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Tales from the Darkside: Basher Malone starts as clean cut pro wrestler Basher Malone (Steve Strong) who is managed by his mum (Marie Denn) defeats the dirty, cheating low down Lockjaw (Jack Wildman Armstrong) managed by trainer Tippy Ryan (Vic Tayback) who in fact works for the Devil. For over twenty years Tippy has produced cheating dirty wrestlers one after the other for the kids to idolise & emulate, that all changed when Basher Malone appeared on the scene & all the kids started to look up to him & his copy his Mr. nice guy image. Desperate Tippy contacts the Devil & ask's for some help to defeat Basher Malone, the Devil sends Trog (Magic Schwarz) his best wrestler from the depths of hell to put an end to Basher Malone. Can Basher Malone defeat Trog in a fair fight?

Episode 20 from season 4 this Tales from the Darkside story originally aired in the US during July 1988 & this was the final story from the final season & as such was the final ever Tales from the Darkside episode & is probably the most blatant good vs. evil fight I have ever seen, I mean Basher Malone quite literally features a fight between good in the shape of the all American hero Basher Malone against the low down dirty cheating evil wrestler from hell Trog! If that isn't a direct moralistic tale of good vs. evil both metaphorically & literally then I don't know what is. Directed by Tales from the Darkside regular prouder Anthony Santa Croce one has to say that Basher Malone is yet another totally bonkers & oddball way to spend twenty odd minutes, to be fair to it Basher Malone is fairly fun in a really silly & offbeat sort of way & at least it's short. Basher Malone must be the most blatant moralising episode ever from any programme ever made, the idea of good vs. evil run throughout the entire episode right down to Basher Malone taking his mum out to dinner at the end! How can you not like a programme that features a Pepsi coke vending machine as a doorway straight to the depths of hell?

Like most Tales from the Darkside that came before it Basher Malone is set almost entirely in a single location, the wrestling ring. There are several wrestling scenes although I can't say I am a particularly big fan of the 'sport' but if you are then you may enjoy Basher Malone more than I did. Basher Malone was made just as pro wrestling was becoming very popular during the late 80's & you can see why the production team made a story revolving around a fight between good & evil with wrestling as it's foundation, something which a lot of people could relate to at the time especially kids. There are several real wrestlers who appear in this with the character of Basher Malone obviously based on Hulk Hogan, also featuring is 'scream queen' Brinke Stevens who has just about appeared in as many bad horror films as anybody else in history.

Basher Malone is not a particularly great way to finish the final ever Tales from the Darkside season, it's fun in a bizarrely odd sort of way but not especially good taken on it's own. Although Basher Malone was the last Tales from the Darkside episode from the the regular series a film called Tales from the Darkside: The Movie (1990) was made & was much more horror orientated than the series ever was.

The pits. Just awful wrestling spoof has this Chuck Norris lookalike named Basher Malone (Steve Strong), with an old mama (Marie Denn) dressed as if she were readymade for preparing Thanksgiving dinner (at ringside she has brownies, lemonade, chocolate chip cookies, and milk!), putting his career on the line against a heel in a Luchador mask from Hell (I promise, that is the plot!), managed by dastardly Tippy Ryan (the one and only Vic Tayback). Tippy has been quite successful in producing loathsome villains for the kids to emulate and look up to. Then comes Basher who offers the kids wholesome values to get behind, fighting his opponents (Tippy hands a pair of brass knuckles to an opponent to use against Basher, and he also orchestrates any rotten act possible to get his wrestler a victory) cleanly and with valor. Hence, introduced is the wrestler from the great down under (literally a portal located in a Pepsi vending machine located in Tippy's gym!) being called up to take Basher out. A great deal of the episode is set in the ring, so if you don't like pro wrestling, this episode will probably have your attention bolting for the exit. I like pro wrestling, but I think it has no reason to be anywhere near Tales from the Darkside. The nonsense with the valet of Tippy's Hellspawn getting wet and turning into mush, the gun with a laser that cools off Tippy's Trog since he isn't use to the climate of cool Earth considering his home is in the Devil's domain, and the increasing power that benefits Trog when fueled by the sin of others or when personally riled up (by the laser gun, a kiss from the valet, or Basher's own bouts with pride), a little device on his belt indicating when he's "powered up or powered down", just emphasizes the stupidity of the screenplay. What a disappointing end to a series that suffered plenty of lows in its four seasons of high and lows.

This final series episode is very silly, but funny. It's very dumb, but has a lot of charm. In some respects, it was kind of an odd way to end the "horror" series since it was a 100 percent humor and 0 percent suspense.....but at least it was entertaining. That's what I liked about "Tales From the Darkside:" the humor.

Real life wrestler Steve Strong plays "Basher Malone," a grappler who really gets under the skin of an opposing trainer/manager "Tippy Ryan." It seems Ryan's boys just can't beat the Basher and he can't take it any longer. Ryan, played by the raspy-voiced Vic Tayback, of TV's "Alice" fame, makes a deal with the devil to make sure Basher doesn't win any more. Basher is unaware of this and stupidly agrees to a match with a man from Hell.

However, one person won't let "the good guy" lose: Basher's mom, "Ma Malone," played by Marie Denn. Ma, with her chocolate chip cookies and pep talks to her obnoxious and dumb son, is the star of this episode.

The season ends with the normal devil-gets-his-due, which is always satisfying, even if it is a bit corny.

Corrupt and unscrupulous promoter Tippy (the always great Vic Tayback) challenges goody goody two shoes professional wrestler Basher Malone (a likable performance by Steve Strong) to fight vicious demon Trog (fearsome hulking brute Magic Schwartz) in a private match.

Director Anthony Santa Croce keeps the entertaining off-the-wall story moving along at a zippy pace, maintains an engaging lighthearted tone throughout, and stages the rough'n'tumble big match with thrilling flair. Peter O'Keefe's witty script pokes merry fun at the inherent outrageousness of pro wrestling and boasts several neat offbeat touches (for example, a soda vending machine that serves as a portal to hell!). Marie Denn easily steals the whole show with her delightful portrayal of Basher's sweet doting mother, Marlene Casamento makes a sexy impression as the enticing Ursula, and 80's scream queen Brinke Stevens has a funny bit as a wrestling groupie. Kudos are also in order for the groovy rock score and Michael Cardone's lively polished cinematography. A worthy closer to this cool anthology series.