KOOL TV REVIEW: 'DOCTOR WHO - THE GREATEST SHOW IN THE GALAXY' DVD

Big Top Time Lord! The Seventh DOCTOR WHO (Sylvester McCoy) is in danger, in THE GREATEST SHOW IN THE GALAXY- now on DVD. Images: BBC.

DOCTOR WHO: THE GREATEST SHOW IN THE GALAXY

Starring Sylvester McCoy as the Doctor, and Sophie Aldred as Ace.

Written by Stephen Wyatt

Directed by Alan Wareing

Available on DVD from BBC  CONSUMER PRODUCTS

Reviewed by Scott Weller

Despite the colour and fun showcased under the big tent from which they project their talent to regular delighted audiences, I’ve always been very wary of circuses in general, finding them somewhat sinister, especially the varied clowns and their ability for unpredictable behavior plus their overall physical appearances: ingredients in my mind that have always been ripe for dark re-imagining within the worlds of inventive sci-fi ad horror, so it was nice to see DOCTOR WHO incorporate some of those personal primeval concerns of mine within the final story of the shows landmark Twenty-fifth season, now starring Sylvester McCoy as the paisley tied, question mark overkill jumpered Doctor, ably assisted by the loveable nitro-nine wielding, in yer face heroics of Ace, the series version of a St. Trinians girl made good, as played with explosive charm and unbridled enthusiasm by Sophie Aldred.

And, as usual, it’s always the Doctor’s curiosity that gets the better of him-perhaps deliberately so this time- as he becomes enthused by the mysteries and Avant-garde qualities of the long running Psychic Circus and its legendary talent contest stationed on the desert dune world of Segonax. Pushed into the trip, Ace isn’t so enthused, however, and her weariness around the clowns follows the same path as mine once distant screaming can be heard from the approaching big top. Soon all the fun of carnivale is lost, and it isn’t long before the duo, mixing with a wide variety of unusual characters in the process, find themselves in a deadly nightmare cabaret-a life and death struggle against an eons old enemy, who want their victims to entertain them to the very last atoms of their disintegrated existences!

Trailer: Doctor Who - The Greatest Show in the Galaxy - Coming Soon Trailer (COPYRIGHT BBC AND 2 ENTERTAIN) - YouTube

Dicing with death: the Seventh Doctor outside the Psychic Circus.

Continuing the shows pen chance and strength for taking the reasonably safe and familiar and turning it upside down into dark fantasy, Stephen Wyatt, in his second and so far final script for WHO builds on his intriguing work for the previous seasons quirky high rise dangers of killer robot cleaners and cannibalistic elderly residents at PARADISE TOWERS. He’s no Robert Holmes, granted, but Wyatt continues that writers fine trend for introducing varied and colourful characters to his stories, and mixing humour and horror within big central ideas, egged on in his scenario storytelling by his fellow mischievous partner in crime, potential anarchist-in-waiting Script Editor, Andrew Cartmel. The history of the space-hippy like Circus members and some of their characterizations are a little bit sketchy but the overall concept of the circus is better handled than I thought it would be for its time, which was a relief after the bumbling antics of the mix and match quality of Season Twenty-four. It may ultimately have worked better as a leaner, meaner three-parter, but the overall story for GREATEST just about stretches to its on-screen four-part duration.

Then newcomer director to the series, Alan Wareing, does a better job of grasping the delicate balancing act and fusion of Wyatt’s story within the WHOniverse and its realization than PARADISE TOWERS, alongside some great location filming which would have looked even better if made on film. There’s an all round creepy and prevailing atmosphere, particularly in the first two episodes, that’s well established. Wareing is also fortunate to have a fine and subtly menacing incidental music score from another newcomer, Mark Ayres.

Danger at The Greatest Show in the Galaxy.

And there’s certainly some classic and surreal moments for the director to have gothic fun with: the funeral hearse riding the deserts in search of its prey, the wrecked hippie tour bus of the no longer innocent Psychic Circus troop, the murder of the Romeo and Juliet-esque Flowerchild (Dee Sadler), followed by the suicide of her on the brink of madness and self destruction boyfriend, Bellboy (Christopher Guard), and bringing out the worst in the aforementioned circus and its nightmare servants- I’m surprised it all hadn’t been done before in WHO’s long past.

Despite some irritating gurney expressions here and there and the annoying rolling of his r’s, Seventh Doctor Sylvester McCoy now feels more assured in his role as the quirky Doctor, whose early traits of dark manipulation gain firmer foundation here, alongside an also more confident Sophie Aldred as Ace, in this second filmed story of the former’s second year. (Though ultimately held over in transmission as the final tale of the season due to the BBC’s Winter Olympics coverage. It would be thankfully saved from almost cancellation-due to an asbestos scare at the Corporation’s Television Centre base- by having a lot of its circus interior footage filmed within a giant tent erected at the Elstree Studio’s legendary car park-a brilliant piece of inventiveness from then producer John Nathan Turner and story designer David Laskey.)

Smile or die! Ian Reddington as the Chief Clown.

Of the fine guest casts that form such a part of Eighties WHO, later EASTENDERS star Ian Reddington is the prime standout of this story as the Clown Prince of Thugs to the eventual shape changing, stone statued power machinations that are the Gods of Ragnarok, and proves to be one of the series most distinctive and memorable baddies, aided by his equally colourful robot partners in pursuit of our heroes. (Super costume and make-up design of a fine standard throughout by Rosalind Ebbutt (who had prior fun with the previous Peter Davison historical BLACK ORCHID), and Denise Baron).

T.P. McKenna as Captain Cook and Jessica Martin as Mags.

There’s also Chris Jury, best known as LOVEJOY’s young aide, playing Deadbeat: the brain zapped simpleton with the final clue to defeating the baddies: Deadbeat, Irish character actor T.P. McKenna entirely convincing as the ultra boring and greedy space explorer Captain Cook, who is well partnered on the acting front with Jessica Martin, then known primarily for her comedy and impressionistic talents, who gets a chance to shine as his “companion,” Mags. (The pair almost the antithesis of the Doctor/Ace duo, in fact). With her big hair, jagged skirt flaps and fishnets Mags looks like she’s walked off the set of BLADE RUNNER or another type of steam punk sci-fi. Both Martin and her character may have made a very interesting companion to the Doctor, had there not been an Ace around, what with her unique lycanthropic talents.

Alongside the creepy clowns, there’s some fun cameos from the likes of Daniel Peacock as Nord, an intergalactic Hells Angel of the galaxy and “vandal of the road!”, Peggy Mount as a roadside fruit and veg seller with a hatred of off-world “weirdoes”, and ADRIAN MOLE star Gian Sammarco’s character of Whizzkid, presumably created at the time by the series production team as a deliberate insult to young and picky WHOvians watching the series at the time, who proves exceedingly annoying as the Psychic Circus’s critical super-fan. (With friends like him who needs enemies?) There’s also ALIENS star Rico Ross as a fine rapping ringmaster to the life and death proceedings.

No place for laughter. The Captain and The Doctor surrounded by foes.

As events build, and the curtains of death rise and fall, additional plot elements linked to the final revelations of the true evil force behind the circus emerge, whilst the Doctor finds a possible ally becoming an enemy with a very fixed survival of the fittest mentality. The story’s cliffhangers to the developing drama are competent enough, but episode three, leading into this particular plot strand, is the standout, revealing Mag’s shocking secret to the Doctor in a sequence that remains effectively done and very memorable.

Beyond big bangs, the special effects for this story are generally very good, too, mixing model and electronics work favourably. The only weak point, probably included to boost the monster quota, and in the process being an intriguing historical relic, is the Psychic Circus bus conductor robot, brought to life in WHO like a killer toy-a demented creation determined to slay anyone without a valid ticket. An interesting idea that isn’t quite as well pulled off as it could have been…

Simon Cowell's role models: the Gods of Ragnarok!

As the show reaches its end game, Sylvester McCoy gets to show us some of his other talents linked to playing the Doctor, notably using magic tricks to entertain his God-like Ragnarok foes (their creation based on the ancient Viking legends/Norse mythology of doom and disaster at the end of the old world), operating from within their other worldly Rome pillared style stadium of death. It’s here that things get a little too comedic for my tastes, but the explosive finale, with McCoy almost unblinkingly walking away from a massive big finish explosion, is a genuine corker moment of CLASSIC WHO- so impressive, in fact, you could see how it could very nearly have killed him if he had mistimed it. Such a quality moment ends the story on just the right high note.

On the extras side of things, there’s a great Making ofdocumentary-titled The Show Must Go On- from DVD range producer Chris Chapman (which talks to Aldred, Reddington, Cartmel, Wareing and Laskey, and goes into detail about how the production team only just saved the story from cancellation), backed up with an interesting commentary that also includes Mark Ayres, Jessica Martin and Stephen Wyatt, some nice to see if not truly noteworthy deleted scenes, a look at the story’s unused opening scene, a short scene/vocal suite for the story that’s of mixed results, and a look back at the audition piece music Mark Ayres did for the story REMEMBRANCE OF THE DALEKS (which landed him his first TV work on GREATEST.) Plus, a bitingly funny Victoria Wood TV spoof sketch on WHO, starring Jim Broadbent, which is also slightly painful to watch, a look back to the Seventh Doctor’s controversial era in the world of the printed media, as revealed in TOMORROW’S TIMES (hosted by Anneke Wills), a dramatic Coming Soon trailer for the next Black and White adventure of William Hartnell's Doctor, PLANET OF THE GIANTS (in what will be a very special new release), plus the usual informative info text, PDFs and photo gallery.

Onto their next adventure: The Doctor and Ace (Sophie Aldred).

It may have been considered too way out and boundary breaking for it’s own good with certain critics of the time, but THE GREATEST SHOW IN THE GALAXY has the kind of early template characteristics that would be rich pickings if used now in today’s modern series interpretation, probably becoming a better conceived and more audience sophisticated, appreciated product in the process. Nonetheless, what’s on display here as part of the Classic Era of Eighties WHO remains highly commendable and very entertaining in it’s own right, part of a time in the shows history when it was regaining its storytelling confidence and carving out a bold new identity, whilst also retaining solid ratings up against ITV’s formidable mega rival super-soap CORONATION STREET- no mean feat there. It’s a fine release for the DOCTOR WHO range that also brings Sylvester McCoy’s completed era on DVD to a memorable and respectable close.

KOOL TV OVERALL RATING (story and bonus features): 4 out of 5

Get hold of the story here: Doctor Who - The Greatest Show in the Galaxy DVD 1988: Amazon.co.uk: Sylvester McCoy: Film & TV

FLAIRS AND FIREPOWER! IT'S TIME FOR SOME 'BLACK DYNAMITE'

Suckas beware! Seventies hero BLACK DYNAMITE and his team are back. Images: ADULT SWIM.

The US ADULT SWIM channel continues its quirky and eclectic comedy mix with more fine animation in the form of the new spin-off series of BLACK DYNAMITE, based on the low budget, highly popular cult 2009 spoof/homage of early to mid-seventies blaxploitation action/dramas like SHAFT, CLEOPATRA JONES and SUPER FLY, starring Michael Jai White as the eponymous supercool big afro, big gun, big everything toting hero, full of attitude and kick-ass Vietnam training-truly putting the kung in Kung Fu!- out to take on the drug cartels that killed his younger brother, with the help of his Black Power activist girlfriend, Gloria (Salli Richardson).

He's your brother but he's not your brother! Black Dynamite is on the case!

Honeybee: his trusty Nunchaku throwing lady at his side!

Spawning a further successful graphic novel, BLACK DYNAMITE: SLAVE ISLAND, and talk of a new live-action sequel film later in the year, the animated series, written by Carl Jones, Brian Ash and Scott Fuselier, from the design team behind another cult series THE BOONDOCKS (starring SOUTHLAND's Regina King), debuted States-side last month and got fine critical notices for its blend of seventies art design, manga and very adult humour. Seeing in the vocal return of Jai White as our hero, the opening episode saw Black Dynamite and his "crew" having to fight an alien incarnation of Michael Jackson! Further tales within his own unique alternate time-frame universe see him keeping an eye on a drug riddled Richard Pryor, once more taking on "Tricky Dicky" President Nixon, delving into the seventies porn industry and a tribute to the Deep Throat phenomenon, and more ballistic action in Vietnam. Plus, there's a trip to the Moon! Watch out Lunar Ladies, this guy is going further and faster than any man has gone before!

Terrific seventies homage poster for the series.

Trailer: Black Dynamite Animated Series Trailer - YouTube

Can ya dig it?

FAMILIES OF BLOOD! 'HATFIELDS & McCOYS'

Family feuds! Kevin Costner and Bill Paxton ignite the screen in HATFIELDS & McCOYS. Images: THE HISTORY CHANNEL.

Making a welcome return to the genre he has loved so much and brought to the screen in classic starring and directed westerns like the phenomenally successful and enduring, Academy Award winning DANCES WITH WOLVES, as well as lavish biopic WYATT EARP and the subtly tragic and romantic OPEN RANGE, iconic star and film-maker Kevin Costner brings his range and diversity to the small screen as the grizzled lead of the acclaimed States-side epic six hour mini-series HATFIELDS & McCOYS, building on the fresh, if dark, spirit and gritty atmosphere that has come further to the fore recently by the likes of DEADWOOD (of which its producer Ted Mann contributes on this projects writing pool) and HELL ON WHEELS. Alongside Costner for the ride back into the frontier realms, and residing comfortably in the directorial saddle, is his long time friend and buddy Kevin Reynolds. (The pair having worked successfully, if stormily, together on past hits ROBIN HOOD: PRINCE OF THIEVES and the controversial but under-rated sci-fi adventure/pirate movie WATERWORLD.)

Packing vengeance: Kevin Costner as "Devil" Anse Hatfield.

Blood begets blood. Bill Paxton as Randall McCoy.

Clutching his pipe and shotgun, Costner, now well and truly into the great and true experience of character acting, brings an older but certainly not wiser, meaner quality to his performance as "Devil' Anse Hatfield, caught in a years-spanning, revenge fuelled blood feud with American Civil War enemy and rival Randall McCoy (APOLLO 13 and TITANIC's Bill Paxton) during the fallout from a tense conflict initiated during the American Civil War. Soon both sides families are intrinsically and inescapably linked to their inner and outer conflicts in this epic and multi-layered story of tragedy, violence and hatred spanning 19th century West Virginia, within a period of history already burdened under the weight of so much hardship and crimson coloured wheat fields.

And you thought your family was bad? Trailer: Hatfields and McCoys Theatrical Trailer - History Channel - http://film-book.com - YouTube

Where would a good TV western be without Powers Boothe, eh?

Sarah Parish as Levicy Hatfield. 

Trouble at the town gathering? Andrew Howard as "Bad" Frank Philips. 

Hatfield and friends riding into more violence.

With a super supporting cast including UK star Sarah Parish (having caught American casting eyes with her evil and manipulative role in THE PILLARS OF THE EARTH), Mare Winningham, Tom Berenger (back in the public eye after his appearance in Christopher Nolan's INCEPTION) and DEADWOOD's Powers Booth, HATFIELDS & McCOYS, originally made by the HISTORY CHANNEL in the US, based on a true story, this 3 part audience record breaker looks set to be an epic of fine but also highly brutal drama, evocative atmosphere and compelling acting to savour when it arrives on British shores on CHANNEL 5 next month. Hatred has never been so interesting...

PLACE OF THE ANGELS! 'SOUTHLAND' SEASON FOUR

Imperfect, but compelling, heroes for an imperfect world: the cast of SOUTHLAND. Images: TNT.

Possibly airing in the UK this October-time, TNT's continued renewal of the raw and fantastic cop drama SOUTHLAND for a fourth series of ten episodes saw the show build on and improve against some of the noticeable behind the scenes changes initiated on it by the new network during it's prior, budget cut year-its reduced supporting cast sparingly but effectively used proving to be the most standout element- but regardless of such complications it easily retained its reputation as one of the best shows on the box by an Olympic stretch...

A new Angel on the block: Lucy Liu joins the series...

Heading for disaster? Ben Sherman (Benjamin McKenzie) is teamed up with Sammy Bryant (Shawn Hatosy).

On a creative winning streak Ann Biederman's bold drama carved a third season that once more became addictive television as we watched things get even more tumultuous and difficult for our band of brothers struggling and putting their lives on the line to keep law, order and some semblance of sanity and safety to the streets of Los Angeles, despite their own complex problems, anxieties and inner demons. Detective Lydia Adams, nicely played by Regina King,  was accused, then cleared, by her superiors of selling images of a dead celebrity to the tabloids, of which her altercations with her superiors almost cost her her job and career, whilst Detective Sammy Bryant (Shawn Hatosy) lost his best friend and partner, Nate (Kevin Alejandro), in a shocking and savage moment of violence from a Mexican drug street gang conflict. Big bear cop John Cooper (Michael Cudlitz), despite pain and bitter verbal conflict with his street partner Ben Sherman (Benjamin McKenzie), also had to find the courage to win his final battle in overcoming the thirst for taking painkiller drugs and face the possible life-changing effects of delicate but necessary back surgery.

Series favourite, Detective Lydia Adams (Regina King) gets a new partner, Detective Ruben Robinson (Dorian Missick)...

...and wades in against a suspect in the episode Underwater.

Sadly, neither Biderman or producer John Wells have written any of the episodes this year, but eagerly expectant viewers on our little island can anticipate seeing the continuance of several of the aforementioned and important plot threads in Season Four, as John gets to lock horns and duty ideals with a new partner, Jessica Tang (as played by film star Lucy Liu, soon to be seen as a female Dr. Watson against Jonny Lee Miller's Sherlock Holmes in the controversial modern day US re-imagining of the super sleuth: ELEMENTARY), whilst former rookie Ben, in the aftermath of his bust up with Cooper, teams with now cop on the beat Sammy for their patrols, and learns a few things about survival and instinctive police training when the latter ultimately refuses to let the past- the death of his ex-partner- lie...

More news on the series UK fourth seasons debut, and the recent, well-deserved US fifth season renewal, soon...

Check out the official FACEBOOK page for the series: Southland

DANGEROUS GAMES! 'SCANDAL' AT 1600

Olivia Pope (Kerry Washington, centre) and her team (including THE WEST WING's Joshua Malina, far left) are an altogether different kind of Presidential Protection Team in the new drama series SCANDAL. Images: ABC TV.

Described in some circles as "the anti WEST WING", Shonda Rhimes, executive producer of the soapy States-side hit medical show GREY'S ANATOMY, brings us SCANDAL, creates a new and apparently gritty drama series for ABC TV that's hopefully far removed from the previous soapy hospital environs of emotional and physical trauma that, whilst still popular, has seemingly passed its genre sell by date. Seemingly re-vitalising the small screen realisation of modern-day political and relationships intrigue set within the upper echelons of power that is the Oval Office, SCANDAL is, by its nature and description, exactly what the series is about, through the eyes and work of a powerful and influential damage control liaison and political fixer, Olivia Pope (played by the lovely actress Kerry Washington, best known for her film work in the likes of recent hits THE LAST KING OF SCOTLAND, and the two fun MARVEL comic blockbusters about THE FANTASTIC FOUR and the upcoming Quentin Tarantino western epic DJANGO UNCHAINED), apparently based on a real-life member of the George Bush administration, who's smart and savvy enough to know what's right and wrong for the people of America through their POTUS (that's the President, for all of us not in the know with all the behind the scenes lingo!). Having been a former communications director to President Fitzgerald Grant (Tony Goldwyn), Pope and her well chosen and accomplished team of heavy-hitters (described as "Gladiators in suits'!) know how to make the most of, avoid or limit the daily problems and/or complex challenges facing and surrounding their boss and paymaster in his actions as the most powerful and recognised leader of the Western World, knowing when and where best to play to his greatest of strengths and personal charisma in the position. The very fact that she knows him beyond the job and her earlier political position-that she was and may soon continue to be his secret mistress- also puts her in a candid and unique position and perspective in which to influence his life and career, in ways that Martin Sheen never had with Allison Janney!

Tony Goldwyn as President Fitzgerald Grant.

Washington has the ability to be tough and tender in her new series role, capable of locking horns and verbal interplay with the President's most powerful players inside and out of the Oval Office (including Jeff Perry as the powerful bull-in-a-china shop figure of White House Chief of Staff, Cyrus Beene) and looks set to continue the trend for strong female lead roles in prime time series, what with the recent success of Julianna Margulies in THE GOOD WIFE, Anna Torv in FRINGE, and Maria Bello in the controversial US remake of the hit UK police drama PRIME SUSPECT.

Trailer: Scandal New ABC Series Official Trailer (Premier 2011 Fall) - YouTube

The Season One key art for SCANDAL. 

I'd hardly put the aforementioned GREY'S ANATOMY in my definition of KOOL TV, but from this new series trailer, its solid cast (including Guillermo Diaz as Olivia's top investigator, Huck, LOST's Henry Ian Cusick and THE WEST WING's Rob Lowe replacement, Joshua Malina), guest stars like MILLENNIUM's Megan Gallagher and Kate Burton (playing the Vice President), backed up with overall interesting plot synopsis for year one- and a second season on the way- which show a mystery/political thriller emphasis to them in certain developing areas, SCANDAL could be sufficiently intriguing enough for me to sample it when it eventually arrives in Blighty...

THE NEXT WAVE: 'WAR OF THE WORLDS' SEASON TWO ON UK DVD

In their hands? WAR OF THE WORLDS Season Two arrives on UK DVD. Images: CBS DVD/REVELATION FILMS.

"I think this is going to be the start of a beautiful friendship..."

Famous last words spoken by Dr. Harrison Blackwood, scientist and alien fighter, played by Jared Martin, at the end of the first audience successful season of the hit PARAMOUNT TV series of the late eighties: WAR OF THE WORLDS, a re-imagining/continuance of the classic novel of 1898 charting the invasion of Earth by a fleet of Martians in their unstoppable war machines, written by that literary genius H. G. Wells. Their first major battle won against an en masse hidden enemy (having removed themselves from their radiation soaked Mojave desert base and the continued planning of terrorist-style atrocities against Humanity), thanks to the help of another alien, and an enemy of the Martian (Mor-Tax) invaders, the killing machine synthetic android female Q'Tara (Elaine Giftos), Harrison and this Project Blackwood team unfortunately failed to recognise an even greater enemy on the horizon ready to hamper, then ruin, their continued plans to strike back against the invaders: namely their own creators at PARAMOUNT TELEVISION!

Hiring a new producer to oversee the new second season of WAR, the company, thinking the show needed some tinkering to entice further new audiences, hired Frank Mancuso, Jr. as the new series producer, on the strength of his success for the company with another of their weekly series then in syndication/production: the horror/anthology FRIDAY THE 13TH: THE SERIES. Wanting to inject new blood and make a mark, as all incoming producers like to do, Mancuso made the big mistake of completely and unnecessarily revamping the shows format in its entirety, abandoning any continuity, removing some of its now familiar motifs, and basically hurting the show just when the series had built up a strong format, was hitting its creative stride and was liked by audiences. Gone would be the series original aliens, the Mor-Tax, wiped out and replaced by a new race: the more humanoid and emotionally complex Morthren. Gone was the scientific/military resistance force that was the Blackwood Project, its base of operations blown to smithereens at the end of the new series opening episode, with its small but dedicated team scattered across an America now at the point of meltdown, its resources starved and its society/people desperate to survive in a kind of post-apocalyptic nightmare environment now ripe for out of this world takeover. But worst of all for the series fans was the killing off of two of the shows main characters: the wheelchair bound electronic genius Norton Drake, played with enthusiasm by Phil Akin, and, even worse, the shows most popular character, the alien butt-kicking Lt. Colonel Paul Ironhorse, as played with conservative military determination, but also humanity, by Richard Chaves. Though given a strong and memorable exit, Chaves forced exit from the series was ultimately Mancuso's biggest mistake, replacing him with a less interesting character/actor, British born Adrian Paul, later to become internationally known as the star of the HIGHLANDER TV series, as new action hero/lead character, and an ex-member of Ironhorse's Delta Squad now turned mercenary, John Kincaid. In honour of his fallen former commander, Kincaid soon aides our remaining heroes (Martin as Blackwood, Lynda Mason Green as Suzanne McCullough and Rachel Blanchard as her daughter, Debi) as they now go on the run across America and try to devise a way of surviving the new fate that has befallen them all...

New Morthren aliens Mana (Catherine Disher) and Malzor (Denis Forest) watch our heroes: Harrison Blackwood (Jared Martin), John Kincaid (Adrian Paul), Suzanne McCullough (Lynda Mason Green) and Debi (Rachel Blanchard).

Title sequence: War of the worlds season 2 opening - YouTube

Premiering in 1989 , the new syndicated series of WAR, despite much publicity and hype of the time regarding its new look, would split the audience fan base right down the middle. Many people out there liked the second season and its new format- now completely removed from what had been seen before- as well as it's better overall production values. But there were many that didn't-particularly the die-hards that loved the first season and its potent and enjoyable mix of horror/sci-fi and action, the story's re-imagining, and the way it also tried to maintain continuity with both Wells novel and the classic George Pal 1953 movie. Plus there were those many fans and general audience members mourning the loss of Colonel Ironhorse...

Lt. Colonel Paul Ironhorse (Richard Chaves) is gone but not forgotten by the series viewers.

Now, with the passage of time, viewers old and new can make their own mind up on this controversial season of 20 episodes, as Season Two of WAR OF THE WORLDS finally gets a well-deserved five disc set UK DVD release-after years in limbo- from CBS DVD/REVELATION FILMS later this month (August 27th), and transferred in the best available picture and sound quality possible- a positive upgrade from its recent repeat run on the UK's HORROR CHANNEL.

Here's a KOOL TV look at some of Year Two's more notable episodes...

The Mor-Tax are defeated in the controversial opening episode The Second Wave.

THE SECOND WAVE (SEASON OPENER)


Earth is on the brink of ecological and society collapse, and the heroes of the Blackwood Project come under attack from a new group of arriving alien invaders, the Morthren. Quickly wiping out the remaining Mor-Tax and their advocacy leaders, the new kids on the extraterrestrial block capture Colonel Ironhorse and send a duplicate to eliminate his compatriots. But they haven't reckoned on the emergence of mercenary John Kincaid (Adrian Paul), or the dying Ironhorse's last vestiges of courage and humanity in fighting back... 


A sold, well-made, if often gloomy, series opener, with strong production values and a generally well paced structure. But it's a huge format transition for just one episode! Things happen too quickly, and the loss of Ironhorse, whose duplicate kills the also missed Norton Drake (Phil Akin), is a real blow for the series. 


NO DIRECTION HOME 


Their cottage destroyed, our on the road heroes try to reorganise themselves and find a new base of operations as the turmoil around them continues to intensify. The aliens, too, solidify their new plans for Earth and it's population.


BREEDING GROUND 


Trying to find some desperately needed medication, Harrison discovers a hospital where the aliens plan to use Humans as incubators for their brood.

Laura Press plays Harrison's alien love in Seft of Emun.

SEFT OF EMUN


Harrison falls in love. Unfortunately, it's with one of the aliens! Can their blossoming friendship help bring peace and love between Human and Morthren?


NIGHT MOVES 


Country matters for Suzanne as she goes all alien-fighter having to defend her mothers farmstead from Morthren aggressors. Think the usual THE A-TEAM episode, but with monsters!


SYNTHETIC LOVE 


Love is not the drug, as the aliens create a new pharmaceutical to try and control the Human condition and it's violent ways. There may be trouble ahead...

Harrison and Kincaid prepare for battle.

THE DEFECTOR


There's always one, as Harrison and the gang find out when a friendly Morthren tries to help them stop a takeover of the Earth's remaining computer systems.


THE DEADLIEST DISEASE 


The common cold remains incurable to Mankind, and it's a pain! So, it's Sod's Law that, when the aliens get infected with something far worse, only the Human government actually has the cure!


MAX


Kincaid discovers that his dead brother is now alive, well and full of beans. But have the aliens brought him back to life for a new and deadly purpose? 

The end in sight for our heroes?

THE OBELISK (SERIES FINALE)


In the series reasonably satisfying, if slightly head-spinning finale, which also pretty much changes all of the previously established continuity of both series of WAR OF THE WORLDS, more is discovered about the Morthren and their secrets linked to the original 1953 invasion of Earth. Meanwhile, its a last stand for our heroes to stop the aliens from releasing a deadly plague of alien spores.

Season One of WAR OF THE WORLDS is also available on DVD from CBS/REVELATION FILMS.

KOOL TV REVIEW: 'TOTAL RECALL' TRIPLE PLAY SPECIAL EDITION

True hero of Mars! Arnold Schwarzenegger in 1990's TOTAL RECALL. Images: STUDIO CANAL

TOTAL RECALL

Starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sharon Stone, Rachel Ticotin and Michael Ironside

Screenplay by Ronald Shushett, Dan O’Bannon and Gary Goldman

Directed by Paul Verhoeven

Now available in Triple Play Blu-ray, DVD and Digital Copy from STUDIO CANAL

Reviewed by Scott Weller

I remember the shock and awe of seeing Paul Verhoeven’s mind and vision overload sci-fi adventure TOTAL RECALL for the first time - a sneak preview press screening at London’s then prestigious and incredible ODEON Marble Arch cinemas (then the biggest movie screen in Europe circa Summer 1990) - alongside an equally mind blown and surprised, seat packed audience. Shock at the incredible crowd-pleasing, on-screen balance of mayhem, action, all-round destruction and gore being skillfully presented, and awe at the imagination, visual skill, and unabashed but highly successful self-casting of chiseled Austrian/American icon Arnold Schwarzenegger in the lead role of hero/anti-hero/hero Doug Quaid, the muscled presence truly making the most of his film vehicle and actually bringing strong audience friendly conviction and actual subtle character development/nuance to the demanding role. TOTAL RECALL has aged well since that original debut, and no other people besides Verhoeven and Arnie could have pulled it off so successfully- in the wrong hands this film could have been a disaster. A hyper combination of JAMES BOND meets BLADE RUNNER, meets Hitchcock, it’s one of those rare films that, despite a long behind the scenes gestation, remains as vitally exciting and ground-breaking as ever, and one of the best of its genre, too: a joyous and bloody winner from start to finish.

Man with a past. Arnie in action as Doug Quaid.

At it’s heart is a clever sci-fi concept based on the classic work and genius of the ultimate mind fuck futurist author Philip K. Dick, the man who realized early on in his LSD addicted life that androids do indeed dream of electric sheep. This film, cleverly inspired from his short story, “We Can Remember It For You Wholesale,” by seventies ALIEN scribe veterans Ron Shusett and Dan O’Bannon, with additional and highly important script input from Jon Povill and later Gary Goldman, concerns Doug Quaid, seemingly just your normal guy, with a good job and a beautiful wife at his side, but mentally plagued with dreams of another life on Mars. Hoping to make sense of his inner demons and his personal frustration of these vivid encounters on the red planet that feel all too tangibly real to be make believe, Doug, against the advice of worried friends and loved ones, visits the REKALL entertainment factory, possessing the vital technology needed to make his dreams really come true as he decides to have his very own personal adventure on Mars.

Unfortunately, it’s an experience that soon becomes all too real and sends him and his world upside down, as friends become deadly enemies and no one is ultimately ever what they seem. For Quaid, now known as the Martian based spy Hauser, Total Recall has seemingly been initiated, within a shocking set of occurrences sending him into a nightmare world, and a greater mystery, that can only be solved with his journeying to Mars for real...

Trailer: Total Recall [1990] - Trailer - YouTube

Confidently handling the reins as both the films lead star and its ultimate behind the scenes champion in getting the once aborted movie made as a worthy commercial enterprise, Schwarzenegger as Quaid brings to the game a resilience, charisma and dedication that previously attached star names associated to the project like Richard Dreyfuss, Christopher Reeve, and Patrick Swayze, failed to grasp, whilst Verhoeven, in his second US sci-fi related film (his first, the equally classic ROBOCOP), brings the kind of counterbalancing mercurial qualities of sophistication, sly humour and violence together in a way that would most likely have eluded the then likes of the once late-eighties project touted David Cronenberg. Verhoeven’s teaming with Schwarzenegger makes for a great dream combo, with the director getting a fine performance from his star-probably his best-away from the stone faced emotionless killing machine of the earlier THE TERMINATOR. It’s a shame that their planned third film-a period action drama set during The Crusades- was never to materialize due to budget problems.

The lovely ladies giving Arnie some Total Recall.  Rachel Ticotin as Melina...

...and a very seductive Sharon Stone as Lori.

Adding supporting beauty, mystery and danger to Arnie’s complex life are Rachel Ticotin as Melina, the hooker with a heart resistance fighter on Mars and the stunning Sharon Stone, the ultimate action sex siren baddie here as the deadly double-life agent, and wife to Doug, Lori; her character once seemingly playful and loving, quickly turning into a rigorous knife wielding psycho killer. Stone looks absolutely beautiful in this film. I still drool every time I see her in this first major role that got her away from the crap B movies and TV films of her past, and before she boldly opened her legs wider than wide for Michael Douglas, and made film history, in Verhoeven’s next film: the equally outrageous Hitchcock-ian style noir modern thriller BASIC INSTINCT. Lori’s eventual demise in the ultimate bitch fight fest against Melina proves genuinely exciting, with Arnold delivering one of the all-time great payoff lines at the end!

Ronny Cox gives Arnie a hard time as Cohagen...

Whilst Michael Ironside blasts away at everything as Richter!

No longer the friendly police chief of BEVERLY HILLS COP, Ronny Cox and V’s always compelling Michael Ironside are supremely cast as the films primary and diabolical baddies, industrial tyrant Cohagen and snarly Richter, happily chewing up the scenery and, in the best BOND baddies tradition, never playing things fair. Oh, and word of warning to all animal lovers, do not, DO NOT, put Cohagen anywhere near goldfish!

Life on Mars! Humans and Mutants gather in Venusville.

As the hunt for Quaid intensifies, the film’s all-important Martian environment plays host to its key second act, showing us the environmental and industrial hardships of the planet and its Terbinium mines, with its rich and poor divide ever widening as its dying civilization’s large resistance force remain in constant battle against the tyranny of its rulers and its goon squad army. The scenario of which Doug arrives is well realized through the stunning architecture of the Mexico location filming and on the country’s efficient soundstages boasting impressive quasi-future sets designed by William Sandell, with additional input from STAR WARS and ALIEN’s Ron Cobb. There’s also some accomplished model work backing it all from the then Dreamquest effects company and its subsidiaries, as the films multi-layered plot developments and occasional red-herrings add to the blockbuster mix and also weaves in such extra delights like mutants, mysterious alien civilizations and a pyramid mine, before its spectacular and explosively satisfying finale.

Arnie blows his "cover" arriving on Mars.

Heightened by the films gritty cinematographer, Jost Vacano, TOTAL RECALL’s legendary action set pieces, many co-ordinated by British stunt icon Vic Armstrong, remain as vividly violent as ever, aided by a post THE THING’s Rob Bottin’s crazy but brilliant mask and make-up work. Who’ll ever forget Arnie emerging from the “big lady” disguise, the Martian people with their mutated faces or the eye popping visages of Doug and Melina as they emerge onto the Red Planet’s surface without protective masks.

Adding a vital layer of excitement and adrenaline to the film is a superb, pulse pounding score from the late Jerry Goldsmith, working well with London’s National Philharmonic Orchestra, in his career prime: its rhythms almost in tone with Arnold’s machine gun pumping, muscle flexing action as more enemy baddies and double agents fall to his heroic deeds.

Doug fights the dream machine!

Ending the film with a twist as it eventually fades to white, Verhoeven gives us all one last important question to ponder: was it all a reality for our hero Quaid? Or was he still in the REKALL chair, playing out the agent programme fantasy to his lobotomized end?

Quaid’s ultimate destiny and fate may be in doubt within out minds, but one thing certainly isn’t, and that’s the fact that TOTAL RECALL is as compulsively enjoyable as ever twenty-two years on: intelligent, possessing a well structured and satisfying storyline, full of twists and turns, memorable characters, and laced with the aforementioned bloodiest and most violent of action sequences which still retain the ouch factor and an accompanying black comedy factor at the same time. It’s reputation as one of the best sci-fi/action hybrid genre movies ever made remains cemented.

Is life a dream for Doug and Lori?

As if this enduring film wasn’t value for money enough in its new crisp picture and sound transfer, the accompanying special features material are also equally worthy of the ULTIMATE REKALL EDITION moniker, including two detailed classic Making ofdocumentaries, alongside a brand new and insightful interview with the exuberant and knowledgeable Paul Verhoeven, and a further new look at RECALL’s effects and designs. Plus restoration comparisons, a photo gallery and an original 90’s release trailer.

“Get your arse to Mars,” Doug tells himself during one of the films key moments. And so must you. Get your arse down to the nearest shop or online store to get hold of your copy of TOTAL RECALL. You won’t regret a minute of it!

Quaid goes airborne in a classic scene.

KOOL TV RATING (movie and extras): 5 out of 5 

Get hold of TOTAL RECALL here: Total Recall - Triple Play DVD + Blu-ray + Digital Copy 1990: Amazon.co.uk: Film & TV