Line #119 Series/LostInSpace


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/lostinspace01.jpg]]
2
3	->''"Danger, Will Robinson! Danger!"''
4	-->-- '''The Robot'''
5
6	Classic {{camp}} sci-fi family series from the Sixties that lasted three seasons. Featured the adventures of the Space Family Robinson, Major West, the Robot and shanghaied saboteur Dr. Smith as they search for Earth, after they become [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Lost... In Space.]]
7
8	''Lost in Space'' was a rival for ''Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries'' in the realm of serious sci-fi, which might explain the show's turn from serious SpeculativeFiction into FantasticComedy to keep a share of the viewing audience. Ratings wise, ''Lost in Space'' was actually the more popular series ''by far'' during their original run. Notable for its beautiful music (including ''two'' opening themes by [[Music/JohnWilliams Johnny Williams]]), sets, [[LatexSpaceSuit skin tight ski-spacesuits]], aliens, inventive and surreal plots, and highly articulated Robot, itself a "cousin" of JustForFun/RobbyTheRobot from the film ''Film/ForbiddenPlanet'' (who also guest starred on the show). The original plot had the Robinsons as explorer/settlers, with Dr. Smith as a saboteur paid by an unseen agency to program The Robot to kill the Robinsons and ruin their mission. This show is often mocked by those who only remember the comedy and talking carrots of the later seasons, but is actually an often well-written show suitable for all age groups. It has a loyal fanbase, and inspired many. The first episodes were in black and white and involved exploring the planet they crash-landed on. When the show shifted to {{camp}} it involved their conflicts with resident or visiting aliens of all sorts. In the 3rd season, the formula was altered to feature more actual space travel, as well as a more action based format.
9
10	One of a family of shows created by Creator/IrwinAllen, along with ''Series/LandOfTheGiants'', ''Series/VoyageToTheBottomOfTheSea'', and ''Series/TheTimeTunnel''.
11
12	May well be one of the classics of sci-fi for no other reason than the scene-chewing LargeHam glory of Creator/JonathanHarris (Dr. Smith) and his pained and witty repartee with the Robot. While its going from serious to camp may well have been a blow to later efforts at serious sci-fi, it was nonetheless a surreal joy to watch. The recent attempts to reboot it as a serious series may be doomed to fail because of this, as it's best remembered as a humorous series.
13
14	The low budget of the show was apparent in later episodes, but the shows original unaired pilot was the most expensive of the time, and the show's Spaceship sets were more expensive than Star Trek's Starship Enterprise.
15
16	The series received [[TheFilmOfTheSeries a film]] [[Film/LostInSpace adaptation]] in 1998. It was a modest box office hit[[note]]best remembered for knocking ''Film/{{Titanic 1997}}'' out of the #1 box office position it had occupied for four months[[/note]] but often dismissed as a "dim-witted shoot-'em-up" by critics. An attempt to create a television remake in 2003-2004 went nowhere. In 2015, Creator/{{Netflix}} announced that they would try their hand at creating [[Series/LostInSpace2018 their own adaptation]], which was released on April 13, 2018.
17
18	JustForFun/NotToBeConfusedWith some sort of strange sci-fi cast-away show; that would be ''Series/{{Lost}}'' '''[[RecycledInSpace In Space!]]'''
19
20	Also not to be confused with the comic book ''Space Family Robinson''.
21	----
22	The ensemble consisted of:
23	* '''Prof. John Robinson -''' Head of the family and mission, TheProfessor and TheCaptain. In the comic book he seems to have been a [[PreacherMan minister]] as well (said to be based on material in the original series [[WordOfGod writers' guide]] that never made it into the finished show). In the series played by Creator/GuyWilliams, in the film by Creator/WilliamHurt. The would-be revival cast Brad Johnson in the role.
24	* '''Maureen Robinson -''' Mother and occasional [[OnlySaneMan Only Sane Woman]]. She was an old-fashioned HouseWife, though occasionally took charge of dealing with the episode's threat when her husband and West were away. In the pilot, it was mentioned that she had a [=PhD=] in biochemistry, [[InformedAbility something that was never brought up again]]. In the series played by June Lockhart, in the film by Creator/MimiRogers. The would-be revival cast Jayne Brook in the role. In the film, June Lockhart had a brief cameo as the school principal.
25	* '''Major Don West -''' TheLancer and TheAce pilot. In the series played by Mark Goddard, in the film by Matt [=LeBlanc=]. The would-be revival cast Mike Erwin in the role. In the film, Mark Goddard plays the part of the general who gives Major West the order to be the pilot for the Jupiter II.
26	* '''Judy Robinson -''' DamselInDistress and perpetual [[LoveInterests love interest]] to Major West. In the series played by Marta Kristen, in the film by Creator/HeatherGraham. The would-be revival cast Creator/AdriannePalicki in the role. In the film, Marta was one of the reporters at the pre-launch press briefing.
27	* '''Penny Robinson -''' Not old enough to be a sex symbol like her sister nor as smart as her younger brother, Penny often just took up scenery, except in several episodes featuring her. FriendToAllLivingThings and, despite being ignored, got a few ADayInTheLimelight moments, which often involved wars. In the series played by Angela Cartwright, in the film by Creator/LaceyChabert, who portrayed a less likeable "modern" version of the character. The would-be-revival had not included this role. In the film, Angela was also one of the reporters at the pre-launch press briefing.
28	* '''Will Robinson -''' [[TeenGenius Boy Genius]] and MoralityPet for Dr. Smith. In the series played by Creator/BillMumy, in the film by both Jack Johnson and Jared Harris. The would-be revival cast Ryan Malgarini in the role.
29	* '''Dr. Zachary Smith -''' {{Jerkass}}, clown and LargeHam, ineffectual, [[DirtyCoward cowardly]] traitor and TooDumbToLive when it comes to dealing with aliens. Frequently infuriated by The Robot. In the series played by Jonathan Harris, in the film by both Creator/GaryOldman and William Todd Jones. The would-be-revival didn't include the role. The Creator/{{Netflix}} version, however, cast Creator/ParkerPosey in a [[GenderFlip gender flipped]] take on the role.
30	* '''The Robot -''' GeniusBruiser, RobotBuddy and TinMan with a [[GentleGiant kind heart]]. Frequent foil to Dr. Smith. In the series, played by Bob May and voiced by Dick Tufeld. Tufeld returned to the role for the film. The would-be-revival had not included this role.
31
32	----
33	!!''Series/LostInSpace'' provides examples of:
34	* AcePilot: Major Don West, though he does have a tendency to crash the ship...
35	* AdaptationDistillation: The short-lived [[{{Comics}} comic book]] written by Bill Mumy is remarkably well done. It assumes that the transition to {{Camp}} reflects the [[UnreliableNarrator embellishments young Penny]] used when recording the crew's adventures in her diary, and that the tone of their adventures actually stayed much truer to the tone of the early episodes. It's set several years after the last episode, with Will in his teens and Penny now a blossoming young woman. The Robot is scaled back to his original portrayal of being [[SlidingScaleOfRobotIntelligence mostly nonsentient,]] but is slowly developing self-awareness as more and more alien components have been added to him over the years. All the characters' personalities are explored in depth, and the art is wonderful. One jarring element, however, is the shamelessly [[FanService cheesecake]] style that grown-up Penny is drawn in (well, it was [[MediaNotes/TheDarkAgeOfComicBooks the Nineties,]] after all). Other ''Lost in Space'' adaptations changed the premise significantly, though these qualify more as a reboot than a continuation.
36	* AdBreakDoubleTake: used in the episode "Follow the Leader".
37	* AliensAreBastards: In fairness, the crew did meet a fair number of sympathetic aliens [[ConflictBall (although misunderstandings usually led to conflict anyway),]] but these seem far outnumbered by the number of [[JerkAss utterly unhelpful obnoxious jerks]] running around outer space. To an extent, [[StatusQuoIsGod this was unavoidable;]] after all, if the family could befriend some competent high tech aliens, they could probably get home.
38	* AlienAbduction: What happened to Tucker in "The Sky Pirate".
39	* AliensSpeakingEnglish: All the time, but in the early episodes this was always explained somehow, later not so much. Notably averted in "The Derelict" and especially averted in "The Sky is Falling" in which the humanoid aliens don't speak at all.
40	* AllAnimalsAreDomesticated: Debbie the Bloop. After encountering Debbie, a chimpanzee-like alien, in one of the early Season 1 episodes, the Robinson parents immediately allow Penny to adopt the wild animal. She instantly behaves like a pet and requires no on-screen training.
41	* AncientAstronauts: An episode where the cast encounters the Norse gods.
42	* AnimatedAdaptation: After the series was canceled, a pilot for a cartoon version was created. The show was completely changed - the family was no longer the Robinsons, the Jupiter II completely redesigned into a more rocket looking space craft, the Robot given a much more generic robot voice, Dr Smith a member of the crew from the beginning - the only things remaining from the original series being Dr Smith (voiced by Jonathan Harris), the Robot, and the fact that they were ...well.. lost in space.
43	* ArbitrarySkepticism: Practically the premise of the show the farther it went considering despite the whole family seeing things such as a green lady surviving in space without a suit and a space circus, well when Doctor Smith and Will report encountering a space thief, they must be making it up!
44	* ArtificialGravity: The Jupiter 2 is equipped with some form of this, which is turned off briefly in "The Reluctant Stowaway" and never mentioned again.
45	* AsteroidThicket: The first episode, "The Reluctant Stowaway".
46	* AutoKitchen: The Robinsons eat food provided by one in the episode "Wild Adventure".
47	* BeardOfEvil: The Keeper has a pretty serious one.
48	* BenevolentAI: The Robot.
49	* BiggerOnTheInside: Between the pilot and the first aired episode, a second deck was added to the Jupiter 2, with no modification of the FX miniature. While clever direction and the ship’s status as a crash-landed derelict hid this through the first season, the more spaceflight oriented episodes of the second and third seasons soon made it obvious that the interiors couldn’t possibly fit inside the exterior. Made worse when a third-season episode, "Space Creature", gratuitously added yet a third, ridiculously large, “power core” deck, which was then never heard from again. Some other ships seem to feature this trope as well- and the ship from "Invaders From the Fifth Dimension" is specifically stated to be bigger on the inside.
50	* BlondeBrunetteRedhead: The three Robinson children in the original series. Blonde Judy, brunette Penny, redhead Will. Not quite fulfilled with the adult cast. Maureen is the only redhead, and while Dr. Smith’s hair is lighter than John Robinson’s or Major West’s, it isn’t actually blonde.
51	* BloodOath: "The Sky Pirate". The title character makes Will Robinson take the Pirate's Oath, which involves pricking a finger on each of their hands, putting their bloody fingers together and Will repeating the Oath after the pirate.
52	* BrickJoke: A particularly funny one in "Two Weeks In Space". In the middle of the episode, [[ItMakesSenseInContext The Robot hits a shuttlecock impossibly high in the air while being a Badminton coach.]] At the end of the episode, Dr. Smith is hit by that same shuttlecock.
53	* CaptainsLog: Only in the early episodes with more serious storylines. These 'logs' predated ''Star Trek'' by a year.
54	* CassandraTruth: Whenever the [[MonsterOfTheWeek alien of the week]] is actually up to something, Dr. Smith's mistrust is this. Occasionally averted when Smith spends an entire episode claiming that what is seemingly a dog from Earth is actually an alien spy, and nothing comes of it. And of course there are a couple of times when he trusts the Guest Star and they STILL are up to no good.
55	* CatchPhrase: Dr. Smith's "Never Fear, Smith is here!" boast. Also his "Oh the pain, the pain." And the Robot's "Danger, Will Robinson, Danger!" The film works in all of them.
56	* CerebusRollercoaster: One never knows whether an episode will be serious or a silly. The series qualifies as both a comedy and a drama.
57	* CharacterDevelopment: Smith going from villainous to childish, and the Robot gradually going from a [[EmergentHuman simple machine to a fully developed personality.]]
58	* ClipShow: "Prisoners of Space". However, it is very well thought out.
59	* ComicBookAdaptation: A strange circumstance occurred in the 1960s. At the time the series began, Creator/GoldKeyComics, which usually published adaptations of virtually every sci-fi TV series on the air, already had an unrelated comic book series about a family named Robinson who were lost in space. Titled ''Space Family Robinson'', the comic continued concurrently with the TV series, with Gold Key retitling the magazine ''Space Family Robinson - Lost in Space on Space Station One''. Otherwise the comic had no connection to the TV series, and in fact continued to be published well into the 1970s. It wasn't until the early 1990s when Innovation Comics published its MsFanservice-heavy ''Lost in Space'' (see under "Adaptation Distillation") that a proper comic based on the TV series arrived.
60	* CoolStarship: The Jupiter 2, and it gets even cooler as the series goes on. What other spaceship could carry more equipment than one could ever need, survive all those crash landings in one piece and STILL look beautiful?
61	* CowerPower: Doctor Smith would cower behind Will Robinson ''at least'' OnceAnEpisode. Sometimes the Robot, for variety. There were even episodes when he cowered behind both.
62	* CriminalDoppelganger: Zeno in "West of Mars", a dangerous criminal who looks exactly like Dr. Smith for unexplained reasons.
63	* ADayInTheLimelight: Jackson Gillis would often give it to Penny.
64	* DarkerAndEdgier: The various reboots of ''Lost in Space'' usually try to be this.
65	* DeadlyGas: In "Ghost in Space"
66	* DefeatEqualsExplosion: Several times.
67	* DemotedToExtra: Guy Williams and June Lockhart, the alleged stars of the show, in many of the later episodes.
68	* DependingOnTheWriter: The quality of the episodes tends to vary because of this.
69	* DidYouSeeThatToo:
70	** In the episode "Wild Adventure", Smith more or less asks that of the Robot when Lorelei/Athena drifts past the main windows.
71	** In "Rocket to Earth", he asks the same of assorted Robinsons when Zalto keeps popping up.
72	* DudeShesLikeInAComa: The sleeping princess of the lost civilization.
73	* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: The first season was in black and white and more serious. Doctor Smith was a bit more diabolical, the Robot was more of a tool than a character, and the show was more focused on the family. To keep up with its new rival, the [[Series/Batman1966 60s Batman]], it changed things up from the second season onward. The show was now in color, Doctor Smith was [[EvilIsHammy hammier]], [[CharacterizationMarchesOn the Robot now had a personality,]] and the show became much [[{{Camp}} campier.]] The series was also now more focused on Smith, Will, the Robot, and their misadventures.
74	* EasilyThwartedAlienInvasion: In "Invaders From The Fifth Dimension" Will Robinson is abducted by a group of aliens who are repulsed by the sight of tears due to being unable to understand emotions, and [[spoiler: eventually let him go as a result.]]
75	* EmergentHuman:
76	** Verda the android in "The Android Machine" and "Revolt Of the Androids".
77	** The Robinsons' own Robot also probably counts, since he goes from clearly nonsentient in the beginning to being a charming, fully fleshed-out character by the end.
78	* EvilTwin: Judy in "Attack of the Monster Plants" and John in "The Anti-Matter Man".
79	* ExplosiveInstrumentation: In spades.
80	* FakeGuestStar: Jonathan Harris, who plays Dr. Smith. He was originally going to be killed off after the first few episodes, but he was such a fun character that they decided to keep him around and left him with the "Guest Starring" billing in the credits. [[https://www.newsfromme.com/2022/10/11/ask-me-odd-credits/ Harris also said the "guest starring" credit was retained after his agent tried to get him more money for staying on.]]
81	* {{Fanservice}}: In “Flight into the Future”, while the male “space historians” that our heroes encounter are dressed in very bulky space suits, the sole female encountered (played by Judy’s actress and supposedly her descendant) is dressed in a rather fancier outfit involving a one-piece swimsuit with sexy boots and stockings.
82	* FantasticVoyagePlot: In one of the more clever episodes, Will Robinson and Dr. Smith find a severely malfunctioning Robot who has become a giant due to his problem. The two have to physically enter the Robot's body to fix him. However, the major complication is that they know that the second they are successful, the Robot's body would start shrinking to normal size and they would have only seconds to escape before they are crushed. Naturally, the pair escape just in time.
83	* FateWorseThanDeath: What nearly pushes John over the edge into banishing Smith from the family. John notes that one of Smith's antics nearly got everyone killed, but John was absolutely horrified that Will was almost turned into an immortal slave to a computer.
84	* FishOutOfTemporalWater: SpacePirate Alonzo P. Tucker, who appeared twice, was abducted from Earth by aliens back in the golden age of piracy, which explains his dialect and mannerisms. He exaggerates how exciting his life was prior to his abduction (and after).
85	* FiveEpisodePilot: This was actually not the intention; there was the original unaired pilot. However, after adding the characters of Dr. Smith and the robot, it was necessary to shoehorn the two characters in. This resulted in splitting various scenes, as well as adding scenes, to make five episodes.
86	* {{Flanderization}}: Intentionally invoked by actor Jonathan Harris in regard to Dr. Smith. When he saw that Dr. Smith, as originally conceived, was an unrepentant bad guy, he realized that his lifespan on the series was limited because sooner or later they'd have to dispose of him one way or the other. In his own words, "Why would they keep such a despicable jackass around, you know?" As a result, Harris very slowly began adding more and more cowardly buffoonery to his performace, and it eventually became the primary element of the character's nature.
87	* FloweryInsults: Dr. Smith often heaped these upon the Robot.
88	* FoodPills: Protein pills in "The Hungry Sea" and "The Space Trader".
89	* FramedFaceOpening: Used in the third season.
90	* FriendOrIdolDecision: In this case it was a means to return home.
91	* FriendToAllLivingThings: Penny in spades. Even towards big, slimy, anti-social Frogmen.
92	* FryingPanOfDoom: Judy Robinson wields one in "Welcome Stranger", knocking Jimmy Hapgood out during his fight with Don. As a CallBack in the season two episode "A Visit To Hades", she tries this again with a pipe, only this time she hits Don instead of the guy he's scuffling with.
93	* FullNameUltimatum: A variation in "There Were Giants in the Earth".
94	-->'''Will:'''When Dad calls me "William" in THAT tone of voice, there's no use in arguing!
95	* GenderEqualEnsemble: The Unaired Pilot "No Place to Hide" had 6 main cast members, 3 of them male (John,Don.and Will) and the other 3 female (Maureen, Judy, and Penny) For the actual series, Smith and the Robot were added to the mix.
96	* GenderFlip: The latest revival of the series has recast Smith as a woman, and in the episode "Space Beauty", the Robot is given a female voice.
97	* GenreBlind: In some episodes, most from the second season. Probably as a side effect of its partial transformation into a disguised SitCom. The third season mostly fixes this- but some episodes still feature this trope.
98	* GenreSavvy: They occasionally (actually quite often in the early episodes-but not as much later on) showed some remarkable flashes of savviness -- such as in the episode where they met the Norse gods, and Dr. Smith employs the Robot's replicator and his wits to manipulate them using a challenge not unlike one from Myth/NorseMythology.
99	* GentlemanThief: Ohan comes from [[PlanetOfHats a planet of these.]]
100	* GetBackToTheFuture: "Visit To A Hostile Planet".
101	* GreenSkinnedSpaceBabe: The character originally named Lorelei in "Wild Adventure" was then renamed Athena in "The Girl from the Green Dimension".
102	* AHandfulForAnEye: "Revolt of the Androids". When one of the title androids attacks Professor Robinson and Don West, both laser beams and physical blows prove useless against it. Professor Robinson is forced to grab an handful of dirt and throw it in the android's eyes so they can escape.
103	* HarmlessFreezing: The suspended animation "freezing tubes" in several episodes and the movie's first act. Also the prison inmates in the episode "The Condemned Of Space".
104	%%* HateSink: Dr. Smith.
105	* HaveAGayOldTime:
106	** In "Two Weeks in Space", Doctor Smith, [[ItMakesSenseInContext pretending to run a resort]], insisted it was the gayest resort you've ever found.
107	** Dr. Smith's habit of referring to The Robot as a booby is a downplayed example. Boob already existed as slang for breast by the sixties, though given Dr. Smith's character as pompous and old-fashioned it was perfectly reasonable for him to use it in the non-breast sense. By the 21st century, and with the idiot sense of boob having become less common, it can cause more of a HehHehYouSaidX reaction in modern audiences.
108	* HeelFaceTurn: Dr. Smith, sort of, but it's a very gradual process.
109	* HeroAntagonist: Officer Bolix.
110	%% * HollywoodNatives: In "Space Primevals".
111	* HumanAliens: With oddly colored skin or hair, or just odd costumes.
112	* HumanShield: Dr. Smith, being a DirtyCoward, frequently uses young Will Robinson as a human shield to cower behind.
113	* HuntingTheMostDangerousGame: "Hunter's Moon"
114	* InfiniteSupplies: Averted early on, taken to the extreme in the later episodes.
115	* IntelligenceEqualsIsolation: Will experienced this in "A Change of Space" when a ride in an alien ship resulted in a significant increase in intelligence, while also making him something of an InsufferableGenius. He found he could no longer talk to people as easily as he used to and didn't enjoy things he used to.
116	* JailBake: In "Fugitives in Space" Major West and Dr. Smith are taken to a prison planet and The Robot bakes them a cake. Recognising this trope, Will guesses that it may contain a hacksaw or file, which The Robot denies. In fact, The Robot added plastic explosives.
117	* {{Jerkass}}: Dr. Smith, in both show and film.
118	* JerkassHasAPoint: Dr. Smith, whenever the [[MonsterOfTheWeek aliens of the week]] are up to no good.
119	* JetPack: Used a few times. They actually filmed a stunt pilot using a Bell Rocket Belt.
120	* JustEatGilligan: Substitute Dr. Smith for Gilligan. Dr. Smith would frequently instigate, or at least exacerbate, the problem the characters had to deal with in an episode. A particularly noteworthy example occurred in "The Lost Civilization". The previous episode had focused on the female members of the crew and Dr. Smith, while the remaining male members and the robot went looking for water. This episode showed what happened to the male members. When something went wrong with the air conditioner unit (which would ultimately set off the plot), it was initially assumed that for once Dr. Smith couldn't be responsible due to how far away he was. It then turned out that he'd stolen parts from the air conditioner unit the night before.
121	* LampshadeHanging: At least one example: In the season two opener, "Blastoff Into Space", the fact that the Robinsons seem to have any object no matter how improbable or unlikely with them on the ship is lampshaded when Maureen tells the family to throw overboard any non-essential items. Cut to a ridiculously large pile of stuff like bowling pins, floor lamps, a fishbowl, skis, etc. And yet later episodes show even more ridiculous gear, such as the infamous cash register.
122	* LaserBlade: The Volta Blades of "The Challenge."
123	* LargeHam:
124	** Jonathan Harris's deliciously vile portrayal of Dr. Smith. Gary Oldman, as expected, is quite the ham as Dr. Smith in the movie. Oddly enough, Penny in the movie is a borderline example. While everyone else but Oldman suffers from DullSurprise, she (particularly in her video diaries) speaks her lines loudly and very fast, all in a very high, excitable voice.
125	** A lot of the guest stars in the original show, especially Fritz Feld as Zumdish (who appeared in 3 episodes), Leonard Stone as Farnum (who appeared in 2), as well as the one-time appearance by Al Lewis (aka. [[Series/TheMunsters Grandpa Munster]]).
126	** Stanley Adams as Tybo, the evil carrot in "The Great Vegetable Rebellion".
127	* LatexSpaceSuit: A staple of the show's costuming, and featured early on the movie as "cryosuits" for deep sleep. They are, predictably, highly revealing in their tightness (the plastic suits of the movie were literally moulded from the actors, leaving the female characters seeming a little exposed in them).
128	* LeftHanging: Like most high-concept SitComs of the era it was canceled without advance warning, with the last episode "in the can" at the time becoming the Last Episode, because that's how the business was done at the time. The same can also be said of the aborted pilot for a new series, which also ends without resolution. The comics sort of conclude the series, but they too where left hanging until the "Voyage to the Bottom of the Soul" graphic novel finished the story, but it too ended on a cliffhanger. Bill Mumy later wrote a song about his character as the group's now middle-aged sole survivor still out there with only the Robot for companionship, and it was a plot point in TheMovie. Eventually however, the Lost in Space reunion "The Epilogue" gave the show a happy ending.
129	* LighterAndSofter: Dr. Smith in the main series is this compared to his portrayal in the pilot. Jonathan Harris deliberately lightened the character because the Robinsons would never have allowed the flat-out villainous Smith to stay anywhere near them.
130	* LivingProp: Entire main cast members in some episodes.
131	* LiteralMinded: The Robot for a while.
132	* MatterReplicator:
133	** The thought machine from "Wish Upon A Star".
134	** The Robinsons themselves had a replication unit in season 2- though it was only seen in a few episodes.
135	** The Robotoid from "War of the Robots" also has this ability in a way.
136	* MachineWorship: An interesting example in "The Space Primevals".
137	* TheMcCoy: Major West, infrequently Dr. Smith.
138	* MechanisticAlienCulture: An episode featured a mechanized society of humanoid cyborgs whose leader was a computer. They kidnapped Dr. Smith to repair the computer. They also had clock-like mechanisms on their chests which they could use to turn back or alter the flow of time.
139	* MonsterOfTheWeek: Usually an alien.
140	* MoralityPet: Will and Penny are this for Dr. Smith.
141	* NewRulesAsThePlotDemands: There is a lot of this throughout the series.
142	* NiceJobFixingItVillain: In "Time Merchant", it's revealed that without Dr. Smith's presence on the ''Jupiter 2'' it would have been destroyed by an uncharted asteroid. This means that it was only because of the actions of his superiors and their attempt to sabotage the mission, that the crew were able to survive.
143	* NotSoImaginaryFriend: The first season episode, "My Friend, Mr. Nobody", has Penny befriending a disembodied voice, that everyone assumes is just her new imaginary friend.
144	* OnceASeason:
145	** The Jupiter 2 blasts off from a planet at the beginning of every season. (Earth in season one, Priplanus in season 2, and the second season planet in season 3.)
146	** Also, the final episode of each season invokes ThePowerOfLove in some way- Will's love for John allows him to [[spoiler:drive Canto out of his body]] at the end of Season One, the family's love for Smith keeps Arcon from sending him to a dead star in Season Two, and in Season Three the Robot is somehow saved from [[spoiler:being destroyed in a blast furnace ]] for the same reason.
147	* PeopleZoo: In the two-parter "The Keeper", the titular alien (played by Creator/MichaelRennie) wants Penny and Will for his interplanetary zoo, which naturally causes John and Maureen some distress. Making it more disturbing (possibly even more than the show's creators realized) is The Keeper's method of taking them -- he has a staff that emits a signal that makes Penny and Will ''want'' to go to him. It's ''deeply'' creepy to hear the kids, in flat voices, tell John they want to go for a walk, with him knowing what's waiting for them outside. If he lets down his guard for even a moment...
148	* PercussiveMaintenance: When two of the android duplicates in "The Phantom Family" are damaged the Robot suggests that their mechanisms may have become jammed and that this can be "rectified by a moderate thump". It has the desired result.
149	* PetTheDog: Dr. Smith has enough of these moments to keep the others from killing him.
150	* PirateParrot: "The Space Pirate". The title character (named Alonzo P. Tucker) has a robot parrot (with psionic powers, yet) on his shoulder.
151	* PlanetOfHats: A few.
152	* PlungerDetonator: In "Mutiny in Space", Dr. Smith uses one to set off the explosive chemicals in his rain-making machine.
153	* ThePowerOfLove: As mentioned above, this saves the day in some form at the end of every season, and seems to be a major theme of the series.
154	* PrisonShip: The ship with criminals kept in computer-controlled HarmlessFreezing cryogenic suspension.
155	* ProphecyTwist: Used comically in "The Girl from the Green Dimension". During a fight with an alien from the green dimension, Dr. Smith is shown the future which has several members of the ship's crew (though not him) standing around what appears to be a grave and talking solemnly about how they're not likely to forget, how a great helper that was "tireless, loyal and uncomplaining" was buried beneath the ground. Smith naturally concludes that he's going to be killed (though anyone else would realise that the positive description didn't really describe him). [[spoiler: It turns out that after an issue with the atomic cooker's heating coils, they decided to bury it.]]
156	* ProtectedByAChild: When Dr. Smith is in danger, [[DirtyCoward see the good doctor pull Will Robinson or occasionally Penny in front of him for use as a human shield.]]
157	* ProudWarriorRaceGuy:
158	** In "The Challenge", Quano (Creator/KurtRussell) and his father, "The Ruler" (Michael Ansara), are totally focused on making sure Quano can prove himself to be strong and brave by defeating Will in a competition and facing other dangers.
159	** Sobram from "The Flaming Planet" is TheLastOfHisKind from a race of warriors who, facing death, is seeking a WorthyOpponent so he can go out fighting in the destruction of the planet rather than face a peaceful death.
160	* QuicksandSucks: Used in several episodes, though not as a major part of the story.
161	* RayGun: Lots of Laser Weapons
162	* RaygunGothic: Almost every single spaceship, prop, set, and costume. Though they are remarkably well done- particular care and detail was put into the Jupiter 2 and the Robinsons' other vehicles.
163	* TheRadioDiesFirst: Used in "Invaders From the Fifth Dimension" and "Island in the Sky".
164	* ReactionlessDrive: The Jupiter 2's Magnetic Drive, although it has rocket engines as well.
165	* RecycledInSpace: ''Literature/TheSwissFamilyRobinson'' IN SPAAAAAACE!
166	* ReplacedTheThemeTune: After the sprightly Music/JohnWilliams one used in the first two seasons, the great man returned to write a different theme for the third and final season (which is the better-known one of the two); Warren Barker wrote a more cartoonish theme for season 2 which was (understandably) never used.
167	* ReunionShow: Bill Mumy planned one after the cancellation of the show, but it was rejected by Irwin Allen who refused to even read it. One was planned for 2001, that would have followed the Jupiter II crew finally returning to Earth but it was cancelled after the death of Jonathan Harris. In 2015 Bill Mumy's original reunion concept was made as a table read featuring the original cast and new actors.
168	* ReverseCerebusSyndrome: You know those later episodes, where little Will Robinson goes on adventures with his friends, the bumbling Dr. Smith and the Robot? In the early episodes these characters were actually trying to kill him and his family...
169	* ReversePsychology: In "Space Beauty", Dr. Smith wants to convince Judy to enter a beauty pageant. He repeatedly suggests she has no chance of winning, gets Don to say that her competing would be silly, then makes her think Don's forbidding her from doing it. Naturally, she insists on competing.
170	* RidiculouslyHumanRobot: The robot, naturally.
171	* RobotBuddy: The aptly named...Robot.
172	* RoboticReveal: In "Princess of Space" [[spoiler: Fedor]] turns out to be one.
173	* RockBeatsLaser: in "The Keeper, Part One", the Keeper is impervious to laser blasts due to his cosmic energy power source, but not to [[spoiler: Will's slingshot, which destroys his MagicStaff and thus renders him powerless]]
174	* RunningGag: Various times Dr. Smith gets woken by surprise and immediately insists, "I'm innocent" (or some variation thereof).
175	* ScienceFantasy: The series included both sci-fi and fantasy concepts.
176	* ShooTheDog: "The Space Pirate". At the end of the episode Will wants to go with the title character and be a pirate, [[spoiler: but the pirate insults him and refuses because he doesn't want to take Will away from his family.]]
177	* ShoutOut:
178	** The series episode "The Sky Pirate". The title character was a clear reference to Long John Silver in ''Literature/TreasureIsland'', specifically his becoming Will Robinson's friend and the parrot that sat on his shoulder.
179	** IDAK is also an obvious parody of Superman, though with a VERY different personality. [[spoiler: At first...]]
180	* SiliconSnarker: The Robot could definitely snark, but this quality was brought out most often during his back-and-forth with Dr. Smith.
181	-->'''The Robot:''' Memory banks indicate Dr. Smith is about to pull a fast one.
182	* SitcomArchNemesis: Major Don West and Dr. Smith.
183	* SleeperStarship: The Robinsons were supposed to make the trip in "freezing tubes." The prison ship from "Condemned of Space" also qualifies.
184	* SpaceClothes: On both the main cast and the alien guests.
185	* SpacePirate: Alonzo P. Tucker.
186	* SpaceshipSlingshotStunt: Used to escape the sun's gravity in "Wild Adventure", one of the few things that episode got right when it came to actual space science. However, the Film version averts this by having the ship fly right THROUGH the sun.
187	* StarTrekShake: Accomplished by Irwin Allen hitting a bucket so the cast knew which way to tumble.
188	* StarfishAliens: The Bubble Creatures. A few others exist as well, but due to budget restrictions most aliens are humanoid. Nevertheless, Starfish Aliens are sometimes mentioned, if not seen.
189	* StarfishRobots: We see some very creative designs throughout the series.
190	* SpecialGuest: Robby the Robot, from the classic film ''Film/ForbiddenPlanet'', had a few appearances on the show. However, he was sneaky and conniving if not downright evil, a huge contrast to his film personality.
191	* SympatheticInspectorAntagonist: Officer Bolix is after Ohan the GentlemanThief, and the former's harshness causes the Robinsons to help out the latter.
192	* TakeMeToYourLeader: Back when it wasn't a DeadHorseTrope.
193	* TakeThat: In the episode "The Thief From Outer Space", the titular villain is looking for his genie girlfriend who is trapped inside of a tiny bottle. At the end of the episode, [[spoiler: he finally encounters her and rubs the bottle...to reveal that she is vastly overweight due to eating so much marzipan and yet [[FanDisservice still wears the pink harem outfit]]. The entire cast is horrified and the Sultan traps her once again in the bottle, begging the family not to let her out. The episode ends with her trying to convince The Robot to rub the bottle, who is not fooled.]] This all makes sense when you realize that ''Series/IDreamOfJeannie'' aired at the same timeslot as ''Lost in Space''.
194	* TheMagicVersusTechnologyWar: Magic and technology exist side by side in several episodes. In "Princess of Space", a planet desperately needs to find its rightful Queen so she can command the royal scepter and put the civilization's ever-more rebellious robots in line!
195	* TeleportersAndTransporters: Humans don't have them, but most other civilizations the Robinsons encounter do.
196	* TemporaryScrappy: The Robotoid, played by Robby the Robot, is better than the Robinsons' own Robot at nearly everything. It is, of course, evil, and The Robot has to save the day. Interestingly, Robby the Robot is used in a similar manner in ''Series/TheAddamsFamily'', where he does the same thing to Lurch.
197	* ToneShift: The series fluctuates back and forth between drama and comedy, between science fiction and fantasy, between family and action...
198	* TractorBeam: Alien ships sometimes used these. Usually called a magnetic beam.
199	* TrailersAlwaysSpoil: The Promo for "Princess of Space" reveals that [[spoiler: Poor old Fedor is a machine]]
200	* TimeTravel: In "Visit to a Hostile Planet", the characters accidentally wind up in a small Michigan town in 1947.
201	* {{Transflormation}}: Temporarily inflicted upon Dr. Smith in "The Great Vegetable Rebellion".
202	* TwentyMinutesIntoTheFuture: In the pilot set in 1997, the space agency director's desk has a rotary phone, with a reel-to reel tape recorder and plenty of blinking lights on the wall behind, and not a PC in sight... but the producers deliberately did NOT make Dr. Smith a Soviet/Communist agent because they actually did guess the Cold War would be over by 1997. The Sci Fi Channel aired a marathon of LIS episodes (including the unaired pilot) on October 16, 1997, the Jupiter II launch date given in the second pilot.
203	* TwoDSpace: One of the standard-bearers of its era. Verged on 1-D space in an episode where the Jupiter II was set on a course to Earth, which was too dangerous to use because it passed directly through the sun. Apparently, the sun was too big to steer around. According to the dialogue in the scene, they didn't have the fuel to make it to Earth if they went around the Sun.[[note]]However, the fuel was sufficient to reach the Automated Planet in the next episode ("Ghost Planet"), even with enough fuel for maneuvering at a Space Controller request. And a soft landing. And take-off. Also, while on the way into direction of the Earth, the spaceship enters the solar system, passes Uranus and Arcturus and...wait. Arcturus is a giant red star, 36.7 light-years away from he sun. They have enough fuel for a detour of 2*36.7=73.4 light-years, ''steer around a giant red star'', but they don't have enough fuel to steer around the sun? - Note that in the same episode Smith and Don return from a spacewalk without their helmets on. That explains why nobody thinks of sending Smith onto a spacewalk without a suit - he would survive it.[[/note]]
204	* WagonTrainToTheStars: In the later seasons.
205	* TwoOfYourEarthMinutes: "Hunter's Moon". An alien tries to force Professor Robinson to be the target of a hunt that will last sixty Earth minutes.
206	* VillainDecay:
207	** The well-known transition of Dr. Smith's character from a [[TokenEvilTeammate straight villain teammate]] to a campy DirtyCoward traitor. In the process he also lost all his useful skills as well, going from a legitimate medical professional in the early episodes to a completely useless [[TheLoad Load]] once he underwent his comedic turn.
208	** His AbhorrentAdmirer Athena went from a legitimate threat to a swooning airhead by her second appearance.
209	** The Saticons are also noticeably less shadowy, mysterious, and alien in their second appearance.
210	* VillainExclusivityClause: Mix with a case of JustEatGilligan. In every episode Smith would endanger the family whether is for greed, cowardy, his obsession for returning to Earth or any other selfish reason.
211	* VillainousRescue: If it weren't for Dr. Smith eavesdropping on the aliens in "The Challenge", he and the Robinsons could've been killed.
212	* VitriolicBestBuds: Dr. Smith and The Robot.
213	* WeirdScience: Especially in the bizarre alien gadgets and the MonsterOfTheWeek.
214	* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: Debbie the Bloop comes and goes throughout the episodes before disappearing entirely in the Third Season. This is cleverly explained in one of the comics, but there are numerous other examples, such as a dog who only appeared in one episode before never being mentioned again, as well as multiple rabbits and a frog in other episodes. There's also the matter of what happened to Smith's Cousin Jeremiah...
215	* WhatMeasureIsANonCute: This is dealt with in an episode called "The Golden Man". Penny, who is a FriendToAllLivingThings, meets a hideous frog alien, while Dr. Smith meets a handsome humanoid alien that is solid gold. The two aliens are at war with each other. The one that turns out to actually be the good guy is, surprisingly, the frog alien. The true form of the titular “Golden Man”, however, is even uglier than the frog alien.
216	* WizardsFromOuterSpace: And dragons and knights and princesses...
217	* YouCanSeeThatRight: Episode "Wild Adventure". When Dr. Smith sees a green alien woman floating around in space outside the ''Jupiter 2'', he asks the Robot "You see her, don't you?"
218	* YouCantGoHomeAgain: The series premise. Although they do make it back to Earth an awful lot... Then again, an ongoing source of conflict is that the Robinsons usually don't especially want to get back to Earth; given the choice, they really want to get to their original destination, Alpha Centauri. It's Dr. Smith who's absolutely desperate to get back to Earth, and this ongoing disagreement often ends up ruining the crew's chances of getting to either place.
219	* {{Zeerust}}: Aluminum space suits for everybody! (Even if they look surprisingly like the Mercury/Gemini space suits from the mid-60s)
220

Context Series / LostInSpace