episode #15 - Return From Outer Space

episode #15 / Air Date: 12/29/65
written by Peter Packer; Directed by Nathan Juran

I didn't realize this until I watched this episode again recently, but there's a continuity here to the past episode, The Sky is Falling; the old machinery here was discarded by the alien family of that episode. The machine is referred to as a 'matter transfer unit' - a version of the Star Trek transporter.
Penny is zapped by its beam but is soon returned when Will activates the machine again; she has no memory of being gone so probably existed as immaterial energy while being 'away.'

As is the case in several episodes around this point, Will is the only one who really knows what's what and all the others think he just has a too-active imagination; gee whiz! Only, in this episode, this becomes magnified when Will does make it back to Earth using that machine. He ends up in a small town in Vermont and all the residents think he's half-baked with his kooky stories of being one of the Robinsons, from outer space. When I first saw this, I thought the twist would be that Will had traveled back in time as well; but, no, this town is just behind the times. The residents are aware of the famous Robinsons but the whole town seems stuck in the 1950s or something.

Meanwhile, the rest of the group are looking for Will back on their alien planet and none of them even seems to consider the matter transfer unit as the reason he's gone; it finally dawns on John that maybe it might be, just as Don prepares to destroy it . The town scenes were supposed to have a Christmas season spirit to 'em but it's kind of a slow and mostly pointless episode. BoG's Score: 4.5 out of 10
Lost in Space Trivia: did you know? the planet that the Robinsons are stuck on is called Priplanus. That's the name Will gives it, at least. This episode has a lot more guest stars than usual during this time, since many scenes are on Earth; among them are Sheila Matthews (wife of Irwin Allen) and Robert Easton, master of dialects.
Epilogue Tag: Will observes how Smith mysteriously goes into a trance and begins to walk somewhere as if summoned; Smith walks into a glass cage as a hairy monster appears and chases Will off... freeze frame!