After discovering The Tribe on one of my upper cable channels, I stumbled upon Atlantis High and quickly became addicted and tender towards this bizarre and utterly charming show. Unlike Tribe or most other teen dramas (read: Saved by the Bell), it doesn't focus on morals or underlying melodrama, instead relying on X-Files conventions with everything from aliens, ninjas, superheroes, conspiracies, cross dressers, and prophecies, to entertain the viewer and give clichés a new spin.
The characters are so different and offbeat, it's sincerely hard not to fall for them; they're each given their chance to shine. From the geek getting the suave secret agent to the two oddballs who hit it off, the show sees nothing as reality, and prefers to be charming rather than maudlin. The episodes themselves lampoon anything they can, and you'll see weddings one day and an assassin duel the next, with a riff on ER the day after. It's all exceedingly random, and is never bellow grin-worthy.
Like Raymond Thompson's other famous TV show, The Tribe, you find overkill of recycled music and footage. "Mr. Quentin" is in every episode, but to see him actually interact with a character or deliver a line of dialogue is a rarity. The reused footage of an owl and the main in the pink wig, picking up a phone are also gems. In a few words, this show makes a quality drinking game.
The sad thing, tho, is that this series was cancelled and left on a cliffhanger. Who took Atlantis? What will happen to Giles and the gang? Alas, we may never know. Still, the experience of "Atlantis High" can't be spoiled, as it isn't so much about where it's going as figuring out just what's going on in the first place. Watch and get hooked.
