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Science fiction and fantasy on television

[October 6, 1966] One Trek, neat (The Naked Time)

October 6, 2021 Erica Frank 8 Comments

by Erica Frank

We return to our weekly adventures aboard the Enterprise, in the first episode that does not feature the dangers of psychic powers gone mad. We're still dealing with madness, of a sort — "The Naked Time" features people who have lost their self-control and run wild throughout the ship, endangering everyone on board.

The episode began with a trip to a planet on the verge of destruction; the Enterprise planned to record the event, collecting rare scientific data while avoiding being caught in its implosion. When they arrived, they found the on-planet base crew dead of mysterious causes. One bright fellow – we'll call him "Ensign Stupid" – takes off his gloves to scratch his nose while poking around the base, and he gets a scratch.

Ensign Stupid in his very fashionable orange-and-silver safety gear, completely undermining whatever protection it offered.

He catches a mysterious alien disease that eventually kills him, but first he manages to share it with several other crew members. One of them, Riley, starts singing old Irish ballads, takes over the engineering department, and locks the captain out of both control and communications. This would be funny if the ship weren't on a deadline: if the ship doesn't leave orbit before the implosion, the Enterprise will become part of the rubble.

Oh, and while that's going on, the disease is spreading: we see wild swashbuckling from Sulu, a heartfelt confession of love from Nurse Chapel, a tearful breakdown from the normally stoic Spock, and various drunken-seeming shenanigans from random crewmembers.

Nurse Chapel declares her love for Spock while clutching his hands in hers.

By the time the Captain regains control of the ship, it's too late for a safe departure; Riley's turned the warp engines completely off and they need to warm up. Scotty, the chief engineer, warns him: "I can't change the laws of physics. We've got to have thirty minutes." (They have eight minutes.) But Kirk has an idea: maybe they can jump-start them using antimatter… but for that, they need Spock sober enough to run the calculations for them.

In the end, Dr. McCoy figures out the problem – something on the planet converts water to "a complex chain of molecules" that acts like alcohol; it's transmitted through sweat. He injects people with a cure in time for Spock to manage the math for the risky maneuver; somehow, Kirk is the only person whose shirt gets torn during the vaccination.

Is this how vaccines are normally administered in the future? Or does the Federation just issue Kirk shirts with tear-away sleeves?

By the end of the episode:

We all hated Riley and his singing.
We all cheered for shirtless Sulu, even if he was being disruptive.
We were all fascinated by Spock's emotional outburst.

As usual, some details needed a bit of hand-waving to accept, but I will forgive quite a bit of "instant alien disease" and "having to remind security not to use lethal force on their crewmate" if it means I get to see dashing young men leap around with swords and without shirts.

I may start keeping a tally. Shirtless men in this episode: 1.25 (counting Kirk's torn shirt).

Five stars: the story moved fast and kept me engaged. I only noticed flaws later as I was trying to write up notes about it.

A Shocking Scene

by Janice L. Newman

This week’s episode was a departure, not only from the kinds of episodes we’ve seen from Star Trek so far, but from the kind of science fiction we’ve seen on television in general. There was no monster to fight, no human with special powers bent on taking over, no alien menace. The enemy, such as it was, came from within. (Which, coincidentally enough, sounds like next week’s episode title.)

A lot of interesting and character-revealing things happened during the show, but one moment stands out in my memory with a sharp clarity: the moment when science officer Mr. Spock, under the influence of a virus, breaks down. Although we don’t know Mr. Spock very well as a character yet, the scene was incredibly powerful. When was the last time you saw a man cry in a movie or TV show? I’m not talking about camera-friendly ‘manly’ tears when a comrade dies in a war flick, or the sniveling of a villain. I’m talking about a main character sitting down and sobbing, all while desperately trying not to.

Mr. Spock, as we learned this episode, is a half-human, half-alien person who fits into neither culture and has had to spend his whole life suppressing his emotions. He speaks of how he couldn’t tell his mother that he loved her, of his shame at his inability to control his feelings.

And yet, is this so very alien? Men are not supposed to cry, after all. Which was why it was so shocking to see Leonard Nimoy sit down and bawl onscreen, made even more compelling by his obvious struggle for control. Everyone has had that moment when they’re fighting back tears. Ironically, the ‘half-alien’ felt the most relatable and human of everyone in the episode.

It looks like I have a new favorite character. I’m looking forward to seeing more of “Mr. Spock” in future episodes.

Four and a half stars.

The Crew Stripped Bare

This episode was an emotional whirlwind. I couldn’t help but laugh as Sulu rampaged the halls, sword in hand (as fun to watch as I imagine the actor had while filming it), and be irritated by Mr. Riley’s incessant singing.

Yet these moments are juxtaposed with two exceptionally serious and jarring scenes. Lt. Tormolen, the first to contract the disease, has a breakdown in which he questions humanity’s presence in space – wondering if they are doing more bad than good – quickly spiraling into taking his own life. This scene is emotionally impactful, despite the audience’s lack of familiarity with this character (though it seems to be a common pattern, introducing a new character who dies that episode) and raises a question I wish the episode, or series overall, took time to explore:

I am in favor of scientific discovery and am thrilled by the space travel depicted in the show. Yet I can’t help but question the consequences of such a journey. While Tormolen focused mostly on its impact on humanity, I wonder about the effect on alien lifeforms. Could our common cold be potentially lethal to other species? What if we accidentally introduce an invasive species on an alien world, dramatically changing their climate and causing it to be uninhabitable for its native species? Beyond physical issues, there's the possibility of destroying an alien culture just by contacting it.

But I digress.

It’s Spock’s breakdown that stood out most about this episode and led to significant revelations about his character. He’s half-human! Up until this point, Spock’s character has been entirely defined by his alien biology. As exemplified in the episode, during a medical exam he assures the doctor that the bizarre readings are perfectly normal for his species (though you’d hope medical staff on a ship like this would be well versed in the alien biology of its occupants). While some answers are given, more questions arise. Are interspecies relationships common? And judging by Spock’s revealed shame about his mixed identity, is Spock a Vulcan outcast? That would explain how he is the only Vulcan (and alien, for that matter) among a crew of all humans.

Despite how much I enjoyed this episode I can’t help but think it came too early in the season. This episode has grand revelations for characters we are meeting for the first time (i.e. Sulu, Scott, Chapel…even Tormolen). The episode would have been more impactful had we had a chance to know these characters before their deep secrets were revealed. Spock’s breakdown would have been all the more moving had we had more than three episodes with his character beforehand.

This episode would have been the perfect season finale, rewarding long time viewers with new details about the characters they’ve come to love and setting up promising new plots to explore within the next season. Even the unexpected (to the crew and viewers alike) time jump suggested an ending. It left me with a sense of peace, the opportunity for much needed healing after a particularly trying adventure and emotions rubbed raw. I have to wonder if this episode was moved up in the schedule for some reason.

Four stars…though easily could have been five.

Questioning Boldly Going

by Jessica Dickinson Goodman

I'd like to expand on an excellent point Robin brings up. Zoom in with me for a moment on just one line from this moving episode:

Lt. Tormolen: We bring pain and trouble with us, leave men and women stuck out on freezing planets until they die. What are we doing out here in space? Good? What good? We're polluting it, destroying it. We've got no business being out here. No business.

Lt. Tormolen’s monologue begs us to question the underpinnings of the Federation. We do not currently know if his nihilistic view of space exploration is accurate, though my optimistic heart hopes it is not. But his focus on the evils of expansionism felt particularly poignant to me today as I read of Botswana declaring independence. Last week, that hilly country joined 28 other nations who have declared themselves independent from the United Kingdom since the end of the Second World War. (Lest my friends across the pond complain that I am picking on them, below are the names of each imperial power, and the number of countries who have declared independence from them since September 2, 1945: France (26), Belgium (3), Japan (2), Italy (2), Spain (1), New Zealand (1), Malaysia (1), Saudi Arabia (1), and the Netherlands (1)).

Independence ceremony for Botswana

Were there people on Psi 2000 who could have declared independence from the Federation? Did they survive great wars too, before succumbing to frost and madness? Captain Kirk calls Psi 2000 “a wasteland” and perhaps the worlds in the universe of Star Trek are often barren of locally-evolved cultures.

I hope not. I loved watching Captain Kirk treat with the Thasians as equals in Charlie X and like other reviewers, was deeply affected by the half-Vulcan Commander Spock’s breakdown. The best moments of Star Trek so far have been when the crew strives to understand the vast diversity of the universe around them using what academics might call “cultural relativism” and I might call “voracious curiosity.”

Or, to quote Nigerian author Chinua Achebe’s powerful anti-colonial novel Things Fall Apart (1958):

“The world has no end, and what is good among one people is an abomination with others.”

I hope that, in Star Trek the worlds will have no end, and we will continue to explore both the stars and our reasons for reaching for them.

Five stars.

Score One for Star Trek

by Gideon Marcus

The latest Star Trek adventure takes us where some men have been before — the crew has settled into a consistent ensemble (though the second pilot, "Where No Man has Gone Before", was shown last week and must have been bewildering to folks tuning in); the fine director of "The Man Trap", Marc Daniels, returned as well.

But we got to see new sides of many characters, particularly Spock and Sulu, to a lesser degree Kirk. We were introduced to Nurse Chapel, who has an implied depth to her history that suggests this is not her first filmed episode even if it is her first appearance.

There are pacing issues. I felt the second half of the episode was more riveting than the first. There were scientific issues, particularly the collapsing planet. The casual introduction of time travel was shocking — is Star Trek about to become Time Tunnel?

"My chronometer…it's running…backward!"

A few things stood out to me as truly superlative, though. Janice mentioned Nimoy's tour de force portraying Spock's breakdown (which Robin notes came a little too early in the season for full impact). What thoroughly impressed me was the scoring for the episode: The Irish-tinged phrases for Riley. The "disease theme", punctuated with snake rattles that indicated transmission. The entire suite from when Kirk reenters the bridge at the end, all the way to the end of the episode. I wish I'd taped it on reel-to-reel for later listening as I have with the music from Secret Agent. I'll have to do that during the summer reruns. Or perhaps they'll release a soundtrack album a la Victory at Sea.

I liked that all of the bridge crew were cross-trained. Both Uhura and Rand took the important navigation and helm stations, reinforcing that women are not just auxiliary crew in the future, but full-braid officers. I wonder if we'll see female ship captains in future episodes.

And it's a small thing, but I really appreciated the exchange between Kirk and Uhura when, tempers frayed, they snap at one another. Kirk then apologizes, and Uhura smiles in forgiveness. It was a very human, very professional interaction.

Four stars.

(P.S. Has anyone else noticed that one of the themes in this episode's soundtrack sounds a lot like a common refrain in Twelve O' Clock High? I think I heard it in "The Cage" as well.)

(Join us tonight at 8:30 PM (Pacific AND Eastern — two showings) for the next episode of Star Trek!)

Here's the invitation!

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Science Fiction/Fantasy, TV

[October 4, 1966] The Real Treasure Was The Friends We Made Along The Way (Doctor Who: The Smugglers)

October 4, 2021 Jessica Holmes 1 Comment

By Jessica Holmes

It’s been a long couple of months, but Doctor Who is back, and so am I! Did you miss me?

I had heard rumours that William Hartnell was thinking about hanging up the TARDIS keys, but with a new series I think we can safely say those rumours are a load of tosh. I for one am very pleased– both because I enjoy the show, and because I'd be out of a job!

Though I do appreciate them, a pure historical story is an odd choice to start off a new series. Let’s be honest. Kids are not watching Doctor Who for the often fairly dry historicals. They’re watching for the bug-eyed monsters. Still, this story by Brian Hayles has pirates in it, and what kind of kid doesn’t like pirates? What's more, for the first time ever we have a woman in the director's chair, Julia Smith. Well, the kids might not care much about that, but I do.

Last time we saw the Doctor, we said a rather abrupt goodbye to companion Dodo, and said hello to Ben (Michael Craze) and Polly (Anneke Wills). Let’s see how they got along on their first adventure: The Smugglers.

EPISODE ONE

For heaven’s sake, I thought to myself when sitting down to watch this episode. My first story back, and the flipping telly’s on the fritz. Again.

Following the Doctor’s discovery of his two stowaways (he has a bit of a temper tantrum) and the obligatory expositional rundown of what the TARDIS is, the Doctor and company arrive in a cave in Cornwall in the 17th century. The BBC has seen fit to allow the cast and crew some fresh air and sunlight, filming much of the serial on location on the Cornish coast.

Exiting the cave, the trio make their way up to a nearby church, where they meet the warden, a suspicious fellow by the name of Longfoot (Terence De Marney). Longfoot is wary of the three. He's guarding a secret: the true location of Captain Henry Avery’s buried treasure. The Doctor soon earns his trust with a little free medical aid. With the tide coming in, the trio intend to find a nearby inn. Before they depart, Longfoot warns them to be on their guard. He then says something quite peculiar to the Doctor: “This is Dead Man’s secret key: Smallwood, Ringwood, Gurney.”

Unseen by anyone, a bald man watches them from the bushes. After the Doctor and friends depart, the man emerges and follows Longfoot into the church, taking out a large knife.

The Doctor and company get a room at the inn, finding that the patrons are as rough as Lightfoot warned them. For Polly’s own safety, she pretends to be a young man. I suppose there weren’t many opticians in the 17th century, as nobody calls her paper-thin disguise into question. Maybe men were just prettier back then.

Back at the church the bald bloke, Cherub (George A. Cooper), confronts Longfoot. He demands to know where Avery’s gold is hidden. Longfoot refuses to talk, and in anger Cherub buries a knife in his back. You’d think a pirate would know that dead men tell no tales. Nor do they give you tips on where to look for buried treasure.

Longfoot’s body is discovered some time later, and the innkeeper, Kewper (David Blake Kelly), sends for the local Squire to come and act as magistrate. Cherub then arrives at the inn with a bunch of ruffians and demands to speak to the Doctor, having witnessed him talking to Longfoot. Though Ben and Polly try to defend him, Cherub and his ruffians manage to knock the Doctor unconscious and cart him off (literally).

Cherub’s long gone by the time the Squire (Paul Whitsun-Jones) and his stupid wig arrive. With no other likely suspects around, and Ben and Polly refusing to tell him who they are, he has the pair arrested for the murder of Longfoot.

Meanwhile, Cherub brings the Doctor aboard a ship, where he makes the acquaintance of one Captain Samuel Pike (Michael Godfrey) — a real pirate! He's got a hook for a hand and everything.

So far, the story is a perfectly decent but by-the-numbers pirate story. I keep expecting Long John Silver to limp in at any moment.

EPISODE TWO

The Doctor’s gift of the gab gets him out of a pickle when Pike and Cherub threaten to torture the secret of Avery’s treasure out of him. Laying the flattery on thick, he bargains for a share of the treasure in return for information.

Meanwhile, Polly comes up with a plan to get out of jail, but Ben has to help because there’s a rat between her and the hay she needs for the plan, and she’s scared of rats. We can’t have the womenfolk appearing to be too competent, can we? They might start getting ideas. To be fair, there’s a non-zero chance that it might be carrying the plague, so maybe she’s just being smart.

Ben and Polly trick their guard Tom (Mike Lucas) into believing they’re apprentices of the powerful wizard, the Doctor. Unless he lets them go, they’ll use a magical effigy to do some rather unpleasant things to him. It’s a superstitious time, so he actually falls for it.

The pair return to the church, where they subdue an intruder emerging from a secret tunnel in the crypt. Thinking this is the true murderer, Polly runs off to inform the Squire. It turns out that this man, Blake (John Ringham, who also played Tlotoxl back in The Aztecs), is actually a revenue officer investigating the local smuggling ring.

Kewper gets himself captured by Pike while trying to make a business deal with him, which gives Pike an idea. Donning his best Captain Hook costume, he and Cherub go to meet with the Squire. Their intention is to learn all they can about the smuggling operation, and rob them for everything they've got.

However, Polly arrives at the Squire’s house and immediately identifies Cherub as the man who kidnapped the Doctor. The Squire doubts her story, blinded by the magnificence of Pike’s luscious wig.

Still, the revenue officer might pose a real problem. The men head off to the church, dragging Polly with them.

This episode was a rather dull affair, I’m sorry to say. I often found my concentration slipping, though I did get a good laugh out of Pike’s ridiculous outfit.

EPISODE THREE

The group arrive at the crypt only for Ben to also point out that these are the pirates who abducted the Doctor, but the Squire still won’t have it. He has Cherub release the revenue officer, and orders Blake to arrest Ben and Polly.

Blake complies, only to immediately release Ben and Polly once they’re away from the rogues. Unlike the Squire, Blake has two brain cells to rub together. He makes plans to summon a militia so that he can intercept and detain the smugglers.

Meanwhile on the ship, the Doctor and Kewper realise they have to escape and warn the village of the impending pirate raid. The Doctor comes up with a cunning plan. It involves deception, reading ominous fortunes in a pack of cards, and Kewper hitting their guard Jamaica on the back of the head when he’s not looking. It's not subtle, but if it works, it works.

I think it's worth mentioning that Jamaica, played by Elroy Josephs, is the first black actor to appear on Doctor Who in a speaking role. It’s not a big part, but perhaps it is a sign of progress given the programme’s previous habit of slathering white actors in dodgy makeup.

He’s not around for long though, as once Pike finds out the prisoners are gone, he slays Jamaica in a fit of rage.

The Squire shows his pirate friends a little surprise at the church: he has a cache of valuable goods hidden in one of the tombs. Why he chooses to show this to the pirates I don’t know, because he wants them to drop their goods down on the beach. Methinks this chap is too trusting for his own good.

Having made his way back to the shore, the Doctor reunites with his friends, with Kewper accompanying him. However, upon seeing Blake he thinks the Doctor has led him into a trap. He flees, heading to the Squire’s house, where he is finally able to convince him that his new associates are untrustworthy pirates. They also realise that the pirates are after Avery’s treasure. Perhaps there’s an opportunity for profit?

Though Ben wants to go back to the TARDIS, the Doctor decides to stay, having a sense of obligation to prevent the pirates raiding the village. The group head up to the graveyard, reasoning that the smugglers will be coming through there. Ben and Polly start examining the old graves. Hearing some of the odd names scattered throughout the graveyard, the Doctor has a sudden realisation: ‘Dead Man’s Secret’… the treasure must be somewhere in the crypt!

Before they can make much progress in finding the treasure, the Squire arrives with Kewper. Kewper threatens the lives of Ben and Polly in an effort to force the Doctor to help him. The Squire intervenes, aghast at the idea of cold-blooded murder. While they’re bickering, Cherub arrives unseen and flings a knife into Kewper’s back.

The schemes are really starting to pile up at this point, and the serial is finally getting fun to watch. Shame it’s almost over.

EPISODE FOUR

A shot rings out. The Squire falls back, clutching his shoulder, injured but not dead, and very much regretting his involvement in the treasure hunt. Holding Polly at gunpoint, Cherub orders the Doctor to tell him where the treasure is.

The Doctor repeats the riddle for him, but there’s a discrepancy. Rather than Smallwood, one of the names they need to find is actually Smallbeer. The riddle we heard in the first episode was actually flubbed. I am surprised that nobody apparently caught this mistake earlier on. Perhaps there was no time or budget for a reshoot or over-dubbing the line.

Cherub recognises the names, and informs the Doctor that there’s another name hidden in the riddle, Deadman. The names belonged to members of Avery’s crew, and are hidden around the crypt.

Pike arrives with his band of pirates and shows them the cache hidden in the tomb. I couldn't think of when else to mention this note of trivia, so I'll put it here: one of the pirates, the Spaniard, is played by Doctor Who's stuntman and fight coordinator, Derek Ware.

While the crew are plundering the cache, Pike goes to the church to find Cherub. Discovering him in the crypt with the others, Pike thinks Cherub means to double-cross him– and he’s right. Cherub attempts to shoot his captain, but misses, leading the pair to start fighting. Meanwhile, Blake and his militia hurry to the village. Everything’s kicking off now.

The Doctor urges Ben and Polly to make a break down the tunnel to the TARDIS. Pike wins his duel with Cherub, dealing him a slow and apparently very painful death. The deaths in this serial, of which there are a lot, do seem rather more drawn out than is typical for Doctor Who. I can’t imagine being run through tickles, but it’s a bit grim for teatime television.

The Doctor makes Pike a new offer. He’ll give up his share of the gold and tell him where to look for it, as long as Pike keeps his crew away from the village.

Ben and Polly run into some trouble as they head back to the TARDIS, with Ben knocking out one pirate and the two struggling to subdue another, until Blake arrives to shoot the blaggard dead.

Following the clues, the Doctor and Pike find the treasure! Shame Pike will never get a chance to enjoy it. Blake’s militia has arrived. They begin to clash with the pirates, the crash of steel echoing off the stone walls of the crypt.

Pike tries to escape, only to find his egress cut off by Blake and Ben. The Squire finds his backbone and grapples Pike, holding him in place long enough for Blake to finish him off.

The Doctor and Ben slip back to the TARDIS. There’s quite a lot of bodies to clean up, and who can be bothered with all that? With the group back together, they note that everyone who sought after the treasure is now dead. All except for the Squire, who renounced his greed for the gold. Perhaps there really was something to that curse after all… or perhaps it’s more of a self-fulfilling prophecy.

The TARDIS departs, and it doesn’t look like they’ll be back in London any time soon. As the temperature begins to plummet, the Doctor checks his scanner. They’ve landed in the coldest place in the world! I assume he means Antarctica.

Final Thoughts

Though the final episode was actually rather good and exciting, this serial suffers from something I’ve noticed in a lot of Doctor Who serials: a rather dull second act. It happens again and again. There’s one interesting episode followed by a bunch of rather dull ones. These sluggish episodes do a fine job of setting up the final episode, but fail to offer entertaining television in their own right. As adults, we can push through, but four weeks is an eternity to a child. I don’t think serials like this are able to hold their attention for that long.

As suspected from the first episode, the plot is a perfectly serviceable pirate story. There’s nothing wrong with it, per se. But I think even those with only a passing knowledge of pirate-related literature will find it all too familiar. There's a distinctive whiff of Treasure Island hanging over the whole thing.

On the bright side, I have taken a bit of a shine to the Doctor’s new companions Ben and Polly. Polly’s bright and resourceful, and Ben seems sweet, if a little rough around the edges. The important thing is that he’s got a good, brave heart. I think I’ll enjoy having these two around.

3 out of 5 stars

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Science Fiction/Fantasy, TV

[September 24, 1966] Science Fiction TV from West Germany: Space Patrol: The Fantastic Adventures of the Spaceship Orion: Episode 1: Attack From Space

September 24, 2021 Cora Buhlert 9 Comments

by Cora Buhlert

Through the Wall with a Bulldozer

Bulldozer breaks through Berlin wall — The aftermath of the daring bulldozer escape

Five years after the Berlin Wall was built, East Germans are still trying to overcome it and escape to the West, often with lethal consequences.

A particularly daring escape attempt happened last week in Staaken just outside Berlin. Four adults and a three-year-old child broke through the East German border fortifications – the so-called "death strip" – in a stolen bulldozer armoured with steel plates. The bulldozer flattened fences, concrete and barbed wire, until stopped by a tree.

Luckily for the five refugees, the tree was on the western side of the Wall, where the two families were rescued by western border guards.

Attack from Space

Meanwhile, on Saturday, September 17, West Germany's first science fiction TV series debuted on the broadcaster ARD.

The series has the unwieldy title Raumpatrouille – Die Phantastischen Abenteuer des Raumschiffs Orion (Space Patrol – The Fantastic Adventures of the Spaceship Orion), which viewers have already shortened to Raumpatrouille Orion or just plain Orion.

Like the new US series Star Trek, Space Patrol Orion starts with an opening narration, courtesy of veteran actor Claus Biederstaedt, which promises us a fairy tale from the future. In the year 3000 AD, nation states have been abolished. Humanity has settled the ocean floor and colonised far-flung worlds. Starships, including the titular Orion, hurtle through space at unimaginable speeds.

An impressive title sequence and a spacy and very groovy theme tune follow, courtesy of Peter Thomas, who also supplies the music for the Edgar Wallace and Jerry Cotton movies.

Then the show plunges us directly in medias res aboard the fast cruiser Orion 7 and introduces the five person crew: Commander Cliff Allister McLane (Austrian actor Dietmar Schönherr, who is the German dubbing voice of both James Dean and Sidney Poitier), chief engineer Hasso Sigbjörnson (Claus Holm), weapons officer Mario de Monti (Wolfgang Völz, who's best known for comic roles), astrogator (that's Orion speak for navigator) Atan Shubashi (F.G. Beckhaus) and space control officer Helga Legrelle (Ursula Lillig). As the names and the opening narration indicate, the series is set in a multicultural, postnational future, though so far, all characters are played by white actors.

When we first encounter the Orion crew, they are trying to land on the Saturn moon Rhea, while orders telling McLane to stop and return to base echo from the communication system. McLane, however, chooses to ignore those orders.

Most dialogue in the opening scene is gadget speak (and not even regular gadget speak, but a lot of Orion-specific terms), yet it tells us a lot about the characters. Right away we learn that McLane is a Maverick who views orders as strictly optional suggestions. We also learn that his crew trusts him and that they are very competent at what they do.

Where Clothes Irons Control Space Ships

Orion take off — The Orion 7 rises from the ocean in an impressive special effects sequence

This is as good a time as any to talk about the Orion herself. Unlike the silver rocketships that still abound in visual science fiction, the Orion designers decided to go with a saucer shape, enhanced with fins and a transparent dome.

The Orion command bridge set on the soundstage of Atelier Bavaria.

The Orion has an impressive command bridge – courtesy of set designer Rolf Zehetbauer – with boldly curved control stands, flashing lights, beeping oscilloscopes and a massive, egg-shaped computer. Every available surface is covered with futuristic looking bits and bobs. If you look closely, some of those bits and bobs seem oddly familiar, since they are repurposed household objects such as pencil sharpeners, bathroom tabs, plastic cups and in one memorable moment, a Rowenta clothes iron.

Orion clothes iron — Is this clothes iron truly a part of the Orion's engineering control stand or does Hasso simply use it to iron his uniform pants?

Zehetbauer also makes copious use of the kind of modern furniture I discussed in my article on interior design last year. In fact, you can spot several of the pieces featured in that article in the show.

Women in Command

The scene shifts to an anonymous office, where one General Wamsler (Benno Sterzenbach) is expecting a fellow general, General van Dyke of the Fast Space Fleet Command. I'm sure I'm not the only one who did a double-take when General van Dyke entered, because the General is a woman, portrayed by theatre actress Charlotte Kerr.

Generals van Dyke and Wamsler — General van Dyke (Charlotte Kerr) confronts General Wamsler (Benno Sterzenbach) and his swarmy aide Lieutenant Spring-Brauner (Thomas Reiner)

We still see way too many all-male spaceship crews and all-male future militaries, so the presence of a female general was a breath of fresh air. Nor is General van Dyke the only female character of note in this episode. Indeed, there are four named and one unnamed women with speaking parts in this episode alone. Alas, all the women in the future have the exact same beehive hairstyle, only in different colours.

We already met Lieutenant Helga Legrelle, the sole female member of the Orion crew, though so far the script doesn't give her much to do. In this scene, we meet another female character, Lieutenant Tamara Jagellovsk (Eva Plug) of the Galactic Security Service, who promises to play a prominent role in the series.

McLane's flagrant disregard for orders has caught up with him, so General Wamsler demotes him and the Orion to space patrol service – against the wishes of McLane's direct superior General van Dyke. There are hints that McLane and General van Dyke have history – on professional and private level.

McLane and the crew — The disgraced Orion crew reports to be demoted. From left to right: Helga Legrelle (Ursula Lillig), Mario de Monti (Wolfgang Völz),Commander Cliff Allister McLane (Dietmar Schönherr), Atan Shubashi (F.G. Beckhaus) and Hasso Sigbjörnson (Claus Holm)

As if being demoted isn't humiliation enough, McLane is also assigned a watchdog, the above-mentioned Tamara Jagellovsk. Based on the first episode, the interaction between those two promises to be very interesting.

Dancing under the Sea

Before the Orion and her crew set off on space patrol duty, they relax in the grooviest nightspot in town, the Starlight Casino. The name is something of a misnomer, because the Starlight Casino is located on the ocean floor and instead of stars, oversized fish can be seen swimming beyond the transparent ceiling dome.

The Starlight Casino is a stunning set and I have no idea how Bavaria Atelier was able to build something like this on a West German TV budget. The set is not really underwater, but on a soundstage, while the fish are swimming in the aquarium of the Munich zoo and were copied into the scene via the magic of bluescreen technology.

McLane and Hasso share a drink, while some very unique dancing is going on in the background

The nightclub scene also adds some characterisation and worldbuilding. We learn that astrogator Atan Shubashi is worried about his dog 264, one of the last 376 poodles on Earth. We also learn that chief engineer Hasso Sigbjörnson has promised his wife Ingrid (Lieselotte Quillig) to retire, but wants to go on one last mission and ropes McLane into breaking the news to Ingrid.

Ingrid Sigbjörnson — Ingrid, Hasso's long-suffering wife (Lieselotte Quillig)

During all this, extras are performing a fascinating dance routine to electronic music in the background. Science fiction tends to assume that people in the future will dance the same way we do and probably to the same music, too, but Orion does not make this mistake. And so the background extras perform an oddly formal dance (created by choreographer William Millié), where couples dance back to back. I suspect this dance will be a big hit in dance classes throughout West Germany.

One thing that impressed me about Raumpatrouille Orion are the many little worldbuilding hints dropped into the story. Why exactly do people in the year 3000 AD dance like that? Why are poodles almost extinct? What was the Second Interstellar War and for that matter, what was the first? When did people of European origin start eating with chopsticks, as many of the characters do, when using chopsticks in present day West Germany will have people staring at you as if you were a unicorn?

A lot of science fiction worlds end at the bulkheads of a spaceship or the atmosphere of a planet, but in Orion, there clearly is a world and culture beyond the little slice that we see. I hope that future episodes will explore that.

Trouble in Space

Once the Orion takes off and emerges from the ocean in a stunning special effects sequence, trouble soon find McLane and his crew.

McLane and Tamara — McLane steadfastly ignores Tamara.

For starters, McLane and his watchdog Tamara Jagellovsk don't get along at all. McLane alternately ignores Tamara, sends her to her cabin like a naughty child and snipes at her. Tamara, however, is no pushover and gives as good as she gets, while Hasso and weapons officer Mario de Monti watch in amusement. Mario, who's something of a womanizer, clumsily attempts to flirt with Tamara – without success. Meanwhile, Hasso wonders whether Tamara is actually a robot. Considering that there are references to robots being more efficient than humans scattered throughout the episode, I wonder whether this isn't foreshadowing a later revelation.

Helga, Atan and Tamara — Helga Legrelle and Atan Shubashi explain Orion technology to Tamara.

Mario and Tamara — Mario de Monti unsuccessfully attempts to flirt with Tamara.

But whether she's human or a sophisticated android, I really like Tamara, especially when she dresses McLane down for his patronising behaviour such as calling her "My dear child".

The Orion runs into a solar storm (another impressive effect) and then into a dead satellite. McLane wants to blow up the satellite, because it's a hazard to space traffic. Tamara countermands him in what will become a pattern.

Atan Shubashi reports that he cannot raise the satellite relay station MZ-4 on the radio and only receives nonsense code. McLane wants to investigate, because the MZ-4 crew are friends. Tamara tries to override McLane again, but McLane points out that if they don't fix the transmitter problem, an automated space cruiser will crash into MZ-4. And no, they cannot contact the cruiser themselves, because the dead satellite that Tamara would not let McLane to blow up is disrupting communications in the region. "Shall I send them a postcard?" an impatient McLane snaps.

So Hasso and Atan get into a Lancet, a spherical shuttle that looks very much like a modern lamp, to investigate. McLane also orders Hasso and Atan to wear space suits, because when a transmitter fails, a life support system may fail as well.

Atan and Hasso in their bulky space suits

If a character announces they will retire after "one last mission" like Hasso did, this is often a death sentence. And Atan is the only other crewmember who has someone waiting for him at home, so I became seriously worried about those two.

The Mystery of MZ-4

And not without reason, for once Atan and Hasso reach MZ-4, they find the station without power and oxygen. The crew is dead, frozen in mid movement, and the transmitter is set to a frequency not used by humans.

The scenes of Atan and Hasso exploring the darkened station, their heavy footsteps echoing on the metal floors, are genuinely spooky. Though the discovery of the dead crewmen is marred by the fact that one actor blinks at the crucial moment.

Atan, Hasso and Clarence — Atan and Hasso find MZ-4 commander Clarence dead, frozen in mid movement.

Two dead MZ-4 crewmembers — Two more MZ-4 crewmembers frozen in mid movement. The guy on the right blinks.

Atan and Hasso are still trying to figure out what the hell happened, when they spot a curiously glittering, elongated humanoid shadow. Aliens – or "exo-terrists" in Orion speak – have taken over MZ-4 and they turn out to be immune to rayguns.

Frog alien — One of the "exo-terrists" that have taken over MZ-4.

In filmic science fiction, aliens are all too often humans in rubber masks. However, Orion's exo-terrists – or Frogs, as Hasso and Atan nickname them – look truly alien. The glittering shadows were created via bluescreen technology.

Hasso and Atan call McLane who orders them to get the hell out of there. However, more trouble is coming, for Helga Legrelle detects seven unknown spaceships heading for the Orion. Worse, Hasso and Atan find that their Lancet has been sabotaged and cannot take off.

Space Battles and Moral Dilemmas

McLane promises to come back for them and goes off to fight the alien ships, only to find that the Orion's weapons are as ineffective as Hasso's raygun. The only course of action left is to return to Earth and warn everybody of the impending invasion.

However, Hasso and Atan are still stuck on MZ-4. McLane doesn't want to leave his friends behind. Tamara points out that Atan and Hasso are most likely already dead and the station is in the hands of the aliens. She orders McLane to destroy the station. McLane grudgingly agrees, but can't bring himself to press the button that will kill his friends. Not that it matters much, because the Orion has no firepower left after the encounter with the alien ships.

McLane may be a Maverick who ignores orders, but his first priority is to save lives. Therefore, I was disappointed that the convenient power failure took the decision whether to kill his friends and potentially save humanity out of his hands.

A Good Old Astounding Solution

But Atan and Hasso are still very much alive, though about to be overrun by aliens. They figure out that reason the aliens shut down the life support system is that oxygen is toxic to them. So Hasso uses the oxygen cartridge from his spacesuit to kill the aliens.

Hasso and Atan wait for the aliens to enter, so they can flood the station with oxygen.

As solutions to cosmic mysteries go, this one was pretty clever. It feels like something that John W. Campbell might have published in Astounding twenty years ago. And indeed, the entire MZ-4 sequence with its try and fail cycles feels very Campbellian.

Hasso's cunning plan works. The aliens are overcome by oxygen and reduced to a pile of glitter on the floor. However, there's still the automated cruiser Challenger, which is headed straight for MZ-4 and will crash into the station, if not given a course correction. And Atan and Hasso can't hail the cruiser. What saves them in the end is ironically the aliens, who have placed a forceshield around MZ-4, blowing up the Challenger before she can hit the station.

A Meeting of Generals

The episode concludes at a conference table, where several military men – and this time around, they're all men; General van Dyke is presumably away on a mission – discuss what has just transpired.

General Wamsler, whom we already met, as well as the delightfully named Marshal Kublai Krim (Hans Cossy) and commander-in-chief Sir Arthur (Franz Schafheitlin) want to blow up MZ-4 in a pre-emptive strike against the aliens (at this point, they don't yet know that Hasso and Atan managed to take them out). The lone dissenting voice is Colonel Villa (Friedrich Joloff), head of the Galactic Security Service and Tamara's boss, who points out that maybe it would be better to find out what the aliens want first. Joloff is best known for playing villains, so it was nice to see him in a more nuanced role.

Colonel Villa (Friedrich Joloff), head of the Galactic Security Service and the lone sensible military man.

The "shoot first and ask questions later" policy very much matches postwar West Germany's view of unscrupulous generals who will do anything to eliminate a perceived threat, regardless of the loss of life.

The reunited Orion crew heads to the Starlight Casino to celebrate, including Tamara who has made peace of sorts with McLane and the rest of the crew. Tamara also reveals that she knows that McLane lied about the dead satellite disrupting communications and tells him never to lie to her again.

"This was just a nightmare, wasn't it?" Hasso, who's still shaken from his ordeal, asks Atan.

"Worse," Atan replies, "That was science fiction."

Science Fiction for Grown-ups

When my fellow Travellers here at the Journey raved about the new American show Star Trek, I was jealous, because Star Trek seems to be exactly what filmic science fiction so rarely offers, namely serious stories for adults that can compete with written science fiction. Little did I know that I would get my wish fulfilled only nine days later in the form of Space Patrol Orion.

Because Orion is exactly that: a serious science fiction story for adults and one that looks amazing, too. The beginning is a little slow and the MZ-4 plot is taken straight from a 1940s issue of Astounding. But comparing Raumpatrouille Orion to stuff like Familie Hesselbach (The Hesselbach Family), Stahlnetz (Steel Web) or Hafenpolizei (Harbour Police), which dominates the West German airwaves, is like comparing a Volkswagen to a Mercedes. Honestly, I had no idea that West Germany was even capable of producing something like Orion.

I hope that writers Rolf Honold and W.G. Larsen (a joint pseudonym used by Hans Gottschalk, Helmut Krapp, Oliver Storz, Theo Mezger and Michael Braun) will lay off the gadget speak, which is sure to scare away the mundanes, and focus more on the characters and their interactions. Because Orion has intriguing characters played by some of our best actors, so let's make use of them.

Episode 2 will air in two weeks and I for one can't wait.

Four and a half stars.

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Science Fiction/Fantasy, TV

[September 20, 1966] In the hands of an adolescent (Star Trek's "Charlie X")

September 20, 2021 Janice L. Newman 4 Comments

A New Tradition

by Janice L. Newman

It’s official, we now have a “Star Trek” night at our house each week, when we gather our friends and watch the latest episode. Though we’ve only watched two episodes so far, the show is off to an interesting start! This week we saw “Charlie X”, which had thematic similarities to both of the pilots we saw at Tricon.

The Enterprise has picked up a refugee, seventeen-year-old Charlie, who is the only survivor of a colony that died years ago. He was found by another ship, Antares, whose crew is only too happy to be rid of him.

There’s immediately something fishy about the boy. This is emphasized by strong musical cues, which are nicely integrated into the score. Since I watched “The Cage” (the first pilot) only a couple of weeks ago, I wondered at first whether the Antares crew were actually aliens in disguise, or an illusion.

The boy is extremely awkward in his interactions. He’s fascinated by Yeoman Janice Rand, the first ‘girl’ he’s ever met, and follows Captain Kirk around like a lost puppy. No one seems to know quite what to do with him, and I felt bad for the kid at first.

However, strange things start happening aboard the ship, initially benign, or at least not damaging long-term. Charlie produces a ‘gift’ for Yeoman Rand and won’t say how he obtained it, even though she notes that there shouldn’t have been any in the ship’s stores. All of the synthetic meatloaf in the ship’s ovens are turned into cooked real turkey. Uhura temporarily loses her voice.

It’s clear to the viewer from the beginning that Charlie is making these strange things happen, but it’s not until he begins to take far more sinister actions that the crew become suspicious. The Antares attempts to contact the Enterprise at extreme range, saying that they need to warn them, but they’re cut off when their ship explodes without warning. Finally, Charlie makes a crewman disappear directly in front of Captain Kirk.

The entire story shifts at this point, and Charlie goes from being sympathetic to terrifying. He’s immature and impulsive, greedy and lonely. He’s got the power of a god and the conscience of a small child. He goes after Janice Rand, coming into her quarters and offering her a flower. She firmly and repeatedly tells him, “No,” but he continues to press his attentions on her until the Captain and Mr. Spock show up to help. When he casually tosses them aside, Yeoman Rand slaps him – so he makes her disappear, too.

There are echoes of “Where No Man” in this plot: a human obtains absolute power, which corrupts absolutely. It’s also reminiscent of the Twilight Zone episode, "It's a good life", which similarly features an omnipotent, frightening child. The ending to "Charlie", however, is unexpected. The aliens who gave Charlie the power in the first place, allowing him to survive in the lost colony, return to take him back. Charlie begs the humans to allow him to stay, saying he’ll be alone with aliens who cannot touch him and who cannot love.

This is an interesting turnabout; the audience is once again compelled to sympathize with Charlie. Despite all the terrible things he’s done, the viewer can’t help but feel sorry for the young man, trapped all alone with aliens. His situation is an interesting parallel to Vina’s in “The Cage”, but Vina stays behind by choice, and she is offered a rich fantasy life by the Talosians, whereas Charlie wants nothing more than to escape, and despite his powers, is apparently offered a sterile and empty life by his alien jailors. The nuanced story is far more sophisticated than typical television sci-fi fare.

However, there were a few elements that I felt rang false. Would Captain Kirk really be so awkward talking about ‘the birds and the bees’ with a teenager? Would Doctor McCoy really be so resistant to doing the same? This is the future, for heaven’s sake, and Doctor McCoy is a doctor. It felt like character and realism was sacrificed for cheap laughs.

On the other hand, I absolutely loved the way Charlie’s interactions with Yeoman Rand were handled. Charlie comes on strong and is increasingly pushy with Rand throughout the story. It’s a familiar kind of interaction in media. We often see a man persist in his attentions to a woman who resists at first but eventually gives in and falls in love with him. What made this story unusual was that his actions are never framed as being in any way romantic, or even acceptable. Rand is supported by the Captain himself, and never, ever told that she’s being hysterical or overreacting. When Charlie presses her, she stands firm, repeatedly telling him in no uncertain terms, “no!” and “get out of my room, I can’t make it any clearer than that!”

I appreciated how strong she was, and that Charlie’s actions were portrayed as creepy, unwanted, and wrong. It’s different from a lot of what I grew up with, and makes me wonder about the gender of the script writer, a mysterious “D.C. Fontana”.

Three stars.

A faltering step

by Gideon Marcus

Together with "The Man Trap", we are starting to get the first real understanding of the characters who inhabit the Enterprise. Dr. McCoy is back, marking the first time the ship's doctor role has been the same character. Moreover, he interacts substantially not only with Kirk, with whom he has a friendly, if perhaps arms length, relationship, but also Mr. Spock. Their bickering on the bridge presages what could be a fun running bit, where the science officer approaches things logically in contrast to the more emotional doctor.

On the other hand, Spock displays genuine emotion, both in his bashful smiles and irritation when performing with Lt. Uhura in the lounge (a nice scene — Nichelle Nichols has a lovely voice!), and also when playing chess with Captain Kirk and Charlie. This is the second episode that we have seen Spock and Kirk matching wits over the 3D version of the game of kings. I expect this is a motif we'll see more of.

While I enjoyed this outing, I found its execution more pedestrian than that of "The Man Trap". As fellow traveler Ginevra noted in our after-watch kibbitz, the use of camera pans, cuts, and focus are less adroit. The differently colored corridors we saw in "The Man Trap" have been replaced with ones of uniform reddish hue. It leaves the impression of a cheaper, less interesting show. Not to the degree of the second pilot (which will be aired next week), but it's definitely noticeable.

If I had to pick a stand-out scene, it is when Charlie zaps a crewman into oblivion, particularly Kirk's reaction thereto. You can see the character fitting all the pieces together about Charlie in stunning realization. I also appreciated Kirk's shyness in talking about women, and the relation of men thereto. He was established in the second pilot as "a stack of books with legs", and I appreciate a leading man who is not a ladies' man.

Perhaps that role will be taken up by Mr. Spock. Lord knows a certain communications officer seems to fancy him…

Three stars.

What makes Charlie X so frightening?

by Jessica Dickinson Goodman

With last year’s founding of The Autism Society, many people are reconsidering the roles that disabled people can access in our shared world. Science fiction is an excellent place to stretch our imaginations and explore new worlds and futures.

In this week’s Star Trek episode, "Charlie X" Robert Walker plays the titular 17-year-old, progressing from awkwardness to outright violence; viewers moved with him from discomfort to horror to pathos. What made us react so strongly to Charlie? Charlie speaks too quickly or too slowly; interrupts Captain Kirk; stands too close; touches people in unexpected ways; has exaggerated expressions or a flat affect; makes uneven eye-contact; has sudden and overwhelming emotions he struggles to express in ways the crew can grok.

In the show, this is attributed to Charlie’s lack of socialization and education. But Charlie isn’t an illiterate boy; he’s a fictional character on TV, a representation of the actor, writer, director, and viewers' ideas of a monster, drawn from the shared fears of our society. The trouble is, not all of us fear the same monsters. In the world I live in, Charlie’s mannerisms reminded me of my family members who are autistic, who face violence from people taught to be afraid of them. Until he started hurting people, Charlie’s behaviors didn’t disturb me, but I could tell the actor and writer wanted them to.

This disconnect is what made the end of the episode so satisfying to me. My heart began to race in the final scene when first Lieutenant Uhura, then Captain Kirk, then the re-materialized Yeoman Rand pushed back against the Thasian leader. Fought to protect Charlie. Captain Kirk’s line, “The boy belongs with his own kind,” felt profound.

As readers know, the 1964 Civil Rights Act did not include protections for disabled people. In the future, perhaps another law will. Watching shows like Star Trek requires us to flex the same science fictional muscles that activists use to imagine new ways for our real world to be. Perhaps, to viewers in the future, Charlie’s mannerisms won’t evoke horror, but will be just one more way of being one of our own kind.

Three stars.

Of Gods and Magic

When it comes to Sci-Fi I am easy going on believability. Give me a simple (though sometimes far fetched) explanation for how or why something works and I’ll play along. But I am a stickler when it comes to “magic” (in Clarke's sense of the word). If I don't know how it works, I at least want to know its extent and cost.

My biggest problem with the episode is that Charlie’s powers are never defined in either category. Charlie is seen doing everything from procuring an object from thin air, to aging a character within seconds. Many of his abilities appear to be unrelated, yet exceptionally unlimited.

I almost wish Charlie’s powers had been to manipulate perception, like the alien in “The Cage.” This would have explained the variety of tricks Charlie executes during the episode: silencing Uhara, making crew members disappear – none of these things are really gone, just no longer perceivable under Charlie’s illusion. Even the change of beef to turkey could have been a simple trick of the senses.

Then again, there is a cost to Charlie's use of his "magic." It is, of course, that Charlie can never relate to other humans, and as a result, is exiled to emotional prison, living out his days with the Thasians. And while this isn't the kind of "cost" I was describing above, it does make for a compelling — and ultimately unsatisfying — episode.

Does he deserve to be condemned? I am hesitant to convict a character like Charlie of such a fate. After all, I believe his corruption was not from his powers alone. He endured some fifteen years of solitude. It is obvious Charlie lacks the socialization he needed during his formative years. I think in different circumstances, Charlie could have been more empathic, more willing to learn cooperation and patience in exchange for the social interaction and praise he so clearly desires. I think under proper care he could have been rehabilitated. Rather than thrown onto a large ship of strangers, better had he been given one on one time with a professional who could teach him what to expect once reintroduced to society. The Enterprise could really use a ship's psychologist. Failing that, Bones should have taken on the job.

While I’m happy the solution wasn’t to kill Charlie off, as the conclusion has been for menaces in episodes prior, I felt that Charlie was unjustifiably written off. It makes me wonder, what is the point of this episode? Charlie shows no character development or revelations. The Captain and crew feel badly for Charlie, but will they learn from their missteps that led to the crisis in the first place? I think this idea was ripe with potential left unexplored.

Three stars.

The Silent Treatment

by Tam Phan (Secret Asian Man)

Between the strange glares, close-ups, and whining monologues, we have the smatterings of a story about an awkward teenager playing grab-ass on the starship Enterprise. Much like “Where No Man” we’re often left staring at the characters staring at other characters waiting for someone to say something. Anything. Silence can be powerful, but sometimes silence is just silence. If I had wanted to watch a silent film, I would have chosen something a little more exciting.

Charlie really had his eyes set on Yeoman Rand, which is understandable. Any man with a good pair of eyes would, but she made it abundantly clear early on that she wasn’t as interested in Charlie as he was in her. The episode made sure to portray his advances as juvenile and unwelcome, which is a refreshing take on the overly aggressive pursuer getting the girl cliché. I appreciate seeing the consequences when “no” isn’t taken seriously. Charlie had powers that allowed him to do as he pleased, but it just goes to show that power isn’t everything.

I can appreciate that there was a deeper story here, but it wasn’t very well executed. I might have been sympathetic if Charlie was more likeable, but he just wasn’t. Nobody made an effort to improve Charlie’s experience in this episode. Not even the writers.

Two stars

From the Young Traveler

by Lorelei Marcus

"Charlie X" had an interesting premise that didn't quite match its execution. Charlie is meant to be a boy who has been raised in a completely alien context, his only reference to humanity being records and memory tapes. Yet aboard the Enterprise, his alienness is manifested in, at most, a lack of maturity and recognition of social cues. The difference should have been far more severe.

I believe the two main elements of "Charlie X" could have been better served as two different stories. One would be about an alien-raised human learning to assimilate with humanity. The other about an adolescent with ESP and the problems he causes.

We essentially got the second story, which after the mismatched premise, I have to admit was executed fairly well. Three stars.

Space Fashion

by Erica Frank

Obviously the most powerful organization in the future depicted in Star Trek is the fashion union. Changing starship uniforms every few weeks takes a lot of political swing!

Kirk appears in three different types of uniform in this episode: his command outfit, which he wears on the bridge, a gold shirt that looks more like what the other officers are wearing, and an exercise outfit that consists of tight red pants and little else.

Kirk's very fashionable command jacket, which looks easy to remove. This seems to be an important trait for the captain.

When he goes to teach Charlie the basics of combat, Charlie wears a red gi top (which must be standard sports outfit, since it's got the Federation patch near the shoulder), and Kirk wears… well…

Sulu(?) and another man are battling behind them with some kind of padded pole weapons.

That's certainly an interesting choice. It almost makes up for this being the fourth episode (out of four) with dangerous psychic powers.

Things I didn't like about this episode: Destructive mental powers (again). The crew leaving a rescued teenager to wander around the ship unescorted. Not assigning the teenager a guide, mentor, or other assistant to adapt to life in human society.

The ending felt a bit rushed; I'd like to see the Enterprise (or some other ship) visit the area again, and volunteer someone to live wherever Charlie's stuck with the aliens. Let them give another human — an adult — the same powers, and see if that person can teach Charlie how to live among humans without resorting to murder when his whims are thwarted.

Things I did like: The musical interlude was lovely; I enjoyed Mister Spock's Vulcan instrument and Uhura's spontaneous singing. Also, Charlie was sympathetic: we could feel his confusion and understand his petulance. The story made sense, even if I sometimes wanted to throttle the captain for not assigning someone to pay attention to Charlie sooner. Also, I will forgive quite a few plot sins if it means I get to see half-naked men tumbling around the screen on prime-time television. 4 stars.

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[September 12, 1966] Boldly Going (Star Trek's "The Man Trap")

September 12, 2021 Gideon Marcus 18 Comments

[For this exciting occasion, we've put together the reactions of several of the Journey team as well as a new phace…er…face! Come join us as we recount our experiences with this exciting new science fiction epic called Star Trek…]

by Gideon Marcus

Where No Show Has Gone Before

Last night marked an exciting new day in science fiction: the debut of a new science fiction anthology.

Science fiction on television has always been kind of a backwards sibling to science fiction in print. While there have been entertaining and even thoughtful episodes of The Twilight Zone and The Outer Limits, for the most part TV SF has been some of the worst schlock. Stories that wouldn't have been accepted in third-rate mags in the 50s. Shows like Lost in Space, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, and My Favorite Martian — kiddified frivolity with zap guns and giant monsters. Buck Rogers and Flash Gordon serials with inserts for soap commercials.

We fans had an inkling this new show would be something different pretty early on. Its producer, Gene Roddenberry, previously put out an interesting, mature show about a Marine Lieutenant called…The Lieutenant. At Westercon, one of the Star Trek pilots was previewed over the 4th of July weekend to much acclaim (we missed it as we had planned a birthday celebration at our house just 20 miles away from the convention!) There have been promo spots on NBC pitching the show, plus promotional pictures and coverage in both conventional newspapers and news 'zines. They were all quite compelling.

At Tricon, I got my first direct glimpse of the beast. The last two days of the convention, Roddenberry showed the two pilots to the show. I left the convention both hopeful and concerned.

You see, the first pilot, "The Cage", was a masterpiece. Without hyperbole, it was probably the best science fiction made for a screen (of any size) as of 1964. Brilliantly written, scored, special-effected, and directed (if just competently acted), it was also daringly progressive. Women were on equal footing with men, something I rarely see even in written science fiction these days. There were no villains, per se, merely beings resorting to desperate measures to save themselves. Call it Forbidden Planet but done right.

"The Cage" was rejected, I don't know why. Too expensive, perhaps, or maybe too cerebral. But it was liked enough that a second pilot was greenlit. "Where No Man Has Gone Before" was the result.

It was a disappointment.

The beautiful sets and cinematography were gone, the cheap result looking like an episode of Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea. We had a new actor in the role of captain, and while I didn't think Jeffrey Hunter stretched himself much in "The Cage", William Shatner, on the other hand, was a contortionist, playing every scene to the maximum. To be fair, he was new to the character, and the script did him few favors, shedding little insight into the character. John Hoyt, who did a lovely job as the ship's doctor in "The Cage", was replaced by a non-entity. Indeed, the only consistent cast member was Leonard Nimoy as the oddly strident "Mr. Spock", who in the second pilot, was reduced to something of a "wise Indian" role.

With pacing issues and a rather thin story, "Where No Man” augured poorly for the show, especially since it seemed more indicative of what we were going to get.

Still, a dozen or so of us gathered around our 25" color Admiral for the TV premiere of the show, set for 8:30 PM on September 8. We'd set up a signal with our friends on the East Coast, since they got to watch it three hours before us: If the show was a stinker, at 6:30 our time, they'd phone us, letting the line ring once. If the show was good, they'd ring twice. (We wouldn't actually pick up the phone — long distance calls, especially during prime time, are prohibitively expensive).

As we ate our dinner, the jangle of the telephone made us jump. What would be the verdict? The bells chimed once. We waited with bated breath. Then a second ring. Then silence. We grinned at each other.

And so, we sat through the latter half of Tarzan (also debuting on NBC that night). At 8:30 PM, the main event began.

In brief: the spaceship Enterprise is paying a visit to the planet M113 to conduct an annual medical check-up of scientific personnel based there. The only residents of the barren world are an archaeologist man-and-wife pair, the latter of whom was the old flame of the Enterprise's third medical officer in as many episodes. Said woman appears to each member of the ship's landing party in a different form, some kind of telepathic camouflage.

Said woman is also a killer, stalking humans individually and then draining them of their salt. She ends up aboard the Enterprise, changing forms and continuing her deadly hunt.

On the face of it, it's a stupid plot. The biology seems nonsensical, and Lord knows we've had enough monster plots on Voyage and The Outer Limits. And yet…

"The Man Trap" is beautifully put together. It's not quite "The Cage", but it's definitely not "Where No Man". The Enterprise is a somberly lit, "lived-in" vessel with hundreds of crew. For the first time, I had the impression of a real space-going vessel. I appreciated that the Enterprise appears to be the equivalent of a Hornblower-era frigate, a second-line vessel doing routine business around the galaxy. I quite like Forester's series, and given the youth of the ship's captain, the Hornblower analogy might be extended.

The three main actors, Shatner, Nimoy, and newcomer DeForest Kelley, were excellent, settled, and even understated in their roles. The supporting cast was quite good, too. George Takei, who I'd just seen in the Cary Grant flick, Walk, Don't Run, and in a couple of episodes of I, Spy, turns in a particularly pleasant, if brief, performance. Gone was the powerful woman first officer of "The Cage", but we did get a Black woman bridge officer named Lt. Uhura. So daring was this casting choice that there was some fear that she would be one of the victims of the episode's monster!

The special effects are quite masterful, from the superb optical effects of the ship orbiting the planet, to the shimmering fade out/in of the "transporter" (which beams people from the Enterprise to planetary destinations), to the blast of the phaser (no longer laser) guns.

Verdict: Star Trek is back on course. With two out of three episodes being excellent, I've got confidence that this is a show that will reward consistent viewing. You can bet we'll all gather together again next Thursday.

Rating for "The Cage": 5 stars.
Rating for "Where No Man has Gone Before": 2.5 stars.
Rating for "The Man Trap": 4 stars.

Thoughts from Galactic Journey’s editor:

by Janice L. Newman

The traveler has already said most of what I would have written about (I was the one saying, “I hope they don’t kill her off!” when Lt. Uhura was being menaced by the creature). A few additional thoughts about last night’s episode:

The cinematography was impressive. When the crew encounter the creature in the first act and each crewmember sees it as a different woman, this was done so smoothly and seamlessly that there was never any question which person’s POV we were following.

The story was nuanced. Though this was a ‘kill the monster’ story, the morality of killing a creature that is ‘the last of its kind’ is called into question, with comparisons being made to the American buffalo and the passenger pigeon. It adds to the story’s poignancy, and the viewer is left wondering whether it might have been possible to resolve the situation without deaths on either side.

Particularly exciting was seeing women in interesting roles, though their ‘uniforms’ were VERY short! I wonder why the men don’t wear short tunic and pantyhose combinations like that?

Rating for "The Cage": 4.5 stars.
Rating for "Where No Man has Gone Before": 2.5 stars.
Rating for "The Man Trap": 4 stars.

A Hippie's Opinion

by Erica Frank

Star Trek has certainly been interesting so far — even "fascinating," as Mr. Spock might say. The ship's controls seem complex but plausible: none of the "three dials and a lever" that plague cheap movie productions, and yet each console seems within the range of a trained technician's skills. Lt. Uhura even mentions being momentarily fed up with her desk work, a nice bit of "office life" banter as she tries — unsuccessfully — to flirt with Mr. Spock.

However, the Star Trek universe is showing signs of predictability. None of it is bad, so far, but if it's going to last, it'll need more variety in its settings and plots. It won't take long for these themes to become clichés.

Three rocky, dusty desert planets.
Three hostile encounters with beings with psychic powers.
Three doctors. The Enterprise seems to go through them like some rock bands go through drummers.

The psychic elements of the creature in "The Man Trap" were minimized; the focus was (understandably) on the creature's murderous habits. However, its "shape-shifting" was actually a kind of mental illusion, although more limited than we saw in "The Cage." And the fact that its victims could not rally themselves to escape, even when called, showed some kind of mind control ability that the Talosians and Mitchell both lacked.

My favorite scene in the episode: Professor Crater showed Kirk and McCoy his dwindling supply of salt, and said, "Nancy and I started with 25 pounds. This is what we have left." McCoy took a few tablets from the nearly-empty vase and tasted one. "Salt," he declared.

Dr. McCoy tastes the "salt"

This is exactly how hippies get cops to take LSD, although they normally put it on sugar cubes, not salt tablets. (LSD has no color or flavor; the active elements are too small for people to taste.) I spent the next several minutes waiting for the hallucinations to kick in.

The producers could've given us a wild psychedelic color extravaganza instead of four more murders. I think we've been cheated.

I don't mind "psychic powers can make people callous or predatory" stories; they're a science fiction staple. I'm hoping we also get some episodes where extra-sensory perceptions lead to more harmonious communities or solve problems instead of creating them.

I enjoyed the episode despite a bit of hand-waving past some plot details. (For example, tasting the salt instead of using a science lab to confirm its identity. The result would've been the same, and this saved time.) The acting was great; I believed these were starship personnel facing a citizen who'd allied himself with a hostile alien. I'm looking forward to more of the series.

4 stars.

Who the %&@$ is Captain Kirk?

This first episode didn't give me a good idea of who Kirk is or what his past is, even though I'm pretty sure Kirk is supposed to be the main character of the show. (This is something I also felt was an issue with "Where No Man Has Gone Before".) "The Man Trap" centered more around McCoy, which is fine – I like the implication that with each new episode, a different member of the crew will be at the center of the plot – but for a first episode of a show, I wish they'd spent a little more time getting the audience acquainted with Kirk. When Kirk's life was threatened, I didn't feel any tension since I knew they weren't going to kill him off in the first episode, and his being captain isn't enough for me to root for him.

Pike, the captain in “The Cage”, was better established as a character in the first 20 minutes of his episode than Kirk was in both his pilot and the first episode combined. We know Pike is tired. We know he’s considering retiring. We know he’s from Earth. Kirk? I don’t know anything about him besides his pretty face.

I am left more frustrated than intrigued about his character. Why should I care about the success of this man if I don’t know who he is or what he’s about?

The good story alone in “The Man Trap” convinces me to give this new captain a chance, though I hope the lack of Kirk’s background is something that is remedied sooner rather than later.

This is a great episode, but not a good introduction. 5 stars, despite my complaints.

Home Town Hero

by Tam Phan (Secret Asian Man)

“The Man Trap” is a refreshing debut after the whiplash that resulted from starting with “The Cage” and going straight to “Where No Man Has Gone Before”. In the first few minutes of the episode, we’ve already seen clever camera work, stunning special effects, and a pleasantly paced plot.

It’s a bit concerning that we, yet again, have a new doctor, though I did like his friendship with Kirk, echoing the relationship of Pike and Boyce from "The Cage". The two recurring characters, Kirk and Spock, seem to be the only staple in the show thus far, but perhaps the continued diversity of the cast will prove to be an asset. This is an anthology show, after all.

Seeing Lieutenant Sulu, played by Asian actor George Takei, is nothing short of inspiring. He didn’t contribute much to the plot, but he was an officer with clear officer duties and that is not inconsequential. With at least as many scenes as any of the other supporting actors, I suspect that means the “green thumbed” lieutenant will be a highlight of the show in the upcoming episodes.

Hopefully this show continues to impress. It would be a shame to fall back down after such a great start, but we won’t know until next week.

Rating for “The Cage”: 5 stars
Rating for “Where No Man Has Gone Before”: 2 stars
Rating for “The Man Trap”: 4 stars

From the Young Traveler

by Lorelei Marcus

"Man Trap", though a moodier tale than what I usually prefer, executes every piece of the episode in a superb manner: the acting, direction, and production are all 5-star quality.

Rarely have I seen such a diverse, well-written, and interesting show on television — Star Trek is truly the I, Spy of the science fiction genre (is it any surprise both are Desilu productions?)

It's definitely getting HI-LITED in my TV Guide!

5 stars for this episodes, and high hopes for what's to come.

(And don't forget to tune in in three days at 8:30 PM (Pacific AND Eastern — two showings) for the next episode of Star Trek!)

Come join us!

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Science Fiction/Fantasy, TV

[July 18, 1966] Arrivals and Departures (Doctor Who: The War Machines)

July 18, 2021 Jessica Holmes 2 Comments

By Jessica Holmes

The third series of Doctor Who comes to a close, and it ends on a high note! Ian Stuart Black returns as a writer to bring us a high-concept sci-fi thriller set in modern London: The War Machines.

EPISODE ONE

The first thing that strikes you when watching this serial are the high-tech and creative title cards. It’s fitting to the theme of the serial, and I hope more serials will do the same. It’s a nice touch.

Arriving in contemporary London, the Doctor and Dodo take notice of the recently completed Post Office Tower. Here, it’s a front for a top-secret science project. In real life, as we all know, it’s where all the pigeons of London go to roost in between delivering the post. You can look it up if you like.

The Doctor, curious about the tower and following his gut instinct, heads up for a tour. The pair meet a computer scientist, Professor Brett (John Harvey). He eagerly shows them his life’s work: the thinking computer, WOTAN (Will Operating Thought ANalogue). Wotan also happens to be another spelling of Wōdan, a name for the Norse god Odin. Odin was associated with both wisdom and war. Additionally (and if this is deliberate, it’s absolutely brilliant), the name stems from the proto-Germanic *Wōđanaz, which has the meaning ‘leader of the possessed’. This is incredibly apt, as you’ll soon see.

The computer soon shows itself to be as smart as Brett claims, even correctly guessing what the acronym TARDIS means. But how did it know?

Prof. Brett introduces him to his secretary, Polly (Anneke Wills). We’ll be getting to know a lot more of Polly. While the Doctor continues to poke around the machine, Polly invites Dodo to the hottest nightspot in town – the Inferno.

At the bar, the pair meet Ben (Michael Craze), a down-in-the-dumps seaman stuck on shore duty. After Polly tries and fails to cheer him up with a bit of a flirt, she finds herself accosted by an impertinent idiot who doesn’t understand the word ‘no’. Ben comes to the rescue. That's all good. I was impressed with him for standing up to the creep. And then he had to go and RUIN it. How? By scolding Polly and telling her she ought to be careful who she encourages. The cheek!

I would have handled it a lot less gracefully than Polly does, and with language that would even make sailor-boy blush.

The Doctor attends a scientific club meeting led by Sir Charles Summer (William Mervyn), whose role in all this I’m not entirely clear on. He is extraordinarily posh. At the meeting, Sir Charles explains that WOTAN is going to be connected to an international network of computers. It will act as a central, impartial controller for all these computers – including those used for military applications. What could go wrong?

Prof. Brett is late for the meeting, having become suspicious that there’s an intruder in the building. He can’t shake the feeling that someone or someTHING is watching him. Then a discordant buzzing sound comes from the supercomputer. It turns almost melodic as it takes control of him, pulling him towards the machine…

The press conference is about to wrap up when Brett suddenly bursts in and asks to speak to another scientist, Krimpton (John Cater), and they both head back to the tower.

There, Major Green (Alan Curtis), the representative from the Ministry of Defence on the project, is the next to be ensnared by the machine’s siren song. He makes a call to the Inferno Club and asks to talk to Dodo. She answers, and the Major connects the phone to the computer, transmitting the hypnotic tone, and bringing Dodo under WOTAN’s control.

Brett drags Krimpton before WOTAN. The machine has thought it over, and come to the conclusion that the world can’t progress further with mankind running things. It’s time for WOTAN to take over.

The Doctor comes to the Inferno club to find Dodo missing, but where could she be?

Where else, but with WOTAN?

In a genuinely unsettling moment, the machine laughs as its plans begin to come together. It’s an unearthly, warped sound, but definitely a laugh. The machine instructs Dodo that Doctor ‘Who’ is required, and commands her to bring him to the tower.

This is a very good start to the serial. It’s all rather sinister so far, and things are moving along at a good pace, but not so fast that it feels rushed.

EPISODE TWO

For WOTAN’s plans to take over London, Washington and Moscow to come to fruition, it must have an army. An army of machines. Considering it’s about to link up to all the military computers, couldn't it just nuke the world into submission?

Then again, that’s not as much fun. While it is tempting (and fun) to point out logical holes in fiction, or smarter ways for characters to achieve their goals, sometimes it’s just more fun if the characters do things the hard way. On the other hand, it is meant to be a hyper-intelligent supercomputer, so you'd think it'd do things the smart way.

For another thing, if this machine was really all that smart, it’d know that the Doctor is not literally called 'Doctor Who'. Yes, it’s the name of the programme, and yes, that's his name in the credits. That much is true. But nobody calls him that, including himself. That, and it just sounds weird.

At the club, Polly is about to start phoning round the hospitals when Dodo shows up, claiming to have been visiting some old friends. Nobody notices how odd she’s acting, and Dodo almost succeeds in leading the Doctor into an ambush while waiting for a taxi – which then shows up, scuppering her plans.

In a nearby warehouse, WOTAN has made short work of mind-controlling a bunch of workers, who are beginning to build a War Machine. An unwitting homeless bloke finds himself in the wrong place at the wrong time, and WOTAN sets the workers on him.

Then the first of the War Machines emerges in all its tin-can glory. It’s like the offspring of one of NASA’s big computers and a Dalek.

The next morning, the Doctor is at the home of Sir Charles when he sees the homeless man’s face in the paper, and recognises him, having seen him the previous night. To Sir Charles’ surprise, Polly shows up, having been sent by Major Green (most likely to keep her out of the way).

Dodo is still acting strangely, and she suggests that she and the Doctor go and call on Brett. To be polite, the Doctor decides to call his office first. Krimpton can’t believe his luck, and puts him through to WOTAN.

The result is more funny than scary, if I’m honest. It’s like a scene from a rubbish B-movie: Attack Of The Living Telephones! He eventually gets the phone away from his ear and collapses into a chair. The mind control doesn’t appear to have taken, but Dodo gives herself away before realising this. Deducing that WOTAN has hypnotised Dodo, the Doctor takes advantage of her trance and puts her to sleep. Sir Charles offers to have his wife look after her at their country residence, so off she goes.

And she was never seen again.

No, really. But I’ll get to that later.

Polly returns to the Post Office Tower, but gets a nasty surprise, immediately realising that something is very wrong with the Professor.

Ben turns up at Sir Charles’ house (the neighbours must think there’s a party with all these people coming and going), having arranged to meet Polly for lunch. She’s not here, and the Doctor lets Ben know of the goings-on with regards to WOTAN, and Ben offers his assistance.

The Doctor asks him to look into the area where that homeless chap got murdered last night. Off Ben goes, soon finding the War Machine factory – and a War Machine being tested.

EPISODE THREE

Ben makes a narrow escape from the War Machine, soon running into a mind-controlled Polly, who locks him inside the warehouse. The workers capture him, and poor Ben faces death at the hands of the Machine when Polly intercedes, saying that WOTAN needs more workers to complete the War Machines on schedule.

They get to work, and while they toil Polly tells Ben about the coming attack. Ben notices that the workers haven’t even bothered to guard the door. I’m no omniscient supercomputer hell-bent on taking over the world, but if I were, I’d make sure ALL my underlings were mind-controlled. After all, we know WOTAN has the ability to hypnotise people remotely. It would have only taken one phone call and Ben wouldn’t even be able to think about escaping!

At the first opportunity, Ben slips away. Polly sees him go, but for some reason she doesn’t raise the alarm. Perhaps because deep down, she remembers that he’s her friend. On learning this, the Major sends her back to WOTAN for punishment.

Ben makes it back to Sir Charles and the Doctor and tells them what he saw. Realising they must act quickly, Sir Charles calls the army in to deal with the factory. The Doctor thinks it’d be a better idea to strike at the heart of the problem and shut down WOTAN, but for some reason Sir Charles won’t believe that Prof. Brett and WOTAN have anything to do with all this. The Watsonian explanation would be that he’s…I don’t know, stubborn? The Doylist way of looking at it would be that it would cut the serial an episode short. I think we have to cycle back to my point that sometimes it’s just more fun if characters aren’t 100% logical all the time.

The army arrives (with an array of quite obviously recycled shots to make it appear that there are more of them) and send in an advance squad.

It does not go well for them.

I thought initially there was a failure in the sound department as I couldn't hear any shots, but it seems that the War Machine has the ability to jam conventional weapons.

The Doctor and Ben arrive as the few survivors emerge from the warehouse, pursued by the Machine.

Everyone at the site flees, but the Doctor stands his ground…

EPISODE FOUR

…And we start off with a bit of a cop-out as the War Machine rolls right past the Doctor and then shuts down. Why? The workers hadn't finished programming it, so it didn’t know what to do with itself. Seems a little convenient if you ask me.

The news of the War Machine begins to spread over the airwaves. The Ministry of Defence warn the public that more attacks are expected, and to be on guard. It has a bit of a wartime feel to it that will surely strike a chill in all of us old enough to remember.

The other War Machines are ready for launch. One machine while receiving orders destroys the transceiver and then kills one of the men who built it, to the puzzlement of Brett back at the tower…and me, come to think of it. This plot detail doesn’t really seem to go anywhere? It seems as if this machine might have developed its own sense of self-awareness independent from WOTAN, but nothing more really comes of it. Perhaps WOTAN is issuing its own orders without human intermediaries.

At the warehouse, the Doctor talks to the Major, who seems to have come around from his hypnosis with no memory of his actions. I don’t really understand what made him come around. After all, WOTAN is still active.

Meanwhile, some poor bloke gets killed while trying to raise the alarm about having seen one of the War Machines.

Ben continues to worry about Polly, but the Doctor keeps fobbing him off. This is weird, and I had initially thought that the Doctor had some sort of plan to make use of Polly’s hypnotic state or something to that effect, but it seems that he just doesn’t care all that much. In fairness to him, he’s trying to save the world and Polly is just some woman he barely knows, but it does seem out of character.

The second War Machine is heading for the Battersea power station. The Doctor thinks they should capture it. He devises a trap to capture the War Machine within an electromagnetic field.

The War Machine rolls right into the trap, and the Doctor strolls up to have a look at it, knowing it can’t hurt him. Not that it doesn’t threaten to, for which the Doctor scolds it, which is pretty funny as it impotently waves its hammer about. The Doctor reprograms the War Machine to make it an ally, and sends it off to the Post Office Tower to destroy WOTAN.

The Doctor still doesn’t seem to care about Polly, so Ben runs off ahead to get her out of there. With some gentle persuasion (read: physically picking her up and carrying her out the door) he gets her out of the way before the War Machine shows up.

Krimpton dies trying to protect WOTAN, but the War Machine manages to finish the supercomputer off. Now that I think about it, the War Machines were nigh-indestructible, but WOTAN was just like any other computer. I think one guy would have done the job just as well with a sledgehammer. Or a really big magnet. Or a cup of coffee.

With WOTAN deactivated, all the other War Machines freeze in place, waiting for orders that will never come. Everyone who was mind-controlled returns to normal. All’s well that ends well…mostly.

The Doctor slips away to avoid dealing with the aftermath, and waits by the TARDIS for his faithful companion…who doesn’t show up. Ben and Polly arrive with a message from Dodo. She's feeling much better and has decided to stay in London. Oh, and she sends her love.

Gee.

The Doctor takes her through time and space and she doesn’t even come along to say ta-ta in person? If there was a contest for Worst Companion Exit, Dodo’s departure would win. From what I can gather, Jackie Lane’s contract expired mid-filming, but could they not have found a more elegant solution? Why not have the farewell mid-serial, and do it properly? If they wanted to be really bold, they could have killed her off a la Katarina.

Rather put out, the Doctor retreats into the TARDIS, with Ben and Polly following him. The doors shut behind them, and the ship departs into time and space.

Final Thoughts

So, that was The War Machines. Personally, I really enjoyed it. The serial has a very cinematic feeling to it. There's lots of interesting shots and location shooting, making it one of the most dynamic serials we've seen. I enjoyed the technological thriller aspect, minor quibbles with the plot aside. Though it definitely dropped the ball when it came to giving Dodo a proper sendoff, this is however a very strong companion introduction. Ben and Polly were worked into the story in an organic way, and I like them already (despite Ben’s shaming of Polly at their first encounter).

Polly is the sort of cool modern woman we’d all like to be. It’s a shame that she was mind-controlled for much of her appearance. All we really know is that she’s cool and she’s nice. Ben, though definitely a bit condescending, especially towards Polly, seems like a good soul at heart. He’s very brave, which is an important trait to have.

I’m a little surprised at the brevity of Dodo’s tenure as the Doctor’s companion. It feels like she’s barely even arrived and already she’s out the door. I liked her, but she didn’t really get a chance to distinguish herself much as anything other than Replacement Susan.

Polly’s already more distinct, and she’s only been around five minutes.

I look forward to seeing how this new TARDIS team work together– I think the rotating cast helps to keep the programme from getting stale.

Let’s see where things go from here, shall we?

4 out of 5 stars

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Book, Science Fiction/Fantasy, TV

[July 4, 1966] The Daughters of Jane Eyre (Gothic Romances and a New Soap Opera)

July 4, 2021 Victoria Silverwolf Leave a comment

by Victoria Silverwolf

From the Castle of Otranto to Northanger Abbey

Most literary historians state that the first Gothic novel was The Castle of Otranto (1764) by Horace Walpole. It set the pattern for later spooky stories. You know the type; mysteries, curses, hidden passages, innocent heroines prone to fainting, etc.

All that stuff about being translated from Italian by the nonexistent William Marshal is fictional. Note that the book was very popular, going through multiple editions.

Walpole's bestseller inspired many imitations. The genre was so popular that it was parodied in Jane Austen's posthumously published novel Northanger Abbey (1817), in which a naïve young woman who reads too much Gothic fiction imagines all sorts of dark secrets behind perfectly innocent situations.

It first appeared with Persuasion, another posthumous novel.

Frankenstein Meets Dracula

One of the most famous works of Gothic fiction appeared soon after, with the publication of Mary Shelley's 1818 novel Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus. This groundbreaking work, which one might think of as the first real science fiction novel, spawned countless adaptations and imitations, in the form of movies, comic books, and so forth.

It seems odd that authors didn't want their names on their books back in the old days.

I'm sure you're familiar with the scary stories that appeared during the Victorian era, from Edgar Allan Poe's chilling tales of madness and murder, to Bram Stoker's seminal vampire novel Dracula (1897).

The cover of the first edition. Looks very modern, doesn't it?

Isn't It Romantic?

Let me back up a little bit and mention the Brontë sisters, particularly Emily Brontë's novel Wuthering Heights and Charlotte Brontë's novel Jane Eyre, both published in 1847. Both books added a touch of romance to Gothic fiction, particularly the latter.

At least she used a pseudonym instead of being completely anonymous.

I hesitate to call Wuthering Heights a love story, although you might think it one if you've only seen the movie. The relationship between Catherine and Heathcliff in the book is more complex than simply a romance. (It's a very strange novel in many ways.)

Note that the book pretends to be a true account, and the similarity in pseudonyms. Their sister Anne Brontë used the pseudonym Acton Bell for her novels, which lie outside the topic of this article.

Jane Eyre is more obviously a romance, although it certainly contains elements of Gothic fiction as well. This blending of love and terror had an important influence on romantic novels of the current century, eventually leading to the marketing category of Gothic Romances.

(Just to make things completely clear, allow me to emphasize the fact that I am using the term Romances — note the capital letter — to refer to books sold as love stories. It should not be confused with the rather old-fashioned use of the word romance — note the small letter — to mean an imaginative tale, as in the archaic term scientific romance for what we now call science fiction.)

The most important modern Gothic Romance, I think, is Daphne du Maurier's 1938 bestseller Rebecca. The success of this novel, and the award-winning 1940 Alfred Hitchcock film adaptation, led to many similar books, which you can still find on the paperback racks of your local drug store.

The similarity to the cover of Dracula is interesting.

There are lots of these things floating around, usually with a cover depicting a beautiful young woman and a sinister building in the background. Often there's a single light in the window.

Science fiction writers sometimes produce Gothic Romances as well.

Welcome to Collinsport

I offer you this rather haphazard look at a particular category of popular fiction because the subject came to mind when a new daytime drama (that's a euphemism for soap opera) premiered on American television one week ago. Dark Shadows — even the title suggests Gothic elements — offers the kind of shuddery thrills found in the books I've been discussing. Heck, even the music played during the opening title sequence is spooky!

The first few minutes of the initial episode introduce us to the protagonist and her employers. In the tradition of Jane Eyre, our innocent heroine, Victoria Winters, is an orphan hired to work as a governess.

Victoria Winters, played by newcomer Alexandra Moltke, ponders her past and future.

She travels by train from a foundling home in New York to the fictional village of Collinsport, Maine, where she is to watch over David Collins, the ten-year-old son of Roger Collins.

Young actor David Henesy as the troubled boy David Collins. It must make it easier to have the same first name as your character.

Roger is separated from his wife, David's mother, and is living on the huge estate, including a spooky mansion, known as Collinwood with his fabulously wealthy sister, Elizabeth Collins Stoddard. Elizabeth's husband disappeared eighteen years ago, and she hasn't left Collinwood since.

Louis Edmonds as Roger Collins and movie star Joan Bennett as Elizabeth Collins Stoddard. You may have seen her share top billing with Edward G. Robinson in The Woman in the Window (1944) and Scarlet Street (1945), or with Gregory Peck in The Macomber Affair (1947).

Arriving on the same train as Victoria is Burke Devlin. Like many male characters in Gothic Romances, he's darkly attractive, but obviously has some kind of secret in his past. Adding to the intrigue is the fact that Roger is upset when he learns Burke is back in Collinsport.

Mitchell Ryan as Burke Devlin, ruggedly handsome antihero.

Mention should be made of Carolyn Stoddard, Elizabeth's daughter, and her boyfriend, Joe Haskell. Joe wants to marry her, but Carolyn is reluctant. She also seems to be interested in Burke.

Nancy Barrett as Carolyn Stoddard. Women in nightgowns are a staple of Gothic Romances.

Joel Crothers as Joe Haskell, in a happy mood.

Rounding out the list of major characters are Sam Evans, an artist who appears to know something about the trouble between Roger and Burke, and his daughter Maggie, waitress at the local diner.

Kathryn Leigh Scott, in an obvious blonde wig, greets Victoria at the diner, and provides exposition for the audience.

Mark Allen as Sam Evans, who drinks a lot at the Blue Whale, which seems to be the only place to get booze in Collinsport.

After only six episodes, counting today's, we've already got a lot of mysteries. Who were Victoria's parents? Why does Elizabeth want her to work at Collinwood? Where has Burke been for several years? Why did he return to Collinsport? Why is Roger unhappy to know he's around? What does Sam know about the situation? What happened to Elizabeth's husband? Why hasn't she left the estate since he vanished? What's in the locked room in the basement?

Besides all this stuff, we've got subtle hints of the supernatural. Victoria hears unexplained sobbing sounds in the middle of the night. David claims that ghosts told him to send Victoria away. Sam tells her that Collinwood is haunted by Josette, a French woman who leapt to her death from a cliff called Widow's Hill nearly two centuries ago. Whether the ghosts will turn out to be real or not remains to be seen.

It's also unknown whether this offbeat soap opera will stick around for any length of time. It's a production of ABC (American Broadcasting Company), which is something of an upstart network, much newer than CBS (Columbia Broadcasting System) and NBC (National Broadcasting Company.) In my neck of the woods, Dark Shadows shows up at four o'clock in the afternoon, and faces competition from well-established programs on the other networks.

This CBS soap opera has been on the air since 1954.

On NBC, we have The Match Game, which has been running since 1962, and is now being broadcast in color.

If none of this appeals to you, you could always read a book.

Let's see; beautiful woman with a spooky house in the background, one light in the window; must be a Gothic Romance. And guess what? My sources in the publishing world tell me that Cassandra Knye is actually the team of New Wave SF writers Thomas M. Disch and John Sladek cashing in on the trend.

If you don't feel like watching TV or reading, tune in to KGJ, our radio station! Nothing but the hits!

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Science Fiction/Fantasy, TV

[June 20, 1966] First Impressions Can Be Misleading (Doctor Who: The Savages)

June 20, 2021 Jessica Holmes 2 Comments

By Jessica Holmes

Hello again, my friends, and welcome to another summary and review of the latest serial of Doctor Who. After a disappointing last several stories, I’m pleased to say that for the last few weeks Doctor Who has once again been a highlight of Saturday tea-time in my house. Whom do we have to thank for this turnaround? A new face in the writers’ room, Ian Stuart Black. Black’s story is everything Doctor Who should be: smart, exciting, and most importantly it has something to say. Let’s take a look at The Savages.

Oh, and I haven’t forgotten to fill in the episode names. Apparently we aren’t bothering with them any more.

EPISODE ONE

Arriving in an age of 'peace and prosperity', the Doctor promptly wanders off and attracts the attention of some rather grouchy-looking blokes with clubs.

Men in animal skins wielding clubs doesn’t scream ‘peace and prosperity’ to me. Either the Doctor’s wrong about where they are (as happens…often) or things aren’t quite as they seem. Luckily for the Doctor, a couple of soldiers in silly hats find him before he can have his head bashed in. These are Edal and Exorse, and they’ve come to invite the Doctor to their city. The Elders are expecting him.

Off he trots, leaving behind Steven and Dodo, who also run afoul of the 'savages' (their words, not mine). Luckily, Exorse finds them before Steven gets skewered.

In a contrast to the wilderness, the city of the Elders turns out to be an enlightened utopian paradise, all gleaming architecture and fancy clothes. The Elders have been observing the Doctor’s exploits for some time. They are so honoured to meet him they give him some less-than-groovy new threads.

They’re a bit surprised to see Steven and Dodo, but present them with fancy gifts all the same. Steven gets a knife, and Dodo gets… a hand mirror. Enlightened? Pah! They’re sexist!

Girls like to stab people too, you know.

The leader of the Elders (Jano) offers to have Steven and Dodo shown around while he has a chat with the Doctor. The rest of the city is fabulous and luxurious. The Elders control everything here, even the wind and rain. Steven asks what the secret of their success is. One of their guides tells him that their scientists made one simple discovery, but what is that discovery? Everything seems a little too good to be true, doesn’t it?

While they’re off doing that, the soldiers from earlier go on the hunt, much to the horror of the 'savages'. After a tense game of cat-and-mouse, Exorse captures a young woman, Nanina. He uses a gun that fires a beam of light that freezes the victim in place and allows the user to control them. Remember this, it'll be important later.

Jano explains to the Doctor that they’ve found a more efficient way to gain energy to survive. They have found a way to transfer energy directly from one living being to another.

Right after that little revelation, Dodo spots Exorse bringing Nanina into the city. I think you can guess where this is going.

Exorse takes Nanina into a laboratory where another 'savage' is already lying on a table, very weak. Having no further use for him, the scientists in the lab turn him loose, tossing him out into the tunnels leading out of the city.

While Steven begins to ask questions about the city, and getting no straight answers, Dodo sneaks off to explore. She soon gets lost, coming face to face with the zombified 'savage'…

EPISODE TWO

Dodo has nothing to fear from the stranger, as it turns out. He can’t even stand on his own two feet. She helps him up and to the door, where the other 'savages' are waiting for him, but she doesn't get the chance to talk to them. Hearing Nanina's cries a moment later, Dodo sneaks over to the laboratory to investigate.

Though Steven is beside himself with worry, the Doctor assures him that Dodo is more than capable of taking care of herself.

Dodo gets herself captured in the very next scene.

Edal finds her before the scientists can put her under some sort of procedure, and as he leads her away, the scientists release Nanina in a similar state to the man from earlier. It’s becoming increasingly clear that something is very wrong in this city.

Reunited with his companions, the Doctor bids the Elders a polite farewell, seemingly in a sudden hurry to leave the city. Outside the city they come upon the man Dodo encountered earlier, and the Doctor’s suspicions are confirmed. The Elders are kidnapping the 'savages', draining them of their life force, and transferring it into themselves.

The Doctor sends his companions to get medical supplies from the TARDIS. As he begins tending to the poor man, Edal shows up and callously says that this ‘savage’ should be back on his reserve.

The real-world applicability is hard to miss.

The Doctor, angered at the interference, blasts Edal for his lack of humanity. These ‘savages’ are no different from the Elders, designated as subhuman purely for being born into the 'wrong' group.

Steven and Dodo come back to find the poor sick bloke all alone, and start treating him themselves, learning from him that Edal took the Doctor back to the city. They also meet two more of the man's people, wise old Chal and young hot-headed Tor.

In the city, the Doctor clashes with the Elders, demanding that they put an end to their barbaric practice of draining the 'savages'.

It very strongly feels like a metaphor for… well, a myriad of real-world things: wealth disparity, racism, segregation and colonialism. Basically, any scenario where the ruling class are dehumanising and exploiting a whole group of people.

Faced with the Doctor's condemnation, it seems Jano has no choice… but to have the Doctor taken away and drained.

With considerable trepidation at performing the procedure on a 'higher' being, the lead scientist initiates the procedure, remarking in amazement at the amount of vitality they manage to steal from the Doctor within the first few seconds.

And it seems he’s got plenty left to give…

EPISODE THREE

Jano observes as the scientists finish draining the Doctor, and he insists that he be the first to be infused with the Doctor’s vitality. This is the first experiment of its kind, and so he takes it upon himself to take the risk.

Meanwhile, Chal and Tor, the two men Steven and Dodo met earlier, lead them to the caves where the 'savages' live. To Steven and Dodo's surprise, there is a beautiful temple inside the cave. These people's ancestors were great artists before their traditions and way of life were stolen from them. All that remains to them now is their faith. Again, there is clear real-world applicability, particularly with regard to the suffering of colonised peoples around the world, though many don't even get to keep that much.

Outside, Exorse finds Tor. Under threat of being drained, Tor gives away the location of the time travellers. Gee, that was a smart move, especially given that just a scene ago Tor was vehemently against taking the fugitives in for fear of the Elders invading his home.

With Exorse coming for them Steven asks if there’s another way out. Chal leads Steven and Dodo into the passages at the back of the cave as Exorse barges in and starts threatening the inhabitants.

I must say that although I’m not given any other name for these people, I feel strange calling them ‘savages’. ‘Savage’ is a word long used to dehumanise people considered ‘lesser’. To me it feels uncomfortable to still refer to these people with a slur when it’s evident there is nothing ‘lesser’ about them. It would have been a good touch at this point in the narrative to reveal to the audience what these cave people call themselves.

Exorse pursues Steven, Dodo and Chal into the tunnels, and faced with a dead end Steven gets an idea. Using Dodo’s hand-mirror (I suppose it came in handy after all), he reflects the beam from Exorse’s light-gun back at the soldier, freezing him in place. Steven manages to disarm Exorse and leads him back to the cave, where the others are amazed to see that their oppressors can be defeated.

Leaving the others to guard the prisoner, Steven heads back to the city with Chal and Dodo to find the Doctor. They’ve barely even left before Tor tries to kill Exorse, but Nanina stops him and tends to Exorse’s wound, reasoning that vengeance will do them no good.

Jano emerges from the intransference procedure with a dazed look on his face, but assures the scientist that he’s quite all right… in a voice that isn’t his. The scientist doesn’t seem to notice, but Jano appears to have acquired the Doctor’s voice and a bit of his personality. He slips back and forth between his own voice and the Doctor’s, and something clicks into place for me. Doesn’t Jano sound rather similar to Janus, the two-faced Roman god?

Now that’s what I call an aptronym.

I say it’s the Doctor’s voice but I’m fairly sure that Jano’s actor is just doing an impression. It’s a good impression, but it’s a little too nasal to be Hartnell. Still, he’s got the accent and cadence down pat.

Having snuck into the city, Steven and Dodo find the Doctor wandering the access tunnels, though Dodo frets that it seemed too easy to get in. She’s right. It’s a trap.

The door starts closing behind them, but they can’t get the catatonic Doctor out before it shuts and the corridor begins to fill with gas.

In the lab, Jano watches on a scanner as they begin to choke. The Doctor can’t help them now… or can he?

EPISODE FOUR

Episode Four starts off with a stroke of luck as the door unexpectedly opens behind the travellers, allowing Dodo to usher the Doctor out while Steven fires on Edal and the advancing guards.

Edal accuses Jano of opening the door for them, but of course Jano denies it, speaking with the Doctor's voice again.

He leads a contingent of guards out of the city to hunt the fugitives down. On the run, Steven sends the Doctor, Chal and Dodo ahead to the safety of the caves while he stays behind to hold off the pursuers.

The Doctor and Dodo make it to the cave, and just in time, too. Finding herself as Exorse’s only ally, Nanina defends him from Tor with a spear. It’s only with the arrival of Chal that things don’t end up coming to a point.

With the guards advancing, Steven falls back to the cave, where he intends to lie in wait and snipe Jano as he approaches. However, hearing this the Doctor suddenly becomes lucid and warns him not to, and it's not just his sense of pacifism talking. He thinks that Jano might be the ally they need to destroy the lab.

Jano insists on going into the cave alone, ordering the others back to the city. Edal smells something funny about the situation, so he immediately warns the disbelieving Elders that he believes Jano is about to betray them.

As night falls, Jano enters the cave, and the Doctor turns out to be right once again. In absorbing the Doctor’s life essence, Jano got what he wanted: the Doctor’s intellect. However, in the process he got more than he bargained for. He got the Doctor’s conscience. Even better, he has a plan.

A short time later, Jano swans into the lab with his ‘prisoners’ in tow. Miffed at Edal’s attempts to turn the others against him, he has Edal arrested for treason.

The Elders are relieved to see that Jano is apparently still loyal, until Jano orders the lab sealed and exhorts them to destroy it. They’re not keen.

Well, if you want something done properly, you have to do it yourself. Jano and the ‘prisoners’ start smashing equipment with gleeful abandon. As the Doctor says, there is something very satisfying about destroying something evil.

But what now? The old system is no more, but what will replace it? How will these people learn to live together as equals in peace?

The Doctor would be an obvious choice to mediate between the two peoples, but it’s not in his nature to stick around. What a pickle. Where else are they going to find a good, trustworthy person with leadership skills, who can inspire loyalty, and make judgements based on their conscience?

I’ll be honest, my first thought was Nanina, given her willingness to show compassion even to her enemies.

But apparently Peter Purves wants out, so Steven’s the man for the job. Though initially reluctant, after some encouragement from the Doctor, Chal, Jano and even Tor, he agrees to stay.

Dodo bids Steven a tearful farewell, and Jano thanks the Doctor for his help before departing with the others to await Steven in the council chamber. Once alone, the Doctor admits that he’s very proud of Steven, though he does seem in a rush to get him to go. Has he been leaving smelly socks all over the TARDIS or something?

Steven heads off to start his new life, and the Doctor and Dodo depart through the smouldering remains of the laboratory. They don't look back, but Steven does. I'm not sure he really wants to leave.

The Doctor doesn’t seem as bothered about this as any of the other departures. I suppose he’s fine as long as he has a surrogate grandchild.

It’s quite an abrupt exit all the same, and one that wasn’t really set up in the preceding episodes. In Susan’s final serial, she gradually fell in love, so it made sense for her to decide to stay behind in future London. In the case of Ian and Barbara, going back home was their goal all along. Vicki, too, formed a personal connection to Troilus. It wasn't what you'd call a deep or believable connection, but there was an attempt. However, Steven hasn’t made any ties here that would give him a personal reason to want to stay. I suspect that this wasn’t the original ending of the serial, but instead a fairly last-minute change.

Final Thoughts

I’d love a followup to this story some time in the future. Our Steven’s definitely got his work cut out for him. Jano might have come around, but there’s a whole city of people who need convincing, and they’ve become accustomed to a certain level of luxury. Will they accept the liberation of the 'savages' if it comes at the cost of their lifestyle? How are they going to unlearn untold centuries of prejudice, especially when it tangibly benefited them?

To add onto this, though the Elders no longer have their energy-sucking machine, they still have all the weapons, all the advanced technology, and all the wealth. Are they going to share without being forced ? If it comes to that, how would Steven make them do it? Ask nicely?

I’m not saying it’s doomed to failure, but I don’t fancy his odds.

Still, say that Jano manages to convince his people that they need to change their ways and let the ‘savages’ in. What of the other side of the equation? The ‘savages’ have little trust for the Elders, and plenty of anger, and with good reason. I don’t think tensions between the groups would simply vanish overnight.

I’m going to miss having Steven around, and I wish he could have had a few more stories with Dodo, as the two developed a big brother/little sister dynamic which I found quite sweet. With his charm, often sarcastic wit and sometimes flaring temper, he formed the passionate core of the TARDIS team. It’ll be hard to replace him. Plus, it was nice to have a fellow Northerner in the TARDIS.

Wherever Peter Purves ends up, I’m sure it’ll turn out great.

So, there we have it. That was The Savages, and I hope you’ll agree it turned out to be a cracking story. The build-up to the revelation of what the Elders are doing is well-paced and effective, holding my attention. Hot off the heels of that, the twist of Jano unwittingly absorbing the Doctor's conscience put an interesting wrinkle in things, and it was fun to watch to boot. Deep characterisation is not really Doctor Who's strong suit, but there was enough for me to get invested and create interesting clashes of personality.

And of course, I enjoy it when the Doctor gets on his high horse.

I think it would be genuinely fascinating to get a sequel to this story set a few years down the line and see how Steven got on. After all, it’s not enough to just take the boot off your victim’s throat. You have to help them up off the ground.

4.5 out of 5 stars

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[May 26, 1966] Batman: So Bad It's Good?

May 26, 2021 Erica Frank 3 Comments

by Erica Frank

I have been greatly enjoying the new Batman tv series. Campy costumes, over-the-top acting, wacky super-science gizmos, silly plots, the chance to see several of my favorite comic book characters on a screen; it's all good fun.

Batman and Robin running toward the viewer

Na na na na na na na na…

…It is not, however, amazing storycrafting, believable characters, thoughtful worldbuilding, or plausible traps and clever solutions. This is definitely a "kick your feet up and relax your brain before watching" show. If you have some favored intoxicants, you may wish to indulge in them first. Trust me. It'll help.

The Batman Drinking Game

The best way to watch this show: Before it starts, get yourself a beer, glass of wine, or couple of shots of something harder. Every time you see a gizmo that can't actually work as shown, take a sip. Every time Robin says, "Holy [something]!," take a sip. When either of the Dynamic Duo is trapped, take a sip; if they're both trapped, take two. Every time a supposedly valuable item, like a museum statue, is destroyed during the obligatory heroes-vs-thugs slugfest, take another sip. By the time the show is over, you'll be pleasantly relaxed—unless you actually know much about science and technology, in which case, you'll have left "relaxed" in the dust and be on your way to "blitzed."

This is not a show for careful thinking. This is a show for enjoying nostalgic thoughts about your childhood heroes and watching them climb up buildings so they can beat up the bad guys in a large warehouse room.

Batman and Robin climbing a wall using a batarang cord

I don't know what that cord is made of, but I bet the US military would love to get their hands on it.

The show's opening has cartoon Batman and Robin tackling cartoon villains; a few old favorites like the Joker are visible, but most are nameless thugs. The theme song is catchy (and simple, which you'll need if you're playing the drinking game). It works nicely as a reminder that this isn't a serious crime drama—it's a live-action version of comic books, full of goofy technology, ridiculous villain shenanigans, and grandiose gizmo-speak solutions to bizarre plots.

Our Heroes and Villains

Adam West portrays both Bruce Wayne and Batman as polite, honest, and serene to the point of parody. He is very safety-conscious: he insists that Robin fasten his "bat-seatbelt" for a trip of only a few blocks. (He has a lot of bat-gear. A plethora of bat-gear. Everything Batman uses is bat-themed.) He's prone to saying things like, "This is just the first stitch in a large tapestry of crime." Yet he never seems angry, just disappointed that so many people have turned to villainy instead of hard work. At no point does he ponder that being born a millionaire might have some impact on his ideas of how easy it is to find gainful employment.

Burt Ward's Robin is excitable and clever; he's the one who figures out most of the riddles and other puzzles they face. When he's Dick Grayson, he's an ordinary teenager, albeit one with less interest in dating than most teens I've known. Robin, we are informed, is not old enough to get a driver's license. I don't know what the driving age in Gotham is; it's 16 in California and most other states. Robin is apparently a very mature 14 or 15. We pick up a few extra details about him: He speaks Spanish and French but struggles with algebra. At one point, the villains putting him in a complex trap mentioned that he weighs 132 pounds and 10 ounces. He and Bruce are often shown engrossed in intellectual pursuits.

Bruce and Dick playing 3-d chess

Bruce Wayne and Dick Grayson playing 3-dimensional chess, just before Alfred gives Dick advice that lets Bruce checkmate him.

The two of them live with Alfred, their butler, who is in on the big secret, and Dick's Aunt Harriet Cooper, who is not. She's under the impression that Bruce and Dick go on a lot of fishing trips. Overnight fishing trips, in some cases. She must be Dick's mother's sister. Or maybe she's a widow, and was Harriet Grayson in her youth. (Bruce also calls her "Aunt Harriet," so maybe she's his aunt.) Dick's parents aren't mentioned, but obviously his origin story isn't quite the same as in the comics—while the murder of Bruce's parents is mentioned, nothing is said about Dick's time before he lived at "stately Wayne Manor."

Batman and Robin regularly cooperate with the police: Commissioner Gordon, whom we know from the comics, and Chief O'Hara, new to the tv show, are both happy to turn over all the super-villain crimes to our heroes. The entire police department is grateful for the costumed crimefighters. I'm not sure whether the officers are horribly incompetent, or just happy to have someone else get strapped to the inside of a giant bell.

Each story is two episodes, with the first ending on a potentially fatal cliffhanger. (Often, Robin in a death trap.) The seventeen stories—34 episodes—of the first season involve several infamous villains from the comics and a small handful of new ones. The Riddler, played by Frank Gorshin, appears four times. His cackling is delightful.

The Riddler, laughing

"Riddle me this: What is it that no man wants to have, but no man wants to lose?"

Burgess Meredith as the Penguin and Cesar Romero as the Joker each showed up three times. Catwoman, the Mad Hatter, Mr. Freeze, and False Face each appeared once, although some of them didn't quite match their comic versions. The tv series also brought in three new villains: Zelda the Great, King Tut, and Bookworm.

The “Villainesses”

Only two of the villains Batman faces are women: Zelda the Great and Catwoman.

Zelda the Great is a woman magician trying to steal a million dollars; she partnered with someone who wants to kill Batman. While they successfully trapped Batman and Robin, at the last moment, she warned them about a pair of hidden assassins with guns. The Caped Crusaders prevailed, and she and her gang were arrested. However, as a result of her change of heart, Bruce Wayne offered her a job when she gets out of prison: a position in one of the Wayne Foundation's children's hospitals as a regular performer.

Catwoman, played by Julie Newmar, purrs and hisses and slinks her way through her cat-themed crimes. Batman and Robin tracked her by covering a golden cat statue with a radioactive spray—but she was prepared; she knew they were coming and set up a trap. (The show has a lot of traps.) Batman defeated her deadly tiger by putting on his bat-earplugs (…take a drink) and then "reverses the polarity on his communicator," which, for some reason, is activated by a large button under his belt buckle, and then "increases the audio modulation to about 20,000 decibels" to disable the large cat. (Take another drink.)

Catwoman and her two henchmen

Catwoman and her henchmen, Leo and Felix. Neither of them escapes with her.

Did I mention not to watch this show for the science? Please, do not watch this show for the science.

Later in that episode: Robin awakens on a plank, balanced precariously over a pit of tigers. Looking around wildly, he declares, "Catwoman—You are not a nice person!"

Don't watch this show for the witty dialogue, either. Interesting dialogue, sometimes. But it falls short of "witty," even for pun-laden satire.

Plenty of Failure to Go Around

My friends here at the Journey don't think much of the show. Batman does not hold up well under the thoughtful analysis we normally do; it's packed with stereotypes, clichés, and all characters' endless failures to see the obvious. The women are almost all overly emotional: fearful, soft-hearted, and unwilling to see even their enemies hurt. (Catwoman is a notable exception—she shows no mercy to Batman or Robin, betrays her own sidekick, and falls, possibly to her doom, rather than lose her ill-gotten gains.) The crime-adventure stories rely on the melodramatic villains to distract you from their nonsensical plans. The show has a breathtaking ability to casually throw around horribly inaccurate details about law, finance, city life, fashion, and every possible aspect of science.

Batman holding a scroll, Robin standing over his shoulder

The answer to the riddle: A lawsuit… which Batman has received in the form of a scroll.

And yet. It manages to be fun. (Are you not having fun yet? You may need another drink. Perhaps a pipe loaded with something a bit stronger than tobacco.)

This is not a show to watch as an analytical reviewer, looking for insights into the human condition or the nature of society. This is not a show to watch as a serious science fiction fan, looking for innovative uses of technology to solve ancient problems. This is a show to watch as a tired reviewer, as a jaded science fiction fan, who has read a hundred books that earnestly bludgeon the reader with astute pontifications and idealized future societies where somehow, all the important people are well-educated white men who speak English.

Bruce Wayne is well-educated, rich, white, smart, talented, physically fit, noble-minded, law-abiding, conscientious, and respected by his community—the perfect classic science fiction protagonist. And he is ridiculous.

Batman dancing

Batman shows off his "Batusi" dance moves at the new discotheque, "What a Way to Go-Go."

The entire show is ridiculous.

Bat Poles to the Batcave

Bruce, being a fully-grown adult, has a thicker pole than Dick.

Are you having fun yet? Robin's having fun, if we allow "fun" to mean "unconscious under the influence of strange pharmaceuticals." Robin has a lot of "fun" in this show.

Riddler leaning over Robin in the Batmobile

The Riddler is not actually kissing Robin. Probably. Almost certainly. He's just checking to see if the poison dart knocked him unconscious.

Tune in next season, same bat-time, same bat-channel, and I'll see if I can find some value in this series other than open mockery of too-serious approaches to science and technology. Even if I can't—even if all we get is silly costumes and clichéd gimmicks and Robin tied to increasingly implausible devices—I know I'll be watching the rest of the episodes.

Of course one of the songs on the Journey's radio station is the Batman theme. So tune in to KGJ, our radio station, and see if you can catch it!

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Science Fiction/Fantasy, TV

[May 22 1966] O.K.? No Way! (Doctor Who: The Gunfighters)

May 22, 2021 Jessica Holmes 4 Comments

By Jessica Holmes

I love musicals. I love — despite its flaws — this weird little science fiction show: Doctor Who. You’d think if you put the two together you’d end up with something I adore. It didn’t work.

Yes, this is essentially a musical serial– or rather, a serial with musical narration and more than one actual on-screen musical number. It sounds completely bizarre, and that’s because it is.

Rather than the usual incidental music peppering Doctor Who’s serials, this time around the action is interspersed with a ballad written by Tristram Cary and performed by Lynda Baron. Cary has provided music for Doctor Who before, in The Daleks, Marco Polo and The Daleks’ Master Plan. I wish I could say I remembered any of the music in those serials, but I can’t. All the same, I have found that his latest offering has wormed its way into my brain, and I keep catching myself humming the tune… much to my dismay.

This one’s also an alleged historical with more inaccuracies than I can count, so to save us all a lot of time I’ll quickly explain the very basics of what ACTUALLY happened in Tombstone on October 26, 1881.

THE GUNFIGHT NEAR-ISH TO THE O.K. CORRAL

The conflict in Tombstone had been a long time brewing, the result of a long feud between the lawmen of Tombstone and the outlaw Cowboys finally coming to a head. That’s a long story and not really relevant, but it involves exciting things like stagecoach robberies, smuggling, political rivalries, and all that good stuff. What really kicked things off, however, was a drunken argument and a new gun-control law.

The night before the fight, Doc Holliday and Ike Clanton got into an argument, which Town Marshal Virgil Earp put a stop to before things could get out of control. However, Clanton didn’t drop the matter, and threatened both Holliday and the Earp brothers. The town of Tombstone had recently made it illegal to carry a weapon within the town limits (unless you were just passing through), giving Virgil the pretext he needed to pistol-whip and disarm Clanton. Virgil hauled Ike before a judge, who fined him for the offence, and then let him go. Clanton, none too pleased about being disarmed and whacked on the noggin, fetched five of his Cowboy buddies, including his brother Billy and the McLaury brothers.

Having got wind of the Cowboys being in town and apparently armed, Virgil deputised his brothers Morgan and Wyatt. Along with Doc Holliday they went to disarm the outlaws, finding them at an empty lot near the Old Kindersley Corral. It didn’t go well.
It’s not clear who shot first, but when the smoke cleared Billy Clanton and the McLaury brothers lay dead, and the only uninjured man on the opposing side was Wyatt Earp. Ike, for his part, had run from the fight.

In the aftermath, Ike brought charges against the Earps and Holliday for killing his brother, and following an investigation and trial, they were found to have acted within the law.

This is all a massive oversimplification of a very complex situation, but I’ve distilled it as best as I can.

And now for Doctor Who’s version of events.

A HOLIDAY FOR THE DOCTOR

Welcome to Tombstone, Arizona. It’s a nice little frontier town, mostly quiet until today. The notorious Clanton brothers (of which there are three: Ike, Billy and Phineas) have ridden into town to settle a score with Doc Holliday, noted gunfighter, gambler, and… dentist.

My American friends, I am so sorry for what you’re about to endure. Much as I often find American attempts at an English accent to be grating, I have to admit we’re much, much worse at yours. Some of these chaps are overshooting America, crossing the Pacific and landing in Australia.

The Doctor and company arrive and soon make the acquaintance of Town Marshal Vir–sorry, WYATT Earp. Virgil won’t be turning up until much later, sorry.

The Clantons discuss their plans to find Doc Holliday with their associate Seth Harper, but they're overheard by the bar singer, Kate. Kate immediately hurries off to warn her lover, Doc.

Doc, for his part, looks like they’ve tried really hard to make him bear a believable resemblance to the Doctor, despite the fact he was only thirty years old at the time of the fight. Kate and Doc get into a contest over who can overact the clumsily-written dialogue the hardest. That scenery must be really delicious.

I have to give credit where it’s due– the set is large and detailed enough to be believable. It’s even big enough to safely gallop a horse through.

Wyatt introduces the Doctor and company to local Sherriff Bat Masterson, and the Doctor claims that they’re a travelling band of players: Steven ‘Regret’, singer, Miss Dodo Dupont, pianist, and he of course is Doctor Caligari. This bit is quite funny, I’ll give them that.

The Doctor finds Doc canoodling with his lady friend in the back room of his parlour, and is not reassured to learn that he’s Doc’s first customer. Meanwhile, Dodo and Stephen try and fail to blend in with the locals as they swagger over to the saloon. It would help if their outfits weren't more fit for a fancy dress party than the Old West.

However, the Cowboys overhear the young pair talking about the Doctor, and under the mistaken assumption that they’re associates of Doc Holliday, confront the pair.

Stephen and Dodo try to protest, but the Cowboys are having none of it. If they're really musicians, why not entertain everyone with a song?

With a couple of handy hostages at the saloon, Seth waylays the Doctor as he emerges from his appointment looking rather the worse for wear. He extends a cordial invitation for a get-together at the saloon, which after some insistence the Doctor accepts.

Having overheard this, Doc insists that the Doctor take his gun. He’s not being charitable, mind you, he just wants to make sure that the Cowboys mistake the Doctor for him.

Back at the bar, the Cowboys confront Stephen and Dodo, who insist they’re really musicians, nothing to do with Doc Holliday. Well, if that’s so, how about a song?

Dodo mimes along to the player piano quite convincingly as Stephen sings the same ballad that’s been narrating all the goings on. He’s not bad, considering he’s being held at gunpoint. His commitment to maintaining a bad American accent isn’t doing him any favours though.

DON’T SHOOT THE PIANIST

The ever-so-heroic Doc Holliday watches as the Doctor heads to the saloon, anticipating that the Clantons will kill him in Doc’s place. However, Kate also heads back to the saloon, much to the relief of Stephen who has been made to sing the same song four times over.

So of course we all want to hear it yet again from her, don’t we?

In comes the Doctor, completely oblivious to the tension in the room until he hears the name Clanton and gets some inkling of the trouble he’s in.

His protestations that he’s not Holliday fall on deaf ears, but luckily for him Holliday had a change of heart. Hiding upstairs, Holiday fires off a few well-placed shots at just the right moment to enable the Doctor, Kate and Stephen to disarm the Cowboys.

Wyatt and Bat turn up, taking the Doctor into custody for his own protection– a fact that seems to be lost on Stephen, who immediately falls in with the Cowboys in the hopes of breaking him out. Of course, the Cowboys are only helping him so that they can get at ‘Doc’, but it takes the poor lad a while to catch on.

As for Dodo, she’s ended up with Doc Holliday, who won’t let her out of her room in case she gives away the ruse. After all, he’ll be safe with Earp.

It is at this point that the musical narration started to wear out its welcome. No, that didn’t take long at all, did it?

The Cowboys coach Stephen on what to do at the jailhouse to break the Doctor out, and Stephen finally realises that he can’t trust them, though he doesn’t let on. He sneaks off to the jailhouse and passes the Doctor a gun through the window of his cell, telling him to bluff his way out and escape before the Clantons come for him.

So what does the Doctor do? He hands the gun over to Wyatt and tells him about the escape plan.

Methinks the Doctor ought to swap his cowboy hat for a dunce cap. It’s also here that I noticed that the Doctor consistently calls Earp ‘Wearp’. Why? The Doctor knows who Earp is, and it’s too consistent to be a line flub, so I don’t really get it.

The Clantons catch Stephen sneaking back from the jailhouse, and poor Stephen finds himself being carted off by an angry mob intent on stringing him up as an associate of Holliday.

Dodo and company spot them heading away, so Doc leaps into action to rescue… his dentist chair. Seth spots him as he comes down the stairs, but Doc is a quicker shot. Leaving Seth dead on the floor, he has Kate saddle up three horses; Dodo will be leaving town with them.

The Clanton-led mob arrives at the jailhouse with an ultimatum: hand over ‘Doc’, or Stephen will swing in his place.

JOHNNY RINGO

Though the Doctor is more than willing to meet the mob’s demands, Earp isn’t about to give in. He sneaks around the back of the mob and knocks out Phineas Clanton, taking him into custody as the barman comes running up to tell everyone that he’s just seen the real Doc Holliday shoot Seth.

With their brother in custody, the other Clantons back off, heading to the saloon to drink it dry. They need a new associate. They need Johnny Ringo.

Because I can’t resist adding in a historical note: Johnny Ringo was a real outlaw, but he wasn’t involved in the gunfight at the O.K. Corral, but later incidents involving Doc Holliday and the Earps.

Doc, Kate and Dodo take a room in the next town, out of immediate danger but close enough that they can get back to Tombstone at a moment's notice. I say out of danger, but Doc manages to get into a brief offscreen shootout in the two minutes it takes him to scrounge up some supper.

Back in Tombstone, Johnny Ringo rides into town. Rather serendipitous, given that the Clantons didn’t have a way to contact him. It just so happens that he, too, has a score to settle with Holliday. Suspicious that Charlie the barman might warn the Earps about his presence, he shoots him dead.

Just in case we weren’t paying attention, the singing narration reiterates what just happened to Charlie in a desperate attempt to make us feel sad.

Meanwhile, Dodo wants to go back to Tombstone so badly she’s willing to hold Doc at gunpoint. He’s far more amused than threatened, but he does agree to take her back.

The Doctor and Stephen meet Ringo in the saloon and find the dead body of poor Charlie the barman. Seeing as they’re both looking for Holliday, Ringo takes Stephen to search for him. Stephen is apparently fine with teaming up with the very obvious outlaw.

Ringo and Stephen soon arrive in the next town and head for the saloon, figuring that Holliday will be in there gambling. However, they don’t find Holliday, but Kate.

Say, if Holliday and Dodo are on their way back from that town, wouldn’t they have passed Stephen and Ringo on the road?

The narration, long having worn out its welcome, thoroughly gets on my nerves. It is very rare that narration is even necessary in the first place. For an extra helping of lazy writing, the song tells us that Kate and Ringo were once lovers. Apparently there is no other way of conveying that. It’s not as if they could simply ACT as if they have a romantic past. Oh, wait, they do.

And because I’m already annoyed and on my high horse, I want to note that I have been unable to find any evidence of the real Kate and Ringo having ever been involved with one another, romantically or otherwise.

Kate tells Ringo that Doc headed out for New Mexico, hoping to throw him off the trail. However, Ringo has other ideas. He’ll be heading back to Tombstone, and Kate’ll be coming with him.

In the Tombstone jailhouse, Wyatt has left his younger brother Warren to guard the imprisoned Clanton. The other Clantons come by the jailhouse, and poor young Warren is too slow to get the draw on them. Leaving him bleeding on the floor, the Clantons break their brother out of jail.

The music and narration try to make it sad, but you can’t manufacture an emotional response to the death of a character I have absolutely no reason to care about.

Here’s another departure from history. Warren Earp was real, but not only did he have nothing to do with the fight at the O.K. Corral, the Clantons never did a thing to him! He died in 1900, long after this whole incident.

THE OK CORRAL

Someone, anyone, I beg of you. Please shoot the narrator.

At the saloon, Wyatt makes the Doctor a deputy, and his brother Virgil finally turns up to lend a hand. They soon find out what happened to Warren, and the dying man manages to tell them who did this to him before going to the great rodeo in the sky.

A furious Wyatt sends Virgil to tell the Clantons they’ll be waiting for them come sunup.

Ringo tells the Clantons to do as Virgil says. While they’re facing off against the Earps, Ringo can come up from behind and shoot them in the back. Well, that’s hardly sporting, is it?

Virgil gets back to Tombstone and tells the others that although he didn’t see Ringo himself, he saw his horse. So much for secrecy, eh, Ringo?

The Doctor despairs at this development. It seems like they’re hopelessly outgunned. However, he didn’t count on Doc Holliday.

He’s back, and he’s itching for a fight. Now that Doc’s here, the Doctor quite eagerly hands over his badge and gun. He’s not really cut out for all this wild west stuff.

Later that night, the Doctor frets over the coming duel. Shouldn’t the Clantons get a fair trial?

The Sheriff is relieved to hear he’s not the only sane man in town, so he sends the Doctor to try talking to the Clantons. Yes, I’m sure they’ll be perfectly reasonable and this can all be solved over tea and crumpets.

Hold on a minute. Is the Doctor trying to meddle with history? The one thing he always says he cannot and WILL NOT ever do?

All the same, it doesn't amount to much, given he only speaks to the Clantons' Pa, and the brothers have already left.

As the lawmen and the Cowboys assemble for their final standoff, the ballad warbles on, undermining the dramatic framing of the scene.

Doc almost gets caught out by Ringo, but the timely intervention of Dodo saves him. There’s a tense moment as Ringo grabs her and takes her hostage, leaving Doc with no choice but to drop his gun.

However, what self-respecting gun-toting sharp-shooting wild west hero would carry only one gun? Not Doc Holliday, that’s for sure. As Ringo stoops to pick up Doc’s gun, Doc whips out another and shoots him dead. Telling Dodo to get to safety, he joins the firefight.

The half-hearted anti-violence message the Doctor keeps attempting to bring up would be a lot stronger if Doc didn’t look so darn COOL when he’s shooting people.

When the smoke settles, the Clantons are all dead, and the lawmen don’t have a scratch on them. The goodies beat the baddies, and violence solves everything.

The Doctor laments the injustice of it all, but nobody cares. I don’t even think the writer cares. Doc sees them off, giving the Doctor a wanted poster as a souvenir. As for the Earps, they don’t show up again. It’s unclear what will happen to them.

As the travellers leave, they hear Kate off in the saloon, singing that bloody ballad. I’m sure it’s a coincidence that the Doctor starts immediately hurrying the others into the TARDIS.

They depart to parts unknown, landing on an unknown world in the far future. According to the Doctor, this is an age of peace, enlightenment and prosperity. If that’s so, then who is that caveman-looking fellow approaching the TARDIS?

Final Thoughts

I don’t know anyone who actually liked this serial. I don’t really know who it’s for. It’s too ahistorical to appeal to anyone who watches for the history aspect. I can’t imagine many parents were all that pleased with the amount of on-screen violence, though their children might have found it exciting.

The only attempt at a message or moral is that ‘violence is bad’ and I think we’ve seen how thoroughly it undermines itself on that count. As for the musical narration, that’s just baffling.

I get the feeling that this story wants to be a fun, comedic and light-hearted wild-west romp. The problem is that it’s not that fun. Take out the singing and people would probably see it as unusually dark and gritty for Doctor Who. There’s a few funny bits, but not really enough that landed for me to call it a successful comedy.

This feels like an attempt by Donald Cotton to recapture the success of his earlier story, The Mythmakers. It even repeats the plotline of the Doctor being mistaken for someone else. I am not sure what exactly is different here. Did the Mythmakers simply have a funnier script? Better comedic actors? I think a combination of the two is quite possible. Also possible is that it doesn’t have a singing narrator– sorry, I know I keep going on, but the narrator really did annoy me.

Basically, The Gunfighters doesn’t succeed at being anything other than a mildly diverting time-waster.

I do hope that there will be something better in store next time.

2 out of 5 stars

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THE GUNFIGHT NEAR-ISH TO THE O.K. CORRAL

55 years ago: Science Fact and Fiction