Steven Spielberg And Tim Burton Once Teamed Up For A Critically Panned TV Show

Brad Bird's 1993 animated series "Family Dog" began its life several years earlier as an episode of "Amazing Stories," a Steven Spielberg-produced anthology series that utilized the talents of Clint Eastwood (among many other notable filmmakers). Also titled "Family Dog," the episode aired on February 16, 1987, and featured a cute white terrier of some kind (with its barks provided by Bird) who lived in an ordinary suburb with a white sitcom family. The dog was only ever referred to as "the dog," but his actual name was Jonah. The episode also starred the legendary Stan Freberg as the family patriarch and Annie Potts as his wife. Danny Elfman and Steve Bartek provided the music, with Tim Burton contributing to the short's character designs.

The piece was sliced into three vignettes, all of which centered on the ways a family dog can forcibly — and unfortunately — insert themselves into traditional family moments. In one short, the family dog merely bears the indignity of being a dog. In the second, the family dog eats the Christmas ham. In the third, the dog is sent to obedience school after failing to foil a robbery. Even in 1987, audiences sensed the "Family Dog" episode was meant to be a backdoor pilot for a full-on animated series.

Which, of course, it was. The "Family Dog" series launched on June 23, 1993, with Martin Mull and Molly Cheek taking over the roles of the parents. The premise and look of the series was nearly identical to the "Amazing Stories" episode, as the dog was still living with the same family, including a troublesome 10-year-old son (Zak Huxtable Epstein) and oblivious six-year-old daughter (Cassie Cole). This time, Spielberg and Burton teamed up to serve as executive producers. Most of the episodes were directed by Chris Buck ("Frozen," "Wish") and/or Clive A. Smith (who helmed a segment of the infamous "Star Wars Holiday Special").

Sadly, the series was short-lived and only last 10 episodes. It was canceled on July 28, 1993, in response to audience indifference and a flurry of bad reviews.

Because it was a show, the lives of the central humans had to be expanded for the "Family Dog" TV series. They were named the Binsfords and were, to be frank, a lot like the Simpsons. Recall that the Simpsons were meant to be the opposite of a traditional sitcom family, expressing exasperation and clownery where there was, in traditional TV, warmth and whimsy. The Binsfords were the same in that they were petty, caustic, and angry a lot of the time. The dog was often blamed for wrecking everything, but his well-meaning mayhem usually brought the family together. For example, the dog loses a dog show in the pilot episode only to ruin everything because he's thirsty, knocking over an ice sculpture. On the drive home, the Binsfords giggle a little bit over the chaos.

Also like "The Simpsons," "Family Dog" wasn't rosy or placid. At least one of the stories involved the dog getting bitten by a toxic mosquito, being taken to the vet, and nearly dying. Another episode is about a homeless woman, while another still is about how the family home almost burns down. "Family Dog" was more tragedy than comedy. Really, it was a little skewed. It may've been created by Bird, but one could smell Burton's influence on it, as the series bore his dark, carnivalesque sense of humor.

But no critics like it. Entertainment Weekly's Ken Tucker bristled at the hatefulness of the show, describing it as a "funny yet gloomy tale of a gray little football of a dog, despised by his despicable family. The grown-up joke in Bird's 'Family Dog'  was that the people who owned this lazy, smelly, dumb pooch were even more pathetic than the dog was." He also noted the show's absence of wit and casual cruelty. The Chicago Tribune's critic similarly hated it and felt that everyone should have talked less. Meanwhile, ratings stayed low and the show soon vanished. It was only later made available on LaserDisc, with a few select episodes releasing on VHS.

Hopes were high for "Family Dog," of course, and the series was even licensed for a video game on the Super Nintendo. Unfortunately, even the game was panned. In fact, the website Time Extension once listed is as one of the worst SNES games of all time.

"Family Dog" didn't just fail; it became notorious. The original "Family Dog" shorts may have technically pre-dated the debut of "The Simpsons," but its expansion into a series lumped it in with the explosion of animated shows that hit primetime in that series' wake. Indeed, "Family Dog" became one of three expensive, high-profile failures, all released in the early 1990s and all featuring animated animals. Specifically, "Family Dog" joined the shows "Capitol Critters" and "Fish Police," both released in 1992, on the ash heap of time. "Capitol Critters," an animal-starring cartoon spoof of life in Washington DC, was a mixed bag, but "Fish Police," an undersea detective series, was weirdly strong. It, along with "Family Dog," didn't deserve its negative reception.

The above image is from the third-ever "Treehouse of Horror" episode of "The Simpsons," which aired on October 29, 1992. One can clearly see tombstones labeled "Fish Police," "Capitol Critters," and "Family Dog." "Family Dog" hadn't even aired yet, but it was already dead. Animation enthusiasts knew that "Family Dog" had been picked up as a series ... and then canceled before it had even made it to the airwaves. Its 1993 airing was considered a "burn off," i.e. a display to the public only done out of contractual obligation.

"Family Dog" is not available on streaming, but resourceful internet sleuths will be able to find low-quality bootlegs of the show here and there. It's certainly worth a look. Despite its reputation as a massive failure, "Family Dog" is quite good. But, yes, it is caustic.