Lost In Space Season 1 Review: Surprisingly Fun Family Entertainment

I usually prefer more adult entertainment but NetFlix's "Lost In Space" is surprisingly cute and heartwarming. See my previous review here The ten episodes have the Robinson family working together to overcome various obstacles. There's father John (Toby Stephens), mother Maureen (Molly Parker) and three kids-- 18 year old doctor Judy (Taylor Russell), 16 year old Penny (Mina Sundwall) and 11 year old Will (Maxwell Jenkins).Their love for each other helps them get through the tough times (and crashing on a deserted island definitely qualifies as one of those). The show is not syrupy sweet though. There are definitely some conflicts that must work though. John and Maureen's marriage is on the rocks for one thing. He's been off playing solider (well, he is a Marine) while she was busy being a super scientist as well as raising the kids. Where's Dr Phil when ya need him?

Fellow traveler (and secret smuggler) Don West (Ignacio Serricchio) doesnt have a lot to do on the show but he and Debbie The Chicken provide comic relief. A nice change from the 1960s TV version is "Robot". He's now some sort of mechanical alien life form. Is he a good guy, bad guy, or somewhere in between? The internet has been abuzz with how sexy he is. Not sure how I feel about that but he's definitely a step up from the old Robot.

The one thing that doesnt work for me is the character of Dr Smith. I like Parker Posey but she isnt given much to do except lurk around scheming to do...something. And "technically" she's not really Dr Smith anyway. She pretended to first be her sister to get aboard the Resolute and later claimed to be Smith.

I was worried that if the Robinsons hung out on the deserted island for the whole season that would become boring. Luckily they spend the last episode in space trying to reunite with the other members of the Resolute (and head on to Alpha Centuri). Some sort of alien energy drive is hidden on Jupiter 2. In the final scene, the pod is shot through a wormhole into what looks like Robot's home planet/planets. Uh oh. "Danger, Will Robinson" indeed!

Grade: 4 Monsters (out of 5). "Lost In Space" is an enjoyable family show. The actors playing the Robinsons family are believable as a family who truly care about each other. The special effects are top notch (which is good since the series was apparently very expensive to make). The upgrade to the Robot is a welcome change. The character of Dr Smith needs some work though. Hopefully that issue will be resolved in season 2.