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Summary: This is the beginning.....This is the Day....
Review: This series is what Lost In Space is all about...survival!! The endearing aspects of the show, to me, has always been the triumphant overcoming of Professor Robinson and Don to obstacles and dangers. A good fatherly spirit and ethical attitude is portrayed nicely by Professor Robinson even as they are plunged into the unknown void, off course from reaching Alpha Centauri. As you will see the dangers they face are immediate upon their first crash landing on Preplanus and the confrontation with the Giant seen on the Episode, "There were Giants on the Earth". The stories in short were well written and highly imaginative. Episodes like "Invaders From The 5th Dimension" and "The Keeper" are unforgettable! The episode "The Raft" is the start where they attempt to derive a synthesized deutronium fuel source to leave Preplanus in the first series, we fans-true fans of the show always sat at the edge of our seats wondering ...are they going to lift off soon? Did they solve their deutronium fuel problem? This series showed very cool special effects and great acting by Guy Willaims and Mark Goddard. The first season shows the Doctor's legendary insanity and developing humor prevelant in the 2nd series. Oh the pain....the pain. Every Lost In Space fan MUST get this DVD! This series redefined special effects at that time during the 1960's. The Jupiter 2 is delicately designed and beautifully portrayed on the Alpha Control Launch Pad! Thank God someone had the sense to design a spaceship that was unique and not just a traditional cigar shaped rocket!! The engine sound too in the episode "The Derelict" was the coolest sound at that time for a spaceship with an antigravity drive!! Can't wait for the 2nd season DVD release!! It is sure to be released! Enjoy!!
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Summary: Wonderful In The First Season
Review: Never in the history of television did a show start out so good and end up so terrible. Lost in Space (in the second two seasons) drifted from science fiction to fantasy and silly fantasy at that with Dr. Smith (a once clever and sinister villian) turning into a bumbling idiot who is over used in each episode, to the detriment of the other characters (with the exception of Will and the robot who had also been transformed by this time from a real robot to to a being so laughable, it became embarressing). There were some notable exceptions, so yes, I will admit to a few good episodes in the second two seasons but for the most part, the show had lost its steam by then.The good news is that Season One is wonderful, well written, well acted and not bad in the special effects department considering when the series was made (mid-sixties)The black and white helped to make things look more realistic and occassionally shots of the moving land vehicle (called the chariot) were seen against the back drop of a real desert which gave us the feel that these people really were on a remote planet somewhere. Although Dr. Smith's silliness is established by the end of season one, the stories at least are still good and the show can still at this point be called science fiction. Perhaps the contrast between this season and the following two make Season One a special treasure to be cherished.
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Summary: The Glories of Season One
Review: I was 8 when Lost in Space premiered in the fall of 1965, and I'll never forget the singular thrill of the Jupiter 2 hurling through space on our black and white tv. It warms my heart to read so many others have fond childhood recollections, and I, too, eagerly await the first season DVDs. I agree that the oft-mentioned My Friend Mr. Nobody, The Magic Mirror, Return from Outer Space, and The Keeper I and II are among the best episodes, but I have a special fondness for Invaders from the Fifth Dimension. Here was scary, tight storytelling with a sweet tribute to human frailty. I remained a loyal fan all the way to the Vegetable Rebellion and Junkyard in Space, but nothing compares to the stylishness, adventure and emotion of season one. At its best, Lost in Space offered some of the best science fiction ever seen on television. The revisionists who dwell on the camp of seasons two and three forget this.
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Summary: The good ol' Jupiter 2
Review: It all depends on your point of reference, but for someone growing up in the 70's like myself, reruns of Lost in Space, and Bewitched are etched in my memory banks as fond memories. I can remember coming home from grade school everyday, looking forward to Lost in Space on the independent tv channel, back when rooftop antennas and dial tuners were the norm. Lost in Space captured my imagination. I also watched the original Star Trek series, but Lost in Space had a warm and fuzzy feel to it. I can't wait to get the DVD!
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Summary: LOST IN SPACE IS FOUND ON EARTH!
Review: I loved watching the weekly adventures of the Space Family Robinson. I have the first six episodes on VHS which I found one day in a video store. There is no question that season 1 is the best and more serious of the three seasons. and the first five or six episodes are the best of them. One thing you should know about Irwin Allen, the producer of the series (as well as Time Tunnel, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, Land of the Giants, etc.) is that he would blow about 40-50% of the series annual budget in the first few episodes of each series. And it shows on all of his television series. I always thought that in the first two seaons the name should have been changed to "Stranded on a Deserted Planet" because they weren't Lost in Space at all. In the third season, they were truly "Lost in Space" and not on a deserted planet. (Yes it's true that they got off the planet at the start of season two, but they crashed on another deserted planet. It's always easy to use the same set week in and week out) But, as a 9 year old boy growing up in suburban Connecticut at the time, and at a time when the space race was going full throttle between the Americans and the Soviets, I found this series to be very believable as to what could happen in the future of space travel. (After all, the fist episode takes place on October 16, 1997 more than 30 years in the future at that time). And somehow, along with the seriousness of the first season and the black and white cinematography, it made it all the more realistic. My only gripe with all of the Irwin Allen TV shows is that they never wrapped it up. They are still Lost in Space, Tony and Doug are still bouncing around in Time via the Time Tunnel (talk about campy TV shows and real bad history!!!) and those earthlings are still trapped in the Land of The Giants. Irwin Allen, who later went on to produce motion pictures such as The Poseiden Adventure and The Towering Inferno, should have taken a lesson from another TV producer - Quinn Martin. Quinn Martin had the decency to wrap up his TV series, The Fugitive, by having Richard Kimball catch the one-armed man. And this was done after The Fugitive was given the ax by ABC. Martin wanted his audience satisfied and put the money out to produce a two part finale in what would have been the start of a fifth season.
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Summary: Little Bits and Pieces
Review: There's a song written by Michael Nesmith (yes, one of the former television "Pre-Fab Four" better known as "The Monkees") called "Little Bits and Pieces". It's about a guy who wakes up on the floor slowly remembering last night's company Christmas party. All the embarrassing events come back to you one piece at a time. Well that's how I feel about Lost in Space. So much can be said about the first season. Great hardware, music, even acting was pretty darn good. You really felt you were out in the middle of outer space - all alone - trying to survive. At least the first 5 episodes were like that. After that we saw increasingly strange storylines such as the "hillbillies in space" episode (The Space Croppers) complete with outhouse spaceship and a whole subplot with werewolves! What was THAT all about? It was at this point, as a child, I was banned to a bedroom with a black and white television and told to watch the show alone. My parents found something else to watch on Wednesday nights! One CAN say the episodes are uneven - for every "Space Croppers" there's a "My Friend, Mr. Nobody", the ugly duckling turned swan episode with some of the best episodic music ever written for television (IMHO). So as you ply through this set you'll anxiously "spin" the next episode, but suddenly see some ridiculous storyline. Ah - fast forward to the NEXT episode! A sure reason to purchase the 1st Season set is the included unaired pilot "No Place to Hide". Fans will swear they've seen this material before and they would be right as this episode was cut up and spread out over five different broadcast LiS episodes! Overall this season contains the best of Lost in Space. I would skip, "The Sky Pirate", "Ghost in Space", "The Space Croppers" or watch with your kids - they will get a kick out of them. Top 5 are: "My Friend, Mr. NoBody", "The Keeper", "The Magic Mirror", "Follow the Leader", and the 1965 Christmas episode, "Return from Outer Space".
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Summary: Danger! Danger Will Robertson!!
Review: I had the wonderful fortune to meet Jonathan Harris a couple years before he died. He was in a bookstore and he was so lively and fun to talk to. I was a big fan as a kid. They are corney - to the extreme - the effects are left over Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea (both Irwin Allen productions so you would see a monster on Voyage one week and Lost in Space the next!). The early part of the series tried to be more serious in tone, and it dragged, but as the robot and Dr. Smith were pushed forward, the episodes became more campy and great fun! So have a ball. Watch out for Robbie the Robot to show up and duke it out with The Robinson "you may call be golden boy" Robot! Rest in Peace Dr. Smith!! We still love you!
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Summary: That' s the problem with LIS. It was aimed at 8 year olds.
Review: Stephen has aptly summed up the problem with Lost In Space. It WAS aimed at 8 year-olds. Those of us who were around 16 when it came out found it unsophisticated, boring, and silly fluff compared to the far more intellectually stimulating Star Trek. That's why the Lost In Space movie bombed too - it was as awful as the TV show - while Star Trek spawned a number of superb films and all manner of stellar spin-off TV series. Long live Star Trek. Lost In Space was a yawner. . .
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Summary: Lots of Space Now!
Review: What's a Lost In Space fan to do with all of that freed-up shelf space? I confess, I have every episode on VHS, and my young kids have most of them memorized.
Many fans wonder what it is that made this show different from Star Trek and the like. I'll venture my opinion. LiS was primarily about family. Star Trek had the underlying premise that "family" would become obsolete, replaced by federation blah blah blah. Well, here we are, past the 1997 "future" launch date of the Jupiter 2, and family is still alive. For so many of us, family hasn't been all happy, but don't we watch Lost In Space to see them stick together as family and survive over and over and over? And where else can you see main characters actually "working" in almost every episode? Check it out. John and Don have an at-work scene in almost every episode. That's a healthy message that we can all feel glad that our kids are seeing. And one more commentary, isn't Lost In Space the first "homeschooled" family on TV? And Will sure got a great education. Have fun, all.
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Summary: 'Tis a consummation devoutly to be wished!
Review: Yes, Dr. Smith quoted the Bard, almost as often as Samantha's father Maurice on Bewitched. Long live 60s TV! But the dearly departed Jonathan Harris also ad-libbed and re-wrote many of his lines to include alliterative insults, gourmet cravings and precious gems and metals. Ah, Plat-i-num! This was quite a revelation for a 7 year old in 1965. I've carried these things to adulthood and impressed several teachers, profs, students and employers along the way... Beyond the wonderful camp (I learned what camp was from LIS), Lost In Space had a recurring theme that love was the most powerful force in the universe, that has also served me well with family and friends. Who says Star Trek was more philisophical? "Is there in Beauty, Truth" or whatever... Besides the great writing, music, casting and performances are the ultra-cool gadgets and vehicles like the Chariot, the Space Pod, different versions of laser guns and even IDAK (Instant Destroyer and Killer android). But there is nothing more thrilling than seeing the flying-saucer-shaped Jupiter 2 in flight, crashing or extending its landing gear. It's simply perfect. And the ultimate piece of machinery, the Robot. You will fall in love with this 'bubble-headed booby' and see how he became one of the most legendary characters in TV history. I am counting the days till I receive my DVDs and hope for seasons 2 and 3. Oh Joy, Oh Bliss!
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