User Reviews

No one bargains with aliens quite like Dr. Smith, especially when it concerns rescuing himself from oblivion. In "Invaders from the 5th Dimension", Smith ensures that an alien race (with no mouths, sinister eyes, and elongated craniums) doesn't take his brain for their faulty internal guidance system, instead convincing them that there is a better substitute among a "tribe of natives" in the Robinson party…Will Robinson. Yep, that's Smith for you. To make sure he keeps his word about getting them a brain, the aliens place a ring around his neck (the same exact one Smith wears later in "All That Glitters" that allows him to turn anything he touched into platinum; the crew of LoS love reusing the same props over and over) that causes intense agony, properly motivating him to get the job done. The aliens also give him a round ball to guide him back to their ship (the same round ball he is given by the alien "zoo keeper" in the episode "The Keeper" to keep him safe from released monsters; again, the prop department of Fox Studios love to use the same props over and over) once he is able to gain the trust of Will.

This episode was during that period where Will, while incredibly bright, was still quite impressionable and easier to dupe than later in the first season, and Smith was far more demonic (he's always been spineless and cowardly to the point that he would sink to any level in order to satisfy his own selfish needs/wants, but never has he been quite as nefarious). We follow Smith as he leads Will to the alien ship (which resembles an eyeball rested in a wicked nest), concocting a devious story about this threatening power that endangers the Robinson party and how the young boy can help him thwart their mission of evil. This journey has Smith gaining Will's trust (like keeping him from falling into a sandpit that works as a means to get rid of a walkie talkie Will was carrying around; also a waterfall Will believes is just water, with Smith convincing him it is acidic) bit by bit, halting him from crying out to his parents who are calling his name from the chariot as they search for their son. Meanwhile, Don is using the jet pack, in flight, canvassing an area in the hopes of spotting Will.

This establishes that horrifying possibility that a young boy could be manipulated by an untrustworthy adult, with a dangerous planet containing unpredictable danger, as well as, alien life forms offering possible peril, Lost in Space sets up here the groundwork of the series as a whole: Dr. Smith often gets himself into trouble, many times dragging Will into his ordeals just so he can be safe from harm. It's a template that the series constantly utilized, with the Robinsons, because they are humane people, often bailing Smith out even though he caused legitimate problems for them.

I so wished the LoS series would have continued to make serious sci-fi like this episode. Sure it has one of those campy B-movie titles, but the aliens seem really creepy, there's this menacing threat that seems to hover over the Robinson family (we see in this episode that the aliens, while seemingly disembodied heads, have these claw-like fingers on their hands always on the verge of destroying the chariot), and that civil unrest due to Smith's placement in the Robinson unit creates palpable tension. I really like this scene where Smith tries to get Penny to follow him to the spaceship (if this scene played today, one would suggest he had "other intentions") and Don confronts him in time. Don and Smith have their classic heated discussion about leaving the children alone, with good reason. Smith even smiles after Will is taken into the alien spacecraft, further stating that Don was exactly right. Included is John (the show abandoned this not long after) writing in a diary details about their trials on the planet. The theme of "love conquers all" is applied here when the aliens fail in their mission because Will cannot focus due to his sadness regarding missing his family. To be honest, in my mind, this is the gold standard of the series. Excellent work by everyone here.

This episode showcases the acting talents of Bill Mumy and Jonathan Harris.

Harris is superb as the creepy Dr. Smith.

Aliens from another planet have developed engine trouble, and need a human brain to replace a failed computer. They initially trap Dr. Smith aboard and want to use his brain, but when he tries to shoot them with his laser pistol they say that the attempt to kill them reveals defects in his reasoning. He gets out of their trap by offering to give them Will Robinson, who has a wonderful brain.

The aliens let Smith go, but, to keep him in-line, put a ring around his neck. If he doesn't produce Will within 24 hours, they assure him of an agonizing death by choking. He is also not to reveal the plan to anyone else, including Will. Any false move and Smith is dead.

The dramatic and well-done scenes between the conniving Smith and Will are superb. Especially noteworthy are dramatic scenes where John and Maureen, who have taken the chariot and brought the robot to find where Will and Dr. Smith have gone to, call out via a loudspeaker system for Will. Will, hearing their pleas, is conflicted. Smith has told him that the only way to save the others in his family is to go along with Dr. Smith and ignore their pleading. Smith keeps hiding Will from them, and Will is increasingly suspicious that Smith isn't being honest with him.

The most dramatic part is the ending. Smith accomplishes his objective and delivers the unsuspecting Will to the aliens. Continuing his deceit, Smith then reveals himself to John and Maureen and pleads that the aliens captured Will. Will, trapped inside the alien ship, sees his parents through the viewing ports. There's a very emotional scene between the upset Will and his equally upset parents.

All-in-all, a tight story with an acting tour-de-force by Bill Mumy as Will and Jonathan Harris as Dr. Smith. A first-rate episode!

Two aliens need a human brain to run their computer. Or something like that. Trying to save himself, Dr Smith volunteers Will, who is small enough to "fit in one piece." This episode is different from the other alien-themed episodes, and yet also managed to set the tone for many of the subsequent shows. Will is smart enough to be of use to these aliens, but his love for his family gets in the way. Many of the aliens on Lost in Space had one thing in common. They were practical and functional. Love and emotion had no place in their world. Great episode. The aliens are two heads without bodies. It's hard to tell whether it's the same voice for both heads.

That's what seemingly friendly aliens from another planet want to find out, promising no harm to those who volunteer, and of course cowardly Dr. Smith doesn't want his brain analyzed. he decides to manipulate one of the Robinsons into substituting for him, and after being awarded of getting Penny to come with him to meet the aliens, he falls buddy Will into going with him. This is just one of dr. Smith many nefarious schemes, and of course it all works out in the end, but how will he manage to prevent himself from being exiled?

This is an intriguing episode because the aliens do seem quite civilized and are basically interested in human emotion, notch having the chance to serve man or to repopulate a dying planet. 4 all of his efforts to full well, it still is obvious that Dr. Smith does care about him, and the performances of Jonathan Harris and Billy Mummy in this episode are quite good. Instead of utilizing an element of terror, this is more psychological drama, which makes it one of the more intelligent episodes of the series.

Two apparently bodiless and mouth-less "Twilight Zone"-inspired aliens (voiced by Theodore Lehmann and Joe Ryan, respectively) land on the Robinsons' planet in a disabled spacecraft. The pair is in need of a humanoid brain to replace their burned out circuits.

Of course, the first human that they encounter is Dr. Smith (Jonathan Harris), who is quick to offer up members of the Robinson party in lieu of himself. Smith tricks Will (Billy Mumy) into accompanying him to the stricken craft and the lad is then transported into its confines.

Simultaneously, the boy's parents (Guy Williams and June Lockhart), Major West (Mark Goddard), and the Robot are searching frantically for him.

As the aliens prepare to depart with their new "equipment," they discover that Will is useless to them because of his emotional attachment to his family. They leave him with his family, thus sealing their own fate as their craft explodes into "cosmic dust." This is the last of the episodes penned by Shimon Wincelberg, screenwriter for the pilot that served as the basis for the six of the series first episodes. It has some of the best dialog of the show, something for which the show was not known for. The exchanges between Smith and the aliens, as well as the Robinsons and the Robot are well done and acted.

One big filming error is that the viewer can see Bob May's legs (the guy inside the robot costume) as he moves from behind a rock.