Customer Reviews

The Outer Limits (Original Series) - Season One, Vol. 2

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Disc 1-Side A

Don't Open Till Doomsday
A young couple's honeymoon is cut short by the horrifying contents of a mysterious box.

ZZZZZ
A queen bee with sinister intentions is transformed into a human to seek out the perfect mate.

The Invisibles
A government agent infiltrates a secret criminal organization that uses repulsive alien parasites to control its members.

The Bellero Shield
An ambitious scientist, with hopes of taking over his father's corporation, creates a laser that inadvertently brings a gentle alien to Earth.


Disc 1-Side B

The Children Of Spider County
A powerful alien from the planet Eros returns to Earth to rescue and claim his son who has been charged with murder.

Specimen: Unknown
The crew aboard a space station investigates the death of a young lieutenant and uncovers a strange and deadly new life form.

Second Chance
Believing that they're going on a mere carnival ride, a crew of discontented dreamers unknowingly boards a space ship bound to save the future of the human race.

Moonstone
Lunar colonists find themselves in grave danger when they attempt to aid five fugitive alien scientists.


Disc 2-Side A

The Mutant
After being exposed to a radioactive ionic shower, a scientist on a distant planet develops telepathic abilities and is driven to madness.

The Guests
Trapped in a mansion run by a mysterious alien being, a pair of young lovers discovers that eternal life comes at a heavy cost.

Fun And Games
The fate of the entire Earth is at stake when a man and woman are transported to a satellite, where they must fight the members of an alien race for the amusement of their captors.

The Special One
A man with an intellectually gifted son is alarmed by the boy's sudden change in behavior and is suspicious of the boy's tutor, the mysterious Mr. Zeno.


Disc 2-Side B

A Feasibility Study
The people of Earth surprise their alien captors when an entire neighborhood is transported to another planet as part of a plan to enslave the human race.

Production And Decay Of Strange Particles
A nuclear accident creates a rift in the time/space continuum, tearing a hole in the very fabric of the universe and allowing deadly creatures to emerge.

The Chameleon
A government agent faces a crisis of conscience when he infiltrates a band of aliens marooned aboard the wreckage of a flying saucer.

The Forms Of Things Unknown
After murdering an abusive man, two women find themselves in a frightening house where the dead are brought back to life via a time-tilting machine.

During the initial run of "The Outer Limits," I was just a ten-year-old boy; thus, I missed some of the covert aspects of the show. Of course, the monster of the week - the "bear" as the producers called it - freaked me out, but I failed to get the subtleties that the writers carefully crafted in each installment. There are hints of infidelity, homosexuality, and repressed sexual tension in some installments, while other episodes deal overtly with self-sacrifice, marital commitment, jealousy, and betrayal. To highlight which episodes deal with the aforementioned would be an injustice; thus, I will let that "discovery" and/or "interpretaion" be left to the viewer.

"The Outer Limits" showcased some of the best acting talent, veteran and on the rise, of any show of its era. Old pros like George Macready, Walter Burke, Neil Hamilton, Kent Smith, Simon Oakland, John Hoyt, Miriam Hopkins, McDonald Carey, and Signe Hasso guest in some of the best installments in this collection. While their hit roles are just around the corner, this collection also features performances by a pre-Spock Leonard Nimoy, Sally Kellerman before the theatrical "M*A*S*H," Richard Dawson before "Hogan's Heroes" and "Family Feud," Marion Ross before her days were "happy," and Robert Duvall before his Oscar and Emmy.

This compilation features the last sixteen of the show's first season and contains six that were among my all-time favorites: "Don't Open Till Doomsday," "The Bellero Shield," "Moonstone," "The Forms of Things Unknown," "The Guests," and "The Forms of Things Unknown."

Now, after this viewing I must add "A Feasibility Study," "The Mutant," "Second Chance," "The Children of Spider County," "The Invisibles," "The Chameleon," and "The Special One."

The set loses a star, however, because MGM should've given this classic show a five-star treatment, improving both the video and audio transfers.

The original Outer Limits TV series is an excellent example of how great story telling and relatively fine acting could be accomplished on a low budget back in the 60's. The special effects however poor and cheesy by today's standards were very imaginative and fairly ground breaking for the time. Great stuff, and not just in a "So Bad its Good" way. I bought this set to replace a damaged disc in the more expensive remastered set. The images are not quite so clearly defined as in that more expensive set but the difference is not really significant; the picture is somehow warmer more like I remember it growing up. This set is more than just good enough it is a great value.

As a child growing up, I fee in love with the original "Outer Limits Series." Now, Amazon is offering the original black and white classic episodes at a great price for sci-fi enthusiasts like myself. These discs include: "architects of fear," "A feasibility study," "The Zanti Misfits," "Fun and Games," "The Mutant", "Children of Spider County," "The Man with the Power," "Do not open till Domesday", "The Man who was never Born." I am enjoying these episodes immensely and reliving some great childhood memories.

I highly recommend this collection. My only beef is that the entire first season could have been offered as a special collector's set, probably on two disks. Then, fans could purchase all the first season episodes under a sort of package deal. Still, all in all, I consider this to be a fantatic offer.

While there are fewer outstanding episodes in this second half of the first year collection, there are many memorable favorites. My personal favorites are Moonstone (the discovery of good reps of a very alien race in civil war), the Mutant (a human explorer become part of a planet's eco-system, to frightening consequences for his colleagues), the coming together of humans to save their race (A Feasibility Study, easily the most moving episode I have ever seen on TV), and that modern Gladiatorial arena, Fun and Games. This is absolutely first rate sci fi that pushes the envelope, never to be surpassed in my view. (I mean Star Trek is great, but it is largely pap.)

That being said, most of the other episodes also have wonderfully subtle and sophisticated twists, such as the alien who is studying humans inside a massive brain/computer that suspends aging (The Guests), the rebellious son who is becoming the instrument of alien invaders (the SPecial One), and the second thoughts of Robert Duvall in The Chamelon. There are images in these that lived in my mind for decades, such as the woman rapidly aging outside the alien sanctuary or Duvall's mysterious laughter at his extreme physical transformation.

Of course, there are some real dogs in this batch as well, such as the Strange Particle or ZZZZZ. They make little sense, aren't good stories, and lack believable scientific explanations.

Warmly recommended. This stuff is the real deal, at their best mixing drama, wonderful scenarios, and fascinating concepts. The endings are often sad or ambiguous, there is no mediocre deus ex machina happy endings like the ones that so often ruin otherwise great plots on Star Trek and other TV sci-fi.

Outer Limits is not only one of the progenitors of classic science-fiction television, but used the works of some of the finest writers of the era. The working group of Stevens/Stefano/Hall created the "awe and mystery" that kept us enthralled as younger people that stimulated our minds. Sadly, there were only 49 episodes from the original series, but what great fun these episodes were.

The Outer Limits Volume 2 - The Original Series is actually available as The Outer Limits:The Original Series - Season Two except Volume Two is actually volumes 2 & 3 of Season Two, it excludes Episodes 1 thru 16. Lo & behold, this is actually the volume one disc of the Season Two set. I suspect two of the initial three discs were re-released as The Outer Limits Volume 2 because it also includes the Volume 3 episodes. I strongly suspect the original masters to create volume 1 of the first boxed set couldn't be saved, ergo no explanation, just the re-issue of volumes 2 & 3 as a stand alone set. I am miffed at this action by MGM. This is actually Season Two, Volumes 2 & 3.