Observations on 'The Long Sleep'

This is one episode that is an enigma. The being a taunt, dramatic
well paced story with great performances, 'The Long Sleep fails when
you consider the motives of the aliens.

----- Original Message -----
From: "Doug" <[hidden email]>
To: <[hidden email]>
Sent: Wednesday, February 11, 2004 8:40 PM
Subject: [SHADO] Observations on 'The Long Sleep'


------------------------------------------------------------

....Nor move them....

Dave H.

"Doug" wrote:

> (2) People that own houseboats do not clean them out for AT LEAST ten
> years (and nor do they notice odd-looking devices inside the deck).
>

This at least I find quite credible. I'm sure a few people own
sheds, caravans and delapidated houseboats that they haven't set
foot in side for decades.

Well, I for one find it hard to think that a mobile object like a
houseboat was in the exact same spot for 10 years, that the owner
didn't spot the trigger, that no inquisitive kids ever climbed
onboard and spotted it, and as previously said, that in 10 years the
aliens didn't just call home and ask that another trigger be shipped
over. Plus, if they are looking for body parts, or a place to
colonize, what good does it do to set off a bomb and wipe everything
out? Just too many loose ends in that episode for me, especially when
there was no need for most of them. They could have had her drop it
down a well, where it could easily have stayed hidden (still doesn't
explain the lack of a replacement trigger). Things like that
frustrate me I guess.

Bill

--- In [hidden email], James Gibbon <james.gibbon@v...> wrote:
> "Doug" wrote:
>
> > (2) People that own houseboats do not clean them out for AT LEAST
ten
> > years (and nor do they notice odd-looking devices inside the
deck).
> >
>
> This at least I find quite credible. I'm sure a few people own
> sheds, caravans and delapidated houseboats that they haven't set
> foot in side for decades.

"Bill Cotter" wrote:
I agree with you generally Bill, apart from the first point. It's
typical of a few UFO episodes - great scenery, dialogue, effects,
lots of drama, but it's all built on a very shaky idea and
storyline which really don't stand scrutiny. In spite of its
faults though, and it IS a fundamentally flawed episode - not
just in its details but in its conception - I quite like THE
LONG SLEEP. I love the scenes filmed around Piccadilly Circus
and Covent Garden, and the scene with the Aliens in the
farmhouse is very entertaining.

Don't get me wrong - I like the episode, for some of the reasons you
mentioned below. In fact, I like all of them, just some a tad less
than others.

I still think UFO is far, far above (no pun intended!) most of the
other series of its time - and today. That just makes the silly
points, such as the 10 year delay in a replacement trigger, all the
more glaring to me.

Bill

--- In [hidden email], James Gibbon <james.gibbon@v...> wrote:

Could be that the device was a one shot deal. Remember that a lot has been
said that the aliens come from a dying planet with possibly limited resources.
Perhaps the components of the bomb and it triggering device were the only one
made. Maybe the aliens who brought it didn't get back. Or maybe the High
Commander on their home planet doesn't deal lightly with failure(in other words
he makes Straker seem like a real softy in comparison). So they do a number
on Tim and leave him to watch Catherine and find out where the missing part is
and carry out the mission.
Few things in real live work out as planned. Often you have to
improvise and make the best of what you have. It's very easy to nitpick holes on a
plot you never saws when it was new after more than 30 years.

James K.


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

James, I like your concept where perhaps the aliens in 'The Long
Sleep' do not survive the journey back to their home planet, and thus
the bomb is overlooked by future Earth-venturing UFOs.

The idea of the aliens coming from a dying planet wouldn't be in
debate, but certainly it could be argued that their resources are NOT
limited since the alien race seems to have an endless supply of UFOs
to send to Earth often, and in varying numbers....

Doug

Doug,
Yes, the aliens did seem to have a large number of UFO's at their
command. Perhaps they were stockpiles left over from better days? Perhaps then
the materials that the bomb was made of were too rare and had run out. Another
thought is perhaps whomever built the original bomb might not have been alive
to build another one, didn't get the transplants he needed in time or
something like that.

James K.


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Perhaps the aliens government is just as disorganized as the US government
and military. The US starts and stops great and grandiose programs all the
time seemingly at random and with no regard to completion, success or
failure. [Two examples: The amazing functioning failure of the Space
Shuttle program (not just the lost vehicles and people) goes on and will
indeed eventually fly again even though the program really failed most of
its goals and the US would have been far better off continuing to build and
develop Saturn5 and other expendable vehicles. - also; the International
Space Station was a program that could have been a real success but support
is dwindling and it is unlikely to ever be but a pale shadow of its
original intent.] Somehow, through all of its fits and starts, success and
failures, the US amazingly survives and maintains a (diminishing)
technological edge through the program chaos. With that set up, jump back
to UFO, imagine the aliens with such a government, under the pressure of
being a dying race too. I find it very easy to accept that no new
detonator was sent, perhaps that program was cancelled before one could be
sent. Perhaps simply a change in leadership.

Try this scenario: Alien regime #1 happily harvests organs for a while but
is then seriously disrupted by SHADO. Ship and personnel losses as well as
unstable organ supplies destabilize the alien leaders political power and
he/it is replaced. Regime #2 wants to be done with it all and rub it in
good (sound familiar?) so orders the bomb up for a little
scorched-earth-diplomacy. Bomb fails and that failure costs them the
leadership, nobody really cares why the bomb fails or follows up with the
replacement detonator because regime #3 wants to resume organ harvesting
and may not even know about the bomb at all.

There's about a million variations of how this could go down as seen in the
episode, just by modeling the scenario upon Earthly governments behaviors.
Add in behavior models of militaries, religions, companies, groups and
individuals and there are almost infinite ways that what happens *visibly*
in the episode could be explained. It's been said before and I am in
complete agreement, UFO is just as entertaining for what isn't explained as
for what is. Leaving it up to us to guess at the motivations of the aliens
is part of the value of the show. If it were all to be completely
explained, there would be no magic.

I just realized this while writing this message... With a fair bit of
twisting, the whole UFO theme could be warped into a story of the United
States (aliens) harvesting oil (organs) from the Middle east (Earth). Lots
of other historical conflicts too like [UK, tea, India] or [Spain, gold,
Central America], it's really a timeless conflict whenever somebody wants
someone else's stuff. So no matter what kinds of holes we may find in
individual UFO episodes one of the things that makes UFO so endearing and
timeless is the simple underlying foundation of the conflict. The fact
that the show was made in such a way as to also be timelessly entertaining
is evident in the fact that we all are still interested in watching and
discussing the show. ...And a big reason for that is the skill with which
the story is told. The story doesn't have to be flawless in order to be
good. The strong characters and interesting (if flawed) storylines are
more than the sum of their parts which is why we can look past the shows
problems and still enjoy it. Works that way for me anyway.

Shawn Kelly
www.sdaa.org



>Date: Fri, 13 Feb 2004 10:24:02 EST
>From: [hidden email]
>Subject: Re: Re: Observations on 'The Long Sleep'
>Doug,
>Yes, the aliens did seem to have a large number of UFO's at their
>command. Perhaps they were stockpiles left over from better days?
Perhaps then
>the materials that the bomb was made of were too rare and had run out.
Another
>thought is perhaps whomever built the original bomb might not have been
alive
>to build another one, didn't get the transplants he needed in time or
>something like that.
>James K.

--- In [hidden email], "Shawn Kelly" <sdkelly@s...> wrote:
>
> Perhaps the aliens government is just as disorganized as the US
government
> and military. The US starts and stops great and grandiose
programs all the
> time seemingly at random and with no regard to completion, success
or
> failure. [Two examples: The amazing functioning failure of the
Space
> Shuttle program (not just the lost vehicles and people) goes on
and will
> indeed eventually fly again even though the program really failed
most of
> its goals and the US would have been far better off continuing to
build and
> develop Saturn5 and other expendable vehicles. - also; the
International
> Space Station was a program that could have been a real success
but support
> is dwindling and it is unlikely to ever be but a pale shadow of its
> original intent.] Somehow, through all of its fits and starts,
success and
> failures, the US amazingly survives and maintains a (diminishing)
> technological edge through the program chaos.

Hi Shawn:

First of all - I should point out that that far from being
disorganized, the U.S. Government is very organized; that the U.S.
Military functions like a well oilled machine. Nothing is perfect
in the real world.

Two - NASA (Government / Civilian) runs the Space Program - not the
military.

Three - The Shuttle Program has been a magnificent success. While
there have been loses (Challenger and Columbia), that is the price
that must be paid to venture into the unknown. Exploration is never
cheap. There have been great rewards earned from every Dollar spent.
Lets just remember that both Soyuz and Apollo have had their share
of tragedy as well - Soyuz on several occassions, yet the Russians
continue to fly.

Four - Support is waining for the ISS because of the problems with
getting it built. Problems of design. Problems in manufacture (as
the Russians are FAR FAR FAR behind in delivery)

Five - Saturn 5 booster. Here I do agree. This booster should
have never been shelved. Did you know there are plans currently to
put the first two stages back into production? Lets all take time
here to remember the Russian (Soviet) N1 booster - and the desasters
with it.

Six - Expendable vehicles: Extremely expensive over time. What is
really needed is a space-only vehicle like the LM. But a reusable
vehicle has it's advantages also. Lets not forget that the
engineering that went into the Space Shuttle is more than 30 years
old and NO ONE has yet come up with equivelent. Lets face facts -
the age of the expendable capsules is really over. There may be a
brief continuation, but that is all. Just like you don't board a
propeller driven airliner to fly across oceans and continents.
Reusable equipment is the wave of the future.

Shawn, it's really easy to blame others - in this case the U.S.
Government (NASA) and the Military for problems with the current
space program. But more specifically - lets lay the blame where
blame is to be laid: the uneducated public.

How any times do you hear that the Space budget needs to be cut?
Social programs here and there are more important. But lets point
out this to you. Only the U.S. and Russia (Soviet Union) have ever
flown repeated missions into space. China is trying to play catch-
up with antique technology and is TOTALLY FAILING in the relm. The
Europeans have never placed any living thing in orbit by themselves -
nor have the Indians, Japanise, or Australians - and for that
matter NO one other than the U.S., Russia, and China.

If you really want to contribute something. Write those in power.
Write the ones that do the budgets. Write those that spend the
money. Ask them: about the welfare system that gives money to
people who really don't need it. I have seen from personal
observation a lady at a supermarket pay for $400+ in food with USDA
Food Stamps and then load them into a new Ford Explorer. I think
this $400 could have been better spent: On research and development;
On education; On a million more worth-while causes than what it was.

What should also be remembered is that "Space is not only a
completely unforgiving - but also the most hostile enviornment in
which Man has ever ventured." I would like to take credit for those
words, but I cannot. They are those of Dr. Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin.

Hugs,
Tasha

Thank you Tasha. I do not have the words that you do. Are you the tasha that
is in the Space 1999 group? scott


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

--- In [hidden email], bslwrsf@a... wrote:
> Thank you Tasha. I do not have the words that you do. Are you the
tasha that
> is in the Space 1999 group? scott
>
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

No sorry, that's not me. As a Sci-fi fan I have watched Space 1999
occasionally, but it really never peaked my interest as UFO did.

Tasha

One of the things about TLS is that the alien uniforms
changed quite a bit...From the fetish-chain-link
accents to the bland silver waist bands (even though
it was 10 year prior to "Identified"...

JF

=====

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