The Sad Failure of Buck Rogers in the 25th Century

[@georgeniebling6566]

There is nothing wrong with that show that more of Erin Gray couldn't fix

[@stevenhenry5267]

Exactly

[@ocularpatdown]

Hear! Hear!

[@Skabanis]

She is Smoke show

[@daveofyorkshire301]

It really didn't matter that it took several episodes before she figured out passable acting...

[@reidycruise]

Queen Armadala

[@brianknapp6215]

The first season was really fun to watch- especially all the guest stars: Roddy McDowall, Jack Palance, Jamie Lee Curtis, Cesar Romero, Frank Gorshin, Markie Post, Peter Graves, Gary Coleman, Ray Walston, Dorothy Stratten (a tragic tale), Richard Moll, Anne Lockhart, Jerry Orbach, Judy Landers, Sid Haig, Vera Miles, Julie Newmar- and Buster Crabbe! Edit: looking over this list- I realized that _three_ of the villains from the 60's Batman series were guest stars!!

[@johnnyjohn2527]

Doubly unfortunate as Dorothy Stratten's voice was dubbed in the.episode. Rip, Dorothy. 💖💔✌

[@MerensWorld]

Buster Crabbe was classic LOL

[@jamied501]

Gil Gerard worked for my grandfather at the AIDC in Arkansas before he left to be an actor. Everyone liked him. Also season 2 Wilma went from being a squadron commander to a flight attendant.

[@Theywaswrong]

Ran into Gerard several times around Heber Springs....usually the Walmart, Hahahaha. Think he had a place on the lake around Tannenbaum. But I have never watched an episode, just knew who he was.

[@MerensWorld]

Then to a Secretary when she was on Silver Spoons.

[@kennethfharkin]

This and Battlestar Galactic both had outstanding first seasons and disastrous, near unrecognizable, second season which ended the shows. I remember both and even as a 10 year old kid could not understand why both shows were destroyed.

[@retro_reflections]

Erin Gray - hotter than fire. Twiki - criminally underused. The second season - almost as bad as Galactica 1980.

[@zufalllx]

Oooohh... And Galactica 1980 was BAD...

[@mjwbulich]

Erin Gray is how I discovered I was heterosexual. That spandex outfit had me feeling things that seven year old me did not understand.

[@Q80Warlock]

@@zufalllx Except for the last episode that had Starbuck...

[@babykosh5415]

Except for Bird Man....Bird Man was Cooooool

[@lancemartin6782]

Erin is mine....i saw her first. I am her bestest fan. I told her that every day when I mailed a fan letter for 12 years..... ..

[@hepchaos]

As a fan of the genre, I have to point out that Edgar Rice Burroughs published the first John Carter novel in 1912, a full 12 years before the publication of Buck Rogers.

[@kennethphillips6006]

Glad someone pointed that out!

[@mattwho81]

Gotta love a future where pilots are so dependent on computer targeting that the Drakonis can beat them simply by jamming the target sensors. Then a 500year old dude turns up and say, “Why not shoot manually?” And everyone amazed.

[@ntal5859]

I watched the episode were Buck went to the space casino[5 at the time] turned to my Dad and said how can they not added two numbers and are amazed at Buck's ability to add. Little did i realise within 40yrs this is reality most people can't do basic maths anymore.

[@MaMastoast]

@ImOnIt4272 We honestly had a moment at work where the act of taking a piece of paper and drawing what we meant took an embarrasing amount of time to come up with... we were trying all sorts of computer related solutions.

[@dyslectische]

​@@ntal5859 Jip by technology make people more stupid

[@swanofnutella4734]

For a "failure" they sure did rerun this show a lot. This was a cornerstone of my tv upbringing.

[@JCG52577]

Still running! One of the retro channels plays it every late Saturday night.

[@DocMicrowave]

Same here. Though I was always disappointed when season 2 rolled around in the reruns.

[@DocMicrowave]

@@JCG52577 Yep, MeTV I think.

[@AjI2009]

This guy has no clue. They are evn doing a remake with George Clooney

[@Pdalow]

Troll 2 has been seen by quite a few people as well, do you consider that a success? This show went downhill in its second season and that's why they cancelled it. There's nothing wrong with admitting that something you like isn't good, try growing up.

[@freakyzed8467]

Colonel Deering was my first TV crush.

[@dinomonzon7493]

Can’t blame you! 😇

[@joes9954]

She was for pretty much any teenage boy growing up back then. It was nice to see her in a few episodes of Star Trek Continues as Capt. Gray which was rather nice.

[@hoosieryank6731]

I tuned in for Princess Ardala initially, later went for the good Colonel.

[@Naurif]

Man--Erin Gray was especially beautiful in that series.

[@rtstrong]

Erin Gray and her shiny spandex jumpsuits… yeah, boi..!

[@triphazard6802]

I always wanted the Battlestar Galactica fleet to finally get to earth and find the Buck Rogers crowd there. A crossover that would have thrilled kids everywhere.

[@GaryCameron]

I wanted BSG to reach Earth in the 23rd or 24th century and encounter the Federation which then obliterates the Cylons.

[@apreviousseagle836]

@@GaryCameron So geeky and Deux Ex Machina, but I would have approved of the Enterprise D just HAMMERING a few of those Cylon Basestars.

[@danielserene4532]

@@GaryCameron I always thought about them getting to Earth and finding the SDF-1. I'd love to see some Cylons dealing with Veritechs.

[@putinscat1208]

They did get to Earth and met Mike Brady.

[@Wilphart]

@S D I resemble that remark!

[@TheBlackPaulMuadDib]

I'm not hiding the fact that I watched this show for Erin Gray. Hell ha. Hot, Hot and more Hot.

[@redbyrd64]

One of my favorite Wilma lines was “I drained him, and it felt good “. Let’s just say that line and Erin’s delivery fueled some pubescent dreams

[@bitplaya7432]

I watched it for the evil princess. She was hot

[@yannbeelen1630]

First one who fell in love wilth when i was 10

[@bobbythomas9603]

Yup, the space vampire episode is etched into my brain.

[@JuanGonzalez-hv6vs]

Me too, I had a crush on her.

[@jacobhope6164]

I met both Gil Gerrard and Erin Grey at the 1st Annual Twisted Terror Convention several years ago. My wife and I went to see some of the actors from The Walking Dead, you know, back when that show was actually pretty good. For me though, ole Buck Rogers easily stole the show. We talked for about an hour, and he's a really cool older guy. Apparently, he and Erin Grey still don't get along. He had a funny, but still respectful way of talking about it. They had separate booth on opposite sides, and opposite ends of the main convention hall. I spoke briefly with Erin Grey. She was as beautiful as ever, and gracious. I could see though that hearing "You were my first crush" all day long was taking it's toll on her. So I told her "My first crush was my kindergarten teacher Mrs. Sneed, but I used to wish my mom was more like you on Silver Spoons." That got a genuine laugh from her.

[@dwiggins1]

One of my all time favorites shows as a kid! I even met Gil Gerald and Erin Gray at Wizard Con a few years ago.

[@Stygian360]

This show had two major things going for it when I was a kid. One it was a science fiction lover's dream. So much cool technology and spaceships and aliens and so forth. And second it had the lovely Miss Erin Gray.

[@Dorelaxen]

I LOVED this show as a kid. Still do. I've managed to meet the majority of the cast. Gil Gerard is the nicest guy you could ever imagine.

[@stevekitt52]

Agreed. A very friendly bloke. Erin was also very nice to meet.

[@lukestrawwalker]

His career was pretty slim after "Buck Rogers" IIRC... only thing I can remember seeing him on was "Star Trek Continues" which was a fan-fic production LOL:) Later! OL J R :)

[@Dorelaxen]

@@lukestrawwalker Yeah, he had some serious weight issues after the show was over. Ballooned to over 300lbs. He talked about it pretty candidly. Worked his ass off for over 2 years to get back into shape. He's looking pretty damn good these days.

[@lukestrawwalker]

@@Dorelaxen wow that's crazy didn't know that. I know from his part in "Star Trek Continues" he didn't age anywhere near as well as Erin Gray...

[@machupikachu1085]

@@lukestrawwalker Didn't Gerard also do some show with a kid who was a ninja?

[@ArcanePath360]

I had that Buck Rogers ship as a kid. The yellow wings flipped out with a button press. It was good quality and made of metal.

[@ottototo8]

The space vampire episode with Wilma Deering in the satin, magenta, jumpsuit...

[@solomonkane102]

Markie post

[@timberwolf0122]

biddi-biddi-biddi nice bum Wilma!

[@krasskswg]

Not gonna lie - that episode creeped me the hell out when I was a kid.

[@johnw8578]

@P Stace Me too

[@kengaroo67]

And the Vorvon was wearing Commander Adama's medallion.

[@Journeyman.71]

I always *LOVED* the vinyl costumes that just had a picture of the character(s) or a poster image on the torso, rather than an attempt to mimic the look of a character!

[@rojui5912]

Was a fan of Erin Grey as a kid after watching some Buck Rogers reruns.

[@Berengier817]

Just googled her, I can see why

[@canibaloxide]

She was my first celebrity crush

[@saiberunato]

Yep, looked pretty fine in her tight jumpsuit.

[@gregn8206]

Not to mention that Erin Gray has aged exceptionally well, in appearance and professionally….starting a company helping ex-celebrities on the convention circuit.

[@KennethDPedersen]

She was my first crush also!

[@davelightman]

Great summary! Much as with Galactica, I tend to view Buck Rogers as a 1 season deal. Such a shame that 80s sci-fi tended to start huge, and run out of steam incredibly quickly. Another great example was V - I prefer to think that the subsequent series never happened.

[@ruscular]

I didn't even know there was more V series, and watching it now. I consider Buck Roger as a one season show as well. I think I may have agreed to Gil Gerard point of view. He knew what made the show great, and they steered away from it because they made the show silly and safe for the kids.

[@Wis_Dom]

As a child, I honestly learned about Buck Rogers through "Duck Dodgers", lol.

[@stevedenis8292]

Best them song by Tom Jones.

[@austintrousdale2397]

…in the 24 and 1/2 Century!!! 🦆

[@piercesable344]

I on the other hand heard of him through a quick mention by Danny Mcbride from "This is the End"...

[@Omegaslashbuster1]

Not only was Duck Dodgers a thing it was a SNES video game.

[@brianknapp6215]

Marvin the Martian is- and always will be- my favorite Looney Tunes character!!

[@wtk6069]

As a kid, I didn't get the semi-satirical seventies vibe that ran throughout the first season, but, rewatching it as an adult, I appreciated the added texture it gave the show. It made it smarter and self-aware, and it was sorely missed in the second season when that kind of thing mostly vanished.

[@rmglover3191]

Oh, Erin Gray. The 51 year old me gets the same stirring as the 9 year old me when I see those pictures. You, Catherine Bach, Farah Fawcett, and Lynda Carter. What a childhood. Absolutely loved the opening theme of the movie.

[@stevenhenry5267]

No Jaclyn Smith?

[@theriddler8695]

Buck Rogers was great....another classic from my childhood. 2nd season stunk!! And yes it did feature some hotties: Pamela Sue Shoop - who also starred in Halloween II Jamie Lee Curtis - another Halloween alum Markie Post - who sadly just passed away Pamela Hensley - who also played C.J. Parsons on Matt Houston Erin Grey - of course who could forget Willma who later starred in Silver Spoons

[@kj6446]

Erin Gray was my huge crush back then ❤

[@solomonkane102]

She was in playboy

[@stickiedmin6508]

"Was?" I left forty behind a disturbingly long time ago, but I still pine for Colonel Deering. Growing up seeing ladies like her on the screen implanted the inclination within me to seek out female company that not only beguiled and bewitched my eyes but which could also neatly and confidently kick my ass and leave me wishing for more. To this day, a flight suit and helmet, with a pair of big, heavy boots is *_FAR_* more enticing than flimsy fashions, high heels and a ton of makeup...

[@phayroent9742]

I only remember her from Silver Spoons with Ricky Schroder and the boy that grew up to be Carlton on Fresh Prince!

[@johnwakefield4473]

That purple lycra suit she wore is the reason why I have always liked the colour since.

[@philipportelli7700]

They actually wanted to drop Erin Gray for Season Two but Gil Gerald fought for her! And I liked the character of Hawk! He had a cool ship!

[@zt1053]

They could have added hawk but kept the format the same

[@brianknapp6215]

I _did_ like the episode "Journey to Oasis" from Season 2. You had Mark Lenard playing an alien who could _take off his own head-_ fer crying out loud! Plus Alex Silva pulled double duty as both Twiki *and* that weird blue alien Odee-x!

[@DocMicrowave]

I think they actually did 'drop' Erin Grey in season 2. She was almost like a different character.

[@jackdunn5147]

@@DocMicrowave The softened her up alot for season 2

[@jackdunn5147]

I thought the Hawk birdman concept was silly. I know they were trying do demonstrate tolerance but come on.

[@MarcTheLoneGamer]

The Buck Rogers opening music is one of the best and nostalgic TV themes ever IMO. :)

[@Grinlathak]

Muah Ringtone!

[@wolf335599]

Its pure and magnificent disco

[@jhnpwlk]

Gil Gerard is from my hometown. One of the biggest things to come out of small town Arkansas.

[@peanut1001x]

he had a massive weight problem

[@bobbusby5058]

Erin Gray and that signature jump suit gave the show extra seasons. I was a big fan, was it the best Sci Fi ever? Nope, but Erin Gray had me glued to the tv every episode!

[@editingsecrets]

And the outfit was glued to her every episode!

[@MudSluggerBP]

Wilma Deering was my first childhood crush ❤️

[@manofsan]

Pamela Helmsley as Princess Ardala wasn't bad either

[@gshaffer84]

Uber Hot, Epic.

[@randomhandle]

Same.

[@manofsan]

Met actress Erin Gray at a Comicon 10 years ago. She's a grandma now, but she's still a slim & fit-looking grandma. She arranges and chaperones celebrity appearances at comicons.

[@curtismathews1582]

I had a thing for Buck and Hawk and I think they helped me become the Gay man that I am today!

[@EastsideShowSCP]

As a fan of stuff like Buck Rodgers and Flash Gordon, I did enjoy the TV show and played Buck Rogers: Countdown to Doomsday on the Sega Genesis. That game is one of my favorites on the Sega Genesis. You can watch Buck Rogers on MeTV every saturday night on Sci-Fi Saturday nights with a bunch of other shows. Its a nice nostalgia trip.

[@Lordjunon]

That genesis game still holds up for the most part to this day.

[@inthefade]

@@Lordjunon I rented that game many times with a close friend. I remember it being really good, and I thought basically no one else had played it! Great tactical RPG, and the space combat was really fun too.

[@seymourbutts9085]

I was always a fan of Buck Rogers and Flesh Gordon but that's just me.

[@anderclayton9856]

Pretty cool game.

[@EastsideShowSCP]

@Wiley Combs space quest was a hilarious series, same with most if Sierra games during that time period.

[@LordPachotron82]

A little correction: John Carter debuted far earlier than Buck Rogers.

[@thesamster5859]

I was about to say rhe same thing.

[@chadfalardeau5396]

John Carter was written by Edgar Rice Burroughs, the same guy that wrote the original Tarzan novels too.

[@onjohns1]

I came here to say this.

[@nigellemaitre8363]

@@onjohns1 Me too, John Carter debuted in 1912. Buck in 1928.

[@Vesperitis]

@@RyanMercer I'm still sad I'm one of the few people who actually liked the Disney version.

[@navbuoy]

I could have sworn that the Starfighter design was actually a throwaway from Star Wars itself and was eventually repurposed as the Snowspeeders in Empire Strikes Back. Ralph had a lot of unused designs from Star Wars that sorta popped back up in BattleStar Galactica too.

[@wstine79]

There is a MeTV Sci-Fi watch party on Saturdays via Twitter. We watch Svengoolie, Star Trek, Buck Rogers, Kojak the Night Stalker and Lost in Space. The show still holds up, even the 2nd season.

[@babytoshiro7014]

👌 awesome

[@TheRunningLeopard]

I’m so glad I’m not the only one who enjoys the scifi Saturday MeTV puts on.

[@eligebrown8998]

Sweet

[@ajclements4627]

I wish they’d run the PotA series and animated one again.

[@wstine79]

@@brainlock72 I would fix it, but I don't wanna loose my like.

[@altonbunnjr]

Yeah Buck got turned into an intergalactic wise ass in the series. The only good part about season two was when the crew of midgets tried to undress Wilma with telekinesis. And I had a big crush on Erin Gray too.

[@johnthwaites5976]

Only watched it for Erin Grey, she made me feel all funny as a young man 🤣🤣

[@Vato-Psyko-Loko]

I watched for princess Ardala.♥️♥️♥️

[@redbyrd64]

I watched for both

[@Vato-Psyko-Loko]

@@redbyrd64 you stud!!!

[@timmooney7528]

IIRC Erin was originally supposed to cut from the cast in season 2. I think everyone knew that was a bad move. Kind of sad that she went from being Buck's equal in the first season to being a sidekick in a stewardess outfit in the second season.

[@sadev101]

@@Vato-Psyko-Loko ardala was kinda the kinky one.

[@kafan439]

Still one of the best opening theme and credits ever. Gil Gerard and Erin Gray were everything at the time. The original Angela and Tony. The 2 parter where Buck went undercover as a criminal and helped prevent the super-baddies from their plan of destruction still stands as a fave of mine. And Hawk was a pretty cool addition. The roller dancing performance couldn't change how cool this show was at the time.

[@lamartherevenger]

Was watching this show recently and had to laugh. So many stars were on it. Gary Coleman, Frank Gorshin, Markie Post, Dennis Haybert, Jack Palance, and of all people, Jamie Lee Curtis.

[@spacedinosaur8733]

Yep, I got it on 💿 and watched again for the first time after many years.

[@coreylevine8095]

And all of Batman arch enemy were on the show

[@jacquelinecallejas1390]

I remember the Jamie Lee Curtis episode. It brought up co-ed jails.

[@timmooney7528]

Playboy Playmate Dorothy Stratton was also on an episode (Miss Cosmos)

[@kathymartin7724]

@@timmooney7528 yes I remember that episode. Bless her heart.

[@woltzwurld6760]

The phrase “oh my god, WILMA!” was uttered often in the early 80’s.

[@JohnKelly2]

Princess Ardala was my first crush, sorry Leia. And I had that lunch box. I even carried it for 2 years!

[@Elwaves2925]

I never cared for Ardala or Leia in a crush type of way. Wilma Deering to a certain degree but crush wise, I was already spoken with Cassie and Athena from BSG. :-)

[@majorpwner241]

That lunchbox is awesome. I barely even know the show but wanted that when I saw it.

[@Whalewraith]

The weird thing is that at the time Buck was pushed over Galactica, yet Battlestar has had far stronger legs over the years.

[@overninek5139]

I loved this series as a kid. I don't think we'll ever see another version of this Buck, tho...

[@brodriguez11000]

80's was about campy.

[@mayloo2137]

@@brodriguez11000 and it didn't just apply to sci-fi series. You also got night-time series like Dallas, Knots Landing, etc. All those night-time dramas were high camp.

[@speedracer1945]

I was 19 and grew up on comics and after Battlestar Galactica left Buck Rogers was great sci fi with great action and of course Erin Grey who was hot .

[@malcolmar]

Well done! I loved this show as a kid. For some reason, it really captured my imagination back then. Because of changing viewing times back in the day, I was never able to see the whole series. Thanks for the tip of being able to watch this on the NBC website. I am actually more excited about watching restored old shows in HD than watching many of the "new" shows out right now. Keep up the great work!

[@masterpainter72]

The original serial Buck Rogers and Flash Gordon Buster Crabbe made a guest appearance on an episode during the first season as General Gordon(!!)

[@austintrousdale2397]

Remember seeing him on that episode in syndication. Writers gave BC some dialogue that was a nice wink at the audience.

[@gloworm6387]

@@austintrousdale2397 " Son, I was flying before you were born."

[@mikegrossberg8624]

@@gloworm6387 Gordon: "I was doing this before you were born!" Buck: "You think so, huh?" Gordon: "Son, I KNOW so!"

[@MerensWorld]

Yes and Buster is not his Real name. He has a Comic Book Name. Its Clarence Crabbe. They should have had him in the Flash Gordon movie with Sam Jones aka the Highwayman. Flash Gordon QB N.Y. Jets. Busters scene in that episode of Buck Rogers was Iconic.

[@welshhibby]

I love the fact he comes back to earth thousands of years lateR and its the late 70's with disco MUSIC !

[@BenPanced]

WE DON'T TALK ABOUT SEASON TWO. Especially since Wilma looks like she's about to come down the aisle and ask you if you have any trash or remind you to put your tray table back up in its full, upright, and locked position.

[@TheLAGopher]

To be honest, season 2 did have some diamonds in the rough such as The Testimony of a Traitor, Satyr, and The Guardians.

[@brianknapp6215]

@@TheLAGopher "Journey to Oasis" wasn't bad, either!

[@brianknapp6215]

Hey- there's nothing wrong with crushing on a stewardess... especially if she looks like Erin Gray!😍

[@jjm152]

Erin Gray was my 11 year old self's first "she makes me feel funny". I'm sure I'm not alone.

[@bigneon_glitter]

Wasn't a failure any more than the _Flash Gordon_ movie was. Loved _Buck Rogers_ when it aired. I remember it being fairly popular, it was more accessible (and entertaining) than _BSG,_ Gil Gerard ranked high with TV heroes like Lee Majors, & the reruns ran for several _years_ after the original run - bookending the weekday afternoon block of premiere cartoons at 5pm (in my city).

[@BlackArroToons]

@HPMcQueen Agreed, well said, thanks. Buck Rogers was a fun, entertaining series with a number of well-written, varied episodes to keep things interesting along with some great characters and conflicts.

[@ColdRFusion]

Indeed. Yes Gil Gerard was very popular, he was on Battle of the Network Stars two years running '79 & in '80 with Princess Ardala, Pamela Hensley

[@originaluddite]

Two seasons and a bunch of toys is hardly failure by my standards. Then again, I actively seek out one-season wonders, so my standards are pretty low.

[@gladspooky9455]

It's the cheapest-looking show ever made and features the sappiest '70s lead you could possibly cast. They also literally go into a space disco at one point.

[@originaluddite]

I watched Dr Who and Blakes-7 back then so, as a kid, I thought Buck Rogers had slick production. As for the sap, well, everything, especially from the US, was kinda like that then, and everything was disco if it wasn't new wave or punk.

[@mathieu4204]

It's a fun show, but season two feels like a totally different thing. Season's two's only cool factor: Hawk's ship. That thing looks awesome and would have made an incredible toy for 3 3/4" figures.

[@alucard624]

Hawk in general is the best thing about Season 2.

[@ApothecaryGrant]

Thats why he was created . To sell toys . I thought he was awful .So was Chrichton .

[@ob1quixote]

When kids ask how the '70s really were, the answer is they put Pamela Hensley in those outfits on Prime Time national TV. That's how it was.

[@ob1quixote]

Oh, and I'm pretty sure that in our house at least Tigerman and Twiki joined the Star Wars figures, the Adventure People, the G.I. Joes, and the Woodseys in defending the Supertrain from Darth Vader.

[@MegaTempo22]

I know. And Buck Rogers aired during the family hour of 7-8 p.m.

[@ericscottstevens]

Season 1 was great, after that it was a stretch of budget skimping and poor writhing. One thing was for certain, in both seasons Erin Grays uniform was painted on I think, or at the time I wished. One episode has a mic boom dangle in from the top frame, another has an airplane flying in the sky off in the distance during an outside dialogue. Gil apparently was a difficult type to deal with on set, so much so he was sort of blacklisted from TV from there on out.

[@kylebrooks3683]

I always loved the design of tge Starfighters. Such a sleek, brutal shape. It looked fast sitting still.

[@legendmir1]

Completely agree! It’s a fantastic design.. almost out of place in this mediocre TV series

[@samfrito]

Yep. That ship and the Marauder ship were really sleek and could be the thing to salvage from a toy collector. Surprised Mego made accurate toys of them.

[@jlarrybrewer1149]

ABSOLUTELY!!! The Starfighters from Buck Rogers and the Cylon fighters from Battlestar Galatica were the BEST spaceship designs from the 70’s

[@jlarrybrewer1149]

ABSOLUTELY!!! The Starfighters from Buck Rogers and the Cylon fighters from Battlestar Galatica were the BEST designs from the 70’s

[@stickiedmin6508]

@Benjamin Willard It's telling that so many of the absolutely iconic silhouettes and craft designs of my (I could even be as presumptuous as to say, "Our" - it seems a fair assumption that most of us here grew up with the same fascination for cool looking spaceships) childhood can be traced straight back to Ralph McQuarrie. The sleek, pointy fighters from Buck Rogers, The Colonial Vipers, X-Wings, TIE Fighters and pretty much everything else in between; It's nowhere near enough to say that the guy _influenced_ the way whole generations view, imagine and see sci-fi - He directly *_shaped_* all our ideas of how futuristic science fiction / fantasy should look. The world would be a *_VERY_* different place without Ralph McQuarrie . . .

[@half-assedcraftswithbigmik4301]

The starfighters in this series are some of the sharpest designed.

[@Sergiovsousa]

And with the ugliest laser beam colour...what was that? Greenich yellow vomit?

[@therealpaulortiz]

Dan- I just want to say...you've taken the beard game to the next level! Wilma Deering was probably the best thing about Buck Rogers!!! Thanks for the great video good sir!!

[@JasonHauser125]

I loved Buck Rogers as a kid. But even then I recognized the wide disparity from Season 1 to Season 2. It was jarring how much the tone shifted. And the video game Countdown to Doomsday is a flat out classic rpg, very fun. It is amazing how much cool stuff they packed into that little game.

[@djzyx]

I've got blue prints for UFO's and all sorts of inventions.

[@nikolatesla8143]

@Back from the Deadpool yeah sure buds

[@djzyx]

@@darthkai8242 I just was hungry for fish sir

[@Sir_Gerald_Nosehairs.]

Always thought the problem with Buck Rogers was that it didn't have that one good recurring villain that a hero needs. Princess Ardala was pretty hard to root against, she was far too entertaining and far too good-looking, Kane and Tiger Man had their moments of likeability, too. Maybe they should have made more of Emperor Draco.

[@machupikachu1085]

This. To have a story arc, a show is only as good as it's villain.

[@padawanmage71]

I remember watching the pilot movie when it originally came out and I’ve been trying to find it on dvd, Blu-ray, etc. I specifically remember a scene where Buck calls Colonel Deering ‘sir’ out of respect since he knew he’d pushed it too far with his antics.

[@ajclements4627]

On August 17, 2016, Madman Entertainment released the series on Blu-ray to Australia and New Zealand in 1080p. The eight-disc set includes each episode in HD. Extras include theatrical version of the Pilot episode and feature-length version of "Flight of the War Witch" (both in standard definition), the syndicated two-part version of "Journey to Oasis" (in HD), textless opening and closing credits sequences, opening credits without voice-over narration, and isolated music and effects audio tracks on each episode. The Blu-ray sets have been released in various other countries since. As of 2019, all the episodes are available for streaming for free on the NBC app, it’s on Tubi as well. Kino Lorber announced a Region 1 Blu-ray set to be released on November 24, 2020. It includes the movie (in HD for the first time on home media) and seasons 1 & 2.

[@christopherlabye3039]

Also, Colonel Deering was the first time "I felt funny" as a boy. :D

[@NGMonocrom]

Ironically, Gil Gerard was 10,000% *wrong* in wanting to make the show more serious. With the exception of Hawk, and a couple of the stand-alone episodes, season 2 was garbage! More serious was the wrong direction to go. The biggest irony is that Gerard as Rogers was completely believable whenever he delivered those comedic lines during season 1. Had he stuck to acting, the show likely would have gone on for at least 5 seasons (assuming nearly all of the changes in season 2 hadn't have taken place.)

[@only257]

Agreed📼

[@ericmcphail4544]

This. All I remember from 2 is the guy that can remove his head for no good reason whatsoever and the oddly sweaty "ALCOHOL IS BAD" episode where they drink wine and turn into Satyrs.

[@jayexonauts5587]

Agreed. And they ruined Wilma too!

[@rdbull5890]

@@jayexonauts5587 They turned Wilma from an ace fighter pilot to a flight attendant. The only thing she was missing in season 2 was a drink cart!

[@bashsibda6289]

Hawk was the coolest ever.

[@daveroche6522]

"What could she be doing in her cabin with 3 Buck Rogers......pause..... FOR AN HOUR AND A HALF?" Best line ever!

[@davidhanson4909]

Am I alone in hating cute robot sidekicks? Even as a kid I wanted to flush Daggett and Twiki out of airlocks.

[@alphawlff]

I seem to remember Space 1999 suffered a similar fate. First season was good and then they did a 180 for the second season.

[@WritersOnTheWall]

idk about sad failure but I'm literally watching buck Roger's space rocker episode in a parking lot with my kids waiting for my oldest to finish karate class

[@charliepotatoes001]

Coolest Dad Ever!

[@WritersOnTheWall]

@@charliepotatoes001 tell that to my duaghters lol

[@spacedinosaur8733]

Space Rocker episode was the best... along with the Olympics episode.

[@maxcooper6554]

Love Space Rockers! Favorite episode! Besides, who can resist Jerry Orbach as a villain?

[@spacedinosaur8733]

@@maxcooper6554 Buck Rogers had the best villains

[@festushaggen2563]

I was too young at the time to get into Buck Rogers but thanks to my favorite station MeTV and Super Sci-Fi Saturday Night, I’ve finally been able to see what I missed all those decades ago. It’s not Star Wars or Star Trek but it’s and easy watch with a great 70’s vibe underneath the campy sets and costumes. Liked it so much I bought the dvd series for my collection because it’s fun and new TV shows suck.

[@UnclePhil73]

I just got Twiki saying “Bidi Bidi Bidi” all the time out of my head. Lol

[@favoritemustard3542]

Welcome back, Twiki!

[@eligebrown8998]

For sure

[@rickc2102]

I used to smoke strawberry bidis, so a fair number of times that damn robot peeked out from deepest memory to make me crack up.

[@originaluddite]

And then his golden gal-pal from that cruise liner episode was forever saying 'booty booty booty'...

[@eligebrown8998]

@@originaluddite i forgot all about that

[@farleysmoke5130]

Absolutely loved this show as a kid. Need to hunt down the DVDS. Thanks Dan great video 😎👍🏼

[@MikeKaess]

Flint Dille had me put together a short video show casing Buck Rogers back in the beginning of 2020 because he was trying to get some things off the ground. Then the pandemic happened and I have no idea what even happened to all that.

[@warpartyattheoutpost4987]

Whoa! Was Frank Miller involved? They were gonna collaborate on a "Buck Rogers" film a long time ago in a galaxy... well, in our galaxy.

[@MikeKaess]

@@warpartyattheoutpost4987 not to my knowledge. And if he was, he wasn’t involved in anything I was. But I was only involved a short time before all the cons the videos was going to be shown at were cancelled.

[@Cre8Lounge]

Flint from Claster?

[@warpartyattheoutpost4987]

@@MikeKaess, thanks! I'm gonna watch your Black Series Greedo comparison video. I have the Greedo from the cantina shootout with Han Solo box set.

[@dinomonzon7493]

Flint Dillie wrote for G. I. Joe and Transformers.

[@terrenceodonnell6347]

Your channel has grown so much.. Damm the memory's.. Awesome stuff Dan

[@Supremmo]

I met the actors who played Buck Rogers and Twiki. No one was going to their table. The guy who played Buck was trying to get me to buy an autograph and other items. He was telling me he doesn’t get any royalties from the DVD and Blu Rays of the show. I forgot if he gets residuals from the reruns, but the show isn’t shown in a ton of places, so if he does it’s very little

[@TysonNeil]

I met him at a Dragoncon or two and have some autographs around somewhere.

[@markelijio6012]

For "Buck Rogers in the 25th Century," both extraordinary artists were Bruce Broughton who won his first Primetime Emmy Award in 1981 and the special effects wizards of EEG's Boss Film Studios in Los Angeles, California in the second and final season. It's not a bad TV miniseries, it's fun to watch and grow.

[@zepmarq]

I always liked the opening theme. While not as kick-ass as "Airwolf" or "Knight Rider", it was still cool... 😎 In an 80s synthpop kinda way.

[@asyourgm]

And the real-life Saturn V footage helped.

[@zufalllx]

That's the only kinda way ;)

[@shaggycan]

Probably the best opening of any TV show ever, and the 80s had a lot of great openings.

[@phillipthorne8363]

@@asyourgm I was a space-nut as a kid, so I recognized the Saturn V footage for what it was, and couldn't reconcile it with the shape of the "Ranger 3" spaceplane.

[@dwainpannell4931]

There are lyrics to the song look it up on KZbin

[@gringotom242]

I grew up watching repeats of this in the 80s and still love it today!

[@elizabethmolino8262]

Buck Rogers really need a reboot just like how Lost in Space got a reboot on Netflix.

[@iancarpenter441]

No more reboots, re-imaginings or rehashes! They're always bad!!!!

[@paulleach3612]

@@iancarpenter441 Lost in Space was surprisingly good. Slight twists to help seem fresh, but intertextual enough for familiarity. (As for always being bad. Let's not forget Cape Fear. De Niro is chilling in a remake that is better than the original.)

[@LeeStoneman]

@@iancarpenter441 No they're not. BSG was better, Lost in Space is excellent. Most of the time they're worse, but not always.

[@altha-rf1et]

Unless they do it good like Star Trek Battle Star Galatica reboot was awful

[@iancarpenter441]

@@paulleach3612 The original was better for sure. Much more in the way of acting and atmosphere.

[@dogfacedsoldier327]

After reading a lot of the comments below, the conclusion is that we all watched Buck Rogers because of Erin Gray. I guess Pamela Hensley is a close second.

[@dbeane43]

Rediscovered this show by accident on Me TV. Its cheesy but a far as 70s/80s sci fi it ain't bad.

[@julymiller2308]

Currently on tubitv

[@Bunkeralpha]

I remember this show in reruns as a kid. I thought it was great. Another gem lost to time and thankfully I have the series on DVD to remind me now and again.

[@ericheckenkamp6091]

This is sad, because despite the disco funk, and the bad 2nd season decisions there was a really cool show here. I have been a Flash Gordon/Buck Rogers fan forever and this one was great. Princess Ardala....fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

[@a2pha]

I supposed there is a bit of difference between Flash Gordon and Buck Rogers, but not too much. If you're interested you should look at the very epic Flash Gordon movie made in 1980 with music by Queen. Definitely worth watching if you've enjoyed the Gil Gerard Buck Rogers.

[@bunkerzero]

I caught a couple of Buck Rogers episodes on SciFi channel... When The SciFi channel used to be.... cool 😎

[@kmaru80]

God l loved the Sci Fi channel for the first several years

[@elizabethmolino8262]

@@kmaru80 ,It's a shame it went to crap as the years went on.

[@bunkerzero]

I hear that! Loved SciFi channel as a kid, showing old school classics like Lost in Space, Land of the Giants and of course Buck Rogers as well as MST3K (also shows like sightings )

[@l0g1cb0mb]

It was great when it was "This is Sci Fi!", and "This is Sci Fi 2.0" Something went sideways when they changed it to SyFy - that's a bug, not a feature! When they get someone to fix that I think they'll be back on the right track, but until then, they're in they're own Bizarro world not doing what it says on the tin. But I ain't one to gossip... .

[@altha-rf1et]

No I do not even know how to find it

[@raygeorge5242]

I saw a season 2 episode the other day on MeTV. Erin Gray was better looking than I remember. BUT Gil as Buck in season 2 looked doughy, half hearted and about 5 to 7 years to old for the part.

[@jroberts2nd]

While I was the perfect age to have loads of these toys, since I was That Kid Who Watched Any Sci-fi He Could Find and was the target audience-the only thing I had was the set with over 35 pieces. Alas, I don't remember precisely how many pieces there were above 35. This will haunt me forever.

[@CartoonMitchell]

I know I am alone in this way of thinking and am aware that Gil Gerard is a nice, likeable guy - but I wish the series was more in keeping with the 1930's serial with a swash-buckling action hero and edge-of-your seat excitment. The set design looked like what it was, easily dis-assembled boards. The equipment appeared to be a loose combination of simple, flashing lights and borrowed contemporary apparatus, with original markings left on. The scripts derivitive and inspired from other sources. Some visuals were impressive but underutilized. Now, everyone hate me.

[@xposhboyx]

As a child I was totally mystified and devastated that the series just ended in a puff of smoke.

[@emuhill]

It was a puff of smoke that got redirected to your rear. That was what the second season was to the fans. The producers should have known better than to try and blow smoke up the fan's butts as nobody likes that.

[@Fountainwell49man]

Wilma Deering always did it for me. Beedy beedy beedy!!!

[@joshuamstark]

Yesssssss thank you!!! Gil Gerard… resident of the state of Arkansas!

[@christopherlabye3039]

Thank you for the "McCloud" MST3K drop. That alone made me supremely happy. Also thank you for this amazing back story.

[@rustedbeetle]

Erin Grey was my first crush! I didn't know at the time (during the show's first run) that she was older than my mother by a year.

[@Roseeeeee]

Colonel Wilma Deering was 🔥🔥🔥

[@BlizzAz]

I always thought Wilma was way more attractive than Leia... Isn't Clooney a bit old to play Buck though? He's like 60.

[@randomcoyote8807]

Okay, so I wasn't the only one thinking this. Buck hobbling out, waving his cane at the Draconians: "Get off my lawn, whippersnappers!"

[@Sergiovsousa]

Well...Buck is 500 years old...

[@randomhandle]

Came here to make an Erin Gray crush comment. Found that 90% of the comments are Erin Gray crush comments.

[@jeffburnham6611]

One of the more noticeable cross-overs between BSG and Buck Rogers is the control stick of the fighters. It's the same one we see in the Colonial Vipers.

[@keithconnell8460]

The fighters in BR were the original Colonial Vipers before they were scrapped and used in BR instead. At least that’s the trivia line from another channel I watched. Can’t confirm that personally

[@samfrito]

Great video. Brings back memories of seeing the movie in the theater with my dad (RIP serial watching padre) and feeling kind of ripped that the movie became the two-part pilot on NBC. I was a kid. I definitely don't feel as shafted as the MASK / Jace Wheeled Warriors fans. And don't even get me started on Speed Buggy.

[@jgray7440]

The story of Buck Rogers and how it relates to Dungeons and Dragons is fascinating.

[@gameoverinsertcointocontin8102]

I remember playing a Buck Rogers game, which was basically the AD&D rules adapted in a sci fi setting. It was one of the classic 'gold box' SSI AD&D games.

[@fleafrier1]

@@gameoverinsertcointocontin8102 As I recall there was a game just like D&D that was called Gamma World. It was post apocalyptic and had futuristic weapons, armor, etc.

[@ericjones9487]

Erin Gray was always my TV crush

[@stewartglencrose9023]

I feel like someone could sue Red Dwarf, a man in suspended animation, wakes up in the future and a robot called Kryten

[@tigerbread78]

In that case, they could sue Futurama, a man in suspended animation, wakes up in the future, and a robot called Bender (Crichton is spelled differently from Kryten)

[@mistermaestersirthomas9164]

Shhhh, don't even think that!

[@JLvatron]

"Wot the Smeg?"

[@CarolusMagnus2501]

Parody is legally protected as a "derivative work."

[@RobCamp-rmc_0]

I think Patrick Stewart wanted to sue Grant Naylor for ripping off TNG but 1. realized that Red Dwarf was first and 2. sat down and watched it and ended up enjoying it

[@brianslater5935]

I had a Buck Rogers bed, with Twiki on the headboard when i was younger. I also went to the legendary Buck Rogers restaurant in Glasgow Scotland.

[@jackielinde7568]

It's funny that the voice actor for Daffy Duck was cast as Twiki... because there were a few goofs Warner Brothers did on the Buck Rogers stuff... "Duck Dodgers" specific goofs...

[@stevedlu4252]

im very surprised it was not mentioned

[@napoleonwilson6499]

In the 24th and ½ century!

[@HawthornHawk]

@@napoleonwilson6499 a bee a a bee a Big Deal

[@anthustenebris9202]

@@napoleonwilson6499 The extra half is important!

[@Prich319]

Where can I get an Illudium Q-36 Space Modulator? The Earth blocks my view of Venus.

[@KendrickHarrisKenfinity]

We're never "stuck in the future" when we reconnect with our awesome but changed and then short lived sci-fi series. Stay safe everyone!