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Remastered Space: 1999 S1 (1 Viewer)

Brian Himes

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I only paid $115.00 at best buy for the entire series box set, so if this is released here in the US, I just might have to consider getting it for the better picture. There was some definate improvement.
 

Kevin L McCorry

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Doubt it. But A & E's Season 2 release is top-notch in terms of picture quality. I doubt much further improvement is possible. Now, audio is another story...

Haven't received my set yet (and not likely to for several days) but am now dreading the fight I'm in for trying to remove the discs from the case without damaging them.

:frowning:
 

Dave Scarpa

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The only place I've ever ordered region 2 dvd's from is sendit.com are there any other good reliable sources to order this from ?
 

AndyMcKinney

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I'd say if sale are through the roof, then Network will undoubtedly release year 2.

Whether or not they pay BBC Resources to remaster year 2 from the original elements, though, I'm sure will depend on sales for year 1. If sales aren't particularly good, they might not release year 2 at all or if they do, they may just use the masters from the Carlton discs or the ones supplied to A&E.

I, for one, hope they let BBC Resources remaster year 2 from scratch. Good as the A&E discs are, I'm sure the BBC team could improve on those. Plus, I'd say there might be more (and better) extras on Network's set.

Let us hope that A&E, or some other North American distributor, picks this up for a R1 NTSC release.
 

Brian Himes

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Ok, I checked out my Space: 1999 Megaset box set last night and it says that the episodes were remastered from the original 35mm prints. So, I'm a little confused. If they used 16mm prints for the current discs that are out there, then why would they say they used 35mm prints? I did watch a few episodes last night and there coudl be some imporvement in both picture and sound. I found that the sound was very low on these discs.
 

Rob Foss

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This set is a dream come true for fans of Space:1999. Having spent most of the aftenoon going through it I can honestly say the picture quality of the HD remastered episodes is absolutely stunning. I've never seen Space:1999 look anywhere near as good as this before. Indeed I've never seen any TV series of this era look this good before. The nearest comparison is I guess UFO, which was of course restored by some of the same people who worked on this title.

If like me you've seen the previous 1999 DVD's you'll likely be as fascinated as I was not just at how much more detail is visible from shot to shot but also how much more you get to see at the edges of the frame as well. The transfers here are almost spotless - indeed, the 'starring Martin Landau' title which features the actor against a white backgound has always been plagued by noticeable dirt and grime. Well, no more. Now Landau does his turn to camera against a pristine and utterly spotless white backdrop.

Space:1999 always made great use of colour and here it's presented in almost hallucinatory clarity. You think I'm joking? Just try watching 'Guardian of Piri'! Another remarkable aspect of the restoration is how much more detail is visible in the starscapes. The previous DVD versions were very dark with horibly crushed blacks but these new versions reveal all sorts of unexpected detail and subtle colours in the meticulously designed space shots. It's just a total pleasure to watch.

Also, equal praise for the 5.1 mix. This is, miracle of miracles, a genuine remix of the seperate, original 35mm music, effects and dialogue tracks. It's not a mono mix smeared over five channels or a mono mix overlaid with instantly noticeable (and frankly crap) modern sound effects to ceate fake sound effect. Nope, it's the real thing with some excellent steering effects as Eagles whizz by. And just wait until you hear the title music. You won't believe your ears at how good it sounds. It's amazing.

Of the extras that I've seen the 'This Episode' feature is an excellent look at the making of certain episodes nd features a lot of thoughtful commentary from writers Johny Byrne and Chris Penfold as well as anecdotes from Anderson, editor David Lane and the charming Zienia Merton (there's also some GREAT and very rare behind the scenes photos on display). Of the other extras several minutes worth of unused special effects footage was a particular highlight for this viewer - especially an alternate take of the nuclear waste exploding, some quite breathtaking starscapes and a remarkable shot of the Moon appearing from behind Saturn on its way out of our solar system! I haven't watched the other extras or read the two colour booklets which come with the set so I can't comment on them but as I said at the start if you're a fan of the show you owe it to yourself to get this set. It's a class act from start to finish.
 

Dave Scarpa

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But I guess the chance of this coming stateside is zero. And while I have a region free player the quality of the player and most region free playes probably will make the added quality moot. I'd love to see a US release of the season box at a reasonable price, like $50 or below
 

Ethan Riley

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I don't see why the show has no chance in the U.S. It's popular here, too. And also, the original dvds seem to be harder to find nowadays. I did see one of the boxed sets recently, but just one. I passed on them at the time, because I wanted complete season releases.

I'm very excited, though! Hope to see it here. Also, I recall in the 70s thinking that "UFO" always looked a lot better, picture-wise, when it was originally aired in syndication than 1999. Did my local station air 16mm prints or something? In the 70s? I don't recall 1999 EVER looking that good, really. Just another reason to pine away for this release, in the States.
 

RickER

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Why would the chances be zero for a US release? If nothing else a canadian release would be a possibility.
 

Kevin L McCorry

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I'm druelling uncontrollably as I type this. Just wish my set would hurry up and get here! Could be at least another week as yet.

How problematical are the disc case spindles? Sure hope they don't damage the discs...

I never thought I'd still be buying this series in 2005. Just pray they finally got it right this time.

Highly unlikely that this will be released in North America (Canada or the U.S.); if it is, it won't be for at least a few years when A & E's rights run out.
 

Jay Pennington

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Well, kinda apples/oranges as that was a videotaped show and 1999 was filmed.

I think I'm gonna have to find an importer for this...
 

Jay Pennington

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The A&E sets, for whatever reason, used 16mm prints, probably derived from dupe 16mm negs made back in the day as part of the distribution pipeline.

The show was produced on 35mm and fortunately this new set used those elements instead.
 

RickER

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UFO doesn't look like a video tape show. All in the Family was shot on video. The HORRIBLE Starlost was shot on video. UFO doesn't have that "live news" video look of the time. UFO used blue screens, and not the croma key process. I could be wrong, but film and video have their own look, and i just dont see the video look on UFO.
 

Zack Gibbs

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UFO was shot on 35mm film. It's possible the US broadcasts were just taken from the PAL tape masters from the UK. This can create a video like effect for many people.
 

Rob Foss

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Well, kinda apples/oranges as that was a videotaped show and 1999 was filmed.

Nope, Zack is correct when he states that UFO was shot on 35mm.

The A&E sets, for whatever reason, used 16mm prints, probably derived from dupe 16mm negs made back in the day as part of the distribution pipeline.

Sorry, but you're mistaken. The picture elements A&E were supplied with were all 35mm although I believe I'm right in saying that some of the (crackly, hissy) audio elements were almost certainly 16mm.

Incidentally there's a comprehensive article about the HD restoration of Space:1999 in one of the booklets that comes with the new set. It goes into some detail regarding the technical aspects (including the 24fps vs 25fps debate) and makes for an interesting read. The same booklet also contains an excellent in-depth series overview.
 

mylan

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Someone refresh my memory as I was way young, but did UFO have the aliens and the black ink in the facemask stuff? This used to give me nightmares.
 

Kevin L McCorry

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I have this baby now. Came this morning. Watched "Dragon's Domain" and the extra features disc. The colors and the clarity and uncropped coverage of images around the frame are exquisite! The 5.1 audio track takes some getting used to, but it's awesome. You can hear Helena Russell tapping typewriter keys at start of episode.

The extra features segments consist of two re-edited extracts from Fanderson's Space: 1999 Documentary and the piece de resistance, a newly produced These Episodes feature covering in detail the making of, the ideas, and the response to "Breakaway", "Black Sun", "The Last Sunset", "The Full Circle", "War Games", "The Troubled Spirit", "Space Brain", "Mission of the Darians", "Dragon's Domain", and "Testament of Arkadia". It clocks in at well over an hour.

All of the extra features use unrestored episodes for their footage (including the orange-tinted old Dragon's Domain" transfer). The Clapperboard and Landau/Bain U.S. intros are of poor quality. And the bonus SFX image of the Moon passing Saturn appears to be from Saturn 3. But these are minor niggles. This is the real thing, folks. I can't wait to watch the rest of the episodes!

The booklets that come with the set are very professional and comprehensive in themselves. I don't care for the packaging and have put the discs in blank Alpha keepcases (perhaps custom covers can be made for each of the discs), but it's so very edifying to now be able to view Season 1 with picture quality without peer anywhere.

:emoji_thumbsup: :emoji_thumbsup:
 

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