Must-see TV shows are futuristic classics that shouldn't be missed. Of course, not every must-see is perfect. That's why we've rated them 1-5 on the patented "crunchy goodness" scale.

Title: Lost In Space
Date: 1965-1968

Vitals: The title pretty much says it all, or it would if the title was Lost In Space Thanks To This Sniveling Evil Professor Jerkoff, And To Cap It All Off, There's An Annoying Kid On Board.

Famous names: Bill Mumy, Angela Cartwright, Jonathan Harris, Mark Goddard, Marta Kristen, Irwin Allen

Crunchy goodness: 1

Spinoffs/Sequels/Copycats: A 1998 movie, which substituted wacky breastplates for the original's campy charm.

Most painfully dated moment: The cheesy-ass robot running around shouting "Danger! Danger!", and Dr. Smith's overblown alliterative putdowns of the robot, such as "Bulbous bumpkin" and "Silly sausage." (Really. For a complete list, go to http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art3316.asp.)

Bang for your buck: The show spent $600,000 on its pilot film and $400,000 per episode, making it the most expensive science fiction show until Space:1999 (and much more expensive than Star Trek.) Costly effects included a two-foot spaceship model flying over a model landscape, and an alien costume made of palm bark. At least the robot, reused from Forbidden Planet, came cheap.

Lost In Space - The Classic Series

Contact information for this author is not available.