Well worn premise. Your really reaching when you steal from Lost In Space and Gilligans Island.

I think Freiberger must have had Lost in Space in mind when this one was filmed. Considering his taste in sci-fi, I'm surprised we didn't see giant talking carrots trying to take over Alpha..

Devil's Planet isn't that bad, but two main nitpicks.
Isn't it funny that all of the huntresses with the possible exception of the interrogator look more like models than prison guards.
Second point is, how come there are no female prisoners? Are you telling me that none of the female population of Entra ever committed a crime.

Maybe all the female prisoners are in another place being guarded by Chippendale dancers.

So how does this situation resolve itself? Do the female guards disband the penal colony and set up an ordinary colony? If they don't, I can't see that the small remnant of their race has much chance of surviving, plus the planet itself doesn't exactly look overhospitable.

I watched this episode again recently and I can't really see what Eliza is trying to achieve. By keeping the secret of what has happened to Elna from the prisoners and most of the guards she IS staving off possible anarchy, but she is also dooming her the remnants of her own race as well.

Kail, the premise was originally done in literature in "The Most Dangerous Game".

An excellent short story. I believe they've done it as a movie at least three times, more if you count movies using the plot but not the name.

Having watched this again, I believe I can actually see one or two female prisoners when they are all gathered together in the main hall. Hard to tell in those baggy outfits though, and the people in question are near the back. If you look at the British video theres a still of the gathered prisoners, so can anyone back me up?

I've checked an old tape (pretty fuzzy) but I think there's at least one woman prisoner in the pack. Whoever she is, she looks like nine miles of bad road. I'm not really sure -- looks like he/she could go either way. I guess life in a penal colon is tough on the complexion.

Ahem...in my last message, that should be penal colonY. My my, the difference one little letter can make!

I think everyone got the gist of what you were talking about Barb. :)

Perhaps Elizia simply wants to hang onto power as long as possible.

The obvious nit is of course the fact that the rest of the regular cast is nowhere to be seen in the episode other than flashbacks. This was filmed at the same time as "Dorzak," from which Koenig was absent. But at least that episode gave an explaination for where Koenig was, namely off on a mission to investigate some asteroids. But here no explaination is given.

One nit I have that covers not just this episode but "The Lambda Factor" and "The Immunity Syndrome" is that these three episodes occur in less than a week. Thats not enough time for the events of all three in my opinion, and the episodes give no indication that they occur in the same solar system, which must be the case. The again the Lambda factor might explain Elizia's behaviour. :-) Its also interesting to note that "Devil's Planet" begins almost 10 months after "The Seance Spectre," yet three episodes are crammed into such a short period of time.

I love the way the Command Centre team react when Koenigs eagle goes out of control; all the extras run away, Alibe tries to frantically press some buttons to make it look like she knows what she's doing, Spencer looks around waiting for someone to do something, and Fraser has a great vacant look on his face before waking up and realising he's in charge.
And Fraser is about as frightening as a yo yowhen he's threatening Entra with attack.. I cannot see how that pitiful performance got him and Alibe down on the planet.

Another thing is that the guards seem unaware of events long past on their home planet. Except for some of the prisoners, and the Interrogator who is nearer middle age, the inhabitants all look fairly young, especially the prison guards themselves. So how would they not be aware unless they were brought up on duty when they were quite young. The interrogator herself even keeps hinting that some time has passed and it is obvious when Elizia is revealed as a fraud that not all the prison staff are in on the deception.

Whatever the faults of this particular episode, the ending spoils it a bit. As Koenig walks away from the bodies near the transmat booth toward the Eagle, somebody decided to put some jolly (for Space: 1999) music, instead of the type that played when the plasma aliens faded away in "Bringers of Wonder". A minor thing, I admit, but it still annoyed me.

I've read on other boards how people thinking that the entire cast showing up is a nit. IMHO, it's not a nit, maybe just reflective of the fact that Moonbase Alpha is a busy place. I mean, I go to the doctor's office, and sometimes his entire office staff isn't there. Sometimes people have a day off, or they have other things to do. Obviously there is a large, well-trained population on the base, so why should the same people be involved in planet-side missions again and again?

But you would expect the Chief Medical Officer, Science Officer, and Second in Command to show up if the Commander has apparently been killed. Even just a minute or two of reaction shots would have worked. At the very least someone should have mentioned where they were. Alibe and Fraser could still have been shown as the ones sent to investigate.

If those are Huntresses, I wanna be found!

*rrrrrrrrrowr*

Elizia is apparently more interested in power than anything else. After all she could have tried to convince Koenig to take her away with him. Instead she wants him as another plaything.

The prison colony must have sent back quite a few people lately. After all there are a number of undecayed bodies around the transfer booth when Koenig first shows up, unless of course bodies decay differently on that planet than on Earth. Presumably the disease must have struck within a relatively short time ago, or there wouldn't be large numbers of bodies visible from the air, the cities and highways intact and so forth.

The second in command/interregator having a different accent than the others is a nice bit. It gives the idea that the planet has more than one culture. Too often alien planets in science fiction movies and tv are shown as having unitary cultures, which, at least with human type aliens, seems very unlikely.

Interesting isn't it that people can be found across the Universe that look like background folks on Alpha, like the guy Elizia stuns with Koenig's stun gun. :-) The actor seems to be one of the Main Mission backgrounders from year one, while at least another of the prisoners if I'm not mistaken was a year 2 Alpha extra.

There are in fact several women prisoners to be seen near the start of the episode.

Either Eagles have very sensitive receivers, or the 1999 Earth's technology has produced some very advanced radio gear, as the emergency locater unit Koenig uses is about the size of a candy bar, yet can be heard from space.

I like a lot of the dialogue in this one. It gives us the idea that Ellna may have some human rights problems, as the prisoners are described as political agitators. Its certainly a cut above some of the sillier year 2 episodes.

The question comes to mind of whether Elizia is the only one on the colony with an energy weapon. It seems unlikely that dozens of prisoners could be completely controlled by the guard's whips and a single longer distance weapon. As for their uniforms perhaps they're in some way intimidating to the people of that culture, even if to us they look kind of silly. It would be nice to see someone do a scene in a science fiction production where characters from Earth comment on how some uniforms that terrify a group of aliens would be snickered at on Earth.

The chase scene near the end is fairly effective. The guards move like they're actual trained security people, and Koenig's use of the fire extinguisher as an improvised weapon is smart.

I have to agree about the music at the end. It really doesn't suit the overhead shot of Koenig walking towards the Eagle thru a field of corpses.

We also have a classic nit of tv in general, the bit of viruses/bacteria killing someone almost instantly. Its turned up in all sorts of places. Unless of course the cause of death is actually some sort of nerve gas as Ed Spencer speculates, altho' why the Alphans didn't detect it, and how it persisted so long after its release months earlier, is another question.

At the beginning of the episode, Blake Maine is said to be a member of the "medical rescue team". Why would Koenig take along a medical rescue specialist? They are reconitering a system they know nothing about, and don't expect to find any injured people. Also, Maine acts more like a pilot than a medical person.

Someone on the Online Alpha mailing list got a look at an earlier version of the script, and in that version the Alphans send out a ship to Ellna after receiving a distress call, explaining why Maine went along.

A distress call from WHOM? Everyone on the plague planet was dead, and certainly the penal colony wouldn't want anyone snooping around.

Maybe that's why the line was edited out!

another ep where an alien female falls for Koenig...oh please,are alien women that hard up for a ...

The prison guards don't seem very intimidating at all. They're too skinny and small. They should have been like the 'butch',aggressive guards in all those women's prison movies (Reform School Girls, Caged Heat, etc.). Then again, if they where, this episode wouldn't have been have half as fun!

cousin bubba been to prison and he says da guards ain't nothing like the ones in this story. dem fellas in that cell ain't got no women, i'd watch out for them, cuz they might be kinda funny (if ya know whut i mean).

It would have been interesting if some mention was made to Koenig of how/why Ellna was a matriarchal society. Surely, Elizia should have expressed some thoughts on encountering a 'male' leader.

.darn it, stop with all the movies, Curious......*pant*

Why Koenig struggles to leave the planet? He's he gay? I know people who gladly PAY to be whipped by some females in tight outfits :-D

This is something that's slightly bugging me. I checked up the name of the actress who played the Interrogator, a woman by the name of Dora Reiser. Her IMDB credits are pretty sparse, but is it me or does she somehow look familiar.

Maybe she reminds me of someone else, I'm not sure.

I notice the other guard that Elizia addresses by name (near the end she tells one of them to kill Koenig or she'd be punished), is played by Cassandra Harris, the late wife of Pierce Brosnan.

Okay, Koenig is off in the Eagle, and Alpha is under the command of Bill Fraser. Are Tony, Alan, Helena, and Maya off on vacation somewhere?

What caused the plague that wiped out the homeworld? The episode never says (I'm guessing a bio warfare experiment that got away from them).

What happened on the penal colony when Elizia didn't come back. Did they realize Koenig was right, that the home world was dead, and dismantled the prison? Will they try to restart their race?

Say Tim where are you? and mind me askn what was your first T rek episode and 1999 episode?

----------------------------

I saw this and reminded me of the Omega Man , instantly or tos' Miri.

Hello, I'm in Canada.

The first Trek episode I saw was the second pilot, Where No Man Has Gone Before. The first 1999 episode I saw was The Lamba Factor. I saw them both for the first time in the late 1970's.

I recently acquired the 30th Anniversay DVD package of Space: 1999 and have been getting reaquainted with this show. Hence my decision to join this nitpicking board.

hey.....me wife and I went to Toronto for her family wedding and it was -2...Shaka when winter fell...

my first trek was ol Brain and Brain in 69 and Im in Carmel Ca.

thanks Tim.


I can still see the dang moon over Miami.

Laforge, you might get better results asking that on a Trek board? Tim happened to have watched Trek, but he might not have, given that this is a Space 1999 board.

Yeah, the Moon is still here!

Actually, the synopsis for this episode is not quite correct, and would be a rather different episode if it was as the above synopsis was correct.
It should read;
"Koenig lands on a planet littered with the remains of dead people, only to be captured by the matriarchal rulers of a nearby prison planet. He is given a choice; either be the female ruler's mate or be killed. Choosing her, he quickly escapes, but is recaptured, even as a rescue Eagle with Fraser aboard is tricked into thinking that Koenig died on the prison planet from the security defenses. He manages to regain his freedom by forcing the prison planet guards to distrust their warden, who has been hiding the fact that their home planet is now a dead planet. The female warden calls Koenig's bluff and follows him to the home planet, only to die from the same instantaneous death as the rest of her people. Fraser receives a signal from Koenig, proving the Commander is not dead, and returns to pick him up."

Koenig scans the surface of Entra and describes cities and roadways, but we see drawing of lines and angles. Couldn't they have superimposed an straight-down aerial view of a real city in the scanner? It would have made it seem more realistic than the cartoon lines that were supposedly 'roads'.

I guess neither Fraser or Alibe could bear to pick up Koenig's jacket and remains to confirm that it really was him that was disintegrated.

When Koenig's mind is being scanned, his memories of Maya are strangely recalled, with zoom effects and odd angles, thanks to all of the scenes being taken from various episodes. Maya's transformation into a black leopard might not have even occurred in front of Koenig, so how could he 'remember' this?
And what a shame that this bit if recollection couldn't have had just a few seconds of Bergman and Paul Morrow in the mix with Tony and Maya.

Of course the question remains, where the heck were the other regular characters here.

The doubling up of shooting episodes really hurt this one.

It's strange-- I usually am all for highlighting other crewmembers (moreso on things like Next Generation, where every away team seemed to consist of Riker, Worf, Data, Geordi, and Troi, or some such arrangement of most of them-- I got so tired of that!!! And then Voyager did the same with just a handful of crewmen on away teams over and over and over), but I think the problem here is that Koenig is believed dead, and that makes all the difference in how the situation was handled.
I can see a different 'watch' being on duty, say the midnight to 8 am shift, since adventures can't always take place between 9 am and 5 pm, but without any of the regulars (Alan, Tony, Maya, Helena) being sent an update on the Commander, it seems really odd.

This would be like a Star Trek episode in which Kirk is thought dead, yet Spock, McCoy, Scotty, Sulu, Chekov, and Uhura are nowhere to be seen.

Instead it's secondary characters like Leslie, DeSalle, Kyle, and Freeman we see reacting to Kirk's "death".

Really doesn't make sense, does it.

when the Eagle is crashlanding on the planet, why are Koenig and whatshisname's faces all distorted by "air currents?" Did the front windshield break?

Uh, who are you!?

Uh, Im Eric. Who are you?

Nice way to welcome someone, Tim….

All I did was ask who he was. There's no agenda here, Rodney.

Anyway, welcome, Eric.

Tim was just, uh, imitating our, uh, dopey Canadian, uh, Prime Minister, who literally, uh, can't, uh, utter a single, uh, sentence without, uh, saying 'uh' multiple times.
Go to youtube (type in Justin Trudeau and the word uh) and you'll, uh, see what I mean.
And you guys thought all we said was 'eh'!

Keep your comments coming, Eric. Always nice to see somebody new here!
Uh.

I’m sure you didn’t mean it maliciously but someone new to the site may read that very differently to the way you meant it.

And your prime minister couldn’t even remember our prime minister’s name…..

Too busy checking his pretty hair probably.

Tim:

Thanks. Im actually an old hand here. I posted here 20 years ago as LMan.

Appreciate that the board is still going

Welcome back then.

Thanks. Hope there is still something to discuss on S:1999

I'm on Nitcentral virtually every day and scroll down here to look for new entries.
As I said above, new comments are always welcome, and being a life-long fan of 1999, you'll get feedback from me, at least.

Sad to say, Eric, that this place is not the powerhouse it was when you were here originally. I think the currently active members could all be put into a Jury Box, and there would still be space left over.

Most of the activity that happens here now is focused around Doctor Who (in fact, it was the Who Mod, Emily Carter, who helped you get back in here). If you're a Who fan, that's great. If you're not, well, expect to spend a lot of time talking to yourself.

That's true, Tim, but there's also activity in Movies, The Kitchen Sink (TV shows, cartoons, the space program, celebrities), and Political Musings.
Maybe Eric can get the other Trek series like Next Gen, Enterprise, etc. more active, or other series listed here if he's watching something we're not.
Occasionally I start to binge other shows like The Prisoner or The Flash and read old comments for them, and sometimes submit comments to whomever in the future.

Understand your point- I read the older commentary, and sometimes it feels like everything that could be said has already been said.

I tend to 'binge' on a show intensely for a period of time, then let it lie fallow for a number of years, then binge on it all over again. Couldnt tell you how many times Ive done that with S:1999 and UFO.

RE: DW, Ive watched a few seasons in the past, but have not mustered the enthusiasm to engage in prolonged discussion of it, for whatever reason.

I'm game to stimulate discussion on any topic worthwhile, if its not already been beaten to death. However, NO ONE will convince me that RATM was a good episode! ;)

RATM?

1999's 'Ring Around The Moon'?

Ah.

Im guessing that Petter Ogland is no longer around?

No, he's still alive.

Who's Peter Ogland?

Eric, I binged the full series of 'UFO' a couple months ago, which you mentioned you have, too.
If you're interested, I've left new comments for most of the episodes, and yours are welcome.

Thanks, Steve, I would be very interested in that. I appreciate you letting me know.

Strangely, my feed shows no new UFO posts since mid-June. Could I be doing something wrong?

Nothing wrong there, Eric. I re-watched the series for the who-knows-how-many-times from April to June of this year, and this time decided to leave comments, unlike the other times.
I figured for a while it would be like talking to myself, but I assumed that some day, some one would read them, and comment themselves.

I love the series, and would like to comment.

Please enter some words on the episodes. I would like a discussion.

Well, gentlemen, have at it.

would like to, but there are no new comments on the UFO section.

Well, put some comments there yourself.

challenge accepted

Excellent