Lucy Boryer Movies

Horror virtuoso John Carpenter hosts this goofy horror anthology, originally produced for Showtime as a gory stepchild of HBO's Tales from the Crypt series. Playing an emaciated, eye-rolling "coroner," John introduces the audience to a triptych of creepy vignettes in the EC horror-comics mode while paddling about in the guts of assorted cadavers and cracking jokes more gag-inducing than anything oozing on the slab. Two of the stories are directed by Carpenter himself: "The Gas Station" is a retread (pun intended) of Halloween-style scare tactics as a pretty gas-station attendant watches various oddballs pass by her window after hearing that an escaped killer is on the loose; "Hair" is a morbid, hilarious look at man's obsession with his own virility in which Stacy Keach turns to a bizarre hair-growth clinic (run by David Warner & Debbie Harry) which promises instant results, but at a horrific price. The third segment, directed by Tobe Hooper, involves a baseball player (Mark Hamill) who receives an eye transplant after a car accident and soon begins having optical flashbacks revealing (you guessed it) the identity and tendencies of the eye's former owner -- a serial killer. The second segment is by far the most entertaining, featuring a wonderfully neurotic performance by Keach, but the first and last chapters are too derivative to offer much for the discriminating horror buff, although the same fans will enjoy several cute cameos from other genre directors, including Wes Craven, Sam Raimi and Roger Corman. ~ Cavett Binion, Rovi

On board the Enterprise to negotiate a truce between two warring factions, the distinguished Lumerian ambassador Ramid Ves Alkar (Chip Lucia) worries that his darker side will surface and compromise his efforts. His fears seem to be allayed when Deanna Troi begans acting strangely, exhibiting more raw emotionalism than anyone has ever seen from her. Before long, we discover that Alkar has secretly transferred his own negative emotions to Troi, and the effect may not be reversible. Originally telecast October 10, 1992, "Man of the People" was written by Frank Abatemarco. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Season Two of Doogie Howser M.D. finds the titular hero (Neil Patrick Harris entering his third year of residency at LA's Eastman Medical Center--not bad for a 17-year-old kid who still has to be home before curfew! The responsibilities of his job has child-prodigy Doogie worrying that he is missing out on the typical pleasures of teendom; fortunately, he is able to keep in touch with his peers with the help of his best pal Vinnie (Max Casella) and his high school sweetheart Wanda (Lisa Dean Ryan). New to the series' regular cast this year is Markus Redmond as Raymond Alexander, introduced the previous season as a street-gang member and inept holdup man, but now gainfully employed as an orderly at Eastman Medical. Also making the first of several recurring appearances are Rif Hutton as Doogie's new colleague, Dr. Ron Welch and Robyn Lively as Nurse Michele Faber, who is destined to become the new love of Doogie's life once Wanda heads off to college. And in another development, Vinnie begins to exhibit talent as an experimental filmmaker, anticipating his pursuing a career in the field in later seasons. One of the more popular programs on ABC's Wednesday-night schedule, Doogie Howser, M.D. ranked as America's 24th most-watched series during its second season. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Although 16-year-old prodigy Doogie Howser (Neil Patrick Harris) is America's youngest physician, he still has a lot to learn in the maturity department, as amply demonstrated during Season One of Doogie Howser, M.D.. Doing his appointed rounds as second-year resident at Eastman Medical Center in L.A., Dr. Howser has earned the (sometimes grudging) respect of Chief of Services Dr. Canfield (Lawrence Pressman), fellow resident Dr. McGuire (Mitchell Anderson) and Nurse Spaulding (Kathryn Layng), in his own home our hero is generally treated like the shy, awkward youngster he truly is, especially by his strict but loving mom Katherine (Belinda Montgomery). While Doogie can rely upon his doctor father David (James B. Sikking) to keep him abreast of the latest advances in medical science and technology, his main conduit to his "own" world--that is, the world of pimply-faced, hormone-driven teenagers--is his best pal Vinnie (Max Casella),who regularly delivers reports from the high-school front in his weekly visits to Doogie via the bedroom window. The pilot episode firmly establishes the strange dichotomy in Doogie's life, as he passes his driver's exam and enjoys his first kiss with girlfriend Wanda (Lisa Dean Ryan) while struggling to cope with a tragedy involving a young, critically ill patient. The eternal inner struggle between Doogie the typical teen and Doogie the boy genius is further illustrated in the famous episode wherein he and Wanda are out on a date when she suffers a sudden appendicitis attack--and he is forced to give her a rather intimate examination just before she undergoes emergency surgery (this is the one in which a jealous Vinnie asks Doogie: "Did you put your hand on her conundrum?") One of the more fascinating first-season episodes is "Use a Slurpy, Go to Jail", in which Doogie and Vinnie find themselves in the middle of a botched convenience-store holdup. The ill-tempered gang member who tries to pull off the heist is one Raymond Alexander, played by Markus Redmond. Beginning with the series' second season, Raymond Alexander would be a Doogie Howser MD regular, hired as an orderly at Eastman Medical. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi