News: THE SHAPE OF THINGS TO COME (1979) Coming to Blu-ray this Summer

On August 30th, video label Blue Underground will be releasing director George McCowan's 1979 Canadian space opera, The Shape Of Things To Come on Blu-ray disc.

Although frequently cited as among the worst of the 70s Star Wars rip-offs, I have admitted here on this site more than once a certain fondness for the low budget interstellar "epic," and I am looking forward to having a high definition edition on my shelves next to Battle Beyond The Stars and Starcrash.

Yeah, it's a pretty dumb movie, but I find it kinda charming in its low budget ineptitude. I like the cast, which includes Space: 1999's Barry Morse, and Buck Rogers veterans Jack Palance and Eddie Benton (a/k/a Anne-Marie Martin) and I also enjoy the miniature effects, which are surprisingly decent for such a cheap production.

The Shape Of Things To Come Blu-ray can be pre-ordered now through online retailers such as Amazon.

Happy Birthday, Colonel!

And speaking of bionics (as we were in the last post), today marks the 77th birthday of the original Six Million Dollar Man, Lee Majors! Colonel Steve Austin is still - and will forever be - our favorite cyborg secret agent!

BIONIC WOMAN U.K. Annuals

As with most popular television series of the Seventies, The Bionic Woman (along with its older sibling show, The Six Million Dollar Man) was popular in the United Kingdom, and received the uniquely British "annual" treatment for young viewers. There were two of these hardcover collections of fiction, games, articles and comic strips, published by Brown Watson and with artwork by Ian Gibson, released in 1977 and '78.

Special thanks to Star Kids Scott Weller (for much better cover scans) and Jeremy Briggs (for additional publication info)!

News: FUTURE COP (1977) Now on DVD

Somehow I missed the announcement, but another short-lived 70s sci-fi series has come to DVD. Mill Creek Entertainment released the 1977 sci-fi police actioner, Future Cop - The Complete Series, last month.

Future Cop starred veterans Ernest Borgnine (The Black Hole) and John Amos as beat cops who are assigned to work with an android police officer named Haven, played by Michael Shannon.

The original pilot telefilm aired in 1976, and then in '77 ABC aired six episodes (including a two-part story, with both parts debuting back-to-back the same night) before cancelling the show. An eighth story was produced as a TV movie, airing on NBC in 1978 as a second "pilot" to try to get the show back on the air with a new network, but it didn't get picked up. The 2-disc DVD set contains all of the episodes, including the TV movies, and retails for around fifteen bucks, although Amazon currently has it for under $10.

I just ordered my copy!

Behind-The-Scenes Pix #52: THE BLACK HOLE

When the inevitable robot rebellion comes... will it look like this?

Some of the cybernetic stars of Gary Nelson's 1979 sci-fi epic for Disney, The Black Hole, pose for a group portrait, presumably during a UK publicity tour. The 'bots are on the Gateshead side of the River Tyne with the Tyne Bridge in the background.

Thanks to Star Kid Jeremy Briggs, who identified the location of the photo over on the Space: 1970 Facebook page.

BUCK ROGERS (1981) "The Golden Man" TV Guide Ad

Here's another TV Guide ad for the second season of Buck Rogers In The 25th Century, specifically the episode, "The Golden Man," complete with misleading and titillating ad copy!

For other Rogers TV Guide promos, check out these earlier posts:

BUCK ROGERS TV Guide Advertisements
BUCK ROGERS 2nd Season TV Guide Ad 
More BUCK ROGERS 2nd Season TV Guide Ads!