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Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea: Season One, Vol. 1 [1964] (REGION 1) (NTSC)


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'Better than I remembered and superior to the next three seasons
Review date: 2008-06-21 Rating: 8 out of 10

Like its sister show, Irwin Allen's other creation "Lost in Space," "Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea" had a more gripping and dramatic first season. The black and white photography added just the right "color" to many of the episodes of that season, steeped in Cold War espionage and laced with elements of the burgeoning space program and other scientific developments.

This compilation of the first half of season one boasts some of the series best episodes. Some of these include the pilot, "Eleven Days to Zero," an installment that relied heavily on scenes from the theatrical "Voyage," "The Fear Makers," "The Sky is Falling," featuring star Richard Basehart in a dual role, "No Way Out," and "The Ghost of Moby Dick," guest starring June Lockhart who would later star in Allen's "Lost in Space."

Another outstanding installment is "Submarine Sunk Here." This extremely tense episode, directed by Leonard Horn, deals with the dangers of submarine exploration as the Seaview sinks to the bottom of the sea after running into and detonating several underwater mines. The camera angles and the set pieces add tension to the drama as the men struggle to survive while onshore help is being organization. Not only do the main characters have significant screen time, this particular episode allows lesser performers a chance to shine. Kudos must go to Basehart, Hedison, Bob Dowdell ("Chip"), Henry Sulky ("Chief"), Del Monroe ("Kowalski"), Paul Trinka ("Patterson"), Wright King ("Dr.Baines"), and Derrick Lewis in the often-seen-but-not-heard role as "Junior Lt. O'Brien." Guest performers that excel in their respective roles are Carl Reindel ("Evans"), George Lindsey ("Collins"), Paul Comi ("Bishop"), Eddie Ryder as "Harker," and Robert Doyle as "Blake," the young sailor somewhat responsible for the precarious situation in which the sub finds itself, yet makes the ultimate sacrifice to save both ship and crew. All in the cast convey the right combination of fear and despair as they struggle to survive what appears to be a doomed situation.

In addition to this fine installment, the rest of the episodes feature some of the decades most recognizable "heroes" and "villains". Genre stalwarts Robert Cornwaithe and Les Tremayne are featured in "Turn Back the Clock" while perenniel "heavies" Malachi Throne, Joseph Ruskin, Oscar Beregi, John van Dreelen, John Hoyt, Than Wyenn, and Michael Pate appear in several others.

The future "Batgirl," Yvonne Craig, along with the future "Archie Bunker," Carroll O'Connor, pop up in the ongoing seafaring travels of the Seaview, the aforementioned "Turn Back the Clock," and "Long Live the King," respectively.

Veteran character actor Ford Rainey makes one of his frequent appearances as "The President of the United States" in an Allen production in "Hot Line."

And "The Bold and the Beautiful's" Susan Flannery makes her first appearance in an Allen production in "Hail to the Chief." She will be featured in another VTTBOTS episode, as well as "The Time Tunnel" and Allen's theatrical feature "The Towering Inferno."

One thing that can be observed when watching the episodes back-to-back is how frequent Allen "borrowed" from each installment, recycling previous footage or clips from other productions. "The Sky is Falling" features an opening lifted straight from the 50's classic "The Day the Earth Stood Still" while "The Village of Guilt" lifts a cut from "It Came from Beneath the Sea."

And the only episode that ranks as a "turkey" is the only one directed by Allen himself: "Turn Back the Clock". This one is built solely around clips from the producer's own "The Lost World" (1960) and features a horrible performance from guest Nick Adams.

That withstanding, this compilation is a good introduction to the longest running of Irwin Allen's shows, one that was the forerunner for the 1990's "SeaQuest DSV".

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Product Details/Specifications


Actor(s):
Terry Becker

Creators:
Terry Becker (Primary Contributor)
Axel Hubert Sr. (Editor)
Homer Powell (Editor)
Irwin Allen (Writer)
Jack Gross Jr. (Writer)

Recording label: 20th Century Fox
Manufacturer: 20th Century Fox
EAN: 0024543225423
Binding: DVD
Number of items: 4
Format: Black & White, Closed-captioned, Colour, Dubbed, DVD-Video, Full Screen, Subtitled, NTSC,
Release date: 2006-02-21
Universal product code (UPC): 024543225423
Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
Region code: 1
Running time: 818 minutes
Theatrical release date: 1964-09-14
Language: English (Original Language)
Language: English (Subtitled)
Language: Spanish (Subtitled)
Language: English (Dubbed)
Language: French (Dubbed)
Language: Spanish (Dubbed)

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