DVR Theater: 'The Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea' Episode Where They Go Nowhere (And Try to Kill Each Other)

 Even when the Show got silly, there was a basic formula.

Go to Place A with Person A.
Some sort of Creature/Alien attacks.

So, what happens when they cut costs and do an Episode with no Monster, no Alien and they never even actually go anywhere in the Sub?

Let's find out in 'The Death Watch!'

A confused Admiral Nelson arrives at the Seaview in port in full dress uniform.

It is empty.
Nobody is there at all!

He runs across the only other man on board- who he finds passed out in a Room- and it is Chief Sharkey (essentially the Middle Manager of the Crew).

They both don't know what is going on, suffering from some sort of amnesia.

Captain Crane shows up a bit later- also in full dress- and, like Nelson, is bothered by a strange noise.

He has one compulsion- kill Admiral Nelson!

In the confusion, he is able to shoot and wound Nelson, who gets away.

Sharkey is stuck in the middle as both men want his help and only want to take care of each other.

He does his best to patch up the Captain.

In spite of, you know, a hole in his shoulder, he manages to elude Crane for a bit and ultimately fight him.

While the fight ends up going badly for him, it still goes better than it should.

Thanks to an Ex Machina in an Automated Message from the Ship, Sharkey finally remembers what is going on and rushes to...play a tape.

You'll see.

A voice on the Tape says that 'The Experiment is Over.  Thank You.'

Crane stops, remembers and helps the Admiral up.

In the aftermath, they remember that this was all an Experiment in Subliminal Messaging.  They were supposed to be stopped by Sharkey playing the Tape if things got out of hand...but he got amnesia too.

Let's end with a joke.  "Ha ha...we'll never be the same, will we?"

What a weird one.  It is a telling statement too, given that they'd already had a whole slew of crazy things.  Mind you, we aren't at Vincent Price as a Puppeteer or mother lovin' Leprechauns showing up yet.

Even compared to the earlier Episodes, this is very strange.

Again- they never go anywhere.  There's no Crew (save for Sharkey).

What's funny is that we will joke when watching the Show how they never Credit anyone but Crane and Nelson in the Intro.  I guess this is why, perhaps?

That or good Contracts.

The meat of the Episode is good, especially when they don't set any of this up.  We are as confused as the Characters when this all plays out.  It is a risky move for a TV Show- no doubt.

'The Death Watch' is a very odd outlier of an Episode, but a good one.  Was this really to save money, like I joked?

I'll let the Stock Footage ending of the Sub rising up answer that.

Next up, let's return to the Wild West.  The Show had many, MANY Guest Villains, but let's do the one with the only (as of this Writing) living one.  See you then...