So, what can you tell me about THE WILD WILD WEST? I saw my first episode this past Saturday and it is really good show. It lives up to its name. It’s a part of the syndication package here in Los Angeles for KDOC channel 56. Thus I should be able to see it from time to time. I was aware of the show because the Will Smith/Kevin Kline version. It was a big flop for summer movies standards. I caught up with once. It was not as bad as the reviews had made it out to be. However after seeing this one episode, that movie version did screw it up. It had zero charm compared to this random episode. The animated title sequence alone is worth the time spent with it.

This episode dealt with an assassination plot on President Grant, the VP, and Secretary of State. It is roughly based on the Lincoln conspiracy. It was like James Bond set in West so that was reminiscent of LIVE AND LET DIE. It had black henchman with a metal hook for a hand and ringleader with a skull face and red robe. It was part western, horror film (lots of skull imagery in this one), science fiction, and spy movie. It was something that I always wanted to see yet had never seen anything quite like it. The head villain was great he was delusional in the right way.

As I mentioned before, I am unfamiliar with the show. Are there special episodes to look out for? What are your reminisces? What did you like about the show? Did the other school kids talk about? Any trivia you know about? I feel robbed that I never saw this before.

Let's see...

Conrad did all of his stunts for the first two or three seasons

Canceled season 4, not because of poor ratings, but because it was being criticized as too violent

The episodes with Doctor Loveless (Michael Dunn) are always fun

Season 1 is B&W

If you really like it, the first three seasons are out in boxes. Go rent them. Catching them on tv is great but they could (and probably are) be edited for time and time compressed and who knows what'll be running on the screen at the same time as an episode.

My favorites from Season 1:

THE NIGHT OF THE PUPPETEER (my favorite episode of the entire series)
THE NIGHT THE WIZARD SHOOK THE EARTH (Dr. Loveless, Take 1)
THE NIGHT OF THE STEEL ASSASSIN
THE NIGHT OF THE WHIRRING DEATH (Dr. Loveless, Take 3)
THE NIGHT TERROR STALKED THE TOWN (Dr. Loveless, Take 2)
THE NIGHT OF THE MURDEROUS SPRING (Dr. Loveless, Take 4)
THE NIGHT OF THE DRUID'S BLOOD
THE NIGHT OF THE BURNING DIAMOND
THE NIGHT OF THE INFERNO (Pilot)
THE NIGHT OF THE DOUBLE-EDGED KNIFE
THE NIGHT OF A THOUSAND EYES

Season 2:

THE NIGHT OF THE RAVEN (Dr. Loveless, Take 5)
THE NIGHT OF THE BIG BLAST
THE NIGHT OF THE MAN-EATING HOUSE
THE NIGHT OF THE FEATHERED FURY
THE NIGHT OF THE SURREAL MCCOY (Dr. Loveless, Take 7)
THE NIGHT OF THE GOLDEN COBRA
THE NIGHT OF THE SKULLS
THE NIGHT OF THE TOTTERING TONTINE
THE NIGHT OF THE LORD OF LIMBO
THE NIGHT OF THE FLYING PIE PLATE (goofy, but fun)
THE NIGHT OF THE GREEN TERROR (Dr. Loveless, Take 6)
THE NIGHT OF THE DEADLY BLOSSOM
THE NIGHT OF THE VICIOUS VALENTINE
THE NIGHT OF THE BRAIN
THE NIGHT OF THE BOGUS BANDITS (Dr. Loveless, Take 8)

Season 3:

THE NIGHT OF THE RAVEN
THE NIGHT DR. LOVELESS DIED (Dr. Loveless, Take 9)
THE NIGHT OF THE BUBBLING DEATH
--probably some other good ones in Season 3, but I have to renew my familiarity with many of them, as I make my way through the recent DVD release.

Season 4:

THE NIGHT OF THE WINGED TERROR (PART 1)
THE NIGHT OF THE WINGED TERROR (PART 2)
THE NIGHT OF MIGUELITO'S REVENGE (Dr. Loveless, Take 10 --his final appearance)
--again, I need to see many of the 4th Season episodes again, there are probably a few more gems in there. Season 4 will be released on R1 DVD on March 18, 2008.

I like "The Night of the Raven" too, in which James West is shrunk to a height of about six inches by Dr. Loveless and battles a mean ol' puddy tat and a rampaging billiard ball. Also from the second season is "The Night of the Golden Cobra," which guest-stars Boris Karloff--a special reason to watch it. "The Night of the Returning Dead" guest-stars Sammy Davis Jr., Hazel Court, and Peter Lawford and was directed by Richard Donner. William Witney directed two first-season episodes that are light on the fantasy elements that made the series popular, but are still fast-paced entertainment.

NIGHT OF THE PUPPETEER and NIGHT OF THE BURNING DIAMOND were my favorites from the first season. Been a while since I'd watched many of these, but one I recall liking one episode which involved a masked figure kidnapping singers and keeping them in giant bird cages, but I couldn't tell you which season it was from.