Beystiman It's fun, it's light, [but] it has a hard time when its tries to get heavy.

FuzzyTagz If the ambition is to provide two hours of instantly forgettable, popcorn-munching escapism, it succeeds.

Philippa All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

Darin One of the film's great tricks is that, for a time, you think it will go down a rabbit hole of unrealistic glorification.

drystyx This was before Star Trek, so VOYAGE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA has bragging rights.For those unaware, it is a science fiction TV series in which a civilian designed submarine is built beyond the wildest specifications for deep sea research. It surpasses any underwater vehicle of any military. The admiral is a brilliant scientist, played by Richard Basehart, one of the icons of the hip crowd of the day, in famous roles such as a tightrope walker who foils strongman Anthony Quinn, a reluctant hero in the Korean War,a recruiter of Germans to spy for the Allies, and his most ironic role as a Russian brother to William Shatner.While Admiral Nelson is a saner, more balanced Captain Kirk, David Hedison as Crane, plays a bit more human version of Spock. The Chief is an equal of Scotty, the blonde Chip had to be darkened to Chekhov during the seventies when men weren't allowed to have blonde hair, Kuwaski may be the closest to the doctor as an emotional constituent, and Patterson is Sulu.I must confess I was too young to understand this show when it came out, being born in 1956, but I remember my brother telling me it was the predecessor of STAR TREK. I hadn't realized how much until I got the dvds of the first two seasons. I vaguely remember shows that came afterward.Even up to now, most action series, and even some comic series, had a group of plots which had to be used. Indeed, as in all action episodes, we find the TEN LITTLE INDIANS, THE MOST DANGEROUS GAME, the prophecies of MACBETH, and all the usual plots that must be used.The difference is in the intelligence in which this show is handled, and the iconoclastic Nature. It broke all barriers, barriers Star Trek tried to avoid. Usual stable heroes like Leslie Nielson were deranged, usual sneaky cowards like Michael Pate were honorable. Even Michael Ansara, who played a radical in the film went against type to be a balanced, stable character in an episode.It wasn't a perfect series. There were episodes when it looked like it was filmed XENA style, with the action filmed first and the plot added later, such as in a hastily put together Manchurian Candidate episode with Manchurian villain Silva. A few episodes like this lost logic altogether, but were still held together by the interesting credibility of the Seaview characters. For most of us, Entertainment and Interest is best served by credible characters in incredible situations instead of the seventies pattern of non-credible characters in credible situations. There was always over the top encounters, but the crew of the SEAVIEW, as the submarine was called, was always very three dimensional. They had human foibles. Nelson would show irritation and jealousy, Crane would show insecurity. Chip would show fear. Kowaski would show disapproval of authority.This made the regular characters not only more identifiable and easier to relate to, but more exciting than STAR TREK, I dare say.

gooelf50 I was just a teenager when this series was popular. I'd lie on the carpet in our living room and watch the plot of each episode unfold on our family's 21 inch black and white Electohome. The special effects were somewhat crude by today's digitalized standards, but they were state of the art at the time. The series centered around the experiences of the crew of the "Seaview", a remarkable nuclear submarine with capabilities far beyond those of the common submarines of the day. It could dive deeper and go faster than conventional undersea vessels and, as if that weren't enough, it could launch a small flying submarine that was as adept at flying in the stratosphere as it was at plying the depths of the world's oceans. The captain of the Seaview was Lee Crane, played by David Hedison. He was responsible for the day to day navigation and operation of the "Seaview". The ship was designed by Admiral Harriman Nelson, played by Richard Basehart. Admiral Nelson was always on the "Seaview" and made the larger decisions regarding the activities and challenges to be undertaken by the ship and it's intrepid crew. The Seaview often encountered monsters during it's explorations and these were my favorite episodes. More often however, the plot of the episode dealt with the larger political and environmental issues of the time. A great series that was about as stimulating as a young mind could wish for.

ericbryce2 I was a kid back in the 60s and Voyage was one of my favorites. The plot lines followed the typical pattern of the day like other sci-fi shows back then. Every week a different undersea monster. The star of the show was the Seaview, a sleek nuclear sub with windows in the nose and fins designed after the 58 Cadillac. There were plenty of TV themed toys available back then I had to have my own Seaview. I got it one Christmas, It was yellow, about a foot long but I was disappointed to find a handle sticking out of the front so you could wind the rubber bands that made it go. Kinda ruined the aesthetics of the model. I also had the plastic model that was put together with glue like an airplane model. although it was much smaller. The closest I ever got to run it was in the bathtub and I had to make my own ping noises. My family must have thought I was nuts. The Seaview got a remodel in the last season with new windows in the nose and a docking birth underneath for the Flying Sub. I recently rented some DVDs from the series. As I expected they had not stood the test of time but back then it was all we had. Three channels if you were lucky. I kinda hope they don't try to do a remake because those things never work like that awful remake of Lost in Space.

Chris Gaskin I watched Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea on TV when Channel 4 screened it on Sunday afternoons in the early 1990's.The first series was black and white and the remaining episodes were in colour. It is about the Seaview nuclear powered submarine and each episode had a different story, including aliens, monsters and espionage.The series starred Richard Basehart and David Hedison and was directed by the great Irwin Allen. The flying sub used in this series was to appear in Allen's 1971 movie City Beneath the Sea.It would be nice to see this series again and for it to be released on Video/DVD.