ALF: The Animated Series

Lore & Background

The series is a prequel to ALF, depicting ALF's life on his home planet of Melmac before it exploded and he came to Earth. Since the name ALF was given to him after his arrival on Earth, he is instead known by his original name, Gordon Shumway. The puppet ALF appears at the beginning and end of each episode, talking to viewers in the Tanner family's garage, either setting up the episode as if he were writing his memoir 'Melmac Memories' and commenting on it afterwards, reading fan mail, or describing what his life was like on Melmac. The visual look of the series was created by lead character designer Fil Barlow.

Gordon Shumway is a teenager living in suburban East Velcro on Melmac with his parents Bob and Flo, his brother Curtis, his younger sister Augie, and their dog Neep. He has two friends, Rick and Skip, and a girlfriend, Rhonda, who, along with him, are members of the Melmacian Orbit Guard. The show also features supporting characters such as the fortune teller Madame Pokipsi and the villainous Larson Petty and his sidekick Eggbert. The format is that of a situation comedy, with humor deriving from characters partaking in ordinary activities in an alien environment.

Reader's Guide

ALF: The Animated Series holds significance as a prequel and animated spinoff of the popular live-action sitcom ALF, expanding the franchise's universe by exploring the home planet of its iconic alien character. Paul Fusco, the creator and puppeteer of ALF in the live-action series, was the only cast member to reprise his role, voicing Gordon Shumway/ALF. The series ran concurrently with its own spin-off, ALF Tales, during the 1988–89 season as the ALF & ALF Tales Hour. Its legacy includes being part of the broader ALF media franchise, with episodes later included in home media releases such as the 2023 DVD box set ALF: The Complete Series (Deluxe Edition) by Shout! Factory. The series also contributed to the character's appearance in the special Cartoon All-Stars to the Rescue.

Did You Know?

• The series is a prequel to the live-action ALF, set on Melmac before it exploded.
• Paul Fusco was the only cast member from the live-action series to reprise his role.
• The animated series ran concurrently with its spin-off ALF Tales during the 1988–89 season as the ALF & ALF Tales Hour.
• The complete series was remastered and released on DVD on October 17, 2023, by Shout! Factory.

The Prequel Premise and Narrative Frame

The animated series reimagined ALF's origin by transporting the character back to his home planet of Melmac before its catastrophic destruction. Rather than the familiar Tanner household, the show placed the alien in a suburban neighborhood called East Velcro, where he lived under his original name, Gordon Shumway, alongside his parents Bob and Flo, siblings Curtis and Augie, and their pet creatures. The narrative was structured as a situation comedy, drawing humor from ordinary teenage activities transplanted into an alien environment. A clever framing device bookended every episode: the live-action puppet ALF appeared in the Tanner family garage, narrating his memoir Melmac Memories to set up the story, reading fan mail, or reflecting on his Melmacian life before the animated segment concluded. This structure gave the show a personal, confessional tone while maintaining a tight episodic comedy format that distinguished it from the prime-time original.

Characters and the Melmacian World

The animated series built an entire supporting cast around Gordon Shumway. His father Bob worked at a mayonnaise factory and pursued amateur inventing, while his mother Flo anchored the household. Younger siblings Curtis and Augie rounded out the family, accompanied by two exotic pets: Neep, a dog-like creature called a vespa, and Harry, a bird-like Westfellman Smulk. Gordon's social circle included friends Rick Fusterman and Skipper Skip, along with his girlfriend Rhonda, who harbored a secret talent for piloting. Together, the trio served in the Melmacian Orbit Guard under the command of Sergeant Staff, a superior officer with whom Gordon frequently clashed. The world also featured a Cats Up Diner run by Eddie with waitress Stella, a fortune teller named Madame Pokipsi, and a recurring antagonist in Larson Petty, an alien general plotting invasion alongside his aide Eggbert, also known as Sloop. Additional villains included Louie the Pruner, a salad dressing magnate, and his son Sonny.

Production, Broadcast, and Concurrent Programming

ALF: The Animated Series ran on NBC for two seasons, spanning from September 26, 1987, to January 7, 1989, with a total of 26 episodes. As a spinoff of the prime-time live-action ALF, which aired on NBC from 1986 to 1990, it retained only one cast member from the original: Paul Fusco, the creator and puppeteer, who voiced Gordon/ALF as well as the character Rick Fusterman. No human characters from the Tanner household crossed over, a natural consequence of the prequel's Melmac setting. The animation was outsourced to TMS Entertainment, while lead character designer Fil Barlow shaped the show's visual identity. During the 1988–89 season, the series shared a Saturday time slot with its own spinoff, ALF Tales, which had premiered in September 1988 and ran through December 1989. Together, the two programs formed the ALF & ALF Tales Hour, giving the franchise a full hour of animated content on the network.

Legacy and Home Media Availability

The animated series left a modest but lasting footprint in ALF franchise history. Gordon/ALF later appeared as one of the cartoon characters in Cartoon All-Stars to the Rescue, extending the character's animated presence beyond the original run. On the home video front, the series first saw a limited DVD release on May 30, 2006, when Lionsgate Home Entertainment put out the first nine episodes under the title ALF Animated Adventures – 20,000 Years in Driving School and Other Stories for Region 1. A handful of episodes also appeared in the special features of the collectors' edition of the live-action sitcom. The franchise received a major archival boost on October 17, 2023, when Shout! Factory released ALF: The Complete Series (Deluxe Edition), a remastered DVD box set that bundled the full animated series alongside ALF Tales, Project: ALF, and the original 1986–90 sitcom, making the entire animated catalog accessible to modern audiences in a single package.

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