APRIL 2026

A "Spiritual Finale" for

Classic TV Series Lost In Space

By Rev Protodeacon George A. Haloulakos

From 1965-68, every Wednesday evening primetime TV viewers followed the exploits of the Space Family Robinson in the 83 episode sci-fi adventure series Lost in Space (LIS).  When the show went off the air in 1968, it was not given a proper series finale leaving viewers wondering whatever became of our favorite family in space?  While LIS ended abruptly without planned closure, it turns out that there was an episode that aired in its final months on network TV which can be viewed as a "spiritual finale."  The episode titled "Time Merchant" (Episode 77 out of 83 / first telecast on January 17, 1968) unintentionally provides a satisfying thematic conceptual wrap up.  In order to appreciate this, we first must review a synopsis of the story followed by how it functions as a series finale (even though it aired officially before the final network broadcast episode), and therefore repurposes LIS as a mythical or cyclical adventure rather than a serialized narrative!

Synopsis of "Time Merchant"

This episode features Dr. Chronos as the guest villain who can manipulate time and the nefarious stowaway Dr. Smith who uses Chronos' time travel technology to return to Earth before the Jupiter 2 was launched.  The plot twist is that if Dr. Smith DOES NOT stow away, the Jupiter 2 will collide with an uncharted asteroid four months into its journey, thereby destroying everyone on board!  LIS fans will recall that it was Dr. Smith's additional weight that sent the Jupiter 2 off course and his sabotage before the launch that caused the Robinson expedition to become lost in space.  The Robot is sent back in time to make sure that Smith is on board again to restore the "original" timeline.  This creates a closed loop: 

> Smith's sabotage caused the Jupiter 2 to go off course and become lost in space.

> But without this sabotage, the space ship would have been destroyed, killing everyone on board!

> Therefore Smith's stowaway presence as an enemy foreign agent ironically saves the Robinsons.

How "Time Merchant" Functions as a Series Finale

From a narrative perspective, this episode provides a thematic "reset" by returning to the moment of launch.  As such, it implies the Robinson expedition will continue, perhaps more successfully.  With the Robot achieving success in its timeline-preserving role, it ties the fate of the Jupiter 2 to Smith in a manner that essentially reframes the entire series!

Reappraising Lost In Space With "Time Merchant" as its Symbolic Ending

Throughout its three (3) seasons, LIS often embraced paradoxes and whimsical sci-logic rather than adhering to strict continuity.  Given how the series evolved from a serialized, serious sci-fi with multiple story arcs in its first season, to flights of fantasy in its second year and visits to a different planet each week in its final season, "Time Merchant" presents the idea that even though the Jupiter 2 is still lost, the timeline has been preserved thereby saving the mission!  In other words, this symbolic ending is a soft reboot: the timeline is reset while preserving the Jupiter 2 expedition.  The adventure continues but with a new understanding of why things unfolded the way they did during the series run.  A closed loop has been created in which the Robinsons are lost (perhaps for eternity) because Smith unintentionally saved them!  The viewer is left to think that perhaps the Robinsons being lost in space is a cosmic inevitability - eerily similar to the ending of the 1967 book Lost in Space by Dave Van Arnam and Ron Archer, in which the authors frame or set their novel about the Jupiter 2 mission in the show's first season.

If you are a fan of the 1960s Lost in Space TV series, treat yourself to a reunion with the Space Family Robinson by either viewing "Time Merchant," reading the aforementioned novelization by Van Arnam and Archer or listen to Galaxy Moonbeam Nightsite's podcast titled "Man, Moon, Media & Myth", program number 69, available on our Galaxy Nostalgia Network page on Mixcloud, at this link: 

 

https://www.mixcloud.com/GalaxyNostalgiaNetwork/galaxy-moonbeam-night-site-show-69-man-moon-media-and-myth/

 

This program focused on the original, unaired pilot of Lost in Space and how it reflected the scientific protocols of the day while actually having a prescient view of the future.

NOTE: All photos are from the public domain.