tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8535833613343533564.post6425867932916518492..comments2024-03-13T23:42:41.022-07:00Comments on We Are Controlling Transmission: Spotlight on "Fun and Games"John Scolerihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15830334036783163702noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8535833613343533564.post-29257415949062195832015-02-17T02:43:40.881-08:002015-02-17T02:43:40.881-08:00Good acting and some well orchestrated action sequ...Good acting and some well orchestrated action sequences save this almost too high concept episode for me. Nick Adams and Nancy Malone are well matched and help keep the ep grounded in humanity. The bayou-Everglades like planet lends this entry atmosphere to burn; while the Freudian undercurrents, likely dated feeling now, were really ahead of the curve feeling back in 1964, almost shocking for a prime time network show. I found (and still find) the final scenes, the ones set in what feels like a Twilight Zone crossed with Peter Gunn hybrid big city reality, somewhat confusing. It ended too fast for my tastes, but overall was a satisyfing episode, and it showed that the behind the camera folk who (literally) ran the show, stretching, always stretching, and in admirable directions.john kenrickhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00710666533854296630noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8535833613343533564.post-71688481017989539952013-01-25T04:27:16.517-08:002013-01-25T04:27:16.517-08:00You listed a number of "science fiction telev...You listed a number of "science fiction television, re-purposed often without attribution" adaptations, but you left out one. You forgot ASTROBOY. Maybe you didn't know. Episode 88 of the original black-and-white series, CONTEST IN SPACE, clearly reflected ARENA. In the story the inhabitants of the planet Roha are concerned that the two developing worlds of Earth and Saturn may soon engage in armed conflict and threaten the peace of the galaxy. They decide to choose a team of one human and one robot to represent each planet in a contest of survival on the planet Moribund. Astroboy is in the middle of breaking up a robbery, when he and the thief (Mr Scrap) are taken away by "Magic Rings" to face off with Alpheta and her robot Omegum. The winners' planet will be spared and the losers' planet destroyed. Unlike ARENA, both sides are shown to be morally reluctant to kill and see their race have to live with the guilt of genocide. In the end, the Rohans admit their error and send both sets of contestants home with both civilizations being allowed to live.Hamhockhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16163655302116087944noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8535833613343533564.post-22274809470446458802011-02-08T19:08:37.128-08:002011-02-08T19:08:37.128-08:00Wow! Thanks so much, John. I can't tell you ...Wow! Thanks so much, John. I can't tell you how much your response means to me. As a kid in the '60s, Carlos Clarens' AN ILLUSTRATED HISTORY OF THE HORROR FILM was the reading experience that inspired me to create FANTASTIC TELEVISION, and it's so cool that my book inspired writers like yourself to carry on the tradition. We film and TV geeks are a breed apart, let's face it... Thanks again for the wonderful compliments!Gary Geraninoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8535833613343533564.post-41992971464824666812011-02-08T16:28:37.782-08:002011-02-08T16:28:37.782-08:00Thank you both for writing such lovely comments ab...Thank you both for writing such lovely comments about my spotlight on "Fun and Games." <br /><br />Le0pard13: Thank you for bringing up The Challenge (1970). That one really escaped my memory here, but you're right to mention it. I also agree with you that -- although filmed in black and white -- the Outer Limits is often about shades of gray. Well-said.<br /><br />Gary Gerani: I began my writing career because of you, sir! When I was a youngster, I purchased your 1977 landmark book Fantastic Television, and it has been like a Bible to me ever since. I've actually purchased it two additional times over the years just to make sure I have a good, clean copy to look at. Compulsive, perhaps, but necessary...I love that book.<br /><br />And though I totally (but respectfully) disagreed with what you wrote about Space:1999 in the book (!), I owe you so much because you turned me on to The Outer Limits, One Step Beyond, and a whole slew of TV movies from the 1970s. Even when I first was able to see Thriller a few years back I had your book as a guide in hand while screening. <br /><br />Okay, I've gushed enough. But your writing in Fantastic Television means a heck of a lot to me. It inspired me. Just to see genre television handled so respectfully, and with such intelligence meant a lot to this kid of the 1970s.<br /><br />best,<br />JohnJohn Kenneth Muirhttp://reflectionsonfilmandtelevision.blogspot.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8535833613343533564.post-6873163873904627002011-02-08T15:42:35.482-08:002011-02-08T15:42:35.482-08:00Fine overview of a strong episode. You're so ...Fine overview of a strong episode. You're so right about the protagonists being non-paragons, which makes them far more interesting than traditional heroic leads would be, and a fascinating, offbeat pair for the Senator to choose as Earth's ultimate protectors. Cool insights, John, and some equally cool books under your belt!Gary Geraninoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8535833613343533564.post-27091499028971385922011-02-08T14:42:41.101-08:002011-02-08T14:42:41.101-08:00Excellent look at this OL episode, John. I think I...Excellent look at this OL episode, John. I think I appreciate it for many of the reasons you examine here. And because "<i>... it paints a rather balanced picture of the human animal, simultaneously remembering the savage past and hinting at an enlightened future.</i>" Nicely put. Outer Limits could work so well in the gray areas, I think. BTW, I think you can also include another telepic in your list of programs that used the Fredric Brown 'Arena' template: <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0065534/" rel="nofollow">The Challenge</a> from 1970, which pitted Darren McGavin against Mako. U.S. vs Asian country, each sending their champion to settle their differences (with obvious parallels to the Vietnam War going on at the time). Wonderful examination of this, my friend. Thanks.le0pard13https://www.blogger.com/profile/09421175808461787862noreply@blogger.com