Il mio amico Ultraman

Well, that comment wasn't exactly true. Every fanboy's dream would be to get a date, stop working at Wal-Mart,and get out of his parent's basement!! Onto the show!!! It's about a kid -Jerry O'Connell of Sliders- who after a laboratory accident, gains the ability to hover, move at super human speeds and is invulnerable. The show was half of a sunday night kid's block also featuring the Adventures of Beans Baxter. It was later moved next to the live action Superboy. If you are not a comic book fan, you won't get it. If you are, you probably already have...

All superheros had to start somewhere. This entertaining series is about Andrew Clements(Jerry O'Connell). An ordinary teenager with a love for superhero comics, One day visits his scientist friend Dr. Benjamin Jeffcoate(played comically well by Derek Mcgrath), gets hit by a photon beam, and gets superpower, like some of the superheros he reads about in comics. But Andrew has yet to become a superhero. He must use his superpowers for one thing first, surviving High School. A good series, and a good premise. But has Jerry O'Connell got older, the series began to wear it self out. This inspired another show with a similar premise called The Secret World Of Alex Mack.

I chanced upon this series in an odd way: I had a foster boy who the kids called 'Clements' (his name was Jesse Martin) and I didn't know why until I saw this show. He was a dead ringer for Jerry O'Connell at that age. (He doesn't look like him any more---thank God!).

We all started watching this series (and ribbing Jesse as much as possible). Rarely did we miss an episode. And, although it seemed to decline some in the last season, it had a spirit not found in similar type shows. In my opinion, the first season seemed to be the best. I wasn't overly fond of Bolton who played O'Connell's best friend in the 2nd and 3rd season.

Personally, I like Jerry O'Connell (esp. Sliders). His kid movies have always had a special presence that stood out. (Even to the singing cockroaches in 'Joe's Apartment'.) The kid was a good actor---unlike most kid actors these days.

Also, the combo of O'Connell and Derek McGrath (Dr. Jeffcoat) was ideal and kept this series from ever being boring. For a low-budget production, they did a fantastic job.

The only faults I can find with this series are that there should have been more use made of O'Connell's super powers. (Some episodes had only a brief, almost unnecessary, use of his powers.) And, some of the guest actors were horrible!.

This series is now running on the Space channel (from Bell Expressvu). It airs on Monday mornings at 4:30am Mountain Time. As of the date of this review they have just started the first season again.

This is a rather fun and dynamic show, starring Jerry O'Connell as teenager Andrew Clements, who accidentally gets himself zapped by friend Dr. Benjamin Jeffcoate's scientific experiment, causing him to have superpowers. As a result, Andrew uses his newfound power to help people and fight crime, while concealing his abilities from his family and friends.

It's a charming show full of imagination, comedy, adventures and sci-fi action - all in a delightful display of inspiration for the younger audience who look up to "superheros" while growing up.

There's good acting for the most part and fast-paced episodes that kept the show exciting to watch each time.

Grade A-

This was a classic Canadian kids show about a kid who accidentally gets zapped with a mutation laser by his neighbour (a scientist) then develops powers such as the ability to fly, then starts helping people, stopping crimes, etc week to week. It's low budget and obviously very silly but tons of fun and good lighthearted family entertainment all ages could enjoy.