***POSSIBLE SPOILERS***
I'm about to review a TV episode that aired before I was born. It wouldn't be the first time I've done something like this, though this episode aired the year I was born.
Penny Robinson is feeling bored and dejected. She nearly gets blown up while all the males are trying to mine for Deutronium, or whatever they use to fuel the Jupiter 2, and after her father rescues her, tells her to go off and play. Evidently, she already got the same response from Maureen and Judy. The trouble is, on a planet with only seven earthlings, it's extremely difficult to find anyone to play with... or so it seems. Walking off and mocking her family's conflicting orders, she suddenly finds some water near a mysterious cave with an echo that responds to her. At first, she's scared and runs off to tell Maureen and Judy who is trying to get a new hairdo with help from her mom. Whether it's for herself or to woo Major West isn't that important. What is important, is that the device designed to give her that hairdo was clearly swiped from "The Jetsons," and more than likely used by THAT Judy.
Being the friend to almost all living creatures that she is, she decides to do the same to this echo, and names him "Mr. Nobody." Whenever she arrives, she's greeted by the plants, offered a drink of water from a magical fountain, and gains access to the cave by moving a boulder only she can move. The pre-teen brunette beauty continues to tell her family and others from the ship about her discovery, but nobody believes that this "Mr. Nobody" is a real entity, even though they're on a planet where someone or something like him could exist. When she shows Will some of the rocks she got from Mr. Nobody's cave, Will chucks them aside and they land right in Dr. Smith's lap. He realizes they're diamonds, and will make him rich, which of course will only matter once he returns to earth.
Much of the episode involves Smith scheming to get the diamonds, while the rest of the crew has real work to do, as well as Penny who forms a stronger bond with this voice in the cave, and struggling to prove to the rest of the Robinsons that he exists. Realizing Smith is going to destroy his home, Penny flees to the cave and begs Mr. Nobody to reveal himself and leave before their stowaway villain kills him. Smith didn't know and didn't care that Penny was at the bottom of this cave, and due to his excessive use of explosives, she's now injured. Once Mr. Nobody realizes this, he's ready to destroy everybody and everything within their proximity, and not just Zachary Smith! Needless to say everybody flees to the ship and they send the robot to try all their might to defend themselves against this angry cosmic force. Only when Penny is revealed to be alive and begs this entity to spare their lives does he put an end to his rampage.
Something about Mr. Nobody reminds me of the not-so-friendly angel from the "Star Trek" episode "And the Children Shall Lead," but that was Melvin Belli. Mr. Nobody is voiced by William Bramley. Regardless of this it's a known fact among fans of the show that this episode was Angela Cartwright's favorite, and whether in spite of or because of her opinion, it's a fan-favorite as well. What makes the episode so great is Angela Cartwright's A-level acting in a B-rated kids sci-fi series. If you've ever seen the 1987 comedy "Outrageous Fortune," Shelley Long's terrified reaction to what she believes to be the sudden death of Peter Coyote is far above anything you might expect from such a fledgling comedy flick that has been panned more and more by critics and fans as the decades have passed. With all this praise over Miss Cartwright's acting, you would think that the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences would've considered her for an Emmy nomination. But alas, she was completely overlooked. And for that, you must ask why? Is it because she's a kid? She was already in the business for more than a decade at the time. Was it because the show was science fiction geared towards kids and families? Perhaps. Was it because the show was just starting out at time? That's possible too. Whatever the case may be, she made the show better than anybody could've imagined. It's hard to believe this is the same show that once had angry humanoid vegetables and creatures with chewed-up lollipop heads as villains.
I'm about to review a TV episode that aired before I was born. It wouldn't be the first time I've done something like this, though this episode aired the year I was born.
Penny Robinson is feeling bored and dejected. She nearly gets blown up while all the males are trying to mine for Deutronium, or whatever they use to fuel the Jupiter 2, and after her father rescues her, tells her to go off and play. Evidently, she already got the same response from Maureen and Judy. The trouble is, on a planet with only seven earthlings, it's extremely difficult to find anyone to play with... or so it seems. Walking off and mocking her family's conflicting orders, she suddenly finds some water near a mysterious cave with an echo that responds to her. At first, she's scared and runs off to tell Maureen and Judy who is trying to get a new hairdo with help from her mom. Whether it's for herself or to woo Major West isn't that important. What is important, is that the device designed to give her that hairdo was clearly swiped from "The Jetsons," and more than likely used by THAT Judy.
Being the friend to almost all living creatures that she is, she decides to do the same to this echo, and names him "Mr. Nobody." Whenever she arrives, she's greeted by the plants, offered a drink of water from a magical fountain, and gains access to the cave by moving a boulder only she can move. The pre-teen brunette beauty continues to tell her family and others from the ship about her discovery, but nobody believes that this "Mr. Nobody" is a real entity, even though they're on a planet where someone or something like him could exist. When she shows Will some of the rocks she got from Mr. Nobody's cave, Will chucks them aside and they land right in Dr. Smith's lap. He realizes they're diamonds, and will make him rich, which of course will only matter once he returns to earth.
Much of the episode involves Smith scheming to get the diamonds, while the rest of the crew has real work to do, as well as Penny who forms a stronger bond with this voice in the cave, and struggling to prove to the rest of the Robinsons that he exists. Realizing Smith is going to destroy his home, Penny flees to the cave and begs Mr. Nobody to reveal himself and leave before their stowaway villain kills him. Smith didn't know and didn't care that Penny was at the bottom of this cave, and due to his excessive use of explosives, she's now injured. Once Mr. Nobody realizes this, he's ready to destroy everybody and everything within their proximity, and not just Zachary Smith! Needless to say everybody flees to the ship and they send the robot to try all their might to defend themselves against this angry cosmic force. Only when Penny is revealed to be alive and begs this entity to spare their lives does he put an end to his rampage.
Something about Mr. Nobody reminds me of the not-so-friendly angel from the "Star Trek" episode "And the Children Shall Lead," but that was Melvin Belli. Mr. Nobody is voiced by William Bramley. Regardless of this it's a known fact among fans of the show that this episode was Angela Cartwright's favorite, and whether in spite of or because of her opinion, it's a fan-favorite as well. What makes the episode so great is Angela Cartwright's A-level acting in a B-rated kids sci-fi series. If you've ever seen the 1987 comedy "Outrageous Fortune," Shelley Long's terrified reaction to what she believes to be the sudden death of Peter Coyote is far above anything you might expect from such a fledgling comedy flick that has been panned more and more by critics and fans as the decades have passed. With all this praise over Miss Cartwright's acting, you would think that the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences would've considered her for an Emmy nomination. But alas, she was completely overlooked. And for that, you must ask why? Is it because she's a kid? She was already in the business for more than a decade at the time. Was it because the show was science fiction geared towards kids and families? Perhaps. Was it because the show was just starting out at time? That's possible too. Whatever the case may be, she made the show better than anybody could've imagined. It's hard to believe this is the same show that once had angry humanoid vegetables and creatures with chewed-up lollipop heads as villains.
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