ORBzine - Planet of the Apes TV Review

Ron Harper as Alan Virdon

James Naughton as Pete Burke

Roddy McDowall as Galen

Booth Colman as Dr. Zaius

Mark Lenard [ Star Trek: TOS, Buck Rogers ] as General Urko

1st Season 1974

Planet of the Apes [Season 1, Episode 1] Escape From Tomorrow
Shown 13 Sep 74
Shown th March 2006 [Sunday]

This was previously reviewed - see Back to the Planet of the Apes .

Planet of the Apes [Season 1, Episode 2] The Gladiators
Shown 20 Sep 74
Shown th March 2006 [Sunday]

The trio see a couple of men fighting. One of them is Marc Singer [ Beastmaster, Watchers II ], though he gets his ass kicked by a man old enough to be his dad.

The trio lose a metal disk, so Galen must infiltrate the local village and befriend the ape who runs it. The ape uses gladiatorial contests as a way to control the local humans.

Planet of the Apes [Season 1, Episode 3] The Trap
Shown 27 Sep 74
Shown 2nd April 2006 [Sunday]

This was previously reviewed - see Back to the Planet of the Apes .

Planet of the Apes [Season 1, Episode 4] The Good Seeds
Shown 4 Oct 74
Shown 9th April 2006 [Sunday]

The trio arrive at a small farm run by peasant apes. Galen is injured, so he has to stay there.

The humans work to pay their keep. Luckily, ape agriculture is so primitive that a farmboy astronaut can introduce new ideas.

Planet of the Apes [Season 1, Episode 5] The Legacy
Shown 11 Oct 74
Shown 22nd April 2006 [Sunday]

The fugitives discover the ruins of a human city. They discover a handful of humans living there, as well as a scientific archive in a hidden vault.

Urko and 2 of his troopers are in pursuit. They manage to capture one of the astronauts. Dr Zaius has a plan to capture the others.

Planet of the Apes [Season 1, Episode 6] Tomorrow's Tide
Shown 18 Oct 74
Shown 29th April 2006 [Sunday]

Planet of the Apes [Season 1, Episode 7] The Surgeon
Shown 25 Oct 74
Shown 7th May 2006 [Sunday]

One of the astronauts is injured. Luckily, there is an ape hospital nearby. Even better, one of the surgeons is Galen's ex-GF!

The head surgeon is a typically egotistical doctor character. He's after the lady surgeon, and he's willing to experiment on human patients.

The local humans, in comparison, are small-minded superstitious fools.

Planet of the Apes [Season 1, Episode 8] The Deception
Shown 1 Nov 74
Shown 14th May 2006 [Sunday]

The trio enter an area where human peasants are harrassed and murdered by ape dragoons, who are like the KKK Night-Riders but without the white sheets and pointy hats.

Galen meets a blind chimp female, who hates humans. He tells her that the 2 humans are apes, and she is fooled into believing him. She even falls in love with one of them!

Can our heroes get the local ape sheriff to round up the Dragoons?

Planet of the Apes [Season 1, Episode 9] The Horse Race
Shown 8 Nov 74
Shown 21st May 2006 [Sunday]

The fugitives enter an area where humans are forbidden to ride horses.

Planet of the Apes [Season 1, Episode 10] The Interrogation
Shown 15 Nov 74
Shown 28th May 2006 [Sunday]

One of the astronauts has been captured, and is interrogated by a female chimp.

Urko objects to the scientific methods, and wants to use brute force.

Planet of the Apes [Season 1, Episode 11] The Tyrant
Shown 22 Nov 74
Shown June 2006 [Sunday]

An Ape governor is even more brutal than average. Worse, he's a pal of Urko's from the old days.

Galen tries to con the tyrant. But will Urko arrest his buddy, when the corruption is uncovered?

Planet of the Apes [Season 1, Episode 12] The Cure
Shown 29 Nov 74
Shown 2nd July 2006 [Sunday]

A human village is struck with malaria. The apes, eager to preserve their work-force, allow the best ape physician to attempt a cure.

The astronauts make a cure from quinine. But Urko wants to destroy the entire village, rather than risk letting the disease spread to apes.

Planet of the Apes [Season 1, Episode 13] The Liberator
Shown 6 Dec 74
Shown 9th July 2006 [Sunday]

The fugitives enter an area where humans enslave their own, as protection payments to the apes.

Planet of the Apes [Season 1, Episode 14] Up Above the World So High
Shown 20 Dec 74
Shown 16th July 2006 [Sunday]

The fugitives discover a human who's built a hang-glider. The apes discover his secret - Urko wants to execute the man, but a female chimp scientist talks the council into following a test-flight.

Will the fugitives destroy the old regime, in the knowledge the new regime would pardon them?

NOTE: compilation movies:

Back to the Planet of the Apes: #1 Escape From Tomorrow & #3 The Trap

Planet of the Apes

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