episode #15 - The Pioneers

episode #2 of 2nd season / Air Date: 9/20/74    written by Bill Svanoe    Directed by Christian Nyby II

When I first watched the first act of this episode, I thought 'whoa, what is this? some seventies monster-on-the-loose-in the woods story?' It's not quite that. A space capsule has returned to Earth prematurely and 'something' breaks out of it in the middle of the woods, grunting & moaning in an alarming manner. It turns out to be a top secret project - so secret that Oscar Goldman & Dr. Rudy Wells don't even fill in Austin when he asks about it. A couple of scientists (Mike Farrell, Joan Darling) were testing a way to safely undergo cryogenic freezing; but, since the capsule returned too early, the male scientist awoke  overloaded on the new serum, causing him maddening pain and a great surge in strength.

This has an intriguing first act - there's the mystery of what is going on, what's in the woods; afterwards, it's a fairly pedestrian plot about trying to contain the marauding scientist. It boils down to Austin trying to handle the berserker; the crazed scientist's strength is great enough to make him a match for Austin's bionics and Austin's bionic arm is again damaged by a heavy object (see Dr. Wells is Missing in the 1st season). This story suggested the pitfalls of scientific advancement and man's potential. There's also an atypical final scene of Goldman nearly crying over the events. BoG's Score: 6 out of 10