The New Addams Family

Having watched "The Addams Family" when it originally ran and having seen the Addams Family movies, I'd have to say the New Addams Family series on FoxFamily is incredibly more pleasing and entertaining to me than I found the movies to be. I felt the casting of the original movie ruined its playfulness and really didn't have the same flavor as the 60's series. Glenn Taranto is eerily much more reminiscent of John Ashton and seems much happier and outgoing than Raul Julio was. He and Ellie Harvie portray the Addam's passions more frequently, but in such a carefree way it makes physical touch seem like a normal happy occurrence of two people in love instead of a segway to adult entertainment. Nicole Fugere is an excellent Wednesday and steals the show. Both she and Brody Smith as Pugsly really bring out the children's parts (it is on a children's network) as two average children with just some seriously odd family values. The show is incredibly cast, better written than the movies I saw, and very entertaining; both my son and I love to watch it! It's one of the few 60's revivals that is actually a treat to watch. I just wish the production company would put up a web site for the show as the FoxFamily site is very limited.

My daughter was watching the New Addams Family one night and I got hooked. I was a big fan of the original series and I think the production company did a great job with this remake. The part I like the most is the similarity (both physically and in portrayal) between the original cast and the current one. I just watched an episode where John Aston (the original Gomez) appeared as Grandpapa Addams. The inside jokes started flying and it was a great laugh. I think this is a definite winner. For anyone on the east coast who get the Fox Family Channel, you can see two episodes a night between 6pm and 7pm EST.

I remember the original The Addams Family. It came to the air when I was 8. The humor of those shows stands up even today. The New Addams Family makes a great attempt at returning to those "original" values and humor. Certainly it isn't the first movie (but it is sure a heck of a lot better than the 3rd one!!!) which strove to bring a more modern feel to the franchise. But this new incarnation is actually rather clever. Instead of having a bunch of "names" with new faces to associate with the characters, the producers found relative unknowns that have some amazing resemblances (take a look at Michael Roberds as Uncle Fester) and some very similar vocal characteristics. Close you eyes when Gomez and Fester are talking and you can almost hear John Astin and Jackie Coogan. And Ellie Hervie is a great Morticia. I like this series. It is, of course, only in reruns now. Watch a few of them with an open mind. I think you will enjoy them as well.

Basically, this show is a remake of the original series, with very little of the "updating" that occurred for the two theatrical movies starring Julia, Huston, et al. The humor is very 60's, with only the Wednesday character being written with some of the more "90's" black humor of the movies. There's also a bit more sex, but not much. Generally an effort to cash in on the popularity of the movies, and this cast of no-names gives it its best. You'd probably be better off watching the original series on Nickelodeon, though.

On a whim I decided to watch this since I was a big fan of the original series and I really enjoyed the two movies. I really enjoy this new incarnation. There will never be a better cast than John Astin and the lot but this new crew is wonderful for a TV version. The humor is very similar to the original and of course the nifty sets and special effects are less than the movies provided but the writing, which is fairly witty and sharp, more than makes up for any of this. Compared to the recent overdose of poor remakes (anyone see the Munsters Today?) This program ranks well above the rest.