This is another episode which falls firmly in the middle of the pack. The ingredients are there for a comic romp a la Voodoo: a solid guest star; a ridiculous plot to hang gags on; and a group scavenger hunt. But it never really pops, mainly because it becomes redundant and pretty ordinary in the second act, and the ending is predictable and a bit of a letdown.
Gilligan's head gets caught in the open by a Briton with a large net. As usual, the Skipper doesn't believe his story until he sees the Briton for himself. He is noted butterfly collector Lord Beasley Waterford, hot on the trail of the pussycat swallowtail, the rarest specimen in the world. They find out Lord Beasley has a boat and a flare gun, and he'll let them and the other castaways return to civilization with him. All they have to do is help him catch the swallowtail. In fact, he nearly nets it, until our lead yelps for joy over his news and causes his first miss.
Lord Beasley is initially a fun and interesting character. He is so singularly focused on catching the butterfly that he is oblivious to both his surroundings and the desperation of the castaways to leave the island. All the early scenes are solid. While on safari with the Howells, he nearly sinks in quicksand; the girls watch him do some accidental cliff diving. The best scene, though, is when the Professor, in a bid to connect with Lord Beasley, tries to show off his butterfly knowledge and gets caught using crib notes.
To show his level of absurd dedication, he even walks by the group in a diving suit.
He becomes less fun and interesting as a martinet leading his castaway regiment. His followers soon spend the rest of the entry trying to go AWOL. Their plots against him aren't any more fun than his militarism and are ineffective.
There are the usual formulaic attempts at bribery and seduction. Lord Beasley gives little attention to Mr. Howell's bribe, and Ginger's pillow talk ends with a stinging rejection.
Frustrated, the castaways conspire to get Lord Beasley drunk on a concoction made from fermented berries. Their plan to drink him under the table works as effectively here as it did with the Russian cosmonauts. The scene has its moments, but has a very anticlimactic finish. Once again, the castaways outsmart themselves (if that's possible), and Lord Beasley gets his man.
COCONOTES:
Veteran character actor John McGiver does a commendable job as the stuffy Lord Beasley. His dry wit and understated style works very well in places. He is known for his work in such films as Breakfast at Tiffany's, The Manchurian Candidate, and The Glass Bottom Boat.
Given how rare the Pussycat Swallowtail is supposed to be, we see two of them--one yellow, one orange-- within moments of each other.
Now the island has a mountain. It's pretty obvious that's a rear projection shot as Lord Beasley climbs its side.
The girls continue to somehow build their wardrobe. Mary Ann sports three different outfits in the span of a day we haven't seen before.
Gilligan's head gets caught in the open by a Briton with a large net. As usual, the Skipper doesn't believe his story until he sees the Briton for himself. He is noted butterfly collector Lord Beasley Waterford, hot on the trail of the pussycat swallowtail, the rarest specimen in the world. They find out Lord Beasley has a boat and a flare gun, and he'll let them and the other castaways return to civilization with him. All they have to do is help him catch the swallowtail. In fact, he nearly nets it, until our lead yelps for joy over his news and causes his first miss.
Lord Beasley is initially a fun and interesting character. He is so singularly focused on catching the butterfly that he is oblivious to both his surroundings and the desperation of the castaways to leave the island. All the early scenes are solid. While on safari with the Howells, he nearly sinks in quicksand; the girls watch him do some accidental cliff diving. The best scene, though, is when the Professor, in a bid to connect with Lord Beasley, tries to show off his butterfly knowledge and gets caught using crib notes.
To show his level of absurd dedication, he even walks by the group in a diving suit.
He becomes less fun and interesting as a martinet leading his castaway regiment. His followers soon spend the rest of the entry trying to go AWOL. Their plots against him aren't any more fun than his militarism and are ineffective.
There are the usual formulaic attempts at bribery and seduction. Lord Beasley gives little attention to Mr. Howell's bribe, and Ginger's pillow talk ends with a stinging rejection.
Frustrated, the castaways conspire to get Lord Beasley drunk on a concoction made from fermented berries. Their plan to drink him under the table works as effectively here as it did with the Russian cosmonauts. The scene has its moments, but has a very anticlimactic finish. Once again, the castaways outsmart themselves (if that's possible), and Lord Beasley gets his man.
COCONOTES:
Veteran character actor John McGiver does a commendable job as the stuffy Lord Beasley. His dry wit and understated style works very well in places. He is known for his work in such films as Breakfast at Tiffany's, The Manchurian Candidate, and The Glass Bottom Boat.
Given how rare the Pussycat Swallowtail is supposed to be, we see two of them--one yellow, one orange-- within moments of each other.
Now the island has a mountain. It's pretty obvious that's a rear projection shot as Lord Beasley climbs its side.
The girls continue to somehow build their wardrobe. Mary Ann sports three different outfits in the span of a day we haven't seen before.
