Punky Brewster
Submitted Tuesday, September 21, 2004 - 1:06:06 PM by Klaitu

You know, when I was a little kid I used to occasionally watch Punky Brewster. I would have liked to see more of it, but it was on in primetime, up against shows that adults actually watched.. so Punky was a rare treat for me. 20 years later, enter the Punky Brewster DVD set. Carson's wife delivered this little gem for my sister, but HA, I intercepted it!

To be honest, I didn't really remember all that much about Punky. I maybe saw 10 episodes of the show 20 years ago. I do remember that I really liked the show, and that I thought Soleil Moon Frye was totally hawt. (Turns out I was right)

So, I popped in the first DVD and checked out the first season from episode 1 to episode 22. What struck me about the Punky series, is that it is extremely well written. It's even serial in nature, much like Babylon 5 was. Things that happen at the beginning of the series pay off 10 or 12 episodes later. In fact, changes made to the set actually stick from episode to episode. for a sitcom, I find this substantially amazing.

By way of example: During the Christmas episode, Punky recieves a music box. 11 episodes later the same music box is stolen by a homeless kid, who is then admitted to Fenster Hall, which is the orphanage that appeared in the first episode.. and it's the exact same set.

In fact, I haven't been able to find any inconsistancies or plot holes at all in Punky. I find this to be simply amazing, because today there are inconsistancies and plot holes to just about everything on TV.

Speaking of the plot, if you don't know.. Punky Brewster was abandoned by her mother at a supermarket. Eventually, she found an empty apartment with an unlocked window and made it her own. Enter Henry Warnimont, the apartment manager and photographer. Also in the apartment building is Punky's best friend Cheri Johnson who has been sneaking her food. Cheri's grandmother Betti, is Henry's friendly rival, and the two exchange witty banter frequently.

Anyways, Henry is played by George Gaynes, who you probably know better as Commandant Lassard of Police Academy fame. Henry's a grumpy old coot, but Punky breaks through his grumpiness. Hilarity ensues.

Punky herself is disgustingly cute. She's something like 7 or 8 years old, so I'm not going to say she was a good actor (at least then) but the amount of raw talent she has is readily apparent. She spouts out lines that she has no idea what they mean, but you almost wouldn't notice. Very not bad for such a young kid.

The DVD is not remastered in anything.. not that you really could. It was originally recorded on celluloid with mono sound. It's hard to tell if the film has been restored, or if it was just really well preserved. Even so, don't expect DVD quality picture. Picture quality is much better than any actual broadcast of the show, however. Audio remains in mono. In a 5.1 surround configuration, you'll get the mono through the center speaker, though.. which is nice.

Special features on the disc include primarily episodes of the Punky animated series entitled "It's Punky Brewster". In it, Punky finds a.. magical leprachaun.. rat.. with magical ears. It features the voices of the original cast, and is really a trip to the past. Also, the DVD sports 1 interview with the Punky creator. 3 Interviews with cast members Cheri Johnson and Ami Foster, and 1 interview with one of the series writers. Soleil Moon Frye is strangely absent in the special features department, which is unfortunate, because as we have discussed before, she's hot.

If you're in my age group and remember Punky, but haven't thought about it in years, I highly recommend this set. Personally, I detest almost all forms of children's entertainment today, but back in the 80's things were different. The comparison between the style of Punky vs today's conventions is worth the purchase alone.

This DVD set is pretty much the best set that a human being can produce, and the only detractors from this are the picture quality and the lack of more special features (especially a lack of Soleil Moon Frye, who is really hot)

Overall Score: 9 of 10