Review of Lost in Space (2018) Episodes 3 and 4

Though episodes 3 and 4, “Infestation” and “The Robinsons Were Here,” are arguably some of the slowest-moving in the series, they introduce key story elements and display some terrific natural, alien scenery. The sequence in “The Robinsons Were Here” where a sea of purple floating organisms start flocking together in the sky is totally sensational.

In these episodes, we see a deeper side of the robot. The entity trapped inside the frame of a metal body shows an attraction to the magnificence of nature. He learns to use his hands in a variety of ways; he’s very powerful after all. But he begins to look at them or at least to use them for functions other than manual labor. He learns to clap his palms together to make a patch of flowers open their buds in reaction to the loud sound which is made. The robot seems to rather enjoy clapping from then on. Also, when  the three Robinson children put mud on their hands and slap them against the wall of the cave, the robot wishes to do the same. And he does.

Episode 3 opens with June Harris (a.k.a. Dr. Smith) confronting her sister in her luxurious house back on Earth in a flashback. After drugging her sister, June takes her place on the Resolute, a mothership headed for Alpha Centauri which is touted as a beautiful space to colonize.

As the Robinsons try to get the Jupiter 2 out of the ice, they discover there are eels in the fuel tanks consuming the precious fuel. Eventually, the reserves are compromised as well. John Robinson’s wrestling with eels is pretty cool and just exciting to watch. We learn Harris let a man die on the Resolute to save her first false identity under the guise of her own sister. But the information in this flashback is yet to be revealed to the Robinsons. Harris maintains her cover.

John’s Jupiter 2 flying resembles some of Han Solo’s piloting maneuvers in the Millennium Falcon in Star Wars. After getting out of the ice, the Robinsons discover theirs is not the only Jupiter to have made it safely to the planet’s surface. The robot uses the ship’s 3D printer to make Will a pistol for the boy’s own protection. Will, not wanting to use it at all, hides it under his pillow. But Harris sees this and later retrieves the gun.

Episode 4 opens with John Robinson setting up a group of structures around the camp perimeter to form a sort of invisible fence like the ones often used to keep a dog in its owner’s yard. The concept is quite similar to the forcefield or prisoner fences seen in the original Lost in Space.

Everyone’s still hopeful of getting to Alpha Centauri. Unlike the original Smith, June Harris escaped an Earth of dwindling beauty. She, unlike the all-too-comical Dr. Smith of the original, left her home planet for the purpose of getting to Alpha Centauri, a sort of “Promised Land.”

In visiting another Jupiter crew, John, Maureen, and (especially) Judy get to meet Don West who is full of himself and talks a bit too much. Not only that, but he also turns out to be a smuggler. Judy manages to get Angela, the woman who’d been unconscious when Don rescued her, to talk to her. Angela had not yet been heard speaking to any other people. Angela tells Judy about what happened on the Resolute, painting a vague picture of some mechanical thing storming through the corridors attacking people.

Like Toothless and Hiccup in How to Train Your Dragon, the robot and Will start drawing art in the sandy soil to pass the time. Called to action by the new information Judy received from her patient, the doctor of 18 deduces what Will already knows: that his close companion, the robot, was responsible for the terror which took place on the Resolute. This damaged mothership functioned as a holding place for all the Jupiter ships, and the survivors will anticipate returning.

Judy consents to Will’s idea to take the robot and hide it away. Where? Like in any classic Lost in Space plot, the main characters end up in a cave which is where they leave the robot in supposed safety. On the way, Penny encounters her future boyfriend Vijay. Meanwhile, John and Maureen are able to spend more time together. This episode ends with Harris finding the robot. She calmly opens up to him with her diabolical plans and presents a prelude to the most crucial developments of her scheme.