Search - Space 1999, Set 5 on DVD

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Scott Mcintyre | Long Island, NY | 02/19/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"...Anyway, the Space:1999 series makes a drastic change of course for the second season. In an attempt to "Americanize" the series (which was already popular as a UK product), cast members are dropped, sets and costumes changed, music altered and stories pumped up. Where we gain action and emotion we lose the awe and terror of the unknown. Missing most of all is Barry Morse, who looked upon the moon's journey with a sense of utter fascination.However, Catherine Schell comes aboard as the shape-shifter Maya. The Metamorph character was an unnecessary addition, but Ms. Schell is welcome and a wonderful personality.After the first two episodes, there is a serious downslide in episode quality. The stories are dumbed down quite a bit, with macho posturing taking the place of desperation. I enjoy both seasons, but find season 1 to be much more sophisticated.There is much to recommend here, but be warned...it's an almost a different series. The episodes improve toward the end of the series, but some of the worst are in these two sets (Mark Of Archanon, One Moment Of Humanity & Catacombs of the Moon are all stinkers).Great effects, above par acting and a good musical score salvage some really pedestrian plots. When it's good, it's great. When it's bad...it's Lost In Space."

It's Good, But Not as Good as Season One...

dtbarnde | 02/24/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

""Space: 1999" was a British-made sci-fi series which aired on American television in the mid-1970's. At that time it was the most expensive show ever produced on British television, and the money showed in the large, elaborate sets of Moonbase Alpha and the special effects. The plot is deceptively simple: in 1999 the United Nations has constructed a huge base, called Alpha, on the Moon. Although primarily a scientific and research center, the base is also used to monitor the vast amounts of nuclear waste which are stored on the moon's surface (in Space 1999's timeline, nuclear power is the Earth's main energy source). In September 1999 a freak accident causes the nuclear waste to explode, thereby blasting the moon out of Earth's orbit and hurling it - and the personnel of Alpha - across the galaxy. Space 1999's first season turned this show into a cult classic, and some diehard sci-fi buffs rightly consider the first season's episodes to be among the most unique and creative in sci-fi history. The vivid lighting and colors created a moody, creepy atmosphere not unlike the "X-Files", the musical score was both haunting and memorable, and the episodes themselves were often surprisingly mature, unique, and drew as much from the horror and fantasy genres as sci-fi. What truly made the first season of the show different was that not every episode had a happy ending, not every problem was neatly solved, and the crew of Alpha often appeared genuinely scared and bewildered by their encounters with all sorts of aliens and strange phenomena. Commander Koenig, the base's leader, was no heroic Captain Kirk, but a very human leader doing his best to help his people survive in an often hostile, or at least uncaring, universe. Unfortunately, for the second season the show's producers decided to "Americanize" the series, and the result was a definite drop-off in the show's quality in the second season. Cost-cutting led to cheaper special effects and sets, and too often the monster costumes looked like something out of a Grade-B horror film. The musical score was jazzed-up and sped-up, and thus sounded more like something out of a seventies disco than the first-season's original score. Several major characters from the first season simply vanished, with no explanations ever given for their sudden disappearance. Paul Morrow, Koenig's second-in-command and David Kano, the computer expert, were gone. But the biggest loss was that of Barry Morse, who played Dr. Victor Bergman, the base's chief scientist and father figure, and whose brilliance saved Alpha several times in the first season. In the second season these characters were replaced by Tony Verdischi, the hot-tempered Italian Security Chief, and the lovely Catherine Schell as Maya, an alien shape-shifter who joins the crew of Alpha. Although a fine actress, Schell is given little to do except flirt with the male characters and keep changing into lots of monsters (and with the cheaper special effects, her monster costumes are beyond fake). But the greatest difference between the first and second seasons can be seen in the plots. Whereas the first season's episodes were mature, adult-oriented, often creepy and eerie, and even made you think occasionally, in the second season Space 1999 quickly degenerated into just another juvenile, "shoot-'em up" sci-fi series. Character development and the "atmosphere" of the series were sacrificed for lots of gunplay with laser pistols and spaceships, and Commander Koenig was transformed from a brooding, almost grim leader into a macho, almost cartoonish tough guy who could outfight or outfox almost any alien imaginable (the producers were obviously thinking of Captain Kirk). I'm sure there will be a good deal of discussion about the merits of season one versus season two, and it's pretty obvious which side I'm on :). However, even the second season did have its' moments (the episode on this DVD set which introduces Maya is quite good), and it's still nice to see the second season being released after all these years. But, for this fan at least, it's still a shame that the producers didn't stick with the format of season one - in effect they created two completely different series instead of just one. Recommended, but I'd try looking at the season one DVD's as well, just so you can make your own comparison."

Good escapist TV

Mike | Frisco | 03/10/2004

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I've always thought that the start of both seasons of Space 1999 weren't as much fun as the episodes that came after them. Set 5 has some good episodes and some good moments, but sets 6,7, and 8 are much more fun. As the start of season two, this set has both it's share of draw-backs and it's fun moments. I wont waste space reviewing every episode, but I will say that The Metamorph is one of my faves! Catherine Schell is introduced as Maya in this one. New theme music, cast members, costumes, and sets are introduced as well. Dr Bergman is gone, and the main control center has now been moved underground. Maya helps to fill the void left by Bergman, and after episodes like War Games the new location of the control center makes good sense. Smart move Koenig.Space 1999 sets 2,3,4,6,7,8 are my favorites, but 1 and 5 are important to the show and to finish your collection. There are some good epsodes in both so check them out. While you are at it, try the Space 1999 novel The Forsaken by John Muir. It sheds more light on just what happened between the program's two seasons and is an excellent read."

Loads of Fun!

dtbarnde | Rochester.NY | 02/28/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is a MUST HAVE for all Space 1999 fans and collectors. Despite all the critism you hear about the series, especially Season 2. Take a look for yourself and enjoy the episodes of this famous and classic series once again. If you happen to be watching for the first time get ready to be swept away with all the excitement and enthusiasm like a scifi series is intended for. A chance to be transported imaginatively into the episode itself and experience the intensity of the plot as it unfolds to the climax. I recommend this Set, as well as all the others to complete the incredible journey for which you will begin with the very first time you pick it up. Pure entertainment!"