Written and directed by series creator kenny johnson, this two-parter is arguably the pinnacle of the series. Alone at an enormous desert complex, jaime takes on a supercomputer which has been programmed by its dying creator (lew ayres - ALL QUEST ON THE WESTERN FRONT, BATTLESTAR GALACTICA) to destroy humanity unless all nations pledge to never detonate a nuclear weapon again. When a disbelieving third world country detonates a test bomb, the countdown to Armageddon is begun. Jaime battles against waves of defenses, trying to reason with the computer while descending toward its core. The casting of lew was a brilliant coup - as the star of the DR. KILDARE series, he had registered as a conscientious objector when drafted for WWII. The country was outraged and his career disappeared, until an Oscar nomination in 1948. An opportunity to play dr. kildare again died, when the network refused to honor his request for no cigarette sponsorship. His turn here as the ultimate person of peace is perfect. With no one to play against except a disembodied voice, lindsay turns in a performance a million miles beyond good. The dramatic twists and turns are searing.
2 Reviews
This is highly irregular, Jamie
Chase_Witherspoon31 August 2022
Jamie vs Alex the super computer and brainchild of Lew Ayres is now in countdown mode to Doomsday, and only Jamie's bionic skills and human wit can avert a global catastrophe.
Overtly sentimental treatment pits the wits of two machines against one another, Jamie's empathy vs Alex's cold, win-at-all-costs programming. The solution is too easily telegraphed, but there's still a reasonably neat plot twist waiting in store if you're patient.
Apart from the usual cast, I glimpsed Stack Pierce as a B-52 pilot, and David Opatoshu as a cold-war Russian offical lamenting the world's imminent end.
Enough tension and action to hold the attention as Jamie overcomes each obstacle as she descends towards the core of Alex's super computer, and an eventual contest with the megalomaniacal machine. Good sets, but a little heavy on the anti-war sentiment.
Overtly sentimental treatment pits the wits of two machines against one another, Jamie's empathy vs Alex's cold, win-at-all-costs programming. The solution is too easily telegraphed, but there's still a reasonably neat plot twist waiting in store if you're patient.
Apart from the usual cast, I glimpsed Stack Pierce as a B-52 pilot, and David Opatoshu as a cold-war Russian offical lamenting the world's imminent end.
Enough tension and action to hold the attention as Jamie overcomes each obstacle as she descends towards the core of Alex's super computer, and an eventual contest with the megalomaniacal machine. Good sets, but a little heavy on the anti-war sentiment.
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