Monsters (TV Series) My Zombie Lover (1988) User Reviews

Affectionate spoof

[Leofwine_draca · 6/10 · 24 June 2015]

MY ZOMBIE LOVER is a solid episode of the MONSTERS TV show which comes across as a romantic comedy horror. It's also an affectionate spoof of NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD, with many twists and turns in the plot that you won't see coming. It's original too; not bad for a TV episode with a 20-something minute running time.

The story involves a black family who are holed up in their house on one night of the year when zombies come out to play, leading to anarchy on the streets (shades of THE PURGE). Unfortunately for them, a zombie makes his way indoors, where he promptly falls in love with the teenage daughter. What follows is offbeat but surprisingly funny, with good performances from a game cast.

A goofy little episode, which isn't actually bad to watch!

[b_kite · 6/10 · 13 July 2017]

My Zombie Lover starts on the night of the dead were every year zombies rise from the grave to eat the living. While her Dad (Ed Wheeler) is out killing them the young nerdy Dottie (Tempestt Bledsoe) is paid a visit by the zombie Paul (Steve Harper) who was killed in a car accident and returns to plead his undying love for Dottie saying he always had a crush on her, but, was two nervous to say anything, now he is back to make things right, but, how will Dottie's anti-zombie family react to Paul...?

This is a comedic episode played strictly for laughs and most of the time i'm not a big fan of them, but, it seems producer Richard P. Rubinstein must have been, because he littered them through out "Tales from the Darkside" and it seems here as well. This is one that's actually done right, as far as comedy episodes go it isn't annoying and the cast is also good here and don't ham up the material to bad. The 20 minute run time really helps it not outstay its welcome. As far as the cast goes the only recognizable face is Tempestt Bledsoe who played Vanessa on "The Cosby Show". The twist which is also played for laughs was great and I found it pretty funny. The monster here is the zombie Paul and it looks like Dick Smith who was the makeup consultant for the show returns to do the makeup for this episode, it looks pretty good. Overall this is a nice decent goofy episode that is actually not bad to watch do to its swift run time and the fact that the material isn't childish comedy and the cast reacts to it well.

Zombies are back hungry for some flesh!

[blanbrn · 6/10 · 5 November 2020]

This episode 5 from season one of "Monsters" called "My Zombie Lover" is one that's far out and strange as it's story and plot is crazy it tries to be more of a horror comedy! The tale involves an African American family who's daughter Dottie("The Cosby Show's" Tempestt Bledsoe) is home from college and daddy and mommy decide to go hunting it's that season however this type of season and time of year is the night that zombies have came back from the dead! Also to add some intrigue and a little twist Dottie has an ex high school boyfriend visit her for some fresh flesh face eating kisses! The episode then twist and gets stranger ending with Dottie's little brother awaiting his turn for the feast! Overall one episode that's different as it doesn't try to take things to serious!

Poorly done. Pain to watch, stir clear.

[Aba74 · 3/10 · 14 August 2020]

After watching many Monsters episodes I find the best are the ones that are serious. The comedic ones fall flat. This one was just unfunny.

Clever, but terribly done

[Bored_Dragon · 4/10 · 19 September 2018]

On the surface, this episode seems ridiculous and terribly done, and if you don't pay attention to message it is trying to send, I believe you'll rate it 1/10. But if you look closer, this is an over-the-top parody of several social stereotypes. The episode criticizes hatred and fear of average American towards everything that's different, lightly recourse to weapons as a solution, racism, as well as various protesters. A scene in which a young zombie can not refrain from biting his living girlfriend is an obvious allusion to teenagers who are burdened with sex. All of this does not cover for the fact that the episode is terribly filmed, but because of the idea behind it, it can pass. Plus, the twist at the end of the episode is unexpectedly fun.

4/10

"How can I prove I don't want to eat you?" Classic episode.

[poolandrews · 8/10 · 29 December 2008]

Monsters: My Zombie Lover starts on the 'night of the dead' when in a small town the dead return to life as flesh eating zombies, the locals all tool themselves up with guns & go zombie hunting including mom (Mrcella Lowery) & dad (Ed Wheeler) of two. While out shooting zombies the daughter Dottie (Tempestt Bledsoe) decides to stay at home, a short time later there is a knock at the door by a guy Dottie used to know at school named Paul Nichols (Steve Harper) the only problem is he was killed in a car accident. Now a flesh eating zombie Paul remembers Dottie & as they spend the night together begin to fall for each other but Dottie's family hates zombies & Paul needs human flesh to live which may be big problems for the relationship in the long run...

Episode five from season one of Monsters this originally aired in the US during November 1988, written & directed by David Misch I have to say that I loved this quirky zombie love story & thought it was a perfectly judged mix of laughs, morals & light hearted chills. The character's really make My Zombie Lover, from the funny young kid who is an anti-zombie killing protester to the all American shoot first don't bother to ask questions later father to the self conscious zombie Paul who is all too aware that bits of himself are falling off! There's some hilarious one-liners too delivered in a very funny deadpan way like after Paul proposes to Dottie she says 'you don't want my hand in marriage you want it in a sandwich' in regard to his carnivorous tendencies & after finding true love Paul's exclamation that 'today's the first day of the rest of my death' had me laughing to the 'I thought you ate my daughter' line said in total seriousness at the end by the father. Talking of the ending the twist is pretty good too & well as being funny like the rest of the episode. My Zombie Lover is a very funny twisted cross between Night of the Living Dead (1968) & Casablanca (1942) if you can imagine such a thing. The script also tries to deliver a potent social message too & has a thinly veiled dig at racism & American attitudes towards those they fear. Highly amusing & at only just over twenty minutes in length you won't get the chance to become bored.

Like many Monsters episodes (& Tales from the Darkside that preceded it) My Zombie Lover takes place on a single set with only five cast members so it has a staged in front of a studio audience sitcom sort of feel to it that suits the material perfectly. The monster in this episode is obviously Paul the zombie, while his make-up is alright I've seen better zombie make-up effects although the makers couldn't make him too disgusting since that would have affected the way we the audience felt about him. The only gory moment is when the zombies ear falls off onto the floor. The acting is good although everything is played for laughs.

My Zombie Lover is a hilarious twenty minutes that spoofs both the horror & romance genres down to a tee, I thought it worked perfectly & I found it very funny although the other IMDb user ratings suggest I seem to be in the minority (until now no-one else has rated it over 6).

Funny comic episode

[Woodyanders · 8/10 · 17 June 2019]

Smitten, but deceased Paul Nichols (a likeable performance by Steve Harper) decides to visit high school crush Dottie (an appealing portrayal by Tempest Bledsoe) on the one day of the year that the dead return to life.

Writer/director David Misch relates the enjoyable story at a snappy pace, maintains an engaging tongue-in-cheek tone throughout, gets a good deal of laughs from an amusing sense of playful macabre humor, brings a surprising amount of genuine heart to the offbeat premise, and even tosses in some spot-on interesting and incisive social commentary. Moreover, it's acted with zest by an enthusiastic cast: Bledsoe and Harper make for extremely charming leads, with nice support from Ed Wheeler as Dottie's disapproving dad, Marcella Lowery as her cheerful mom, and Eugene Boyd as bratty younger brother Brad. Extra points for the hilariously twisted surprise ending. A real hoot.