Manimal

^{Review by Sunday Simmons}

Part man, part animal, all action. Cheesy, but that pretty much sums up this fun little action series. And who can resist a bit of 80s cheese? Another Glen A. Larson offering (Knight Rider, Magnum, Battlestar Galactica – to name just a few of his awesome series’), Manimal sadly didn’t fare as well, and like Larson’s Automan, it only ran for one season. Airing on US television from September to December 1983, Manimal just didn’t track well with audiences, and unfortunately didn’t get renewed for a second season.

If you’ve never heard of this man to beast and back again, or you’ve just forgotten about this overlooked 80s gem, then allow me to elaborate. With transfiguration skills even Professor McGonagal would be proud of, Dr Jonathan Chase is able to transform from handsome, suave doctor, to pretty much any animal he chooses. This ability comes in handy when he teams up with Detective Brooke Mackenzie (Melody Anderson – Dale Arden Flash) and uses his powers to solve crimes. Only one other person is privy to his secret, his best friend Ty (Michael D. Roberts), and together the three of them get to grips with the bad guys.

So, back to the cheese. Played by Simon MacCorkindale (I, Claudius, Jesus of Nazareth), Dr Jonathan Chase is your atypical, good looking, wealthy guy with a brilliant mind, but he harbours a secret -which is narrated during the intro of every episode apart from the pilot. I had to add this in its entirety, simply because it takes itself so seriously, yet the series is so over the top silly and camp, that the narration never fails to make me grin like a loon – and yes, narrate along with it more often than not. But it does lay down the premise for why Dr Chase is able to transform himself into any animal he wants.

“Dr Jonathan Chase... wealthy, young, handsome. A man with the brightest of futures. A man with the darkest of pasts. From Africa's deepest recesses, to the rarefied peaks of Tibet, heir to his father's legacy and the world's darkest mysteries. Jonathan Chase, master of the secrets that divide man from animal, animal from man. Partnered with a young police detective and the former army corporal from the fields of Vietnam, a trio that stands against the crime that breeds in the concrete jungles and stretches its deadly tentacles to the fascinating but dangerous world beyond... the world of Manimal!”

Despite the claim he can change into any animal, more often than not we’d only see a hawk or a black panther, those seemed to be his most useful guises! With transformation and animal prosthetic effects from the ever brilliant special FX guru Stan Winston (Terminator, The Thing), the only question hanging over these animalistic outburst is where on earth did his smart 3 piece suit disappear to, and how was he wearing it again after he’d turned back into his human form?! Unlike the Incredible Hulk who was always featured ripping off his shirt, and in rags once he became Banner again, Manimal just seemed able to absorb his clothes and have them back upon his person in pristine perfection afterwards!

Questions aside, Manimal is a hugely entertaining series, and it’s a shame it only ran for 8 episodes – not counting a Night Man/Manimal crossover episode. Like Automan, which was filmed at around the same time, it just wasn’t meant to be. During its short run, it did have some great episodes, and boasted some stellar guest stars, including Ursula Andress (Dr No, Clash of the Titans), Richard Lynch (Star Trek: The Next Generation, Halloween), and Keenan Wynn (Annie get your Gun, Kiss Me Kate). And if you fancy watching this short lived series, all 8 episodes are available on YouTube.