For me, the Terrible Leprechaun. Unbelievable garbage.
Why did the scriptwriters produce such appalling stories? What on earth was Allen thinking, he must have encouraged it?
The Terrible Leprechaun, Return of Blackbeard, Werewolf, etc, they are all absolutely ridiculous.
The third season of Voyage is unbelievable, the fourth season was a bit better overal but there were still some absolutely pathetic episodes.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jumping_the_shark
'Jumping the shark is an idiom created by Jon Hein that was used to describe the moment in the evolution of a television show when it begins a decline in quality that is beyond recovery, which is usually a particular scene, episode, or aspect of a show in which the writers use some type of "gimmick" in a desperate attempt to keep viewers' interest.
The phrase jump the shark comes from a scene in the fifth season premiere episode of the American TV series Happy Days titled "Hollywood: Part 3", written by Fred Fox, Jr.,[4] which aired on September 20, 1977. In the episode, the central characters visit Los Angeles, where a water-skiing Fonzie (Henry Winkler) answers a challenge to his bravery by wearing swim trunks and his trademark leather jacket, and jumping over a confined shark. The stunt was created as a way to showcase Winkler's real life water ski skills.
For a show that in its early seasons depicted universally relatable adolescent and family experiences against a backdrop of 1950s nostalgia, this incident marked an audacious, cartoonish turn towards attention-seeking gimmickry. Initially a supporting character, the faddish lionization of an increasingly superhuman Fonzie became the focus of Happy Days. The series continued for seven years after Fonzie's shark-jumping stunt, with a number of changes in cast and situations. The phrase implies a belief that the show began a creative decline in this era, as writers ran out of ideas, and Happy Days became a caricature of itself.'
This is where Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea started going downhill. The black and white episodes were the best.
shareTh first season may have had more realistic and believable story lines but it also was by far the dullest of the 4 seasons. I would rather see aliens and giant sea creatures than those boring first year episodes.
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David Hedison must not have remembered 'The Terrible Leprechaun'....that was a total piece of s--t...compared to 'The Fossil Men'. At least 'Fossil Men' had a descent plot and good performances...can't say that about 'Leprechaun'.
shareThe one where puppets take over the ship!
shareNope you're wrong.
Although it's maybe a stupid and implausible episode, it has high production, casting and writing value for an Irwin Allen show.
So for a show that's often crappy, the "puppet show" (The Deadly Dolls) episode was actually one of the better fantasy episodes.
well, good to know that such a golden oldie is still being viewed. I wasnt a big fan of VTTBOTS when I was a kid, but I tuned in once in a while.
I recently hooked up to a WD TV box and randomly watch whatever suits my mood.
The one with Ed Asner was positively stellar! It had depth and drama...
I also liked the one with Robert Duval...
Then I saw this episode called Deadly Creature Below! What a bore!
Then I tuned into a worse one called The Wax Men... what is the point?
Too bad... what a waste.
Smoke me a kipper. I'll be back for breakfast
First-run Voyage was before my time. I saw Season 1 for the first time when I bought the DVDs. I subsequently watched Season 2 on IMDb/Hulu. I'm currently in the process of watching Season 3 for the first time on Youtube and have to say two things:
1.) I'm thankful to the user who posted the third season episodes.
2.) I'm very thankful that I didn't have to pay to see them!
I've only seen a few episodes so far, but the third season of Voyage seems weaker than the first two seasons. However, the episode "The Day The World Ended" was excellent.
What makes you think the supposed poor quality of some of the episodes had anything to do with Irwin Allen? By the 3rd season, the budget was cut considerably and there was nothing Allen could do about it, except use the same monsters and plots over and over, to some extent. The ratings were always high enough to keep the show on the air. In fact, until that Star Trek The Next Generation drivel appeared in 1987, Voyage was the longest running Sci Fi Tv series ever to air on US TV, so what does that tell you? Apparently Mr. Allen knew what he was doing ? Also in defense of Allen, it was NOT his idea to continually feature monsters, but more the networks request. It was determined early on that episodes which featured monsters and aliens received better ratings, so there you have it. Btw, the title of the show is Voyage To The Bottom Of The Sea, so sea life and sea creatures/monsters would be normal material for many of the episodes. Like duhhhh, isn't that a no brainer? If you want nothing but espionage, tune in to Mission Impossible or Man From Uncle ! Just incredible how many morons can't grasp this. Pretty much the same thing happen to Seaquest DSV back in the 90's. After the first season, they had more "monster/alien" episodes as well. It's Sci Fi buddy, get over it or watch Lost In Space, which Voyage constantly beat in the ratings. Also keep in mind, Voyage was NOT cancelled due to low ratings. The show actually had good enough ratings for a 5th season, but Irwin Allen just grew tired of working with a reduced budget and the concept itself, so they nuked it in favor of spending more money on Land Of The Giants, which only lasted 2 seasons anyway. Bad move!
shareYou have some good points, but give Irwin Allen far too much relief from ridicule based on his budget woes. Other shows also had very small budgets, Twilight Zone, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Star Trek, Munsters, Addams Family, all, ALL fantastic shows in their genres.
The main problem was Irwin Allen just wasn't that talented in the creative arts. He couldn't write or edit a great script, he didn't write the music, edit the show, develop the cinematography, or any of the creative bits. He was a whip cracker/bookkeeper who produced and directed mediocre shows. Nothing more, nothing less.
He forcefully resold the same show concept four times, and lucked out that there were yet only three major networks with no other creative competition. He wouldn't get a show on the air today, MAYBE he could produce movies for the SciFi channel like "Sharknado".
The worst episode is without a doubt NO ESCAPE FROM DEATH from Feb 1967. It uses stock footage from at least four previous episodes: SUBMARINE SUNK HERE, HAIL TO THE CHIEF, JONAH AND THE WHALE, & GRAVEYARD OF FEAR. I would say there is less then 20 minutes of new footage. And stock footage from first season episodes was tinted blue and maybe red. I remember this was even given a big write-up in TV GUIDE that week. A real dog.
shareYes, No Escape from Death was an awful episode.
The quality difference between season 2 and 3 is stark. There is a definite feel of budget saving.
I just started watching Voyage again for the first time since the 60's. Interesting to say the least.
Worst episode for me so far is the one where the diving bell is swallowed by a whale. I didn't know whales had an illuminated esophagus! Remember the old Moon Walk inflated kids amusement, for lack of a better word, "ride"? The inside of the whale looked like one of those made out of big inflated garbage bags! At least I haven't seen it reused in any other episodes like they did with so many other props and sets, most notable being the re-sizable Gummi monster that hitch-hiked in on the outside of a space capsule.
I watched The Time Tunnel last week. I may have to go for Lost In Space next.
BTW, as kids, we used to call the show "Voyage To The Bottom Of The Sewer". Hey, we were kids!
shareI agree. This was ludicrous. The Lobster Man ran it a close second. But when I was a kid, I wouldn't miss an episode. And now that it's available on DVD, I'm enjoying all over again. Go figure.
shareThe worst episode of VTTBOTS is the one where the ship was taken over by some weird, otherworldly creature and the entire crew, with one or two exceptions, was mind controlled to do his bidding.
Oh, wait, that's like, half the episodes in the 4th season.