Explanation and personal note: The preceding year has been a disastrous one for my family and for me personally. It's still getting worse. I have been marking time with a small group of TV enthusiasts at IMDb who have made it a practice to select one show at a time, one with a run of a single season, and watch that series one episode per week. Each week they post their reviews. Currently they - well, we now - have been watching the first live-action program by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson, which followed a string of highly popular and successful children's science fiction adventures done with marionettes.
We are about to see our fifteenth episode. I'll post my reviews here. Keep in mind they were not written for this blog but for the discussion board for UFO on IMDb ( http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0063962/board/threads/ ) and thus they may at times make allusions that are unexplained. I will be posting full spoilers.
There is no correct viewing order for this series. Production order is unsatisfying, as this was not the order in which the series was meant to be seen. production was done in sets of fifteen and nine with a hiatus between forced by a change in studios. Due to this, some of the recurring cast could not return. Because the series was intended to be sold into syndication worldwide, and probably not shown in any kind of order, the disappearance of thse dropped characters was never explained. Thus, it was hoped that their absence could be masked by mixing the episodes of both filming blocks, making it appear that those regulars were simply on vacation or on duty elsewhere.
About my Stephen King posts...I did in fact watch all thirty one films last August as planned, but fell short on writing them up. I may someday go back and finish adding comments.
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UFO
Identified
In 1970 three people were killed during an encounter with an
unidentified object. Evidence on a cinefilm they left behind was strong
enough for authorities to justify an international effort to unveil
the alien intruders, discover their objectives, and protect the Earth
from their marauding. The name of this program is SHADO (Supreme
Headquarters Alien Defence Organization), and it is unknown to the
public – the world's most closely guarded secret.
Ten years later, Commander Ed Straker oversees SHADO on the verge of
a breakthrough in their fight against the invaders. Previously SHADO
forces have been unable to intercept inbound alien craft due to their
tremendous speed, despite specialized resources deployed across the
planet, under the sea, and even secreted on the moon. Now new
technology has been developed that promises SHADO's first victory, tech
that can accurately determine the presence, location, and course of a
UFO.
This development has been plagued by highly suspicious setbacks,
suggesting spies and sabotage within their organization. It seems
likely that when the equipment and personnel behind this breakthrough
are transported to SHADO central, there will be an attempt by aliens to
shoot down the flight.
UFO is the brainchild of Gerry and Sylvia Anderson of
Supermarionation fame, science fiction-based action/adventures that
featured puppets and plenty of futuristic craft to appeal to children
(especially children of the geek persuasion – I raise my hand here).
UFO saw the Andersons transition to live action. While their prior
shows had been aimed at children, UFO was more mature in tone and theme
though still appealing to the young with its science-fiction action and
heavy use of fantastic hardware (sci-fi geek love knows no age). Among
other running concerns, episodes explore morality in wartime, the
burdens of command, ethics of secrecy in situations where there can be
no comfortable solutions and no option is clearly “right”.
This leads to a rather bleak tone to the series overall.
Performances lean toward the grim, apropos to the material but
occasionally less than dimensional especially when conveying large
blocks of exposition or stabs at philosophy (always ungainly, a weak
point every time). Critics were often harsh about the actors, saying
that their performances were every bit as convincing as the puppets –
and that the scripts were just as wooden. Truthfully, some of the
actors were just as harsh about the scripts (at least, this was the
case with the cast of UFO's followup series, Space:1999, who didn't
bother to hide their frustration). I sound like an apologist here for
accusations of UFO being emotionally flat, some of those charges are
dead on...but to some degree the emotionally blunted tone is a
deliberate choice. If you don't think so, see the chilly closing
credits sequence and its accompanying score. It's as distant and
demoralizing as you could want.
To leaven the dire nature of the premise we're offered a strong dose
of action, a modicum of humor, and some amount of romance. Aging the
best are the action sequences, though by modern terms calling it
“action” is a bit of a stretch. Solidly constructed through deft
editing and tension, they play more to wracked nerves than fistfights or
shootouts. They still grip though, thanks to remarkable production
values such as fine photography (many scenes are night shots – half-seen
in just the right ways while remaining clear). UFO showcased
standard-setting miniature and fx work overseen by Derek Meddings (of
Star Wars and 007 fame) and craft designs that still today are sought
after by genre enthusiasts the world over in resin, plastic, and
diecast.
More strained are the humor and romantic interludes, thanks to
unabashed '60s sexism in full peacock display. This is UFO's lighter
touch! Impractical uniforms for the women that promise flesh from
moonbase uniforms that change from skintight to cheerleader miniskirts
with a flick of a wrist to mesh shirts underwater. In fact, their
officially issued equipment includes a handy little concealed makeup
kit! There's an irony here, when the blatant invitation to objectify is
mitigated (in theory) by overtly stated recognition of gender equality
in the workplace (because this is set in the future: 1980), yet it's
only when the women are off-duty that they are at their most casual.
Report for work, and it's time to doll up and get hit on!
Okay, let's get to the first episode.
“Identified” is a tidy, efficient intro to the show's premise as the
well-paced plot moves us through an overview of each division of
SHADO's operation. We hardly notice the expository nature of the script
(well, until Straker opens his mouth, anyway...) because the danger of
the flight barrels forward unimpeded with our attention in tow. It's a
nicely sustained bit of suspense that lasts well toward the episode’s
conclusion, and carries into the first capture of an alien. Throughout,
the dire nature of the endeavor has been maintained without much
belaboring – the possibility of moles in the organization is introduced
but not discussed, the need for secrecy ably demonstrated in the
importance and peril of the flight, and finally in the revelations
afforded by the alien: they are using us as harvest material.
“Identified” also introduces us to two of the major characters: the
aforementioned Commander Straker and his second, Colonel Alec Freeman.
Together they form the yin and yang of the soul of UFO, Straker
struggling to bury his humanity in the name of the greater good, and
Freeman trying to honor his own innate empathy in balance with the job.
Straker's an uptight, hardass micromanager by necessity, who we will
later learn has taken a few hits to his humanity already. Played by Ed
Bishop, he maintains a vacation-worthy state of near-breaking point.
You know he's at his most relaxed when he's in a sardonic haze.
Honestly, he's hard to like. Well, protagonists don't have to be
likeable but they do have to be interesting – you need a reason to
watch. Bishop has a strong presence, captivating good looks (his
platinum hair is just jarring enough to deserve its own screen credit)
and a deep voice that cuts through everyone. Bishop can't do much with
his speeches, but I doubt anyone else could either and Bishop owns the
screen whenever he appears.
Countering him is Freeman, who is at least freewheeling when it
comes to women – the source of both the show's attempted levity and much
of the cringeworthy sexism. Essayed by a crusty George Sewell with the
demeanor of a seasoned vet (someone to be relied on) yet unjaded in
outlook, he insists on acting as Straker's conscience no matter how much
Straker rails that his conscience is overtaxed already. The two have a
bond long established and unassailable, but they still clash. In
Identified, the first two times we meet him he is all eyes for the women
in his immediate vicinity (although it's hard to blame him for noticing
the ridiculously sexy uniform one is wearing). It's an impression
that will be tempered later but not so much in this pilot episode.
This is a decent episode. Not challenging but holds one's
attention with few distractions and delivers a suitably chilling
punchline. Low points are kept to a minimum, however much they stand
out as awkward they don't sour the production or slow the tale. Besides
the script's faults and the attitude towards women, the setup of
Shado's location always strikes me as extravagant and a little too
on-the nose cute: a top-secret base cloaked in a film studio.
Straker's hydraulic office doesn't convince me. But then, is it really
that big a stretch in a show where a jet fighter can be launched from
beneath the sea?
7 glimpses of something vague behind a tree, because you
gotta have somewhere to go up from. Not much personal conflict, gets a
little wooden at times, and should be sent to see the principal for
heavyhanded sexism.
Asides from the latest viewing...
Gerry Anderson productions had at least one thing in common with Irwin
Allen's TV shows, and that's the brilliant design work behind the craft
and machinery (B-9 robot of Lost in Space. They have an iconic style to
them that is sometimes of an era while still being timeless, every bit
as much as the '66 Batmobile. On UFO I'm especially taken with the
SkyDiver, Interceptors, the title craft, and as a kid I thought
Straker's car was magnificent. Even the moon base was stylish while
simple.
I remember seeing this as it aired back in the '70s (American
syndication) and the opening sequence of the UFO almost but not quite
glimpsed above the trees has stayed with me - terrified ans thrilled me
as a kid. A great lesson in economy, re filmmaking, it was the audio
effect used for the Ufos that got under my skin. Great way to introduce
the show, had me effectively hooked. The whole episode is solid -
concise, easy to follow, dramatic, sets the stakes.
Have to laugh at the overt sexism of "the future world of 1980",
Freeman gets away with a lot. Pretty sure the look of the moon
contingent and sub crew imprinted themselves on me at a formative age...
It's too bad Shane Rimmer's appearances were always so brief, would
love to have seen him play a more important role. OTOH, it's good to
see him at all, and UFO brought him back a few times.
Love the funky opening titles theme by Bary Gray. I never grew up
with the Supermarionation shows that preceded UFO, maybe they just
didn't play local stations in the U.S. Those are some heavy-exposition
credits to make sure newcomers get the picture.
I almost don't notice how crazy the
purple wigs are on the Moonbase's female personnel, because I first saw
this as a child...and not so long after I'd been watching Yvonne Craig
cycling around Gotham City in a sparkly purple body suit*. Ah, such
style! So, the browline of the base wigs consists of a V that dips down
the center, echoing the eyebrows. On Lt. Ellis, one arch of her wig's
browline was notably higher then the other, giving her a perpetually wry
expression in the best tradition of Mr. Spock.
Ayshea Brough always appears at SHADO as a glorified extra, but this
is the first time I've realized that it's her we see at the episode
beginning in civilian attire approaching the studio with a script.
It always gets me that the aliens have FTL travel, lasers in their craft, but on the ground they wield machine guns.
While not graphic, the first death seemed especially brutal for TV
of that era both in the way it's choreographed and for coming mere
moments after rise of curtain. Her body is practically yanked away (was
she on wires or did the actress throw herself?), you can practically
feel the bullets rip into her body. Instantly lets you know, this one's
not a kiddie show.
This critical Utronic equipment that's going to make a vital
difference - do we ever hear about it again? it's been a while... The
performance of the Moonbased Interceptors will remain spotty at best
throughout the series.
* actually, ya know... memory is unreliable. I've just remembered that we had not bought our first color television yet.
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