From: South Central (Tamazunchale@web44tv.net) Date: Wed, 2 Sep 1998 07:41:26 -0700 (PDT) Subj: Space1999: Episode by Episode
SORRY--FORGOT!
This week, Catacombs of the Moon! Monday, August 31 through Sunday, September 6.
Mateo
From: South Central (Tamazunchale@web44tv.net) Date: Wed, 2 Sep 1998 07:53:57 -0700 (PDT) Subj: Space1999: Catacombs of the Moon
This is an episode I most wanted to like. I was already hooked on Space: 1999 by the time half of Year One was over. When Year Two began I already knew all the writers' names and had paid attention to who wrote what. Terpiloff's episodes stood out as uniformly excellent in my mind.
The central idea of Catacombs--as I see it--is that a man, so absolutely distraught over the possible death of his wife, reaches a state of mind that somehow allows his thoughts and emotions to be perceived by an alien intelligence/phenomenon (isn't the ambiguity wonderful?). This alien intelligence/phenomenon REACTS to the man's thoughts and emotions and--I believe--tries to communicate with him. Maybe it feeds his nightmares or maybe his nightmares served as a template for its physical manifestation. The heat of passion taken literally?
He is so distraught he doesn't even realize the significance of what is happening between himself and this entity/phenomenon. Perhaps it doesn't realize either and it is just reacting to his stimuli.
These ideas, and the way they are left open to interpretation--in my mind--are what make this episode stand out! Maya's transformations, though logically worked into the plot--the need for them anyway--just bring the episode down.
Mateo
From: Chris Hlady (chlady@escape4tag.ca) Date: Wed, 2 Sep 1998 21:55:49 -0500 Subj: Re: Space1999: Catacombs of the Moon
Classic lines from Catacombs ( a brilliant episode!!! )
"Verdeschi, you're a genious."
"Oh, that is fantastic. Who said it was unfit for human consumption?"
"Who said you were human?"
"I'm going to find Maya. If I'm going to be insulted, I want it to be done
by an expert."
Chris
From: Petter Ogland (petter.ogland@dnmi4tag.no) Date: Thu, 3 Sep 1998 09:28:43 +0000 Subj: Re: Space1999: Catacombs of the Moon
Mateo wrote:
This is an episode I most wanted to like. I was already hooked on Space: 1999 by the time half of Year One was over. When Year Two began I already knew all the writers' names and had paid attention to who wrote what. Terpiloff's episodes stood out as uniformly excellent in my mind.
For me it is the other way around. I originally felt the Terpiloff episodes were among the weakest entries in Year One, but thought CATACOMBS OF THE MOON was a rather good entry in the context of Year Two and this has perhaps contributed to my revaluation of the Year One Terpiloff entries, enjoying them much more now than before.
He is so distraught he doesn't even realize the significance of what is happening between himself and this entity/phenomenon. Perhaps it doesn't realize either and it is just reacting to his stimuli.
Even more so, just like Dante explains his feelings for Beatrice in the DIVINA COMMEDIA, Osgood's wife is becoming more and more of a symbol for the main character and even if being distraught over the possibe death of his wife this could perhaps only be one of several elements leading to his state of mind. Perhaps the trauma could relate to life on Alpha as opposed to previous life on Earth just like Dante speaks of the old and the new Florence, how modernity has ruined old virtues and noble way of life.
Anyway, I think using the DIVINA COMMEDIA, the classic odyssey of inner life as an element in SPACE:1999, which is partly based on Homer's ODYSSEY and partly on Kubrick and Clark's 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY, is an absolutely splendid idea.
These ideas, and the way they are left open to interpretation--in my mind--are what make this episode stand out! Maya's transformations, though logically worked into the plot--the need for them anyway--just bring the episode down.
To me this episodes stands well out too. I feel this is Anthony Terpiloff at his best, although I agree with Mateo's comments about Maya. Maya makes very little sense in this episode, although she is quite amusing walking down the corridor discovering the battle between Tony and Osgood.
Maya's transformations are probably a result of Freiberger rewriting of the script making no sense as usual. In the first episode, THE METAMORPH, and the Woodgrove/Freiberger episodes Maya's transforming ability is vital to the development of the story. In most episodes however, including AB CHRYSALIS, NEW ADAM/NEW EVE and CATACOMBS OF THE MOON, this ability does not seem particulary vital to the plot.
In the German version of CATACOMBS OF THE MOON, the only version that I am acquainted with, there are two transformations. Neither help the episode develop particulary but neither do they harm too much either.
I quite like CATACOMBS OF THE MOON.
Petter
From: jcg@vh4tag.net Date: Sat, 05 Sep 1998 23:02:53 -0400 Subj: Space1999: Catacombs Of The Moon
First time we've seen Sandra in a while. Is this the first time we hear her called "Sahn?"
I've always liked the scene where Helena and Ben are snapping at each other. It is so much better then the year one scenes where Helena and Mathias disagree...which never sounded, nor was written, right.
I also wonder why that whole scene with Helena and Ben, and then when Patrick comes in, is dubbed. I wonder if it had something to do with the double filming. Maybe there was a period where the two units had to use the same sound stage? I don't know what else could have been such a problem that they got no useable sound from those takes, and yet in the later scenes in that same room the dialog is not dubbed.
Maya as a dog bit and drew blood from Patrick? Maya tasted blood? What conclusions do the more philosophical of us want to draw from that?
In the middle of the heart surgery it occured to me that Michelle should have had an oxygen mask on.
"An intelligence in that heat storm?" Gee Helena, how about Patrick is a whack-job who has cried the fire scenario so often that, like a broken analog clock, he was finally right?
From: langly (langly@home4tag.com) Date: Sun, 6 Sep 1998 20:40:39 -0400 Subj: Space1999: Catacombs Of The Moon
Some things I like about Catacombs:
On the other hand, the space firestorm thing I found to be kinda stupid and "Beta Cloud" was another use of a mysterious cloud, but at least that one provided it's own protagonist.
Rene'
From: Atomic Possum (atomicpossum@toast4tag.net) Date: Sun, 6 Sep 1998 20:12:12 -0500 Subj: Re: Space1999: Catacombs Of The Moon
In the middle of the heart surgery it occured to me that Michelle should have had an oxygen mask on.
Would she? Would it be neccessary? Open heart procedures require stopping the heart anyway, so nothing's going to be moving oxygenated blood around anyway. I would assume that by the tech of 1999's universe, there might be something automated to handle the process, rather than forcing air down the throat.
Any of the members with some medical credentials have an opinion on that one?
Jon "Mr. Wonderful" Stadter
ORIGINAL FREE COMIC STRIPS: http://www.toon-up.com
From: Patricia Embury (Patriemb@sprint44mail.com) Date: Sun, 06 Sep 1998 22:31:01 -0400 Subj: Re: Space1999: Catacombs Of The Moon
They may have had external ventilation somewhere, I assumed it was built into the bed, since it didn't seem like anyone wore oxygen.. But in any type of open heart, or transplant surgery, the patient is put on an external oxygenation source, the bypass machine, where the oxygen and carbon dioxide are filtered in and out through a semipermeable membrane.
Editor's Note: I'm not sure whether the following note refers to 'Catacombs' or not....]
From: Robert Gilbert (bcpgd@shaw.wave4tag.ca) Date: Sun, 06 Sep 1998 19:45:11 -0500 Subj: Space1999: Was one of the Actors who...
...Played the Medical Tech who pushed Maya into Medical when there was _like_ 15 minutes left of the show the same Actor who played Paul Morrow?
From: Petter Ogland (petter.ogland@dnmi4tag.no) Date: Tue, 8 Sep 1998 08:01:06 +0000 Subj: Re: Space1999: Catacombs Of The Moon
jcg@vh.net wrote:
I've always liked the scene where Helena and Ben are snapping at each other. It is so much better then the year one scenes where Helena and Mathias disagree...which never sounded, nor was written, right.
I also like these scenes. In the German version it does not seem as snappy, however, but still good. The tension between Ben and Helena helps to build Barbara Bain's character, I think, which is very good.
Using other characters to make Helena interesting in the way she responds, the way her character was built in Year One, helped her even more in the next installment I think, SEEDS OF DESTRUCTION, which contains fine performances by Nick Tate, Tony Anholt and Barbara Bain, I think, at least according to Year Two standards.
Petter
From: Petter Ogland (petter.ogland@dnmi4tag.no) Date: Tue, 8 Sep 1998 08:34:20 +0000 Subj: Re: Space1999: Catacombs Of The Moon
Maya bee-bopping down the corridor in that whacky get-up, and then coming to Ton'ys rescue;
Wonderfully silly! She looks like a four year old, doesn't she? I wonder who decided on this whacky scene. Robert Lynn who is credited as assistent director on quite a lot of the Year Two episodes was given the directors chair in this one. Very inspired!
The character of Patrick Osgood -- I wrote a piece of fan-fiction about him. He's just wonderful as an antogonist within the normal, happy, cheery Moonbase crew (ditto for Carolyn Powell in "Lambda Factor");
I agree. Patrick Osgood is good. Not unlike John Koenig, isn't he? There are some silimlarities between CATACOMBS OF THE MOON and COLLISION COURSE, I think. In both cases the main protagonist is a nut case, or least appears to be. In COLLISION COURSE we are able to share John Koenig's absurd view of the world which makes it possible to understand his mad behaviour. In the case of Patrick Osgood we only see him the way Helena and Victor were seeing John in COLLISION COURSE, obviously mad.
Nevertheless, just like other outsiders in Year Two, like Carolyn Powell in THE LAMBDA FACTOR and Sanderson in SEANCE SPECTRE, the reason for Osgood's madness is quite understandable. The maddening impact of living in a sterile environment without hope in outer space was never fully explored in Year One, I think, while it in Year Two is one of the driving plot elements.
Tony in a tank top (one of Chris's trivia questions!) and Tony in charge again! Also, his relationship with Patrick, "Patrick, old buddy" -- nice touch;
Tony is excellent as an incompetent commander. I like that. While it was obvious quite early on in Year One that Allan would never be able to take command, Victor, Paul or the substitute for Paul in THE INFERNAL MACHINE was the type of person that would be the natural substitue for Koenig.
Having Tony run Alpha seems like putting the community in jeopardy, like having the window cleaner or the garbage man randomnly taking over the national economy. Totally bizarre and very interesting.
lack of John Koenig (yippee!);
I've noticed your dislike with Martin Landau and Barbara Bain, Rene'. I agree that they are perhaps a bit too old for the silliness of Year Two, but after all if they were written out of the series the only thing that would be left of the original SPACE:1999 concept would be the Eagles.
To some it would perhaps still be SPACE:1999. If they had decided to make a third season perhaps this would have been the case.
2nd (maybe last time?) we see the Catacombs after "Mark of Archanon" -- a nifty escape spot for Alpha and bit of a change of scenery, eh? Actually, it's like they had to justify the expense of the rock caves from "Metamorph". Anyone have any thoughts on the use and re-use of these cave props?
I never thought of it in this way. They used cave props in END OF ETERNITY as well, but it did not seem that they were particulary in need of re-using those in Year One. Perhaps they were left over from FULL CIRCLE or DEATH'S OTHER DOMINION?
Personally I feel the caves are excellent devices in Terpiloff's Danteish plot of creating an infernal environment. Good episode, CATACOMBS OF THE MOON.
On the other hand, the space firestorm thing I found to be kinda stupid and "Beta Cloud" was another use of a mysterious cloud, but at least that one provided it's own protagonist.
It's interesting that you like THE BETA CLOUD. I look forward to hear more about that in a couple of weeks.
Petter
From: Ariana (ariana@n44direct.co.uk) Date: Tue, 8 Sep 1998 09:42:12 +0100 Subj: Re: Space1999: Catacombs Of The Moon
Tony in a tank top (one of Chris's trivia questions!) and Tony in charge again!
Hehe. At last someone who actually likes the guy! Having read several fanfic pieces where he either got short shrift or got killed (with obvious relish) by the author, I was beginning to wonder!
As to the tank top -- I didn't remember it originally, but having seen the pic at the Cybrary, it all came rushing back. Very Seventies modern. <g>
lack of John Koenig (yippee!);
Tsk, tsk. You're worse than my boyfriend, who recoils in horror whenever there's a close-up of Dr Russell (and promptly gets thumped by me <g>).
On a completely unrelated note: Brian, I've tried to mail you twice, but the message bounced saying "the pipe has ended" (don't you love those cryptic bounce messages). Is there something wrong with your mailbox?
Enough for now...
Emma
Visit the Space:1999 Fanfiction Archive at:
http://www.alpha.ndirect.co.uk/s1999/
From: "Simon Morris" (simes01@global44net.co.uk) Date: Tue, 8 Sep 1998 11:04:52 +0100 Subj: Space1999: Which Episode Are We On??
Hello folks
Having just come back to the List after a couple of weeks away,could someone just tell me what episode we are currently looking at? Is it "Catacombs of the Moon" or are the couple of posts I've seen just tidying up some comments on that one?.
The last episode that we were looking at before I went away was "New Adam New Eve",so which ones have been done in my absence? Cheers
Simon
From: "Petter Ogland" (petter.ogland@dnmi4tag.no) Date: Tue, 8 Sep 1998 10:31:26 +0000 Subj: Re: Space1999: Which Episode Are We On??
As far as I remember we have recently done NEW ADAM/NEW EVE, AB CHRYSALIS and are now on the final note of CATACOMBS OF THE MOON ready to investigate SEEDS OF DESTRUCTION I believe.
Knowing that Simon has a vast amount of knowledge on UK script writers, you wouldn't like to give some insights on Anthony Terpiloff while we're still at it?
Pesonally I feel Terpiloff plays a rather central part in the SPACE:1999 saga, but my understanding of him as a writer has been extremely speculative so far. Some facts and insights would be very welcome.
Petter
From: "Simon Morris" (simes01@global44net.co.uk) Date: Tue, 8 Sep 1998 12:28:49 +0100 Subj: Re: Space1999: Which Episode Are We On??
Thanks for the reply Petter: I might try and quickly put some thoughts on CATACOMBS together later today. I don't feel disadvantaged for having missed out on AB CHRYSALIS as I never cared much for that one(not sure why!). I'm looking forward to SEED OF DESTRUCTION though as that's one of my favourites!
As for Anthony Terpiloff....well, I don't know anything about him,strange as it may seem. His is not a name that appears to have cropped up much(if at all?)in British TV,other than the work he and Elizabeth Barrows did for SPACE 1999. I wonder if Johnny Byrne could tell us more?
Simon
From: "Simon Morris" (simes01@global44net.co.uk) Date: Tue, 8 Sep 1998 16:05:29 +0100 Subj: Space1999: Catacombs of The Moon
John Kenneth Muir describes this episode as the worst of either series and a "disastrous stinker on every level imaginable", and I was very surprised to read that in his book EXPLORING SPACE:1999. Many members of FANDERSON on the other hand seem to think it comes closest to the quality of scripts seen in Year 1. I don't actually believe either of this views....IMHO the truth,as usual,lies somewhere in the middle.
It may have been Petter that described "Catacombs" as a parody of Y1 within the Y2 framework. Well,maybe there are some arguments to support that,but I don't think that Terpilloff actually intended it. I would say that he simply attempted to write an episode that came close to the sort of story he wrote for Y1("Deaths Other Dominion" being one of the most absorbing,effective and literal of any sci-fi series ever seen on television). If it partly failed in that objective it was because of the re-writing of the script to accomodate(presumably),the loss of certain key regulars-especially Koenig and Maya-for much of the episode. Consequently parts of it look cobbled together,with some "Freiberger-isation" that undermined some of what Terpilloff originally wrote.
Still, a good decision was made at the outset with the casting of James Laurenson as Patrick Osgood(what a good regular character he would have made). Laurenson is a respected member of the Royal Shakespeare Company and an accomplished actor in all mediums,still seen on stage today in the UK and occasionally in tv dramas. Laurensons performance lifts the episode immeasureably. Interestingly,in the Michael Butterworth novelisation,Osgood is portrayed as a powerful,bearded man-considerably different to Laurenson's appearance. This appears to have been based in part on Terpilloffs original draft,and I would suggest reading the novelisation as it seems closer to what Terpilloff originally intended. There has been speculation in fan circles that,had Terpilloffs original vision of Osgood been followed,Brian Blessed would have been the ideal actor for the part and I would certainly agree with this. That said,I very much enjoyed Laurenson's contribution to the episode as it eventually turned out....
I liked the conflict displayed between Helena and Ben Vincent in the episode(nicely played by Jeffrey Kissoon),but I agree with John Kenneth Muir that-for this episode anyway-Vincent has been arbitrarily changed to something of a sarcastic bastard. Yes,it heightened the tension between Helena and Ben but was not,for all that,entirely believable(at least not to me).
An interesting quandary for Koenig to face: saving Michelle's life by releasing Tiranium or sentencing her to death so that the majority of Alphans have a better chance of survival. I think Koenig was clearly troubled by the decision he made but I also believe he had no choice.(Incidentally I think the episode also suffered by the loss of Landau for most of the story...I would have preferred him to take more of the action as opposed to Anholt,where there might have been more effect. Koenig and Osgood as friends would have harked back in a sense to the friendship and faith Koenig shows to his friends as seen in "Dragon's Domain",where he doggedly supports Tony Cellini through thick and thin...)
Uhh,what are all these comments about the way Maya walks down the corridor in her slinky dress? I watched the sequence three times and couldn't see what some of you are getting at. The sequence was clearly filmed well apart from the rest of the episode and is merely an unsatisfactory "insert" of a shot of Catherine Schell into an episode that she was clearly not available to take part in. IMO its clumsily inserted into the story-you don't even see her after she has transformed into the dog(not until later when she is dropped clumsily into the episode again,anyway).
Nice to see a Security Guard that actually has a few lines of dialogue for a change,though as I understand it this is merely a way of performing lines that were originally written for Maya.
Crap dialogue: "Hey-what a cloud!" "There's no need to state the obvious" and " Well,we sure can't tell from the outside". "Yeah,but I want to know whats on the other side.." ZZZZZZ! (Based on the cracking dialogue that Terpilloff wrote for Y1,such as "Deaths Other Dominion", I can't believe he wrote some of the rubbish in this episode). As a sideline.I'd like to say here how I enjoyed John Hug's performance as Bill Fraser in Y2,and how disappointed that he wasn't used in "Catacombs of the Moon".
Osgood is clearly presented as someone who is unbalanced and lets be honest,its not un-natural given what he and his wife are going through. Something must have triggered this though,surely? Osgood seems to have become a religious nutcase to boot and I would presume that he had never previously behaved like this as Verdeschi's dialogue would have revealed it(they were,after all,supposedly good friends). I find this a deeply unsatisfying aspect of the script. What is the link between Osgood's visions and instability,and the firestorm? I don't think it was ever explained and the firestorm as a result seems to be pure phantasmagoria. Anyway,back at Moonbase meanwhile we have some more crappy dialogue:
Verdeschi: "Just as well we're following a prophet"
Security Guard: "Unless *he* explodes!" YUK-Again,can't believe Terpillioff
wrote this crud.
There is the next cursory insert of Maya down in the catacombs,where Verdeschi calls her to help find Osgood. She changes into a tiger....do they have extraordinary eyesight or something for this transformation to make sense or is it mere dramatic licence to get a spectacular animal into the story(in other words,something entirely gratuitous?). I cracked up then because they intercut scenes of Helena operating on Michelle with scenes of Tony Verdeschi trying to shift tons of rock off his stricken friend!!! Where did Maya go? Bearing in mind she previously was expressing concern as to where Osgood now was,why wasn't she then shown transforming into that godawful gorilla or something similar that could help Tony lift all that stone? (After all,that device had been used in plenty other Y2 episodes). But no: Maya once again has disappeared as swiftly as she arrived. Wholly unsatisfactory and completely careless plotting/scripting. Who knows if it was Terpilloff or Freiberger to blame?
The epilogue seems pure Freiberger to me. I tended to like the humour provided by Tony and his beer making but in the context of what had happened in the rest of the episode,it seems misplaced here. Tony himself posed the question as to Osgood's behaviour(which almost killed him,Osgood and Michelle)but then is totally disinterested in Helena's(rather unconvincing)explanation of it all. Tony is more absorbed in his latest brew.
And that about sums the episode up. I liked it,but didn't care for the rather heavy-handed theme of "FAITH"(which we were hit over the head with several times). Or rather,I liked the theme but not the way it was constantly paraded. Too much of the episode was unexplained:what was the point of the firestorm/what was its link to Osgood/if it was responsible for his behaviour,then for what purpose/why did it just disappear at the end of the show?? etc etc. Also I think that with the script having been re-written to accomodate the absence of certain actors(Landau,Schell) while they filmed another episode there is a knock on effect with the result that some of the plotting begins to look very shaky indeed. In fact,I get the impression that CATACOMBS OF THE MOON was probably a damn good episode before being probably re-structured in a great hurry,and causing it quite a lot of damage. And thats a great pity.
Simon Morris
From: djlerda@juno4tag.com Date: Tue, 08 Sep 1998 11:14:56 EDT Subj: Space1999: Catacrumbs of the Moon
Well, since everyone else seems to like this episode, I felt I had a duty to post even though it appears I'm a voice crying in the dark.
IT STUNK!
or, to quote John Muir's book "Exploring Space:1999":
"This is it. Inarguably the worst episode of Space:1999, 'Catacombs of the Moon' is a disastrous stinker on every level imaginable."
The whole episode just reeks. Totally unintelligible plot with none of the mystery and charm that made Year One so special. And James Laurenson's acting is so over the top that it goes beyond hilarious and into self parody. The man looks genuinely in pain. And I don't mean in pain as in giving a great performance but in pain from struggling not to crack up at having to recite the idiotic dialog.
I get the feeling that this episode was thrown together in 15 minutes over a pastrami sandwich in Freiberger's office. I can see it now: "Hey, Terpiloff, I had an idea for a scene with two babes walking down the corridor in Alpha in their bathing suits. Write a show around it, will ya? Bring me a script by noon so we can get this baby in the can by Friday. By the way, do you want extra mustard on your sandwich?"
David J Lerda
"Just because we haven't experienced something
doesn't mean it doesn't exist" - John Koenig
From: bjscannell@spry44net.com Date: Tue, 8 Sep 1998 12:11:11 -0500 Subj: Space1999: Catacrumbs of the Moon
Hello All,
I've been watching all the eps in order from Breakaway to this one and it is the first one I can honestly say I can't find anything positive about it.
I think the story doesn't work for me. I wonder if there were problems with communication that unlike with other eps, couldn'd be fixed in the cutting room post production. It looks to me as if the crew, all of them, became less cohesive , like a band with new members it wasn't tight, it shows in the final work.
Barry
White Left Sleeve #143 "Cut all the checks, Lift Off!"
http://home.sprynet.com/sprynet/bjscannell/
Barry's Eagle Modeling Page: Main Motors
From: David Welle (dwelle@itol4tag.com) Date: Tue, 08 Sep 1998 13:36:12 -0500 Subj: Space1999: Catacombs of the Moon
Lacking time in the middle of ten different things, I'll keep my comments about this episode very short, especially since I'm late anyway.
I've never liked this episode. In fact, it ranks as my least favorite of Y2, and second worst of the whole series, "beaten" only by "Ring Around the Moon." In fact, curiously enough, some of the reasons are similar. There is entirely too much of people doing things for odd reasons or no apparent reasons at all (IMO, of course), under the influence of a confusing and unconvincing outside force, and is overall just utterly uninspiring.
[EDITOR'S NOTE: This triggers another thread, mostly about 'Ring Around the Moon.']
The constant dream imagery in "Catacombs" is one example. Very rarely has a TV series or movie pulled such an overdramatic one off without it looking corny to me, and I'm afraid "Catacombs" is part of the rule rather than one of the exceptions. Y1 tended to use this on occasions more often than Y2, and Y2 really doesn't work it around much better.
In fact, this episode has more of a Y1 "feel" about it in many ways, but unfortunately, it is largely on the worse side than the better side of this feel, I'm afraid, which is reflected in that all but one of the Y1 episodes are better than "Catacombs" -- most much better -- in my opinion.
Patrick Osgood somehow came across as more of a crackpot than anything, despite the largely accurate nature of his perceptions. I'm not entirely sure why I feel this way. Maybe because the coming fire never did any real damage to Alpha in the end, almost making it seem the fire imagery was a red herring, or sort of add-on, to the main story, about the dying Michelle. Or maybe it was because it drove him to do things that only worsened her condition rather than helped. Maybe that was the point, but his character never really "gelled" together well in my mind. Michelle was sympathetic as the dying woman, but when they "threw" her into Patrick's fire visions, I'm back to the same problems with that aspect.
I did find the whole battle over the scarce resource Michelle's artificial heart needed, was interesting, and Verdeschi's making a decision that overrode the absent, albeit in contact, Koenig. I also liked this episode pointing out the catacombs again (after "Mark of Archanon"), showing there was a vital effort going on there, but other than showing the mining process, I found the rest of the action down there entirely uninspiring.
Ironically, as much as I like Maya, even I thought her presence in this episode was entirely spurious. This despite the fact that it did portray the simple fact that she doesn't have to be involved in everything, and can sometimes just be called when really needed. That fact stands true on its own, but the direction (or writing?) seemed to make even her momentary presences seem awkwardly tacked on, instead of just the "day-to-day" of Alpha.
Yet most of the characters, regular and guest, suffered from this tacked-on feeling, which again tells me there was more wrong with characterization (and plot) than the spurious nature of Maya's appearances, like there were major problems with the story as originally written, or as directed. Maybe everyone had something of the flu bug that week, and felt out of it. I don't know.
The whole episode just feels like a big sloppy mess from which no firm picture ever really emerges from. Some of the details were interesting, but most of the framework and scenes just didn't work for me, and the characters (regular and guest) couldn't get it to work either.
As I said, one of my least favorites of the whole series. D-/0.5
My 1.999 cents,
---- David Welle
From: "Simon Morris" (simes01@global44net.co.uk) Date: Tue, 8 Sep 1998 19:56:18 +0100 Subj: Re: Space1999: Catacombs of the Moon
The constant dream imagery in "Catacombs" is one example. Very rarely has a TV series or movie pulled such an overdramatic one off without it looking corny to me, and I'm afraid "Catacombs" is part of the rule rather than one of the exceptions. Y1 tended to use this on occasions more often than Y2, and Y2 really doesn't work it around much better.
Yes-in fact the constant dream sequences I felt were a rather tedious element of the episode.
In fact, this episode has more of a Y1 "feel" about it in many ways, but unfortunately, it is largely on the worse side than the better side of this feel, I'm afraid, which is reflected in that all but one of the Y1 episodes are better than "Catacombs" -- most much better -- in my opinion.
Well,I wouldn't say that "Missing Link" was better than "Catacombs",but point taken heh heh...
Patrick Osgood somehow came across as more of a crackpot than anything, despite the largely accurate nature of his perceptions. [....] his character never really "gelled" together well in my mind. Michelle was sympathetic as the dying woman, but when they "threw" her into Patrick's fire visions, I'm back to the same problems with that aspect.
Yep,me too. In my review I did mention that there was no real explanation for any of this in the story:it was all pure hokum. There was no reason for Osgood to be a nutcase,no evidence to show that he'd ever behaved like this previously on Alpha,and therefore why now? Helena had a half hearted attempt at the end of the episode but it sounded more like an attempt by Terpilloff/Freiberger to explain the myriad inconsistencies of this story.And not a successful attempt either!
Ironically, as much as I like Maya, even I thought her presence in this episode was entirely spurious. This despite the fact that it did portray the simple fact that she doesn't have to be involved in everything, and can sometimes just be called when really needed. That fact stands true on its own, but the direction (or writing?) seemed to make even her momentary presences seem awkwardly tacked on, instead of just the "day-to-day" of Alpha.
Indeed Dave,and as I said,I think the reason was that the script had been re-written(at speed I would guess).Originally Maya had a much larger part. As Catherine Schell and Martin Landau were filming a different episode the script had to be re-written to accomodate the problem. In my opinion,they might just as well have left Maya out altogether rather than "edit in" a couple of appearances. I suspect the only reason they even did this was to satisfy the requirement for a couple of Maya transformations in a story which wouldn't have suffered without them.
Yet most of the characters, regular and guest, suffered from this tacked-on feeling, which again tells me there was more wrong with characterization (and plot) than the spurious nature of Maya's appearances, like there were major problems with the story as originally written, or as directed. Maybe everyone had something of the flu bug that week, and felt out of it. I don't know.
See above. I can't remember if Landau Tate and Schell weren't filing AB Chrysalis or something and were hence unavailable. But bearing in mind that simultaneous filming of 2 stories occurred several times in Y2(a bad idea if ever there was one),it seems strange that this episode suffered far more badly than any of the others through being chopped about.
The whole episode just feels like a big sloppy mess from which no firm picture ever really emerges from. Some of the details were interesting, but most of the framework and scenes just didn't work for me, and the characters (regular and guest) couldn't get it to work either.
I wouldnt go quite that far. I quite liked the episode but have always had the feeling that there was less to it than met the eye. Certainly I don't think its as good as many think. I always get the impression that because there are no bug eyed monsters or out and out villains as per a lot of Y2 episodes,some people try to dignify the episode as "well written","exploring the nature of faith"(groan),"very like Y1" etc etc. I still think that when it started out,this was probably a fine episode. But something happened along the way to change all that.......
Simon
From: "Petter Ogland" (petter.ogland@dnmi4tag.no) Date: Wed, 9 Sep 1998 11:42:33 +0000 Subj: Re: Space1999: Catacombs of The Moon
Simon Morris wrote:
John Kenneth Muir describes this episode as the worst of either series and a "disastrous stinker on every level imaginable", and I was very surprised to read that in his book EXPLORING SPACE:1999.
I was not surprised at all, generally feeling that Muir's taste in sci-fi is somewhat different from mine. Personally I feel much closer to people like Pierre Fageolle who quotes Michel Butor and Wassiley Kandinsky in order to explain the essence of SPACE:1999. That makes much more sense.
Many members of FANDERSON on the other hand seem to think it comes closest to the quality of scripts seen in Year 1.
The FANDERSON people certainly seem to know what they are talking about. I have great respect for much of their efforts. The Web-pages devoted to SPACE:1999 are certainly good.
It may have been Petter that described "Catacombs" as a parody of Y1 within the Y2 framework. Well,maybe there are some arguments to support that,but I don't think that Terpilloff actually intended it.
I believe I may have said something along these lines when desperately trying to make sense out of Terpiloff's contributions during Year One.
As a matter of fact, I feel Anthony Terpiloff a writer who works much better withing the fantasy or fairytale context of Year Two rather than the more realistically oriented Year One.
Disregarding Maya and some of the silly stuff obviously added by Freiberger, I think CATACOMBS OF THE MOON is a rather good episode, one of the better ones of Year Two actually.
I would say that he simply attempted to write an episode that came close to the sort of story he wrote for Y1("Deaths Other Dominion" being one of the most absorbing,effective and literal of any sci-fi series ever seen on television).
I don't find CATACOMBS OF THE MOON particulary worse than DEATH'S OTHER DOMINION. On the contrary, actually, where DEATH'S OTHER DOMINION completely misses out on the regular SPACE:1999 context in order to try for "fantasy" with wizards and witches and other absurdities, this type of approach seems much more fit within the framework of Year Two, I feel.
As I find DEATH'S OTHER DOMINON and THE INFERNAL MACHINE close to awful within the Year One context, they seem very well suited within the Year Two framework. CATACOMBS OF THE MOON is a nice example of Terpiloff finally getting content and context fitting together, I think.
Laurensons performance lifts the episode immeasureably.
I agree very much. Magnificent performance by Laurenson!
There has been speculation in fan circles that,had Terpilloffs original vision of Osgood been followed,Brian Blessed would have been the ideal actor for the part and I would certainly agree with this. That said,I very much enjoyed Laurenson's contribution to the episode as it eventually turned out....
Perhaps Terpiloff thought of it as a sort of follow-up on DEATH'S OTHER DOMINION. CATACOMBS OF THE MOON seem to be heavily modeled on Dante's DIVINA COMMEDIA, and there are certainly elements in DEATH'S OTHER DOMINION that would fit that description as well.
Perhaps Terpiloff wanted Osgood more like a sort of Shylock character? Shakespeare and Dante come strongly to my mind in at least four or perhaps even all of the five episodes Terpiloff wrote for SPACE:1999.
I liked the conflict displayed between Helena and Ben Vincent in the episode(nicely played by Jeffrey Kissoon),but I agree with John Kenneth Muir that-for this episode anyway-Vincent has been arbitrarily changed to something of a sarcastic bastard. Yes,it heightened the tension between Helena and Ben but was not,for all that,entirely believable(at least not to me).
I liked it, however. Much of the magic of Barbara Bain in Year One had to do with her responding to others, and here we have a small glimpse of what could have been again. Mind you, in SEEDS OF DESTRUCTION I feel she does one of her very best portrayals of dr. Helena Russell of Year Two, interestingly confused about John aggressive behaviour.
also suffered by the loss of Landau for most of the story...I would have preferred him to take more of the action as opposed to Anholt,where there might have been more effect. Koenig and Osgood as friends would have harked back in a sense to the friendship and faith Koenig shows to his friends as seen in "Dragon's Domain",where he doggedly supports Tony Cellini through thick and thin...)
While I thought the buddy idea for DRAGON'S DOMAIN was absolutely idiotic, I think the possibilities you suggest for CATACOMBS OF THE MOON, Simon, are very good indeed. It would not surprise me if this was how Terpiloff had originally written it but Freiberger having to rewrite as Landau was shooting another episode in parallell.
Uhh,what are all these comments about the way Maya walks down the corridor in her slinky dress? I watched the sequence three times and couldn't see what some of you are getting at.
I thought that sequence was hilarious. Especially the whacky introduction where she strolls down the corridor with blank eyes like a four year old. The only thing missing is her licking a lollipop.
Without the involvement of Fred Freiberger I believe Year Two could have been something much better. As can be seen by the later episodes of Year One, the change of format was not something that was forced upon the group by Freiberger alone. Obviously the ITC executives in New York were a bit worried and certainly must have had much of the responsibility for the ghastly jackets, stupid dialogue and awful type of acting by Landau and Bain in DRAGON'S DOMAIN.
It is obvious that Year Two would not be a reprise of Year One. It is sad, however, that they had to overdo it by using Hanna Barbera and STAR TREK to have it survive another season. Today SPACE:1999 is rated one of the all time worst TV sci-fi series by some, obviously people who have only seen Year Two.
more crappy dialogue:Verdeschi: "Just as well we're following a prophet" Security Guard: "Unless *he* explodes!" YUK-Again,can't believe Terpillioff wrote this crud.
Well. I don't think that was all bad. If Osgood had been introduced as a sort of alter ego to John Koenig, like Cellini in DRAGON'S DOMAIN, Verdeschi line had been very good indeed, I think.
Where did Maya go? Bearing in mind she previously was expressing concern as to where Osgood now was,why wasn't she then shown transforming into that godawful gorilla or something similar that could help Tony lift all that stone? (After all,that device had been used in plenty other Y2 episodes). But no: Maya once again has disappeared as swiftly as she arrived. Wholly unsatisfactory and completely careless plotting/scripting. Who knows if it was Terpilloff or Freiberger to blame?
Heh heh. How many Freibergers does it take to fix a light bulb?
My general feel is that when things are developing even more silly than one would thing possible, only one writer would happily sign his name on that and explain it as illustrating "real relationships", "honest adventure", "humour" etc.
And that about sums the episode up. I liked it,but didn't care for the rather heavy-handed theme of "FAITH"(which we were hit over the head with several times).
Good. I liked it too. I would even go as far as declaring it one of the best Year Two episodes as far as I'm concerned. The theme of FAITH was well handled, I feel, in a very typical Terpiloff manner. Hitting us over the head doesn't worry me at all. I consider that must have something to do with Terpiloff wanting to emphasise the importance of the concept and doing so by SHOUTING LOUD AND OFTEN!!! (rather than forwarding it in a more sophisticated manner like di Lorenzo, Byrne or Penfold would have done).
In fact Freiberger and Terpiloff makes a nice pair, I think. It is sad that they did not collaborate on other projects.
In fact,I get the impression that CATACOMBS OF THE MOON was probably a damn good episode before being probably re-structured in a great hurry,and causing it quite a lot of damage. And thats a great pity.
That's a pity, I agree, feeling your final comments making a lot of sense. Nevertheless, I still feel it is a good episode with very much Terpiloff feel to it, just like THE IMMUNITY SYNDROM is a good episode, I feel, with very much Byrne feel to it and even DORZAK is quite interesting, despite what Penfold says about Freiberger wrecking it like he wrecked everything else, it still feels Penfold.
In spite of being battered around a bit, CATACOMBS OF THE MOON is still one of the better episodes of Year Two, I feel, perhaps even one of the top five the way I see it.
Petter
From: "Simon Morris" (simes01@global44net.co.uk) Date: Wed, 9 Sep 1998 15:37:50 +0100 Subj: Re: Space1999: Catacombs of The Moon
The FANDERSON people certainly seem to know what they are talking about. I have great respect for much of their efforts. The Web-pages devoted to SPACE:1999 are certainly good.
Yes, I'm a member of FANDERSON myself and I certainly think very highly of their web pages(also their FAB Magazine). I'd disagree that they are the highest authority on SPACE 1999 as there is sometimes a tendency to dismiss any other point of view. Therefore,for example,when certain FANDERSON seniors say CATACOMBS is a very literate script harking back to Y1 I wouldn't necessarily accept this as gospel I'm afraid.....
I don't find CATACOMBS OF THE MOON particulary worse than DEATH'S OTHER DOMINION. On the contrary, actually, where DEATH'S OTHER DOMINION completely misses out on the regular SPACE:1999 context in order to try for "fantasy" with wizards and witches and other absurdities, this type of approach seems much more fit within the framework of Year Two, I feel.
No indeed. I myself don't find CATACOMBS particularly worse than DEATHS OTHER DOMINION(I am,after all,probably a fan of Y2 over Y1....!) What I was saying is that I think that DOMINION was one of the top episodes of either season and one of the best episodes of *any*sci-fi show ever!! I fail to see how DOMINION misses out on the regular SPACE:1999 context(whatever you mean by that Petter). I think it was integral to the style set by Y1 and was simply superior on all levels to some of the scripts in Y1 (but no....wild horses wouldn't drag the names RING AROUND THE MOON and MISSING LINK from my lips as examples of crap Y1 episodes. Oops-too late...)
As I find DEATH'S OTHER DOMINON and THE INFERNAL MACHINE close to awful within the Year One context, they seem very well suited within the Year Two framework. CATACOMBS OF THE MOON is a nice example of Terpiloff finally getting content and context fitting together, I think.
DOMINION and INFERNAL close to awful!!!!! It just goes to show how one man's meat is another mans poison,doesn't it? I think they were superb episodes,and I don't particularly see how either would have been better presented within the Year 2 style.
I agree very much. Magnificent performance by Laurenson!
Phew! Glad we agree on this,heh heh.
Perhaps Terpiloff thought of it as a sort of follow-up on DEATH'S OTHER DOMINION. CATACOMBS OF THE MOON seem to be heavily modeled on Dante's DIVINA COMMEDIA, and there are certainly elements in DEATH'S OTHER DOMINION that would fit that description as well.
Umm. Well there's certainly a reference to "Dante's Inferno" in CATACOMBS. I don't think it was intended as a follow up but more of an attempt to create the same sort of style and atmosphere. Unfortunately something got lost along the way(or maybe Terpilloff lost interest? as I doubt it was all Freiberger's fault).
Perhaps Terpiloff wanted Osgood more like a sort of Shylock character? Shakespeare and Dante come strongly to my mind in at least four or perhaps even all of the five episodes Terpiloff wrote for SPACE:1999.
Certainly there was a strong Shakespearian feel to DEATHS OTHER DOMINION.
Much of the magic of Barbara Bain in Year One had to do with her responding to others, and here we have a small glimpse of what could have been again. Mind you, in SEEDS OF DESTRUCTION I feel she does one of her very best portrayals of dr. Helena Russell of Year Two, interestingly confused about John aggressive behaviour.
I was never that thrilled with Bain in Y1 ( I felt she was better presented in Y2),but I certainly do think that in CATACOMBS her scenes with Ben Vincent did show her in a remarkably good light. I concur that this was a good episode for Bain/Helena,and I would also agree that she was on good form in SEED OF DESTRUCTION.
While I thought the buddy idea for DRAGON'S DOMAIN was absolutely idiotic, I think the possibilities you suggest for CATACOMBS OF THE MOON, Simon, are very good indeed. It would not surprise me if this was how Terpiloff had originally written it but Freiberger having to rewrite as Landau was shooting another episode in parallell.
You *really* didn't like DRAGONS DOMAIN,did you Petter? (chuckle). Why was the "buddy" idea so idiotic? Personally I felt it humanised the Y1 Koenig magnificently. And this was why I think CATACOMBS would have benefited from a Koenig/Osgood friendship rather than a Verdeschi/Osgood friendship. Much as I liked the Verdeschi character(more so than I enjoyed Morrow)and Anholt's performance,I don't think the character ever progressed much beyond the action-man/wise guy mould. Koenig had far more scope for character development and with Landau's superlative acting,the episode could have been so much better than it was. I'm not sure if Terpilloff originally wrote it that way or not to be honest....
Without the involvement of Fred Freiberger I believe Year Two could have been something much better. As can be seen by the later episodes of Year One, the change of format was not something that was forced upon the group by Freiberger alone. Obviously the ITC executives in New York were a bit worried and certainly must have had much of the responsibility for the ghastly jackets, stupid dialogue and awful type of acting by Landau and Bain in DRAGON'S DOMAIN.
We're getting back to the Great Fred Freiberger Debate here. Freiberger probably did damage a number of Y2 episodes but I have always felt that he had a number of positive influences on the series and that he fixed a number of Y1 faults. I really don't think there was any conscious shifting of format towards the end of Y1. Merely that the show was developing and that the production staff and actors were finding more time to shape the characters and fine tune the scripts. And I certainly don't feel that the jackets were ghastly,that the dialogue was stupid,or that the acting of Landau was awful(I'm not so sure about Bain though,heh heh). Good grief Petter - DRAGONS DOMAIN was,after all,one of *the* classic Y1 episodes! I think that if there is any blame to be attached to anyone for Y1 or Y2 it should be heaped in large measure on ITC executives.
It is obvious that Year Two would not be a reprise of Year One. It is sad, however, that they had to overdo it by using Hanna Barbera and STAR TREK to have it survive another season. Today SPACE:1999 is rated one of the all time worst TV sci-fi series by some, obviously people who have only seen Year Two.
Sorry Petter. Its also been rated worst tv series by many who watched Y1 as well. My younger brother has always hated sci-fi shows of any sort. He detested Year 1,but actually finds many Y2 episodes quite entertaining. Its only a tv show, we all have different tastes,and there were a few clinkers in Y1 as well.
My general feel is that when things are developing even more silly than one would think possible, only one writer would happily sign his name on that and explain it as illustrating "real relationships", "honest adventure", "humour" etc.
I presume we are talking Freiberger here. Well maybe so but at least the guy is no hypocrite then. I'm sure there are a few writers on TV(including SPACE 1999) who took the money and ran and who didn't have any artistic quibbles at all about what ended up on screen. Freiberger did what he thought was right and remained true to that vision throughout the series. He was there to do a specific job. I admire that.
In fact Freiberger and Terpiloff makes a nice pair, I think. It is sad that they did not collaborate on other projects.
I find it interesting that a number of writers actually enjoyed working with Freiberger very much,whilst others obviously resented his interference in what they had written.
Nevertheless, I still feel it is a good episode with very much Terpiloff feel to it, just like THE IMMUNITY SYNDROME is a good episode, I feel, with very much Byrne feel to it and even DORZAK is quite interesting, despite what Penfold says about Freiberger wrecking it like he wrecked everything else, it still feels Penfold.
Yes,and if you feel that the individual writers still show through in their Y2 episodes,then I think you have to question whether Freiberger *was* a wholly negative influence on the series. I personally don't believe he was.
In spite of being battered around a bit, CATACOMBS OF THE MOON is still one of the better episodes of Year Two, I feel, perhaps even one of the top five the way I see it.
Well I quite liked it Petter,but there were plenty of better ones in my opinion!
Simon
From: David Welle (dwelle@itol4tag.com) Date: Wed, 09 Sep 1998 21:01:43 -0500 Subj: Re: Space1999: Catacombs of the Moon
Well,I wouldn't say that "Missing Link" was better than "Catacombs", but point taken heh heh...
Well, it wasn't by much, Simon: I consider "Missing Link" the third worst. These, and a couple more from both seasons, just weren't my thing, I guess.
Indeed Dave,and as I said,I think the reason was that the script had been re-written(at speed I would guess).Originally Maya had a much larger part. As Catherine Schell and Martin Landau were filming a different episode the script had to be re-written to accomodate the problem.
Yeah, I might have to take a look at the novelization and/or script, to see how it might have turned out, especially because I loved all of the rest of Terpiloff's stories, which were all among my ten favorites of Y1. That made me wonder if it was the direction instead, but your reviews make more sense.
See above. I can't remember if Landau Tate and Schell weren't filing AB Chrysalis or something and were hence unavailable.
According to the Cybrary, "AB Chrysalis" was indeed the one that "Catacombs" was paired with.
But bearing in mind that simultaneous filming of 2 stories occurred several times in Y2 (a bad idea if ever there was one),
Definitely. What I always hear is that they waited very late to decide to make a second season, crunching the production schedule. Someone should have pushed to just *let* some episodes be late, but of course that wouldn't have been doable in 1970s syndication (B5 often delayed whole groups of episodes, albeit for different reasons).
it seems strange that this episode suffered far more badly than any of the others through being chopped about.
Yes, that is interesting, and I agree with the assessment.
David Welle
From: David Acheson (dkach@hot44mail.com) Date: Thu, 10 Sep 1998 21:07:12 EDT Subj: Space1999: Holes in the Rock that Once Orbited Earth
Greetings fellow Alphans and Tritonian (Petter):
So shoot me. I have to admit I actually liked CATACOMBS OF THE MOON. I would not say its one of the best of year two but I do remember not wincing the last time it aired a few years ago. I was prepared to dislike it after a slew of second season episodes that just looked cartoonish and dated but I walked away from this one relatively unscathed.
Sure, its far from perfect and I admit it is a victim of the rushed production schedule that, in my opinion, damaged the second year greatly. James Laurenson and Pamela Stephenson are far from fantastic actors (even year two has some better ones) and promoting assistant director Robert Lynn to director appeared to be a fill in to accomodate the scheduling. Barbara Bain did not live up to any great moments and both Martin Landau and Catherine Schell were underused.
However, here is a story of nature at its worst - instead of a hurricane we have a cosmic firestorm. The soap opera in the middle of this is the depths of despair one will go over a loved one. Like THE LAMBDA FACTOR and THE SEANCE SPECTRE, I have found that the stories that tended to stick with conflicts amongst the Alphans in year two were better than Freiberger's bug-eyed monsters from outside the base. Petter himself brought this up earlier when mentioning that year two tended to reflect a more realistic group that was tiring of being couped up. STAR TREK: VOYAGER has yet to show any signs of green sickness. Far too cutesy.
Laugh at me if you will. I rather enjoyed the overly dramatic dream sequences with the wife on the poster bed and the flames all around. I am a sucker for this type of sentimental dribble. I wouldn't want it in every episode but its fine by me as a one time thing.
But sorry Petter. Even though I am with you in defending this episode I will disagree with RATM and still would rate that as one of the few turkeys of year one. Please no further response to that. I know you like it and the reasons why and I admire you for it. No rehashing is necessary. Most here don't like CATACOMBS but I do so in the face of being ridiculed.
From: Petter Ogland (petter.ogland@dnmi4tag.no) Date: Fri, 11 Sep 1998 12:43:11 +0000 Subj: Re: Space1999: Holes in the Rock that Once Orbited Earth
Although even the most realistically inclined of the Year Two episodes are high camp compared to Year One, there is certainly something interesting about the strained relationships that seem to soak into Alpha during their second year in space.
While there was sometimes tension on Alpha in Year One and not everyone in complete agreement with John Koenig et co, the conflicts that rise in Year Two are much more extreme, much more of the LAST ENEMY sort of kind, than the usual Year One conflicts among rational people.
This has perhaps something to do with Year Two not only focusing on the upper social levels of the Main Mission of Year One but also on the people doing the daily dirty work. THE SEANCE SPECTRE, CATACOMBS OF THE MOON and THE LAMBDA FACTOR are all good examples of this, I feel, illustrating daily conflicts growing out of control within the small and fragile Alpha society.
While the conflicts are perhaps basically realistic enough, the sort of realism of BREAKAWAY, BLACK SUN and RING AROUND THE MOON is, of course, never achieved in Year Two. Nevertheless, I admire Terpiloff for using the absurd Year Two scenario for a battle field for his bascially Year One type characters, or rather experienceing how much better his type of stories seem to work within the Year Two settings.
Just like with Beckett and Brecht, the absurdities of Year Two increase the nightmare effect more than the more realistic style of Year One when Terpiloff intriduces his over-the-top characters and parody type of emotional and intellectual life. Well done. CATACOMBS OF THE MOON is one of the better efforts of Year Two according to my taste.
Laugh at me if you will. I rather enjoyed the overly dramatic dream sequences with the wife on the poster bed and the flames all around. I am a sucker for this type of sentimental dribble. I wouldn't want it in every episode but its fine by me as a one time thing.
It reminds me of DIE WALKURE, the second of the operas in Wagner's RING DES NIBELUNGEN. Good idea and well executed too, it also rings true with the Dante's Inferno sort of main metaphore of the story and works very well, I think.
But sorry Petter. Even though I am with you in defending this episode I will disagree with RATM and still would rate that as one of the few turkeys of year one. Please no further response to that. I know you like it and the reasons why and I admire you for it. No rehashing is necessary. Most here don't like CATACOMBS but I do so in the face of being ridiculed.
OK. I will not elaborate on differences and likenesses between RING AROUND THE MOON and CATACOMBS OF THE MOON. I don't know why David Welle brought up RING AROUND THE MOON in connection with CATACOMBS anyway, as I actually find these two episodes rather different. The only explanation I can think of is the sort of longing for Year One that one might find implicitly in CATACOMBS OF THE MOON, or at least a slight reminder of the good things about Year One that are more or less lost in this season.
Of course, the way I see it at least, RING AROUND THE MOON is more or less synonymous with everything that was good about Year One, the profoundness of the writing, the stylishness of the execution the exellent casting and acting, not to forget the music.
When I think about CATACOMBS OF THE MOON I do infact also think abouth Year One, but not the best of Year One, more like the Terpiloff of Year One, and the Terpiloff of Year One, COLLISION COURSE, DEATH'S OTHER DOMINION, THE INFERNAL MACHINE etc. is the same as the Terpiloff of Year Two, only with a wrong context.
THE INFERNAL MACHINE, for instance, is like staging THE WIZARD OF OZ with the Royal Shakespeare Company dressed and rehersed to do Ibsen. A total failure! Within the Year Two context, however, THE INFERNAL MACHINE would easily have become at least on level with AB CHRYSALIS if not better, I believe.
CATACOMBS OF THE MOON is a very good example of Terpiloff in his right element, I feel. The only thing one could hope for, if they had decided to stage THE INFERNAL MACHINE or DEATH'S OTHER DOMINION for Year Two, was to hope for as little interference by Fred Freiberger as possible.
As Simon pointed out earlier, as CATACOMBS OF THE MOON quite possible might have been the very best of Year Two, it obviously suffers greatly from the absence of Landau, and could surely have been much better had Maya been left out completely. Nevertheless, I think CATACOMBS OF THE MOON is a fine episode, and it shows that against all odds it was still possible to write and produce something of value during Year Two.
Petter
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