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“Another Time, Another Place” |
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An Alphan operative is being driven mad by the effects of a mysterious phenomenon which has propelled the moon into a parallel universe, where the Alphans encounter their other selves. Writer: Johnny Byrne Director: David Tomblin Guest Cast Judy Geeson as Regina Kesslann |
Alternate universe stories are a staple of science fiction, and it only stands to reason that they should have done one on Space: 1999. They did a good job of it, too. Instead of an evil parallel universe, like on Star Trek, their universe wasn’t that different from our own. The problem with this episode, like with “Breakaway,” was that it needed to be more developed. We never learn, for example, what happened to life on this Earth, or whether the moon ever left it’s orbit. There are also one or two scenes which could be removed to make room for a little more backstory. One thing I think could have made this a great episode, maybe even a five-mooner, would be to replace Helena with Victor on the mission to the planet. I would much rather listen to Victor talking to himself than Helena talking to herself any day, especially after the little party in “The Black Sun.” What would Victor talk to himself about? I guess we’ll never know. Maybe that’s a good thing: in the parameters of the story, contact with your other self can be lethal. One Victor would have to die, not that I really think it’s necessary to the story. One of the highlights of my life was seeing this episode at MainMission:2000, re-edited, with digitally enhanced effects. What makes this such a special memory is that at the time, I was sitting next to Johnny Byrne, who had written the episode, and was able to hear his opinion directly from him. There was just one thing he didn’t like: a visual sequence of each Alphan dividing into two was deleted. He thought it was important to the story. |
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RELATED PAGES: [Ken Scott] [Martin Willey] |
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Alpha Chronicle Online ©2001 by Matt Butts. Space: 1999 ©1975 Carlton
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