The Outer Limits

I was nine years old when this classic series debuted. The episodes that scared me the most and the reasons why were: "Nightmare" (the sadistic powers of the Ebonite control rod), "It Crawled Out of the Woodwork" (a swirling cloud-monster frightening people to death), "The Guests" (being dragged upstairs for interrogation by a gelatinous brain), "Don't Open Till Doomsday" (being seized and drawn into a box inhabited by a one-eyed alien blob), "A Feasibility Study" (having your neighborhood kidnapped and taken to an alien world while you sleep), and "The Production and Decay of Strange Particles" (radiation suits taken over by energy beings whose face masks glow with lightning bolts). Episodes I really enjoy now are "Demon With A Glass Hand" (great location in the darkened, dilapidated office building, total suspense), "Architects of Fear" (Robert Culp's superb portrayal of a man being transformed into an alien and losing his sanity), "O.B.I.T" (an early commentary about the dangers of electronic spying and loss of privacy), "ZZZZZ" (insects turn the tables on humankind and send one of their own to our world), "The Bellero Shield" (Sally Kellerman's excellent portrayal of a "murderous wife"), "The Invisible Enemy" (sea serpent-like beasts dragging their victims underneath the sand) and "The Mice" (who could forget the grinding claws and constant stalking behavior of this grotesque monster alien?). I do favor the first season more than the second season, because the episodes and story plots are harsher and darker with very chilling music.

In general, series creator Joe Stefano's suspicion of government and scientific research institutions and their motives is truly admirable. Also, he does not always make the aliens the bad guys, as shown in "Nightmare" when the Ebonite wants to put a stop to Earth-government sanctioned torture of POW's. "Outer Limits" on DVD brings an even richer, louder and penetrating quality to this outstanding series. Also, "The Outer Limits: The Official Companion" is a great book for information about the show's production and episodes.

Let me take you back. Let me pull you there. A male human child of 6 cycles. It is 1963. Dad was cool and suggested we watch this new 'weirdo' show. We did that sort of thing together - bonding, don't you know? From the very first second the show was unlike anything I had ever seen before. The set up? We just lost control of our TV sets and 'they' were going to show us something - 'awe and mystery'. I'm all for that. 'The Twilight Zone' had already done this...yet this was something different. The visuals combined with the truly subversively semi-subliminal (I hope) sound effects - very compelling. It pulled you right in, teased and hypnotized. Then, that gut wrenching music slowly wanders in and disorients. Hurry up, commercial! Get over already! (Commercials were somewhat shorter back then as I recall)

I believe the first episode, which I haven't seen in years, segued right from the sine-wave intro. I also recall the intro as being a bit longer with the first few episodes. I could be wrong. These were on TV and - you know - TV takes liberties. Later episodes started right in on the action...a prologue to tease you for what's to come. Then - a crescendo note of surprise, awe and mystery - the 'sine-wave- intro. I want to watch this! This same technique was later adopted by such peers as 'The X-files'.

Folks! The original Outer Limits intro was fun! It was almost art...the first season anyway. I do like the 'new' Outer Limits on occasion - but that intro of theirs? Ugh, I can't wait til it's over and the show starts. The intro of the original series came as a part of the package.

Then we have those stories. A child of 6 expects monsters to be monsters. Many of these monsters - each horrific in a surprisingly memorable way - turned out to be well-meaning or benign. That will certainly screw with the perceptive 6 year old mind. So, the monster under my bed might not be a monster at all? Wow!

Yes, those stories were assisted by the most symbiotic music I had heard at the time. Those dirges piped in at just the right moment, working the mood into a niche, and making the plot point. You know, we, the audience, were being seduced by the notes to 'listen up! You might learn something'. The second season unfortunately lost these tunes and were replaced by this wavering 1950-ish B-movie ilk. I shouldn't bash it. It wasn't bad - it just wasn't the Frontiere-groove anymore, man.

I could adorn each episode with praises. Even a bad one was better for me than anything else on TV then. If they were on today I would still watch a bad episode. They still made you consider your place in the Universe. Sometimes they even scared the crap out of you. But the good episodes were gems! Those creatures were fantastic. At the time our local station edited 'Architects Of Fear' so we never got to see the creature since it was deemed too scary. The story still held together even without the extra boost a fearsome face would provide. Many years later I finally saw what the creature looked like. I can see why the stations did what they did for that innocent era. I probably would have screamed myself to sleep. 'Zanti Misfits' had me doing that anyway. The 'Bellero Shield' had me upset for years. I think I actually understood the ending at 6 years old.

So, I am not going to keep listing episodes. I like them all and will be owning them in my library.

Bottomline, folks! If you haven't seen any of these - DO! Unfortunately short-lived, these early episodes are a one-of-a-kind example of good TV. Rare and perhaps extinct. A series that didn't underestimate its audience and nearly always challenged them. Giving this an 8 because of the poor second season - though the first season is frequently easily a 9 or above.

This science fiction anthology series that lasted for 2 seasons and 49 episodes, great acting, superb set design, and wonderful stories made this in some ways better than even "the Twilight Zone". I know that statement could very well be considered close to heresy to some, and don't get me wrong I do love Twilight Zone and hold it among my favorite shows, I merely find the endlessly thought-provoking and wonderous episodes of Outer Limits to edge out the great, but reallying on last-minute twists episodes of Twilight Zone. Followed in the mid '90's by a revival show on Showtime that while good in it's own right, just couldn't hope to hold a candle to the original series.

My Grade: A+

If you wanted to know what really good,really spectacular effects along with a good story for maximum effort,then this show set the standard for all science fiction shows as we know it today. And for good reason. For one the stories were based on science fiction subjects ranging for nuclear explosions,aliens and extraterrestials from another world(and some of the most scariest monsters on TV back then!),and creatures from beyond the depths of imagination,and secondly humans who tried to communicate beyond the point of other dimensions and other lifeforms. This show came along with the status of other science fiction shows that domination TV sets throughout the 1960's,with titles like "The Twilight Zone", "Boris Karloff's Thriller","Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea","Lost in Space","Star Trek",and the UFO series "The Invaders". In my opinion about this show it scares the daylights out of me every time I see it. The new version doesn't have a clue to what the original was like,and to me the original rules. Point Blank. Even though it ran for two astounding seasons and producing a total of 49 episodes running in prime-time for ABC-TV from September 16,1963 until January 16,1965,the science-fiction/horror anthology series "The Outer Limits" brought some of the most electrifying special effects ever devised for TV(it would have really fantastic if the original series would have stayed around for another season to make its transition to color but the entire series was shown in black and white). During its first season, the series brought in astounding ratings then toward its second season the powers that be at ABC torpedoed it when it moved from Monday nights to Saturday nights opposite "The Jackie Gleason Show",and "Flipper" which clobbered it in the ratings. Several episodes do stand out as brilliant that made up the guest star roster ranging from future "Star Trek" cast members William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, Grace Lee Whitney, James Doohan and DeForest Kelley. Other guest stars were Donald Pleasence, Adam West, Arlene Martel, David McCallum, Barbara Luna, Jill Haworth to Martin Sheen, Sally Kellerman, Robert Culp, Michael Ansara, Eddie Albert,Cliff Robertson and future Oscar winner Robert Duvall. There were 32 episodes for Season 1 of this series that aired from September 16, 1963 until May 4,1964. For its second and final season when ABC moved the series from Monday nights to Saturday nights in an earlier time slot opposite "The Jackie Gleason Show" and "Flipper" a total of 17 episodes aired from September 19,1964 until January 16,1965 when it was canceled in mid-season. The show that replaced "The Outer Limits" on January 24,1965 was the variety family series "The King Family Hour".

This was a serious and thoughtful series much like "The Twilight Zone"(which aired at the same time) but one which isn't as well remembered or aired, which is a shame, but modern audiences may consider this show talky and slow, as it certainly is different than such anthology series today, which are all about shock value and quick editing.

This series wanted to make its audience think about the potential folly of human nature('The Architects Of Fear') or possible first contact with aliens gone awry('The Mice') and so on. Some episodes were whimsical ('Behold, Eck!) but would still create much imaginative speculative fiction about a two dimensional creature. Of course, you would still have episodes about a sand shark on mars('The Invisible Enemy') to provide the kids with typical monster thrills.

Interesting series that is on DVD, with a memorable disembodied voice introducing the premise and pretending to take control away from the viewer for an hour, which may be the only way you can see it, since unlike "The Twilight Zone", this doesn't get any marathons!