Synopsis
Planet Earth
2133 A.D.
During an expedition to the
area
of Central California, PAX Team 21 finds that the area is now an
inland sea. The population is a "handsome racial mixture;
illiterate, but intelligent." The area possesses fertile
soil, but famine is common. The population of the area needs
education and agricultural techniques.
On their return to PAX, the team is ambushed by the Kreeg, mutant
warlike humans, who want to learn the secret of the subshuttles
in order to spread their sphere of dominance. The Kreeg attempts
to capture a PAX team member alive in order to extract
information. Seeing that their efforts are failing, they resort
to lethal force. A Kreeg soldier wounds PAX member Pater
Kimbridge. The PAX team manages to escape in a subshuttle, and
brings Kimbridge back to PAX for medical assistance. Kimbridge is
badly wounded and requires a bioplastic prosthesis to replace the
sheared section of the pulmonary artery in his heart.
PAX Team 21, lead by Dylan Hunt, heads out to locate Dr. Jonathan
Connor, who has been missing for a year. Dr. Connor is the only
surgeon who could perform the delicate surgery within the time
frame that Kimbridge has to live. Their mission leads them
several hundred kilometers from where their previous mission had
taken them. From this unexplored region has come stories of an
Amazon like society where males are bought and sold like pets.
Dylan Hunt decides that the PAX team should split up in two
groups to give them a better chance of locating Dr. Connor.
Harper Smythe leads Dylan Hunt into the area, bound by rope.
There she meets Marg, leader of the "Women of Ruth,"
who fights Harper Smythe and claims Dylan as her own property.
Isiah and Balok take the subshuttle to the old power station
listed on their maps, which is near the heart of the area. There,
they openly explain who they are, and what PAX is in an effort to
find Connor. The two are taken captive by the "Women of
Ruth."
While captive, Dylan meets up with Isiah and Balok. Dylan learns
from Balok that the men are subjugated and kept under control by
a drug that is put into the food. Dylan feigns eating the gruel
containing the drug, but is soon discovered. He is force fed the
drug by Marg who wants Dylan for herself.
Harper Smythe finds her way into the women's village where she
befriends one of the women. She gains the respect of one of
Marg's rivals, and learns of the society. While at the "Dink
Auction," Harper challenges Marg for the ownership of Dylan
Hunt. Harper defeats Marg and gains respect of the community. She
then enlists aid to find Dr. Jonathan Connor.
While at Marg's residence, Harper receives a transmission from
PAX stating that Kimbridge has only 15 hours to live. While
trying to bring Dylan to his senses, Dr. Connor meets with the
pair. Dr. Connor has developed an antidote to the drug, and has
been building up a supply for nearly a year in the hopes of
giving it to the whole community. Dylan is given the antidote and
is brought out of the influence of the drug.
Unknown to the women's society, the Kreeg are en route to attack
their community. Harper convinces Marg to trade Connor for Dylan.
While leaving, Dr. Connor replaces the intoxicating drug with the
antidote in the food supply. The Kreeg attack the village and are
fought off by the help of the males, who have defended the
females. The women of the village decide that the drug should no
longer be used.
The PAX team returns Dr. Jonathan Connor safely to PAX where he
successfully performs the surgery on Pater Kimbridge.
Starring
John
Saxon
(Dylan Hunt)
Diana Muldaur
(Marg)
Janet Margolin
(Harper Smythe)
Ted Cassidy
(Isiah)
Christopher Cary
(Balok)
Rai Tasco
(Pater Kimbridge)
Majel Barrett
(Yuloff)
Jim Antonio
(Jonathan Connor)
John Quade
(Kreeg Commandant)
Planet Earth
was conceived by Gene Roddenberry and aired Tuesday, April 23,
1974 as an ABC Movie of the Week. This was Roddenberry's second
attempt to launch this concept into a new Sci-Fi weekly series. Planet
Earth was preceded by
Roddenberry's Genesis II. Sadly, none of the networks
decided to
do the series.
The Planet Earth
storyline was described as "a society where women's lib went
mad and men are treated like household pets." Similar to
many of Roddenberry's Star Trek
episodes, this movie reflected contemporary societal conditions
set in a future environment.
A third and final movie, Strange New World, was aired in 1975. This
movie also
starred John Saxon. In this movie a trio of astronauts returns to
Earth after 180 years in suspended animation. There they find the
devastated Earth a strange new world.
Click above to see actual costume from the movie
Lexicon
Dink:
Derogatory term used by "The Women of Ruth" for human males. Dinks are bought and sold like animals. They are trained or exterminated. All Dinks must obey the rule of silence, and keep their eyes down. A Dink does not have a proper name, unless his mistress gives him one.
Dink Drug:
Derived from a mutated plant. Ingestion of the drug produces a Fear/Fascination Syndrome in the central nervous system. The "Women of Ruth" use the drug to control the Dink population. The drug is dispensed in the gruel fed to the Dinks. The Dink drug pascifies the males, and as a drawback, only one in five households had any children. The Dink drug antidote is also derived from the local plant life. The antidote's compounds are similar to those isolated in the 1960's Biowarfare labs, and is simple to make. The antidote is mixed with water and drank.
Great Conflict:
Presumably a nuclear war which devestated most of the Earth. By the year 2133, Earth is now renewed; it's air and water pure again, following the devastating effects of the "Great Conflict".
Kreeg:
A mutated form of human. Kreegs are capable of understanding only machinery and warfare.
Kreeg Vehicle:
Built on a late 1970's chassis with converted wood gas fuel system. The Kreeg army contains several vehicles of various configurations which utilize this fuel system.
Log Recorder:
Device used by PAX Team leaders to document mission status.
Medikit:
A backpack type case containing medical equipment suitable for most medical situations that a PAX Team would encounter.
PAX:
City containing an advanced civilization. PAX escaped the devestation brought about by the Great Conflict. PAX dreams of rebuilding Earth. "Their mission is mankind; the rebirth of planet Earth."
PAX Team sidearm:
Standard handguns carried by all PAX Teams are non-lethal. They fire a small dart (a miniature hypodermic) which injects a powerful and fast acting tranquilizer. Dylan Hunt discovers that the standard dart does not effect the Kreegs, and orders his PAX Team to switch to "XY" Tranquilizers.
Subshuttle:
A subterranean mag lev type train, capable of high speed transportation. Subshuttles honeycomb the earth. Only PAX knows the secret of their operation.
Transceiver:
Standard PAX Team communications device. Reception range is at least several hundred kilometers radius from PAX.
