Space 1999 (1 Viewer)

[Kevin EK]

As I've just signed up with Hulu Plus, I can now provide a little more information here to clarify things.

Space 1999 is offered in HD on Hulu Plus and at first glance that would seem to be both seasons.
That is, until you check the box that filters for HD. Once you do that, the second season episodes are blocked and you can only see the first year.
Which leads me to conclude that the second year's episodes are only present in SD, as we had suspected. They didn't upscale them.
Whatever work Network has been doing with the second year in the UK has not made it to anyone else yet that I can ascertain.

 

[Kevin L McCorry]

I have written a letter to Network Distributing asking about the progress of Season 2 for Blu-Ray and declaring my intention to purchase when/if it is released. I think at this juncture, writing a letter (an actual, honest-to-goodness snail mail letter) is the best thing that can be done to bring some kind of positive development on this seemingly interminable saga. Here is Network's mailing address.If you want to contribute to this "campaign" of sorts, just write a short letter expressing your interest in seeing Space: 1999's second season released on Blu-Ray.
Network (Network Distributing Limited)19-20 Blythe RoadBerghem MewsHammersmithLondon, U.K.W14 0HN

 

[Kevin L McCorry]

And please excuse my typos. Can't edit my post, for some reason. The option to edit isn't there anymore.(edit capabilities now on; had to refresh page after a few minutes)

 

[charlesgunn]

I wouldn't waste your time writing to Network . They don't need any kind of campaign for them to release Space 1999 Y2 on Bluray.
They have already remastered The Bringers of Wonder to HD and it was presented at the recent Andercon a couple of months back .
They are well aware that lots of people want Y2 on Blu and the main reason for the delay is that they want to incorporate 5.1 tracks just as they did for Y1 but unlike the Y1 release where some of the audio work had already been done it has to be done from scratch for Y2.
Network were planning to co-produce the HD masters for Y2 with an American company although whether that intention remains is unknown.
Network are not a very large company and they've been diverted this last couple of years to some higher priority subjects.
The Professionals is ongoing and its the first title that Network have done for Bluray from scratch. With season 2 out in a couple of weeks I would suggest that once all 4 seasons are done early next year that 1999 Y2 will be back on course.
At Andercon the main man Tim Beddows was there and he knows that while its not as popular as Y1 that Y2 is a product they are going to produce .
It's not IF its WHEN.

If you're in the US remember that the Network release will be Region B.
As with Y1 its quite likely that once Network announce it that a US release won't be far behind.
In fact the US release of Y1 was actually announced shortly before Network announced the Region B release

 

[Kevin L McCorry]

I think a campaign is needed, precisely because Network doesn't want to prioritize its release schedule in favor of completing Space: 1999 on Blu-Ray. If Season 2 of Space was delayed because of The Professionals, it will be delayed again for something else. A point has to be made that contrary to the refrains of the ubiquitous "Year 1 camp", there is a following for the whole of Space: 1999, and the Blu-Rays will sell. And the only way to make that point is in a flow of letters. And there's no such thing as a given with regards to a Blu-Ray release. We can't say it's only a matter of time. We were told that the Looney Tunes DVDs would continue until 10 volumes were released, and they were cut short at 6. Many TV series have not seen full release.A letter is the most effective way of communicating that we want a release of Season 2 on Blu before we die or the format dies.I'm aware that Network's release will be Region B (or maybe not, as the Season 1 release wasn't locked to Region B) and that Lionsgate will be responsible for a release in North America-- but it's not Lionsgate making the decisions here. It's Network.I've provided the mailing address to Network. If anyone's willing to take the time to write a short letter in aid of the cause (whether it's futile or not), then all power to them. At least we tried. ... For what it's worth, I find the 2002 A&E DVDs increasingly difficult to listen to. The audio on those is so poor.

 

[MBrousseau]

Very well said, Kevin. I like your approach. And unlike many Year 1 supporters think (I have many close friends in this group), we can't be satisfied with the Season 2 DVD reissues from last year.

 

[charlesgunn]

Network have been releasing classic tv on home video here in the UK for well over 20 years - they know their market and the market for The Professionals in HD is much larger than for Y2 of Space 1999 so no campaign is going to make any difference.

Campaigns are useful for alerting distributors to titles they may not think are commercial . Network have already created HD masters for 2 episodes , have stated clearly that Y2 WILL be released on Bluray and explained why there is a delay so there really is no need for a campaign to tell them what they already know.

The Space 1999 Year One Bluray IS ( not / see edit) locked to Region B as are every single one of Networks ITC Bluray titles.
Even the upcoming Supermarionation boxset includes Networks own documentary region free but the ITC episodes will all be locked to B.
The Year One boxset states B on the back of the box so I'm going to double check as none of the other ITC releases were region free.

For the record , I prefer year 2 to Year 1 also. The UK and Australian dvd's are very nice but I agree the US ones from A and E were dreadful

Edit - checked the first couple of discs in 1999 Year 1 and it is indeed NOT locked to Region B.
However , the fact it states B on the slipcase ,box and discs would indicate it may be an oversight specially as other ITC releases like The Prisoner , The Persuaders , Retro Action and the imminent Supermarionation set are locked to B.

I daresay its a contractual obligation from ITV .
In the early days of dvd the early French releases of things like The Champions were contractually obligated to have forced French subs when English audio was chosen.

 

[Kevin L McCorry]

At least in having written to Network, I've satisfied myself that I've done what I could. If there is no Blu-Ray of Season 2, no one can say I didn't try.Used to be, the writing of letters was effective. Certainly in regard to persuading broadcasters to put Space: 1999 back on the air. It worked for me in regards to CBC Maritimes in 1983 and with YTV in 1990. In the case of the latter, it was a letter campaign that I spearheaded that convinced the powers that be at YTV to add Space: 1999 to its British SF line-up. In the case of the former, my one letter (in 1982) may have been all that was sufficient to convince the CBC to proceed with a regional rebroadcast a year later. Every letter I sent to a broadcaster, in regards to Space: 1999 or other programs, got a response, and outside of CHSJ-TV here in New Brunswick which was steadfastly against joining the other CBC Maritimes stations in giving Space: 1999 an '80s rerun, the results were positive. Back then, TV networks and stations were responsive to viewer feedback. Today, sadly, I doubt the same to be true. ...Home video companies were likewise responsive, and sometimes one letter was sufficient to get them to look into the possibility of a release. Today, who knows? But it's worth a try. If Network answers my letter, great. But I don't expect it.As for the audio, the mono tracks on the European DVDs are fine. The ones on the A&E discs are horrible. If there's not going to be a 5.1 track, I would settle for an HD picture with the European audio tracks (minus PAL speed-up, of course).The poor audio on the A&E discs applies to most episodes. Some have faint or muffled music ("The Exiles", "All That Glisters", "Journey to Where", "The Beta Cloud"). Some have muffled dialogue ("One Moment of Humanity", "The Beta Cloud"). Others have background sound effects that are barely audible ("A Matter of Balance", "Devil's Planet"). And others just have a flat sound to their overall mix. The inconsistency is appalling, especially considering that the visual quality of the episodes on those discs is the best available (apart from the main opening, which is twitchy and washed out on just about all episodes). I have the French Cosmos 1999 DVDs and find myself going back to those for decent sounding audio on the English tracks, having to settle for an inferior picture in the trade-off.Season 2 needs a release with best quality audio and video. If Battlestar Galactica (original) and even possibly Buck Rogers get a Blu-Ray release, why can't all of Space: 1999? ... The clock is ticking.

 

[Bryan^H]

Does Network believe in 'Kickstarter' and if not why? they would have their money in a week .

 

[cajunhillbilly]

I am enjoying the first season on Hulu as well as season 1 of It Takes a Thief

 

[Kevin L McCorry]

I'm told that Lionsgate no longer has the North American rights to Space: 1999. That being the case, it's back to finding a North American distributor that might be interested in releasing a box set of the full series, and thereby partner with Network in the remastering of Season 2.I'm wondering if Shout! Factory might be a possibility. I think some old ITC properties (Saturn 3, Capricorn One) have come under the wing of Shout!.The saga continues. And continues. And continues.

FWIW, Network never answered the letter I sent.

 

[Regulus]

I'm glad I got this set when I did (Deep Discount had a bogo sale a few years ago and I snatched This Series and The World At War for $60.00).

A lot of the Gerry Anderson DVD Sets now sell for a pretty penny! Good thing I got em while the gitten was good, because today the gittins not-so-good!)

 

[youworkmen]

Unfortunately all the early US dvd sets of Space 1999 have one thing in common - their appalling quality .
Were the restored versions of Year One as released in the UK by Network on Bluray and dvd ever released to US dvd ?

 

[AndyMcKinney]

Unfortunately all the early US dvd sets of Space 1999 have one thing in common - their appalling quality .
Were the restored versions of Year One as released in the UK by Network on Bluray and dvd ever released to US dvd ?

I almost 100% positive that all US DVD releases use the same set of masters.

I'm also pretty sure the only NTSC DVD release of the remastered Year One was a set from Japan.

 

[Kevin L McCorry]

Shout! Factory looks like an even better candidate for a U.S. distributor as Stingray is expected to come from Shout! Factory in 2015. That is to say a better candidate -- if -- interest in the title on their part can be sparked. If Shout! were to contribute to the audio remastering, the one road block (evidently) to Season 2 Blu-Rays could be overcome.Danger Man (another ITC series) is also in the pipeline from Shout!.
Shout!'s contact page, which I've just used to suggest Space: 1999. I would encourage others to follow suit.https://www.shoutfactory.com/contact

 

[youworkmen]

Shout! Factory looks like an even better candidate for a U.S. distributor as Stingray is expected to come from Shout! Factory in 2015. That is to say a better candidate -- if -- interest in the title on their part can be sparked. If Shout! were to contribute to the audio remastering, the one road block (evidently) to Season 2 Blu-Rays could be overcome.Danger Man (another ITC series) is also in the pipeline from Shout!.
Shout!'s contact page, which I've just used to suggest Space: 1999. I would encourage others to follow suit.https://www.shoutfactory.com/contact

I would think Shout are simply releasing titles where the A and E licence has expired as part of their deal with ITV which has already included ITV owned movies like Raise the Titanic.
If they wanted to get US interest in Anderson material up they should have selected something other than Stingray.

I daresay that Network will complete its restoration of Space 1999 Y2 with or without outside help eventually but hopefully Shout may be in the running to get their own Anderson Bluray premier although there are clearly HD masters for UFO already out there what with Japan and now Germany releasing that so UFO may well appear in the UK or US before 1999 Y2

 

[Kevin L McCorry]

I'm not familiar with the rights surrounding Stingray. ITV or Granada/Network, I'm not sure. But it is a Gerry Anderson series. A&E did release a set, and now Shout! is releasing it. They might have opted to release it given that it does currently have an anniversary. Next year, Space: 1999 has its own anniversary. I mentioned that in my communique with Shout!.This "eventually" business doesn't float my boat, I'm afraid. What does it mean? 2018? 2020? Once everything else in the ITC catalogue is released? ... This year, a friend died of cancer and never got to see a complete Blu-Ray release of Space: 1999. None of us is getting any younger. ... "Eventually" just doesn't cut it.What is so unthinkable about Space: 1999 sitting on our shelves in full on Blu-Ray while we're still alive and in good health? As Star Trek is. As Battlestar Galactica soon will be. And so on. Someone in North America is going to have to come aboard on it, and Shout! seems the likeliest candidate at the present time. It is a pity that personalized replies are out of the question, but there is a contact form, and I would encourage others on HTF who want Space: 1999 fully released, to take a minute or two to send along the request.Below is a history of my viewing of Space: 1999 on CBC Television in Canada. I used the A&E DVDs for Season 2 frame grabs. They do look very nice. I've always thought the Season 2 A&E DVDs have outstanding picture quality. It's the audio that lets the side down. That and the herky-jerky opening sequence.The first season frame grabs are from the 2005 Network DVDs, not the Blu-Rays. I don't have the software for frame-grabbing from Blu-Ray.http://kevinmccorrytv.webs.com/1976-8.htm

 

[youworkmen]

All the Gerry Anderson shows from Supercar to Space 1999 were made by ITC .
The ITC archive is now owned by ITV and has been since around 1997.

A&E obviously had a deal with ITV in the early days of dvd hence the ITV shows being released by them.
Since Shout are now releasing ITC shows in addition to ITV owned movies they would seem to be the ones to hope for of a release for Space 1999.

I too would want a Y2 Space 1999 release yesterday if possible but nothing anyone does will speed up Network.
They know we want it and they're working on it but other things are taking preference .

Space 1999 is not alone in having some of the series released while waiting years for the rest to appear.
"Eventually" may not be good enough for you but it's all there is at the moment

 

[Kevin L McCorry]

Which is precisely why I'm trying the improve on "eventually". If Shout! isn't interested, then fine. But what harm could it do to send them a message expressing interest? Network, too, for that matter.

 

[youworkmen]

Which is precisely why I'm trying the improve on "eventually". If Shout! isn't interested, then fine. But what harm could it do to send them a message expressing interest? Network, too, for that matter.

No harm . You have nothing to lose although I suspect contacting Network would be a waste of time as you won't be able to tell them anything they don't already know.
It is feasible that Shout are unaware of the Space 1999 situation so a word in their ear may be of use if Network still require a partner to speed up the process.

Shout gave up on the BFI initially regarding an uncut Vault of Horror but I believe that a confirmation that the BFI did have an uncut print from a forum member on here got them to get back in touch with the BFI and found what they wanted in a different department so they do listen and they're not infallible so give it a shot