Lost In Space S1 Ep3: Island In The Sky

We have two firsts in this Lost In Space entry including the first ever appearance of one of THE coolest shuttle craft ever designed, The Chariot. It offers comfortable, convenient, understated, simple and practical design elegance. The second first is the appearance of the cuddily monkey-like Debbie. Debbie is monkey-like, because she actually is a monkey.

"I was offered a feature film, so I couln't stay with the show much longer.  In fact, I didn't write the first five or six scripts; I only wrote the pilot script, and then I wrote outlines for the next five or six, and then I wrote one more script that was called Invaders From The Fifth Dimension, of which I remember absolutely nothing." -Shimon Wincelberg, The Lost In Space Encyclopedia II, interview by Flint Mitchell [p.428]-

The early Lost In Space episodes benefitted immensely from Wincelberg's linear, substantive and sincere effort to place the Robinsons in a world of adventure.  A great deal of credit goes to him for keeping the start of this first season moving in such a connected and logical fashion.  Lost In Space makes every effort to link each preceding episode to the next. If I recall correctly that formula begins to alter over time. Attempting to connect week to week is no easy task. The self-contained stories always work much better for creators. All in all, these are very much self-contained stories linked by a final cliffhanger-styled event. The realities confronting space family Robinson are genuinely captured beautifully in black and white. The film stock offers a nostalgic feel coupled with serious science fiction intrigue.  But the success of these stories is largely due to smart outlining by Wincelberg before his departure.

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The Robinsons and the "nefarious" Dr. Zachary Smith are making their way landfall in Lost In Space, Season One, Episode 3, Island In The Sky. Professor John Robinson plans to have environmental Robot check out the planet's surface, but Smith has programmed Robot to respond only to his commands. John decides to check out the planetary conditions himself. This is where the show makes some awful big leaps in good sense. John Robinson plans penetrate the planetary atmosphere via the protection of a simple spacesuit straight from outerspace. He apparently plans to do this and not burn up in entry. Yes, it's a touch crazy! Yes, but this is a family show with little to no scientific logic in play when required. Logic has been known to fly out the airlock when it comes to Lost In Space. Why not just fly the Jupiter II to the planet first? At least the Jupiter II is built for protection. To make matters worse, John's parajet isn't working real well. Smith again? You bet. He is the king of sabateurs.
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Meanwhile, Robot challenges Smith to a game of chess. Bob May, the man inside the suit, does a pretty splendid job inside Robot picking up those wee little chess pieces. Young Will Robinson checks in and it's interesting to see a kind of friendship developing between himself and the evil doctor in this early entry. Will sees something in Smith, despite major flaws. This could clearly be taken as an understatement when one considers the man was implementing orders that would in effect kill the family.
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Don West warns John via communication that he is accelerating too quickly toward the planet. By all appearances John appears to be simply floating. If it was not for the outstanding music from Composer John Williams to amp up or ramp up the tension and excitement I'm not sure I would be all that engaged.


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The family somehow loses track of John and decides to set down on the planet after all. Smith certainly knows how to needle his unexpected new crewmates. He and Don begin to exhibit signs of their intense dislike for one another, a hallmark of the series. Of course, Smith suggests to the family they leave John behind now that the weight for the ship is where it should be. What a splendid fellow. I'm sure the family would be more than happy to leave their Dad behind. Why Smith ever opens his mouth I'll never understand. Smith calls upon Robot to back his plan to leave the airspace and make an effort to return to Earth. Robot crushes an item at his command. Smith urges Don to implement his request, but Major West has other plans for Smith. He manages to get Smith in a headlock and tells him to order the Robot back to his compartment. Smith complies and he is placed back inside deep freeze.
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As the Jupiter II plummets into the atmosphere Don just starts pushing buttons and before long Maureen joins him and they begin pushing alot of seemingly random buttons together to stabilize the vessel. Weird radio sound effects accompany the procceedings to add to the element of sci-fi fun. All is not going well for our dear family. Maureen closes the shields. Everyone is taking cover for the landing. Who exactly is attempting to pilot this thing? How John didn't burn up like a tissue entering a raging fire as he entered the planet's atmospere is anyone's guess. On a technical note, the shots of the Jupiter II coming in hard for a landing look fabulous. Those effects shots look as good as anything you'd see today and that's really saying something. They really captured some special sequences for the crash landing. Say what you want about some effects, there are moments like this that blow the viewer away. It's a real testament to the talent involved in making this series and the budget they were given to employ. In fact, the original unaired pilot was the most expensive ever made in its day costing roughly $700,000 dollars.
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In the end, everyone lands safely. I have to laugh. When Don comes out of the sleep chamber and snaps himself back to life it's pretty damn funny. Now it's time to test the atmosphere and they turn to the bio genius for some assistance. He imitates Dr. Smith's voice once again to hoodwink Robot for their bidding once again. The bogus voice impersonation is simply ridiculous. This is a classic. Don West offers an explanation.


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Conveniently, the Jupiter II has landed its opening entrance doors next to a ramp of soil. Breaks don't come much better. How big is the Jupiter II lower level? I love the stick maneuvering by Robot. So, the environmental Robot is doing its environmental job, testing the atmosphere and testing the soil. "Conclusion: environment can sustain human life. End of report." By the way, is it me or are they really squeezing two floors into that tight Jupiter II. I love the Jupiter II, but man it's like the Doctor Who's Tardis in there. Okay, some arguments are plausible, but they are shoehorning alot into that spaceship. Don assembles the Chariot. Does he literally assemble the Chariot? Assembly might account for space limitations. Otherwise, how does that thing fit inside the Jupiter II? As a young lad, I always did love the Chariot. It's a classic. Despite the fact it's like a glass house on tank runners, it is hands down one of the coolest things ya ever did see. I think I could watch that thing ride around for 50 minutes and I'd be happy. Of course, I'd be channelling my inner three year old, but everyone has to have an inner three year old.

Moving on to Chariot space issues, I'm not sure how Robot fits in there. Does he have a special slip back there? Can it shorten its lower half? Is Robot disassembled? Or are his feet/legs severed and placed in one of those suitcases on top of the Chariot? There are many interesting physics-based questions in play here. It's hysterical to watch Don drive the Chariot if you're really paying attention. He sort of just pulls on some sticks. It doesn't look like he's actually driving it with any rhyme or reason. He might have been better served with a steering wheel. Still, I suppose a steering wheel might have produced the same kind of random effect. You know you're in trouble when you're driving and you ask your backseat passenger "how am I doing?" It would appear Judy Robinson is the navigator and Don is the driver [wouldn't he like that?], but the instrumentation is in the backseat. That's a tough set up especially if you're driving solo.
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Costume design gets major props. They did a stellar job with uniforms throughout the series. Okay, perhaps outfits could have been purchased from the local winter shop, but they are supremely cool! From the tin foil space suits to these arctic coats to the more colorful spandex-like tights in later seasons, there is much that is memorable about the series' work in the area of clothes design.

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Robot is packin' the heat.

The family is clearly looking for John and according to Don they should have landed on the planet's surface somewhere near his location. How could anyone possibly imagine a human entering the planet's atmosphere with absolutely no shielding or physical protection is still alive? Why anyone would expect John to be alive and not ground to carbon dust is simply astounding. We're going with it though. June Lockhart as Maureen Robinson often agrees with Don and looks pretty and just sits there. She's a lovely woman. Don picks up something. Don tells Maureen it may be John, but then it might not be. Boy, that's ingenius. I love when Robot lgrabs one of the weapons. Packing heat Robot positively ready to unload. Unfortunately, our rifle packing B-9 is merely passing weaponry off to Don. He grabs his laser rifle and off he goes.


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Nope, not John.


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I'm dying because I'm overthinking this thing way too much. I'm absolutely cracking up. Now I didn't recall this happening so early in the series, but it is with Island In The Sky we are introduced to one of the kids' other favorite characters, Debbie. Debbie! Good Lord, that's the best name you can come up with? What if it's a boy? It mumbles Bloop bloop bloop endlessly. All kidding aside, I do so love Debbie. I cannot recall how long she remains with the series. The meeting begins when Don spots some trees rustling and he heads over to see if it's John. Instead, it is an alien lifeform [otherwise known as an adorable chimpanzee with pointy Spock ears]. Hysterical. I love that monkey and so does Don.

Now get this, here's Don , early on, extremely concerned about the planet's surface and would prefer to do a week of testing before venturing out, but under the circumstances goes out to find John anyway. Okay, we understand. Yet, without any precaution or knowledge of the sentient lifeform on the planet Don reaches in and picks up the creature known as Debbie with no knowledge whether or not it's poisonous or bites. There's no evidence of infectious disease information or contagions. Into Don's arms goes Debbie and off he goes. Ha! So funny. I mean of course it's a monkey with pointy Spock ears, but don't you have to play it like you don't know that. The creators needed to play within the reality of the Lost In Space universe and by by-passing these kinds of rules of logic, this is when the series passes into camp. So funny. So Don goes all Clint Eastwood a la Every Which Way But Loose [1978] or Any Which Way You Can [1980] and now has a monkey on his back with absolutely no concern for his safety or the family regarding exposure to the lifeform.
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Unfortunately as the camera pulls back our man John is in a small ditch not far from where Don picked up his new monkey friend.
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"For Pete's sake, what's that?" cries Will. Why Will, that is a space monkey with pointy Spock ears. Ha! Don is bringing it to your Chariot with no knowledge of the potential for disease and it may be harboring something that could possibly infect and kill you all within hours. Just thinking.
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The scanners picked up a lifeform and the Chariot brought them to the monkey. Obviously they are unaware Dad is right over the hill. With little concern for Dad's well-being Penny finds the monkey adorable and must have him as joy overcomes her sweet, little heart. Maureen isn't crazy about the idea. Don tells the monkey, "Come on fella beat it!" Watch it Don. Those monkeys have been known to rip people's faces and hands off with little effort at the blink of an eye. One moment cute and cuddly turning into a raging beast of horror the next. Maureen agrees to let Penny keep her monkey. No one seems to be worried about the danger of the creature, disease or the possibility it may not want to be a domesticated house pet on this strange planet. The Sci-Fi Fanatic is about the only one concerned here. Go figure.
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Regarding their missing family member, John, Maureen reaches out via radio. He attempts to reach his radio to check in when it explodes. Huh? Don is like, relax, it's no use, don't even bother trying. Heck, we have a monkey now, let's move on. I'm busting around. The Chariot's scanner zeroes in on another lifeform and Don hits the ground running again. He spots his friend and John notifies Don there is a strange electrical force on the surface. That explains the exploding radio.
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Will blurts out some instructions to Robot and quickly remembers he must muster up his fake Dr. Smith voice. Terrible. How long can this gig last? "Fetch the rope and do what you can for the old boy." Hysterical. This time, Robot throws the rope down suggesting he's no longer going to be some Robinson family lackey and won't respond. It looks like the jig is up for Robot. Robot's directive is to check on safety every hour on the hour, but the safety of what? Dr. Smith? Off the Robot goes. Judy grabs the rope to help her father and Don. John tries to pull himself out. Just be careful of the electrified tree behind you. Somehow falling from outerspace onto the planet's surface has left John miraculously unscathed. It would be a terrible fate to make it safely down to the planet only to die at the hands of an electrified shrub. It's a big happy family reunion. Don asks "what happened?" I think it's pretty obvious but let's find out. The parajet kicked in at approximately 100 feet above the planet's surface resulting in the eventual landing is said location.
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Speaking of miraculous, minutes later, Robot traverses much terrain to get back to the Jupiter II, without the assistance of The Chariot. Robot arrives at homebase to apparently rescue Dr. Smith. Blurting "Operation Rescue!" Robot comes to Smith's aid. Robot even performs CPR on Smith. This environmental Robot can do anything!

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Argh! Dang Electrified Tumbleweed!

En route back to the Jupiter II in The Chariot our family of heroes encounters one of the most terrifying foes of the series, an electrified tumbleweed. Hysterical! I'm not sure exactly who the smart one is here. Will seems fairly logical in his thinking whereby Dad seems more than willing to place his family in jeopardy with absolutely no protection to said passing electrified tumbleweeds, or plantlife, shrubs or trees, or other random roaming Debbies.


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Science fiction certainly takes a back seat to family adventure in Lost In Space, but like a passenger in The Chariot, we roll with it. Smith needs Major West's piloting skills and once he has those he plans to "liquidate" Don along with the rest of the family. Nice. Robot confirms he is to "Destroy Everyone." Smith prefers "eliminate." Poor Robot is always subject to the nasty whims of Dr. Smith throughout the series. I always yearned for Robot to be smarter than that. Smith is clearly taking a shine to young Will. "Too bad about young Will though, the only agreeable companion I've found on this ghastly trip." Smith would like very much to play Will in chess again. Robot indicates he plays chess and Smith scoffs no one can beat a Robot. I'm not so sure. Clearly you can manipulate Robot with a phony voice. There's nothing to suggest he can't lose at chess. Robot can't be that smart.
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The others return to the Jupiter II. "Robinson alive, impossible." Referring to John we would respectfully agree Dr. Smith, but it is true. Its these kinds of exchanges that make Lost In Space a ride of fun. There are no apologies from Smith for his nefarious nature. This is a typically classic bit of dialogue whereby the cheese factor is significantly reduced.

It must be rather uncomfortable knowing you have a venomous scoundrel like Smith on board with your family. You'd think there would be alot of back watching. Despite Smith's nature the family is often begrudgingly accepting of Smith's presence. They are a decent group. Smith might not last as long with other families. I like these simple moments of the family setting up for dinner. John waxes philosophical concerning his family's plight as he analogizes hsi family's first days in space with that of the first settlers who came to the shores of America and endured hardships of their own.
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Will has disobeyed strict orders to stay on the ship and has gone to The Chariot to make repairs, because he's a boy genius. Smith indicates the danger of being outdoors with Robot lurking implying Robot may not actually help him, but rather hurt him. Robot approaches Will. "Phase 1: When unessential personnel alone - destroy!" To prove he means business he points to a dead stick and electrifies the appendage and the limb of wood explodes. Hysterical! Well, there you have it. We are left hanging once again and the cheese factor definitely increased a touch with Island In The Sky, but it sure is pure dang fine fun [say that fast]. Lost In Space is indeed an island in the sky of science fiction.
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TO BE CONTINUED NEXT WEEK! SAME TIME SAME CHANNEL SAME BLOG.
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Island In The Sky: B-

Director: Tony Leader

Writer: Norman Lessing/ Shimon Wincelberg*

*Writer Shimon Wincelberg penned the first six episodes of Lost In Space. He would also pen Star Trek's Dagger Of The Mind and The Galileo Seven under the pen name S. Bar David.

Thunderbirds S1 Ep4: Sun Probe

The special effects work employed on Thunderbirds simply blew me away as a kid. It's a shot like this that would have me dreaming of my own rescue scenarios for hours on end in the backyard. Nothing could pull me away from the sandbox.

It's time for FAB FRIDAY and the very best of Gerry & Sylvia Anderson!

While my affection for both Space:1999 and Thunderbirds runs deep, I must admit Space:1999 is hands down the far more challenging series to write about. Space:1999 is both entertaining and mentally satisfying and thus has been more enjoyable to revisit. Thunderbirds is always good for its lighter tone. Still, just when you think things will be fairly routine within the puppet world of Thunderbirds, Gerry Anderson manages to shakes things up and tell a story with a new angle. There's always something to set the inner child free to soar through the backyard and plunge into the safety and summer warm sand with those wiggling toes. Thunderbirds are go!
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Sit back and ready yourself for launch of this week's installment, Thunderbirds, Series One, Episode 4, Sun Probe. A man pushes a button just before launch dubbed the Amber Alert. Today, the Amber Alert is a child abduction emergency alert bulletin that has been implemented across the United States and Canada in the event of a child abduction. The Amber Alert mechanism means a little something different in the world of Gerry Anderson and is utilized simply as an alert. Three pilots prepare for take off. I imagine the Sun Probe will be sent to space, perhaps, to probe the sun. Just a hunch. This is an educated guess mind you. "Project Sun Probe is on!" I love how everything in the world of Gerry Anderson's Thunderbirds is followed by exclamatory punctuation. Things are ON! Everything is a GO! DANGER! PERIL! TRAPPED! There is no shortage of excitement for deliver to our young and fragile minds.
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On Tracy Island, Jeff Tracy tells his boys that a "rocket launching never fails to give me a kick." For us kids at home, we would agree, which is probably why the scriptwriters pointed that out to us. The boys are about to listen to a professor discuss the Sun Probe mission. Jeff asks the boys for Brains whereabouts. He is afraid he will miss all the excitement. Scott scoffs at the notion. Ah, dad, "this is old stuff" to Brains. Brains is just far too superior for such child's play. Ha! Brains is in his room working with his new robot. His robot's name is Braman. Brains is the bomb! Don't bother him with trivial rocket launchings. Puhlease. Meanwhile, the professor discusses the work of the solarnauts. Their Sun Probe will fly through a solar flare to grab a piece of the sun. The Sun Probe craft protects the solarnauts from heat and radiation with twenty foot thick walls. I'm thinking you would need much thicker if you plan on tackling the sun. I'm no scientist, but I question the science in this one. Of course, this is Thunderbirds, so is questioning really necessary? Things are going swimmingly at the moment, but this is Thunderbirds and you know the other shoe will drop soon enough and drop hard.
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Brains works with Braman in his quarters by teaching him chess. Do robots love chess? Lost In Space's Robot plays chess too. Jeff Tracy asks Brains if he'd like to join them for the Sun Probe mission. Brains is like, 'nah, that's all old school, old hat stuff, I have a robot to tend to'. Brains makes it very clear he is well versed on the Sun Probe mission. He knows the plan inside out. How would he know that? Is he clairvoyant too? Brains clearly has access to considerable information or somewhere along the way created or added to the knowledge base for such complex systems.
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On the Sun Probe, the cosmonauts fire retros. Those puppet solarnauts sure have some bushy eyebrows. Those brows look like they might overtake their faces. The Sun Probe nose is launched detaching from the remaining body of the vessel. The probe passes through the solar flare safely. Everything is AOK. It's something of a flawless mission thus far. Surprisingly, with very little difficulty, the probe reattaches to the rest of the Sun Probe rocket. It's astounding really. Something has to give soon.
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On Tracy Island, Brains [a.k.a. Debbie Downer] enters the party room and delivers one of those unforgettable Thunderbirds' lines. "I don't think they're gonna make it." [Repeating] "I-I-I-I don't think they're gonna make it." Brains has become a man who can see the future. Well, not exactly, this of course is the sum result of his scientific calculations to be sure. The Sun Probe is now on a collision course with the sun. Here's Brains in action.
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One Colonel Benson reaches out to International Rescue for help. Jeff Tracy contacts Benson and informs him International Rescue will, [wait for it], attempt a rescue. Jeff Tracy admits it's going to be tough. Come on, you're International Rescue. You can do anything! Brains looks rather disaffected by it all as he plays chess with Braman. The boys just don't "dig" him. The Tracy boys actually say that. They don't "dig" him. I love it.
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It's bad news for the crew of the Sun Probe. Heat is on the rise in the cabin. Refrigeration is increased to sustain the proper cabin temperature. Worse, they are headed straight for the sun. International Rescue must get close enough to fire the retro rockets. The Tracy family and Brains rack their collective brains attempting to come up with the best rescue plan. Thunderbird 3 and Thunderbird 2 are both considered. T2 has a stronger radio beam transmitter. Why T3 wouldn't have the same equally strong transmitting strength for a space vessel is a puzzle. Brains is concerned about the heat and overall radiological impact on the Thunderbirds. Tin Tin is like, 'make up your minds boys before the Sun Probe burns up in the sun.' She indicates the boys have been deliberating for three hours! WHAT! Three freakin' hours!? Holy Toledo! What kind of quick rescue response operation is that? These men are probably in the sun by now. Gordon chimes in with the best option. 'Let's use both' and hopefully one will pay off. You are a genius Gordon. Gordon always was the smart one. It's too bad Gordon didn't come up with that plan three hours ago. Geesh! A two-pronged rescue attempt goes into effect, while the Sun Probe is three hours closer to the sun. Brains tells Mr. Tracy he can modify T3's radio equipment and they can get moving. This occurs, which absolutely crushes the Boy Wonder and myself with laughter.


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Grandma! That is hysterical. Yes, roll out Grandma Tracy's old bones for the rescue operation. She needs to earn her keep on the island. A grandma's work is never done. Poor grandma is probably out by the pool reading her little book and relaxing her old bones in the warm summer sunshine. Meanwhile, her son is cracking a Grandma whip inside to get her moving. Get on that laundry Grandma Tracy! This is the official first mention of Grandma Tracy. She may be taking the first Thunderbird off the island if this work load keeps up. The launch will take place at 0800 hours. Another first, this is the first entry to feature T3. This is a pretty clever little move. Virgil even looks impressed with the couch trick. It's amusing.

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Three's a crowd Scott.

Dang! How about that? These puppets never have to leave the bloody couch. It gives new meaning to couch potato. Can you imagine rolling around several yards on a couch to get to your destination? If you looked closely in the previous clip you may have noted Alan and Scott switch positions on the couch for the miniature shots. Tin Tin is along for the action. I'm still not certain who she crushes on most, but my money is on Alan.

Here's a little T3 action.

T3 is now in space and Alan, the pilot of T3, is in an awful big hurry urging Tin Tin to get the electronics ready. He indicates they will be in the Danger Zone in 65 hours. Good grief! There's no hurrying any of these operations. What's the hurry Tin Tin? Why not make a spot of tea for Scott and Alan while you're at it, maybe a hot meal? That should leave you roughly 63 hours to get the electronics worked out. Alan definitely has the hots for Tin Tin. Back on Tracy Island, Virgil and Brains get their clothes ready, as prepped by garment assembler Grandma Tracy. We do not meet granny in this episode. Brains and Virgil are also prepping snow dispersal equipment. They have a Transmitter Truck and Mobile Computer readied. The Mobile Computer is none other than Braman, but Brains doesn't realize it at the time. T2 readies for launch. Jeff Tracy confers with Gordon expressing his deep concern for the mission. Unless they can transmit and reach the Sun Probe its crew will be "lost." I was thinking a more appropriate word might have been "toast."
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In Space, the Sun Probe crew indicates they will crash into the sun in 24 hours. I'm assuming this scene is later since it was going to take T3 65 hours to get there. 65-24= 41 hours. That just woudn't add up. No time to spare apparently. This is going to take it right down to the [puppet] wire. Alan, Scott and Tin Tin attempt a safety beam transmission but they are just too damn far away. The boys indicate they'll need to get closer. This is going to put them all at risk of heat and radiation exposure. Back at Tracy Island, Jeff Tracy isn't certain they can risk Tin Tin's life. What!? Well, why the hell on Earth did you send her then? That has to be one of the stupidest things you could have done. This is a top secret, dangerous mission, not a damn stroll around the Tracy pool. You have to know the risks before sending in Tin Tin. That's not a well-planned decision it would seem. Kyrano, Tin Tin's father, overhears Jeff Tracy's concerns and interrupts. He tells the boys Tin Tin will go. He assures that both he and Tin Tin owe their lives to the Tracy family. She will do anything necessary. 'Anything?'
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Meanwhile, T2 is making its way to high altitude Mount Arkan to project its signal as part of Gordon's suggested two-pronged attack. This is a great shot and some pretty snazzy driving by Virgil. I love when he tells Brains the ledge "should" be below them. Wouldn't you want to know that if you planned on setting her down? "Should" is not a definitive term. They could be screwed. "Should" musn't be part of the statement.

I love the Transmitter Truck, but then I love anything with tank links and plates on Thunderbirds, which is just about every auxiliary vehicle in their arsenal. Gerry Anderson and Derek Meddings must have loved tank treads too.

Here comes the Transmitter Truck. Ya just gotta love the Gerry Anderson miniatures. It wouldn't be Thunderbirds without a nifty auxiliary vehicle and a few traction issues.

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Vee must stop zee rocket from ending up in zee sun!

I love Brains and Virgil in their Arctic snow caps, gloves and winter gear. Hysterical. These guys look like they're gonna grab some vodka hits and dance with some Russian bears. The boys line the transmitter beam up with the sun. The navigation of such a precise measurement must be based upon instrumentation.

A second attempt is made by T3 to reach the Sun Probe with its safety beam. There is still no success. On Mount Arkan, Brains and Virgil make their attempt. It looks like they are going to need a few things first. This floored me! You must watch!

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I reckon Virgil is a Dunkin' Donuts kinda guy when he's off island.

You have to have the java my friends. That just cracked me up. I'm with Virgil. You just can't work things out properly without a proper cup of coffee. Virgil is all relaxed and overconfident with his man Brains on the job. He's like, 'I can kick back and have a little cuppa Joe, I've got Brains, I'm all set.' It's too damn funny. In space, things are getting hotter for our fearless Sun Probe crew. The hull is smoking. The refrigeration system is shot. Perhaps if International Rescue spent less time deliberating their plan this wouldn't be such a close call. Of course, then we wouldn't have an episode called Sun Probe or have the sheer childhood jubilation of a Transmitter Truck. Tin Tin is getting faint, but hanging in there. T3 makes its third transmitter attempt. It works. The retro rockets fire aboard the Sun Probe. "We're gonna live!" The Sun Probe heads for home. There's a slight problem of course. Now, T3 can't fire its retro rockets. We're lucky we have Gordon and a smashing two-pronged plan in place. T2 and the Transmitter Truck are in place on Earth. Scott flips a gasket and demands the retros be fired. Don't you think they would fire them if they could? Scott can be a real dick. It's a good thing he doesn't know Virgil is drinking coffee.
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Tracy Island receives word regarding T3's troubles. Jeff reaches out to Virgil who is enjoying his hot cuppa in the snow cap. Virgil looks at Brains and he's like "what are we gonna do?" I'm thinking you're going to stick to the same plan that got you got there. Fire up that beam boys. Brains indicates he'll need that Mobile Computer. On T3, Scott has passed out and Alan is working hard to reach Tin Tin. She must turn off the safety beam, but sadly she has passed out too. Alan is their last chance for survival.
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Back at the T2 pod, Brains discovers Braman. Apparently, Braman isn't what he expected. Brains indicates they have made a grave human error by bringing Braman. The Mobile Computer was omitted unintentionally. Brains is going to have to think fast and modify Braman. On T3, Alan acts admirably making his last ditch effort to get to the safety beam mechanism. Virgil convinces Brains he can do it. Brains will convert Baman into their solution to saving everyone on T3. Virgil will make more coffee. That's a joke. The answer is to simply ask Braman to compute an equation. Shouldn't Brains be able to answer the equation? I mean, he programmed Braman and he is Brains. He's a bloody genius. Granted we need ultra quick Braman processing power. Get a load of this equation. No biggie.
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Geesh! Challenge us next time Brains. Virgil even appeared a bit unimpressed with that wooden expression. Braman looks like a guy with an old undersea diving suit. The Transmitter Truck transmits, the retros fire and it's a success. Did you expect anything less? Jeff Tracy informs everyone they will be giving a real hero's welcome to Tin Tin, Scott and Alan. Um, excuse me, what are Brains and Virgil chopped liver? I should think they deserve a little heroes welcome not to mention Virgil makes a bad ass pot of coffee. Seriously, Virgil did get the T2 there. In then end, Braman plays chess with Brains and calls "checkmate." Brains is stunned, "I-I don't believe it. Surely it-it can't be true. A machine cannot have a brain better than mine." It looks that way brother. He's your creation. Brains takes that sort of thing kind of personal and a little hard. Sun Probe delivers another satisfactory adventure mixing a bit of humor, inadvertently perhaps, with its usual mix of tension and excitment.

Sun Probe: C+

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Writer: Alan Fennell

Director: David Lane

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Notable Thunderbirds: T2/T3/Transmitter Truck.

Space:1999 & Powys Media

My Powys Space:1999 collection.

My reading speed is equivalent to that of a tortoise running at top speed. It's not good. Unfortunately, life just gets in the way of these kinds of relaxing distractions. Between watching the science fiction classics [Space:1999, Thunderbirds, Star Trek: The Original Series], contemporary science fiction [Farscape, Doctor Who], the latest and greatest thing on television [Breaking Bad, Dexter, Deadwood] and wanting to read a good book I'm spread relatively thin. What with kids and work, thin is spreading thinner. And of course the kids normally come first unless I get distracted by the aforementioned activities. Yes, science fiction is a drug.

I wanted to provide a little boost of support to Powys Media, the company that has been releasing a strong series of Space:1999 classics in the making. These books are worth your time. The stories are original and involve the Space:1999 universe and all of the beloved characters from the Gerry Anderson classic.

When I made my first attempts to find a few of theses Space:1999 novels I quickly discovered some were sadly out of print already. There are other options though. Read on.
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There's no telling how long the releases in print will remain so. If you are a fan of Space:1999 or even thoughtful science fiction, these books are up your Moonbase. I can't comment too much on them yet, but I am in the midst of reading Brian Ball's Survival [2005] and it's like stepping back in time to the adventures of Moonbase Alpha. Each night I read about 5-10 pages. I told you, I'm like a tortoise, but like a tree my memory is still good. Each night, I'm riveted by the printed word and looking forward to each step in the journey of our Main Mission heroes as if I was watching one of the Space:1999 classics. Survival includes a forward by the lovely, late gentleman, Barry Morse. Ball's tale is a gripping one from the start and contains some truly imaginative science fiction, an alien war and from what I've heard even delves into the fate of Professor Victor Bergman from the series. His character essentially disappears between Space:1999 Year 1 and Year 2. This story acts as a bridge and provides some answers and resolution to what happened to our beloved hero. The story features Commander John Koenig, Dr. Helena Russell, Professor Victor Bergman, Tony Verdeschi and Alan Carter with a sprinkle of Sandra Benes and Kano for good measure. What more could you want?
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The titles released so far include Resurrection [2002] by William Latham, The Forsaken [2003] by John Kenneth Muir, Eternity Unbound [2005] by William Latham, Survival [2005] by Brian Ball, Born For Adversity [2010] by David A. McIntee, Shepherd Moon [2010], a collection of short stories by Brian Ball, Emma Burrows, E.C. Tubb, Stephen Jansen, William Latham, John Kenneth Muir [two including The Touch Of Venus and Futility] and more. Omega [2010] by William Latham, is the latest entry and now available with a foreward by original Space:1999 scriptwriter Christopher Penfold [the man behind the nightmarish Space:1999 episode Dragon's Domain, seered in memory since childhood]. Some of them are out of print including Resurrection and The Forsaken.
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A tip from John Kenneth Muir over at John Kenneth Muir's Reflections On TV/Film gave me the opportunity to pick up those two missing page turners. You can still get them before exhorbitant prices are demanded by second hand sellers via Amazon. You can order through Doctor Who North America. You can also purchase those in print directly through Powys. I've purchased through both venues and they are reputable sellers with terrific shipping speeds.
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Apart from these fresh, new, wonderful stories by a variety of authors, there are forewards by many of the beloved characters from Space:1999 including Prentis Hancock and Catherine Schell. Original series writer, the late Johnny Byrne also provides a foreward. This is a splendid seven book set and well worth your time. While it won't substitute the ribbing I receive each summer at the beach for my reading selections [The Illiad was an example], these Powys releases should transport me to other worlds and new adventures with great joy.
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So grab your Commlock and Stun Gun and get these books while they're hot, because they'll be out of Earth orbit before you can pull a Maya.