Space:Above and Beyond

[dixiehicky]

I used to really like that programme. Does anyone remember it?

[vikingscaper]

I remember it and I watched it and liked it. I really did not like the way that it ended, though.

[Sunderflame]

But skiffy hardly airs anything good anymore. Right now they are airing Will Rogers...I think I'm not 12 anymore...so it seems alittle lame now.......although I would watch Lost in Space....?

[JrMissToughChick]

How did it end? I don't remmember

[Selena]

Yes, really liked it and it was just getting interesting when they canned it :pace:

[Sunderflame]

I think they just met an alien race that just looked alittle weird. I know they carried long spear like weapons. I think the alien race was tracking them from a distance. I don't reacall all of it.. I know the earth colony had set up a makeshift colony. The crew was trying to find a place to settle and they were running low on supplies. Not to many special effects. It seemed very earthy....

[vhsiv]

Originally posted by Sunderflame
I think they just met an alien race that just looked alittle weird. I know they carried long spear like weapons. I think the alien race was tracking them from a distance. I don't reacall all of it.. I know the earth colony had set up a makeshift colony. The crew was trying to find a place to settle and they were running low on supplies. Not to many special effects. It seemed very earthy.... It sounds like you're conusing 'Earth 2 (http://www.tvtome.com/Earth2/)' with 'Space:Above and Beyond (http://www.tvtome.com/SpaceAboveandBeyond/)' - there are some similar elements but 'S:AAB (http://www.tvtome.com/SpaceAboveandBeyond/)' is/was essentially a combat show - it was about a group of Space Marines who were already in the thick of a war against the Chigs and the 'AIs' - androids that humans had created, but had revolted.

Synopses of each show and their episodes can be found below:

'Earth 2 (http://www.tvtome.com/Earth2/)'
'Space:Above and Beyond (http://www.tvtome.com/SpaceAboveandBeyond/)'
'Space:Above and Beyond (http://www.cyberpursuits.com/heckifiknow/saab/default.asp)'

While AnnieBW is really the expert for holding forth on both of these shows, 'S:AAB' is notable for being the show that 'Enterprise' or 'ST:Voyager' (or BSG2003) could have been, but wasn't. Glen Morgan and James Wong have stated that in 1995 they were trying to head off a 'Starfleet Academy' show that was in pre-production at Paramount - sort of like the development cough*ripoff*cough process that gave birth to 'DS9'.

Anyway, 'S:AAB' is gritter than anything those Trek franchisers could ever hope to produce. It was a military show that took place primarily on a dark, utilitarian ship, and it was EXPERTLY written - there was very little in the way of sexpoitation and there was ACTUAL character development. During the show's 23 episode run the show explored a bit of each character's backstory, as well as their CO, Lt. Col. Tyrus Cassius McQueen.

Fox is planning on releasing the 'S:AAB' on DVD sometime this year, but some grey-market series collections (DVD and VCD) have appeared on Ebay and episodes have appeared on some of the P2P sites.
http://www.tvtome.com/images/shows/0/4/27-360.jpg

[kechara420]

I didn't know that it was being released on DVD. YEAH!! I LOVED this SAAB, and I can't wait to own it!! Thanks for that tidbit!

[SabaceanBabe]

I loved Space: Above and Beyond and you know what? I just met R. Lee Ermey, face to face, yesterday. He played (you guessed it) a drill sergeant in S:AAB. He was quite pleased that I remembered the show. :D

[vhsiv]

from http://www.cyberpursuits.com/heckifiknow/saab/about.asp
In the fall of 1995, Fox television network introduced a future-based war drama that immediately became a staple in the science fiction treasury. There has been nothing like it since, in terms of scale, delivery, style, and imagination. From the first four notes of the theme, you get a sense of stirring heroic adventure that can be both uplifting and deeply affecting, played out skillfully in military cinematic tradition. A convincing production packed with action, comradeship, and compassion, Space: Above and Beyond never drags. It thrusts you directly into the story, introducing you to the irresistible complexities of the characters and the times in which they live. It is a journey through the hearts and minds of young Marines and their commanders as they face desperation and sacrifice, as they bond in fellowship that often means the difference between death and survival, and as they mature individually, confronting their own personal conflicts.

The year is 2063. Humankind has become a space-faring civilization, moving beyond its cradle, the Solar System, into the stars, never encountering other intelligent life, believing itself to be alone.

The A.I. War is over but at a high cost. During the war, the loss of human life was so great that industry and government came together to engineer soldiers -- a fighting force of artificially gestated humans to join in battle alongside "natural borns" and defeat the enemy. With the A.I. enemy now vanquished and the need for In-Vitros brought into question, a social conscience rises, leading to a humanitarian movement for incorporating In-Vitros into society and granting them the benefits that all citizens enjoy. But not everyone agrees; far too many discriminate against them, some even seek to kill them.

Still, the nations of Earth are coming together in peace bound by new global government, moving their commerce and ventures throughout the Solar System and beyond. The armed services function as scouts and sentries, patrolling the spaceways. Aerotech, Inc., a powerful private corporation working with the U.S. government, has trained explorer pioneers and developed colonies on two distant planets – Tellus and Vesta.

Meanwhile, five young people have come to life-changing moments; four choose to join the Marine Corps, while the fifth is forced by the judicial system. They train together, not exactly comfortable with one another, certainly not understanding one another. One longs to take up his post on a space-based patrol. Another longs to serve her country as her parents had. Another seeks stability and direction. Yet another seeks to escape his mediocre life. And one just wants his sentence to be over.

Then the unthinkable happens: the two colonies are attacked. Alien forces are on their way to the Solar System. Life has changed in a heartbeat. Suddenly thrust into combat, the five recruits ship out to their assigned battleship where they meet their commanding officers and face the first horrors of war.

All the characters register powerfully, but the true strength of Space: Above and Beyond is the squadron itself, the Wildcards. Burdened and scarred by events past and present, they form a cohesive unit that understands the cost of failure, that perseveres and presses on, knowing that all life on Earth depends on them and others like them. Episode after episode, each character strengthens the squadron even more. Dispatched to their assignments, they forge ahead despite great losses because they must, all to an emotionally engaging end.

And kechara - after 'Farscape', maybe even before 'Scape, I consider 'S:AAB' one of the most groundbreaking scifi shows of the last 20 years. Though I love B5, it pretty much takes a backseat to the former...

http://www.wildcards.freeserve.co.uk/saratoga.gif
The USS Saratoga, no velour jumpsuits allowed... (http://www.wildcards.freeserve.co.uk/home.htm)

[Madre Farbot]

I wasn't too keen on at first, but I slowly got to like the regular crew and how they learnt to get on with one another. I can't remember their names except maybe Tank. Don't know whether they called him that because his kind were called Tanks or whether it just stuck as a nickname.

There was one character that I really liked but he wasn't part of the crew. I think he was some kind android working for the aliens, and he had this really sinister way when he was subjecting Tank to some kind of mind torture. Funny though he had this really seductive voice. Ever since then I've been trying to mimic that voice. Anyway, who was he? He almost looked like Stark! :rollin:

[janey_13]

I wish they would release Earth 2 on DVD (and SeaQuest DSV too).

[kechara420]

There was ...
Nathan West
Shane
Fuss
Wang
Coop

[kechara420]

Originally posted by janey_13
I wish they would release Earth 2 on DVD (and SeaQuest DSV too). Yeah, it would be nice to have those, although I wasn't as fond of Earth 2 as I am of most other genre series.

I think it's encouraging that stuff like Jeremiah, SAAB and Firefly is making it onto DVD. I think that if sales of genre series on DVD continue to do well, companies will be more likely to release more series.

[vhsiv]

They called Hawkes and McQueen 'tanks' because they were grown 'in vitro'. I suppose 'tank' was a less inflammatory epithet than 'nippleneck' which was one of the other racist terms used in reference to the GMs.

[mgraylorn]

Dark but good show. Madre Farbot, you may be thinking about Doug Hutchinson. He cropped up a couple times, once torturing Wang. Wong and Morgan came from The X-Files, and there was some cross pollination between the two shows. Doug Hutchinson played Toomes on the X-Files, the guy who would come out of hibernation every 50 years or so, eat people's livers and then hibernate again. To this day I can't use an escalator without thinking about Toomes. He didn't have many lines in the X-Files episodes, but he had a silky, creepy voice in Space:Above and Beyond where he was one of the AIs. He more recently had a couple of guest appearances on "John Doe" as a serial killer type, but it wasn't as good as either of his parts in X-Files, or S:AAB.

Incidently the AIs had really cool eyes. I want some contacts like those!

S:AAB was another show Fox frelled.

[Roland]

I LOVED IT! To bad they shut it down.... just like all good series! :(

[vhsiv]

One of the cruel - and creepy - ironies is that the Doug Hutchinson character referred to Wang as 'Wang Paul', like some fugitive from a haircut band.

The precedent was set when the AI asked for his name, and he said "Wang, Paul - serial #XXX-XX-XXXX". I guess AI's don't understand punctuation...

[Boron]

I absolutely love S:AAB. I never got to see all the episodes, and if it should come out on DVD I will definitly buy it. I was working all the time it was showing, and missed most of it. Then one day it was just gone, I never knew why until I joined this board and someone told me FOX had cancelled it after one season. I just don't understand that.

[r0b]

I loved the show to had great space combat and a lot of deep moments inbetween the fighting.The first couple episodes with the boot camp seemed to me like fullmetal jacket in space :)

[ranger1]

S:AAB ended so sadly. the final ep (no spoilers) actually made me feel weepy-mad for what happened to the show.

last year i went online searching for some websites in S:AAB fandom, and i found someone in the UK who graciously made some VCD's of the whole season. i guess now i have something to tide me over until the dvd's come out! frell you, Fox!

but as bad as the ending was (kinda like the current end to Farscape), it made it worse b/c i knew that there would be no more. i had only the chance to catch a few eps. when i was on the air. still, the ending was a gut-wrenching season finale and would have made it must-see tv for the next season's opener (multiple main characters' fates were left in doubt).

[BaseLine]

Originally posted by r0b
I loved the show to had great space combat and a lot of deep moments inbetween the fighting.The first couple episodes with the boot camp seemed to me like fullmetal jacket in space :)

Thanks to Lee Ermey. The same actor playing the gunnery sergeant in Full Metal Jacket. A fun fact about him (source: imdb):


Former US Marines Drill Instructor R. Lee Ermey was hired as a consultant on how to drill USMC style. He performed a demonstration on videotape in which he yelled obscene insults and abuse for fifteen minutes without stopping, repeating himself, or even flinching - despite being continuously pelted with tennis balls and oranges. Director Stanley Kubrick was so impressed that he cast Ermey as Gunnery Sergeant Hartmann.

[AnnieBW]

According to TVShowsOn DvD.com, SAAB is due to be released sometime in 2004. Yippee!!! I just e-mailed Universal about Earth 2 and Seaquest DSV a few weeks ago, and they still don't have plans to put them out on DVD. Fox is being much better at putting stuff out there than Universal is. Maybe once the NBC/Universal merger is complete we'll see some action.

- Annie

[BillFrugge]

I remember getting my hands on SAAB's airdates. The show never had a chance: It was preempted more often than it aired, and none of the episodes were ever re-run.

These networks have no idea what they ever had. Remember Alien Nation? The execs ran off a list of what they wanted in a program, and were told straight to their face that they cancelled that show the year before.

I should defend some of the networks regarding the DVD releases. A lot of these studios are like dysfunctional families -- each division is independent, and they tend to compete. It's not so much a failure of a network to release a show on DVD, but an achievement of the networks who do.

[vhsiv]

Originally posted by BillFrugge
These networks have no idea what they ever had. Remember Alien Nation? The execs ran off a list of what they wanted in a program, and were told straight to their face that they cancelled that show the year before.BillF, what show are you talking about here, in particuar? And what network?

If I recall correctly 'Alien Nation' was a Fox show, but it was light years from the 'S:AAB' concept - in fact, the closest I can get to 'Alien Nation' is 'Earth:Final Conflict', and even that's a world away.

Your 'dysunctional family' idea is apt, though. It took Fox Home video to reassemble 'Alien 3' from its early workprint, AND to put 'Firefly' out on DVD, along with all the rest of those cancelled Fox shows, just as the Bonniemeister doesn't seem to have a good relationship with USA/Universal Television: She's cancelled EVERY show that Universal has made for her - I-Man, 'The Chronicle', up through 'Tremors'.

[vhsiv]

Then again, it's clear from the interviews on the 'Firefly' DVDs that many of the Fox television suits think of Joss Whedon as a comedy writer - even after 6 or 7 seasons of 'Buffy', and script contributions for 'Alien Ressurection', 'Speed' and a zillion ofther projects.