And yet, it was hard not to notice the robot over the years. It guested on other shows along with its cousin from Forbidden Planet (a movie I never got to see either until the 2000s). When the big Hollywood theatrical production came to the screen, I was familiar with the characters, storyline and knew all the catchphrases but still hadn't seen the series. It had since aired on TV locally by then but it it had missed its golden moment when I had been young enough to appreciate it.
And the original TV version was indeed aimed at kids...relentlessly so. The writers eventually wrote themselves into a corner with Will Robinson, Dr. Smith and the robot and their zany comedy adventures. In the end their audience outgrew them. And it left little room for growth or things to do for other characters..
As for the movie, it was a hodge podge of being an ode to the show and a big special effects splash but it bogged down on story and character. The special effects also were problematic as many early CGI movies often were. The mostly good cast had little to work with.
Streaming television companies like Netflix pride themselves on analytics. It is why they buy certain TV programs that they know have an audience or are comfort food for those who will watch and re-watch again. Re-visiting these new programs with re-makes can be fairly lucrative.
The first season of Lost In Space had a good cast, good special effects and a reasonable origin story. Indeed, so much goes on in the first 10 episodes that it seems frantic compared to the second season. Ending on a cliffhanger, it was curious whether the series would be able to carry on such a pace. For a network program historically, a series was allowed 22-24 episodes to build an audience. Nowadays, a series is lucky to get 6 to 10 episodes.
I watched the first 10 episodes knowing it had already been renewed. Keeping that in mind, it was a relief that the Lost in Space took a step back to start Season 2. The Robinson family along with Dr. Smith and Don West are in survival mode on the planet. No robot around and the ship too disabled to lift off from a toxic environment. Nine months have passed and they are working well but it is precarious. Methane outside and nasty storms make a disaster seem inevitable and yet division and secrets abound even as the family has never been closer.
Dr. Smith remains locked up as her duplicity and danger to everyone is accepted by everyone even when she has helped save family members when not trying to take over. Husband John feels he has the chance to reconnect with his wife and kids after years of not being there while Maureen feels that they still need to get off the planet because of its obvious dangers. The engine not working, no robot and very little power generated have thwarted efforts.
A desperate plan to float the Jupiter to a predictable electric storm area on the sea is only undertaken when they lose their entire crop to storm and methane exposure. Little do they know till later that Dr. Smith is responsible for the sabotage to change her circumstances as well as the Robinsons.
There are good actors in the show. Molly Parker, Toby Stephens and Parker Posey as John, Maureen and Dr. Smith are all excellent. The young actors that include Maxwell Jenkins are uniformly great.
The second season was far superior to the first season. Many questions were answered and many questioned remain. And yes, the robot returns. Still, I wonder if the story of the Robinsons in space has the power to continue. Netflix wants grand scale and yet the series had it strongest moments when it shows the family working together as a smaller unit for survival. Lets see if there is a third season.
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