Tread Perilously's summer Grab Bag month continues with its first look back at Space: Above and Beyond -- an episode called "Level of Necessity."
When an operation on planet Daedelus ends with heavy casualties, Lt. Colonel McQueen notes Damphousse's "anomalous intuition" for saving the 58th Squadron. The notation in his mission report attracts the attention of Colonel Matthew Burke, chief of the largely-discredited Psy-Ops department. He's convinced Damphousse's intuition is the proof of precognitive abilities he's been looking for and arranges for the squad to return to Daedelus for a hit-and-run mission. Will putting the grunt in danger unlock the secret powers of her mind? And will anyone survive their fifth trip to the alien-controlled world?
Erik and Justin can't get over the episode's notion that lovable character actor Richard Kind can play a heavy. The pair also recall the monthly Comic Book & Science-Fiction Convention at the Shrine Auditorium. Erik's doppelganger ends up part of the discussion. The cast of Space: Above and Beyond prove to be knock-offs, off-brands, and potentially the greatest problem with the series as a whole. Erik and Justin attempt to recast Colonel Matthew Burke. Dan O'Bannon makes another unexpected appearance and Giovanni Ribisi becomes a psychic friend.
