Teen Angel

By CAROLE HORST

Filmed in Los Angeles by Spooky Magic Prods. in association with Touchstone Television. Executive producers, Mike Reiss, Al Jean; co-exec producer, Bob Bendetson; producer (premiere), Brian Cowan; director (premiere), Andy Cadiff; writers (premiere), Reiss, Jean.
 
Cast: Mike Damus, Jordan Brower, Corbin Allred, Conchata Ferrell, Katie Volding, Maureen McCormick, Ron Glass, Marcia Wallace, Mark Metcalf.
 

The black sheep of network TV's trend toward angel-mania, "Teen Angel's" smart-alek sensibility is refreshing, and exec producers Mike Reiss and Al Jean (alumni of the offbeat "The Simpsons" and "The Critic") should be able to exploit the relatively late timeslot and show's special effects for laughs that will draw in parents as well as teens. "Angel" fits snugly into ABC's redrawn "TGIF" lineup (which includes another new Disney-produced show, "You Wish.")

Marty (Mike Damus) and Steve (Corbin Allred) are best friends until Marty eats a 6-month-old hamburger he finds under Steve's bed and dies. The comic handling of this event sets the cartoon-y, quirky tone of the show.

Marty is immediately transported to heaven, where a deity who ID's himself as "God's cousin Rod" (Ron Glass) gives Marty wings and sends him back down to earth to become Steve's guardian angel.

Steve can see Marty. He gets Steve in and out of trouble (slamming the school bully's head against a locker and intoning , "You've been touched by an angel," and calling on former president James Monroe for help in canceling a history exam. )

Main problem is the "Saved by the Bell"-type acting from Damus and Allred. These kids don't have much chemistry, and though Damus does exhibit comic flare, his style tends more toward smart-alek than smart.

Maureen McCormick's casting as Steve's mom --- Marcia Brady as a TV mom!--- will make anyone over 30 feel old, although she looks anything but. A gratuitous "Brady Bunch" reference is effective.

Reiss and Jean's writing is fairly sharp, and the conventions of the show --- the omnipotent Rod, the trips to heaven and maybe Hell, the angel superpowers --- plus the special effects, open up a broad range of possibilities for "Teen Angel's" writers to play with.

Tape reviewed was unsweetened, and the effects unfinished.

Camera (premiere) Donald A. Morgan; editor (premiere), John Neal; production design (premiere), John Mula; music (premiere) , Jeff Rona. 30 MIN.