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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".

I was eight when this show first appeared on TV. I can give no greater example of the potential power of television than by saying that when the control voice came on to take over the TV set, I would run out of the room. I couldn't watch a single first run episode of this show. Yet when it was over, I would relentlessly pump my brothers for information on what happened in each episode. And sitting in my room listening to the sounds in the living room and Dominic Frontiere's brilliant and unmatched score would transport me despite myself into realms of imagination and fear that I quite simply had never conceived of before. When I finally was old enough, and brave enough, to watch this show (and yes, I've seen every episode and now have the dozen best episodes on VHS), I discovered that what the camera had captured was, by and large, every bit as wondrous as what I had imagined. This show changed my life. How can any movie or TV show do more than that? Best 10 episodes: "The Architects of Fear", "Nightmare", "Demon with a Glass Hand", "O.B.I.T.", "Corpus Earthling", "The Sixth Finger", "It Crawled Out of the Woodwork", "The Borderland", "The Galaxy Being", and "The Inheritors". And don't miss the great performances by Robert Culp, Robert Duvall, David McCallum, James Shigeta, Jill Haworth, Martin Landau, Jeff Corey, Salome Jens, Martin Sheen, Henry Silva, Ed Asner, Nina Foch, George Macready, Sally Kellerman, Arline Martel, Warren Oates, Michael Ansara, Ivan Dixon, Leonard Nimoy, and Steve Ihnat - among others. The so-called Outer Limits anthology series running now doesn't have a clue of what "The Outer Limits" is all about. I wish the producers would be honest and just not use the title "Outer Limits". Then I could forgive them their mediocrity. And for those who say the original is outdated, I say you're only missing out on what this show really means. And don't be so sure that what we understand about the universe now - IN OUR SOULS - is better than what we understood in 1963. Thank you, Internet Movie Database. I've finally found the forum to get this off my chest.

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!

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+

I was a fan of this show from the premier episode of "The Galaxy Being" which I saw when I was ten years old. I just recently was given the DVD set of both seasons. It's great to be able to see THE UNCUT episodes the way they were originally broadcast. It's true that the special effects of the early 60's are rather crude compared to what can be done with CGI today, however, the original Outer Limits made up for it by two things which often are missing in todays science fiction movies and series:excellent story lines with equally excellent acting. Another thing which always stood out for me was the music score which accompanied each episode. I was surprised when my teenage daughter watched some of the episodes with me and like them. One episode which resonated with her was "Don't Open Til Doomsday" It was weird having her discuss the episode with me and express the same feelings that I had 42 years ago when I saw it for the first time. I have to say that when the technology allowed for more realistic and fantastic special effects it seemed to take the heart out of good story telling. Even though I watched The new Outer Limits on Showtime and enjoyed it I feel that it still was inferior to the original series.