Masters of Science Fiction Collection on DVD
© Anchor Bay Home Entertainment
Mania Grade: C-
DVD: Masters of Science Fiction
Rating: Unrated
Starring: Sam Waterston, Judy Davis, Anne Heche, Malcolm McDowell, Clifton Collins Jr., Terry O'Quinn, Elisabeth Röhm, John Hurt, Sean Astin, James Denton, Brian Dennehy, James Cromwell and Professor Stephen Hawking
Written By: Robert Sheckley, Howard Fast, Robert Heinlein, Harlan Ellison, John Kessel, Sam Egan
Directed By: Mark Rydell, Michael Petroni, Michael Tolkin, Jonathan Frakes, Darnell Martin, Harold Becker
Distributor: Anchor Bay Home Entertainment
Original Year of Release: TV (2007), DVD (2008)
Extras: N/A
Buy it now!
DVD: Masters of Science Fiction
Rating: Unrated
Starring: Sam Waterston, Judy Davis, Anne Heche, Malcolm McDowell, Clifton Collins Jr., Terry O'Quinn, Elisabeth Röhm, John Hurt, Sean Astin, James Denton, Brian Dennehy, James Cromwell and Professor Stephen Hawking
Written By: Robert Sheckley, Howard Fast, Robert Heinlein, Harlan Ellison, John Kessel, Sam Egan
Directed By: Mark Rydell, Michael Petroni, Michael Tolkin, Jonathan Frakes, Darnell Martin, Harold Becker
Distributor: Anchor Bay Home Entertainment
Original Year of Release: TV (2007), DVD (2008)
Extras: N/A
Buy it now!
DVD Review of Masters of Science Fiction Collection
By: Robert T. TrateReview Date: Friday, August 29, 2008
“From the very beginning, we have struggled to understand time, matter and the infinite universe; who we are, where we are headed, and if we are alone. Great minds — and some of the genre’s most legendary writers and directors — have now imagined the most wonderful and terrifying answers to these questions.” These are the opening words from host Professor Stephen Hawking. They are supposed to set the mood, a la “There is a fifth dimension, beyond that which is known to man…“, much like Rod Serling’s The Twilight Zone, Masters of Science Fiction is a collection of stories each with an appealing premise or twist. Where the show falters is in its execution.
The budgets are not very big. The special effects are mediocre at best. The wardrobe and hair cuts attempt to give the people of the series a Sci-Fi look, but the real world locations are the one thing that stand out in the production of this series. At least they got that right.
Overall the stories are about the violence of man on his brother or the environment (sometimes both). Trying to stretch the story into an hour of television is probably the first mistake the series’ producers made. All of the episodes are bloated with unnecessary scenes and character development that have little to do with the actual story. The brilliance of the shows like The Twilight Zone, Tales From the Crypt and Tales From the Darkside was their ability to get to the heart of the story. Scare, terrify or bewilder the audience from the start and get them hooked, was their appeal. Masters of Science Fiction meanders so that even after the second or third commercial break the viewer will still have no idea what the story is about.
All the episodes save one were forgettable. Sure many of the stories have been around for years and their premises have been done on other shows. Robert Heinlein's "Jerry Was a Man" was done on a Star Trek: The Next Generation episode titled “The Measure of Man”. Melinda M. Snodgrass’s script was better than Michael Tolkin’s tongue-in-cheek approach with Anne Heche as a Paris Hilton heiress who wants to save the world’s robots.
Harlan Ellison's "The Discarded" is the one episode that is wroth watching. The episode is directed by Jonathan Frakes and stars Brian Dennehy with John Hurt in the supporting role. Bedzyk (Brian Dennehy) is the impromptu captain of an orbiting space station of mutants. Each has their own unique abnormality. Bedzyk is content with reading his books and living day to day with his people. He has accepted that humanity has shunned him (because of his abnormally large hairy arm) and forbid him and other of his kind to return to Earth. Samswope (John Hurt) is Bedzyk’s intellectual rival on the space station (he has a second smaller head). They are friends, Bedzyk being the realist and Samswope being the dreamer. Samswope believes that there is hope and that one day they will get to go home.
A messenger (James Denton) comes from Earth one day and offers the mutants a chance to return home if they are willing to help him and his cause. It turns out that the plague that created the first batch of mutants has returned and is now infecting the entire world. Their blood could be a cure. If it works they will be allowed to return home as heroes.
The ending is predictable. What makes the “Discarded” a treat to watch is the set design. Poor wretched discarded humans living on a space station has never been more realistic in the annuals of Science Fiction. With Frakes having a background in Star Trek one would expect a space station super mall. Instead it is run down and, if nothing else, organic. The mutants or “discarded” also have a wide variety of characters. The other episodes had run of the mill character types that outside of the actors playing them were dull. It’s great to see Sean Astin and Terry O’Quinn but there roles were so one dimensional you start rooting for Sam Gamgee and Locke not the characters they are portraying. Here Dennehy and Hurt chew up their scenes together and those moments resonate till the end of the episode. Perhaps Frakes should have helmed the whole series. Check out a clip from “Discarded” here.
The Masters of Science Fiction is a slow moving show and probably won’t return to television. The “Discarded” is the only episode worth watching and ranks up there with some of the best science fiction productions to date. If you are going to invest your time in effort in anything with the word “Masters” in the title I suggest the Masters of Horror.
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