Cancelled Too Soon: Kolchak The Night Stalker (1974)

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Cancelled Too Soon: Kolchak The Night Stalker (1974)

"Our ongoing look back at sci fi / fantasy TV shows that were cancelled way too soon or pilots that never made it to series."

   If that's the case, they should do an entry for the '04 DS pilot...

[Josette]

That's funny; when the show was on originally, I loved it.  Recently, when it came back on MeTV, I watched again, and after a bit, I got somewhat tired of it.  Each episode seemed so similar.  I ended up being glad that it was so short and there weren't a lot more episodes to watch.

[Gerard]

I initially enjoyed it when it first aired but then also tired of it.  All the plots were similar, recycled monster-of-the-week.  Somehow, The X-Files made it work for years.

Gerard

[Uncle Roger]

It followed the exact same formula week after week. Some episodes worked better than others but the one about murderous Spanish club moss was the worst.

[Mysterious Benefactor]

What is it about plants that brings out the worst?! Lost in Space's The Great Vegetable Rebellion!!   

[Uncle Roger]

The Avengers episode Man Eater of Surrey Green was quite good, with the delightfully dotty Athene Seyler. Herbicidal maniacs indeed.

[Mysterious Benefactor]

(  I haven't seen that ep in years and years. I've only watched a handful of eps gathered in the Mrs. Peel boxed set that I bought as a Christmas gift to myself back in 2016. I should watch that ep ASAP to see what it's like. Although, I don't recall any Mrs. Peel eps that I haven't loved. Sorry I can't say the same for several of the Venus Smith eps.)

[Uncle Roger]

I haven't seen that episode in several years myself but it was always one of my favorites.

[Mysterious Benefactor]

(Yes, it is quite good. Steed, that herbicidal maniac!! 

And the '60s mod hairstyles on the mannequins - whoa!!  )

[Uncle Roger]

I think that it's a great example of what can be achieved with a limited special effects budget. The man eater of the title makes its appearance fairly late in the episode but it still packs a wallop. Can you just imagine what they might have come up with for a Leviathan?

[Gerard]

What is it about plants that brings out the worst?! Lost in Space's The Great Vegetable Rebellion!!   

OMG, MB!  The worst LiS episode ever!  And I was a kid who never missed an episode.  In one scene, there's a "blooper" when Mark Goddard had to turn away and cover his mouth because he started to laugh. 

Ironically, it was the last episode made, but was the second-to-last to air.  The last one to air was Junkyard in Space, an appropriate title for how CBS and Irwin Allen abandoned the original concept for the show which was to be serious sci-fi and drama. 

LiS became Gilligan's Island in Space.  In that notorious episode, they were having a birthday party for the robot with party hats and noise-makers.  Who takes those things on a mission to colonize another planet?  It's like how Ginger and Mary Anne had top-hat costumes to wear to sing Bill Bailey. 

Gerard

[Mysterious Benefactor]

In case anyone's in the mood for a really bad rampaging plants gone bad movie, I see where Contamination .7 aka The Crawlers is on Comet today at 2pm ET.

How could anyone resist a tagline like: "They Hunt...They Feed...They Kill...You're Next!" 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Ranking The Best Television Shows From The 1970’s
25. Kolchak: The Night Stalker (1974-75)

[Mysterious Benefactor]

What the Variety Staff Is Thankful for in Entertainment in 2022
(Scroll down to the 11th staff member)