One, I thought I already had a review of this program posted.Two, the episodes were all uploaded to youtube, last time I looked. Watched over them and enjoyed them again.Yes, they are rather dated.Did not know about the illness and loss of the female, Liana, but do recall she disappeared for several of the last episodes.This magnificent show aired during the summer and was spellbounding, truly captivating.Without a doubt, the best attraction for a kid was Ike Eisenmann, staple of many a after-school specials.I had seen the pilot movie with Ian McShane as a late movie about twenty years ago. Before that, I had not seen any of these shows or programs since back when they first aired.Did not recall Joan Collins appearance in one episode, but as I wouldn't have known who she was, no reason I would remember it.Nevertheless, they were an intriguing group, especially with the addition of McDowell (in essence, merely resembling Jonathan Harris as Dr. Smith on Lost In Space).But even without the female LIana, the foursome made for a pretty effective quartet, as I recall.Once more, in rewatching the episodes on youtube, I couldn't help but notice clearly there was a 'performance' sought with Carl Franklin, recollecting some bad childhood experience or something.Nevertheless, for that summer, this show ruled and was a masterpiece.Not enough stars to cover it.

I have seen this in reruns in the 1980's and it wasn't too bad. Let me fill you in with more of what I remember.Spoilers. Valerian (I don't remember him being "Varian") had a super crystal tuning fork that could do just about anything. But he wasn't an alien. He was from Atlantis. He was healthy, wise, handsome, took his vitamins, had a clean aura, probably a vegetarian, and he never abused that aardvark in the back yard. Your basic all-around 1970's hero guy. And the tuning fork was really an amplifier that tapped into his spiritual essence to effect change.In the Bermuda triangle, people would get sucked in from various times throughout history. I believe it was the pilot when they ran into pirates. One of them asked if Elizabeth was still Queen of England. Clearly, they meant a previous Elizabeth. They answered yes, which only prolonged their delay in realizing they were in a time vortex.Roddy McDowall was a late-comer, probably to boost sagging ratings. He was from the future but I don't remember from when exactly. I think it was the 2100's.It turned out there were some bad guys running the island from a shiny silver cylindrical tower that looks remarkably like one of the buildings in downtown Los Angeles. They were agents working either for or with "The Source". Valerian defeated The Source, leaving the show with no direction at all. They quickly slapped together a new threat – "The Power". It some kind of artifact gun. The reruns didn't get that far in the 80's so my memory gets hit and miss at that point. I remember them beating The Power also. I think they knew the clock was running out so they were kind enough not to leave the audience hanging.It was a bit simplistic at times, and some of the plots were a bit too obvious, but it was good clean escapist fun. There was a family on the island with Valerian so it was easy enough to identify with someone and pretend you were there also on a wild adventure. I would watch it again if it was on at a convenient hour.

Fantastic Journey was a great show and was one of the original 'Sci-Fi Collection' tv shows aired during the Sci-Fi Channel's(USA) original beginning. Jared Martin did a great job in this show. Roddy McDowell was a nice addition after his introduction episode. It paved the way for shows like 'The Otherworld' and 'The Bermuda Triangle'. Fantastic Journey was an entertaining show. They had a great looking female actress too.

I was a major fan of this show in the '70s, as an 11 yr. old. After only catching a few episodes, suddenly the series disappeared, obviously cancelled. Luckily, I was able to trade for the complete series on VHS. After watching the whole series, and finally getting to see all the episodes. I can see why I was such a fan as a kid. Even though a lot of the look and style of the show is very dated and '70s looking, this series had the potential to be a good one. As an older viewer, some of the episodes are a little weak, but this series, had they spend a little more money on art direction and writing, had potential. Anyone thats a fan of '70s Sci-fi television, I think would enjoy this series.