Rating (3 out of 5 stars)
Well I finished the whole season which usually is a good sign. Typically I will give a show until the third episode, and either finish the whole season or call it quits. Lost in Space was good enough that I kept watching and finished the whole season.
The show is a remake of the 1960’s TV show, and the 1998 movie. If you missed the movie you are fortunate, it was not good. For those of us who grew up with only 2 or 3 channels, Lost In Space (the TV show). was great. Now the TV show is also 50 years old and I probably haven’t watched it in 30 or 40 years, so I am guessing it does not hold up well.
Fast forward to today. The current Lost In Space has a vastly upgraded robot that appears to be alien in origin. This robot walks instead of rolls, and appears more human like than the previous versions of robot. Not to fear this robot still has the classic “Danger Will Robinson” voice prompt. Disappointingly at this stage in the show, that is about all it says. The robot alone helps the show, so I think it was smart to do this upgrade.
The shows uses flashbacks to show the motivation of the characters. While I do enjoy the flashback technique as a way to develop characters, it might be overused these days. In Lost In Space they have used the technique well and by using this technique, it allowed the director to jump straight in the first episode and in the first few minutes. Then giving you the back drop of each of the characters in each episode.
I like the Robinson family for the most part. Judy can be a little sanctimonious at times, and Will a little whiny, but it is the Power Ranger setup of people. Funny, smart, tough, slightly dark, innocent/naive, blah blah blah. I did like the Don West character, not all good and not all bad. I think these type of borderline characters are more realistic. Thought he brought a good humor to the show that it was lacking at times, with a very serious Robinson family.
Compared to other movies and shows, I feel like these people were actually trained for space travel and used their training to get out of the sticky situations. Now sometimes, they make decisions that aren’t always the best, but I understand this is sometimes necessary to progress to the next situation. One or two of those is okay, but any more and it would have been too much.
The one thing I did not care for in the show, was Dr. Smith. Dr. Smith seemed to manipulate everyone too easily, and setup the different scenarios. It might have been been better if we did not find out the motivation of Dr. Smith until later on in the show. Without the backdrop, the viewer wouldn’t have seen it as manipulation and then their could have been a big reveal.
Like in James Bond when the bad guy does not just shot James right on the spot, and sets up some elaborate device that will kill him in the next 20 minutes. The Robinsons confine Dr. Smith when they should have just executed her. You are Lost In Space with a psycho, trying to get to a new planet, kill the psycho, help rescue everyone else and your family. I am going to let it go this time, but if it is the same in season 2, I am just not going to watch anymore.
In conclusion, this was a solid show. Not one that I will watch over and over, but I look forward to the next season.