Fireball XL5 Episode 39 Review: Space Magnet

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Fireball XL5 Ep 39: Space Magnet

Rating out of 10: 3.8
IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0803300/?ref_=ttep_ep39

Review (SPOILERS AHEAD):
It's a pity the very final episode of Fireball is such a bad one (though since I'm watching the whole thing totally out of order and there's no real or obvious development through the series, I can hold out hope that the last one I get to is rather better). The silly physics of Fireball XL5 gets beyond breaking the willing suspension of disbelief and just keeps going in this episode, which has as its main plot point "invisible aliens done stole the moon with a magnet". It turns out that they amplify the natural magnetism of their planet (Magneton, because it had to be called Magneton) and somehow this lets them steal the moon. Worse - and this is something that should be basic physics even for small children in the 1960s - it turns out that they want to do it... because then the moon will provide them with light. I'm just going to leave that there because I'm not sure what else to say about it.

The final showdown, after a relatively unexciting journey to Magneton that takes most of the episode, is in what is basically a junk recycling plant which apparently powers the boosted magnetism (this all on a planet that has such high gravity/magnetism that Fireball can't escape it, but the surface skimmers and humans can toddle around fine somehow). The fact that a previous fireball craft has gone missing has little impact, with Ross (it's always Ross) being found there perfectly alive and well. Invisible aliens could have been a good trope, especially earlier in the series, but the confrontation is silly and has no real menace, with Steve winning in his usual trigger-happy way and the main problem face in reversing the gravity field being the loss of Professor Matic's glasses.

All in all I don't have a lot that's good to say about Space Magnet as an episode; it's a story in its own way, and I've seen worse TV, but it's a good thing that the average Fireball episode is a lot lot better than this.