I bought the videotapes to the first six episodes and viewed them with my then four-year-old nephew. As we watched the chariot travel through the canyon, he turns to me and asks, "Is this real?"
I know the longtime fans of the show love the humor and focus on the Will Robinson/Robot/Dr. Smith triangle, but those early black and white episodes had an effect that was both epic and documentary.
In one of the early episodes, the Robinsons survive a grueling journey in the chariot, so they stop in the middle of a clearing in the jungle, take out a Bible, kneel and pray.
I'd like to see a show continue in that serious direction, instead of taking us into the realm of Carrot Man, the Intergalactic Department Store, and "Oh, the Pain! The Pain!" Been there, done that. How about a show for adults, about what it would really be like out there?
I watched the reruns of that show in the hope they would throw Dr. Smith out of the airlock.
Come to think of it, that's why I watched Star Trek-Voyager I thought they might throw Janeway out.
(besides Jeri Ryan being in it)
As a kid watching the original "Lost In Space" series, I always thought Dr. Smith was, um, wierd. Of course, given to my lack of exposure and experience, I couldn't quite put my finger on what "it" was. After I matured, however, I discovered that what had passed earlier for "wierd" transmogrified into "NAMBLA member."