Lost in Space Series Three. Gosh. How time flies. Was it really all those years ago when in 1997(!) the Robinson family, captain Don West and their robot were put off course by the meddling booby Dr Smith, a treacherous spy paid to sabotage the ship.
The cast list was as follows: Prof. John Robinson (Guy Williams) Maureen Robinson (June Lockhart) Captain Don West (Mark Goddard) Judy Robinson (Marta Kristen) Will Robinson (Billy Mumy) Penny Robinson (Angela Cartwright) Dr. Zachary Smith (Jonathan Harris) Robot (Bob May) and the voice of the robot was provided by Dick Tufeld.
By Series 3 Jonathon Harris had completely remade Dr Zachary Smith form a lacklustre and transparent villain into one of the most towering giants of world TV, the Machiavellian, scheming, cowardly and lazy Dr Zachary Smith we all came to love and loathe! Incidentally all of Dr Smith's insults to the robot (such as: "you meddling mechanical mountebank!" and the like were all created by Harris who would stay up long into the night, thinking them up!
There are all the classic episodes there from series 3, including Collision of Planets, Space Creatures, Deadliest of the Species and A Day at the Zoo.
Collision of Planets is an example of exactly how weird the series was and became. A group of space people who were sort of a cross between beatniks and half-hearted Hell's Angels travelled through space on plastic motorbikes and when they left a scene this fantastic special effect was evinced by a small pyrotechnic charge being blasted directly before the camera lens.
They are given the job of clearing a planet before it goes off course and hits another planet. Their own home world. (Yeah. Don't you just hate it when planets DO that?!)
They do not count on the Robinson family, Don West, the robot and Dr Smith (who accidentally develops the strength of 20 in this episode) who can't leave the planet when asked to. Of course, the Robinson family win through, eventually. In spite of Dr Smith's 'help.'
The programmes on the Series 3 DVDs might actually indicate why the programme series was stopped at least two or three series early. The scripts were sometimes patchy and the special effects often appalling. Still, it was clear that the cast were having a lot of fun. The series was produced by Irwin Allen, a film producer, also known for Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea.
I must admit that at a very young and impressionable age I developed a major crush not on the blond Marta Kristen but on the dark haired Angela Cartwright. Incidentally, Angela was (IS) a Lancashire girl.
There are some interviews with cast members on a DVD, so this series is well-worth buying if you are an avid fan.
More details
Soundtrack
Outstanding
How does it compare to others by the same director?
Good
Value for Money
Excellent
What format are you reviewing?
DVD
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