Wrestling a Hamster

A couple of months ago I received a copy of The Weird Al Show: The Complete Series but it wasn’t until recently that I actually had time to sit down and watch it. We’ve previously featured a clip of Weird Al interviewing Eminem, but in case you don’t remember, The Weird Al Show was a short-lived Saturday morning TV series on CBS during the late ’90s that resembled UHF mixed with a Weird Al version of Pee Wee’s Playhouse.

Weird Al lived in a decked out cave with his pet hamster, Harvey, and was visited by a rotating cast of characters and guests, including Emo Phillips, Stan Freberg, and Dr. Demento, and sprinkled with occasional appearances by bands like Barenaked Ladies and Hanson.

The show’s animated theme pretty much sums it up.

The show can be alternately grating, especially after hearing Weird Al’s whiny voice for several hours in a row, and hilarious verging on brilliant, like the time when Randy “Machoman” Savage visits the show to cheer up Al after his cave has been robbed.

Interestingly, Machoman almost cancelled his appearance when he found out he was supposed to lose to a hamster, but finally acquiesced when he learned it wasn’t a girl hamster.

The 3-DVD set features all 13 episodes, special commentaries, The Evolution of ‘Fatman’, concept art, storyboards, and even a chance to karaoke to the show’s theme song.

• Listen to The Weird Al Show Theme

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