This week’s episode under review is the eleventh episode of Space Above and Beyond, The River of Stars.
The River of Stars was written by Marilyn Osborn, was directed by Tucker Gates and first aired on December 17th, 1995.
Kenneth and Eugene act as pedants on both sides of the religious content, ponder whether West has faith or just an self-destructive obsession, and did God compensate for Wang’s incompetence with a spilled can of soda.
This week, our episodes under discussion are Space Above and Beyond numbers 8 and 9, the two-episode story Hostile Visit & Choice or Chance. These episodes were written by Payton Webb and Doc Johnson, respectively. They first aired on November 19th and 26th, 1995.
Hosts Kenneth and Eugene discuss if a second nail-clipping scene might have been included, whether Kylen was always green goo, whether her and West’s lack of chemistry was in the script or just on the screen, and whether the writers really understood Jimmy Doolittle’s raid on Tokyo.
Summary of Hostile Visit & Choice or Chance
[Mild spoilers]
The Saratoga faces a Chig attack, and the 58th salvage a Chig bomber. McQueen proposes a daring plan: use the Chig ship as a Trojan horse for a suicide mission to strike the enemy’s base. Despite opposition, McQueen persuades the Commodore. The 58th volunteers for the risky mission, leading to a failed attack and the destruction of the ship. However, they escape in an emergency pod, finding themselves on the Chig planet.
After a crash landing, McQueen and Tank escape the wreckage, but the rest of the gang is taken as prisoners to a Chig-run penal colony. Separated and facing various challenges, the team learns the AIs collaborate with the Chigs. McQueen signals the Saratoga, prompting a surprise rescue mission. Kylen offers West an escape plan, but suspicions arise. Tortured and manipulated, the team endures hardships. The Saratoga, aided by false information, launches a rescue while secrets unfold back on the ship.
While the Fightin' 58th battle over a worthless rock in space, we wonder if this episode is a senseless wreck or a key piece of groundwork for an epic 4th Season episode that never was. #Podcast#FusionPatrol
It's Monday morning, and Mondays, in the evenings, are typically when Kenneth and I record our #FusionPatrol podcast sessions. Not too long ago, we completed our recording sessions for #SpaceAboveAndBeyond (which are currently being released.) Now we're working our way through SAAB's spiritual brother, #SpaceRangers - another of the Gosh-We-Love-Shooting-Things-In-Space series from the militaristic and jingoistic early 1990s.
I won't lie; it's been a bit of a slog.
I remember that I rather liked Space Rangers back in 1993, but on this rewatch, I cannot for the life of me understand why.
We're looking at episode 5, The Entertainer, tonight. It's only episode 5, and they've already resorted to the awful old design pattern of bringing in a well-known comedian as a guest star. Does anyone remember Flip Wilson guesting on the Six Million Dollar Man? Space Rangers has Buddy Hacket, and it's much, much worse.
It's time to write my episode synopsis, and I'm not sure I'm in the right frame of mind yet.
It's coming! The 1080p remaster is the way to go. While we're losing the 16:9 presentation, what we are getting is the proper 4:3 special effects which were so badly presented in the DVD releases. To quote another franchise "The Best of Both Worlds."