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Wednesday, January 21, 2015

Tonight's Episode

70s SF television takes a lot of flak for being cheesy, but Gil Gerard deserves a lot of credit for his subtle but emotionally tortured performance in "A Dream of Jennifer," in which Buck Rogers must confront the loss of the woman he left behind in the 20th century. For all the accolades granted more prestigious fare, there are many more artists whose good work goes unrecognized. Maybe it's 35 years too late, but good job, Gil.

2 comments:

Jeff Shyluk said...

Considering that the Space Agency sent old Buck on a solo five month mission into deep space, I always figured that Captain Rogers was NASA's least sympathetic astronaut, not their most.

For kicks, I watched the opening splash to the pilot, and woo-wow! Hot hot hot 1970's women! I guess there's a James Bond/Maurice Binder inspiration. Still, it sets up an interesting premise, that Buck was dreaming for the 500 years of his frozen hibernation. So is the show part of that dream? The credit sequence suggests that to me, anyways.

Earl J. Woods said...

That opening sequence is something else, that's for sure. Pamela Hensley and Erin Grey in painted-on costumes definitely had an impact on my preadolescent mind.

I find it hilarious that Buck spent 500 years having wet dreams, particularly after having rewatched most of the show recently; he's quite a hound dog, picking up a new girl practically every episode while stringing along poor Wilma Deering, who doesn't even seem to mind. Buck's dreams accurately capture his priorities.

I prefer to believe the show is "real," though, not a dream. It's not quite weird enough to be a dream.