In 1975, British TV unleashed the most expensive
SciFi show of the time with SPACE 1999, starring Martin Landau, Barbara
Bain, and Barry Morse, who were all veteran superstar actors at the
time. The premise is that in the future, nuclear waste from earth which was dumped on the moon for storage, ignites in nuclear explosions that force the moon to break earths orbit and heads out into deep space away from the solar system. The moon crosses paths with other planets and systems filled with alien life and out of world technologies.
Initially, there are references to magnetic exposure which causes "brain deterioration" and is misdiagnosed as a virus [which I thought was ingenious] but is no longer brought up after the first episode. The rest of the episodes are well written and performed by the veteran actors of the time and the use of simple special effects that might make it easy for a network to consider revising the old effects with better CGI[?]. The history of the show indicates that initial production began in 1973, when it was ready to launch, but was held back for reasons concerning copyright issues and the production of Arthur C. Clarkes, 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY under Stanley Kubric's direction.
The series ran for several years and many episodes laid down the
foundation for early SciFi television formats for SciFi shows that are
being produced today. Many of the sets look familiar to the ones used in
Star Trek: The Next Generation (STNG)
and with good reason; the set layouts were perfect to use in studio
construction for SciFi TV; i.e. STNG, Battlestar Galactica, Babylon 5,
etc. You also might be surprised that the plots and alien contacts from several episodes of this series were also used in STNG and two of the Star Trek Original Series [STOS] movies. One episode in particular during the first season is entitled "Voyager's Return" was very similar to Star Treks first feature film concerning "V-Ger" - Something for you to compare when you watch each episode and look for familiar plots coinciding with STNG.
The series revolves around three cast members most of the time and develops
characters through a myriad of episodes that have to be watched in
sequence. Most of the actors in the series actually work in Hollywood
today and I’m shocked to notice that many of the writers and directors
worked for many years on network television. Some episodes come off with
dry performances, almost like watching today’s soap operas, but was
effective for the time. Landau’s performances are stellar and everything
you see today in all SciFi shows. The series is a valuable part of ScFi
TV and I recommend anyone who likes filmmaking ScFi to watch and learn
from the masters of the time.
The low rating of the series is only due to the special effects of the time and some of the delivery of the guest stars; who were essential for the show's growth in the 70s, but the developments of the new species just weren't given time to "tell their tail" to their strongest presentation in screenplay.
⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ 💫 [3.5 of 5 Stars]
