ALFsplaining

"ALF reveals that Lynn is dating Eddie to her parents' dismay." They do seem obsessed with Lynn dating oddballs, dont they? And few come odder than Michael "Des" "Barnes", aka that British bloke who was in all the American sitcoms. Equally odd and also with erm...well you know, Ben Baker and John Matthews are also here. But you knew that. If we make your teeth chatter comedically, why not consider...

"ALF hosts The Tonight Show for Johnny Carson...." ALF is live across America and its not a dream sequence. I mean, its not really much of anything but who needs explanations when you've got the U.S' most beloved late night talk show of all time? Its all a ruse to make a clip show but there's a fair bit of new material with the ALFer meeting lots of interesting guests, includ...

"Trevor and Raquel have a falling-out, so ALF and Jake try to get them back together." Oh boy, its an Ochmonek episode! Finally things will be getting back on track after a weird pair of openers. This comedy masterclass will be overseen by visiting romance experts in the field Ben Baker and John Matthews who attempt to bring harmony to another episode of ALF. If thinking of us makes Chic...

"ALF meets his guardian angel who makes him see life without the Tanners, and vice versa." A wonderful life - it is?! ALF's getting out of the house by means of fantasy again and this time it involves Sheena Easton. Ben Baker and John Matthews look on confused and wondering how this all ties into "Saved By The Bell", Bloomingdale's or Donald Trump. All will be revealed...

"Lynn's date at the drive-in goes well until she discovers ALF hiding in the back of the car." We're back! Unless you're listening to this in the moon year of 2027 in which case we never went away so shut up. Ben and John are here with more than a little befuddlement as to the....everything of this episode, and in particular, the beer mat it was seemingly penned upon. Please...

The second part of our exclusive chat with Paul Fusco , the man who gave the world ALF , voice and soul. In this part he talks about the strangest merchandise to make the shelves, celebrity fans, who ALF would be feuding with on social media right now, the influence of Monty Python and The Two Ronnies on his humour, there's an encounter with right wing pundit Bill O'Reilly , why ALF is nee...

What do you do when you finally meet God? Its a question Ben and John are about to learn the answer to as they meet the person central to their obsession this past fifty episodes - Paul Fusco , puppeteer, producer, writer, and creator of both the show and, of course, ALF himself. He gives a rare all-access interview talking about how ALF came to exist, his early work, the oft-reported tensions on...

NOTE: DONT LISTEN TO THIS ONE BEFORE YOU HEAR SEASON TWO! Thought you were done with Ben Baker and John Matthews for the summer? Not even close! Not only will we have lots more exciting one offs here and there but there's the now standard series lookback where we go over our favourite episodes of the second run alongside some listener-doxxing stats, an investigation into the TV landscape our furry...

"After realizing that Willie and Kate have emptied Lynn's college fund to support him, a guilty ALF gets ten newspaper routes to earn money for the family." Another episode in which ALF learns a valuable lesson about....nah, of course not...although he is briefly aware of his impact on the Tanners. Ben Baker and John Matthews fully weigh up the impact he's had on them too as we r...

"The Tanners plan a party for ALF, who is depressed that he is the only one of his species." There have been some odd episodes of ALF this season but your hosts Ben Baker and John Matthews might have been officially outfoxed by this mix of dream sequences, sketches, downplayed melodrama, boffo gags, horrendous sound effects and confusing the blind. We'll miss it when its gone. If you...

"ALF plays pink elephant for Kate's alcoholic friend Maura" Crack open a tinny and pour that nebuchadnezzar of floor polish as its a boozy, woozy sort of episode with a very special message - although your hosts Ben Baker and John Matthews are struggling to find it in amongst the salad and dry heaving. Maybe don't listen to this one whilst eating.... If you want to help us buy mo...

"ALF gets a ventriloquist dummy in the mail that takes control of him." Well that all seems perfectly straightforward! Join Ben Baker and John Matthews for a surprisingly not very meta look into a puppeteer's art, soul and hooves. Helping them out on pre-recorded tape are former guests Al Jean , Mike Reiss and Phil Fletcher who all add some interesting pointers on the episode which i...

"Willie gets a promotion that relocates him to San Diego, however despite hating the new job and proclaiming how much he loves the house they currently live in, it takes drastic moves by ALF to make him realize what he's doing." Willie's out! And we're all bowing under its enormous pressure as his new job takes him away from the loving bosom of his family....and the actual bo...

"Willie tries to teach Brian nonviolence in dealing with a school bully, but changes his ways when the bully's lowlife father comes to the Tanner residence and insults the entire family." An episode about Brian being repeatedly punched in the face? Erm..., we didnt kill him. That is to say, your hosts Ben Baker and John Matthews didnt, as they're still rubbing liniment into their...

Here on ALFsplaining, we are big fans of balance - be it following every Howard Jones track with one by Nik Kershaw or one of them seals with a beachball you used to see at the zoo in old cartoons. And so after speaking to the lovely Mike Reiss , Ben and John thought it only right and proper to talk to his former long-term writing partner Al Jean . Like Reiss, he also worked on Sledge Hammer, The...

In today's very special episode of "ALFsplaining", Ben and John speak to the writer Mike Reiss . If you aren't familiar with the name - firstly, C'MON - but you'll know the shows he's worked on, including "Sledge Hammer!" , "The Tonight Show starring Johnny Carson" , "It's Garry Shandling's Show" and "The Simpsons" where...

"The Tanners take in a stray dog, much to ALF's dismay. " It's big guest name time as Anne Ramsay from "The Goonies" and "Throw Momma From The Train" appears as an unscrupulous dog purchaser several months before her early passing. She does not look well throughout but still overshadows Ben Baker and John Matthews who look like stuttering tramps next to her ac...

"ALF moves in with his blind friend Jody in her condo." Remember Blind Jody? Well, she's back - in....well, still blind form but she needs a place to stay and apparently that means only one man. Or alien. Perfect hosts Ben Baker and John Matthews have laid out the best silverware too for their houseguest Nina "Buckers" Buckley who shocks everyone by already being a massive...

"ALF spots a criminal by his neighbor's house, and walks inside to investigate." We left Ben and John on a cliffhanger - our first of the series but far from its last - with ALF trapped Chez Ochmonek as the Police close in on him. How will Willie get him out of this one? And who'll get Willie out too? Its an exciting one so fetch your popcorn and a gunbelt as its time to visit a very strange episo...

"Willie is chosen by the neighborhood to lead a neighborhood watch. But ALF takes control of the radio and starts to talk as if he was Willie." There's a crime spree going down and ALF is the man to fix the pus-ridden streets of Hemdale. Ben Baker and John Matthews go ahead and make his day in this unusual two-part opener which occasionally feels like a totally different sitcom allto...

"Willie's Uncle Albert visits the Tanners, and collapses from a heart attack after getting a glimpse of the alien, causing ALF to feel grief thinking he caused the death" More murder from the Melmacian mofo? Gosh! Best get an expert in the field over! Call for Paul Abbott from The Big Beatles and Sixties Sort Out for this McCartney-music monikered episode. He'll help Ben Baker and John Matthews so...

"ALF is put on trial for breaking the Ockmonecks' window." All rise for ALFsplaining….it's the court case of the century! Can Shumway, G prove his innocence to prosecutor Tanner, Wilbus in the court of Judge Kate? In the reporters box, Ben Baker and John Matthews scrawl crude things in their notebooks as they consider pivoting the whole show to a crime caper in order to improve the flagging rating...

"ALF befriends Trevor and Raquel's nephew Jake from New York." A replacement for Brian? Surely not! (we didnt kill him) Either way, wonder writers Al Jean and Mike Reiss are on scripting duties to introduce a new Ochmonek to the party so Ben and John will be coming the episode for Simpsons-style jokes. And for nits like usual. Obvs. And if you want to fix our telescope, perhaps consider joining th...

Oh boy, we finally made it to the most famous ALF episode of the lot - for good reasons, you may ask? Ha ha, no. Of course not. This is a double-length but largely joke-free misery festival full of suicidal Santas and sick kids by the pound. In the midst of it all John Matthews tries to remain positive whilst Ben Baker is already on the egged nog. Listen out for some special seasonal guests and a...

"Seeing that Kate and Willie have been arguing of late, ALF and the Tanner children plan to recreate the couple's Niagara Falls honeymoon." What an ALF Antic! An ALFtic even! The love life of Willie and Kate is addressed by the four fingered fluff machine who uses some uncanny abilities to recreate the best day of their marriage. And we dont mean the day they met him! And if you want to give us th...