Starring the great comic actor George Cole (of the "St. Trinian's" films) this offbeat segment deals with a dramatic blackmail plot, far removed from the futuristic science fiction "UFO" is remembered for.
It' a bit outlandish to have the aliens from Outer Space blackmailing humans to become collaborators in their attempt to conquer the Earth, but it's still suspenseful and an opportunity for Cole to have a straight, non comedic performance. In this regard it's closer to the paranoia theme of "The Invaders" than the tech-heavy "UFO".
A flying saucer chasing Cole's snazzy car of the future livens things up, cuing those patented miniature explosions that typify the Andersons' shows. The aliens aren't shown, but human henchmen under the aliens' thrall pop up as the bad guys, with Cole's wife the damsel in jeopardy, trying to protect herself with a shotgun.
Cole ends up as an unlikely hero, volunteering to save the Earth by a one-man mission on the Moon shooting down an invading alien spaceship that's using the flight plan he shared with the enemy under duress to evade Moonbase's surveillance defenses. Episode ends surprisingly on a downbeat note.
Funniest moment has commander Ed Bishop making a last-minute calculation with his trusty slide rule -I haven't used mine (leftover from engineering school) in over 50 years!
It' a bit outlandish to have the aliens from Outer Space blackmailing humans to become collaborators in their attempt to conquer the Earth, but it's still suspenseful and an opportunity for Cole to have a straight, non comedic performance. In this regard it's closer to the paranoia theme of "The Invaders" than the tech-heavy "UFO".
A flying saucer chasing Cole's snazzy car of the future livens things up, cuing those patented miniature explosions that typify the Andersons' shows. The aliens aren't shown, but human henchmen under the aliens' thrall pop up as the bad guys, with Cole's wife the damsel in jeopardy, trying to protect herself with a shotgun.
Cole ends up as an unlikely hero, volunteering to save the Earth by a one-man mission on the Moon shooting down an invading alien spaceship that's using the flight plan he shared with the enemy under duress to evade Moonbase's surveillance defenses. Episode ends surprisingly on a downbeat note.
Funniest moment has commander Ed Bishop making a last-minute calculation with his trusty slide rule -I haven't used mine (leftover from engineering school) in over 50 years!