Review of Space 1999: Series 2 Vol. 1

Introduction

Space:1999 was Gerry Anderson`s last classic adventure series for Lew Grade`s ITC, the international production arm of the Midlands ATV network. This disk contains the first four episodes of the second season produced 1976-77.

Taking the date of Nostradamus` prediction of the end of the world - 13th September 1999 - the series was set on Moonbase Alpha, a well-established moon city on the edge of the crater Tycho. On the far side of the moon, nuclear waste dumps had been established and a series of chain reactions in these dumps would blast the Moon out of Earth orbit on that fateful date. The survivors of the disaster, led by Commander John Koenig, would embark on a series of adventures as unwilling passengers of our wandering satellite.

The series was created as a follow-up to Anderson`s dark, cult-classic UFO where the aliens were going to blast the Moon out of Earth orbit and send it spinning off into space. During the development of the project, it was decided it should stand alone from the original show, and the aliens were dumped in favour of a man-made disaster.

Twenty-four episodes of the first series were shot at Pinewood Studios on a six-and-a-half million dollar budget, making Space 1999 the most expensive tv series ever mounted in the UK at that time. The series starred husband and wife team Martin Landau and Barbara Bain in their first major work since leaving Mission:Impossible. Trivia fans may be interested that their daughter Juliet went to school in the UK while her parents were making Space 1999, an experience which helped her hone the accent she sported as Drusilla in the Buffy The Vampire Slayer series.

"Year Two" as the second series was proclaimed in publicity materials, was a lighter, less sombre affair than the first season. Another twenty-four episodes, the production side was headed by writer Fred Freiberger, the man often credited with getting another sci-fi series cancelled (a little thing called Star Trek). The style of second season episodes is more character-driven than situation-driven, and the feel of the episodes is distinctly more American than British. A number of characters were written out of the series, most notably Professor Bergman (Barry Morse), Commander Koenig`s confidante and advisor, and Paul Morrow (Prentis Hancock), Koenig`s deputy. These characters were replaced by a new second-in-command Tony Verdeschi (Tony Anholt from Anderson`s short lived "Protectors" series) and - the real gem of the second season - resident alienne Maya (former Bond Girl Catherine Schell). Maya, introduced in the first episode of Year Two, has the handy talent of being a shape-changer, although Gerry Anderson had second thoughts about her ability to change into animals like lions when he met one with its handler in tow while coming out of his office.

If you are a Gerry Anderson Fan, the series is classic Thunderbirds-style fare using live actors instead of puppets. If not, the series is a pretty fair sci-fi potboiler from the 1970`s - a little too po-faced for its own good and with pretty ricketty special effects. It has a charm of its own, although at the time it was vilified by Trekkies.

Video

It is an unfortunate historical fact that a great deal of archive television programmes have suffered neglect over the years. While television libraries have done their best to preserve the best of British television, resources have been stretched and some series have fared better than others. Space 1999 has fared better than shows of a similar vintage. Digitally remastered, care has been taken to reduce evidence of wear and tear. Colours are excellent, if a little milky occasionally (due rather to preferences of lighting cameraman Frank Watts than technical problems).

Film stock from the 1970`s tends to suffer from more visible grain as Eastman and the other makers of film stock were endeavouring to make more sensitive film negative that could be used under lighting conditions that were less than ideal. Having said that, the quality of these transfers is surprisingly high in comparison with other tv shows currently available on DVD.

Audio

The soundtracks are a flat, slightly tinny mono that is pretty typical of the era. Sound effects particularly are very harsh on the ear. If you`re expecting Barry Gray`s thunderous score on these episodes, sorry to disappoint but ITC in New York wanted something more upbeat for Year Two and hired Derek Wadsworth to do something different. The scale of the music is a lot smaller and more electronic, which unfortunately also serves to date the series more than the seventies hairstyles.

Features

There is a "Year Two" trailer based on the episodes on this disk, but it looks more like a promo trailer for the DVD (or VHS) collection than an original EPK-style promotional item. There is also a stills gallery and a "Deleted Scenes" section, although the latter of these consists of script excerpts and a few on-set photos rather than genuine cutting-room-floor fodder. The extras menu is difficult to navigate, as the four options are accessed by highlighting coloured sections of a map-graphic of the moonbase. Unfortunately the highlighting does not seem to match the selection. Hopefully this will be corrected in the production disk.

Conclusion

Guest Stars in the four episodes are sometimes eyeopeners. In "The Metamorph", Brian Blessed turns in a startlingly mild performance as Mentor. It was three years before his first totally bananas turn as King Vultan in Flash Gordon (1980). "The Exiles" features a pre-Blue-Peter Peter Duncan in a leotard (he was also in Flash Gordon as one of Prince Barin`s Merry Men). Billie Whitelaw and Twiggy`s hubby Leigh Lawson turn up in "One Moment Of Humanity" and last but by no mean etc. Patrick Mower turns in a desparately bogus Irish accent in "All That Glisters", an uninspired ripoff of Star Trek`s "Devil In The Dark".

All in all a complete load of tosh, but for tosh-lovers a feast of kitsch sci-fi. If only it had a sense of humour! Space 1999 will never have the cool cachet of UFO, or the dedicated fan base and continual reinvention of Thunderbirds. It had more money spent on it than Dr Who and Blake`s Seven put together, but it lacked heart.

I remember the show fondly - I was just the right age to fall hopelessly for Catherine Schell as Maya (or Joanna Lumley as The New Avengers` Purdey, but that`s another story) on the original airing. These first four episodes of the run were undoubtedly the best and alongside the first disk of Year One are the definitive choice for a souvenir of one of the last series produced in the Golden Age of television. One word of caution - avoid the later episodes "Brian The Brain" with a sick-making vocal performance by Bernard Cribbins, and an episode inspired by producer Fred Freiberger because he liked the exotic sound of the planet name he`d chosen - "The Rules Of Luton".