BUCK ROGERS IN THE 25TH CENTURY THE COMPLETE SERIES: SPACE HEROICS

 

 

In August of 1928 in the magazine “Amazing Stories” author Phillip Nolan created a fictional character that lasted in numerous media sources. It featured his novella “Armageddon 2419 AD”. The following year a comic strip featured the character. In 1932 a film serial starring Buster Crabbe appeared. That same year he had his own radio program. Then in 1950 the character made his way to television. But that didn’t take off nearly as well as it did in 1979. The character was Buck Rogers and the series BUCK ROGERS IN THE 25^TH CENTURY was a hit with fans.

With the success of STAR WARS everything science fiction was being made. In 1978 ABC aired BATTLESTAR GALACTICA and NBC needed its own space series to compete. Producer Glen Larson came up with Buck Rogers and they were off and running. Before airing the show they did something different. They released the pilot film to theaters where it did reasonably well. That same pilot kicked off the series on TV.

The series opened with NASA pilot Captain William "Buck" Rogers (Gil Gerard) blasting off into space in 1987. Passing through some mysterious gasses he’s put into a state of suspended animation. When he wakes he finds himself 504 years in the future, the 25^th century. While frozen the Earth had one final war and the survivors united as one global group. Now the Earth Defense Directorate protects the planet from any dangers that might rise.

One such dangers is the planet Draconia and their space army. It was this group that found Rogers and at the behest of Princess Ardala (Pamela Hensley) Roger’s life was spared. They were concerned that he was a spy and intended to use him as an attempt to attack Earth. Better yet they plant a tracker on his ship to help discover a weakness in the Earth’s defenses.

But those on Earth are not as trusting as they hope they would be, especially Starfighter pilot Colonel Wilma Deering (Erin Gray). She tells Dr. Elias Huer (Tim O’Connor), head of Earth Defense Directorate, that Rogers is not to be given free rein. Of course she will eventually fall for the hero as the series progresses. Of course Rogers saves the day in the pilot and from there he joins the Directorate and helps save the planet as best he can while adjusting to the time slip.

Aiding Rogers throughout the series is perhaps the most memorable character to fans of the series. This was a small cute robot named Twiki played by Felix Silla and voiced by Mel Blanc, famous for voicing Bugs Bunny among others. Around Twiki’s neck is Dr. Theopolis (voiced by Eric Server), a sentient computer that helps Buck as he adjust to the new world around him.

The series was popular enough but only lasted for two seasons. What happened? There was an actor’s strike in 1980 and when the series returned it took on a different storyline. Ratings dropped and eventually the series ended. But for those who loved the character, the actors portraying them and who had fond childhood memories of the show they clamored for it to be released on disc. It happened but only the series and not the pilot appeared and never on blu-ray. Until now.

Kino Lorber has done a wonderful job of releasing the complete series AND the pilot film together in a boxed set with plenty of extras on hand. Fans of the series should be overjoyed with this set. That pilot along with all 32 episodes are here to be enjoyed once more. The extras include new audio commentaries for 11 selected episodes by film/TV historian Patrick Jankiewicz the author of BUCK ROGERS IN THE 25^TH CENTURY: A TV COMPANION, a new audio commentary by film historians Steve Mitchell and Nathanial Thompson, a new interview with co-star Erin Gray, a new interview with actor Thom Christopher who played Hawk in the second season, a 9 minute special theatrical preview, the theatrical trailer and two radio spots for the theatrical feature.

For some the series will seem quaint now compared to movies and series being produced today. But it captures what was popular at the time. Young people had more innocence then with less awareness of the world around them. The series sparked the imagination, something young people today seem to have less of with the myriad of games and online items available to them. Perhaps they might get a kick out of watching this series. And those who were kids when it aired will certainly love seeing it once more, especially in this Kino Lorber version. They’ve taken the time and effort to clean it up and make it look spectacular. Kudos to them for doing so. So pick up a copy and enjoy it once more.

Click here to order.