A Visit to Hades is one of the worst Lost in Space episodes. At this point (almost halfway through Season Two), I rank this as the worst, even below "The Thief From Outer Space".
It had potential if done right, but fails at just about every opportunity. The first few minutes are actually good, when Dr. Smith plucks a harp and believes it sent him to Hades. After that, the attempts at humor fall flat. I do not think I laughed even once.
It also has potential as a rare episode that features Judy, but that attempt is a mess.
What makes this terrible:
The Morbus character is a wise-guy that cannot generate a laugh despite numerous attempts at sarcastic and Bowery Boys type humor.
Dr. Smith is not funny. He just plods through this like a dunce. Major West is made to look like a buffoon in a fight scene. And worst of all, there is a long scene (while in "Hades") that Judy acts like a cry-baby small child. It is completely out of character and is painful to watch.
Prof Robinson is played straight, but is surrounded by this mess.
It had potential if done right, but fails at just about every opportunity. The first few minutes are actually good, when Dr. Smith plucks a harp and believes it sent him to Hades. After that, the attempts at humor fall flat. I do not think I laughed even once.
It also has potential as a rare episode that features Judy, but that attempt is a mess.
What makes this terrible:
The Morbus character is a wise-guy that cannot generate a laugh despite numerous attempts at sarcastic and Bowery Boys type humor.
Dr. Smith is not funny. He just plods through this like a dunce. Major West is made to look like a buffoon in a fight scene. And worst of all, there is a long scene (while in "Hades") that Judy acts like a cry-baby small child. It is completely out of character and is painful to watch.
Prof Robinson is played straight, but is surrounded by this mess.