Il principe delle stelle

... it is much bigger and grander in my memory than it actually is. I guess its power, at least in my case, is in its nostagia, so YMMV.

Peter Barton stars as Matthew Star, a normal-looking high-school age teen who is secretly a fugitive prince from a distant planet. Lou Gossett Jr co-stars as Walt, also an alien, who has acted as Matthew's guardian on Earth, where the boy has lived most of his life. Being part of the alien royal family, Matthew has various super powers, such as telekinesis and limited telepathy. Matthew just wants to live the life of a normal Earth teen, spending time with his high school sweetheart Pam (series regular Amy Steel), while Walt goes undercover as a science teacher at the school Matthew attends. Matthew and Walt have to deal with assorted troubles from the mundane (drag-racing teens, trouble on the football team) to the extraordinary (alien bounty hunters, inquisitive scientists).

At the half-season mark, the series underwent a soft reboot, with the high school setting eventually dropped, and Amy Steel being dropped from the cast. Matthew and Walt are now working for the government, in the person of skeptical contact James Karen. They are assigned missions searching for valuable technology, stopping terrorists, or fighting other sundry crimes. Matthew also exhibits a bunch of new powers, such as being able to project an astral body version of himself that can walk through walls; shoot laser blasts from his hands; and even transforming items with a wave of his hand.

The series has a reputation as one of the worst science fiction shows in television history. I was prepared for worse than it is, but it's still not good. The stories range from silly to stupid, and there's a lot of early-80's network cheese on display (plenty of laughing freeze-frames to close out episodes). Barton and Steel (who had both starred in different Friday the 13th movies) are blandly pretty, while accomplished pro Gossett is definitely slumming (he was appearing in this when he won his Best Supporting Actor Oscar for An Officer and a Gentleman). The producers included Harve Bennett who had worked on Star Trek (Leonard Nimoy directs an episode, and Walter Koenig wrote one), and Bruce Lansbury, brother of Angela Lansbury. Bruce's daughter/Angela's niece Felicia Lansbury appears in one of the last episodes.

This is one of those shows that never make it pass their first season but is far better than the rubbish now. With great guest directors/writers like Star Trek veterans Leonard Nimoy and Walter Koenig this underrated gem from the early 1980's is a treat for fans looking to take a break from the Trek universe or just fans of great sci-fi TV. It also has a enjoyable cast, which for me is becoming harder to find in TV or film these days. Even the lovely Julie Newmar makes a small guest appearance in a episode. Granted it may not be the best sci-fi show ever, but The Powers Of Matthew Starr is a fun and entertaining show that you could watch with the family. It truly deserves to be on DVD.

I remember seeing this show when I was about 10 or 11. From what I remember, Gossett Jr. and Barton were from another planet. Barton had a special power to change other people's way of thinking, or actions or something like that. He would close his eyes and some "magic" would happen. Gossett Jr. was his "guide" like. He was there to lead him and teach him the ways of the "earth bound people". Gossett Jr. did not have any powers from what I remember. Also. form what I remember, is that it came on every Friday night. I still think they should put this on DVD anyway, but don't think that will happen. I could not wait to see it, and was disappointed to hear that it was canceled just as quickly as it started.

Even in the fashion-tragic 80's, Matthew Star (Peter Barton), the Alien prince of Quadris looked foolish. The white jumpsuit, the Farrah hair, the pseudo-Michael Jackson glove. Midway through the run of the series, the producers took a good, long look at their Star. Their solution? Matthew became a secret agent. Better solution? Cancellation.

Hundreds of shows have come and gone, but Matthew Star remains my favorite. The acting by the cast (especially Peter Barton, considering the fact he was around 26 playing a 16 year old) is superb and the original story lines up until the point mid-season when the show was revamped (at the network's request, I'm presuming) are fantastic.

The idea that as if growing up on Earth isn't hard enough, Matthew Star was expected to lead a planet of people to freedom some day, was inspired. There are great emotional scenes when you realize that despite being a prince with special powers, Matthew was humble and very unsure of himself at times.

My big regrets are that the show ended so abruptly and that the show isn't available on DVD to be enjoyed by our new generation of Sci-Fi fans (hint, hint). I sure would have looked forward to Season 2: The Return to Quadris!