An airliner gets struck by lightening in a storm over the Pacific and crash lands near an island. The survivors huddle on the beach before hearing strange noises emanating from the interior . . . Just kidding. While this second episode of the SMDM has a setup similar to the TV series "Lost" the crash survivors are menaced only by snakes and some rogue government people out to snuff Oscar Goldman. Luckily Steve Austin is on hand to take over and save the day.
This episode is pretty weak mainly due to the screenplay; the motives of the villains are never made clear and, for military officers, they seem pretty inept. After initially trying to make Oscar's demise look like an accident their bungling leads to a guns-blazing murder attempt. Ultimately Steve uses his brains over his brawn to save his friend.
In addition to the terrible plotting the episode is plagued by horrendous editing and the obvious integration of stock footage. There are some impressive moments, though, such as the tense sequence of the plane going down and the frantic escape once it hits the water. All of this is done from inside the cabin and a real sense of danger is conveyed.
Lee Majors has some fine scenes taking charge both during the plane crash and later on the island. This episode also establishes the bond between Steve and Oscar; they seem to genuinely care about each other and neither views the other as expendable.
All in all "Survival of the Fittest" has its moments but ultimately is a pretty poor sample from an iconic TV show.
This episode is pretty weak mainly due to the screenplay; the motives of the villains are never made clear and, for military officers, they seem pretty inept. After initially trying to make Oscar's demise look like an accident their bungling leads to a guns-blazing murder attempt. Ultimately Steve uses his brains over his brawn to save his friend.
In addition to the terrible plotting the episode is plagued by horrendous editing and the obvious integration of stock footage. There are some impressive moments, though, such as the tense sequence of the plane going down and the frantic escape once it hits the water. All of this is done from inside the cabin and a real sense of danger is conveyed.
Lee Majors has some fine scenes taking charge both during the plane crash and later on the island. This episode also establishes the bond between Steve and Oscar; they seem to genuinely care about each other and neither views the other as expendable.
All in all "Survival of the Fittest" has its moments but ultimately is a pretty poor sample from an iconic TV show.