 The producers made sure that the episode was well @-@ publicized , dropping hints that Anderson 's character O 'Neill would return for the episode . Joe Mallozzi , executive producer for the series , also hinted that series fans would finally meet the Furlings , an enigmatic race referenced in the second season episode " The Fifth Race " but never seen . Despite the outlandish scenes filmed for the episode , many of the writers ' favorite moments did not make it to production due to time constraints . For example , Cooper noted that a Gilligan 's Island skit was cut from the script . 
