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One hopes that at the annual HBO characters Christmas party, Larry Sanders, Carrie Bradshaw, and Tony Soprano make a point to raise a toast to Martin Tupper, the hapless hero of Dream On.This groundbreaking 1990 sitcom from future Friends creators David Crane and Marta Kaufman ushered in a bold new era of original cable programming not bound by broadcast network content restrictions. Hence, the profanity and nudity (you didn't see that on Knott's Landing!), which distinguished the series and helped put HBO on the pop culture map. Brian Benben stars as Martin, a New York book editor still reeling from the breakup of his marriage. The show's gimmick is that baby boomer Martin, a member of the first television generation, flashes on vintage TV clips that express his innermost feelings and desires. When his wife, Judith (Wendie Malick), visits Martin in "The First Episode," he fantasizes reconciliation, but she wants him to sign the divorce papers so she can remarry. The scene is punctuated by clips (from an old Twilight Zone episode, perhaps?) in which boxer Lee Marvin is pummeled in the ring and knocked out. But the clips and the language and the sex would get old fast if we didn't like the characters. Benben has the Everyman charm of a young George Segal, and he wears his anxiety to hilarious effect. He is devoted to his young teenage son, and still loves Judith, who is marrying a paragon, never seen, but described at one point as a "Ghandi for our times." His dating relationships spectacularly crash and burn (cue clip of disabled aircraft). In one episode, he comes undone when he discovers his new lover was a porn star. At the office, he is at the mercy of his caustic secretary (Denny Dillon). Dream On is of more than prurient interest. This was one of those lightning-in-a-bottle series blessed with a fresh vision, a seamless ensemble, and smart writing. To finally have it on DVD is a Dream come true. --Donald Liebenson ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Why did it take so long to release this series?!!
Just buy this - buy it now. Somewhen in the early 90s this series appeared. Completely funny & totally original, this series of pure pure entertainment was the highlight of mine and a million friends week. I have crawled the internet and have never ever found a video, download or anything... until now, I live in anticipation of seeing this great series again.

The show was genius - Martin Tupper's (Brian Benben)thoughts were shown via clips of old b/w B movies. The supporting cast is excellent and they always had cameos from big stars like David Bowie.

How or why this series was forgotten until now is a mystery. Its a masterpiece, far superior to the dross that's around today.

It's About Time!!!
I'm very pleased to see that "Dream On" is finally making it to DVD! I used to love this show when I watched it first-run on HBO years ago. Brian Benben was PERFECT as the hapless Martin Tupper, divorced from his wife Judith and trying to raise his teenage son Jeremy while re-entering the dating scene in the 1990's. The show contained many clips of old black & white TV shows and movies where appropriate in the story, and they were hilarious! One of my favorite such moments was in the episode where Jeremy went to a makeout party and told both Martin and Judith he would be staying with the OTHER parent. They found out they had been duped when Judith phoned Martin and found out he had a woman with him. She chastised him for doing so because Jeremy was there, but Martin was quick to defend himself and inform Judith that Jeremy was with HER. She said, "No, he's..." and slowly a look of realization comes to both of their faces. Then, it immediately cuts to a B&W shot of two small boys saying to each other "We fell for it! Boy are we dumb!" Hilarious!

I hope that there are some special features present on this set, but even if there aren't it will still be worth owning. It's about time that this classic HBO Original Series gets the DVD treatment. Hats off to Universal! Now let's hope that another excellent but overlooked HBO Original, "Tales From the Crypt", gets the same treatment! Everyone please support this release so the rest of the seasons will be released as well! You will not be sorry! ... Read more

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Nothing? Seinfeld is a show about everything! It's about the appeal of the posse and coma etiquette. It's about importing and exporting. It's about sneaking a peek, and seeing the baby. It's about this, that, and the other. TV Guide ranked Seinfeld the best TV series of all time. It has become the master of its syndication domain. Its most devoted fans can quote each episode chapter and verse; their absorption of each scene's minutiae anything but a trivial pursuit. With such fervent devotion to the show, and demand for its DVD release, series creators Jerry Seinfeld and Larry David could have easily just OK'd a bare-bones set containing nothing but the episodes. Not that there would have been anything wrong with that, but instead, the creative team came together to create extensive and encyclopedic features that make this four-disc set buy-worthy. The candid and revealing audio commentaries and interviews, deleted scenes and original episode promos, and optional "Notes About Nothing" pop-ups are as irresistible as a Drake's coffee cake.

It's always fun and instructive to return to the humble beginnings of a series that became a pop culture benchmark. Here are Kramer's first not-so-grand entrance, Jerry's first contemptuous "Hello, Newman," and Elaine's first "Get Out!" shove. But what is most revelatory about the episodes from the first two seasons is what Jason Alexander, during his commentary for the episode "The Revenge," calls a "sweet quality" that somehow redeems these characters' more base instincts.The third season's--for want of a better word--the charm. The show has found its misanthropic voice (by season's end, a fed-up Elaine tells herself, "I gotta get some new friends"), the ensemble has a firmer grasp of their characters, and the writers rise to the occasion with episodes that have entered the Seinfeld pantheon, including the Seinfeld equivalent of a Very Special Episode, "The Boyfriend," with Keith Hernandez and the J.F.K. parody, "The Library," featuring Philip Baker Hall channeling Jack Webb as library bookhound Bookman, "The Pez Dispenser," and "The Keys," with an L.A.-bound Kramer winding up on Murphy Brown. Michael Richards, especially, comes into his own this season as Kramer. The first two seasons built up the mystique of this "man-child"/"parasite." So while he was absent in season 2's now-classic "The Chinese Restaurant" (in which Jerry, George, and Elaine wait in vain for a table), he is now out and about with the close-knit, albeit dysfunctional, trio. Julia Louis-Dreyfus has some of her giddiest golden moments, zonked on painkillers in "The Pen," or, as a bored party guest in "The Stranded," telling an obnoxious bride-to-be that "Maybe the dingo ate your baby." And don't get us started on Jason Alexander as George, series co-creator Larry David's neurotic and angst-ridden alter-ego. To paraphrase what Julia Roberts said of Denzel Washington, we don't want to live in a world where Alexander doesn't have an Emmy.

The "Inside Look" episode intros offer fascinating insights into this singular show that subverted sitcom convention. We learn that even the most outrageous episodes, such as "The Pez Dispenser," were inspired by real-life events. Especially telling is Alexander's observation that Jerry never really socialized with the other ensemble members. This has extended to the commentaries: Seinfeld pairs with David on some episodes, while Alexander, Richards, and Dreyfus team up on others. They are gracious to the guest stars and extras, and mostly mum on Jer.All of this, of course, is yadda yadda yadda to Seinfeld fans, whose patience for the show's DVD debut has been amply rewarded. As Elaine screams in the third-season episode, "The Subway," "It's not nothing, it's something!" --Donald Liebenson ... Read more