The Swamps Of Jupiter

Synopsis:
Contact has been lost with the Scientific Headquarters on Jupiter and Colonel Raeburn despatches Galasphere 024 with Captain Larry Dart with his crewmen Husky and Slim to investigate. In orbit, they receive a transmission in Jovian and land. The cause of loss of contact is the Martian Doctor Mall and his assistant, who are killing the native Lumis for their skins. The expedition was killed when they refused to be involved but Mall also offers Dart a cut of the profits in return for his silence...

Cast
Captain Larry Dart Husky Slim Colonel Raeburn Marla Doctor Mall Mall's Assistant Joe	...... ...... ...... ...... ...... ...... ...... ......	Dick Vosburgh Ronnie Stevens Ronnie Stevens Murray Kash Libby Morris Murray Kash Dick Vosburgh Ronnie Stevens

And The Moral Is:
• Don’t Be Cruel To Dumb Animals - Encase Them In Plastifoam Instead... (Think About It...)

Today I Will Be Mostly Learning... :
• It takes a long time to reach the outer planets, even in the future.
• Storms in the ionosphere can cause radio communications to be interrupted..
• Freezing could halt or slow aging.

Huskyisms:
• “There’s no use greping.”

Slimantics:
• “Apprehension considerable, Captain.”
• “While our body is at a sub-normal temperature, our degenerative processes are halted.”

A Venusian Has...:
• “The facility never to forget.”

The UGO Needs You:
• "You’re not a space soldier, Dart - you’re a space patrolman. If there’s trouble on Jupiter, we’ll call in the Galactic Forces.”

‘Riding Along In My Monobile... ‘:
• We don’t get to see monobiles in this first episode.

‘I’m An Alien!‘:
• Joe develops an unusual attachment to Dart, asking him to stay and make a home with him (her?).

Continuity:
• Ionospheric storms in Jupiter’s atmosphere periodically prevent communications with the planet.
• Flight time to Jupiter is twenty four days, twelve hours.
• According to Slim, he has not had leave since joining Larry Dart’s crew.
• Dart seems able to check how long the freezer has been active while still in the chamber.
• Doctor Mall mentions the colonists on Pluto.

2100 ?:
• Slim’s exclamation “The brakes have gone!” sounds a little anachronistic. We know he was trying to get a point across, but...

Harmony For Strings:
• The fist fight at the end is quite well done and edited, considering the limitations of puppets.

Haven’t I Seen... ?:
• The molungs seem to be based on the helmets used towards the end of ‘Dr. No’

For Those Of You Just Joining Us... :
• At the Jupiter Scientific HQ, Dart tells Husky the men they saw are Martians but Husky had already recognised them as such when in the swamps.

Take A Break:
• Dart says "We'll keep orbiting and try for contact", and the Galasphere heads towards Jupiter.

Astro Viewer Working:
• The version of the theme opening this episode is different from the 'standard' version heard through most of the series, with a higher pitch to the Galasphere 'theme'. It is also heard on The Dark Planet and The Shrinking Spaceman.
• The sound of the Galasphere is also different - at times matching that heard in the opening titles but on leaving Earth sounding like the tinkling version heard in The Slaves Of Neptune.
• The opening narration is longer, suggesting this is intended as the first episode. This appears to be confirmed by the 8mm home movie release.
• This is also the only episode to refer to Space Headquarters being based in New York, though those which feature the Atlantic Underwater Farm still imply it.
• In some shots on the Galasphere, the puppets of the regular crew seem cruder and less finished, notably Dart and Husky. This is possibly reused footage from the pilot used to sell the series.
• The molungs are of a slightly different design from those seen throughout the series, seemingly made of gauze rather than perspex. The only other episode to feature them is The Shrinking Spaceman, probably filmed back-to-back with this episode.
• Dart’s Elektran, during the scenes in the swamps, is also of a slightly different design being in three sections.

Hoorah!:
• There are some lovely innovations and technical jargon - a serious attempt at a society of the future, albeit aimed at children.
• The music and atmospherics are fantastic, obviously inspired by the film Forbidden Planet and the early synthesisers of the time. The pumping driving theme used for New York and the end titles speaks volumes for the future we see.



Boo!:
• During the pre-flight checks, Slim is level with the scanner, then higher than it.
• The robot on the Galasphere isn’t explained at this point, making its scenes seem superfluous - even sinister.
• Why didn’t Dart use an Elektran set for Jovian while in orbit, to translate the message?
• When entering the Jupiter Scientific HQ from outside, Doctor Mall is seen dragging Lumis but in the next scene inside he doesn’t have them.
• Slim is visible behind the screen at Jupiter Scientific HQ before he appears properly.

Computer Central:
• First screened: April 7th 1963 (ABC Midlands/Tyne Tees)
• Running time: 25 minutes 4 seconds
• This was one of four episodes released as a Super 8mm home movie, edited down to approximately 15 minutes in length.
• BFCC Classified - 26th February 1998. The notes for violence state 'once, very mild', referring to the fight at the end.
• VHS - Volume 1
• DVD - 'The Best of', Vol. 1
• DVD - Complete Series Box Set, Disk 1

Listings
• London, October 31st 1963:
Dart and his crew, seeking a lost party of scientists on Jupiter, come upon a band of criminals who are killing numbers of Lumis, the only wild animals on the planet.
• Westward, October 31st 1963:
Jupiter is still largely unexplored, and Colonel Raeburn is worried that he can no longer maintain contact with the scientific expedition on that planet.

Brahms & List
• Some listings refer to this episode as The Swamp(s) On Jupiter.

Ready To Lift ?:
A competent pilot episode which fleshes out the ideas nicely and gives an inkling of what is to follow. The characterisation and dialogue are a little bland, playing second fiddle to the plot and establishing of format, but it bodes well for the series.

On to the next episode