Saturday, June 17, 2006

SATURDAY MORNING CULT TV BLOGGING: Land of the Lost: "The Possession"

It's the "dormant season" for the Sleestak during "The Possession" (by David Gerrold and directed by Dennis Steinmetz), but that doesn't mean it's safe for the Marshalls in the land of the lost...

"The Possession" opens with a scene inspired, apparently, by Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey. The Paku (Tah, Sah and Cha-Ka) go about their monkey-man business (eating grapes) when suddenly a pylon appears nearby, and beckons them with a mechanical hum; not unlike the curious apes in 2001 and the strange Monolith ("The Dawn of Man")

The similarities soon end, however, as Cha-Ka enters the pylon and becomes possessed by the "Great and Powerful" One, the "sleeper who has awakened" (no, not Paul Atreides...), "the watcher of the pylons." This entity takes control of Cha Ka and gifts him with a power wand or baton that sucks the power from crystal matrices and such.

Before long, Holly also becomes possessed by the Great and Powerful One too, and after zapping Will with her *ahem* rod, heads to the Lost City to drain more crystals. Rick Marshall intervenes at the last possible moment, and learns that the watcher of the Pylons appears to be an Altrusian, one of Enik's people. Furthermore, this entity believes it is his destiny to "rule all."

"No one has the right to rule all," Rick Marshall counters in true Captain Kirk fashion, before cutting the Watcher off from his crystals and stopping him once and for all...

"The Possession" is a kind of ho-hum episode from Land of the Lost's first season. Besides the early, obvious nod to 2001: A Space Odyssey, not much of interest really happens, and the final battle is kinda dull too. Everyone seems to be having a bad week here, and I'm not sure how this episode "jibes" with others about the pylons and their nature and power.

Still, next week's episode is one of my favorites, and a series high point. "Follow that Dinosaur..."

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