Fugitive Alien

This 'tv movie' was produced by taking episodes of a Japanese sci-fi show, stringing them together, and dubbing the voices -- and the plot -- using voice talent who sound like the guys on MYSTERY SCIENCE THEATER 3000 This made the viewing very confusing, because I was watching this as an episode of that show. This made it even odder than usual, even for that show.

It seems to be about Tatsuya Azuma, a member of a military group of aliens. He's kicked out of the organization because he won't kill people from Earth. This doesn't seem to stop him from getting involved with other operations of this alleged organization, although he seems to compensate by occasionally killing one of his former associates.

The special effects are decent for television of the era. The only actor whom I recognized was Jô Shishido as "Captain Joe".

FUGITIVE ALIEN is a film apparently edited together from episodes of an obscure 1978 Japanese television series hastily made on the cheap in the post-STAR WARS rush for sci-fi flicks. It goes without saying that the result doesn't make much sense, and it doesn't even have a conclusion - the antics would continue in STAR FORCE: FUGITIVE ALIEN II, which thankfully I haven't seen as yet. Not that I'll be rushing out to buy a copy, because FUGITIVE ALIEN is a pretty abysmal film. Abysmally dull, that is. Although there are space battles, lasers, and people killing each other with would-be light sabers, FUGITIVE ALIEN is one big bore.

For a start, it looks cheap. The interior of the ship is cheap, the planets are cheap, and the special effects are horrendously tacky and inferior. Sure, cheap effects can be a lot of fun, but not here. They just look cheap, poor and unremarkable, with little or no imagination being used on them. People are shot with lasers, flash blue for a couple of seconds and then drop down dead. An effect already clichéd by 1978, when the TV series was made. Watch out for the model spaceship which actually turns transparent for a moment when flying through space. There aren't even as many explosions as you would expect from a Japanese movie.

Another problem is the film's running time - at 103 minutes, it's overlong, and drags incessantly. It invariably feels episodic in nature, with three or four sub-plots (one for each episode) to make things that little bit more confusing. At points the film threatens to becoming an amusing sci-fi variant of the hit TV series THE FUGITIVE, but it always lapses back into mediocre sci-fi action the next minute.

Scenes are ripped off directly from STAR WARS (another bad scene, another guy coming up and saying "I don't like you") and gadgets are stolen from Bond and other assorted spy movies. Sure, a few things are weird - background turning blue, people shining white in dream sequences, the space raiders wearing blonde wigs for some reason under their helmets - but it's never enough. And with cardboard cut-outs for the characters, it's hard to keep watching. I would only recommend this to be watched by small children who are really easily pleased by what they see on television.

Yes, this story of Captain Joe and the Backus 3 (if I remember correctly) is one humdinger of bad film. I don't remember much except shots of the actors in the ship and stuff happening. Having them in a centrifuge or something to give the effect of massive g-forces on their bodies. Them walking around and fighting like they were the power rangers without the costumes and martial arts (if you can call it that). Of course, I saw it on the Mystery Science Theater 3000 so it was great thanks to Joel and the 'Bots. Watch for the forklift part. Joel does this great impression of chipmunked-cheeked Captain Joe. Wait until he laughs and says:"You're stuck here!" imitating the character. It's the only way to see this film and frankly, I dare not see it with the MST3K version. Find a tape of it. They trade them over the net. Also one of the early KTMA episodes of the MST3K that they did over. Just see the MST3K version. Seriously.

This "movie" is really just several episodes of a Japanese TV show stringed together, and it shows. It makes absolutely no sense whatsoever! This was obviously Japanese television's attempt to cash in on the success of "Star Wars." This movie is really badly dubbed as well. Although I think it would be bad subtitled as well.

On the positive end, it was turned onto a really funny MST3K episode. So it's not a total loss!

Hey Network TV: Instead of beating the venerable "Fugitive" premise to death (a tv show based on a movie based on a tv show?), why not seek out a tv series that was flawed when originally produced but still features enough good stuff to salvage into a new, better series? Here's a good example- "Fugitive Alien" and it's sequel, "Star Force: Fugitive Alien 2" are goofy, sometimes-incomprehensible "features" made from re-edited episodes of a Japanese TV show. They're hard to watch in their current incarnation, but have interesting premises and fun plots.

The story is this: Our hero Ken is a Wolf Raider. Wolf Raiders are super-strong humanoid aliens who like to invade other planets and run around smashing things. For some reason they wear curly red wigs when they do this, which is pretty bizarre. Anyhoo, during a routine invasion Ken is ordered to shoot a little boy named Ken, and he refuses. In the resulting scuffle Ken accidentally shoots his best friend and flees the evil Wolf Raiders, ending up floating through space in his spacesuit, waiting to die (already this is hilarious!).

Luckily, Ken is discovered by the Bacchus 3, a Star Force spaceship commanded by the jowl-sporting, hard-drinkin' Captain Joe (possible come-back role for Ernest Borgnine here!). Ken is almost immediately adopted by Captain Joe, who hides Ken's Wolf Raider past from the rest of the crew and offers him a job. This delights Tammy, the navigator, and dismays Rocky, Captain Joe's first mate, who tries to run Ken over with a forklift. There are two other guys on the ship, I think one was called Dan or something. They don't do much. Anyway, the crew of the Bacchus 3 goes on one crazy adventure after another while Ken is pursued by Rita (who is Ken's ex-girlfriend and the sister of the guy Ken killed). They visit a lot of different planets, Ken saves everyone over and over again, and eventually he and Rocky get past the whole "forklift incident".

If this isn't a set up for a hit TV series or even a feature film, I don't know what is. It's certainly a more plausible premise a series than "Cleopatra 2525", that's for damn sure. So please, consider "Fugitive Alien". Maybe you could get Timothy Daly to star in the series version.