The Time Tunnel (Volume 2)

Starring: Robert Colbert, James Darren, and Lee Meriwether

Created and Produced by Irwin Allen

Directors: Sobey Martin, Nathan Juran, Harry Harris, Herschel Daughterty, & William Hale

As a fan of Science fiction, I must admit a certain feeling of nostalgia for the television series and movies that have made the genre what it is today. Television series such as Star Trek and movies like Logan's Run have helped turn Science Fiction into the mainstream and widely popular media genre we know and love today. There is one series however that is often overlooked, but probably should be mentioned in the same breath as the pioneering Science Fiction television shows of the era. Irwin Allen's creation, The Time Tunnel, has its own place in the evolution of Science Fiction on television, and it is packaged beautifully in this four disc DVD set.

The Time Tunnel originally aired from 1966-1967, and starred Robert Colbert and James Darren, who Science Fictions fans should recognize as he also played Vic Fontaine on several seasons of Star Trek Deep Space Nine. The show was created and produced by television legend Irwin Allen who was the creative force behind such shows Lost in Space and Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea. He also had a hand in creating such classic movies The Poseidon Adventure and The Towering Inferno.

The show follows the exploits of Dr. Tony Newman (Darren) and Dr. Doug Phillips (Colbert); two scientists working on a project to perfect time travel. In their haste to prove the project's effectiveness, the two scientists enter the time tunnel and are swept away into the Vortex of Time. They become trapped in this vortex and are constantly shifted backwards and forewords through time unable to return home.

Each episode finds Doctors Newman and Phillips in some influential moment of time with them struggling not to interfere and accidentally change history. In the episodes included in this set, the characters meet historical figures such as Robin Hood, Billy the Kid, and Marco Polo. They also constantly find themselves at odds with aliens from the future, and in one episode they even play a part in a popular Bible story.

The Volume Two set contains the last fifteen episodes that aired of The Time Tunnel. The episodes that centered on traveling back in time were the best. They were easier to get into and seemed more fun. Whenever aliens were part of the story line the show took on a kind of campy feel. The writing for all episodes was extremely well done however. With all the action and fun story lines, I can imagine kids of that television era absolutely falling in love with The Time Tunnel.

As far as bonuses go, the Volume Two set contains a series of interviews with the stars. There is also a set of 57 stills from all episodes, not just the ones featured in this set. The two most interesting extras are the made for television movie called Time Travelers which was also created by Irwin Allen and originally aired in 1976 and a television pilot remake of The Time Tunnel from 2002 that never aired.

The made for TV movie was not based on The Time Tunnel television series, but instead centered on a Doctor who is asked to go back in time to help find a cure for a mysterious virus. The Doctor goes back right before the Chicago Fire in hopes of finding another Doctor from that time who had found a way to stop the virus, but whose research was completely destroyed by the historical fire.

It is a shame that the 2002 remake of The Time Tunnel never had a shot. Though similar to the original, the plot was focused on a Government time travel experiment gone wrong in which history had been changed. The creators of the new Time Tunnel were the only people unaffected by the experiment's effects and work as a team to set things right with history's timeline. This show definitely had potential, and one wonders what would have happened if it had aired.

The Time Tunnel certainly has a rightful place among the pantheon of great genre television. Yes the special effects are cheesy and the make-up and costumes are dated, but the creativity of the show shines through. The Time Tunnel is definitely the precursor to such cult television favorites like Quantum Leap and Sliders. Though the series only lasted a couple of years, it has absolutely left its indelible mark on Science Fiction television history.

The only complaint I have about the four DVDs in the Volume Two set, is the fact that instead of putting all the episodes on one side, there are two on each side of the four discs. This makes viewing inconvenient as you constantly have to flip the discs over to watch the episodes or view the special features. Other than this mild annoyance however, The Time Tunnel (Volume Two) is a must have for Science Fictions fans.

3 Stars

Special Features:

Available Languages - English, French, & Spanish
Available Subtitles - English & Spanish
Cast Interviews with Robert Colbert, James Darren, Lee Meriwether, & Whit Bissell
Still Photo Gallery (57 still photos)
2002 Unaired TV Pilot
Time Traveler TV Movie
15 Episodes on four Discs