O.B.I.T.

Peter Breck stars as a U.S. Senator who has been sent to a top secret military base to investigate the murder of a Captain Harris, who was strangled at his station on the O.B.I.T. machine, which stands for outer band individuated teletracer, a new invention that can monitor anyones feelings and thoughts anywhere to be viewed on an eye-shaped television, which has had the effect of destroying morale in various ways, as privacy is becoming a thing of the past, which may not be an accident, as there are many such obit machines in existence... Prescient episode with intelligent writing and a chilling premise. Perhaps a bit too talky and stagy, but otherwise first-rate.

This has it all: Alien Technology used by the government, government cover-up, Aliens manipulating government leaders, and Big Brother, just to mention a few. Yes, it is slow moving, but it is trying to capture the feel of how a senatorial investigation uncovers the truth about what is going on at an important government complex. It is what the original Outer Limits was all about and what made it good. It's "bear" of the week was effective, even though the special effects are limited to what was available in the 60s. It presents the story from the standpoint that the truth is finally being revealed for the first time to the public who is left to wonder if such things are really going on in our nation.

When a government administrator is mysteriously murdered at a research facility a U. S. senator played by Richard Breck discovers an unusual security device that is used to monitor its employees called The Outer Band Individuated Teletracer (O. B. I. T.) a device so invasive that it follows everyone's actions and is also labeled addictive by its users. A trial is held where a missing administrator is found, and soon the sinister and unearthly purposes of the device become apparent. This is a really good story that like another fellow reviewer stated probably isn't far from happening, there not run by aliens, but there also not any less invasive. The only reason this isn't rated higher is its very dialogue driven through its entire runtime and at times is rather slow, the final is great though.

Last night I refamiliarized myself with another "OL" episode that I had not seen in a good number of years: "O.B.I.T." In this one, as you may recall, a government research installation is being investigated by a Congressman (Peter Breck, who starred that same year in Sam Fuller's cult movie "Shock Corridor") after the murder of one of its workers. It turns out that morale in the facility is at an all-time low, following the introduction of the O.B.I.T. (Outer Band Individuated Teletracer) device of the title, which allows for intrusive surveillance of everyone in the compound. Ultimately, the facility's director (character actor Harry Townes), who had been declared insane after claiming that he saw a "monster" in the device's screen, is brought in to testify, leading to the revelation that his replacement, Lomax (Jeff Corey), is nothing less than an alien, from a race that has planted O.B.I.T. devices all over the world to sap Earthlings' morale and make them ripe for an eventual conquest. It is a talky and stagy episode, wall-bound but never dull, with reams of fascinating dialogue and a script that has much to say about governmental snooping...a subject that is, of course, as timely as ever. Director Gerd Oswald utilizes extreme close-up shots (especially of Corey) to engender an off-kilter atmosphere; the look of the episode, in a word, is striking. Probably not anyone's idea of a Top 10 "OL" episode, but still, an intelligent and well-crafted affair, much better than I had remembered, with fine performances across the board and a message that still resonates.

The sad thing about this circa 1962 episode is that there are things in place these days that aren't much less invasive. Granted, aliens aren't running them, but equally dangerous people are. In this episode, a U. S. Senator is investigating a murder and the reasons behind an incredible number of depression cases, suicides, and other morale related issues. He gets stonewalled all along the way. The murdered man, who spends his days watching people and recording every bit of communications and activity in their lives, is just the tip of the iceberg. People are being sent to mental institutions and their privacy invaded on a daily basis. It turns out that there is an amorphous white figure that is in contact with him. He is viewed in a circular monitor and seems to be in charge. Apparently, if one becomes contrary, they will pay the price. Most of the activity takes place in an ersatz courtroom. The proceedings are top secret. This shows the original Outer Limits starting to gain some legs. This is certainly one of the better episodes.