Search - Roughnecks - The Starship Troopers Chronicles - The Homefront Campaign on DVD

The Bug War Comes Home

Stephen Liverman | Perry Hall, Maryland USA | 05/11/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The First Interstellar War comes to a stirring climax in "The Homefront Campaign", the latest DVD release in the Roughnecks: Starship Troopers Chronicles series. During the close of the Klendathu campaign, the Arachnid Queen escapes and SICON forces follow her trail. They find her in deep space and after pitched battle destroy the Royal Transport. The world celebrates but Carl Jenkins, the Roughnecks psychic believes the Queen is alive on Earth. At Carl's urging the Roughnecks enter deepest darkest suburbia to prove the bug menace remains. Sadly Jenkins is correct, the Queen is on Earth and our home becomes the last battlefield. The war does not go well, and the Roughnecks are in the thick of it. The squad suffers a terrible loss and must find a way to stay together to continue the fight.
This DVD is a triumph and disappointment. The stories in this chapter are surprisingly adult and poignant, as the squad deals with death, self-doubt, and uncertainty. The CGI work done primarily by Foundation Imaging is some of the best of the series (watch for the fighter plane flyover of Hawaii) The disappointment is that the end of the story is uncertain. Sony originally scripted three final episodes to include the final conflict of the war, and because of budgetary constraints those episodes have not been produced. I hope the success of these DVDs will prompt Sony to give the show's fans the ending they deserve."

Attention Humans: The only good Bug is a dead Bug!

Mr. Hook | Omaha, Nebraska United States | 06/04/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This disc contains episodes 32, 34, 35, 36 and 37 of Roughecks: Starship Troopers Chronicles. Perhaps now the rest of the world can appreciate the frustration of the fans that this series was never completed. Episode 33 was never made due to budget limitations and episode 31 was skipped over since only 5 episodes would fit on the disk (according to the commentaries anyway). The grand finale, episodes 38 - 40, were scripted but never animated. Perhaps now that the series is available on DVD the demand for more episodes will be overwhelming. Frankly, I was hoping they'd be able to squeeze episode 31 on this disc as well, since now there is an episode gap between the Klendathu Campaign and the Homefront Campaign. Still, if I was forced to choose between episode 31 and the last televised episode of the series, I would have made the same choice. So even though this disc isn't all an obsessive fanboy could hope for, it still offers up the best and brightest episodes of the entire Roughnecks series!This campaign brings the Arachnid conflict to Earth's own back yard. Mutant Bug clones will try to infiltrate our civilian infrastructure. Loyalties will be divided between saving civilian lives and eradicating the Arachnid menace. Our heros will face a crushing personal loss to their own squad (one of the main characters will NOT live to see the end of this campaign). But if our heros aren't able to pull themselves together, the planet Earth may not have any hope for a future. This is the climax the entire series has be building toward. If you are interested in collecting this series at all, you MUST own this DVD!"

Thoughtful, Chonological Showcasing(thank you, BKN)

TastyBabySyndrome | "Daddy Dagon's Daycare" - Proud Sponsor of the Lit | 03/29/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I'm eagerly awaiting these episodes on DVD because, in my opinion, they were the best part of an impressive series. I was lucky enough to be motivated when BKN had a Starship Troopers Marathon that showed every episode, day by painstaking day, until, at last, "Homefront" ended up on my platter. In my opinion, the climax to these episodes was worth the wait, too. While following the Troopers through all the other systems was fun (Tophet and Klenda being the other highpoints), the battle for Earth really took the proverbial cake. Bugs and our home sweet globe, two forces that should (and finally did) confront one another, lead to some awesome scenery and, more importantly, a change in the way the cartoon has been going. Until now, we've touched base a bit with tragedy and some emotions along the way, but we've also been submerged in an ocean of gunfights that the Troopers always win. Well, without giving anything away, this series goes above and beyond, letting you know desperation and the cost of war. You get the violence, but you also get so much more.
Its a sure bet!..."

Great, but..... missing episodes?

JOHN HUONG CH | Miri, Sarawak Malaysia | 06/22/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Definitely missing one episode from here (it is actually the Klendathu Campaign that's missing it)... which is the hunt for the bug queen in space. Granted this release is good, but I hate missing out on episodes like this. Also I hope Sony will release a DVD with the 3 final episodes + all the other episodes that were released on TV but not on DVD (Ice Asteroid Campaign?). I like to collect entire series... not bits and pieces. I;m sure other fans will appreciate this. Hope Sony gets this message."