The Immunity Syndrome (Space: 1999)

"The Immunity Syndrome" is an episode from the second series of *Space: 1999*, a British science fiction television program from the 1970s. Gerry Anderson Productions and ITC Entertainment were behind the show. Johnny Byrne wrote the episode, with Bob Brooks directing. Filming took place at Pinewood Studios during November and December 1976. Its first UK broadcast was on 23 October 1977 via Granada Television, followed by London Weekend Television on 29 October 1977; it had already aired in San Francisco on KRON-TV on 19 March 1977. Critics gave the episode a mixed reception.

Set in 1999, the series follows the crew of Moonbase Alpha, a lunar colony. After a nuclear explosion hurls the Moon out of Earth’s orbit and into deep space, the Alphans—unable to steer their rogue world—encounter various cosmic phenomena and alien species while seeking either a route home or a new planet to inhabit.

In this episode, a survey team from Alpha lands on a planet that appears ideal for settlement. They soon face a struggle for survival when an incorporeal alien attacks them, and the planet’s biosphere abruptly becomes poisonous. The plot begins with Commander Koenig’s team discovering water and fruit-bearing trees, along with a hatch set into a rock wall. They activate its solar power source, hoping to open it once the cells charge. After the fruit and water are deemed safe, several Alphans consume them. Joe Lustig is then mesmerized by a pulsating light, loses his senses, and aims his laser at Controller Verdeschi. Verdeschi tackles him; during the struggle, the laser fires, killing Lustig. The light then attacks Verdeschi, leaving him delirious. He fires at Koenig but misses and collapses. Dr. Spencer, unable to treat the now-comatose Verdeschi, orders a medical evacuation. Koenig takes off in an Eagle carrying Verdeschi, but the planet’s water and fruit turn toxic, poisoning those who ate or drank. Transceivers explode, cutting off the survivors from Alpha. In flight, the Eagle’s metal parts corrode, forcing Koenig to crash-land. From Alpha, Maya and Dr. Russell observe that the biosphere now teems with harmful elements.

Spencer discovers that Lustig’s brain cells were expanding, causing fatal intracranial pressure; the same process is affecting Verdeschi. Using the solar cells for power, the Alphans build a transmitter from non-metal components. They establish one-w