The premise of the 1976 sitcom “Monster Squad” is pretty wild. Fred Grandy from “The Love Boat” (and, later, a United States Representative) stars as Walt, a guileless yet ambitious criminology student who, in his spare time, has constructed a sophisticated crime computer in the basement of a local wax museum. The basement is where the museum keeps wax sculptures of famous movie monsters like Frankenstein’s Creature, Dracula, and the Wolf Man. Something about the mysterious sonic oscillators in the computer, however, brings the wax figures to life. The monsters also mysteriously remember their past lives as living monsters and immediately feel guilty about all their murders and misdeeds.
To atone, the monsters decide to become a cadre of crimefighting superheroes, using Walt’s criminology computer to track down bad guys. Walt, in turn, sends the monsters on missions, which usually involve tussling with a supervillain of the week. Frankenstein’s Creature, called Frank N. Stein, is played by professional wrestler Mike Lane, with Dracula being portrayed by Henry Polic II from “Webster” and the Wolf Man, named Bruce, being brought to life by prolific character actor Buck Kartalian. The villains are cartoons straight out of the 1960s “Batman” TV show, and each one has a pair of impish, sniveling sidekicks. For instance, Ultra Witch (Julie Newmar) commits crimes with Toil and Trouble (Richard Bakalyan and Joe E. Tata), the Astrologer (Jonathan Harris) breaks the law with Castor and Pollux (Sandy McPeak and James Gammon), No Face (Sid Haig) works alongside Pillage and Plunder (Timothy Scott and David Proval), and so on.
To clarify things up front: No, the 1976 TV series “Monster Squad” has nothing to do with Fred Dekker’s 1987 feature film “The Monster Squad.” The former is also currently streaming for free on Tubi, Philo, and the Roku Channel.
Monster Squad (1976) doesn’t have anything to do with The Monster Squad (1987)
“Monster Squad” is a weird, weird series. The show’s conceit is that its monsters are wax statues come to life, but they seem to be manifested in flesh-and-blood. Dracula, for instance, can still turn into a bat, while Frankenstein has Hulk-like strength. None of the stories involved the monsters having to deal with their wax bodies.
If “Monster Squad” brings the 1960s “Batman” series to mind, it’s not a coincidence. Stanley Ralph Ross, the credited writer on 27 “Batman” episodes, created “Monster Squad.” Indeed, he was the one put in charge of the many Catwoman episodes, which would explain why Newmar, who played Catwoman on “Batman,” portrays a different villain in “Monster Squad.” Ross also wrote for TV shows like the surprisingly influential “The Monkees,” “Columbo,” “The Man from U.N.C.L.E.,” “All in the Family,” and many others, so he was an old pro by the time “Monster Squad” entered his brain. He was experienced with children’s programming as well, having written for “The Electric Company” and “G.I. Joe” cartoons.
Ross was also familiar with superhero lore, having played several superheroes or supervillains on various animated programs. He portrayed Gorilla Grodd and Brainiac on iterations of “Super Friends,” and he played Perry White in the 1988 animated “Superman” show. When it came to creating a team of mismatched, bizarro, super-powered crimefighters, Ross knew what he was doing.
Although maybe not that well. “Monster Squad” was a giant flop, lasting only 13 episodes over its single season. It was gone by December 4, 1976. And make no mistake, “Monster Squad” is as much a superhero series as it is a horror-comedy. The monsters are not meant to be threatening and instead come across as very odd but friendly vigilantes.
Monster Squad is a bizarre failure worth revisiting
Case in point: The monsters on “Monster Squad” tool around town in a black van — the Monster Van — and wear high-tech communication devices on their belts. They even have superhero names (kinda) in the form of their super-secret C.B. radio handles. Dracula is called Night Flier; Frankenstein is Green Machine; and the Wolf Man is called Fur Ball. When the monsters contact Walt at their base of operations, they even refer to him as Chamber of Horrors.
Is the show good? No, it isn’t. The monsters are silly, and the premise is farfetched, even for a series about crimefighting Universal-style Monsters. Most damning, “Monster Squad” isn’t funny. It may aim for the absurd camp of “Batman,” but its energy is too low, and its convictions are not strong. “Monster Squad” lacks the comedy stylings of actors Adam West and Burt Ward at its center. The characters are vaguely endearing, but they aren’t fun to watch.
Despite this, “Monster Squad” remains a pop culture curio that all horror aficionados and Halloween enthusiasts should seek out. It’s one of the many “Monster Mash” shows and movies, joining titles like “Mad Monster Party?” and “The Groovy Ghoulies.” “Monster Squad” is a fascinating blend of friendly monsters and superhero dynamics that is worth seeking out just for its peculiarity. As mentioned, “Monster Squad” is available for free on Roku, Philo, and Tubi, but one can also pay for it on Prime Video, YouTube Primetime, and Sling.
And, of course, “Monster Squad” was the first in several monsters-as-superheroes shows that we see to this day. The utterly horrible 1980s animated series “Drak Pack” has a similar premise, while the not-at-all-terrible “Creature Commandos,” currently streaming on HBO Max, puts a modern spin on the idea.
