by Mark Murton
Behind the Scenes by Mark Murton and Linda Kay

Original Air Dates: February 3 and 10, 1977

Starring: The Felix Team

Directed by: Andrew V. Mclaglen (Vortex) and Barry Crane (Atlantium)

Cat Out Of The Bag Alert! This review contains some spoilers for these episodes.

Vortex Synopsis: A group of scientists and members of their families disappear into the Bermuda Triangle and become trapped on an island where past, present and future co-exist. Here they meet 23rd century healer Varian (Jared Martin) who joins them in their quest to return to their own time. All the while, they are being observed by a mysterious man from a futuristic city in the desert.

Kitty Cameo: This pilot episode didn’t originally feature any cat scenes. It was only when NBC decided to go ahead with a full series that additional scenes were shot and added to the end of the pilot to link it to the next episode. These scenes see Varian, Fred (Carl Franklin) and Scott (Ike Eisenmann) separated from their companions (who it was decided wouldn’t return for the series) and transported to an area where they encounter Rhea (Mary Ann Mobley) who knows their names and tells them she is an emissary sent by “The Source” to escort them to the city of Atlantium, further stating that their companions have “already gone ahead”. Arriving at the vast complex they are observed by a tuxedo cat which watches them pass and then follows after them. The episode ends with the trio receiving the shocking news that their companions have returned to their own time. The frame freezes and the caption “To be continued…” appears.

Atlantium Synopsis: Informed that a power drainage in the Transfer Generator means they can’t immediately follow their companions home, Varian, Fred and Scott are made welcome by the Atlanteans while they wait, but The Source, a master brain which rules the city, is growing weak and plots to use Scott’s life-force to regenerate itself.

Featured Feline: The tuxedo cat Sil-L’s first appearance comes during the opening credits (this same sequence featured in all episodes except the pilot, even the final two episodes where Sil-L doesn’t appear).

In the actual episode, Sil-L first appears as Varian, Fred and Scott are being shown to the “Pool of Mirrors”, a place which will enable them to see their departed companions where they are now.

Sil-L watches them go and then jumps down and hurries away.

Sil-L makes his way to Liana (Katie Saylor), the daughter of an Atlantean father and an extra-terrestrial mother, who picks him up and looks into his eyes as they establish a telepathic link, enabling her to read Sil-L’s mind.

Later, Sil-L is watching as three Guardians are sent by The Source to search for those it feels is plotting against it, including Liane and fellow dissident Il-tar (Albert Stratton), who once helped rule Atlantium but fell from grace when he opposed The Source.

Once again Sil-L hurries back to Liane, giving her and Il-tar time to hide.

Next Sil-L is present as Dar-L (Gary Collins) escorts Scott to the “Hall of Dreams”, which is all part of the plan to harvest Scott’s life-force.

Again Sil-L makes his way back to Liane.

What they learn from Sil-L convinces Liane and Il-tar that they have to warn the travellers about what’s really happening.

Sil-L is again in attendance when Scott is taken to The Source to be prepared for the process.

And again he reports back to Liane who hurries to find Varian and Fred and help them rescue Scott.

At the end of the episode, with The Source defeated, the travellers prepare to leave and Il-tar and Liane are there to see them off, with Il-tar cradling Sil-L in his arms.

Liane announces that she is going to go with the travellers to try and get back to her own time.

She says her goodbyes to Sil-L, telling him “You will stay well in Atlantium”. The four travellers move off and disappear in the familiar flash of blue light, seemingly leaving Sil-L behind . . . .

Behind the Scenes

Sil-L was played by three tuxedo cats who collectively were referred to as The Felix Team (they were mentioned by this name in the TV Times Weekly Entertainment Guide, 18-24 September 1977). John Kenneth Muir offered the following memory from story editor Dorothy Fontana on his website Retro TV Files: “It wasn’t just one cat, it was several cats,” she recalled. “I remember in one episode we had a loud shot fired and our main cat jumped up in the rafters. It took about an hour to coax this cat down.”

The character of Sil-L was created by Katharyn Powers who co-wrote the series with her then-husband Michael Michaelian. Both were brought in to rewrite the original script by Merwin Gerard and Ken Pettus.

The short-lived series enjoyed neither ratings success or critical praise, although it did garner a loyal fan following. A TV movie titled Lost in Time (1980) was reportedly cobbled together from these first two episodes. Sadly not much was written about the character of Sil-L or the cat actors who played him. But a couple of critics did single Sil-L out in their reviews. Lee Hamilton, writing in The Robesonian stated: “So far as we’ve been able to see, the most eloquent actor in the whole series is a telepathic cat, who approaches the whole situation with as cool a logic as Trek’s Mr. Spock ever could.”

Peter Fiddick, writing in his Television column for The Guardian, was not happy with the ending of the second episode. “The most remarkable flight of imagination in the whole bundle is the resident lady, who apart from thighs and sort of bionic eyes which she flutters at a cat and reads its mind, I kid you not,” he stated. “So would you believe — at the end of Episode 1 she leaves the cat behind already? What is there left?”

Fiddick would have been happy to know that Sil-L actually did return in the series and those episode reviews will be forthcoming.

Final Mewsings: If we could read cat’s minds, they’d probably just tell us to feed them!

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