Space: 1999 

The crew of Moonbase Alpha must struggle to survive when a massive explosion throws the Moon from orbit into deep space.

Stars:

Martin Landau, Barbara Bain, Nick Tate

1 nomination.

Cast

Series cast summary:
Martin Landau	...	Commander John Koenig 48 episodes, 1975-1977
Barbara Bain	...	Dr. Helena Russell 48 episodes, 1975-1977
Nick Tate	...	Alan Carter 42 episodes, 1975-1977
Zienia Merton	...	Sandra Benes 35 episodes, 1975-1977
Sarah Bullen	...	Operative Kate / ... 25 episodes, 1975-1977
Barry Morse	...	Prof. Victor Bergman 24 episodes, 1975-1976
Catherine Schell	...	Maya / ... 25 episodes, 1975-1977
Prentis Hancock	...	Paul Morrow 23 episodes, 1975-1976
Clifton Jones	...	David Kano 23 episodes, 1975-1976
Anton Phillips	...	Dr. Mathias / ... 23 episodes, 1975-1976
Tony Anholt	...	Tony Verdeschi 23 episodes, 1976-1977

Storyline

In 1999, Moonbase Alpha, nestled in the Lunar crater Plato, is a scientific research colony and watchdog over silos of atomic waste from Earth stored on the Moon's far side. On September 13, 1999, magnetic energy builds to cause an explosive chain-reaction of the waste, blasting the Moon out of Earth's orbit and off the plane of the ecliptic, out of the Solar System. The inhabitants of Moonbase Alpha are unable to return to Earth and must survive on their wandering Moon as it is displaced further into unknown space by freak space warps. Along the way, they are joined by an alien woman with the ability to change herself into any living creature at will.

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Plot Keywords:

moon base | outer space | moon | year 1999 | atomic waste | 

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Taglines:

An Adventure As Big As The Universe!

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Genres:

Adventure | Drama | Sci-Fi

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Certificate:

G

Did You Know?

Trivia

The date that the Moon blasts away from the Earth (September 13) is the birth date of Barbara Bain.

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Goofs

Between seasons 1 and 2, uniforms and signage were altered in ways that are almost completely cosmetic (such as no rhyme or reason as to why some season two characters are always wearing jackets and others not). This makes no logical sense for a base with limited resources and few opportunities for resupply.

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Quotes

Helena Russell: With a history like that, who wants to go back to Earth anyway?

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Crazy Credits

During the first season, excerpts for each week's episode were incorporated into the opening credits, more specifically the "This Episode" section, which was something of a Gerry Anderson trademark.

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Alternate Versions

The first episode of season two, "The Metamorph," was first broadcast in the US in a slightly different edit than that shown in Britain and later syndication. During the original run, many American stations cut key scenes from the episodes in order to fit time slots. The Sci-Fi Channel reruns of "Space: 1999" were reportedly heavily edited. When the first two episodes were edited into the TV-movie, Alien Attack, several additional scenes were filmed using non-regulars.

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Connections

Referenced in Bones: The Girl in the Gator (2007)

User Reviews

You don't feel at home in deep space.

The first science fiction work I ever saw was Space:1999, and i was six. Italian Tv had co-produced the stuff so it was aired around 6pm, not a very appropriate slot to broadcast scenes of people burned alive by their commander's lasergun... I probably had nightmares about it, but missing a single episode was out of the question. I got to see some first season episodes some twenty years later and I appreciated the show even more. I don't recall much of the second season apart Maya and Tony, so let me concentrate on the first one.

The electronic soundtrack and the opening credits (a kind of "Pulp Fiction" style guitar alternated with an orchestral version of the same theme) were very original, as it was the look of the Eagles: they are solid transport spacecrafts but at the same time one can see their pilots from the outside, so that Eagles seem vulnerable... well, they are, most of the time. Base Alpha is a large, well lit and comfortable place (some stylish seventies furniture, too) which is home and prison at the same time.

Anyway the most peculiar aspect is the atmosphere in Moonbase Alpha: The crew is shocked for what happened to them, unprepared to deal with the future, they don't agree with each other, they make mistakes, they often prefer not to show much emotion. No "Space as the last frontier" rhetoric, here. Space is cold and mistakes are lethal. That increases the realism even if 1999 is well past. Action progresses like a slowly unfolding bad dream.

Don't believe people complaining about bad acting. They just expect things that Space:1999 wasn't going to offer. The actors performed well. For example, Commander Koenig (the symbolism in the name is evident) is waiting for the "black sun" to swallow the base, he's talking with Prof. Bergman. He's about to break into tears but manages to restrain himself so that his eyes show only a little trace of what he's feeling underneath: A very good performance from Martin Landau, nearly impossible to find in better rated SF series/movies.

Details

Official Sites:

Carlton Video Ltd

Country:

UK Italy

Language:

English

Release Date:

4 September 1975 (UK)

Also Known As:

Cosmos 1999

Filming Locations:

Pinewood Studios, Iver Heath, Buckinghamshire, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

Group 3, Incorporated Television Company (ITC)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

50 min (48 episodes)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

4:3