Towards the end, the whole series was not unlike some weird dreams one might have. You know the type. Dreams with some odd logic while you're dreaming but then devolving into psychedelic nonsense the moment you awake.
Agreed! But you have to remember, the show took place shortly after Ken Kesey and Timothy Leary introduced LSD and other psychedelics to an innocent nation. It’s been downhill ever since.
Culling this down to just 9 scenes must have been difficult. How about the one with all the miniature robots and he was king? Or the one where the Viking woman suddenly appeared on a horse and started singing opera? Or the one where everything Smith touches turns to gold? Or....
The Viking woman was none other than Mrs. Irwin Allen. In fairness, Sheila Matthews Allen was a gifted character actor who popped up in a number of Allen's productions, including the nurse in The Poseidon Adventure.
There's lot's of episodes that may have become silly. Depends on everyone's point of view. I grew up watching this show and loved it. There was guest actors throughout the show however in season three some episodes started to become a little tired so to speak. From Space Bikies to Metallic Mexican to Space Pirates to Vegetables Aliens. The show became something for kids as those of us who were back in the day. Still is a very popular show otherwise regardless of the ups and downs.👍✌️🇭🇲🦘🐨
I was 10 when Lost In Space premiered. During the summer of ‘65, CBS ran TV spots showing very short tantalizing clips from their upcoming new fall shows. I was so excited all summer long. Season 1 was great, but by the third season the show was more silly shenanigans. Thankfully a little NBC show premiered in 1966 that captivated me and my older bro. It was a little series called Star Trek. 😉
"Season 1 was great, but by the third season the show was more silly shenanigans" > By Season 1, Episode 2 the show was silly with Dr. Smith being a buffoon.
Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo! These scenes are BRILLIANT, especially the robot in drag! And the Girl from the Green Dimension who mistakes Dr Zachary Smith for a 'pretty girl'...!!!
The green alien lady says to Dr Smith, "You pretty, like girl". Smith replies appreciatively, "Oh, how nice". This was in the episode "The Girl From the Green Dimension". Her first and only other appearance was in the episode, "Wild Adventure".
@James Gleason - Yes, and Irwin Allen of course was the creator and producer of Lost In Space. Just checked with Wikipedia and she's still with us, at age 83.
@James Gleason - Re: "Athena" "The green space girl "Athena" - who hypnotized Dr. Smith while the Jupiter 2 traveled through space - returns when Smith finds her with a dimensional telescope." --Wikipedia: Lost In Space episodes: "The Girl from the Green Dimension" "Personal life: Vitina Marcus gave birth to a daughter, Athena, and a son, Giuliano.[1] She left Hollywood in the late 1960s,[2] and has resided in Las Vegas since the mid-1970s, earning her real estate license in 1986. She has been in real estate since then as Vitina Graham.[3][4] --Wikipedia: Vitina Marcus
@James Gleason - Did you catch in my last reply how Vitina Marcus named her daughter in real life "Athena", after the "green lady character from Lost In Space? As for Linda Harrision, the pretty young woman from the first two Planet of the Apes movies, she, like Vitina Marcus, oddly enough, is not only still around, but also went into the real estate business!... "Later work: 1990 to 2015: In 1990, [Linda] Harrison [now 74] moved back home to Berlin, where she opened a consignment shop which she named "Harrison's Peach Tree" half a mile from the house where she was born and raised. Several years later, wanting to be closer to her sons, she returned to Los Angeles and obtained a real estate license...." ---Wikipedia _________ Personal life: [Vitina] Marcus [now 83] gave birth to a daughter, Athena, and a son, Giuliano.[1] She left Hollywood in the late 1960s,[2] and has resided in Las Vegas since the mid-1970s, earning her real estate license in 1986. She has been in real estate since then as Vitina Graham.[3][4] ...." --Wikipedia
I was born in 1965. I saw the show in reruns and I didn't care if it was campy. I loved....LOVED the show because of the family Values and the robot. "Oh, dear!" I didn't care about the accuracies of what 1965 thought space with you like or the future, or the fact that they based aliens on different human cultures, it was fun.
@@jimliftin1552 In interviews Harris said he purposely changed his character which also changed the show...however, what you said is probably also true. Let's call it a convergance of forces.
@@markmerzweiler832 yes he did say he created the Smith 2.0 character from the ground up since he knew the original character he hated and was going to be killed off early. The character change was Harris' but the writing change was Allen's. I agree it's due to a combination of the both of them as well as the writing team.
@@jimliftin1552 An interesting notion...the show probably would have lasted longer if they had stayed with the original premise of being a serious sci-fi adventure story rather than idiotic camp. The story lines got very weak and predictable towards the end. I would have liked to have seen a romance between Don and Judy and maybe Penny dealing with adolescene and perhaps realizing what a jerk he was and slowly become part of the team.
@ Dave Smith Smith's character actually began to get silly pretty much around the midway point of that 1st black & white season. Silly, but often funny as heck! BTW, "Dave Smith", are you and the good doctor, Dr Smith, related? In one particularly ridiculous episode a southern con man drops out of the sky and turns out to be Dr Smith's cousin!
Consider that artistic concepts and cinematographic technology was completely other! After season 2, in color, the series became less scientific and more uncompromising, resorting to the comic that was already common in other shows such as Batman, for example. The quality of that today is much more sentimental than technical or content. Let's watch 50 years later and be happy with the good memories and feelings it brings.
Even as a 10 year old child me and my friends were disappointed when Lost in Space turned goofy. My friend Phil was the son of a Fleishmann's research chemist, and loved all things science. So did I, following the space race, building models and playing with electronics and a chemistry set. Our friend Kenny was a nerd like us. We all couldn't wait for the first episode to come out, and excitedly talked about it at the first recess after the first episode... you know, while the other boys were playing dodgeball or whatever. But it wasn't long before we were all disgusted by the direction of the show, and at some point we all just stopped watching it. I always felt that the producers of Lost in Space ruined an amazing opportunity in not sticking to the original direction, and not going childlike and goofy. Kids are smart, and I know of no one who grew up on this show and didn't think it had not become a laughing stock.
I felt exactly the same way, except that I was a couple years younger than you. I was disappointed by the 2nd season with how corny it had become, but I kept watching until the end in 1968 because I was a loyal fan. Sort of like sports fans of losing teams - in fact, exactly like sports fans of losing teams.
What was the episode that Dr Smith became strong by doing exercises and was able to break of the chains from his wrists? I believe Robot recommended: “deep breathing exercises “
The first season was the best. The stories were better written, and the episodes had a different vibe given that they were filmed in black and white. However, seasons two and three were more in line with the feel of the late 1960s with the psychedelic colors.
HAHA the ridiculous aspect was what made this show fantastic!!! Smith and the Robot were the True stars but they all were great in their roles. I'll be watching this show till I drop.
I was born in 1965, when this began. I loved in in my childhood mind. Looking back at 54, I still love it for what 1965 thought space was. Yeah. Became campy & in reality, Smith would have been tossed over board, but I love it.
The first season showed potential - then the second season! - probably the worst. By the third, I think that they were attempting to repair the damage but it was too late. Enjoyable camp forever, though. Not many chances to see talking carrots and celery.
A fourth season was contemplated until the very end; believe it or not, the network would have cut its budget a full 25% for that one -- a sum for which Irwin Allen refused to produce it. Cuts in succeeding years of a show like this are expected -- most of the expensive sets, props, costumes, and stock visual effects required having been bought for the first season -- but a cut of that extent was ridiculous. LiS never fell out of the top 35 shows during its 3-year run, and almost cracked the Top 20 once IIRC. By contrast, ST: TOS was mired in the 50s throughout its run of similar length.
I think they went the "campy" route to keep the cost down on the show. If they would have kept it serious, it would have involved more space travel, better make up & costumes for aliens. One main reason they put the transporter on Star Trek was to save money for having space shuttle scenes, prob not an option for perceived 1999 tech. As a kid, I liked the more seriousness of the first number of episodes, but as an adult, the campiness of the show and the robot zingers are hilarious.
I keep on hoping that one day the 'Legends of TOmorrow' TV programme will have the crew of the Waverider arriving on the Planet of the Vegetables. That is the only show that has come anywhere close ever since to this level of astute silliness...
These scenes (note none are from the darker First Season) are a reason why the show acquired such an ambivalent reputation with most audiences throughout the later decades of the 20 century. But due to high ratings in syndication and the overall success of the comic books (both the Gold Key and later Innovation run)- Hollywood kept reviving the property with the newest Netflix show being quite successful.
You're quite right about that. Not to mention that that episode was more watchable than most of the eps from seasons 2 and 3. Also, the scene from "Curse of Cousin Smith", was more drolly amusing, than it was strictly ludicrous -- compare almost any scene from "Space Beauty", for instance. 👌🏽
Part of me, when I was a kid, wished that they kept the serious exploration tone of the first several episodes, but now I get a kick out of how campy it was and how non-scientific it became, in one episode Doctor Smith programmed the navigation for the ship to return to earth, but they informed him the sun was in the way, like that was an issue for ship that could fly half way around the galaxy., not being able to get around the sun-lol
Jupiter 2 would have been pulled into the gravitational pull from the sun, also in the episode, Dr. Smith dumped all the reserve fuel cells into space, the girl from the green dimension feeds off the fuel. Despite it's campiness, Lost In Space remains a treasure for all audiences, it had a moral compass as well as humor, in contrast to the dramatic seriousness of today's writers, this show in my opinion was ahead of it's time, including the musical scores of John Williams, another facet sadly missing today.
@@skinnybear5743 The Jupiter 2 traveled at nearly light speed and would have had no problem in maneuvering a wide turn and completely avoiding the Sun in our relatively small solar system and then catching the Earth in approximately 10 minutes of flight time.
The original series was a goofy, campy, show with a lot of heart. That was its appeal. The two (so far) remakes have had bigger budgets, better special effects, but have been disappointments - probably because they have no heart.
I kind of disagree the new remake at least keeps me entertained. With the original even though it was supposed to be a "goofy, campy, show with a lot of heart" it doesn't do it for me. It's just cheesy. A lot of the actors in the original have said how much it sucked. Plus there is a lot more character development between everyone in the remake (mainly between will and the robot). It is heart warming if you look for the right things. Just my opinion tho darling
I dunno, I watched the original show when I was a kid, and GREATLY prefer the Netflix version because it takes itself seriously and the family seems more like a real family instead of a picture frame family.
#10 should have been episode where Will, Penny and Dr.Smith were doing a play and the robot came on the fake set with a wig on and said "cause baby, it's cold outside" also robot singing "tip toe thru the window" to a shufflin smith
Happy Days also became pretty silly after Fonzie became popular. Thats kind of what happened to Lost in Space. I still watched Lost in Space, despite missing the more serious show it once was.
@@joelast645 each to their own. Dr Smith and the robot certainly gave the show the comedic style and campness. Possibly without them it would have been more like star trek. The third series though did, apart from a few episodes, become too detached from the original plot. The vegitable rebellion is such an example, that rather mocked the quality of previous storylines.
Will with Smith's face - actually was quite scary for kids at the time. Yes, Lost in Space, although for adults in the first series, became a show for children when these 'run out of idea' episodes appeared. It would have been better to have a six month break - and look at Startrek - if ideas were running thin, before going on. I'm glad the sexism had disappeared by the first Lost In Space movie. Gary Oldman was great at bringing Smith into reality - and still keeping the same character. I wished that they could have continued with this version - before they aged too much. That Penny was great too. Dr Robinson with a beard was also a good change. The one thing that always interfered with the original - was that the Jupiter II was not a TARDIS - the dimensions of the ship needed a perhaps gradual enlargening over time, for the lower decks and the space pod etc. {The chariot looked like it was easily reassembled.] About twice the width and height, [with the main window diminished to fit] would give enough height for three floor levels. The largest floor would have to be around the 'equator' of the Jupiter II - to accommodate all the sleeping quarters and galley etc. I have yet to see an animated version of the Jupiter II redone in a proper size - which should be able to be done with today's video tech. We could easily have colourisation of the more realistic first episodes too. Many black and white programs had very good quality, and could be superimposed with computer graphics where the scene needs them.
That's a fascinating perspective. And it really is a shame about the lack of interest in colorizing the first season (especially since the technology for that process is steadily improving over time). 👍🏾👍🏾🚀
The clear up the air and negative posts, season 1 waspure scifi no doubt. Jonathan Harris knew that his snarling villain would have to be killed off, so he added some comedy to Dr. Smith to gain sympathy from the viewers and it worked. Irwin Allen liked it and wanted him to do more, thus Dr. Smith became the focal point of the show. Mr. Harris did not screw up the show. On the contrary, he saved it. Had another person been cast as Dr. Smith, we would not be talking about the show today. Now, if you knew anything about 1960's TV, by the second season, Lost in Space was going up against Batman filmed in color and campy. Irwin Allen being the smart man he was knew in order to survive, the show had to change. This is the reason season 2 was campy. By season 3, the show changed its format again. The Great Vegetable Rebellion may look campy, but can you seriously say Star Trek was any better? "The Trouble with Tribbles". This show is a good clean wholesome family show. Personally, I prefer it over the crap on TV now. BTW... this so called bad TV show was going to have a season 4, but the network wanted to cut the budget, so, Irwin Allen pulled the plug. The ratings were still good. To all you people that want to trash this gem I have one thing to say... "It Does Not Compute!"
It’s a miracle this show lasted as long as it did. Some of these color episodes were really horrible. A talking carrot? A pirate in space? A silver Mexican alien?
LOL only nine? only nine Ridiculous scenes So many others and so hard to choose the worst. They are all so horrible that they are laughable today but kids loved love loved this show when it was on in competition with Adam West's campy Batman TV show. R I P Mr. Jonathan Harris he was solely responsible for making his character loved by millions of fans.He even did a One Man Show with the Robot down in Australia for tons of fans down there when the show was in syndication and created a whole new generation of fans. Now reruns are being shown in the UK as well.
Yes, I had a hard time choosing between Batman on ABC which ran opposite of Lost in Space on CBS. I was flipping channels big time. Lost in Space won out though since it was an hour program and Batman just a half hour.
I loved the show when I was a kid. Now, would have killed Smith. But I am rewatching the show at 54 & love it. Yeah, it could have been serious but take it for the fun it became
Once Smith took over, the series obviously was meant to be funny, with most of the humor absolutely being intentional, unlike batman and the original Star Trek which was largely meant to be serious.
The entire show was ridiculous... I think that's what made it FUN❣️ The unrealistic nature and still be a hit show... Only in the 1960's and 70's could get away with passing off such ridiculous TV shows as a successful
Space Destructors was a good episode....my only complaint...Judy and Penny had no lines in that show. I did not notice this until years later. Sad they did not use them more. I enjoyed the Great Vegetable Rebellion...because it broke up the Smith...Will and Robot routine and Judy was finally doing adventure and speaking more.
I think someone missed the whole point of Lost in Space :) I loved it growing up and I still enjoy the occasional episodes when I find them. It's mode was "camp" like the Batman TV series. So enjoyable and never ridiculous :)
The first five or six episodes of the first season were quite good. After that point, with the exception of "The Keeper," a two-part episode later in the first season, the series degenerated into Dr. Smith's comedic antics.
There has been a lot of criticism of the new version - but some of the critics must have forgotten just how dreadful the original series could be at times.
True, but you’ll observe that all the scenes here are in color, meaning they are from seasons 2 and 3. The first season, telecast in black and white, was actually very good fo4 the time and is still a classic.
@@LakewoodDallas Well most of season one and many episodes if season 3 were really good but I just couldn't reconcile high adventure and intelligent story lines with dragons and intergalactic con men - not to mention sticks of celery
The original series’ brilliant beauty was that it was obnoxiously over the top - with horrible props, costumes, and childish special effects! And yet their amateurish antics and ridiculous storylines were utterly captivating. Dr.Smith was irritatingly entertaining, and curiously enough in the midst of all that clumsy and experimental space comedy some of the characters even took themselves seriously! The wisecracking robot was my favorite persona.
season 3 the Demise of one of the Best Space Shows on TV.....FOOLS!!! they should have Fired Harris before Season 3...No wonder why GUY WILLIAMS didnt Like him......
I liked LIS too, even though it didn’t take me long, even as a kid, to notice how silly this show all too often was(Captain Kirk would have tossed Doctor Smith in the brig in 5 minutes, tops!) Pity though LIS didn’t get a 4th season. I wonder if they could have had a show where Doctor Smith actually does something brave & heroic(like save one of the Robinson’s’ lives)& become more of a good guy(maybe even say something nice to the Robot...)
My favorite was when dr smith was turned into a vegetable and had his own song. Can you ken doctor Smith with his peas and his greens in the morning.? Truly a masterpiece of insanity.
Loved this show, but only saw it in repeats in the NYC area, i think channel 5. Major part of my childhood. Fav episodes were the one with J-5 tagging along and Smith opening a cabinet and chatting with the insaney hot girl. The other was The Magic Mirror with Michael Pollard as this lonely boy living in this Hieronomous Boesch painting. He tries to pick up Penny when she falls in.
Ridiculous? Maybe. But as long as there was Dr.Smith, Will Robinson and the Robot it was always fun.And June Lockhart always looked good! It was always entertaining and a blast to watch, so much so that I DVR it every week when it`s on Me TV.
Smith should've been tossed overboard from the beginning, but the majority of the episodes revolve around his manipulation of the crew an Aliens they confront. So he can get back to earth. Even though he tried to sabotage the mission an kill everyone, they treated him kindly an trusted him to a point. His manipulation was a basic premise of the show. It became campy though an that's the reason viewership went down. Sad demise for what started out as a serious space adventure.
however, by Star Trek's third season, they had quite a few absurd episodes on their part, remember "Spock's Brain"? or how about "The Way to Eden," with the space hippies, or the episode with Abraham Lincoln in space, or the talking rock creatures...?
This is a great list because it is truly from the most dreadful (but still charming) episodes of the series...though I do like Space Destructors. Castles in Space has got to be the worst ever though The Questing Beast is very close.
I was somewhat excited when Lost In Space first aired and I know that there are a lot of Lost In Space fans but I could never stand that show since the second episode aired. By the last season I'm not even sure the producers liked it, I know Guy Williams said that he couldn't wait until it was cancelled.
Towards the end, the whole series was not unlike some weird dreams one might have. You know the type. Dreams with some odd logic while you're dreaming but then devolving into psychedelic nonsense the moment you awake.
That sounds a bit like my dreams, totally weird and no sense.
Agreed! But you have to remember, the show took place shortly after Ken Kesey and Timothy Leary introduced LSD and other psychedelics to an innocent nation. It’s been downhill ever since.
Culling this down to just 9 scenes must have been difficult. How about the one with all the miniature robots and he was king? Or the one where the Viking woman suddenly appeared on a horse and started singing opera? Or the one where everything Smith touches turns to gold? Or....
Oh those little robots!😅 Allen even saved money by using real toys made for merchandising 😮. 🤓😎✌🏻
I think the "King Midas" one was everything Dr. Smith touched turned to Platinum.
Or the space hippies with their intergalactic motorcycles. Remember that one? LOL
The Viking woman was none other than Mrs. Irwin Allen. In fairness, Sheila Matthews Allen was a gifted character actor who popped up in a number of Allen's productions, including the nurse in The Poseidon Adventure.
There's lot's of episodes that may have become silly. Depends on everyone's point of view. I grew up watching this show and loved it. There was guest actors throughout the show however in season three some episodes started to become a little tired so to speak. From Space Bikies to Metallic Mexican to Space Pirates to Vegetables Aliens. The show became something for kids as those of us who were back in the day. Still is a very popular show otherwise regardless of the ups and downs.👍✌️🇭🇲🦘🐨
I was 10 when Lost In Space premiered. During the summer of ‘65, CBS ran TV spots showing very short tantalizing clips from their upcoming new fall shows. I was so excited all summer long. Season 1 was great, but by the third season the show was more silly shenanigans. Thankfully a little NBC show premiered in 1966 that captivated me and my older bro. It was a little series called Star Trek. 😉
I was 10 as well when it premiered. I remember the commercials for Lost In Space that Summer. I couldn't wait for it to start.
"Season 1 was great, but by the third season the show was more silly shenanigans"
> By Season 1, Episode 2 the show was silly with Dr. Smith being a buffoon.
I think William shatner would have been perfect for lost in space instead of Star Trek.
LMAO
Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo! These scenes are BRILLIANT, especially the robot in drag! And the Girl from the Green Dimension who mistakes Dr Zachary Smith for a 'pretty girl'...!!!
The green alien lady says to Dr Smith, "You pretty, like girl". Smith replies appreciatively, "Oh, how nice".
This was in the episode "The Girl From the Green Dimension".
Her first and only other appearance was in the episode, "Wild Adventure".
@James Gleason - Yes, and Irwin Allen of course was the creator and producer of Lost In Space. Just checked with Wikipedia and she's still with us, at age 83.
@James Gleason - I also really liked the girl from Planet of the Apes. Taylor's cellmate/breeding partner. Lol!
@James Gleason - Re: "Athena"
"The green space girl "Athena" - who hypnotized Dr. Smith while the Jupiter 2 traveled through space - returns when Smith finds her with a dimensional telescope."
--Wikipedia: Lost In Space episodes: "The Girl from the Green Dimension"
"Personal life: Vitina Marcus gave birth to a daughter, Athena, and a son, Giuliano.[1]
She left Hollywood in the late 1960s,[2] and has resided in Las Vegas since the mid-1970s, earning her real estate license in 1986.
She has been in real estate since then as Vitina Graham.[3][4]
--Wikipedia: Vitina Marcus
@James Gleason - Did you catch in my last reply how Vitina Marcus named her daughter in real life "Athena", after the "green lady character from Lost In Space?
As for Linda Harrision, the pretty young woman from the first two Planet of the Apes movies, she, like Vitina Marcus, oddly enough, is not only still around, but also went into the real estate business!...
"Later work: 1990 to 2015:
In 1990, [Linda] Harrison [now 74] moved back home to Berlin, where she opened a consignment shop which she named "Harrison's Peach Tree" half a mile from the house where she was born and raised. Several years later, wanting to be closer to her sons, she returned to Los Angeles and obtained a real estate license...."
---Wikipedia
_________
Personal life:
[Vitina] Marcus [now 83] gave birth to a daughter, Athena, and a son, Giuliano.[1] She left Hollywood in the late 1960s,[2] and has resided in Las Vegas since the mid-1970s, earning her real estate license in 1986. She has been in real estate since then as Vitina Graham.[3][4] ...."
--Wikipedia
I was born in 1965. I saw the show in reruns and I didn't care if it was campy. I loved....LOVED the show because of the family Values and the robot. "Oh, dear!" I didn't care about the accuracies of what 1965 thought space with you like or the future, or the fact that they based aliens on different human cultures, it was fun.
I actually remember the original premise...it was supposed to be a serious outer space adventure story...but then J. Harris turned it into space camp.
It wasn't J. Harris. It was Irwin Allen to compete with Batman since he saw how huge it was at the time.
@@jimliftin1552 In interviews Harris said he purposely changed his character which also changed the show...however, what you said is probably also true. Let's call it a convergance of forces.
@@markmerzweiler832 yes he did say he created the Smith 2.0 character from the ground up since he knew the original character he hated and was going to be killed off early. The character change was Harris' but the writing change was Allen's. I agree it's due to a combination of the both of them as well as the writing team.
@@jimliftin1552 An interesting notion...the show probably would have lasted longer if they had stayed with the original premise of being a serious sci-fi adventure story rather than idiotic camp. The story lines got very weak and predictable towards the end. I would have liked to have seen a romance between Don and Judy and maybe Penny dealing with adolescene and perhaps realizing what a jerk he was and slowly become part of the team.
To quote Will Robinson "Oh no ! I can't stand it !" 😉😊😋😏
Pretty handsome pretty Doctor Smith!!!!!❤
Ridiculous... IN-DEED‼️ [Dr Smith voice]
Also "BAH !" [Dr Smith voice]
"Handsome ,pretty handsome, Dr Smith!" Captain Kirk would have known what to do with a beautiful green alien lady.
Ooooh My!
I love lost in space❤️
2:07 "You not girl!"
"Not until 2018, dear lady."
TheBermudaMan lol
Not until 2018...lol. More like... GURL... for the original Dr.
So... Was she looking for a girl?
@@robertlouisburns I'm a girl and Vitina is pretty hot here!
If they had only kept the serious tone of the first season.
Dave Smith Lol nah
Dave Smith , agreed, when they went from B&W to color, they JUMPED THE SHARK
Truth be told. 1st season was epic.
@ Dave Smith
Smith's character actually began to get silly pretty much around the midway point of that 1st black & white season. Silly, but often funny as heck!
BTW, "Dave Smith", are you and the good doctor, Dr Smith, related? In one particularly ridiculous episode a southern con man drops out of the sky and turns out to be Dr Smith's cousin!
Artemis Rose yes, even The Man From Uncle started to get campy around the same time
The corniness and hokeyness of "LIS"'s last two seasons helped make the show a cult classic!
I agree. The hokeyness was in times with the 60's like Batman and Gilligan's Island and Get Smart. Oh and the Addam's Family and The Munsters too.
Consider that artistic concepts and cinematographic technology was completely other! After season 2, in color, the series became less scientific and more uncompromising, resorting to the comic that was already common in other shows such as Batman, for example. The quality of that today is much more sentimental than technical or content. Let's watch 50 years later and be happy with the good memories and feelings it brings.
Even as a 10 year old child me and my friends were disappointed when Lost in Space turned goofy. My friend Phil was the son of a Fleishmann's research chemist, and loved all things science. So did I, following the space race, building models and playing with electronics and a chemistry set. Our friend Kenny was a nerd like us. We all couldn't wait for the first episode to come out, and excitedly talked about it at the first recess after the first episode... you know, while the other boys were playing dodgeball or whatever.
But it wasn't long before we were all disgusted by the direction of the show, and at some point we all just stopped watching it. I always felt that the producers of Lost in Space ruined an amazing opportunity in not sticking to the original direction, and not going childlike and goofy. Kids are smart, and I know of no one who grew up on this show and didn't think it had not become a laughing stock.
I felt exactly the same way, except that I was a couple years younger than you. I was disappointed by the 2nd season with how corny it had become, but I kept watching until the end in 1968 because I was a loyal fan. Sort of like sports fans of losing teams - in fact, exactly like sports fans of losing teams.
ya notice how the Irwin Allen shows on abc stayed with the serious sci-fi ..someone at cbs decided to make lis more like Batman series..bill paley? 🤔
the scene from Space Destructors always freaks me out....excellent make up job for this show
Will getting Smith's face was actually pretty horrifying in its way. And good make up, compared to most of the fake crap in other episodes!
"The Space Destructors" was actually nominated for an Emmy for makeup design.
@Bruno56 It was sure enjoyable!
@Bruno56 " The hand of friendship"
Agreed
@@adriansherlockdamondark.1094 Another great episode. Keema, the Golden Man!
What was the episode that Dr Smith became strong by doing exercises and was able to break of the chains from his wrists?
I believe Robot recommended: “deep breathing exercises “
I loved Lost in space as akid, Dr smith was my fave.
He definitely became everyone’s favorite.
He was definitely Dr. Smith.
He was the main character. Love him.
The first season was the best. The stories were better written, and the episodes had a different vibe given that they were filmed in black and white. However, seasons two and three were more in line with the feel of the late 1960s with the psychedelic colors.
The Anti Matter man was a good one that was in season 3 I think.
HAHA the ridiculous aspect was what made this show fantastic!!! Smith and the Robot were the True stars but they all were great in their roles. I'll be watching this show till I drop.
When you become a 'useful cog in the vast all powerful mechanism' you know that talking celery and robots in drag cannot be far behind. 😆😆
I was born in 1965, when this began. I loved in in my childhood mind. Looking back at 54, I still love it for what 1965 thought space was. Yeah. Became campy & in reality, Smith would have been tossed over board, but I love it.
Have you seen recent remake release???
I will say that I had quite a crush on Vitinia Marcus (the green lady) when I was a child. (Hubba hubba)
Look LIS was Alice in Wonderland in Space. If you remember the 60s, you got LIS. I loved it.
The first season showed potential - then the second season! - probably the worst. By the third, I think that they were attempting to repair the damage but it was too late. Enjoyable camp forever, though. Not many chances to see talking carrots and celery.
A fourth season was contemplated until the very end; believe it or not, the network would have cut its budget a full 25% for that one -- a sum for which Irwin Allen refused to produce it. Cuts in succeeding years of a show like this are expected -- most of the expensive sets, props, costumes, and stock visual effects required having been bought for the first season -- but a cut of that extent was ridiculous. LiS never fell out of the top 35 shows during its 3-year run, and almost cracked the Top 20 once IIRC. By contrast, ST: TOS was mired in the 50s throughout its run of similar length.
The first season was amazing, it was done very well for such an old show
I think they went the "campy" route to keep the cost down on the show. If they would have kept it serious, it would have involved more space travel, better make up & costumes for aliens. One main reason they put the transporter on Star Trek was to save money for having space shuttle scenes, prob not an option for perceived 1999 tech. As a kid, I liked the more seriousness of the first number of episodes, but as an adult, the campiness of the show and the robot zingers are hilarious.
I keep on hoping that one day the 'Legends of TOmorrow' TV programme will have the crew of the Waverider arriving on the Planet of the Vegetables. That is the only show that has come anywhere close ever since to this level of astute silliness...
I f-ing love Lost in Space.
Doctor Smith is a beautiful celery!!!❤
Smith as celery:..."stop nibbling on me...it IRKS me"...
@@michaelplatek1657 yes! A beautiful celery!💚
I loved this show, though it was often so weird.
These scenes (note none are from the darker First Season) are a reason why the show acquired such an ambivalent reputation with most audiences throughout the later decades of the 20 century. But due to high ratings in syndication and the overall success of the comic books (both the Gold Key and later Innovation run)- Hollywood kept reviving the property with the newest Netflix show being quite successful.
The scene from Space Destructors isn’t that bad.....there’s been far worse!
In context that scene made sense. Out of context it looks ridiculous.
The Space Destructors is one of my top 5 episodes.
You're quite right about that. Not to mention that that episode was more watchable than most of the eps from seasons 2 and 3. Also, the scene from "Curse of Cousin Smith", was more drolly amusing, than it was strictly ludicrous -- compare almost any scene from "Space Beauty", for instance. 👌🏽
@@christopherwood2290 Along with "The Anti-Matter Man", among others. I've always been slightly partial to "Hunter's Moon", as well.
@@michaellaplant9543 Hunter's Moon was good!
Part of me, when I was a kid, wished that they kept the serious exploration tone of the first several episodes, but now I get a kick out of how campy it was and how non-scientific it became, in one episode Doctor Smith programmed the navigation for the ship to return to earth, but they informed him the sun was in the way, like that was an issue for ship that could fly half way around the galaxy., not being able to get around the sun-lol
Jupiter 2 would have been pulled into the gravitational pull from the sun, also in the episode, Dr. Smith dumped all the reserve fuel cells into space, the girl from the green dimension feeds off the fuel. Despite it's campiness, Lost In Space remains a treasure for all audiences, it had a moral compass as well as humor, in contrast to the dramatic seriousness of today's writers, this show in my opinion was ahead of it's time, including the musical scores of John Williams, another facet sadly missing today.
@@skinnybear5743 The Jupiter 2 traveled at nearly light speed and would have had no problem in maneuvering a wide turn and completely avoiding the Sun in our relatively small solar system and then catching the Earth in approximately 10 minutes of flight time.
Definitely could have added something from the Promised Planet.
That's my favorite episode!
@@JENDALL714 Groovy, man, Groovy, out of sight, where is the action?
The promised planet is my favourite episode, why they wanted to grow up was beyond me.
I loved the first season or so of this series... But the campy version lost me..
I liked it better in the third season....the first season was too lovey dovey with Judy and Don....did not care for that paring at all.
Three complete seasons of non-stop ridiculous scenes. I feel great pity for Guy, June, Marta, and Mark. The pain.
Will as a cyborg is not ridiculous at all .. sorry but you got it wrong on that score!
The original series was a goofy, campy, show with a lot of heart. That was its appeal.
The two (so far) remakes have had bigger budgets, better special effects, but have been disappointments - probably because they have no heart.
I kind of disagree the new remake at least keeps me entertained. With the original even though it was supposed to be a "goofy, campy, show with a lot of heart" it doesn't do it for me. It's just cheesy. A lot of the actors in the original have said how much it sucked. Plus there is a lot more character development between everyone in the remake (mainly between will and the robot). It is heart warming if you look for the right things. Just my opinion tho darling
I dunno, I watched the original show when I was a kid, and GREATLY prefer the Netflix version because it takes itself seriously and the family seems more like a real family instead of a picture frame family.
No charm at all on the new series, indeed...!
Oohhh you bumbling niny🤣🤣🤣 I hated that doctor 🤣🤣🤣 man I haven't seen this since I was a boy in the seventies 🤣🤣🤣👍👍👍 thanks.
#10 should have been episode where Will, Penny and Dr.Smith were doing a play and the robot came on the fake set with a wig on and said "cause baby, it's cold outside" also robot singing "tip toe thru the window" to a shufflin smith
When I was a kid, I found it kind of disturbing to see Will with a middle age man's (Dr. Smith) face on his body, kind of creepy. 😂
The scene where Will is a cyborg is not a ridiculous scene!!! the rest are 😳
Happy Days also became pretty silly after Fonzie became popular. Thats kind of what happened to Lost in Space. I still watched Lost in Space, despite missing the more serious show it once was.
The Dr. Smith Show was the best sci-fi show on TV.. it was so ridiculously strange that it was always entertaining.
I LOVE this show! The Robot and Dr. Smith are my favourite characters!
I can counsel you for that.
Definitely. These two made the programme a success.
@@beaufighter245 I think Dr. Smith ...will and the Robot ruined the show. I wanted to see more of the other characters
@@joelast645 each to their own. Dr Smith and the robot certainly gave the show the comedic style and campness. Possibly without them it would have been more like star trek. The third series though did, apart from a few episodes, become too detached from the original plot. The vegitable rebellion is such an example, that rather mocked the quality of previous storylines.
@@beaufighter245 They should have shown more of Penny and Judy....Irwin Allen was sexist and he also treated Guy and June bad.
People took a lot of LSD back. Remember that and think kindly.
Another one was the robot singing the song "Tiptoe Through the Tulips".........
Definitely one of the worst scenes -- not to mention painful on the ears ! 🙉😸😌😏😊😁
My god. When robot flipped that boa around I lost my shit WERK GURL
LMAO!!!!!!
How could you leave out that carrot guy? "YIKES"!
"You Pretty Like Girl"... Foreshadowing of the L.B.G.T.Q...🤗😂
Will with Smith's face - actually was quite scary for kids at the time. Yes, Lost in Space, although for adults in the first series, became a show for children when these 'run out of idea' episodes appeared. It would have been better to have a six month break - and look at Startrek - if ideas were running thin, before going on.
I'm glad the sexism had disappeared by the first Lost In Space movie. Gary Oldman was great at bringing Smith into reality - and still keeping the same character. I wished that they could have continued with this version - before they aged too much. That Penny was great too. Dr Robinson with a beard was also a good change.
The one thing that always interfered with the original - was that the Jupiter II was not a TARDIS - the dimensions of the ship needed a perhaps gradual enlargening over time, for the lower decks and the space pod etc. {The chariot looked like it was easily reassembled.]
About twice the width and height, [with the main window diminished to fit] would give enough height for three floor levels. The largest floor would have to be around the 'equator' of the Jupiter II - to accommodate all the sleeping quarters and galley etc. I have yet to see an animated version of the Jupiter II redone in a proper size - which should be able to be done with today's video tech.
We could easily have colourisation of the more realistic first episodes too. Many black and white programs had very good quality, and could be superimposed with computer graphics where the scene needs them.
That's a fascinating perspective. And it really is a shame about the lack of interest in colorizing the first season (especially since the technology for that process is steadily improving over time). 👍🏾👍🏾🚀
The clear up the air and negative posts, season 1 waspure scifi no doubt. Jonathan Harris knew that his snarling villain would have to be killed off, so he added some comedy to Dr. Smith to gain sympathy from the viewers and it worked. Irwin Allen liked it and wanted him to do more, thus Dr. Smith became the focal point of the show. Mr. Harris did not screw up the show. On the contrary, he saved it. Had another person been cast as Dr. Smith, we would not be talking about the show today. Now, if you knew anything about 1960's TV, by the second season, Lost in Space was going up against Batman filmed in color and campy. Irwin Allen being the smart man he was knew in order to survive, the show had to change. This is the reason season 2 was campy. By season 3, the show changed its format again. The Great Vegetable Rebellion may look campy, but can you seriously say Star Trek was any better? "The Trouble with Tribbles". This show is a good clean wholesome family show. Personally, I prefer it over the crap on TV now. BTW... this so called bad TV show was going to have a season 4, but the network wanted to cut the budget, so, Irwin Allen pulled the plug. The ratings were still good. To all you people that want to trash this gem I have one thing to say... "It Does Not Compute!"
The most ridiculous one of all was not even in here..... It was when the robot somehow grew into a giant, and Will and Dr. Smith walked inside of it.
I remember the episode that had this trippy music that would play and they would all get up and dance as if taken over by it.
Really? I loved that episode....
You not girl, handsome pretty handsome dr smith.
Space Destructors is a good episode. Dr Smith/Jonathan Harris was the major issue about LIS.
Buck Rogers (sp), Lost in Space, Star Trek, Star Wars...natural progression.
It’s a miracle this show lasted as long as it did. Some of these color episodes were really horrible. A talking carrot? A pirate in space? A silver Mexican alien?
In space there are no rules.
The vegetable rebellion 🤣🤣 Green lady from the Green Dimension 🤣🤣. Doctor Smith wiggle nose 🤣
LOL only nine? only nine Ridiculous scenes So many others and so hard to choose the worst. They are all so horrible that they are laughable today but kids loved love loved this show when it was on in competition with Adam West's campy Batman TV show.
R I P Mr. Jonathan Harris he was solely responsible for making his character loved by millions of fans.He even did a One Man Show with the Robot down in Australia for tons of fans down there when the show was in syndication and created a whole new generation of fans. Now reruns are being shown in the UK as well.
Loved that show
Yes, I had a hard time choosing between Batman on ABC which ran opposite of Lost in Space on CBS. I was flipping channels big time. Lost in Space won out though since it was an hour program and Batman just a half hour.
I loved the show when I was a kid. Now, would have killed Smith. But I am rewatching the show at 54 & love it. Yeah, it could have been serious but take it for the fun it became
@@dalesnyder2705 "Oh, the pain, the pain" of deciding between Lost In Space & Batman (grin)
Once Smith took over, the series obviously was meant to be funny, with most of the humor absolutely being intentional, unlike batman and the original Star Trek which was largely meant to be serious.
LOVED THAT SHOW!!!!!!!!!!!
'Handsome, PRETTY Handsome Duke-ter Smith..........make nose wiggle...........'
Most of the ridiculous scenes in LIS happened in Seasons 2 & 3 ... the original format of Season 1 was the best of the show's run.
Season 1 was what it was all about. They ruined the show by trying to compete against the camp of 'Batman' that was winning ratings at the time.
@@stevebennet6539 totally agree with you!
@@stevebennet6539 A race to the bottom.
Athena scared the shit out of me
okay...paul darling
Now I understand why Guy Williams, the Great Zorro, felt ashamed to be part of Lost in Space :-( :-(
The entire show was ridiculous... I think that's what made it FUN❣️
The unrealistic nature and still be a hit show... Only in the 1960's and 70's could get away with passing off such ridiculous TV shows as a successful
Se dieron cuenta que no hay ninguna escena de la temporada 1 ?. Es una lástima que la serie no haya seguido el rumbo marcado en sus inicios
once upon a time when scifi was not a pretentious and seriously repetitive paranoid business...
This TV show was the trippy version of Doctor Who.
All sleepy looking at the thumbnail for half a tic, thinking "what's Harvey Keitel got to do w/this?"
2:00 The scene might be ridiculous, but she was hot.
Oh the pain ! Dr Smith was an amazing creation
Space Destructors was a good episode....my only complaint...Judy and Penny had no lines in that show. I did not notice this until years later. Sad they did not use them more. I enjoyed the Great Vegetable Rebellion...because it broke up the Smith...Will and Robot routine and Judy was finally doing adventure and speaking more.
I always fantasized of being stranded with yummy Judy and an older and hotter Penny on a deserted planet.
Let me tell you , the silly scenes made lost in space fun to watch. Life is too serious as it is!
I think someone missed the whole point of Lost in Space :) I loved it growing up and I still enjoy the occasional episodes when I find them. It's mode was "camp" like the Batman TV series. So enjoyable and never ridiculous :)
The first five or six episodes of the first season were quite good. After that point, with the exception of "The Keeper," a two-part episode later in the first season, the series degenerated into Dr. Smith's comedic antics.
Most people today would not understand what this is... it is called "inocent entertainment" and a "classic" the made my imagination as a child expand
There has been a lot of criticism of the new version - but some of the critics must have forgotten just how dreadful the original series could be at times.
Love the new series! It's not campy!
@@dalesnyder2705 New series is freakin awesome!
True, but you’ll observe that all the scenes here are in color, meaning they are from seasons 2 and 3. The first season, telecast in black and white, was actually very good fo4 the time and is still a classic.
I loved every minute of the original!
@@LakewoodDallas Well most of season one and many episodes if season 3 were really good but I just couldn't reconcile high adventure and intelligent story lines with dragons and intergalactic con men - not to mention sticks of celery
i remembered dr. smith as a super wuss lol
The original series’ brilliant beauty was that it was obnoxiously over the top - with horrible props, costumes, and childish special effects! And yet their amateurish antics and ridiculous storylines were utterly captivating. Dr.Smith was irritatingly entertaining, and curiously enough in the midst of all that clumsy and experimental space comedy some of the characters even took themselves seriously! The wisecracking robot was my favorite persona.
season 3 the Demise of one of the Best Space Shows on TV.....FOOLS!!! they should have Fired Harris before Season 3...No wonder why GUY WILLIAMS didnt Like him......
I liked LIS too, even though it didn’t take me long,
even as a kid, to notice how silly this show all too
often was(Captain Kirk would have tossed Doctor
Smith in the brig in 5 minutes, tops!)
Pity though LIS didn’t get a 4th season. I wonder if
they could have had a show where Doctor Smith actually does something brave & heroic(like save one of the Robinson’s’ lives)& become more of a
good guy(maybe even say something nice to the
Robot...)
My favorite was when dr smith was turned into a vegetable and had his own song. Can you ken doctor Smith with his peas and his greens in the morning.? Truly a masterpiece of insanity.
Makes you wonder what the writers might have been smoking. 😏
Nah, the craziest scene was when on of the cast was being attached by a plug & cord switchboad
Olders don't get this show because they are not with it.
I used to be with it. Then they changed what it was. Now what I’m with isn’t it & what’s it seems weird and scary to me. It’ll happen to you.
@@senorsardonico6153 Thank you Abe.
Loved this show, but only saw it in repeats in the NYC area, i think channel 5. Major part of my childhood. Fav episodes were the one with J-5 tagging along and Smith opening a cabinet and chatting with the insaney hot girl. The other was The Magic Mirror with Michael Pollard as this lonely boy living in this Hieronomous Boesch painting. He tries to pick up Penny when she falls in.
It was a COOL show.....After school, Ma had a snack for us....Man' WE had a GREAT Time!!!!! Thanks MA!!!!!!!
the luscious Vitina & a quick glimpse of the lovely Dee Hartford
Anyone who thought the Gorn in Star Trek was ridiculous should see that suit at 0:16 in the video.
I had a laptop with a "celery" microchip, called the Celeron!
Ridiculous? Maybe. But as long as there was Dr.Smith, Will Robinson and the Robot it was always fun.And June Lockhart always looked good! It was always entertaining and a blast to watch, so much so that I DVR it every week when it`s on Me TV.
Smith should've been tossed overboard from the beginning, but the majority of the episodes revolve around his manipulation of the crew an Aliens they confront. So he can get back to earth. Even though he tried to sabotage the mission an kill everyone, they treated him kindly an trusted him to a point. His manipulation was a basic premise of the show. It became campy though an that's the reason viewership went down. Sad demise for what started out as a serious space adventure.
Unlike Star Trek, for the most part, Lost In Space, about halfway thorough the first B&W season, was intentionally made to be funny.
however, by Star Trek's third season, they had quite a few absurd episodes on their part, remember "Spock's Brain"? or how about "The Way to Eden," with the space hippies, or the episode with Abraham Lincoln in space, or the talking rock creatures...?
Agreed !....the 3rd season was abysmal....Maybe 3 episodes at most are watchable.
@@3dartistguy "Brain and brain... what is Brain?!"
@@Beeracuda922 👍🏾👍🏾👍🏾!! 😉😊😁😆
Alien: “You not girl!” Smith: “Not all the time.”
This is a great list because it is truly from the most dreadful (but still charming) episodes of the series...though I do like Space Destructors. Castles in Space has got to be the worst ever though The Questing Beast is very close.
Agreed. For my money, "Mutiny in Space", is almost literally unwatchable -- due to Ronald Long's non-stop, water buffalo-like bellowing.
Oh the pain!
Ridiculous and best.
Still my favorite show.
Good campy fun.
I was somewhat excited when Lost In Space first aired and I know that there are a lot of Lost In Space fans but I could never stand that show since the second episode aired. By the last season I'm not even sure the producers liked it, I know Guy Williams said that he couldn't wait until it was cancelled.
Good actors, terrible writers and a diminishing budget.
Dr. Smith along with Mr. Kimble from 'Green acres' funniest character parts from 60's TV.. Robert at 67.
Did the Great Vegetable Rebellion have the first woke character? The dude with the purple hair!!!