Forgotten TV: The Outer Limits - 'The Tribunal'

 Fans of this Show sure seem to love Time Travel.

This is the 2nd highest rated Episode of the Show.

In 'The Tribunal,' the Cold Open shows Prisoners of Auschwitz during WWII.

A man- repeat Actor Alex Diakun- is amongst them, grabs an Officer's coat and runs away.
They pull out a device and vanish!

In the Present, a Lawyer- Saul Rubinek- is on his own mission.

He has found out that one of the Auschwitz Guards- Radamacher- is still around and hiding in Town.

The man denies this and now he has to bring evidence to prove this.

The man from the beginning brings him the coat, which belonged to that same man.

That evidence is not enough, since the coat is too well preserved (since it was literally taken moments earlier).

This means that the guy has to go back and get more, which means another trip with the younger version of Radamacher.

He games the system better this time- hiding the stolen evidence in a safety deposit box- and this helps Rubinek's case.

He goes to meet with the guy and sees his strange watch.

This sends him back to 1944 and he narrowly escapes thanks to the Traveler.

He pushes the case against Radamacher and then learns from the Time Traveler that this won't work, as the old man fled the Country.

This pushes Rubinek to threaten him, but then they get a better idea.

They take the old version back to 1944 and he ends up being killed by his younger self, closing the loop and pleasing The Tribunal.

As a bonus, he takes the Granddaughter (who died originally) back to the Present.  The Tribunal won't mind.

A really poignant and strong Episode.  It is easy to see why this is rated so highly.

Outside of the Plot, this one was personal, as the Writer lost family in the Holocaust.
The Writer actually did a version of this Plot for Quincy M.E. with another Rademacher hiding.

The Sci-Fi Element here is strong, but never takes the focus away from the Story.  It is a device to allow the Story to play out and bring emotional resonance to things.

The Acting is all around quite good.  No complaints there.

If I were to nitpick, the immersion in the 1944 Scene drops a bit when they just stop speaking German.  It's a weird thing to do, all things considered.

That said, a strong Episode that fits the Sci-Fi Theme and is a damn good Story.
Now here's me looking at anyone who thinks that I'm being 'too mean' to the Nazis here...

Next time, a Prisoner faces a choice between Death and Science.  In hindsight, the 2nd may have been a bad choice!  See you then...

Forgotten TV: The Outer Limits - 'A Stitch in Time'

 Is this truly the best Episode of The Outer Limits?

This is the highest rated Episode on IMDB, with a User Rating of 8.4.

The Plot involves, as you might guess, Time Travel and a touch of casualty looping.

Let's have already gone into...

This is Season 2, Episode 1.

In the Cold Open, a woman confronts a man at his home and demands to verify his identity.
When she does, she pulls out a gun and shoots him!

This is Amanda Plummer, last seen here killing her new Husband on Tales from the Crypt.

We also follow an FBI Agent named Jamie who is celebrating (sort of) the upcoming execution of a killer who she put away.
Sadly, she put him away AFTER her best friend was killed by him.

She's working on a strange case involving 17 men killed by the same gun...across 30 years!

We soon find out the truth about what is going on.

Plummer can time travel via sort of logical nonsense and covers her tracks, wiping her clues from the crime scene in the beginning.

Afterwards, the killer on Death Row lays out *exactly* what he did before his first kill (to the day!) and she uses that info to kill him first!

This act undoes Jamie's friend's death, of course.

The strain is getting too much for her, since she retains memories of the past timeline AND the new one.  Imagine that, but 17 times over!

Jamie figures out that she is up to something and confronts her, whereupon Plummer reveals her time machine.
She's going to finally go back and save for herself from a creepy kidnapper.

Jamie can't stop her, so she follows her.

In 1976, Plummer manages to save herself and let Jamie kill the guy before he does anything terrible.

However, she can't save her CURRENT self (time travel is confusing) and her older body is left in the past.

Please ignore that Plot Point as we see that this undoes ALL of Plummer's killings (her motivation to do them taken away) and Jamie's friend is dead again.

She is sad and confronts a happier Plummer, who apparently lets her use the Machine to kill the bad guy yet again!

The End.

A really strong premise that nearly gets the focus it deserves.

This one is good- no question.
The only issue here for me is that the focus is rarely on the actual killings done by Plummer.  Seeing her do more than 2 would have been nice.

That said, there would be less time for Jamie and her Plot, so...alright.

It would also have been a fun wrinkle to actually begin with Jamie meeting with the happier Plummer and being greeted by her line 'I know you.  You're the one that saved me.'
Tell everything else in order and you have a weird, but interesting hook IMHO.

The strongest parts are where it really touches upon the difference between Justice and Vengeance, Correlation vs Causation and Do 17 wrongs make a right?

I've seen far worse Time Travel tales.
Interestingly, the Writer- Steven Barnes- wrote 3 Episodes of the Show and one was the 4th lowest rated one.  Here he is with the 1st Rated one now. 

Speaking of other Episodes, this one got a Sequel...4 Seasons later?!?

Next time, we jump to Season 5 for a tale involving Nazis.  It's sad how topical that subject is in 2026.  See you then...

My Crazy Youth: The Time That H.G. Wells Wouldn't Let 'Lois & Clark' Consummate Their Marriage

 I spent a whole $1 on this DVD set, so let's get some content out of it!

Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman was the first Superman program I saw- for better or worse.

Thankfully, the Animated Series came out soon after to amp things up.

So, this is Season 4 (aka the Final Season), so let's pick out a good Episode.

This one has H.G. Wells...and a Sorcerer?  I'm in!

In 'Soul Mates,' the duo are finally married (after many delays) and now they are ready for a Super Honeymoon.  What could go wrong?

If you guessed 'H.G. Wells shows up,' then you...probably read the Title.

Also you're a bit weird in the head.

Anyhow, he's actually a recurring Character, first showing up in Season 2 and 3.  He'd actually appear once more this Season.

Anyhow, he tells them that Lois will die of a rare disease if she and Clark, well. consummate their marriage.
See- that weird Title wasn't a lie OR exaggeration.

He uses his Time Machine to send all 3 of them back to a past time where the curse- which causes the illness to appear upon consummation- was first placed.

This really is a Silver Age story- just without the consummation.

This version of Time Travel places them in their past bodies- he hand waves away the fact that Superman was born on Krypton, so don't ask- but he's in his own.

I guess his past self didn't exist then?

This puts Clark in the body of a Copyright Free Version of Robin Hood/The Scarlet Pimpernel and Lois as, well, Damsel in Distress.

They theorize that Tempus- also a recurring Character who would show up TWICE more this Season- put the curse on Lois after he lost her hand in marriage.

As such, Clark throw the fight and they return home...to find that Tempus is now King.

If you're wondering how the hell that makes sense, join the club.  Something something evil winning or whatever.

They travel to a more recent time- the Old West.

Clark is another Hero in Disguise (they lamp shade it TBF) and Lois is...another Damsel in Distress.
Sigh.

This time they actually stop Tempus, as well as creating a Causality Paradox when they set up Present Day Jimmy with a girl who he was married to 'in a past life.'

The day is saved and Wells leaves (to return in 11 Episodes as a different Actor).

The pair finally get to get busy as the Episode ends.

That was weird.  That was really weird.

This Episode has...
1) Time Travel
2) A random Sorcerer
3) Past Life Regression

Superman Comics would get pretty weird back in the Silver Age- like when Superman made sure that the Indians sold New York to White Folks or when he lost his virginity to a girl who turned out to be brainwashed by a robot- but this is 1997.

Yes, he's still an Alien that flies and has super powers.  That's pretty standard.

The whole Plot is actually a riff on a different DC Character duo- Hawkman and Hawkgirl.

Their continuity is a mess, but if you just go by the versions from DC's Legends of Tomorrow, you're good.  So, it sure is weird to see Superman and Lois in their exact story, no?

If you want a silly, but fun Episode, this one is it.  I guess they just figured the younger kids were old enough now to see an Episode all built around the conflict of 'Superman and Lois can't have sex unless they stop a villain.'

By the way, if Wells here looked familiar (FYI that Shot I took is also his IMDB Profile Pic), then you likely know him from this...

As I said, it is pretty silly fun, even if the whole conflict could be awkward to explain to your kids.  

Just tell them about the birds and the planes...I mean, bees before this.

Leap Day: The 'Quantum Leap' Wrestling Episode

 What is the point in having a Complete Series Boxset if you never watch it.

On this day that we only get once every 4 years, let's pay some love to Quantum Leap...

In 1991, Pro Wrestling was on a down swing.  Regardless, we got an Episode about it in Season 3, Episode 20.

Let's lock up!

Sam leaps into a 1950's Wrestler, whose gimmick is a Fake Russian.  
At least he's not a Fake Nazi like Fritz Von Erich.

He improvises and gives TV Viewers a Trouble in Paradise.

*****

He figures out what is going on...

His Brother is his Partner and his Mom is the Manager.

They want a Title Shot, which was apparently the dead Dad's dream.

The problem- the Brother has a not-diagnosed heart condition and will die (or did in the original Timeline) if he wrestles.

What is Sam to do?

He finally manages to figure out what exactly his issue is- he got sick as a kid and it damaged his heart.

He won't listen to Mom, however.
After all, he wouldn't listen to his One Scene Only Wife and Kid.

In the B-Plot, Sam is caught in a triangle with the wife of opponent (Terry Funk) and the Funker himself.

The guy wants to legit kill Sam, but he also has to keep the Brother out of the ring.

Ouch.

Cut to a montage of Sam being beaten up by Terry Funk for what they say is an hour.

Even in the '50s, that seems a bit much- especially since this supposedly ran on TV.

Anyhow, Sam pulls off Chekhov's Sleeper Hold to win the Titles.
The Brother doesn't die.  The End.

A good Episode, even if I was hoping for more Wrestling.  I was probably expecting too much.

To be fair, you are rewarded with lots of Funk highlights, from a body slam to an Atomic Drop to a Piledriver.  You can also see in the slow motion how Funk keeps a hand on Sam's back to make sure that his body doesn't fall onto him.

Kayfabe lives!

The actual meat of the Episode is nice.  Everyone gets a moment or two to shine.  
The Wife is great, so it is a shame how much they shortchange her.  Aw.

Funk is great fun here, playing up a real '80s Movie Villain (which he played a few times).

Shout out to Jean-Pierre Dorleac work as Costume Designer- he really nailed the 1950's aesthetic.

Is this a great representation of 1950's Territory Wrestling?  Probably not.  
Would anyone in 1991 know this?  Would anyone in 2024 care?  Nah.

Kudos for making the most of not getting Stan Hansen as Funk's partner by getting his Stunt Double...

***When in doubt, hire a Stan Hansen double***

A really nice Episode that doesn't give you lots of Wrestling.  It was 1991, so what was I really expecting though?

DVR Theater: 'The Time Tunnel' vs. The Ghost of Nero!

 A slight change in plans as the next update isn't Horror-themed.  Let's fix that!

In the late run of The Time Tunnel, it got all weird and sci-fi, as opposed to having the Leads just traverse history itself.

By the end run, they fought Aliens multiple times and met Merlin.

Before that happened, however, they had what could best be described as a Halloween Episode.

This is...

Our Heroes end up in 1915, right in the middle of WWI.  How does the Roman Emperor play a part?

They end up in the Basement of a Villa and a blast unearths the Tomb of Nero!

The Ghost kills a German Soldier, so the guys flee up the stairs (not actually seeing the murder, mind you).

They find its Owner and he covers for their presence, since he's a Baron (but not a Frankenstein one).

The Ghost gets upstairs and possesses one of the Soldiers- Richard Jaeckel!- who proceeds to rant and attack the Baron.

Nero wants revenge of the descendants of the man that betrayed him.

Classic Ghost behavior.

Back in the Future (of the Past), the people behind the Tunnel call in an expert on Ghosts.

Did they use Angie's List (aka Angi)?

Just in time as Tony is possessed.

They zap him with ONE MILLION VOLTS of Electricity for a 'nanosecond' to free him.

They manage to stop the Ghost- including the time that they PUNCH IT IN THE FACE- and escape before the building is bombed!

What a strange one.  Like I said, this seems to represent the turn in the Show's focus.  

The Historical Fiction soon take a backseat to spectacle- like The Walls of Jericho- or magic- Merlin- and Aliens- see the final Episode.

Was doing an Episode with them in Rome too much?  They didn't have the 'in their lifetime' rule from Quantum Leap and they jump around to crazier places.

My guess is that the Budget is to blame.

Instead of Rome, we get wind blowing, random Soldiers and stock Bernard Herrman Score pieces.  His Music really elevates the basic action on display here.

That said, they do have fun with this premise and it is memorable after 50+ years.  Now will someone turn down the fan, please?

A fun, strange Episode- even for a Time Travel Show.  Let's see if others can match up.

DVR Theater: Telepathic (?!?) Time Travel with Ricardo Montalban in 'The Wild, Wild West'

 Another Episode already?  It's only the second one ever, so, why not?

In this Episode, we see a famous Guest Star, a silly bit of 'science' and the inspiration for the Movie.

This is...

A Magician- Montalban- gets Artemus on Stage for his act and makes him disappear!

He leaves behind a sword, which West uses to track him down.

As it turns out, he was a Confederate Commander who was wounded in the War, but saved by West.  

He lost his legs, however, and hates the guy...for saving him.

He casually drops into conversation the fact that he can warp time with his mind.  That old chestnut. 

He demonstrates this by sending Jim to see Artemus in the past, where he thinks that he is someone else.

They have a fight- since Artemus doesn't 'know him' and ultimately everyone but Jim gets killed.

This guy below especially gets it.

Jim and Artemus are brought back and, apparently, death there won't kill them.  Alright.

Now that he knows that his powers work on others, he takes all of them back to the Battle of Vicksburg- where he was injured- and he's now restored.

Time to change the War...or it would be if they had more than 5 minutes left in the Episode.

Quick- have a big fist fight, get Montalban injured again and have him send our Heroes back.

The End.

It's an insane, but fun premise.  It is just too bad that the execution is so damn, well, bad.

A story like this is all about priorities.  What do you need to happen?  What don't you need to happen?
For instance, do you need 2 Scenes of the (I think) Wife acting nervous before Montalban reveals his plan?  No. 
Do you *really* need the fist fight West has before he meets Montalban?  Probably not.

As it stands, they set up Montalban for most of the Episode, reveal his Plot and simply leave no time to do it justice.  It's a shame.

In a way, it reminds me of The Final Countdown (The Film, not the Song).  They spend the whole time deciding whether or not to change history...and run out of, well, time.  They were the good guys talking about- in theory- making things better, as opposed to Montalban's plan, of course.

Complaints aside, Montalban is, as always, great.  He gets a great monologue in about his condition and how he blames West for it.  You get to see him restored (again- how that works is anyone's guess) to boot.

The main reason I watched this, however, was because they mostly based the Villain in the 1999 Film off of Montalban here (angry Confederate Commander with no legs and a plan to kill General Grant).  So, in a way, it is his fault that we got this...

I kid, I kid.  We know whose fault this was.

Next time, let's jump back to the Bottom of the Sea for an odd version of a Bottle Episode.  It shows how strange the Show can be without aliens or leprechauns.  See you then...

DVR Theater: 'The Time Tunnel' Has a Biblical Adventure

 In a world of Streaming and accessibility is everything.  For instance, I can watch Tenet on my Phone just to piss off Christopher Nolan.

Big fan.

A somewhat forgotten way to do this is via DVR, which is essentially the 21st Century version of a VCR (even when similar-looking acronyms).

I DVR many things, but mostly old Shows that air way too late at night to watch normally.

Here in DVR Theater, I highlight those Episodes/Films.

To start, here's the original Quantum Leap from the '60s...

The premise is simple enough- these 2 guys went into the device and were shot through time.

They travel from place to place through time and always get into trouble.

In this case, they end up right before the biblical Battle of Jericho.

They straight up tell Joshua that they are from the future and he has, well, zero questions.  
How does he even understand the concept of Time Travel?!?

They tell him that they know what will happen and he's cool with that.

In fact, he makes THEM the 2 Spies that go into Jericho.

We never see the King here, but we do get this High Priest guy.

And yes, just accept that these people are all Caucasian- it was the '60s.

He's, of course, befuddled by the Israeli Army marching around his gates and doing nothing else.

Despite being told that they are Spies, our Heroes save a girl from being sacrificed to the 'God' of the City.

While this gets one of them caught and tortured, it is according to plan as the girl is the Sister of the Biblical character.

They go through a few fist fights, some intrigue and a whole B-Plot where Lee Meriweather is the only one who doesn't just believe the Bible Story.

As a bonus, the main Villain is played by Michael Pate, a big time Character Actor.

They, of course, save the day and got blipped out to the next Episode.

A fun Episode, even if you may or may not believe in the biblical Story.  The Writers clearly do, as everything happens according to the Bible.  There's also an unseen force that makes sure that the duo aren't pulled out earlier.

Putting that aside, it is a pretty good Episode.  Our Heroes aren't exactly nuanced or anything.  There's no character conflict or Arc here.

Shows like this were fun to watch, didn't make you think too hard and then you moved on with your life.  Leave the allegories to Star Trek!

You can definitely see the budget constraints here- for instance, we never actually see the Israelites' Army- but, again, just go with it.

There's an antiquated charm for older viewers who remember the Show and a real curiosity factor for people like me who weren't born yet.  There are crazier Episodes- including one with Robert Duvall!- but this one is still a stand out.

Now go buy the Leggo Toy Set for the Show already!

Next up, it is a strange time out in the Old West.  Bad guys, shoot-outs and...pocket dimensions?!?  See you then...