Space 1999 - Moon Blasted out of Orbit!

September 13th, 1999

On this day in Space 1999, a catastrophic accident occurs on one of the nuclear waste storage facilities on the far side of the Moon, triggering a massive thermonuclear explosion. The force of the blow is so great that it acts like a colossal rocket engine producing enough thrust to hurl the Moon out of Earth’s orbit and propel it uncontrollably into outer space at incredible speed. The 311 stranded inhabitants of Moonbase Alpha, Earth’s Scientific Research Center on the Moon, begin an interstellar journey into the unknown on their new “spacecraft” and encounter a plethora of alien races and mind-bending phenomena along the way.

This was the premise of Space 1999, a British science fiction television series which aired from 1975 to 1977. The show starred American actors Martin Landau as Commander John Koenig and Barbara Bain as Doctor Helena Russell.  The actors, who were married to each other at the time, were cast to capitalize on their Mission Impossible fame and to appeal to the huge U.S. television market. As a result, it appeared that all but two of the residents of the International Moonbase were British.

The show, which seemed like a marriage of Lost in Space and 2001 A Space Odyssey, bridged the gap between the network run of the original Star Trek and the Star Wars phenomenon. The show has since become a cult classic and is best known for its groundbreaking special effects (for the time); its metaphysical plots, which often singled out the flaws and failures of humankind rather than its triumphs; its cool Eagle spaceships, which luckily flew fast enough to visit the alien planets that the Moon happened to drift by; its beautiful interior sets; and last but not least, its awesome polyester unisex uniforms.

Of course, the science of Space 1999 was hazy at best. So hazy in fact, that famed astronomer Issac Asimov actually wrote an article published in the New York Times that criticized the show’s scientific accuracy. He explained that an explosion capable of knocking the Moon out of its orbit would actually tear it apart (not to mention the damage it would do to planet Earth) and even if it did leave Earth’s orbit, it would take hundreds of years to reach the nearest star.

The show received a major overhaul in its second season after its dark themes and esoteric approach failed to win over the American market. Many of the first season’s supporting characters vanished without explanation and the producers brought in the show’s answer to Mr. Spock, a sexy alien shapeshifter named Maya.

The plots became more action-oriented, formulaic, and even included the obligatory “happy talk” interlude at the episode’s conclusion, regardless of what degree of death and destruction the television audience just witnessed for the past hour. Unfortunately, the overhaul was not enough to secure a third season.

Those lucky enough to have watched Space 1999 during its original run in the mid-'70s lived in a world where moonbases, cool spaceships, and laser guns were only 20 years away. As the turn of the century really rolled by, the same fans were disappointed that their memories of the 1990s mainly consist of Monica Lewinski and the OJ Simpson trial. However, considering that mankind might have blown the Moon out of orbit, perhaps it’s best that both science and Space 1999 were not quite ready for prime time just yet.  Perhaps 2099 will be better.

Gary Gee, Dynetics

Sources:

1. Wikipedia
2. Asimov, Isaac (28 September 1975). "Is 'Space 1999' More Fi Than Sci?". New York Times: p. 2:1


 

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