Destination: Moonbase Alpha (63 page)

Bloopers:
Watch the pictures of Alan and Maya on their identity badges – the backdrop behind them both keeps changing from light to dark.

There are strings everywhere, blatantly obvious holding up the Eagles, as well as guiding the alien voice spheres.

Martin Landau partly lifts up his toupee in the early scene when he puts his hands to the sides of his head during ‘blast procedure’.

Observations:
This episode features use of the rare Yellow Alert (previously seen in ‘Matter of Life and Death’).

Review:
‘The AB Chrysalis’ is the ‘double-up’ parallel to ‘Catacombs of the Moon’ and is another of the best episodes of Year Two. Tony Barwick’s script opens with mystery and frantic activity, bringing the viewer instantly into the crisis Alpha is facing and successfully demonstrating current Alpha base procedure, with nice shots of various sections and their urgent actions in emergency situations. Barwick’s script is matched by sharp direction from Val Guest (far superior to his pedestrian efforts on ‘The Rules of Luton’).

The characters fare well in this script, although it is strange that Tony is absent for the entire episode. Perhaps he was injured in one of the blast waves? If so, it isn’t mentioned. The notion of
Helena commanding the base in John’s absence is admirably portrayed, and is the only time she ever takes complete command of Moonbase Alpha. The often under-utilised Bill Fraser is well featured here, and Yasko comes across more successfully than usual. Catherine Schell conveys a desirable intensity, while Martin Landau is flawless, and Barbara Bain plays the part of ‘Commander’ Helena Russell with a subtle strength and humanity. Humour is well integrated into the story, such as when Koenig says, ‘Isn’t everybody after getting hit with three or four hundred volts?’ Koenig’s also afforded the opportunity to make a clear statement of his moral values: ‘There are things more precious than safety. Loyalty is better than logic. Hope is better than despair. And creation is better than destruction. I just wanted to tell you that, you seekers of perfection.’ This speech may be somewhat simplistic, but it has more of an effect than he realises: as the Alphans believe they are about to meet their likely demise, the aliens control their protective detonation and effectively save both the crew of the Eagle and that of Moonbase Alpha. ‘Creation is better than destruction,’ remains a particularly poignant statement, which is easily applicable to the modern world.

Special effects are very good throughout, including the incredible shots of the first shockwave and of the base almost covered in places by lunar dust. There is some fascinating design work in the model shots of the globe-like towers on the alien moon. Direction, camera work and lighting all excel during the scenes on the heavily damaged base. Superior set designs on the alien moon include those of the red-orange rock walls and the floor detail, contrasted starkly against the white doorways. The alien probes are depicted as slow-motion bouncing balls in a well-conceived and executed idea that is suitably alien.

The intriguing science fiction twist to the story arises when the alien voice probe states, ‘The intelligent life form of the planet – my masters – is not yet in existence. I am waiting for the first of them to be born.’ Among the other admirable elements contained within ‘The AB Chrysalis’ are thoughts on democracy (the aliens voting to determine the fate of the Alphans), desperation (Koenig’s pleading with the aliens in an effort to save Alpha) and the meaning of perfection. On the latter question, the alien A states: ‘We seek perfection. We enter chrysalis fully grown adults. At the end of each cycle we are reborn … We emerge fully-grown adults on a higher level of intelligence, to mould our lives in any way we wish. We repeat that process continually in our search for perfection.’) These lines show that thematically – as might be expected from the title – ‘The AB Chrysalis’ touches on the concepts of life, death and rebirth, which figure prominently in both religious and psychological realms.

There are several inconsistencies and contrived moments in the course of this episode, but they are forgivable. The worst of them is the unanswered question of how the alien computer identifies the Alphans as being from Earth when Koenig has provided so little information in his star chart drawing. However, more positively, in an admirable recognition of the language barriers between worlds (which virtually all science fiction programmes are guilty of ignoring for storytelling purposes), the alien voice sphere says, ‘I am sorry for the delay. It took some time to align to your language.’ Overall, the merits of the programme heavily outweigh any minor criticisms, and the happenings on the planet are intriguing and enjoyable. Later, facing death, the Alphans display a remarkable dignity and human spirit.
Helena’s reassuring yet resigned smile to Fraser is a prime example.

The climax is dramatic and effective, followed by well-conveyed elation. The light tone of the closing scene, with Maya explaining her mathematical ability to John, and with
Helena quizzing John about the naked women on the planet, manages to hit all the right notes. ‘The AB Chrysalis’ is a very successful and enjoyable example of Year Two
Space: 1999
at its finest.

Rating:
8.5/10

2.13

SEED OF DESTRUCTION

Screenplay by John Goldsmith

Directed by Kevin Connor

Selected Broadcast Dates:

UK
              LWT:

             
Date: 13 November 1976.               Time: 10.55 am

             
Granada:

             
Date: 24 July 1977.

US
              KRON (San Francisco):

             
Date: 4 December 1976.               Time: 7.00 pm

Credited Cast: Martin Landau
(John Koenig),
Barbara Bain
(Helena Russell),
Catherine Schell
(Maya),
Tony Anholt
(Tony Verdeschi),
Nick Tate
(Alan Carter),
Zienia Merton
(Sandra Benes),
Jeffery Kissoon
(Ben Vincent),
Martha Nairn
(Cranston),
Jack Klaff
(Security Guard),
James Leith
(Security Guard),
Albin Pahernik
(Maya Creature)

Uncredited Cast: Quentin Pierre
(Security Guard Pierce Quinton),
Robert Reeves
(Operative Peter Reeves),
Pam Rose
(Operative P Rose),
Glenda Allen
(Operative G Allen),
Jenny Cresswell
(Medical Centre patient)

Plot:
While exploring a strange jewel-like asteroid, Koenig becomes trapped by an alien force that sends a duplicate of him back to the base. This duplicate orders a beam of power to be fired at the asteroid, in order to destroy it. However, the power is actually re-charging the Heart of Kalthon, a seed containing an entire alien civilisation. The duplicate Koenig must be stopped before all of Alpha’s power is drained away.

Quotes:

• Helena
  :
  ‘Could something have invaded him – a virus, a life form, taken him over?’
  
• Tony:
  ‘Discipline, discipline, discipline – a throwback to Captain Bligh!’
  
• Helena
  :
  ‘Then it’s conspiracy. That word may be too strong for me.’
  
• Koenig:
  ‘Helena, you can tell us apart. The things we’ve shared, he can’t know.’
  
• Maya:
  ‘Instinct, training – you’re hiding behind words!’
  
• Helena
  :
  ‘Perhaps I have been upset. We’ve all been under a strain.’
  

On-screen Date:
1,608 days since leaving Earth orbit.

Filming Dates:
Wednesday 7 July – Friday 23 July 1976

Commentary:

Kevin Connor:
‘The challenge [in the hall of mirrors in “Seed of Destruction”] was in dealing with the reflections. But it wasn’t only the reflections in themselves, but the fact that everybody [had their image reversed] – they weren’t what they appeared to be. It was a real nightmare. It all worked in the end: I don’t know how, but it did. It was very difficult, because Martin doesn’t like being photographed from his right-hand side. He would do anything to get his face the left side to the camera. So you had to plan your shots so you didn’t end up on his right-hand side. When it came to the reflections and all that, he didn’t mind the evil one (his duplicate) being shown from the right-hand side.’

John Goldsmith:
‘
Space: 1999
really got me back into writing for television. At the time, I had dropped out. I was living in the country and I couldn’t think of anything to write. My basic problem was that I had peaked too early and I hadn’t actually lived, so I had little to write about. I went away and lived a little and then I came back to London with nothing but a car. I flogged the car and bought an old banger and lived on the difference. Gerry Anderson had given me my start by hiring me to work on
The Protectors
, and I heard that he was starting a new series of
Space: 1999
. Initially I was told that the series was already fully commissioned, but I was invited to submit a story outline, which they bought, so I did the script for “Seed of Destruction”. I sent the first draft in and went to see Freddy Freiberger and we spent about an hour going over it. He wanted a complete rewrite from page one to page 60, but I understood what he wanted, and it was much better.

‘When you commission 24 episodes of a series it becomes like a machine. It’s relentless and it’s a very tight schedule with a very tight budget, and inevitably scripts get rewritten. Nobody has time to call the writer so there’s a script editor to do it. Script editors tend to be good at their jobs. They’re not in the business of making it worse; they’re there to make it better. There was one thing that they put into my script, which was the trick of everything being reversed, a mirror image. The replica Koenig’s hair is parted on the other side, and his badge is reversed. I hadn’t thought of that, and it was an improvement.

‘What it really boiled down to was pace. Whoever worked on Gerry’s shows – which were pioneering, in that they aimed at an American market – had to write an American piece. You couldn’t have scenes lasting 12 pages with a chap sitting around philosophising. It goes down great in Hampstead, but they fall asleep in Idaho. I think Gerry Anderson is one of the great producers, and he’s very innovative. For various reasons he faded out for a few years and then came back, but all those early things he did are now huge again. Why? Because they’re so good.’

Bloopers:
Keep your eyes on Commander Koenig’s Eagle. When first seen, it features a Laboratory pod, but this switches to a standard passenger module for subsequent scenes.

Observations:
It is unfortunate that the duplicate Koenig uses a neck pinch to subdue the real Commander. While well presented, it does draw obvious comparisons with
Star Trek
and Mr Spock that
Space: 1999
could have done without.

Review:
The crystalline asteroid featured in this episode is one of the most distinct alien environments Moonbase Alpha encounters in space. The interior hall of mirrors is striking both for the imagery it provides and for the way the icy blues in the crystalline forms are contrasted against the salmon pink of Koenig’s jacket. There is an effectively eerie atmosphere to both the sights and sounds as Koenig explores the asteroid cavern, leading to his imprisonment and replacement by his doppelganger. This episode is beautifully filmed, and the crystal cavern set is particularly impressive. The evil duplicate plot is a well-worn standard, but is given new life here through the focus on excellent character interaction.

The reactions of the Alphans (Helena, Maya, Tony, Alan and Sandra) to the duplicate Koenig’s ranting and uncharacteristic behaviour are believable and well conveyed by all the performers. Alan’s faith in Koenig is strained to the breaking point, and is probably over-stated by the script for the sake of dramatic conflict. Nick Tate’s powerful performance effectively delineates Carter’s inner conflict. As Tony says, ‘How can you be such a dumb, blind kangaroo?’ But the theme of the episode is one of loyalty and faith, and Carter’s excessive loyalty to Koenig is potentially dangerous. (There are shades of Year One episodes like ‘Collision Course’ and ‘Missing Link’ in this aspect of the story.) The contrast between the characters of Alan and Tony is most clearly established here, as the two have opposing ideas about how to deal with their Commander. Some of the finest character moments in the episode occur as Tony, Maya and Helena consider Koenig’s competence. Writer John Goldsmith clearly has a firm grasp on the fundamental aspects of the Alphan characters, and has successfully incorporated dramatic action with well-rounded characterisation. His script is complemented by the distinctive direction of Kevin Connor, which excels in the crystal cavern scenes. It is a pity this is the only script Goldsmith contributed to the series, and is the last of only two directorial turns by Connor.