Don't get me wrong; I like the serials. They are charming pieces of escapism. And its true that some are better than others, occassionally with an impressive effect. But they make the original Star Trek series look like it has the production value of Gone With the Wind. I hope you can see the difference betwen matte lines in 1977 and the "roman candle" rocketship on a piece of fishing line that is often seen in Flash Gordon. Not to say that the serials don't have cultural value; they have tremendous importance. But even at the time they were made they were crude and sometimes embarrassing--the 1930's equivalent to todays daytime soap operas.