I rate this episode ★★★★★ for EXCELLENT. Another way to title this great tale is “The Dream of All Historians.” I’ve heard a lot of stories about time travel such as #0385-THE LAP OF THE GODS, #0557-NOW YOU SEE THEM, NOW YOU DON’T and #1060-THE TIME BOX, but never heard of time travel involving a canoe & a whirlpool. Kudos to James Agate, Jr. for writing this story that combines the Drama-Mystery and the Fantasy-Mystery together. It’s enjoyable as #0902-THE CAPTAIN OF THE POLESTAR. The sound effects of the seagulls by the houseboat, clinking of the tableware, footsteps, howling wind, flipping of the notes, crickets, frogs, rotary phone ringing, paddling of the canoe, the whirlpool, creaking of the ship, climbing the ladder, birds chirping, the camp fire, swimming in the St. Lawrence River, overboard splash, and the French trumpets were all splendid to hear; felt like you were there in the 20th Century & the 16th Century. The music was tremendous! Great melodies for the feel of ambition, desire and determination. The music near the 27-minute mark was suspenseful; makes you feel very cautious on whom to trust. And the music at the 32-minute mark where the story progresses; great theme for adventurous stories! Speaking of greatness, E.G. Marshall was on point as Host. In his Prologue, he brings up the topic of Unknown Impulses that we deal with in our lives. In ACT-1, he brings us into the story where 1 average man will no longer be average again. After the recap in ACT-2, E.G. Marshall discusses the importance of Parallel Time, plus referring to Mark Twain about the subject. In ACT-3, he says that this is a strange, not incredible story. Strange indeed, but more importantly, he discusses flashes of bygone days. Best part of all, is his quote from Raymond Chandler, “The ideal mystery is the one you would enjoy even if the end was missing.” That, I agree with since we know how this CBSRMT episode ended, we would still ponder if our main character did actually travel back to the 20th Century or just stayed in the 16th Century. And finally, in his Epilogue, E.G. Marshall asks us fans what’s so entertaining about CBSRMT and ask if we are sure we haven’t been here before? What’s so entertaining about CBSRMT, to me, is that this Anthology series can tell great stories and allow us to use the power of our imagination, plus it reminds me of THE TWLIGHT ZONE and ALFRED HITCHCOCK PRESENTS. And let’s not forget our terrific cast: Len Cariou (as Jack Carter: the Historian and Jaque Cartier: the explorer), Diana Kirkwood (as Mary Carter: the painter), Lloyd Battista (as Donnaconna: the Huron Indian and Francis I: King of France), and Robert Dryden (as Police Constable Jones, First Mate Jones, and shipmate Jacques). It’s too bad that Len Cariou got to perform only in 2 episodes. This one and #1201-THE HEADHUNTERS, but still, great work. And of course there’s Lloyd Battista & Robert Dryden for playing roles with different accents. Even though Diana Kirkwood got to play 1 part, she's still a talented actress worth listening to. SPECIAL NOTE: Himan Brown plays the role of the Police Chief. I highly recommend this CBSRMT episode to all that love stories about expeditions & time travel. Until next time…pleasant dreams. =^D

Very good story!

I loved this story, it was captivating and very interesting. It ended so early, I wish it could have been a two part story