Tuesday, July 23, 2013

Sunday Funnies: Malibu CA (1998)

For all intents & purposes, Peter Engel was the linchpin of NBC's Saturday morning lineup for most of the 90's. His premier franchise, Saved By The Bell, was limping along toward the finish line for the New Class, and Engel would have at least 2-3 other shows supporting Bell on the schedule.

However, there were a couple of series that Engel didn't sell to NBC that probably would've had the same lifespan if they did.

USA High was in a sense Bell with more of an international flavor, and aired Friday afternoons on USA (Duh!) for about a year or two. For his next trick, Engel finally landed a first-run syndicated series. That was the good news. The bad? It lasted two seasons.

Malibu CA aired on Sundays in most markets, including mine. Essentially, Engel took this idea from a slate of Bell episodes set at a time when the original class worked summer jobs at a Malibu country club. Engel didn't go back to Malibu Shores for this show, though. Instead, it's about twin brothers who relocate to California to be with their father after his ex-wife (the boys' mother)  takes a job in Saudi Arabia. Fine idea, but because it wasn't on a network, and despite the heavy promotion, it was doomed to failure.

Here's the open:



No rating. Never saw the show.

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