, plus big-celeb casting coups and one of the most astonishing collections of film composers ever to lend their work to a single series.

So, then, why, after months of feverish hype from the show's parent network, NBC, did it fail to capture the minds of audiences or critics? Granted, all anthology shows have their creative ups and downs, and asking audiences to abandon the popular Sunday night time-slot rival, Murder She Wrote, was not the smartest decision. But, for all its faults, Amazing Stories, at its scattershot best, offered up some very fine entertainment.

A rundown of the 24 episodes in this set which comprises the first of the show's two seasons:

Disc One:
Ghost Train - Spielberg came up with the story and personally directed the initial episode of the series, a somewhat saccharine fable about an old man (Roberts Blossom), who convinces his grandson (Witness moppet Lukas Haas) that the train he accidentally caused the derailment of 75 years earlier has finally come around to pick up its long-overdue final passenger. This slight segment looks and sounds great (shot by Allen Daviau, whimsically scored by John Williams, who also provided the show's memorable theme music), but, once you've heard the title, you pretty much know how this one will end. **1/2

The Main Attraction - Amusing high school satire about a popular jock (John Scott Cough) who finds his natural magnetism magnified when an encounter with a meteorite turns him into a science experiment run amok. It’s silly, but agreeably performed and written (partially by future Iron Giant and The Incredibles auteur Brad Bird). A farce that's good, goofy fun. ***

Alamo Jobe - Obvious fantasy about a young boy (Kelly Reno from The Black Stallion) who is sent from an under-siege Alamo in 1836 in order to summon help, and ends up in modern day San Antonio (dig the hilariously dated scene where Jobe gets his coonskin cap swiped by a breakdancer!) instead. James Horner's score is exciting, but, like a lot of the show's episodes, once its premise is set up, there's not much left to the narrative. **1/2

Mummy, Daddy - Of all the show's purely comedic episodes, this is probably the funniest. It’s an energetic romp about an actor in a cheesy, low-budget horror film (Bronson Pinchot plays the Spielbergesque director, with an actress who bears an uncanny resemblance to Kate Capshaw as his assistant) who rushes off to the hospital when his wife goes into labor, but neglects to shed his mummy costume beforehand, causing a posse of movie-addled rednecks to form a lynch mob. Directed by William Dear (Harry And The Hendersons), and featuring a very early score by Danny Elfman (with assistance from Steve Bartek), this is one of the show's high points. ***1/2

The Mission - The sole hour-long episode of the first season, Spielberg steps behind the camera again (for the last time in the series) for this thrilling tale of a World War II bomber that sustains heavy damage to its undercarriage during a raid, trapping a "jinxed" gunner (Casey Siemaszko) in the bomber's belly-gunner turret and ripping the landing gear to shreds. The captain (Kevin Costner) and fellow crewmembers (including a teenage, pre-Bauer Kiefer Sutherland) wrack their brains for a solution as their fuel and options dwindle. Boasting a spectacular score by John Williams and a taut teleplay by Menno Meyjes (from an outline by Spielberg), it's a gripping hour that will probably be made or broken for many viewers by its fanciful concluding moments. ****

The Amazing Falsworth - The late Gregory Hines portrays a popular psychic who seeks out the bad thoughts of a serial killer somewhere in the audience of his nightclub act in this creepy effort from director Peter Hyams. It's not terribly complex, but offers a strangulation sequence that was shocking by the standards if mid-‘80s network television and an eerie score by Billy Goldenberg. ***1/2

Disc Two:
Fine Tuning - Cute comic fantasy about a genius high school student (Matthew Laborteaux) whose attempt to boost the signal of his television set brings him into contact with a gaggle of aliens who have intercepted old television signals from Earth and are about to land in Hollywood as intergalactic tourists! Would make an amusing double-feature with the same year's similarly-themed Joe Dante feature, Explorers. **1/2

Mr. Magic - A nice performance by Sid Ceasar buoys this episode about an aging vaudeville performer and magician who finds a perfect window into retirement via an enchanted deck of playing cards. Nothing special, but solid. **1/2

Guilt Trip - The show's first big turkey, this ghastly, ill-conceived stinker features Dom DeLuise as the spectre of Guilt who's sent on a vacation cruise by his boss (Coen regular Charles Durning), only to fall for Love (Loni Anderson). Director Burt Reynolds' leaden fantasy is impossible to like. For anyone who has ever nursed a desire to see DeLuise and Anderson making out, this one's for you. *

Remote Control Man - Baby Geniuses director Bob Clark directs a sloppy fantasy about a schlub with a horrid wife and family (look for Jeff "Chunk" Cohen from The Goonies as one of his kids) who acquires a magical remote control (shades of Click) and escapes into the warming embrace of his favorite television programming. Not terribly funny, but worth a look for the avalanche of mid-80's TV personalities making cameos. It's like a Seth McFarlane wet dream. **

Santa '85 - The obligatory Christmas episode is not too drippy, featuring strong performances by Douglas Seale as the Fat Man and Pat Hingle as a sheriff who arrests him on Christmas Eve as well as a beautiful score by Thomas Newman. Directed by Phil Joanou. **1/2

Vanessa In The Garden - Eloquent ghost story about an 18th century painter (Harvey Keitel, in a fine performance) whose young muse and wife (Sondra Locke) is killed in a tragic carriage accident, sending him spinning into boozy self-recrimination. But one day, he hears Vanessa's familiar humming emanating from the garden they once shared, and begins to rediscover his lost artistic spark. Spielberg's only solo writing credit on the series, Clint Eastwood's understated direction and Lennie Niehaus' lush music combine for a moving portrayal of love and loss, one of the show's best entries. ***1/2

Disc Three:
The Sitter - Mildly amusing comic episode about a pair of hell-raising kids (one played by a very young Seth Green!) who are put in place by a voodoo-wielding sitter (Mabel King). Kids should enjoy this effort. **1/2

No Day At The Beach - Stark, black & white photography distinguishes this effort about a World War II platoon (including Charlie Sheen and Clancy Brown) gearing up for a beach assault, and receiving assistance from a most unexpected source. A very Twilight Zone-y entry, and an interesting dry run for Spielberg's Saving Private Ryan (there's even a soldier named after his dad, Arnold). ***

One For The Road - Funny black comedy about a group of Depression-era barflies (Joe Pantoliano, James Cromwell, Geoffrey Lewis, Royal Dano) who take out a life insurance policy on a local drunk (Douglas Seale, also the title character in Santa '85) hoping to collect when he inevitably drinks himself to death. Their frustrations mount when the old dude refuses to go down, despite nearly drinking the bar dry. Plays like a good Tales From The Crypt installment (minus the gratuitous gore, of course). ***

Gather Ye Acorns - Contrived fairy-tale about a young man (Mark "The Joker" Hamill) in 1932 who's goaded by a tree troll (David Rappaport) into abandoning his life plans of becoming a doctor and following his dreams of goofing off. The man agrees, and spends the next 50 years barely eking out an existence, only to find, near the end of his life, what the troll's instructions truly meant. Directed by famed production designer Norman Reynolds (The Empire Strikes Back, Raiders Of The Lost Ark), it's tough to get behind a fable that seems to indicate it's worth wasting one's entire life in order for a reward just as it's drawing to a close. **

Boo! - Director Joe Dante helms this comic installment about a pair of porn stars (Robert Picardo, Wendy Schaal) who move into a haunted abode, only to inspire the two elderly spirits (Eddie Bracken, Evelyn Keyes) who inhabit the attic to become infuriated with their flamboyant lifestyle and conspire to scare them out. Beetlejuice two years early, this effort, despite the fine contributions of Dante's collection of regulars (Picardo, Schaal, composer Jerry Goldsmith), never quite attains the comic spark of his best big-screen work (Gremlins, Innerspace). **1/2

Dorothy And Ben - Joe Seneca delivers a touching performance as an old man who awakens after slumbering in a coma for the past 40 years only to find he has a psychic connection to a young girl (Natalie Gregory) in the same hospital who hovers between life and death after a recent accident. One of the finest episodes of the entire series, this eloquent effort from director Thomas Carter (based on a teleplay written by Michael DeGuzman from an outline by Spielberg) features a gorgeous score by Georges Delerue and a conclusion that's a true heartbreaker. ****1/2

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