Love him or hate him, David Peckinpah was always true to his medium — paying homage. And in small doses, that could have been a good thing. One of the things we forget is that Sliders is supposed to be derivative. That's the entire point! The show takes a look at situations we know and take for granted and skews them to a different perspective.

So which episode pays homage best without descending into a cartoonish rip-off of the real thing?

"Into the Mystic"
By Tracy Tormé

There is some irony in awarding the David Peckinpah Award to his presumed antithesis — Tracy Tormé. But Tormé was much better at it. It boils down to one crucial difference. "Into the Mystic" would have been a fine episode with or without the homage to "Wizard of Oz."

Paying homage can bolster the existing episode. You can’t, or at least shouldn't, build the episode out of the tribute. Not that every one of Tormé's tributes paid out. Anyone else remember that "Shane" debacle at the end of "The Good, the Bad, and the Wealthy?" Not a good idea…

Your picks? Come on, Josef Anderson has to win SOMEthing. ;)

R317