I, Robot
The Outer Limits (1963)
I, Robot, directed by Leon Benson.
The world's first mechanical man is on trial for his life, accused of killing his creator.
Another straight SF story, this time drowned in a standard TV courtroom drama setting, obviously second season producer Ben Brady's comfort zone from his Perry Mason years. The rights of synthetic life forms has been a popular topic in SF and it could have been a decent entry, but the episode has been run through the excitement reduction machine.
The townsfolk call Adam the "tin man", which is nice. His encounter with the little girl in the opening scene is a quote of Frankenstein (1931). We later find that Adam has read the book.
Some cast members of note:
Marianna Hill is the scientist's loyal niece. Last seen in Medium Cool (1969) and High Plains Drifter (1973), she would also appear in Star Trek Dagger of the Mind.
Howard Da Silva is the crusty retired lawyer, called back to mount a defense.
Leonard Nimoy, in his second episode, is the muckraking journalist and "Defender of the Constitution!"
Famous faces: John Hoyt in his third and final episode; Ford Rainey as the D.A., and Peter Brocco as the scientist inventor: 299 acting credits in the IMDB.
I must confess: when young I read cubic yards of SF from the middle of the 20th century, but I never encountered or have forgotten the Adam Link stories. These predate Asimov's robot stories by a few years and the two creations have often been confused.
The title "I, Robot" originated with Adam Link's authors; Asimov's publisher stole it.
The Blu-ray commentary track is by David J. Schow.
