Soldier

I loved this episode, my uncle Allen Jaffe and Michael Ansara had mutual respect for one another. When I would visit him he would tell nearly endless stories about the people he worked with. He had fond words for Michael And are.

This particular episode I was allowed to stay up really late, for a young school boy, and watch him fight once again.

Lloyd Nolan was great at being the one who decodes Quarlo's speak. This was my introduction to the great series The Outer Limits. Between outer limits and twilight zone, we learned that alternate worlds and universes existed, at least on TV. These two shows also brought forth some of the greatest actors, writers, and other talent and produced a high quality show with little to no budget. There are many of my generation that still love to watch the show, I'm glad there are reruns and DVDs of these great shows.

Quarlo__Kobrigny__Privt__RN_CN_TN_TO!

I saw this when broadcast in 1964 and retained scattered detail ever since. This episode led me to purchase the second season set of Outer Limits so I could check the accuracy of my memory. (Not perfect. I thought his last name was Kobrigniak but had his 'serial number' as close as intelligibility allows.

My point in this detail is that when I first saw Terminator on VHS tape rented from a video store in 1985, THIS is the association I flashed on. This was before the internet and IMDb so I had no way of knowing Harlan Ellison wrote the script for 'Soldier' but I did review the credits to see if I could determine a link between two stories where soldiers from an apocalyptic future are transported back in time to fight it out in "the present".

Harlan Ellison was a prolific Sci-Fi writer and produced a number of excellent stories both in print and for visual media but I was more into Asimov and barely knew his name in 1964. I don't think the way he does and some of his stories (I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream) leave me cold. However, though I may disagree with Ellison's view of many things, I think he got it right when he claimed credit for the idea behind Terminator. The details are different and the franchise has evolved into a time travel conundrum that writers are still playing with in Sara Conner Chronicles, but where else have you heard of the basic premise?

The future in the 40s, 50s, and early 60s was almost always a bright utopia. ("The Marching Morons" not withstanding) This is not true in 'Soldier' and I think the similarities with Terminator are to many to ignore.

Ellison probably should not get a credit saying "based on" but certainly you might describe The Terminator as "inspired by a story by Harlan Ellison". Cameron would have been 10 years old when this played on TV. Maybe he did not 'memorize' it the way I did seeing that broadcast at age 17, but I'll bet he saw it...even if he does not really remember doing so. Memory works that way. "Inspired by".

A soldier from the future appears in 1964.

I like the opening few minutes when the "soldier" is in the future and then in the streets of 1964. The very ending is also cool. But I can't say I am the biggest fan of what happens in the endless cage scenes. It just seems to go on and on a bit. However, I am sure the whole hour was a knockout in 1964. Season two has several wonderful episodes and this is not the best season opener to me.

My views of season two are a bit different to many other posters. I actually like the "William Shatner going frozen episode" and the "Killer Weeds episode". In fact in my view at least, the season only had two stinkers and the rest of the shows were okay or fine. However, The Outer Limits requires repeat viewings, there have been many cases where an episode sucked to me in the 1980s but is rather cool today.

Among the many accomplishments of Harlan Ellison was SOLDIER, his anti-war war story about a soldier from the future cast into the Past (our Present) and pursued through Time by an enemy soldier. Riveting stuff, Then and Now, and one of the many highlights of THE OUTER LIMITS (the original series). Ellison may be gone, now, but his Words (and DEEDS) will live Forever: he always took the Moral High Ground and never flinched, never gave an inch, even in the face of seemingly unbeatable odds. In a world where 90% of the Earth's population breathes polluted air (and drinks polluted water and eats tainted food) and 7 Million people die every year from breathing that pollution, Ellison was vital to our Understanding of what it is we should be standing for (and standing firmly AGAINST). He was and always will be an Inspiration to those of us whose voices mostly go unheard.

This episode is one of the best pieces of 60's television that I've ever seen(and not just of science fiction), out of nearly a 100 total. I can completely imagine someone watching this on TV remembering it for years, even decades, after. Honestly, I don't see how you can realistically watch this and the also excellent Demon with a Glass Hand, and not recognize elements of them in The Terminator. I love the work of James Cameron, and I don't personally believe he intended to plagiarize anyone, but several of the concepts of that film clearly came from these two stories by Harlan Ellison, an author I intend to delve deeper into the writings of. The script is excellent, and the execution leaves rather little to be desired. From the dark, dystopian and terrifying future to the psychological accuracy, it's all almost entirely invariably spot-on. The editing and cinematography are magnificent. This is impeccably well-acted, including the kids, who are pretty convincing. Ansara is absolutely stunning; he has the chops to pull off the role, as well as the physicality to be credible in that aspect. This is exciting, engaging and chilling, with strong commentary. The plot is compelling, and it's well-paced from start to finish. I recommend this to any fan of sci-fi that isn't cheery and optimistic. 8/10