Small Wonder (TV series)

Last updated
Small Wonder
Small Wonder poster.jpg
Promotional poster
Genre Comedy science fiction sitcom
Created by Howard Leeds
Starring Tiffany Brissette
Dick Christie
Marla Pennington
Jerry Supiran
Emily Schulman
Theme music composerRod Alexander
Howard Leeds
Diane Leslie
Opening theme"She's a Small Wonder" [1]
Ending theme"She's a Small Wonder"
ComposersGeorge Greeley
Ed Lojeskie
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons4
No. of episodes96 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producerHoward Leeds
Producers Budd Grossman
Bruce Taylor
Camera setup Multi-camera
Running time22 minutes
Production companiesThe Small Wonder Joint Venture
Metromedia Video Productions [2]
Original release
Network First-run syndication
ReleaseSeptember 7, 1985 (1985-09-07) 
May 20, 1989 (1989-05-20)

Small Wonder is an American children's comedy science fiction sitcom that aired in first-run syndication from September 7, 1985, to May 20, 1989. The show chronicles the family of a robotics engineer who secretly creates a robot modeled after a human girl, then tries to pass it off as their adopted daughter, Vicki. The series turned out to be a surprise hit, specifically among children, with reruns airing internationally. Owing to its popularity in some countries, the show had to be dubbed for different languages.

Contents

Premise

The story lines revolve around V.I.C.I. (an acronym for Voice Input Child Identicant, pronounced "Vicki"), an android in the form of a 10-year-old girl. Vicki was built by Ted Lawson, an engineer/inventor for United Robotronics, in an effort to assist handicapped children. Lawson takes the robot home so that it can mature within a family environment. Vicki's features include superhuman strength and speed, an AC outlet under her right arm, a data port under her left arm, and an access panel in her back. Despite this, the Lawson family initially tries to pass Vicki off as an orphaned family member whom they legally adopted as their daughter.

The Lawson family tries to keep the robot's existence a secret, but their disagreeable neighbors, the Brindles, keep on popping up at the most unexpected moments — especially nosy, next-door neighbor Harriet, whose father happens to be Ted Lawson's co-worker. The show's humor frequently derived from Vicki's attempts to learn human behavior, her unprecedented echolalia, the robot's literal interpretation of speech and the family's efforts to disguise the robot's true nature.

To explain child actress Tiffany Brissette's aging during the show, the series' producers had Ted give Vicki an upgrade in the series' third season. He aged her face, dressed her in casual clothes, and allowed her to eat and drink. The food passed through her naturally and the drink cooled her internal system.

Cast and characters

The cast of Small Wonder during the first season Smallwondercast.jpg
The cast of Small Wonder during the first season

Recurring

Reruns and international airings

After the series ended, the show entered weekday rerun syndication on many stations across the United States and continued until 1996. After that, the show had not aired anywhere in the country until January 10, 2015, when Antenna TV began airing the series on weekends, which continued until May 27, 2017. The network resumed airing the show on September 9, 2017. It was dropped again after March 31, 2019.

In Europe, the show was screened regionally in the United Kingdom on ITV from October 1985 until late 1988. Only the first two series were shown. Sky One also broadcast the series in full from 1988 to the early 1990s. In Italy, the show appeared in the mid-1980s on Italia 1 network and was titled Super Vicky. In France, the series was shown as La Petite merveille (The Little Wonder) on Canal+, starting in November 1985. In Spain, the show was broadcast on Antena 3 Televisión as Un robot en casa (A Robot at Home) in December 1995. In Germany the show was broadcast on ProSieben in 1990 (with several reruns in the early 1990s) and was titled Vicki.

It was aired on many TV stations in Middle East as well, such as Saudi TV Channel 2 and Iraq TV Channel 1, with Arabic subtitles and called الاعجوبة الصغيرة. In Saudi Arabia, it was aired during the '80s as a daily family show during the month of Ramadan on Saudi TV (Channel 2).

In India, Pakistan, China, and other Asian countries, Small Wonder was syndicated on local TV stations and the Star TV Network in the mid-1990s. In 1994, it was aired in India on Star Plus first in English then in Hindi the same year most of the time, until 1998 and in Tamil in Star Vijay in the beginning of the 2000s. It aired in Pakistan on Network Television Marketing. In 1986, it aired in Thailand on Channel 9 at 9:00 p.m. after the evening news. [4] In the Philippines, it aired on GMA Network in the mid-1980s, and on ABC in 1992. In Indonesia, it was aired on TVRI. TVNZ screened the show in New Zealand in a weekday afternoon slot the mid-1980s.

In Latin America, the show appeared on Rede Globo and, later, TV Record in Brazil and was called Super Vicky. It also aired on VTV (Venezolana de Televisión) in Venezuela between 1987 and 1990, Canal 13 in Argentina, Bogotá local network Canal Capital in Colombia, Teleantillas in the Dominican Republic and Frecuencia Latina in Peru, where it was called La pequeña maravilla (Small Wonder).

Reception

Despite proving popular among viewers, it has been regarded by some critics as one of the worst sitcoms of all time, such as Robert Bianco, TV critic for USA Today , who listed it as a contender for one of the worst TV shows of all time in 2002. [5] According to the BBC, it "is widely considered one of the worst low-budget sitcoms of all time." [6]

Awards

YearAwardCategoryRecipient
1986 Young Artist Award Best Young Supporting Actress in a New Television SeriesEmily Schulman
1987Exceptional Performance by a Young Actress in a Long-Running Series, Comedy or Drama

Episodes

SeasonEpisodesOriginally aired
First airedLast aired
1 24September 7, 1985May 17, 1986
2 24September 13, 1986May 23, 1987
3 24September 12, 1987May 21, 1988
4 24September 17, 1988May 20, 1989

Home media

Shout! Factory has released the first two seasons of Small Wonder on DVD in Region 1. [7] [8]

DVD NameEp#Region 1
The Complete First Season24February 16, 2010
The Complete Second Season24June 22, 2010

See also

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References

  1. Small Wonder every season intro , retrieved 2021-10-11
  2. "Metromedia...Television (1985 / 1992)". YouTube: Guatelogos. 5 March 2017. Archived from the original on 2021-12-21.
  3. "Small Wonder : Season 2 Episode 21 - YouTube". M.youtube.com. 16 November 2017. Retrieved 2022-11-01.
  4. "กระทู้ย้อนอดีต....มีใครจำ "วิคกี้ หนูน้อยคอมพิวเตอร์" ได้บ้างครับ" (in Thai). pantip.com. 21 September 2007. Retrieved 26 June 2016.
  5. "USATODAY.com". usatoday30.usatoday.com.
  6. "BBC - Comedy Guide - Small Wonder". February 20, 2007. Archived from the original on 2007-02-20.
  7. "Small Wonder - Shout! Factory Inputs the Official Press Release for The Complete 1st Season". Archived from the original on 2014-02-24.
  8. "Small Wonder - 'Shout! Select' DVD Release for The Complete 2nd Season: Packaging and Date!". Archived from the original on 2014-02-24.
  9. "Adorable robot girl of Karishma Kaa Karishma". TribuneIndia. March 9, 2003.