Assignment Earth

[LaxScrutiny]

I'm posting this in General instead of TOS because it's about possibilities...

Just turned on the TV and watched what randomly was broadcast and it happened to be S2 E26 Assignment Earth, one of my favourite episodes ever since I was around 8 or 9.

As I understand it, it was supposed to be a possible pilot for another series. I watched it, and due to the miracles of modern cable watched it again right away, commercials and all. Loved it as much as I did five decades ago. Robert Lansing and Terri Garr (holy smokes, TERRI GARR??!!?) were amazing in their roles, and it was a compelling episode even today. Not to mention how well they nailed 1960's tech and design.

Let's say it got a green light, what would it have become? Worth watching or quickly cancelled and forgotten?
Where would you have gone with it?

Captain, we could say that Mr. Seven and Miss Lincoln have some interesting experiences in store for them.

And damn, I'd love to have a cat like Isis.

 

[Sci]

I rewatched this one with my fiancee because I suspected Gary Seven and/or his benefactors who play a role in PIC S2, and she thought it was terrible and Gary Seven had no personality. *shrugs*

 

[Richard S. Ta]

My cat Lenny looks a lot like Isis.

 

[Vulture]

I think they could do something like Doctor Who with Assignment Earth

 

[Turtletrekker]

Spoiler: Picard S2

I would watch an Assignment Earth show featuring Tallinn, Guinan and Agent Wells.

 

[LaxScrutiny]

Spoiler: Picard S2

I would watch an Assignment Earth show featuring Tallinn, Guinan and Agent Wells.

I hadn't been watching Picard, or any broadcast TV, for the last few years. Our building got a new package cable deal a few months ago with a lot of shows on demand (including Picard from S1) and built-in PVR so now I'm catching up. Still just part-way through season 1, but I like it. I'm so far behind that I'm avoiding the Picard thread, but I'll be there soon enough.

 

[LaxScrutiny]

I rewatched this one with my fiancee because I suspected Gary Seven and/or his benefactors who play a role in PIC S2, and she thought it was terrible and Gary Seven had no personality. *shrugs*

Lansing was an obvious attempt at James Coburn's "Our Man Flint" from 1966. I thought his character was well paired with the naïve Terri Garr. Kind of a more serious version of a Dean Martin Matt Helm movie. It was a good mix for a sixties show.

 

[IMC Headquarters]

Damn, I would have watched all five seasons of this show. It got a bit dated toward the end when Lansing's hair grew out really long and Miss Lincoln got married to that alien from season three. Plus, they didn't have the budget to show the Supervisors' home base properly--even Irwin Allen would be ashamed of their efforts...

Love the episode "Heist of the Centuries" where they go after the Ferengi scouts who stole all the gold from Fort Knox. Only they weren't Ferengi as we know them. They were called the Acquirons.

Anyway, I love "Assignment: Earth".

 

[Richard S. Ta]

I don’t think it’s be forgotten as it would at least be remembered as Star Trek’s first spin-off. We’d be discussing it in its’ own sub forum on here.

 

[1001001]

I don’t think it’s be forgotten as it would at least be remembered as Star Trek’s first spin-off. We’d be discussing it in its’ own sub forum on here.

And complaining about how it violated Gene's vision...

 

[IMC Headquarters]

"Humans with a Vulcan? You're from the future! Because in this century, Vulcans are scared shitless by human A-Bombs and Silent Spring. Even their survey missions are conducted at considerable distance. And Vulcan Supervisors request assignment on Andoria..."

 

[Greg Cox]

Lansing was an obvious attempt at James Coburn's "Our Man Flint" from 1966. I thought his character was well paired with the naïve Terri Garr. Kind of a more serious version of a Dean Martin Matt Helm movie. It was a good mix for a sixties show.

Along with a heavy dose of Klaatu from THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL. I've always thought TDTESS is to "Assignment: Earth" as FORBIDDEN PLANET is to "Star Trek."

But, yes, "Assignment: Earth" was very much part of the whole sixties sci-fi craze, along with The Avengers, The Man from UNCLE, Get Smart, etc.

And I'll cop to playing the OUR MAN FLINT soundtrack album when writing Gary Seven in my books. Really.

 

[FederationHistorian]

But, yes, "Assignment: Earth" was very much part of the whole sixties sci-fi craze, along with The Avengers, The Man from UNCLE, Get Smart, etc.

Considering both of those shows got film remakes within the last 15 years (the Avengers listed isn’t the same Avengers ), its surprising that we didn’t get Assignment: Earth – A Star Trek story released within that timeframe too.

 

[The Wormhole]

^^Eh? The Avengers remake was released in 1998, which was more than 15 years ago.

 

[Jedi Marso]

And damn, I'd love to have a cat like Isis.

One that could metamorph into a 1960's groovy hot chick? Wouldn't we all!

 

[LaxScrutiny]

One that could metamorph into a 1960's groovy hot chick? Wouldn't we all!

Would it REALLY be beastiality? And would that be so bad?

 

[LaxScrutiny]

Along with a heavy dose of Klaatu from THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL. I've always thought TDTESS is to "Assignment: Earth" as FORBIDDEN PLANET is to "Star Trek."

But, yes, "Assignment: Earth" was very much part of the whole sixties sci-fi craze, along with The Avengers, The Man from UNCLE, Get Smart, etc.

And I'll cop to playing the OUR MAN FLINT soundtrack album when writing Gary Seven in my books. Really.

I had no idea you'd written a Gary Seven book! Just bought the Kindle edition and I'll start it tonight!

 

[Qonundrum]

As I understand it, it was supposed to be a possible pilot for another series.

Let's say it got a green light, what would it have become? Worth watching or quickly cancelled and forgotten?

Where would you have gone with it?

And damn, I'd love to have a cat like Isis.

Well, if the cat can turn into more than just one visage we'd all be as happy... Not that the visage shown was bad...

Yes, A: E was a backdoor pilot, shoehorning in the Trek characters as superficially as possible. I liked it as a kid because it showed more of that 60s goodness and whimsy, but it's a show that - like "ElectraWoman and DynaGirl" - doesn't hold up when re-viewing it years or decades later, especially when learning about the 1960s beyond the whimsy and style of television, film, and music (read: real life events).

Being a contemporary of the late-1960s, the set designs and technology would be extremely inexpensive. As well as bog-standard stuff. Plenty of other shows already did that and most of them did the same thing better. Or would a year or two later, such as "Room 222", which knew not to make every episode about the same subject too.

Gary Seven just waltzes from plot point to plot point, waves a limitless-feature do-all magic wand, and moves on. There's no build-up or even attempt at suspense. The ending tries to make up for it so much by injecting the stock cue music and stock rocket clips that even Scotty could see it from orbit and gag. We're supposed to be impressed with the magic typewriter along with Robert Lansing's and Teri Garr's cliched dialogue, too. I'm actually impressed by their trying to sell it rather than by it itself.

But it caters to every network whim no matter how cheesy or hokey, and it wouldn't have lasted long - it's no surprise the network panned it. Nor would it have been picked up if it was different - the network had enough of that at the time, as anything different is risky and costly. Like how Star Trek was. (A more modern example of something different being put out is "Sliders", especially the third season when the network put on the leash and had it made the way they wanted. After 2 seasons of comparatively fresh material, which was comparatively risky and not all in the TV audience cared for, which is inevitable because that's how people are - there are things we all agree on, but what constitutes entertainment interests isn't one of them.)

The episode is hollow, poorly-scripted, and insulting to the viewers. Just like most of Sliders' third season was.

All that said, where I'd go with it? I'd look up writers to show what could make use of the format and premise to its best potential and then opt to green-light it, given the cost of producing it would be far lower. The cast was good but the material was far lesser than 2004 BSG reboot's miniseries.

 

[Greg Cox]

I had no idea you'd written a Gary Seven book! Just bought the Kindle edition and I'll start it tonight!

Thanks!

In case you're interested, I've written three Gary Seven books. Seven (and Roberta and Isis) are major characters in my EUGENICS WARS books as well.

 

[mb22]

Beside books, there were also comics from DC and IDW.