Jonny Quest "Pirates from Below" #1.18 (1965) (TV)

I'm in the middle of an awfully dry stretch, 25 February 2010

Dr. Quest newest invention is an underwater vehicle (sorry, I can't remember what they called it) that sort of rolls across the bottom of the ocean floor. The invention becomes the target of a group of baddies who want the vehicle for themselves to sell off to the highest bidder. Race and Jonny get mixed-up in the hijacking and it's up to Dr. Quest and Hadji to save the day.

I hate to have to give another Jonny Quest episode such a poor rating, but I don't have much choice. Pirates from Below just isn't that good and has very little to recommend. In a word, it's pretty dull. I've had similar problems with the previous two episodes. When I think about these three episodes, they all suffer the same weakness – the lack of a compelling or interesting villain or other threat. The pirates in this episode, the loggers in Werewolf of the Timberland, and the nondescript bad guys in The Fraudulent Volcano can't begin to compare with the spider-like robot of The Robot Spy, the threatening mummy from The Curse of Anubis, or the dragon pit found in Dragons of Ashida. Those episodes presented adversaries and situations that were suspenseful and frightening. I know things pick-up later on in the Jonny Quest series and there are some really good episodes to come, but right now, I'm in the middle of an awfully dry stretch.

4/10