Alright, 80’s pop culture historians, the chronology for the various “Max Headroom” movie and television shows can be a little confusing. I think I’ve got it down …
The original “Max Headroom: 20 Minutes into the Future” was a 1985 TV movie for Britain’s Channel 4; it was two years later that ABC made it the pilot for an American show that would last for two seasons. (A sanitized version of the British movie served as the pilot for the series.)
There were also a couple of versions of a “Max Headroom Show” that ran in either Britain or the United States more or less concurrently. But these simply had the eponymous digital personality hosting … a talk show? With music videos? And, at any rate, a lot of people remember Matt Frewer’s iconic character only from his famous Coca-Cola commercial.
I was skeptical about “Philip K. Dick’s Electric Dreams” (2017), and I’m not sure why — maybe because I assumed it would be a failed and shameless imitator of “Black Mirror” (2011). But I’m happy to be proven wrong — the first episode was damned good. It isn’t quite as good as “Black Mirror” (the success of which doubtlessly helped this series reach fruition), but it looks like it could be a great show in its own right. (None other than Ron Moore and Bryan Cranston are among the producers for “Electric Dreams,” so that should make us optimistic about the show’s quality.)
I’d rate the first episode a 9 out of 10. (The entry I’m referring to here is the “Episode 1” with which Amazon Video audiences will be familiar — the episodes appeared in a different order when this series first aired last year on Britain’s Channel 4.) It’s got a great cast, including Anna Paquin, Lara Pulver, and the incredible Terrence Howard. (His acting skills are among the best I’ve ever seen.) And its story is damned neat, even if it employs a Dick story device that we’ve already seen in some other adaptations. (Can I write “Dick story device” without my Facebook friends snickering?)
Eric Robert Nolan, Author 