ALF was a popular American sitcom that aired on NBC from September 22, 1986, through March 24, 1990.

The show centers on ALF—short for “Alien Life Form”—whose real name is Gordon Shumway. After crash-landing into the garage of a suburban California family, he’s taken in by the Tanners, a typical middle-class household. The family is led by Willie Tanner (played by Max Wright) and his wife Kate (Anne Schedeen), along with their children Lynn and Brian, portrayed by Andrea Elson and Benji Gregory.

ALF himself was brought to life primarily by puppeteer Paul Fusco, who also co-created the series with Tom Patchett. In scenes requiring a full-body appearance, the character was performed by Michu Meszaros, though he was not credited for the role.

The final episode of the series, “Consider Me Gone,” aired on March 24, 1990.

At the time, no one expected it to be the end, so the episode closes on a major cliffhanger. In the original ending, the Tanners say an emotional goodbye as ALF prepares to return home. Just as his spaceship arrives, the military intervenes, scaring it away and leaving him stranded on Earth once again. The scene ends with ALF surrounded and the words “To be continued…” appearing on screen. Soon after, the show was canceled, leaving the story unresolved.

A follow-up TV movie, Project: ALF (1996), attempted to continue the story, but let’s just say it wasn’t very good and leave it at that. They didn’t even bother to bring the Tanners back.

Well, it always bugged me that the show never had a proper conclusion, so I finally went and fixed that. I consider this new version a more satisfying ending.

If you’ve never seen the original ending, I’ve included it below the alternate version.

ORIGINAL ENDING