Dave’s World starred Harry Anderson (Night Court) and was based on the Pulitzer Prize winning books penned by funny man Dave Barry. Although I’ve never met Dave Barry, my impression of him will forever remain the portrait that Harry Anderson paints on this series. Anderson’s Barry is a semi-slacker column writer in Miami with a sarcastic wife and two good kids. True, the formula isn’t that much different from any late eighties/early nineties sitcom but the cast seem to make it funnier than most of their contemporaries were.
Much like Seinfeld or Everybody Loves Raymond, this show is really about nothing in particular. Each episode is its own world, tied together solely by the sameness of the characters. Barry learns life lesson through his family and friends each time and sometimes the others learn something as well. The twist here is that it all becomes fodder for his newspaper column, relating his own experiences to that of others with a sort of “Dear Abby” style. Sometimes the show gets heavy, such as the premise of “The Insecurity System” as Barry takes notice of the fact that he even needs a home alarm system in his upper middle class neighborhood and questioning the goofy teenagers who install it and provide the security for it. Other times the show just deals with funny situations that all families deal with, such as the episodes “The Martian Death Flu” and “Six Years Old and All Washed Up.”
Overall this is an enjoyable show that has been largely forgotten over the years. Harry Anderson is extremely funny and believable and as cheesy as Shadoe Stevens can be when playing his parts, it’s probably best we remember him from something other than Hollywood Squares. If you are a fan of Seinfeld, Everybody Loves Raymond, The Cosby Show, or Full House then you should check out Dave’s World: The First Season. You won’t be disappointed.
Reviewed by Mark Fisher
