Why Friday the 13th the series means so much to me!

  Why Friday the 13^th the series means so much to me!

In honor of tomorrow being Friday the 13^th, I decided to write up a quick little post to express my long lasting love for a VERY underrated television series. In fact, it warms my heart to see fellow bloggers, horror fans, and a whole new audience discover this show that sadly only lasted 3 seasons and was overshadowed by the fact it was named after the popular slasher series that was released and took over the same decade.

I am speaking of none other than Friday the 13^th the series.

There are certain things I'm not crazy about. (Waxwork 1&2, Christine, Sam Raimi, Phantasm, ect.) movies, actors, directors, and even novels that I truly believe are the bee's knees. Friday the 13^th the series is one of them. 

 

Back in 2007 I clearly remember coming home from my senior year of high school and deciding to click on the television to see what was on. Well, we had just gotten a brand new channel called Chiller that was a horror nerd's dream come true. I've been meaning to go on a rant about this channel. Even though I haven't had it in about three years, I really want to point out how quickly it went down hill. For the first two years this channel rocked. I clearly remember in the beginning when the channel must not of had many rights. Info commercials ran on a constant loop, along with some pretty clever ads the channel had made up. I remember there were only a few movies they aired back then. Far From Home, Creepshow 2, and The Legacy. They also aired television shows such as Freddy's Nightmares (which I hadn't seen until then besides the very first episode!), The Others (which to be was awesome due to the fact Kevin J O'Connor was in it AND the fact it took place in Boston.), Tales From The Darkside Tales From The Crypt,, Monsters, AND none other than Friday the 13^th the series.

I still clearly remember channel surfing and seeing just the title Friday the 13^th. Right away I was puzzled since they NEVER showed the original Friday the 13^th on basic cable let alone in the middle of the day. The second I landed on it I knew right away it was the television show I had heard of for all these years. 

 

I'm a massive Friday the 13^th fan. Ask any of my friends, when it comes to useless bullshit about these movies I know a pretty good amount. I grew up watching theses movies, and always looked up any info I could on them thru early 2000's websites just as I began learning how to use the internet. Here I first learned of there being a TV series by the same exact name of the films. BUT the weird thing was, the show had NOTHING to do with the Jason movies at all. In fact, besides the title, these two aren't anything alike.

The story is about an antique store owner who sells his soul to the Devil making every object in his store a tool used for evil. When the man backs out of his end of the deal he's killed and his store is left to distant family. In comes two very distant cousins Micki and Ryan who have inherited the store not knowing the power these cursed objects hold. After selling off most of them, a man by the name of Jack comes forward claiming he knew what their uncle was up to and tells them the truth. Together the three of them vow to track down and get back every single last object before it's too late. For three seasons we followed the trio as they went after objects like dolls, radios, jewelry, cameras, even a full sized playhouse which all left a bloody trail behind them. Almost like a monster of the week, this show had objects instead. Taking certain nods from classic 60's and 70's television, Friday the 13^th featured a very likeable cast, some famous guest stars, and very memorable story lines and episodes. Besides some dated effects and fashion this show still holds up 26 years later!

To me I was hooked after watching the very first episode. Loving the two main leads Micki (Robey) and Ryan (John D LeMay), I watched for the first two seasons as these two cousins battled evil trying everything they could to recover these cursed objects. Lucky for me the following year after watching a good number of the episodes on Chiller, they were released on DVD. Sadly I still after all this time haven't given season 3 a try. Actor John D LeMay left the show after the end of season 2 and was replaced with a love interest for Micki by the name of Johnny. A lot of people can give me shit about not ever watching the final season since I'm supposed to be such a “fan”. But I seriously don't care. I think a huge amount of the reason why this show worked, and the fact it had the charm it did was because of John D LeMay. His character of Ryan Dallion wasn't you're typical leading man. He was a flawed young guy with a tragic past who you could relate to. He was the underdog who was of course adorable but had that charming nerd way about him. (A guy who can paint and likes comics...sign me up!) Very much like Moonlighting and as I feel a bit of inspiration for The X-Files, the two characters of Micki and Ryan were perfect together. Yes I know they were cousins...but only by marriage! The fact this point kept being brought up leads me to believe something was planned on happening! Maybe I'm just being a fan girl but the amount of sexual tension that went on between them was insane. Sorry Johnny!

This show had complete balls. I mean there was even an episode directed by  David Cronenberg. Most of the episodes had some heavy duty creepy and outstanding effects, some awesome music, and the fact at one point one of the show's leads were killed off in an episode, and one was possessed later on killing a nun! Whoa now!

Due to D LeMay being recast and a new time slot the series was sadly canceled. John D LeMay did go on to star in what was supposed to be the final installment of the actual Friday the 13^th films Jason Goes To Hell.

Still, the first two seasons in my eyes were utter perfection. I feel this was truly the Supernatural of the 1980's. Who knows what would of happened if they had a bigger budget and D LeMay stuck around for a few more seasons. In fact I was a little annoyed to hear about that new show Warehouse 13. Are you kidding me?! Let's call a rip off a rip off...seriously...

The first two seasons of Friday the 13^th are perfection. I know a lot of fans were angry and confused by the title of the show. They were looking for Jason in Camp Crystal Lake and instead they got a story about cursed antiques. I on the other hand loved the change. They did something different and it worked. Even Freddy's Nightmares dealt with different story lines that happened to take place in Springwood. Only a small handful of the episodes in that show dealt with Freddy himself. Sometimes change in good!

Some of my favorite episodes such as “What a mother wouldn't do?, Badge Of Honor, The Playhouse, Night Hunger, Wax Magic, and Heads I live, Tails you die.” showcase great guest stars, amazing story lines, and awesome cursed objects. 

I also got some custom made Friday the 13th the series earrings which I rock almost every day. I can't tell you how many people stop me and go "Who are those people?" I also am that nerd that has the soundtrack on CD and whenever I'm taking long road trips do blast the score. I mean that one for Badge Of Honor is awesome. (Fun Fact - John Stockwell guest starred in that episode!)

With a great cliffhanger that deals with some pretty heavy stuff at the end of season 2, D LeMay's character is “killed” off in a very clever way. Still, I felt this was the beginning of the end even though these episodes air first in season 3 I always took at them as season 2. I pray that the cast will do a reunion show soon for a convention. The fact I haven't met any of them is insane!

I will continue reviewing certain episodes from this show and always phrase it. In fact, I even named two of my dogs after the lead characters Micki and Dallion! So to all you Friday the 13^th fans, try and pop in an episode of this wonderful show. Why knows...you might just like it!