> In any case, Y1 S99 has a cinematic epic scale/feel unmatched by
> anything else.

Yes, and I feel it generally has a positive tone which is what draws
me back. I wouldn't say this was solely a product of the time because
the world of the early 70s was just as full of conflict as any other
period since. Johnny Byrne's interest in mythology and possibly his
religious upbringing are I think reflected in there to some degree.

IMO all this 'dark' stuff gets a bit repetitive anyway; Ridley Scott
has a lot to answer for because since Alien because that's become the
house style! When Star Trek and new Dr Who do 'dark' it just gets
monotonous for me - these are series which had their own styles yet
rush to adopt someone else's default 'dark' setting. New Who has
little of the substance I see in Johnny Byrne's thoughtful 1999 stuff
- it's bubblegum for the eyes in comparison. Lightweight, soon forgotten.

> > 1999 was less of an innovation than an interpretation of the
attitudes and influences of the day.

Yes. any film or TV that old will show its age, it's impossible to
avoid, but good SF/ fiction will say something about the time it was
made rather than make predictions. I remember getting hold of the
videotapes in the early 90s and thinking it was even better than I
remembered as a youngster. There'll always be an element of nostalgia,
having watched it in the 70s, but it's mainly the fact that it stands
out from its contemporaries as being visually slicker and more
thoughtful. However it was an innovation maybe not in what it did but
in the way it did it.

> > The idea that aliens would dress in long flowing outfits with long
> > hair like Zandor comes straight out of the seventies and the SF
> > graphic fiction of the day.

Imagine how great Earthbound COULD have been had Freiberger rewritten
it... only joking ;-)