I was three when it first premiered hence I vividly remember seasons 2 and 3 in its original run. Favorite out those later years the Anti-matter Man (yr#3) and the ladies caught in the cross-fire of a conflict between two aliens (yr#2). Sadly I forgot the name of the later.
I saw season 1 much later (for some reason it's rarely shown when I catch it in syndication)--It's an entirely different atmosphere. The family is not looking to get back home as much as surviving where they're living. That first planet was not explored in depth I say after the first half dozen episodes. Thereafter it was aliens, advanced machinery and their robot growing sassy (towards Smith) and lovable. Smith was a monster in yr#1--and changing him to...Just before yr #2 he appeared to have a mental breakdown of a sort after seeing one too many ugly aliens. That's when the show jumped the shark; Smith transformed into that.
But throughout the series all three years the family were a family. The cast was selected well, not only acting as a close loving unit but the Robinson kids looked like brother and sister. And here too, treatment of a plot aspect sank...Will got too much exposure whereas Judy had virtually none. And Will and Penny were teens--kiddie stories fit their age group. But what killed it was the over-the-top whimsy of year three--Too many reworked fairy stories and kookiness--Absolute worse being the human carrot.
For all its flaws I rank #2 in liking those 1960's Irwin Allen programs.
I saw season 1 much later (for some reason it's rarely shown when I catch it in syndication)--It's an entirely different atmosphere. The family is not looking to get back home as much as surviving where they're living. That first planet was not explored in depth I say after the first half dozen episodes. Thereafter it was aliens, advanced machinery and their robot growing sassy (towards Smith) and lovable. Smith was a monster in yr#1--and changing him to...Just before yr #2 he appeared to have a mental breakdown of a sort after seeing one too many ugly aliens. That's when the show jumped the shark; Smith transformed into that.
But throughout the series all three years the family were a family. The cast was selected well, not only acting as a close loving unit but the Robinson kids looked like brother and sister. And here too, treatment of a plot aspect sank...Will got too much exposure whereas Judy had virtually none. And Will and Penny were teens--kiddie stories fit their age group. But what killed it was the over-the-top whimsy of year three--Too many reworked fairy stories and kookiness--Absolute worse being the human carrot.
For all its flaws I rank #2 in liking those 1960's Irwin Allen programs.