What if a comic book hero crossed over from the printed page into the real world?
That was the premise behind the short lived ABC fantasy, Once a Hero, which didn't even finish its first month on the air in 1987.
The plot centered on a fellow named Captain Justice (Jeff Lester), who has made his way into our world. Just three episodes aired before ABC pulled the plug. Marvel Comics, which for a time was affiliated with New World Television, the show's producers, served up a Captain Justice book, which explains some familiar faces in the opening montage. Unfortunately, the book was canned after just 2 issues.
Apparently, Once a Hero tested so badly in one city that the ABC affiliate subbed in another freshman series that year, a syndicated science fiction series that went on to a very successful run. Star Trek: The Next Generation. Regrettably, one of the unaired episodes was to feature Adam West as an actor who had played Captain Justice on television, but is being barred from making personal appearances in costume due to litigation, a plot mirroring a real-life issue involving Clayton Moore (The Lone Ranger) at the time.
Here's the intro:
No rating. Never saw the show.
I think the main problem with Once a Hero's premise was that Captain Justice had no super powers when he crossed over into the real world, so everyone thought that he was just some nut in a garish costume. Clearly, the show's producers thought that it would be a bad idea to have a series about comic book super heroes with anything that we the audience would find fun to watch. Or perhaps the studio couldn't afford the effects for super powers, but if that was the case, why make such a show at all?
ReplyDeleteAs for the aforementioned un-aired episode featuring Adam West as an actor who played Captain Justice, NBC's Night Court did a very similar send up of the Clayton Moore Lone Ranger debacle involving an actor who originally played the fictional "Red Ranger", but was legally forbidden to wear the iconic mask and costume and was upset at a new movie that featured a darker take on the beloved character. Funny stuff.
If that's available on YouTube, I may just take a look.
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