The Time Tunnel

This was a fascinating & superior updating of the 1966 Irwin Allen series of the same name.Unlike that(and all of Allen's sf series)show, this is an intriguing & well thought-out premise.While attempting to create a clean,renewable,& abundant energy source,the Dept.of Energy inadvertently rips open a time vortex into past ages.A timestorm then ripples throughout these distant eras which in turn causes anomalies that disrupt our present.The TT complex is shielded from these alterations & realize how history has changed.They have plotted 240 anomalies which need to dealt with,so a team of experts are assembled in order to journey back in time in order to correct the errors caused by the anomalies,& then are retrieved back to the present.This would have been a wonderful series had it been picked up.In its premise it answers the problem inherent in all time travel scenarios:the past cannot be meddled with,no matter how benevolent the intentions are,because it may produce harmful ramifications all the way into the present.But here the time-team must restore the past to what we know it should be,their missions are to make things right.While this premise is hardly original & has been used by other TV series such as Voyagers & Quantum Leap,it works.The cast was likable & you cared about them.The fx were terrific.What a shame we won't be watching them return to the past to set things right with those other pesky 239 anomalies that are left.

Despite the negative review listed on this site, I found this pilot (only 60 minutes, not 120) to be interesting and worthy of more exploration. Despite its similarity to STARGATE, the premise is workable and deserves another shot. Perhaps Sci-Fi can take this pilot and build on it. I suggest a miniseries that would delve more into the creation of the Tunnel, the Belsky character, and the team. Making Newman a woman was a nice touch. Ending was a bit confusing, but could be expanded and explained if the concept were given more than an hour to play out. If a series were to result, it might be interesting to bring in a weekly 'guest specialist' who travels through time with the team to correct errors in the timeline. Fox's loss could be Sci-Fi's gain.

By some miracle I have managed to obtain a copy of this film. While it is rough around the edges, as most pilots are, it has alot of potential. With additional character development and some good stories written by strong writers this pilot could have evolved into a very good series had it been given the chance. While this film bears little resemblence to the Irwin Allen series of the 60s, other that the brief hint of the original theme at the beginning, this contemporary version is well worth a look to scifi and time travel fans. I enjoyed it very much and it's a nice addition to my video archives.

In 2006, an experiment of the Department of Energy in hot fusion to produce energy releases a storm in time along 240 minutes, changing history. Only the personnel in the core of the laboratory know the true story and now they need to fix points in the history that have been punctually changed. The bureaucrat and former Marine Doug Phillips (David Conrad) is a family man that is recruited by his friend Flynn (Kavan Smith) to join an expedition to 1944 due to his great knowledge of the Battle of Hürtgen Forest in Germany. The team formed by Doug, Flynn, Toni Newman (Andrea Roth), J.D. (Tawny Cypress) and Wix (Bob Kiherr) is assigned to find a monk from 1546 that has been accidentally transported to the spot and is the carrier of Black Plague.

"The Time Tunnel – Unaired Pilot 2002" is a reasonable attempt to revive the cult series from the 60's. The concept is a sort of Stargate and is not bad; however there is too much information in this pilot that is darker than the original show and the characters are not charismatic as the original time traveler scientists are. This pilot id part of the Extras in the second box of "The Time Tunnel". My vote is six.

Title (Brazil): Not Available

Jan 14, 2007

The Time Tunnel 2002 Pilot - fantastic

The Time Tunnel 2002 Pilot can be found on DVD #4 of the the second season of the original Time Tunnel. This DVD is available from Netflix.com.

Remembering The Time Tunnel from my youth I discovered to my great joy that Netflix.com had them for rent. It was a great experience watching the entire series again. I was 4-years-old the first time I saw it. The series made such an impression on me that I remembered it 40 years later.

On the last DVD, DVD #4 of season 2 of the original series, I was intrigued by the 2002 pilot for a new Time Tunnel Series. I had never even heard of a pilot for the Time Tunnel coming back. Intrigued I watched it.

After watching the 2002 Time Tunnel Pilot I was so impressed that I watched it three more times. This pilot was very well done and I wish that the finance and marketing people had realized what a new huge potential hit they had on their hands.

This new Time Tunnel pilot at first glance is a darker version. But after watching it several times it really is not. For me it was an amazing thrill to see an updated Time Tunnel. This new Time Tunnel series has so much potential that I cannot encourage the TV industry enough to make a seven year series run of it.

Since Star Trek is no longer running, TV is devoid of good science fiction entertainment. Smallville series excluded.

I've stopped getting cable because there is just no good science fiction shows on TV.

Instead I've turned to Netflix to satisfy my demand for the great science fiction series of my youth. They include The Time Tunnel (1966), Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea (1966-1968), Land of the Giants (1968-1969), and The Invaders.

I cannot urge the television industry enough to bring back these Irwin TV series in an updated modern form with modern special effects.

I absolutely loved the 2002 pilot for The Time Tunnel and I would definitely support a 7 year series run of it sold on DVD/Blue Ray.

The same is true for Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, Land of the Giants, and the Invaders. I would definitely support a 7 year series sold on DVD/Blue Ray.

Why 7-years? This was a standard run for a Star Trek series. It takes time to build an audience.

Arnold Veness