Day: April 13, 1966

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Batman Season 1

The Curse Of Tut

BatmanA golden sphinx statue suddenly turns up in the city park, with a message that Gotham will soon be ruled by King Tut himself – not the actual Egyptian king, of course, but an insane criminal who has adopted that identity. The Dynamic Duo, investigating the statue, nearly falls to a series of fiendish traps, but Batman doesn’t take the bait, which would lead them away from the Gotham City Museum, where Bruce Wayne is scheduled to unveil an ancient Egyptian mummy. The mummy then astonishes Bruce by coming to life…and kidnapping him. Commissioner Gordon then calls the Batcave for help, and is dismayed when he can only reach Robin.

Download this episode via Amazonwritten by Robert C. Dennis and Earl Barret
directed by Charles R. Rondeau
music by Nelson Riddle / Batman theme by Neal Hefti

BatmanCast: Adam West (Batman), Burt Ward (Robin), Alan Napier (Alfred), Neil Hamilton (Commissioner Gordon), Stafford Repp (Chief O’Hara), Madge Blake (Mrs. Cooper), Victor Buono (King Tut), Ziva Rodann (Nefertiti), Don Barry (The Grand Vizier), Emanuel Thomas (Reporter), Bill Quinn (Board Member)

Notes: Fortunately, Commissioner Gordon doesn’t notice the similarity in the voice on the other end of the phone when he calls Bruce Wayne and then Batman in rapid succession.

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Original Series Season 01 Star Trek

Operation: Annihilate!

Star Trek ClassicStardate 3287.2: The Enterprise witnesses a smaller ship diving into the sun of Deneva under the control of a pilot who seems to have intentionally killed himself. This confirms Kirk’s worst fears, that a seemingly contagious outbreak of insanity on several other worlds has spread to Deneva, where his brother lives. On the surface, many are found to be dead – including Kirk’s brother – and an unknown species of alien parasite is found to be responsible. In trying to gather data on them, Spock is attacked and taken over by one, and, like the people of Deneva and several other planets, starts to go mad. Spock’s condition also presents McCoy with the first opportunity to learn more about both the creature and its victim, and Spock may have to die if the crew is to learn any more about the creatures to prevent them from spreading further into human territory.

Order this episode on DVDDownload this episode via Amazon's Unboxwritten by Steven W. Carabatsos
directed by Herschel Daugherty
music by Alexander Courage

Cast: William Shatner (Captain James T. Kirk), Leonard Nimoy (Mr. Spock), DeForest Kelley (Dr. Leonard McCoy), James Doohan (Mr. Scott), George Takei (Lt. Sulu), Nichelle Nichols (Lt. Uhura), Joan Swift (Aurelan), Maurishka (Yeoman Zahra), Majel Barrett (Christine Chapel), Craig Hundley (Peter), Fred Carson (First Devenvan), Jerry Catron (Second Denevan)

Notes: Craig Hundley appeared again in Star Trek’s third season before embarking on a career as a musician; he would go on to create (and play) an unusual instrument called the Blaster Beam, whose distinctive sound was used heavily in the first two Star Trek films.

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Battlestar Galactica (Classic Series) Season 2 (Galactica: 1980)

The Night the Cylons Landed – Part 1

Battlestar Galactica (original)It is learned that the Cylons have already infiltrated Earth, though by accident. Troy and Dillon race to the planet, only to discover that a Cylon centurion and a new breed of much more human-looking Cylon have arrived and found a perfect explanation for their presence – Halloween. Even with two mere Cylons on Earth, the human race faces the real possibilty of invasion and extinction…and they aren’t even aware of it.

Order the DVDsDownload this episodewritten by Glen A. Larson
directed by Sigmund Neufeld, Jr.

Guest Cast: Wolfman Jack (Wolfman Jack), Peter Mark Richman (Colonel Briggs), William Daniels (Norman), Lara Parker (Shirley), Marj Dusay (Mildred), Val Bisoglio (Arnie), Bernie Hamilton (Cop), Heather Young (Star), Roger Davis (Andromus), Sheila de Windt (Stewardess), Rene Levant (1st Officer), Jed Mills (Cabbie), Ed Griffith (2nd Officer), Timothy O’Hagan (Karon), Rex Cutter (Centurion), Robert Lunny (Britton), Ken Lynch (Grover), John Finnegan (Oficer in trauma room), Herb Vigram (Pop), John Widlock (Chuck), Dan Ferrone (Police Sergeant), Alexander Petala (1st tough), Cosie Costa (2nd Tough), Tony Miratti (3rd tough), Louis Sardo (4th tough), Paul Tuerpe (Fireman), Chip Lucia (M.C.)

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Max Headroom Series 1 (UK)

Episode 2

The Max Headroom ShowMax puts out an APB for a missing cowboy and bemoans the lack of truly useful inventions. After sharing a little information about how much the British government spends per week on missiles, Max contemplates how so many people are like windows (in other words, glazed-over and eventually getting smashed).

written by Paul Owen & David Hansen and Tim John
directed by Rocky Morton and Annabel Jankel

The Max Headroom ShowCast: Matt Frewer (Max Headroom)

Videos: “Cannonball” (Supertramp), “Love Loaded” *(Waysted), “Rats On A Budget” (Heat N Serve), “Ziggy Stardust” (Bauhaus), “Into The Fire” (Hit List), “King In A Catholic Style” (China Crisis), “Germans” (Udo Lindenberg)

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Deep Space Nine Season 06 Star Trek

In The Pale Moonlight

Star Trek: Deep Space NineStardate 51721.3: With things looking grim for the war effort against the Dominion, Sisko becomes convinced that he must somehow bring the Romulans into the conflict on the Federation side. He enlists Garak to find evidence of possible Dominion plans to attack Romulus; but such evidence can’t be obtained legitimately, so Garak persuades Sisko that they can manufacture the evidence – a fake holoprogram. What lengths will Sisko go to, and what rules will he break, even if it saves lives?

Order the DVDsDownload this episode via Amazonteleplay by Michael Taylor
story by Peter Allan Fields
directed by Victor Lobl
music by David Bell

Guest Cast: Andrew J. Robinson (Garak), Jeffrey Combs (Weyoun), Casey Biggs (Damar), Howard Shangraw (Tolar), Stephen McHattie (Vreenak)

Original title: Patriots

LogBook entry by Tracy Hemenover

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Earth: Final Conflict Season 1

The Devil You Know

Earth: Final ConflictBoone, Lili and Sandoval are present for the first demonstration of a powerful electromagnetic weapon made possible by Taelon technology, but Lili’s study of the weapon’s immense power is interrupted when she receives word that her father has died. Boone is warning Doors of the weapon’s potential uses against the resistance when news arrives that the weapon has already been stolen. The thief quickly offers to sell the weapon to the resistance, an almost too-convenient coincidence, and also makes a stunning revelation to Lili.

written by Raymond Hartung
directed by Stephen Williams
music by Micky Erbe & Maribeth Solomon

Guest Cast: Majel Barrett Roddenberry (Dr. Belman), Anita Le Selva (Zo’or), Jim Codringham (Blanchard), Doug Lennox (Colonel Purcell), Patricia Gage (Rachel Purcell), Laura Press (Anne Portnoy)

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Season 3 Xena: Warrior Princess

Fins, Femmes & Gems

Xena: Warrior PrincessThree men bring the Mystic Diamond to Aphrodite. The goddess plans to have the gem, which powers the north star, added to her constellation. But she knows that Xena and Gabrielle will try to stop her. After the goddess sends the men on with the diamond to the person who will place the stone for her, the warrior and bard arrive at the temple, along with Joxer. As the trio look around, Aphrodite places an obsession spell on them and whatever they are thinking about at that moment is what they become obsessed with. Soon the trio are at a lake with Xena fishing, Gabrielle preoccupied with herself, and Joxer acting like an ape man.

Order the DVDsteleplay by Adam Armus and Nora Kay Foster
story by Robert Tapert and Adam Armus and Nora Kay Foster
directed by Josh Becker
music by Joseph LoDuca

Guest Cast: Ted Raimi (Joxer), Alexandra Tydings (Aphrodite), Renee Schuda (Young Xena), Callum Gallagher (Young Lyceus), Lawerence Makoare (Maecenus), Jason Tamu (Thug #1)

Original title: Fish Schticks

LogBook entry by Mary Terrell

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Farscape Season 3

Different Destinations

  • By Dave
  • April 13, 2001

FarscapeThe crew visits a memorial to a moment of history where the Peacekeepers lived up to their names, arranging a truce that spared the lives of a group of nurses inside a besieged monastery. Stark’s powers interact strangely with the memorial, opening a crack in time that pulls the crew back to the siege. Upon their arrival, they learn that reality doesn’t quite match up with the legends Aeryn learned in her training; between that and the distortions they created with their very arrival, history soon experiences substantial revision. As Stark tries to find a way to recreate the tear so they can go home, Crichton keeps looking for ways to repair the damage – but this may be one of those occasions that proves the old saying about good intentions.

Order the DVDswritten by Steve Worland
directed by Peter Andrikidis
music by Guy Gross

Guest Cast: Tammy MacIntosh (Jool), Lucy Bell (Nurse Kelsa), Basia A’hern (Cyntrina), Marshall Napier (General Grynes), Dan Spielman (Sub-Officer Dacon), Terry Serio (Colonel Lennok), Alan Cinis (Officer Tarn)

LogBook entry by Dave Thomer

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Season 10 SG-1 Stargate

The Quest Part 2

  • By Dave
  • April 13, 2007

Stargate SG-1Daniel figures out the true name of the guardian and dismisses the dragon guarding the Sangraal. But the gem in the cave is simply a hologram. SG-1 and Baal are teleported to Merlin’s workshop, a chamber that transports its occupants through the stargate network to a new planet (with a similar chamber) every few hours. Adria’s Ori nature means that the chamber leaves her behind – but it also means that she can access the dialing network directly in order to track down SG-1. It takes her time to do so, but gradually she begins to catch up to SG-1. Vala finds an Ancient knowledge repository device, which awakens Merlin from suspended animation. He agrees to help SG-1 construct a new Sangraal, the old one having been destroyed. But he is too weak to do the job himself, so he passes his knowledge and memories along to Daniel, who struggles to complete the device before Merlin’s consciousness overwhelms his brain or Adria’s force arrive in their current location.

Order the DVDsDownload this episode via Amazon's Unboxwritten by Joseph Mallozzi and Paul Mullie
directed by Andy Mikita
music by Joel Goldsmith

Guest Cast:

LogBook entry by Dave Thomer

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Season 3 Stargate Stargate Atlantis

The Return – Part II

Stargate AtlantisDefying General Landry’s orders, a team consisting of Weir, Sheppard, McKay, Teyla and Ronon returns to Atlantis, dropping a bomb in the gate room and then making a run for it. Sheppard contacts O’Neill and tells him that the team will return in two hours. In that time, Sheppard pilots the jumper into orbit to retrieve the still-intact (and still-frozen) body of Niam, to use as a vehicle for a new virus to disable the replicators. But when that plan doesn’t pan out, both Sheppard’s team and the less-than-dynamic duo of O’Neill and Woolsey have to improvise an escape plan. As the rescue attempt becomes more desperate, and O’Neill and Woolsey have to rescue their rescuers, time is running out before O’Neill’s last standing order to the SGC is carried out: if a hostile force gains control of Atlantis, the city must be nuked, and the gate network linkng Atlantis to the SGC must be destroyed.

Order the DVDsDownload this episode via Amazon's Unboxwritten by Martin Gero
directed by Brad Turner
music by Joel Goldsmith

Guest Cast: Richard Dean Anderson (General Jack O’Neill), Robert Picardo (Wolsey), John O’Callaghan (Niam), Bill Dow (Dr. Lee), Gary Jones (Chief Sgt. Harriman), David MacInus (Talus), Pinou (Cetus), Mitch Pileggi (Colonel Caldwell), Beau Bridges (General Landry), Kirby Morrow (Daedalus Tech), Elias Toufexis (Replicator), Kerry Blouin (Replicator Guard), Patrick Lambier (Replicator Guard)

Notes: Niam was first encountered, and promptly ejected into space, earlier this season in Progeny.

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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2000s Series Season 1 V

John May

V (2000s series)Erica, Ryan and Jack start making plans to rescue Georgie from the V mothership, where he is being interrogated following his capture. Hobbes is the lone holdout, feeling that Georgie’s best contribution to the resistance was to be a sacrifice and a diversion. Ryan tries to track down the original fifth column leader, John May, who he encountered ten years ago, and has to reveal to May’s son that his father’s suicide was a cover story. Ryan is making it his mission to find May to lead the resistance anew – but the only problem is that Anna is trying to find May at the same time so she can quash the resistance.

written by Gregg Hurwitz
directed by Jonathan Frakes
music by Marco Beltrami

Guest Cast: Michael Trucco (John May), Nicholas Lea (Joe Evans), David Richmond-Peck (Georgie), Charles Mesure (Kyle Hobbes), Christopher Shyer (Marcus), Mark Hildreth (Joshua), Jessica Parker Kennedy (Grace), Terry Chen (V Doctor), Brett Dier (James May), Oliver Gatske (young James), Erica Carroll (Lillie)

Notes: More SFTV alumni appear in front of and behind the cameras here, with Michael Trucco – late of Battlestar Galactica – appearing as John May, and Star Trek: The Next Generation actor/director Jonathan Frakes takes command of the action from behind the camera.

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Doctor Who New Series Season 07

Cold War

Doctor WhoThe TARDIS arrives aboard a Soviet nuclear submarine secretly operating near the North Pole in 1983, though the sub and her crew already have problems of their own. This doesn’t stop them from blaming the new arrivals for all of these problems, however. The real problem quickly becomes apparent to the Doctor: the Soviets retrieved a large chunk of ice with something humanoid inside, and thawed it out. The humanoid is an Ice Warrior with a bad reputation: the Martian warlord Skaldak. The Doctor’s attempts to appeal to Skaldak’s feudal sense of honor are useless, since Skaldak perceives the humans’ every act as an attack upon him. Skaldak unexpectedly leaves his armor, slithering around the innards of the sub in his native Martian form, eliminating the sub’s crew one by one. When the Ice Warrior learns that the sub is armed with nuclear weapons, he sees an opportunity to avenge his indignities upon the entire human race… unless the Doctor can stop him.

Order the DVDwritten by Mark Gatiss
directed by Douglas MacKinnon
music by Murray Gold

Cast: Matt Smith (The Doctor), Jenna-Louise Coleman (Clara), Liam Cunningham (Captain Zhukov), David Warner (Professor Grisenko), Tobias Menzies (Lieutenant Stepashin), Josh O’Connor (Piotr), James Norton (Onegin), Doctor WhoCharlie Anson (Belevich), Spencer Wilding (Skaldak), Nicholas Briggs (voice of Skaldak)

Notes: This is the first Ice Warrior story on television since 1974’s Monster Of Peladon, during Jon Pertwee’s last season as the third Doctor, though at least two other TV outings were planned with the Ice Warriors, Mission To Magnus (intended for the 1986 season with the sixth Doctor) and Thin Ice (a story outlined for the 1990 seventh Doctor season that never was, which also involved relations with the Soviet Union); both unfilmed television stories were later adapted for audio by Big Finish for the Lost Stories range. Big Finish has also pitted the fifth and eighth Doctors against the Ice Warriors in audio adventures. This is the first flesh-and-blood appearance in Doctor Who for actor David Warner, who has provided voices for animated episodes (Dreamland) and numerous audio adventures, even playing an alternate-timeline version of the Doctor himself in Big Finish’s Doctor Who Unbound series.

LogBook entry & review by Earl Green

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Lost In Space (Netflix) Season 1

Impact

Lost In SpaceThe Resolute, a massive space colony ship outbound from Earth, is attacked by robots of unknown origin; the colonists are ordered to evacuate in their landfall craft. But unknown to any of them, a rift in spacetime has opened, sucking in the evacuating colonists’ ships, and the wreckage of the Resolute, and depositing them in another galaxy far beyond the reach of Earth. The Robinson family’s landfall craft, the Jupiter 2, homes in on a barely-habitable planet and comes down for a hard landing on a frozen lake. Moments after evacuating the ship containing all of their survival gear, the Robinsons are helpless to do anything but watch as their ship’s heat melts the ice, allowing it to sink into the water. Combat veteran John Robinson seems to be unable to get his wife, Maureen, or any of their three children to stick to anything resembling military discipline. Maureen’s leg, broken in the crash, is a cause for immediate concern. Judy Robinson, the eldest daughter, dives into the water to retrieve batteries to power their makeshift camp, only to be trapped beneath the rapidly refreezing ice in a spacesuit that will eventually run out of oxygen. Penny Robinson, the middle child, is left to look after her mother while John and his son Will go to search for magnesium that could be ignited to burn through the thick ice. Will falls into an ice tunnel, emerging in a heavily wooded area, where he discovers that he is not the only crash survivor: one of the robots has survived, but in the crash has forgotten its hostile intent. Will persuades it to reunite him with his family and to help them survive the various dangers. Neither Will nor any of his family saw the attacking robots, and do not realize that one of their attackers is now among them. They only know that they wouldn’t have survived their first night on this planet without it.

written by Matt Sazama & Burk Sharpless
based on the teleplay Lost In Space: No Place To Hide by Irwin Allen and Shimon Wincelberg
directed by Neil Marshall
music by Christopher Lennertz
original Lost In Space theme by John Williams

Lost In SpaceCast: Molly Parker (Maureen Robinson), Toby Stephens (John Robinson), Maxwell Jenkins (Will Robinson), Taylor Russell (Judy Robinson), Mina Sundwall (Penny Robinson), Ignacio Serricchio (Don West), Parker Posey (Dr. Smith), Brian Steele (Robot), Bill Mumy (Dr. Zachary Smith), AnnaMaria Demara (Tam Roughneck), Natasha Quirke (Salesperson), Vanessa Eichholz (News Anchor)

Notes: Arriving 20 years after the previous one-off big screen remake and over 50 years after the original Lost In Spaceseries, the premiere episode of the reimagined Lost In Space still finds a moment to look back over its shoulder, casting Bill Mumy (the original Will Robinson) in a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it cameo as the “real” Dr. Smith (whose identity is stolen by Parker Posey’s character, whose real identity would be revealed later in the season).

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Lost In Space (Netflix) Season 1

Diamonds In The Sky

Lost In SpaceJupiter 7, another colony ship from the doomed Resolute, has crashed on the same planet as the Robinsons, but each group of survivors is unaware of the other. Don West, a member of the Resolute flight crew, is one of the only survivors, along with a woman who identifies herself only as Dr. Smith. They find another crash survivor from one of the other colony ships, but the woman is severely injured; West refuses to leave her behind. Dr. Smith creates a distraction to steal West’s flare gun, setting out on her own and leaving West and the injured survivor behind.

At the Jupiter 2, the alien robot has proven almost too useful in bringing the Robinsons’ ship back to the surface and helping them effect repairs. Judy is still traumatized by the experience of being frozen under the water, leaving Penny to do much of the work. When an explosion is spotted on the horizon, John, Maureen, Will and the Robot set off on foot, assuming other survivors from the Resolute may need help. When no survivors are found, Maureen insists on investigating the nearby wreckage of the robot’s spacecraft. Touching that wreckage awakens some of the robot’s memories, and only then does Will realize that this robot caused the chain of events that stranded his family here. Penny spots a storm incoming and, despite lacking the training to do so, drives off in Jupiter 2’s chariot vehicle to recover her parents and her brother. This storm, however, doesn’t precipitate rain, but rather drops razor-sharp diamonds, trapping the Robinsons until Penny arrives. En route back to Jupiter 2, they spot a flare and pick up another survivor: a woman who identifies herself only as Dr. Smith, the sole survivor of the Jupiter 7.

written by Matt Sazama & Burk Sharpless
directed by Neil Marshall
music by Christopher Lennertz
original Lost In Space theme by John Williams

Lost In SpaceCast: Toby Stephens (John Robinson), Molly Parker (Maureen Robinson), Maxwell Jenkins (Will Robinson), Taylor Russell (Judy Robinson), Mina Sundwall (Penny Robinson), Ignacio Serricchio (Don West), Parker Posey (Dr. Smith), Brian Steele (Robot), Sibongile Mlambo (Angela), AnnaMaria Demara (Tam Roughneck)

Notes: Exotic planets where the atmospheric makeup and temperatures are so radically different that diamonds fall from the sky may not be that far away – it is, in fact, theorized that this phenomenon could be happening on “ice giant” planets as (relatively) near as Neptune.

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Lost In Space (Netflix) Season 1

Infestation

Lost In SpaceOn Earth, before the launch of the Resolute, future space colonist Jessica Harris offers her material belongings – her home, clothes, car – to her sister June, whose criminal background will probably prevent her from ever having those things otherwise. But June Harris doesn’t want Jessica’s worldly possessions…she wants her otherworldly future.

The Robinsons are unaware that June Harris has joined them aboard the Jupiter 2, in the guise of “Dr. Z. Smith”, an identity she stole from a scientist aboard the Resolute so she could abandon ship. Since she hasn’t actually trained for the mission, “Smith” is of little use as Maureen directs her family to conduct repairs so the Jupiter 2 can blast its way out of the glacier in which it’s trapped, but then the Robinsons notice the rapidly dropping fuel level…and then the robot locks Will in a closet, warning of danger to the ship…and then John finds and kills a parasite which is eating the fuel. Before long, the tanks will contain more eels than fuel.

written by Zack Estrin
directed by Tim Southam
music by Christopher Lennertz
original Lost In Space theme by John Williams

Lost In SpaceCast: Toby Stephens (John Robinson), Molly Parker (Maureen Robinson), Maxwell Jenkins (Will Robinson), Taylor Russell (Judy Robinson), Mina Sundwall (Penny Robinson), Ignacio Serricchio (Don West), Parker Posey (Dr. Smith), Brian Steele (Robot), Selma Blair (Jessica Harris), Shaun Parkes (Captain Radic), Jon Cor (Resolute Officer), Natalie Von Rotsburg (Resolute Officer), Richard Meen (Mark)

LogBook entry by Earl Green