Buck Rogers in the 25th Century-Season 2 (1979)

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General		Extras
Category	Science Fiction	Main Menu Audio & Animation
Rating
Year Of Production	1979
Running Time	604:00
RSDL / Flipper	Dual Layered Dual Disc Set	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Language Select Then Menu
Region Coding	4	Directed By	Jack Arnold Bob Bender Michael Caffey Barry Crane
Studio Distributor	Universal Pictures Home Video	Starring	Gil Gerard Erin Gray Felix Silla Mel Blanc
Case	?
RPI	$64.95	Music	Les Baxter Bruce Broughton John Cacavas

    Buck Rogers in the 25th Century is possibly the most kitsch and fondly remembered television science fiction series of the 1980s. The character of Buck Rogers first appeared in a newspaper comic strip in 1929. It followed the exploits of ex-Air Force pilot Buck Rogers, who was rendered unconscious and frozen in suspended animation only to reawaken five hundred years later. In 1939, the comic made its way to the the silver screen as a Saturday-morning serial starring Buster Crabbe. Forty years later the Glen A. Larson television series updated the concept and turned it into a glossily-packaged, special-effects laden, tongue-in-cheek weekly adventure. The show proved very popular with audiences during its first season, and subsequently returned for a second. Unfortunately there was a radical change in format: Buck and his cohorts were now assigned to the spaceship Searcher, on a mission to find Earth’s lost colonies (very similar in concept to Larson's other space opera series ‘Battlestar Galactica’). The show's production levels dropped and the concept degenerated into farce, as stories became silly and the acting overly cheesy. After only eleven episodes, the show was cancelled. The following eleven episodes are found on the season 2 dvd set:

    "Time of the Hawk"

    Buck, Wilma and Twiki are assigned duty aboard the Searcher, a long distance space probe. Under the command of Admiral Asimov, the ship sets out to find various groups of humans that left Earth before the holocaust. Buck's first adventure aboard the Searcher begins when they find a nearly-destroyed spaceship, whose last living crew member reveals that a bird-like man named Hawk attacked and destroyed their ship. In retaliation for the destruction of his tribe by humans, the bird-man has vowed to destroy any and all humans he comes across. Buck tracks Hawk down to the planet Throm, when he captures Koori, Hawk's mate. Koori sends out a message to Hawk, who arrives to battle Buck to the death.

     "Journey to Oasis"

    Hawk joins the crew of the Searcher to find lost colonies from Earth, just as his own people had left Earth centuries ago for a new home elsewhere in space. Dr. Goodfellow directs a group consisting of Buck, Hawk, and Wilma, to escort a visiting ambassador to a peace conference. However, the shuttle Buck is piloting crashes with Duvoe aboard, possibly bringing about an interplanetary war if he does not reach the conference in time. Relations between the men are strained as Duvoe competes with Buck for Wilma's affections (the ambassador had been romantically involved with her in the past). While Buck tries to keep the group alive and reach the conference on time, the Searcher comes under attack by the ambassador's ship, whose crew wants to know what has happened to their leader.

    "The Guardians"

    A dying old man gives Buck a strange glowing box while they are on the planet Janovus XXVI. Hawk and Buck return the container to the Searcher, where it begins to cause hallucinations among the crew. While an alien causes chaos aboard the ship, it takes over control and heads the Searcher at top speed toward an unknown destination. Buck and the crew must overcome their delusions and stop the ship before they are lost forever.

    "Mark of the Saurian"

    The Saurians, a monsterous-looking group of aliens, have landed aboard the Searcher under the guise of friendship. Using a device to make them appear human, they plan to infiltrate the ship to cause a galactic war. However, Buck, who has just overcome a flu-like virus, sees the aliens for what they are. He tries to convince the crew that monsters are aboard, but to no avail. His friends believe him to be mentally unbalanced from the sickness. The Saurians fear that Buck will expose them and decide to kill the pilot before others become suspicious.

     "The Golden Man"

    The Searcher finds an escape capsule in a field of asteroids, and rescues a golden-colored boy from it. Shortly after, the Searcher is struck by an asteroid, and Asimov is saved when the boy uses telepathic powers to alter the molecular structure of a metal beam that fell on the admiral. The boy Velis says that he cannot repair the disabled ship in the same way as he is too young to have sufficient power. But an adult friend imprisoned on a nearby planet can help if Buck and Hawk can free him.

    "The Crystals"

    Buck, Wilma and Hawk leave for a planet to search for crystals needed to power the Searcher. After landing they find a young girl inhabiting the planet, and also a strange mummy-like creature that continually attacks the search party. The super-computer Crichton believes that the amnesia-stricken girl will, in time, mutate into a mummy creature herself, as it is the natural evolution of her species.

     "The Satyr"

    While searching another planet, Buck and Twiki locate the remaining survivors of a colonization attempt. Most of the colony members had left years earlier because of an unknown plague. Two of the survivors, a young widow named Syra and her son Delph, stayed behind to run their farm. While there, they are continually attacked by a horned creature named Pangor, yet Syra refuses Buck's invitation to leave, which Buck cannot understand. Before he can convince them to abandon the planet, Buck is stricken by the plague, which begins to transform him into a creature known as a "Satyr".

     Shgoratchx!

    Buck and Hawk are ordered to explore an old derelict spaceship, where they find a hold full of solar bombs and a crew of seven dwarfs. The crew are transferred to the Searcher, and it is decided to take the derelict to a safe location to detonate the bombs before they can explode on their own. Buck turns the seven uniformed men over to Wilma, who has her hands full when she discovers the little aliens have never seen a woman before.

    "The Hand of Goral"

    Buck, Hawk and Wilma travel to an unusual world known as "The Planet of Death" and encounter many strange happenings. They first find a wrecked space ship with its pilot, whom Wilma returns to the Searcher. While she is gone, Buck and Hawk explore an abandoned village where they both momentarily disappear. As if this isn't enough, they return to the mother ship only to find the personalities of the crew have drastically changed.

    "Testimony of a Traitor"

    It appears that Buck may have been at least partly responsible for the nuclear holocaust that nearly destroyed the Earth. A recently-found video tape from the 20th century provides enough evidence for Commissioner Bergstrom to start a war crime trial against Buck, who will be put to death if found guilty. In order to prove his innocence, Buck once again is placed under the mind probe, where his memories only seem to further indicate his guilt.

    "The Dorian Secret"

    On a space station is a group of survivors from a planetary disaster who are being transported to a new home. Also on board are Hawk and Buck who rescue a young woman being attacked by Dorian males. After returning to the Searcher, the ship is attacked by a Dorian vessel whose commander demands that an escaping Dorian female be turned over to them immediately. The girl, wanted for the murder of a Dorian leader's son, is the one Buck brought on board the Searcher. Buck believes the Dorians are making a mistake, but the passengers, under the pressure of constant Dorian attacks against the Searcher, finally take matters into their own hands and turn over both Buck and the girl to the Dorian warlord.

Video

    Buck Rogers In The 25th Century is presented in an aspect ratio of 1:33:1, as it was originally broadcast, and is not 16x9 enhanced.

    The transfer presented here is fairly poor. Although the image is relatively sharp there is a consistent edge enhancement found on most episodes. There are occasional aliasing issues as well, but not many. Shadow details are fine with strong black levels. The transfers are in good need of a cleanup. There are nicks, scratches and dirt in abundance and it does become distracting at times.

    Colours are natural, and display the outrageous 25th century fashions to great effect.

Video Ratings Summary

Sharpness
Shadow Detail
Colour
Grain/Pixelization
Film-To-Video Artefacts
Film Artefacts
Overall

Audio

    Series One has been given a solitary track in Dolby Digital 2.0 surround.

    The show's dialogue is clear with no audio sync problems apparent.

    The show's music is appallingly dated, but adds to the nostalgia factor.

    Surround channel usage is sparse to say the least. Ambient noise and 70's disco music are the only effects to be found on the rear channels.

    The subwoofer's contribution is very limited, but adds the requisite bass when needed.

Audio Ratings Summary

Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

Main Menu Audio & Animation

    In other words zero extras.

    The only difference between the R1 and R4 is the two seasons were released seperately in Australia, otherwise the package is identical.

    Buck Rogers is the very definition of cult classic. Sure, by modern standars the show is pretty lame, but then again when did quality ever get in the way of nostalgia. Unfortunately the poor transfer and lack of extras let the entire package down. It is simply a slap in the face to Rogers fans everywhere.

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall