The Pod

The Pod

Season 2 Location	Orbital Station
Season 3 Location	Laboratory
First appearance	Industrial Zone 1

The Pod is a dark metallic sphere supported by three spindly insect-like legs, covered in wires and pulsing lights to give it the look of some sort of small alien lander craft. It's mounted high enough to accommodate a blowup pool chair beneath it with about a foot of clearance between the underside of the sphere and the player's head.

A keyboard with alien characters is mounted to the pod so that it can be swung down in front of the player. During the game, the player has to find the few keys that do not repeat themselves among the jumble of other symbols. They're given a minute to complete the game, with wrong presses deducting a few seconds from the remaining time. If time runs out, the keyboard is swung away before the tank of green slime inside the pod opens - first through the pipe placed directly over the player's head, then a couple of seconds later through the second one over their lap to prevent them ducking out of the way.

The Pod was the first official Industrial Zone prop ever made by the effects team, and earned a special place among the show's cast and crew. As a result it has been played in every episode of IZ ever shown - the game it's used for is a perfect example of Industrial Zone's love for things that are simple to grasp but very difficult to complete successfully under pressure.

The appearance of the Pod is based on some sort of lander craft that featured in the final obstacle course of the UK Double Dare - in this edition, players had to sprint underneath it and avoid the gunge as it opened above them.