Photon

Remembering back to the 80's, I get chills of nostalgia. Toys, Video games and all playthings just got reinvented and/or turned on it's ear. Back when the Rubik's Cube was at it's peak, Worlds of Wonder released LAZER TAG. This craze became the rage, but when it came to the Entertainment Marketing, we got a horrible Saturday Morning Cartoon. Entertech, a division of LJN toys, countered with PHOTON. Like it's counterpart, you got a PHASER, a Sensor, but also a Helmet with lights and sensors as well. They didn't stop there. Action figures with the same InfraRed Tag tech followed. Actual Characters that we can get into. Then to top it all off, the LIVE ACTION TV Show. I remember all of the SCI FI Space stuff, kind of a STAR WARS meets POWER RANGERS feel. The Plot. EVERY world has a light orb that lasts 100 years. If the orb is charged by the good guys, everything is beautiful for that time. If the orb is charged with Darkness from the bad guys, the planet becomes a wasteland. So the battle ensues. The good guys fly around in the ZEPHYR with MOM, their computer leader. They use the PHOTON centers as a training facility. Chris Jarvis/BHODI LI becomes the best player and is recruited to join the team of good. He is taken in by: Tivia, warrior princess of Nivia; Parcival, adolescent computer geek from Earth (we think); Lord Beathen, Robotic Ninja Warrior; Leon, the giant Lizard Hero; and Pike, who looks like a Mr. Potato Head. It was a Grandfather to the Power Rangers but without the Bulk and Skull like cheese. More serious like the newer Rangers series. All in all, lots of fun for what it was. Not everything has to win an award to be fun.

And YES, AGAIN IMDb is displaying the wrong COVER to this series. What is pictured is an ANIME that is completely UNRELATED.

It's honestly the greatest show of all time. The Sopranos didn't have Arians saving planets from the BBC.

I've seen many people stating that "Lazer Tag" came out first, and "Photon" copied them. ACTUALLY, "Photon" was developed in the late 70's, while "Lazer Tag" came out in the mid 80's.

This was actually a pretty cool kids show - (Looking back) the only thing I find that sucked about it was their use of popular music of the day... only sung by nameless singers instead of the original artist. Just didn't sound as good. ;(

the game gear for Photon is also very hard to find compared to Lazer Tag - until recently(2 sets were auctioned off this week - SHOCKING!), the only set I had ever seen for sale was back in 1998.

This show has been a wonderful introduction into vintage 1980s action, made in collaboration with the people who made Super Sentai. Introduced to me by the great philanthropist and businessman Patrick O'shaughnessy who made allusions to how the struggles of our hero Bhodi Li helped him to overcome his hurdles in life. I find it heartwarming how Parcival and Tivia were able to defeat the evil Arrian empire and their attempts to blacken planets and turn their photon crystals into the darkness. Heavy recommend.

"Stellar" performance from a diverse cast of over the top characters created probably by an autist high on PCP, backed by cover songs of 80s greatest hits, and all that in space no less! What more could you possibly want in a show? Prepare to be Blacked - Let The Darkness Grow!