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Strange New World
USA 1975
produced by Robert E. Larson, Ranald Graham (executive), Walon Green (executive) for Warner Brothers/ABC
directed by Robert Butler
starring John Saxon, Kathleen Miller, Keene Curtis, James Olson, Martine Beswick, Reb Brown, Ford Rainey, Bill McKinney, Gerrit Graham, Cynthia Wood, Catherine Bach, Norland Benson, Richard Farnsworth
screenplay by Ranald Graham, Walon Green, Al Ramrus, based on the Genesis II-concept by Gene Roddenberry, music by Richard Clements, Elliot Kaplan
TV-pilot Genesis II
review by Mike Haberfelner
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Anthony (John Saxon), Allison (Kathleen Miller) and scientist William
(Keene Curtis) have spent the last 180 years in suspended animation in
space, and since the world as we know it has been destroyed by a meteor
shower. Now our three heroes return to earth to look for their loved ones
who are said to have survived the disaster in hibernation as well - but on
their quest to find them, our heroic trio must face many a challenge and
meet many a strange tribe that has grown out of the now lost civilisation. First,
Anthony, Allison and William get into a war between game wardens and
poachers, both tribes that have made what once was a simple conflict in a
national park into a religious war. Problems especially arise when the
poachers get their hands on Anthony's flare gun, but in the end,
everything is resolved peacefully, and the two tribes are even made to
cooperate to better survive whatever there may come. Next our heroes
encounter a tribe of immortals (who for whatever reason dress in togas)
who are kept alive forever by means of cloning for spareparts though, and
while their bodies look young, their minds grow senile. Scientist William
is immediately taken by the scientific aspects of this tribe, the other
two are filled with doubts - as they should be, because the tribe needs
them as blood donors, and needs all their blood fast. In the end
though our heroes manage to destroy the tribe's clone laboratory, and this
way effectively commit genocide ... This third attempt to bring
Gene Roddenberry's Genesis II-concept (in a vastly revamped
form) to the small screen as a proposed series is also the weakest: Sure,
the two stories presented in this pilot are based on great premises that
would have deserved to be explored in greater detail, but instead they
just serve as set-up for your typical harm- and thoughtless
TV-series-adventures. This doesn't mean of course that Strange New
World is so particularly bad it's no wonder it didn't get picked up,
actually it's pretty average and no better or worse that other shows that
actually were series at the time - and it's exactly this mediocricy
that makes Strange New World nothing special ...
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