Moonbase Alpha Encounters a "Black Sun"

Barry Morse and Martin Landau

Space: 1999 was one of the more ambitious science-fiction series of the mid-1970s. In those pre–Star Wars days, there were far less genre options on TV than there are in the current viewing landscape. The series was the brainchild of Gerry and Sylvia Anderson, who had found fame with puppet-based children's adventure shows such as Thunderbirds. Their first foray into live-action sci-fi was the 1969 film Journey to the Far Side of the Sun, which starred Roy Thinnes. That big-screen adventure was followed by UFO, an intriguing television series featuring Ed Bishop as Ed Straker, the head of a multi-national organization called SHADO, which protected our planet from villainous alien invaders.

UFO was a British production which aired in syndication here in the US. While it found some ratings success, it was not renewed for a 2nd year. Gerry Anderson retooled his concept for UFO’s second season, which would’ve centered on adventures on SHADO's base on the moon, into Space:1999. The concept of the series was that our moon is blown out of Earth's orbit by a nuclear explosion. The runaway moon (and the crew of Moonbase Alpha) wander thru space, encountering aliens and strange phenomena as they try to find a new home. The series starred Martin Landau and Barbara Bain, the husband-and-wife team who had previously found fame on Mission: Impossible, and Barry Morse, then best known for his role as Lt. Gerard on The Fugitive. 

Space:1999 featured spectacular special effects from Brian Johnson, who had worked on 2001: A Space Odyssey. The series contained elements of science-fiction entwined with horror and fantasy, and often dealt with powerful concepts about humanity and our place in the universe, for which no easy answers or neat resolutions were provided by the end of the story. Episodes such as "Another Time, Another Place" and "The Testament of Arkadia" prominently featured this heady mix of science-fiction and philosophy. One of the best examples of the show's "spiritual sci-fi" entries is "Black Sun," an episode from the series first season which originally aired on November 6, 1975.

In “Black Sun,” the moon encounters a "black sun" (aka a black hole) which threatens the existence of Moonbase Alpha. The black sun is wreaking havoc with the base’s power systems, and Commander Koenig (played by Landau) is worried the moon may not survive the trip through the anomaly, because of its tremendous gravitational forces. Koenig and Dr. Victor Bergman (portrayed by Morse) hatch an idea to shield Alpha from the black sun’s destructive power. As a backup plan, Koenig prepares to send an Eagle transport ship into space, with several crew members aboard, which will ensure that some members of the crew will survive if the moon is destroyed.

The episode showcases a philosophical discussion between Koenig and Bergman on how they’ve survived thus far, and if there’s some kind of otherworldly force guiding the moon’s journey through space. As their fateful journey through the black sun begins, the two men have a mystical experience with a powerful entity. Is this being who has protected the Alphans….God? This 2001 style sequence, with strong mystical undertones, deftly illustrates what some fans love about the show, and also what detractors of the series point to as one of its flaws. I think “Black Sun,” is one of the best episodes of the series, featuring great work from the cast, as well as excellent music and special effects. There’s also a fine script by David Weir and solid direction from Lee H. Katzin. 

The thoughtful approach of the first season appealed to some fans but turned off other viewers. The series was revamped for its second and final season, with producer Fred Freiberger (Star Trek, The Wild Wild West) coming on board to guide the show. Barry Morse departed, and several other members of the supporting cast weren’t asked to return. Catherine Schell was added to the show as Maya, an alien shape-changer who could transform into any person or animal. Tony Anholt also joined the cast as security chief Tony Verdeschi. The sets were re-designed, and the somber mood of the first season was abandoned in favor of more action-oriented stories. Fans of the series are quite passionate about which season they prefer, with many favoring Year One's more serious approach, while others enjoy Year Two’s faster-paced entries, which also included more humor than the first season.

Whatever iteration of the series you prefer, Space:1999 is available for viewing on various streaming services. The series has been also been released on Blu-ray and DVD. Space: 1999 is worth revisiting if you haven’t seen it in a while, and worth checking out if you're a newcomer to the show. The first season is better than it’s reputation suggests, and there are several solid outings in the much-maligned second season. Here’s a trailer for a Blu-ray release of the series, featuring Barry Gray’s iconic them from Year One: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C_nciw0ALw0\. 

This post is part of the 12th Annul Favourite TV Episode Blogathon, hosted by Terence, a fellow blogger over at A Shroud of Thoughts. For more info and to view more entries in the blogathon, head over to https://mercurie.blogspot.com/2026/01/announcing-12th-annual-favourite-tv.html.

Marc Platt Goes "Looking For America"

If you're a regular reader of this blog, you probably realize that I often write about and review the wonderful music created by Marc Platt, a supremely talented California based singer-songwriter. His albums often feature introspective, very personal songs about life, love and the world we live in. His latest release, Looking For America, is no exception. This time, Marc's got America on his mind, and he's got questions. Just what does America mean now, and what's happened to us as a country?

Looking For America features compelling, masterfully composed, and powerful songs such as the title track, "Our Silent Ways," and "A Call To Action." These songs deftly examine the state of America, and encourage us to think about our nation, and how we can be agents of change in a world that's badly in need of a large amount of kindness and decency. Songs like "Turnaround" and "Change Is Now," (as well as the entire record) should be required listening for everyone with open minds and loving hearts.

I'm a big fan of Marc's work, and his superbly crafted songs regularly examine life, love and relationships in a deeply personal and heartfelt fashion. There's a touch of Marc's emotional style of music on this record on heartfelt songs like "Flying Too Close To The Sun" and "That's How It Goes." Marc also has bigger thematic fish to fry on this marvelous album, which he also produced. 

On Looking For America, Marc's working with a larger canvas. Just listen to tracks like "When Worlds Collide" and "Boggles My Mind." These songs are no less candid or powerful than the rest of Marc's ouevre, they're just talking about the thorny issues we're all facing in the world right now. If you're a fan of Marc's intimate folk-rock style, and are wondering where America is and where it might be going, take a listen to Looking For America. Check it out here: https://marcplatt.bandcamp.com/album/looking-for-america.

Westworld: A Dream Vacation Gone Wrong

The late Michael Crichton is widely celebrated as an author and filmmaker, having written books like The Great Train Robbery, Sphere, Congo, Rising Sun and Disclosure, all of which were adapted into movies. Of course, he's probably best remembered for his novel Jurassic Park, which was turned into a wildly successful film franchise. But that tale of cloned dinosaurs running amok in an amusement park wasn't the first time that Crichton imagined a story about a technologically advanced theme park where things go horribly wrong.

 

That honor belongs to Westworld, a 1973 film written and directed by Crichton, which tells the story of Delos, an adult amusement complex featuring three separate parks: Westworld, Roman World, and Medieval World. Guests live out their fantasies in these meticulously crafted, simulated worlds, which are populated entirely by sophisticated robots. You can become a gunfighter, a roman lord, or even a knight. in highly realistic scenarios that allow you to become the hero of your own story.

 

Westworld centers on two friends, John Blane and Peter Martin, played by James Brolin and Richard Benjamin, who visit Delos for a vacation. At first, they enjoy their time in the Old West scenario, engaging in bar fights, spending time with beautiful ladies, and triumphing in shootouts with a villainous black clad gunman. What begins as a playful lark quickly spirals into a deadly battle for survival when the robots begin to malfunction, and start wounding, and even murdering the guests throughout the parks. Spoiler Alert: John is killed, and Peter ends up in a relentless battle with the mysterious gunfighter android, chillingly portrayed by Yul Brynner.

 

The film feels remarkably prescient in its celebration of advanced technology being accepted as infallible, then taken a bit too far, too fast, purely for the purposes of profit and entertainment. The robots are marvelous creations, but when they malfunction due to the effects of what appears to be a computer virus, the scientists and staff members of Delos are completely unprepared to deal with the situation. This results in Peter's dream vacation turning into an absolute nightmare. Can he defeat the unstoppable gunslinger? Will anyone survive the robot rampage at Delos?

 

Westworld is an entertaining, thought-provoking film, featuring solid performances by Benjamin, Brolin and Brynner, who deftly channels his Magnificent Seven persona as the gunslinger. You'll also spot familiar faces like Alan Oppenheimer, Dick Van Patten and Majel Barrett in supporting roles. One of the film's technical innovations is that it features one of the earliest cinematic uses of digital image processing to represent the pixelated point-of-view of Brynner's deadly gunslinger robot. The film is also an early example of the techno-thriller, a genre which Crichton re-visited several times throughout his career, in films like Looker and Runaway.

 

The film spawned a sequel, Futureworld (1976), starring Peter Fonda and Blythe Danner as reporters investigating mysterious goings on at a re-opened Delos. Futureworld is an entertaining film, which expanded upon the themes of the original and added a conspiracy thriller angle to the storyline. Neither Futureworld, or a short-lived 1980 TV series on CBS entitled Beyond Westworld included any involvement from Michael Crichton. In 2016, HBO launched a new Westworld  television adaptation of the film, created by Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy, re-imagining Crichton's original concept, and updating it for the 21st century. That well-received series, featuring Ed Harris and Evan Rachel Wood, ended its run in 2022.

 

Westworld feels less like old school sci-fi and more like one of the origin points for modern speculative fiction, which includes cautionary tales about the misuse of technology. Crichton didn’t just make a memorable, riveting thriller, he issued a warning about the unbridled acceptance of technology, a message which still resonates today. Westworld was recently issued on 4K and  Blu-ray by Arrow Video, in an extras-packed special edition. Here's a trailer for Arrow's release of the movie: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_vezkZIMm74/.

A Different Kind of "Knight's" Tale

George R. R. Martin's Game of Thrones novels gained a whole new legion of fans when they were adapted for television by HBO. The series redefined genre television with its cinematic scope, epic storytelling and larger than life characters. The recent prequel series, House of the Dragon, has largely retained the style of the original, but the latest entry in the franchise has a smaller scale, more personal focus in mind.  

A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, based on Martin's Tales of Dunk and Egg, tells the story of Ser Duncan the Tall, a "hedge knight" from a lowborn background who's a far cry from the larger than life Targaryens and Starks we're used to seeing in the previous iterations of Game of Thrones. After his mentor dies, "Dunk" travels to a tournament where he hopes to prove himself as a knight. Along the way, he encounters Egg, a young boy who offers to be his squire. The two unlikely heroes become friends, but there are challenges ahead that will test not only Duncan's mettle, but their friendship as well.

Set decades before Game of Thrones, this series trades continent-shaking wars, dragon fire and political machinations for something more intimate and emotional: at its heart, the show is a character study. Ser Duncan, who's earnest, kind, and often out of his depth, anchors the narrative as a decent man trying to live up to a knightly ideal in a less than chivalrous world. His companion and squire, the quick-witted Egg, provides both support and wise beyond his years counsel. Their growing friendship and respect for one another is at the heart of this entertaining series.

Despite the fact that, like its sister shows, some of the high born characters in A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms are unlikable and often downright villainous, there are people like Dunk and Egg who illustrate that decency and kindness still matter, even in an indecent world. The visual style of the series is a bit different from what we've seen before, as the show leans into providing a street-level view of the Game of Thrones universe. Taverns and tents are dirty and dusty, people are unkempt, and often revel in small pleasures like wild dancing, and singing colorful songs about loose women. There's definitely a more irreverent tone on display here than was featured in Game of Thrones, but it works well within the context of the series.

Peter Claffey as Dunk and Dexter Sol Ansell as Egg have strong chemistry, and they lead a fine ensemble which also includes Daniel Ings as Lyonel Baratheon and Shaun Thomas as Raymon Fossoway. The series was created by Ira Parker and George R.R. Martin, and the directors for the six-episode first season are Owen Harris and Sarah Adina Smith. A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is now streaming on HBO Max, and this well-produced, well-acted, character driven tale is worth a look for Game of Thrones fans. The show also might be a good entry point to those new to the franchise. Here's a look at the trailer for the series: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sItUCKJQLTU.

Ponies: Cold War Spies and 70s Rock & Roll

Haley Lu Richardson and Emilia Clarke

Ponies (Persons Of No Interest) is a well-crafted espionage series now airing on Peacock. It's part Cold War thriller, part character drama, and part buddy comedy. Ponies tells the story of Bea and Twila, two women whose husbands are CIA agents based in Moscow. When their husbands are killed under mysterious circumstances, Bea and Twila convince Dane, the CIA station chief, to let them investigate their husbands deaths by working as undercover agents. The women are both given jobs  as secretaries at the American embassy, where they work with Dane to figure out what the KGB is up to, and uncover the truth behind their husbands deaths.

Bea (played by Emilia Clarke) is  a college-educated, Russian-speaking child of Soviet immigrants, while Twila (portrayed by Haley Lu Richardson) is a sharp-tongued small-town girl with a fearless streak who often flies by the seat of her pants in difficult situations. The two women begin a rocky friendship as they go on increasingly dangerous missions for Dane. The show is sharp, stylish and visually striking. The series features excellent period detail (the show is set in 1977) and a fine supporting cast, including Adrian Lester and Harriet Walter. 

What really sets the show apart are the fabulous needle drops. All of the episodes in the first season are named after famous 1970s tunes, and each episode features several classic tracks, including songs from artists like Fleetwood Mac, Tom Rush, J. Geils Band, Blondie, J.J. Cale and Vicki Lawrence. The excellent soundtrack features the expected marquee names, such as Todd Rundgren and Heart, but also spotlights more obscure artists like folk rockers Goldberg and selections from beloved cult bands like Love and Fanny. The music choices feel very intentional, as the music is often used to underscore and comment on the action, adding depth and color to important scenes, which turns the show's strong moments into memorable ones.

Ponies is an entertaining spy series featuring excellent performances from Emilia Clarke and Haley Lu Richardson, who exhibit solid chemistry as Bea and Twila. The entire first season is now available for streaming on Peacock. The show should appeal to fans of 1970s era spy thrillers, and the killer soundtrack will bring back a lot of memories for classic rock fans. Here's a link to the trailer for the show: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-DlukUWtoCU.

 

 

The "Monsters" Aren't From Outer Space

The Monsters Are Due On Maple Street

Recently, I've been doing a re-watch of some of my favorite episodes of the original Twilight Zone series. Rod Serling's groundbreaking television show thrilled and fascinated us with memorable tales of science-fiction, fantasy and horror. The Twilight Zone also taught us some important lessons about the human condition, and commented on the state of the world we live in through its fictional lens. "The Monsters Are Due On Maple Street” is one of the most powerful and enduring episodes of the series, and its central message remains relevant, especially in these troubling and uncertain times.

The story takes place on Maple Street, a quiet suburban neighborhood, where strange events, such as power outages and malfunctioning electronics, occur after the residents witness a flash of light and hear a loud noise in the sky. The people of the town believe an alien invasion is imminent, and suspect that there are aliens in disguise living among them. Suspicion, fear and paranoia begin to grip the neighborhood, leading to the residents accusing one another of collaborating with the aliens, turning against their friends, and ultimately ending in violence and death.

 

"The Monsters Are Due On Maple Street” illustrates how fear can turn ordinary people into their own worst enemies, and how negative emotions bring out the worst aspects of humanity. By the end of the story, the audience learns that the real “monsters” aren't the aliens, but the residents of Maple Street themselves. Spoiler Alert: The twist in the tale is that there really are aliens hiding outside of the town, manipulating events to show just how simple it is to turn human beings against one another, thus making our planet an easy target for conquest.

 

Written by Rod Serling and directed by Ronald Winston, the episode features a strong cast of familiar faces, including Jack Weston, Barry Atwater, Claude Akins and Mary Gregory. A re-imagined version of the story, entitled "The Monsters Are On Maple Street" was produced for the 2002 revival of The Twilight Zone, and starred Andrew McCarthy. "The Monsters Are Due On Maple Street” is widely acclaimed as one of the best episodes of the original series, and is certainly one of Serling's best efforts.

One of the episode’s greatest strengths is its powerful commentary on fear and mob mentality. Serling's fine script shows just how quickly kindness and empathy disappear when people feel threatened and paranoia reigns. The townspeople abandon logic and reason in favor of pointing the finger at their friends and neighbors, choosing fear over understanding. "The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street,” which originally aired in 1960, is a bold and bracing commentary on the social and political situations of the Cold War era, but the themes present in this thought-provoking tale still feel very pertinent today.

The Cynz Rock Our World With "Confess"

The Cynz, the dynamic New Jersey rockers whose terrific version of David Bowie’s “Can’t Help Thinking About Me” was a highlight of last year’s JEM Records Celebrates David Bowie tribute disc, are about to blow your mind (and your speakers) with Confess, their fantastic new album, which will be released by JEM Records on January 24. If you’re not already a fan of this amazing band, you’re about to become one.

Confess includes ten tracks highlighted by hard-driving riffs, knockout vocals, shimmering melodies, and skillfully layered arrangements. Take a listen to the kinetic single “Love’s So Lovely” and the sharp-edged “My Father’s Gun” to see just what I mean. Cyndi Dawson’s evocative lead vocals and Henry Seiz’s masterful guitar work are the heart and soul of this incredible band, and they help bring tunes like the modern-rock flavored “Impossible Ending” and “Watching You” brilliantly to life.

What stands out on Confess is how the songs balance the band’s raw rock and roll energy with a real emotional core. The album includes a mix of gritty rockers like “Woman Child” and heartfelt tunes such as “Don’t Give Up.”  I also dig the picturesque “Ghost Rider” and the expressive “Light The Sky.” There’s also a knockout version of Tom Petty’s “You Wreck Me” which fits in nicely with the rest of the tracks on the disc, and has quickly become one of my favorite Petty covers.

The success of the album is firmly rooted in The Cynz’s deep commitment to their music, and their unparalleled talents, especially Cyndi Dawson’s passionate vocals and Henry Seiz’s powerhouse guitar. The excellent production work on Confess is by the one and only Kurt Reil of The Grip Weeds, and the disc features guest appearances by Reil, Tony Shanahan of The Patti Smith Group and Arno Hecht of The Uptown Horns.

Confess is definitely a statement of purpose by this exceptional group. The album is filled with heart, grit, and top notch songcraft. Whether you’re a longtime fan or are discovering The Cynz for the first time, Confess is a must listen and a must have. Here’s a link to check out “Love’s So Lovely,” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W38G8XULMXU.