The Quasar Kill

My review title says it all. It wasn't even a good Outer Limits episode. And as for the writers and producers of Cannon, 1976 saw the release of Close Encounters of the Third Kind. I suppose they wanted to ride a trend. They could at least have played this one for humour. You know, play the Close Encounters 5 note tune, have Frank play with his mashed potatoes, chase some flying balls of light down a country road.

This is the first time I've ever left a review . I have to agree with Martin Hafer. This episode about outer space and science is the worst episode that I ever watched with my favorite detective Cannon . I watch these reruns faithfully and I am REALLY disappointed! Thank God it was only an hour wasted.

What a fun episode! American detective show meets science fiction. Brilliant idea, whoever thought of it. This episode is so refreshing and out of the ordinary. I don't know why more detective shows didn't expand their boundaries like this. Brave decision to make this episode and I applaud them. And there are lots of twists and turns to keep you guessing the whole way. You'll never guess how it's going to end. Excellent cast with solid acting and very good writing. Give yourself a treat and watch this gem.

Sci fi material in a cop show is off the charts, but "The Quasar Kill" is very interesting and worth a look for a couple of reasons. What puts it over the top is a stellar cast of veterans, including two super bad guys.

The story is all about the death of a prominent scientist who may have been killed by one of his peers, or was it actually an alien encounter? This episode could have been written due to an increase in UFO sightings, usually in the desert, and there's a lot of desert in southern California.

The lab sets are fun, especially for sci fi completists. It looks like the sets were borrowed from LOST IN SPACE (which were long used after the series ended) and, reportedly, sound effects lifted from the original STAR TREK series. Listen closely.

The Santa Susanna Field Lab may have been used here (although there are no credits, except an area called Test Drive). That may be Bravo Road, at Brandeis, California, about 40 miles north of LA. For desert locations, the crew could have headed back to the High Desert at Lancaster, CA.

Two time Oscar nominee Karl Turnberg (BEN HUR) wrote the story, behind many B adventure films. Co-stars Andrew Duggan (Dr. Lawrence), an old friend of William Conrad from Warner Bros/ABC TV. Known for playing President and General Eisenhower. Also there's future soap opera star and villain Eric Braeden and Keene Curtis (as Dr. Tree). If Curtis was around, you knew something was brewing. He later switched to comedy roles.

The ending IS worth waiting for, just to see who is behind it all. I give it 9 Stars.

SEASON 5 EPISODE 21 remastered color CBS/Paramount dvd box set. 7 dvds. Final Season Collectors set. Released 2016.

Words like dumb or ludicrous would be generous when referring to "The Quasar Kill"...a truly terrible episode of "Cannon"! It also conjures up the phrase..."Jumping the shark"! Why? Because this is the sort of dopey episode that would seem to indicate that the show's best programs are behind and it's only a matter of time until it was canceled...which, incidentally, did happen soon after this. I can only assume they used a rejected script or wrote something this silly because they knew that the show was finished and they simply didn't care. Yes, it's THAT bad.

If you don't believe me...here's the stupid plot: A team of scientists are trying to contact life on other planets. One of them insists he's made a huge discovery and it proves life exists outside the Earth...when suddenly something goes wrong with their Dr. Frankenstein-like equipment and the biggest detractor on the team is killed. Was he killed by little green men or did someone on the team rig it...Cannon's brought in to find out. Add to that a Luddite* rival professor and his nutty followers who arrive with grenades, a sheriff who likes to beat confessions out of people AND Cannon who is in inexplicably hostile mood and you have the makings for a super bad episode from start to finish. There is nothing I liked about this one...and I usually love this show.

*The Luddites were a group of folks who were scared the Industrial Revolution would harm folks more than help and they were all in favor of destroying the machinery they thought was going to replace them....back in the 19th century.