episode #20 - The Bellero Shield

Martin Landau returns for his 2nd go-around in the O L (after The Man Who Was Never Born), and Sally Kellerman is also back (after The Human Factor). Landau is a scientist who lacks confidence due to a domineering rich father (Neil Hamilton) and Kellerman is the scientist's ambitious wife. An alien (John Hoyt, also back, from Don't Open Till Doomsday, and unrecognizable) from another dimension accidentally hitches a ride to the scientist's lab on a laser beam. The scientist is eager to exchange ideas but the wife is only interested in what can be gained, such as the alien's special force field, which would give her and her husband incredible power, socially & financially. But, in a Twilight Zone-like twist, she becomes a victim of her ambition.
As pointed out elsewhere, this was the O L version of Macbeth, with Kellerman in the Lady Macbeth role, scheming to gain more power through her husband, who is, by comparison, clueless and naive. The entire tone of the episode is, likewise, theatrical and dramatic, with the characters almost speaking in a quasi-Shakespearean manner. It's also moody and ominous; Kellerman has a sinister female aide (Chita Rivera), usually skulking in the shadows. It's also a disturbing depiction of how easily certain humans can stoop to murder - again, going back to the best of Shakespeare. BoG's Score: 7 out of 10