Quantum Leap
Genesis (Pilot episode)
Released: 1989
Series: 1989 - 1993
Version: Video
Rated: N/A
Length: Approx. 89 minutes
Main Cast: Scott Bakula, Dean Stockwell, Deborah Pratt, Brent Chalem, Ken Martin, James F. Dean, Bruce McGill, Jamie Walters, Dennis Wolfberg
Yes, this is a TV pilot for an old television show. My memories of the show were rife with funny lines and goofy circumstances. I had never seen the first episode of the show or even most of the first season because we just hadn't starting watching the show until later. This, as it turns out, was a very good thing.
The story is that Dr. Sam Beckett (Scott Bakula) and his team want to jump into the past. (Yeah, time travel...) However, the person that does the jump will only be able to jump the length of years of his life. So, he can't jump past his date of birth. Or into the future either. Sam is the one that does the jump, as he's the inventor, but his colleagues didn't want him to since it wasn't truly ready.
Anyway, rather then truly jumping, they jump into other people's bodies. So, Sam ends up in an Air Force test pilot's body sleeping next to his wife. Confused? Yeah, if you haven't seen the show, then it's VERY hard to get the idea across. Well, during the jump, Sam's memory was turned into Swiss cheese, but he knows he is not the guy he jumped into. Of course, everyone else that sees Sam, sees the Air Force guy as well as hears him.
Eventually, Sam's partner (or one of them anyway) shows up in the form of a complicated hologram. His name is Al (Dean Stockwell). After much shenanigans, the viewer finds out that Sam cannot return to his era without fixing a mistake in the past...he manages it, and jumps into someone else's body. And that is how the entire series went (well, right until the last season that got pretty weird, but we won't go there.). It was a fun show.
The Good Stuff:
 | Sam wants to be helpful |
| He makes a good unassuming hero |
| An interesting plot that stayed fresh for a surprisingly long time |
The Bad Stuff:
| For a late 80's to early 90's show, this thing sure had a lot of swearing! It beats all the dramas I watch (CSI, Law & Order) combined. |
| Al is a pervert. Practically every scene has him talking about girls he's laid or will be laying soon...or chasing or watching or whatever. He's also a drunk. |
| There's a lot of other sexual innuendo in the movie too. Women comparing their breast size to Marilyn Monroe (I think) and a pilot or two chasing after other women. |
I recommend the newer episodes. Probably season 2 or 3. This one stinks! The only reason to watch it is to learn how it all started. And you can really find that out just by watching the intro to the show as it's explained fairly well right there.
STORY: 
(yeah, the overall storyline of the pilot was blah, but the ideas for the time
travel were cool!)
VIOLENCE: (airplane
explosions...)
COMEDIC FACTOR:
SEXUAL CONTENT:
(oi! See above!)
LANGUAGE:
ACTION:
(boring...nothing gripping happens)
OVERALL SCORE: