Planet of the Apes -"Give it a chance people!"

Planet of the Apes $7.99 (Salvation Army Thrift Store)

After finishing watching a recent thrift store find of the Planet of the Apes (POTA) Complete Series, I find myself “urning for more”. Based  on the multiple movies of the same name, POTA only  aired September 13 1974 to December 20, 1974 on CBS, spanning a mere 14 episodes. Much like Star Trek the Original Series, I feel like the series was cancelled prematurely, and I find myself wondering “what could have been?”   

Protagonists: Major Peter J, Human Sympathiser Galen and Colonel Alan Virdon

The basic premise of this show is 2 astronauts from the 20^th century find themselves over 1000 years into the future (although, no exact time was given on the show) and find themselves on an Earth where the Apes are the dominant species and humans are merely seen as second class species, serving under the an Ape dictatorship.  You can only imagine how our 2 renegade protagonists disturb this equilibrium with the threat of "knowledge", 70’s style!

General Urko and Counsellor Zaius plotting to destroy our heroes and their human sympathiser

Having mostly been exposed classic television through Star Trek, The Original Series, Planet of the Apes brings out that same cinematic style. It takes a special kind of person to appreciate the campiness and true beauty of these shows. The simplistic commentary on the human condition in both shows is a reflection of the era that I love. Although Planet of the Apes never achieved the same height of fandom as Star Trek (I bet POTA fans will beat the ape shit out of me for even calling it “POTA”.), both shows I also believe were cancelled before their time, hence leaving me with the “urning of more!”

One downfall, Planet of the Apes box set suffers from the same flaw of most other shows of it’s time, syndication. The medium of television in that era could not afford the same intricate story lines and long played plots that most television shows today, meaning Plant of the Apes individual shows could almost be watched independently of each other, and you shouldn’t be lost (Try picking up an episode of Game of Thrones at the middle of season 1). This could be a good thing for a session of relaxing, mindless watching, otherwise, just one minor drawback.

Great find, great buy, a must watch, if only one time.

8 out of 10

happy thrifting

-n8

A short clip from the Planet of the Apes Television Series

-I bet this show was made because of all the left over costumes from the movies! =)