Man, was I psyched this past weekend. I attended the Williamsburg Film Festival, and in addition to meeting Lee Meriwether (“Barnaby Jones,” “The Time Tunnel,” and, of course, Catwoman in the 1966 “Batman” movie) and Richard Herd (John on “V,” Mr. Wilhelm on “Seinfeld,” Admiral Paris on “Star Trek: Voyager”), I also managed to find a decidedly-unofficial set of “The Fantastic Voyage: The Complete Series.”
If you don’t remember “The Fantastic Journey,” well, fair enough. It only lasted for 10 episodes, after all. But for a six-year-old with a rich imagination (which is what I was when the series premiered), it was the stuff dreams were made of, involving a ship entering the Bermuda Triangle and passing through a rip in the space/time continuum to land on a mysterious, uncharted island filled with strange inhabitants who are also stranded there, including otherworldly individuals as well as other humans from different eras. In addition, there are also “portals” on the island which take you from one location to another. If you think the island aspect sounds just a bit like “Lost,” you’re far from the only one to have noticed that similarity; for that matter, it also resembles a few other shows, including “Sliders.” It’s got a great cast, including Roddy McDowall, Jared Martin, and Ike Eisenmann, and writers from other sci-fi sagas, including D.C. Fontana from “Star Trek.”
I know some people frown on buying bootlegged stuff like this, but I make this solemn vow to you: if “The Fantastic Journey” ever comes out officially, I’ll buy it all over again. But in the meantime, I’m getting all the flashbacks I can handle.
