The Universe: Season 1

No doubt these days especially but probably as long as our species exists people will want to think positively of the universe and not think it's a drag. A friend told me, "It's all we got" and so it is and I dont care too much for it. Now before I type another word I should say again that this series brought to us by the History Channel is actually quite good. The History Channel has, it would seem, stepped up it's game. I recall a few years ago or so coming across virtually nothing but shows about Hitler and the Third Reich. 80% of the time Adolf, the other 15% military related and usually WW2 stuff and the sliver of remaining programming was reserved for the rest of history, human or otherwise. But times, or ratings, haved changed and we are now treated to history programs that cover everything from Hitler to supernovas and beyond. Universe the series has familiar spokesmen for the universe Michio Kaku, Alexei Filippenko and Neil deGrasse Tyson who are entertaining, likable fellows with contagious enthusiasm. They all could have had careers at PR firms or in advertising. The production value is top-notch and we're treated to some great pictures of real planets and stars and of course CGI images of stuff. It's not only hard but sometimes impossible to take photos of some of much of the universe. So, it is quality TV and if you wanna tour the cosmos on DVD do it with Carl Sagan whose landmark series has been updated and if you want to take another trip the Hitler Channel will give you a good time. And now there are two seasons to enjoy. As for the universe sucking, I don't think you, me or anybody has to like it. It's not an ethical judgment and it doesn't mean being a curmudgeon. I find the place kinda creepy, absolutely bizarre and unfriendly --or uninviting if you like. What is called space is so vast you simply cannot imagine how big it is. By far most people have even less an idea of how enormous just our solar system is. Scientists know numbers and they can throw them at you and use them to figure out where to point telescopes and how to send satilights but scientists are humans too and so even they will admit it is actually impossible to grasp the sheer, staggering vastness of cold empty space. Check out the "Thousand Yard Model" for fun. Optimistic predictions to the contrary, I doubt human beings will ever leave the solar system. It is simply too big and even if they do they will not go far. Going at light speed they will not go far and from what scientists believe they know of the universe I'm skeptical people will reach light speed. And then where to go? It looks now like there could be life scattered across the universe, but most likely similar to that at the bottom of the deepest oceans around geothermal vents. In anycase it's in worlds we probably couldn't survive on. Our human type of life I guess you could put it, is surely rare. In practical terms, we are alone. And if -if- there is "intelligent" life "out there" it is so far away we will likely never have contact. But if people do meet aliens my bet is they'll be sorry. Judging how people treat "lower life forms" if the aliens are advanced to a point where they can travel to us...yikes. Well, I'm getting this about aliens from Stephen Hawking (not present in the series). Hawking also pretty much rules out time travel, except for particles. And so we're on this planet and our species seems hell bent on ruing it to a point that human type life might not survive or will at least be stuck in a wasteland. And when it's all said and done in about 1 billion years or so the Sun will balloon out as a "red giant", burning away the atmosphere and oceans. I also find so called "black holes" with their "event horizons" the stuff of nightmares (I love how that the French thought the term obscene). And then what's the deal with "dark matter"? They don't know--that's why it's called dark matter. We can't see it and don't understand it yet. This mystery stuff--which btw is what most of the universe is made of--plays a role in the whether the universe stops expanding, keeps on expanding or stops expanding and then falls back into itself destroying everything in existence. Wonderfull. At the moment it's looking like the universe will expand forever which sounds cool except that everything is moving even further away from everything else so that eventually space will be starless and pitch black from almost any point of view and nothing will be in reach of nothing. In the end all suns will die and new suns will not be born and no new planets either. Well, they have lots of ideas about what's going on and what might or might not happen. They're still learning, so I hope a lot of what they say is wrong, but of course we'll all be so long dead what's it matter. And well, anyway the universe IS fun to contemplate and does make for some great TV when relaxing after work or whatever.

I was lucky enough to have watched this series in high def via Dish Network. I recorded the shows onto DVDs since I thought they were excellent. Unfortunately, my DVD recorder only records in standard def (480i). Even though they are still very interesting and educational at the lower resolution, the wow factor is missing. That should actually be taken up another notch with Blu-Ray since it was broadcast in 1080i, but Blu-Ray will give me 1080p! Outstanding! The special effects, the subject matter, and the way in which it is all explained is absolutely top notch!Now that it has come out on Blu-Ray (which I am thrilled about) I will be buying it as soon as my budget permits! It is very worth seeing more than once, and seeing it in High Def is really spectacular!*** Update 4/26/09 ***I got it on Blu-Ray and as expected, it is spectacular! :)The colors and clarity are just as good as you will ever see on your big screen TV. I'd put it right up there with the Planet Earth series.I have already ordered the next two seasons in advance. Season 2 is due out in July, and season 3 in August. Cool! This is truly the best series ever on the subject of The Universe.

There are six seasons of "The Universe", and all are spectacular in their own right. Season one deals mostly with our Solar System, though it gives more than a passing nod to Galaxies and Stars, which it also covers in subsequent episodes later on. Our Sun is looked at more in depth. The Moon, its formation and its role where Earth is concerned is discussed as are the conditions of both the inner and outer planets. An episode, entitled "Most Dangerous Places" showcases exploding stars and Black holes," the Search for ET", described the search for other possible intelligences in the Universe, and focuses on the question of what caused the Big Bang. Earth is not left out either. From scenarios of possible destruction from Space to just how lucky we truly are that our planet is the way it is. Beautiful scenes illustrate just what scientists are talking about as the explain details in easy to follow terms and experiments, as it is easy to see that they want people to understand what is out there and their fascination with it.

Contrary to the description on the Amazon site, these 4 DVDs are not subtitled, even the number 1 disk.That's my only regret as a French speaking customer.But this personal inconvenience is balanced by the fact that the pictures are really wonderful.I think it's one of the best documentary I have seen for a subject which is of deep interest for me.Commentaries put the subject to the level that most people could understand these sometimes complex questions.As for the language, even if there are no subtitles, it's not difficult to understand the narrator and the people interviewed with an average knowledge of English.And the Beauty you see on your screen cancels all objections you may have.I warmly recommend Amazon customers, even foreign ones like me, to buy this History Channel serie, which is difficult to find outside the US.

Why so different an opinion. See, I'm Dutch and not used to the sensationalism the way those Yankees seem to approach this - and all other - content. In their hands the growing of a potato is a major event and breaking news on CNN. There's danger on every corner; RIGHT NOW THERE's AN ENORMOUS ASTREOID COMING OUR WAY; RIGHT NOW WE'RE ON A ROLLERCOASTER HELL RIDE; RIGHT NOW A GAMMA BEAM FROM A ENORMOUS MILKY WAY EXPLOSION IS ON TARGET TO US and so on and so on. The most pitiable impression - episode 3 - made two brilliant young men being concerned about A MAJOR DISASTER that will strike earth around 150.000.000.000 years from now: THE BIG SHRINK OR CRUNCH. Brrrrrrrrrrrr. Should I bother, oh yes! You bet. Well I know my grandma is dead, but in 150.000.002.010 I'm gone too, and my children's children's children's children (Moody Blues), and my cat called Witmans. Earth by then is too because THE SUN ONLY LIVES ANOTHER short 5.000.000.000 YEARS and we'll be blasted away into space by then too. Come on boys, find another job! Over here in our nursery home there're plenty of old people who need a caring hand. I can't be blasted into space twice in a lifetime.We get Rusty Schweickart's mission. He's behind the computer the whole day. He's concerned about asteroid 99942 Apophis, it could hit earth in 2036 (Rusty'll be 101 years old by then). Come on man, take a dog and a walk; enjoy life; it's still possible. My problem is the way these things are presented: OVER THE TOPP so we had a fit of giggles instead of being scared out of our pants.Then there're the white flashes another reviewer mentioned. Yes, in many episodes there's a white flash, an explosion and a red fireball in every minute. Then there's the force of Repeat. Yankees like TO REPEAT THERE's A MAJOR DISASTER COMIN' OUR WAY. So many times you get 4 disasters for the price of one.When you put this approach aside and concentrate on the content you get a good series of documentaries, thoroughly researched and put together with a considerable amount of love and scientific enthusiasm.Picture quality varies very much because old and new images are used. The new ones are sometimes oversaturated - faces very red - but with some adjustment things went better. Sound quality in the explosions is good but they happily will not blast you out of your chair. Personally I like spoken voices better with lesser bass and more treble around the mike. Many Yankees speak through their nose and I'd some problems hearing the right words.All episodes are 45 minutes in duration and are edited. I mean the 15 minutes of commercials per episode are left out but you get the summary of `what has happened before' after every commercial brake. You'll get used to it.

Just what was needed for my teaching programme on the Universe

My first review of this set was of the American edition, which is far different from the BBC-edited set of the same name. Then, I said that "Aimed at dyslexic adolescents with a short attention span or the American disease of the moment, Attention Deficit Disorder, this is one of the more frustrating offerings on Blue Ray. Images are repeated so often, one might think there is a loop in the program, and the commentaries are on occasion adolescently laughable. Breaks for the commercials we are blessedly spared are preceded by breathless "coming up" comments, and followed by reminders of where the programme paused a few seconds earlier. Editing is execrable, but some of the photography is stunning ... stunning ... stunning. . . . Anachronisms abound - this is The History Channel stuff, after all - e.g. they place US President Reagan in the Air Force One 747 over the Pacific when he never used it - it was first used only after President Clinton took office."This set, however, aims at a higher plane, and achieves it. The unmerciful hommage to commercials is mostly eliminated, and factual errors are dropped. The repetitiousness of the American version is not here - and the emphasis is on knowledge and substance, not form and image. One would almost think there were two entirely different productions, the first for thinking Britain, the other for the History Channel audience.After viewing the entire BBC series, one comes away with a deeper understanding of the vast surround of our little speck in the sky, and how it was made, how it is evolving, where it may all end. Or not.If you aren't up-to-date with current theory on The Universe, this set will bring you a lot nearer to comprehension - and even if you are an old pro at astronomy, the BBC set is thoroughly enjoyable, and wel worth the time to watch.

I have watched the first 2 series only as a download, here in Australia, this programme is only shown on satellite TV so is hard to come by, so from going from watching it on my 19" computer monitor in SD to watching it on my 50" full hiDef Plasma is a revelation, the picture is awesome (other than the old footage) everything is in HiDef and pretty amazing to watch. Sadly the sound is only standard Doby Digital, no 5.1 True HD or surround sound here, I think this would have made a great difference.Some other reviewers say that the episodes search for ET and the Beyond the Big Bang episode are not here, well yes the search for ET isnt here, but the feature length BtBB episode IS ! To be honest I am dissapointed that the search for ET ep is missing, but seeing as I had to order this from the UK, and am not sure whether the uSA version would work on my region2 BluRay player, i will just have to suck it up and do without the missing ep.As far as the style of the show, well yes it is VERY American, cheesy, sometimes annoying and simplified with basic analogies, it is still watchable, some of the presenters are brilliant, of note Neil DeGrasse Tyson Michio Kaku and the perpetual grinning man. i still find myself going "Oh Wow I never knew that" and am amazed at what an insignificant small speck our planet truly is

I have 10 years studying for a degree in planetary geology with the OU and 40 years of armchair astronomy and yet there are still things this series can offer, for example I had never heard Jupiter singing until now. Anyone can watch this, the layman, children and pros, it has good visuals, although not up to the BBC Space quality, and plenty of depth. The only very slighly annoying part are the pauses and slightly repetitive sections where the adverts would have been. Also I found the exciting soundtrack a little too overbearing but I realise this was made for the American market where razamataz is sprinkled liberally with everything. They should also join the rest of the world in the 21st century and start using the celcius scale rather than fahrenheit scale. Those are the only minor niggles though and I have no hesitation in giving this 5 stars, 4 would have seemed chirlish. I look forward very much to season 2 which is waiting on my shelf and season 3 which is soon to be released. Highly recommended.