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Lots of stuff is still broken, but at least reviews can now be looked up and read.
The Champions-Complete Series (1968)

The Champions-Complete Series (1968)

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Released 7-Oct-2009

Cover Art

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Details At A Glance

General Extras
Category Science Fiction Alternative Version-Feature Film - The Legend of The Champions
Main Menu Audio
Audio Commentary-3
Alternative Version-Alternate version of The Begining
Featurette-We Were The Champions
Featurette-Artistes Tests
Gallery-Photo-2
Trailer-Multiple + other promotional material
Alternative Version-Title Sequence
DVD-ROM Extras
Rating Rated PG
Year Of Production 1968
Running Time 1462:45 (Case: 1535)
RSDL / Flipper Dual Layered
Multi Disc Set (9)
Cast & Crew
Start Up Menu
Region Coding 4 Directed By Cyril Frankel
Paul Dickson
John Gilling
Robert Asher
Studio
Distributor
ITV Global
Beyond Home Entertainment
Starring Stuart Damon
William Gaunt
Alexandra Bastedo
Anthony Nicholls
Case Slip Case
RPI $54.95 Music Edwin Astley


Video Audio
Pan & Scan/Full Frame None English Dolby Digital 2.0 mono (192Kb/s)
English Audio Commentary Dolby Digital 2.0 (192Kb/s)
Widescreen Aspect Ratio 1.29:1
16x9 Enhancement No
Video Format 576i (PAL)
Original Aspect Ratio 1.29:1 Miscellaneous
Jacket Pictures No
Subtitles None Smoking Yes
Annoying Product Placement No
Action In or After Credits No

NOTE: The Profanity Filter is ON. Turn it off here.

Plot Synopsis

    In the late 1960s some incredibly innovative television was coming out of England including shows like The Prisoner and  Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased)  many of which include elements of science fiction combined with more 'normal' worlds such as private investigation or secret agents. These shows were the logical extension of other English television from the preceding years like Danger Man, The Saint, The Baron and even The Thunderbirds. Anyway, the latest of series from this era to get a DVD release here in Region 4 is The Champions, a series made sometime in 1967 and then shown in the UK for the first time in 1968. It's showing seems to have been delayed due to some changes being made to the coverage areas of the various networks in the UK at the time.

    In all 30 episodes of the series were made (all in one season) and they are all included here across 9 discs. Information available on the internet seems to indicate that the episodes were shown in a different order to the order on this set. The local distributor, Beyond, informs me that the running order on these discs is the original production order rather than the order they were shown on television. This series has been repeated many times, all around the world and has a strong cult following. An excellent Champions fan site can be found at this link. One of the writers is Brian Clemens, famous later for The Professionals.

    The basic premise here involves three agents of an international 'good guy' agency, Nemesis, based in Geneva. They are action man, Craig Sterling (American actor Stuart Damon), brainy and resourceful Richard Barrett (William Gaunt) and beautiful doctor Sharon Macready (Alexandra Bastedo). The other regular character is their obligatory boss, Tremayne (Anthony Nicholls) In the first episode they are sent on a mission to China to steal some bugs which the Chinese are using to create biological weapons. After successfully completing their mission, their plane is damaged while they are escaping causing it to crash in the Himalayas. They are all badly injured but are rescued and treated by a tribe of natives led by a mysterious old swami. They treat their wounds but also give them super powers including extra sensitive hearing and vision, telepathy and great strength both physical and mental. They are sworn to secrecy by the swami which sometimes makes it difficult for them to explain to Tremayne how mission are achieved. Each episode is then a different mission in different exotic parts of the world (all shot in a studio in England with stock footage added). There are certainly some interesting and innovative episodes included. One which struck me as interesting is called A Case of Lemmings which involves people who seemingly start committing suicide spontaneously. Richard refers to these as 'The Happening' which may mean that M. Night Shymalan has seen this series some time in the past or maybe it is just a bizarre coincidence.

    There are lots of reasons why someone might love this series but also some why they might not love it. To summarise my views here are the top 6 reasons to love The Champions, and the top six why you might not. It is a show which will appeal to some people but not others.

Top 6 Reasons to love The Champions

  1. Nostalgia - If you remember this show fondly from your younger days, this set is certainly worth buying

  2. Interesting Episode Ideas - The ideas behind many of the episodes are top notch

  3. Witty Banter between the two lead male characters in many episodes

  4. Cool theme music

  5. Unintentionally funny scenes due to the low budget special effects

  6. The super powers are used sparingly rather than being the focus which aids in making the series feel real

Top 6 reasons why some might not love The Champions

  1. Some wooden acting from Stuart Damon and many minor cast members

  2. Very Dodgy Special Effects (by modern standards certainly)

  3. Male Chauvanism - Sharon gets to scream in fear and do what she's told quite a bit

  4. Hasn't aged as well as some series from the era

  5. Might not be quite as good as your memory tells you it was

  6. Some episodes are very well and tightly written, others such as Operation Deep-Freeze seem to drag on interminably.

    Fans of this show in particular should definitely grab this set (which is the same as a UK set released a couple of years ago by Network) and fans of this period of television are certainly advised to consider it.

Don't wish to see plot synopses in the future? Change your configuration.

Transfer Quality

Video

    The video quality is surprisingly good for a show of this age.

    The feature is presented in a 1.29:1 aspect ratio which is the original aspect ratio. It is not 16x9 enhanced.

    The picture was quite clear and sharp throughout for its age. Shadow detail was decent but never great. There were some minor MPEG compression artefacts here and there especially during motion and some mild grain especially in stock footage.

    The colour was well rendered and vibrant with no issues to report.

    Other artefacts include some mild aliasing such as on car grilles and some minor telecine wobble especially noticeable during the credits.

    There are no subtitles which is a shame.

    The layer changes occur mostly between episodes.
    

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

Audio

    The audio quality is very good for a show of this age.

    This DVD contains an English Dolby Digital 2.0 mono soundtrack encoded at 192 Kb/s.

    Dialogue was reasonably clear and easy to understand throughout, although a bit soft at times.

    The music consists of a score by Edwin Astley plus a really cool theme by Tony Hatch. The music and theme add greatly to the feel of the show.

    The surround speakers and subwoofer were not used.

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

Extras

     An excellent selection of high quality extras is included.

Menu

    The menu is still but includes the theme tune. There are play all or episode selection options on each disc. Episode specific extras are sometimes available after selecting the episode in question.

Disc 1

Commentary - The Beginning - Alexandra Bastedo, Stuart Damon & William Gaunt 

    This commentary on the first episode is certainly worth your time and will be fascinating for fans of the series as it recombines the three main cast members nearly forty years after making the series for a commentary. They are relaxed and enjoy each others company, telling many interesting anecdotes and making jokes at each other's expense. They also discuss the other cast and crew, locations used (mostly in England) and the low budget nature of the production.

Variant Version of The Beginning

    Using seamless branching this feature splices in a different opening to the first episode which gives more exposition before getting into the action in China. Very worthy extra. It has about 5 minutes of different footage to the broadcast version.

Disc 8

Commentary - Autokill - Alexandra Bastedo, Stuart Damon & William Gaunt 

    Another worthwhile commentary from the original cast this time on the final episode.

Commentary - Autokill - Production Manager, Malcolm Christopher, Assistant Director Ken Baker and Director of the episode, Roy Ward Baker 

    This commentary is also worthwhile but a bit dryer than the cast one. These guys discuss the production including technical info, sets and various anecdotes.

Documentary - We Were The Champions (37:04)

    Interesting information is presented here but this is more of a collection of interview material that a documentary. It mostly focuses on the cast getting back together recently who sit together and discuss the show after a lengthy introduction involving people driving to a recording studio. Interviews with various crew members such as Brian Clemens are also included as is test footage of the cast auditioning for their roles. Worth watching but not spectacular. 1.78:1 16x9 enhanced.

Artistes Tests (2:47)

    More complete footage of the cast auditioning for their roles.

Image Gallery with exclusive Edwin Astley music suite (27:34)

    A very large gallery of images mostly behind the scenes and publicity rather than the usual stills from the show itself. Certainly if interest to fans but perhaps goes on for too long.

Disc 9

The Legend of the Champions (81:55)

    As with many series of the era, two episodes were recut to make a feature film this time in 1983. The episodes used were the first one The Beginning and The Interrogation. Although this is certainly welcome from a completeness perspective the video quality is much better in the series so you are best off watching the episodes rather than this.

Episodic Trailer Gallery (17:28)

    Individual trailers for 18 of the 30 episodes which feature a choice of either UK or US voiceover (although one is missing the US version).

Generic Trailers & Channel 9 Promos (Total 4:56)

    Four trailers for the whole series and four specific promo pieces for the US launch are included here. They can be accessed separately.

Variant Title Sequence (1:05)

    Title sequence with different music.

Original Commercial Break Bumpers (0:13)

    Two bumpers for TV.

Merchandise Gallery (10:53)

    A collection of promotional items for the show including text info and images of activity books, novels, comics and collectors cards. The highlight for me was an LP cover by Stuart 'Champion' Damon.

DVD-ROM - Joe 90 Annual

    14 pages from a Joe 90 annual which feature The Champions in both articles and comics.

 

R4 vs R1

NOTE: To view non-R4 releases, your equipment needs to be multi-zone compatible and usually also NTSC compatible.

    This release is exactly the same as the Network Region 2 release. There does not seem to be a Region 1 release of the whole series.

Summary

    A classic UK late 60s TV series which is a combination of spies and science fiction.

    The video quality is surprisingly good.

    The audio quality is good.

    Wonderful collection of extras.

Ratings (out of 5)

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall

© Daniel Bruce (Do you need a bio break?)
Monday, November 16, 2009
Review Equipment
DVDSony DVP-NS708H upscaling to 1080p, using HDMI output
DisplayLG Scarlet 42LG61YD 106cm Full HD LCD. Calibrated with Ultimate DVD Platinum. This display device is 16x9 capable. This display device has a maximum native resolution of 1080p.
Audio DecoderBuilt in to amplifier/receiver. Calibrated with Ultimate DVD Platinum.
AmplificationPioneer VSX-511
SpeakersMonitor Audio Bronze 2 (Front), Bronze Centre & Bronze FX (Rears) + Sony SAW2500M Subwoofer

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