Eric Bernard EpisodesWar Games
Eric Bernard EpisodesThe episode is radically reworked, not just with subtle edits and new effects, but with a completely new storyline and new title- God's Will. The before-credits sequence is actually a clip from later in the episode- with Koenig floating in space after his Eagle was destroyed. The close-ups of Koenig's face now show the same star pattern beyond; the effects quickly become much more ambitious, with CGI debris floating past and the dead body of Alan Carter (actually Kelly from Space Brain).
After the titles, the episode begins for real, with alien spaceships appearing. The Hawks are gone (and no longer named as Hawks)- instead we have three Draconian Marauders from the 1980s Buck Rogers TV series. Apart from the motion control flight manoeuvres, the new ships are markedly inferior to the original. There is also an obvious and surprising blunder when the three spaceships swoop into view round the horizon of the planet, as if it were only 2-3 km wide. At this point, Bergman queries Koenig's "shoot first" style, a sequence lifted from Last Enemy (with the proximity diagram from Voyager's Return on the Big Screen).
The Eagles fire and destroy the alien ships, and instantly Sandra announces more ships. All three Eagles of flight 2 are destroyed as they lift off- using footage from other episodes with explosions added, with only the final shots of one of the cardboard Eagles being blown up. Some of the shots of moonbase buildings exploding are from The Dorcons. There are also some replacement shots as Alan's Eagle flight 1 encounters the ships. The death of Mathias is cut completely- we see him only briefly, and the window glass exploding out, but no body.
The bomber that arrives is now the Archanon ship from Mark Of Archanon (a nice ship, but we lose the incredible pre-Star Wars fly-over). The shots of the Archanon are added into shots of the Eagle viewport and screen (from Year 2), and the Moon added to the space shots.
The command conference has a subtle editing change, changing Helena's death figures from 128 to 28. The shot of Keonig and Helena's Eagle lifting off is taken from A B Chrysalis (with a dust covered launch pad). The planet seen in space now has a blue atmosphere (originally the planet shots were the red planet Piri), although above the alien city the sky is still purple. The dialogue with the aliens seems unchanged, as is Victor's valedictory speech.
The evacuation of Alpha has several shots of the Eagle hangars added (from Breakaway and Space Warp), and Tony Verdeschi appears piloting one Eagle (a shot from Rules Of Luton, with Sandra inserted alongside him from Full Circle). Bergman and Kano also appear in the Eagle cockpit from Full Circle (in the episode it is Paul and Bergman), Paul separately in a shot from Collision Course, and there are generic Alphan evacuation scenes from Black Sun, A B Chrysalis.
The generic shots of Eagles leaving an undamaged Alpha (in the original from Guardian Of Piri) are replaced with Eagles flying over smoking Alpha buildings from The Dorcons.
The planet forcefield is a nice new pulsing effect (a shot of an Eagle from AB Chrysalis is adjusted to show the planet with the Eagle. Just before the Eagle blows up, we see the command module of the Eagle starting to separate (from Dragon's Domain). Koenig's monologue, seen in the beginning, is not replayed. We see the evacuation Eagles looking for Koenig's body. In another clip from Rules Of Luton, Tony can't pick up anything on his sensors; Sandra is again alongside him. Mathias spots him ("15 degrees left", from Last Sunset), with a nice pan to Fraser piloting alongside him. There is another shot of Kelly from Space Brain (the name on the helmet is obscured), with Eagles behind him. This is a particularly well done sequence, especially considering it is completely made from shots from other episodes.
After the aliens invite Helena to "come fearlessly into our brain", the perfect balance lines are dropped, instead showing Helena the evacuation fleet encountering the forcefield and Eagles exploding. Abrams (from Voyager's Return) dies, and a shot of Paul Morrow from Collision Course is edited to pull him back, before showing him (actually Abrams again in reverse) pulled into space. Tony calls "Get the hell out of there - clear that area" (from Taybor).
Helena cries for John, and as in the original he appears in the alien control centre. The aliens speak a few lines from earlier in the episode as Koenig searches ("In our world, there can be no fear") before he shoots them. The stock nuclear explosions are gone, and when Koenig finds Helena we hear a Derek Wadsworth year 2 tune.
We then cut to the Eagles returning to the Moon, with a voice over (there is no wash-over and return to the start of the episode). Eagles landing from AB Chrysalis are shown, and then we see Koenig in his quarters (from Breakaway). Unfortunately it sounds nothing like Martin Landau. The words completely change the message of the episode. "In the end it was the fear of fear that drove the aliens to destroy themselves. Even among what seemed to be unsurmountable odds, embracing our fear has always kept us struggling to survive. It's hard not to believe that our fate is somehow predestined. Embrace my fears. Trust my destiny. Or as some may say, believe in God's will."
Space 1999 copyright ITV Studios Global Entertainment
Page copyright Martin Willey