Land of the Giants

Scientists may not approve ( I don't think it was aimed at them anyway! ) but in the U.K. in 1969 'Land Of The Giants' was a smash hit. At school on Monday mornings, the number one talking point in the playground was the latest episode of 'Land'. I would try to steer the conversation towards the ongoing saga of 'Dr.Who' in 'The War Games', but it was no use. 'Land' had Britain's children ensnared in its grip. It was kind of like 'Planet Of The Apes' in that it too featured a group of humans who, after passing through a 'space warp', find themselves marooned on a strange world where evolution has taken a different turn. As you'd expect from an Irwin Allen series, characterisation was barely in evidence, but the show boasted some amazing S.F.X. sequences, intriguing story lines such as 'Ghost Town', and the excellent Kevin Hagen as the sinister Inspector Kobick of the S.I.D. As was the case with a lot of U.S. sci-fi shows, the novelty soon wore off - 'Land' was cancelled after two seasons.

After "Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea," along with "Lost in Space" had made their four-year and three-year runs, respectively, Irwin Allen returned to television with this ambitious show about seven travelers (eight, if you count the dog) lost on a world wherein they are "six inch oddities" amongst giant EVERYTHING. The pilot episode, appropriately entitled "The Crash" was, by far, the best of the entire two-year life of the show. Featuring spectacular set pieces, a brilliant John Williams' score, and good (for the budget and the era) special optical effects, though the giant spider didn't work so well.

It's a shame, however, that the show didn't live up to the promise of weekly adventure as exhibited in the pilot. It's obvious that Allen was looking for another Will Robinson/Dr. Smith pairing with the characters of Barry and Commander Fitzhugh. Though actors Stefan Arngrim and Kurt Kaszner did their best, the scripts and the interplay between the two was not convincing.

As far as the other characters, they fit the typical stereotypes: the spoiled rich girl (Deanna Lund), the self-centered businessman (Don Matheson), the brave captain (Gary Conway), the dependable stewardess (Heather Young) and the "token" co-captain (Don Marshall). The latter has the distinction of being the sole African-American to star in an Irwin Allen television production; obviously, the producer was buckling, deservedly so, to have a better representation of the real look of America, as well as the world.

Of the four shows produced by Allen during the 60's, "Land of the Giants" possibly is the most difficult to categorize or even to recommend. It's not campy enough to be remembered as fondly as "Lost in Space"; it's not as adventurous as the underwater adventures of the submarine Seaview in "Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea"; and neither is it as innovative as the time travelers in the shorter-lived "The Time Tunnel" It's just a nice trip down memory lane for those of us that happened to have been around when Sunday nights meant "Lassie," "The Ed Sullivan Show," "Bonanza," and, of course, for two years, "Land of The Giants".

In 1968, when Land of the Giants first aired, I was a 9 year old kid back home in the Philippines. I do not remember much of the episodes by story, only bits and pieces of it. Like the giant gun the little guys used to shoot the giant that was after them. The ax they used made of a match stick and half a razor blade. Air ducts to escape and of course, my personal favorite... the Spindrift! I was most fascinated by the realistic props that were created than the plot of the whole thing. I focused on the small items that we normally see around the house and outside our backyards, transformed into colossal objects that can hardly be moved 5 feet without the help of your friends and a serious workout.

The Spindrift is the reason I became a model maker. I do not know how many times I've made the Spindrift out of cardboard. This was because, in my country at the time, there were no merchandising of any kind for any TV series or movie. And now, thanks to the internet, I just purchased a model of the Spindrift and the entire 51 episodes of the series (as I type this comment out, I'm still waiting for my order to get here). This time I can focus more on the storyline. Of course the impact will not be as great considering there have been tons of Sci-fi movies with way more advanced FX since then like Star Wars. But the memories live on and to me, Land of the Giants will always be the best Sci-fi TV series ever made! I don't care what other people say!

As a child growing up in England in the late 60s, my favourite TV show was "Lost in Space", but "Land of the Giants", which replaced it from time to time in the schedules, was only slightly less intriguing. It didn't boast a character quite so camply magnificent as Dr Zachary Smith (my lifelong hero!), but its parallel-world scenario struck me as deeply haunting and thought-provoking. All of the reviewers who berate LIS and LOTG for their creaky plots and primitive special effects are missing the point; these shows relied on a willing suspension of disbelief, and the imaginative collaboration of their audience (for the most part, children). I pity rather than envy the present generation of children, whose dreams are delivered to them ready made.

Let me tell you for all the people out there who think the props on LAND OF THE GIANTS was cheap, it coast IRWIN ALLEN 100,0000 an episode, AN EPISODE! So think about it,back then that was not cheap that was a lot of money and the props were pretty good for the 60s.I do however agree about the part about the hand,you can see how fake it was.Also,this was after all a kids television show.I know this for a fact because i met DEANNA LUND and we talked about that very same isue.So don't go selling this series so short,it was a fun and exciting series at the time, and a fun filled show you can watch even today.