Lost in Space: Season 1, Episodes 25-29

25: The Space Croppers
Dr Smith tries to escape the clutches of Priplanus once more, this time by hitching a ride with some intergalactic farming freaks - and getting hitched to the scary mother in the process!
This madness provides some silly situations for Smith to find himself in, wooing and courting the wonderful Mercedes McCambridge as she transforms from downbeat harridan to camp glamourpuss. McCambridge is truly excellent in this episode, outshining everybody, including an unusually sedate Jonathan Harris. The way she expresses her utter boredom with Smith is great TV.
Daughter Effra is a real glamourpuss too, a cross between Barbarella and Wilma Flintstone. She certainly catches the eye of red-blooded action man Don West, something also noted by supposed girlfriend Judy. Her jealousy when Effra makes a play for Don is a natural reaction, but not nearly enough is made of it. Still, the fact someone in Lost in Space has recognised the blatantly obvious fact that Major West is the sexiest man this side of the spiral nebula is welcome, and I can completely empathise with her!
Much campery surrounds Smith's play for Sybilla, including the very idea that the Robot could be his best man at their wedding! Now that is something I would love to see!
On the downside we have yet another infestation of killer plants, and the realisation of the werewolf is pretty poor - I'd be hard pushed to define it as a werewolf if the dialogue hadn't told me!
Also lost in space: Mercedes McCambridge (1916-2004) is probably best known as providing the hellish howling, growling and screeching vocals for the devil Pazuzu in The Exorcist, but had previously won an Oscar for her role in 1950's All the King's Men; Sherry Jackson (1942- ) began her career as a successful child star, but as with many actors like this her career nosedived when she grew up, and she traded roles for the exploitation of her admittedly stunning good looks in low budget movies. Her career came to a final end in the early 1990s.

26: All That Glitters
The tale of a man called Bolix and his missing ring...
Let's get the obvious out of the way first - one of the two guest characters here is called Bolix, pronounced "bollocks" (although dear June Lockhart gives it an extra zing by pronouncing the "i" correctly). Obviously, this 18th century vulgar slang word derives from Germany, so American writers and audiences would be blissfully unaware of the made-up name's hilarity to European viewers. But the exhausting regularity with which characters use Officer Bolix's name renders the entire episode a great joke for Brits!
Anyway... this is a great episode, focusing as it does on the female members of the cast (and Dr Smith). This allows space for Maureen Robinson to shine as the secret matriarch we all know she is. Within minutes of this episode starting she is running headlong into danger, laser gun in hand, picking off great hairy aliens to rescue her kidnapped daughter. Great stuff - let Maureen do more of this, I say!
Unfortunately, despite the loss of four male characters to give the girls room to expand, poor old Judy gets about as much character development as the Jupiter 2's passenger ramp. I find this missed opportunity quite annoying and ask myself whether the writers of Lost in Space realised there was a character called Judy Robinson at all.
The shining moments in this story are the scenes between Penny and Smith, who quite uncharacteristically begins to see the error of his ways and almost becomes a reformed character here. His fondness for Penny is honest, and expressed quite explicitly when he kisses her on the cheek tenderly. It's a wonderful moment, and well played by Harris.
The whole thing with the ring turning everything to platinum is a riff on the old King Midas tale, and doesn't really work very well - why doesn't the sand Smith walks on turn to platinum, or the clothes he wears?
The end of the episode sees our attention returning to John, Don, Will and the Robot's quest in the Chariot for water, via the nifty but blatant use of stock footage from There Were Giants in the Earth.
Also lost in space: Werner Klemperer (1920-2000) would be better known to American viewers as Colonel Klink in the series Hogan's Heroes, a character he also played in cameo roles in series such as Batman and The Simpsons; Larry Ward (1924-85) had appeared in a number of popular US TV series, especially Westerns, and had also written an episode of Alfred Hitchcock Presents in 1955 under the guise of Ward Gaynor.

27: The Lost Civilization
A rather quaint tale that appears to happen in the same timescale as All That Glitters and involves only Don, John, Will and the Robot from the regular cast.
After surviving the attack of the reused footage, our heroes suffer some unassailable heat, prompting the single greatest moment in the history of Lost in Space thus far - Major West unzips his pullover and rubs his hairy chest!!!
Will and the Robot tumble into a well-realised netherworld where they have jungles and interior designers with one eye on Buster Crabbe's Flash Gordon serials. The subterranean people are a little incongruous, but it's nice to know they are there, and the whole Sleeping Beauty thing is charming, and provides some great character moments for Billy Mumy. The Robot is also very funny here, and it is rather touching when he refers to his "friend Will" - another example of the progressive humanisation of the machine since War of the Robots.
I also detected a frisson of comradeship between the injured Don and the very protective John in this episode - nothing certain to speak of, but there is definitely something in Guy Williams' performance which hints at a deeper respect for Don than simply two Alpha Male buddies stranded in space.
It's good to have an episode low on comedy, and devoid of the hapless Dr Smith. We need more episodes like this, and certainly more episodes which enable Major West to act so downright sexy!
Also lost in space: Kym Karath (1958- ) had appeared as one of the Von Trapp children in the previous year's The Sound of Music, and took time out from her career in the 1980s to go to Paris to model and study art history, as well as start a family; Royal Dano (1922-94) enjoyed a long TV career, appearing in over 150 programmes, often as sinister types, as well as films like The Outlaw Josey Wales, Ghoulies II and Killer Klowns from Outer Space! He died of a heart attack soon after being involved in a car accident.

28: A Change of Space
Surely one of the dullest episodes of the series. There are things to enjoy here, but they are far outweighed by a non-committal plot and some pretty flimsy ideas. I particularly liked the Smith/ Robot banter, the former coming up with some classic alliterative insults for his metallic friend, and the moment where Smith asks to be spared from the tedium of Maureen and Judy's domestic duties is a giggle.
But what is this episode about, what is it for? Will goes for a trip in a strange capsule and comes back as an egg-headed genius with no charisma. Smith takes a similar trip and returns as a wizened old man (albeit with some great make-up). Why does this happen? Why is the effect of the flight not consistent? Where does it all lead?
We end up meeting a rather sweet little alien creature who reminded me of Michael Myers from the Hallowe'en films. After a little chat, everyone returns to normal and life moves on.
Uninspired, messy and aimless. There are some nice touches, especially the aforementioned make-up work, and Jonathan Harris gives a very good performance as the decrepit Smith, but other than that a wholly forgettable episode.
Also lost in space: Frank Graham has only three acting credits to his name - the Alien in LiS, Danny in a 1965 episode of Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, and Sid in 1977's film Sammy.

29: Follow the Leader
"We're sold on Lost in Space because we know it can sell for you!"
What an amazing way to end what has been a rollercoaster first year for LiS.
Follow the Leader boasts one of the finest and most effective performances I have seen in series 1, namely that from Guy Williams. As one of the mainstays of the regular cast, John Robinson unfortunately also suffers from poor characterisation, and usually comes over as a simple big-hearted family man with little charisma or personality.
But here Williams is given a chance to flex his acting muscles and takes centre stage when John is possessed by an alien entity called Canto. Williams portrays the possessed John as a domineering control freak who one can well believe is on the very edge of lashing out, whether it be at his own wife or his kids. The performance is masterful, the difference between real John and possessed John clearly defined, and coupled with Williams's enviable frame, his performance is frighteningly effective. All credit too to the likes of Jonathan Harris and June Lockhart for managing to express a realism in their reaction to John/ Canto.
Other wonderful aspects of the episode include Smith's willingness to take a parental role over the children in the absence of John and Maureen, some very funny Robot lines, and a strong presence in the script for Maureen.
This is an adult story about adult things - not sex or violence, but simply what binds a family, what makes a possessed man recognise his wife or son despite the barrier of another man's influence. And while the denouement literally has love conquering all, it is not a bit schmaltzy. It means something, the moral has been proven, and the final scene on the cliff's edge between Guy Williams and Billy Mumy is one of my favourites of the series.
"You're going to push me off, aren't you?"
"Yes, Will Robinson. I am."
Also lost in space: Gregory Morton (1911-86) provides the voice of alien Canto and had appeared in many US TV series, including Perry Mason, The Man from UNCLE and The Time Tunnel.