Science Fiction

• Stargate Atlantis - Season 5 Vol.1 | DVD | (11/05/2009) from £19.24   |  Saving you £0.75 (3.90%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Stargate Atlantis: Season 5 - Volume 1

• Toolbox Murders | Blu Ray | (26/01/2010) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

• Doctor Who - Die fünf Doktoren (FSK 12 Jahre) DVD | DVD | (28/08/2015) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

• Stargate S.G -1: Season 3 (Vol. 12) | DVD | (21/05/2001) from £5.71   |  Saving you £15.54 (349.21%)   |  RRP £19.99

  The 1994 movie Stargate was originally intended as the start of a franchise, but creators Roland Emmerich and Dean Devlin were distracted celebrating their Independence Day. Episodic TV treatment was the natural next step. In the roles of Colonel Jack O'Neill and Dr Daniel Jackson respectively are Richard Dean Anderson and Michael Shanks. They're joined by Captain Samantha Carter (Amanda Tapping) and guilt-stricken former alien baddie Teal'c (Christopher Judge) to form the teacher's pet primary unit SG-1. With a seemingly endless network of Stargates found to exist on planets all across the known universe, their mission is to make first contact with as many friendly races as possible. Chasing their heels at almost every turn are the "overlord" Goa'uld--the ancient Egyptian Gods who are none too chummy after the events of the original film. The welcome notion of a continued plot thread sees offshoots that follow the reincarnation of Daniel's wife, Sam's father literally joining a renegade faction of the Goa'uld and Jack in an unending quest to out-sarcasm everyone. There's something of The Time Tunnel to the show's premise, but amid a dearth of derivative look-a-likes, Stargate has held its own with stories that put the science fiction back into TV sci-fi. --Paul Tonks On this DVD: the first two episodes of this volume spotlight O'Neill. "A Hundred Days" is the three months he spends stranded on planet Edora by the fire rain of a passing asteroid belt. Then in "Shades of Grey" he appears to suffer a total personality switch when he steals technology from the Tollan and is insubordinate in the extreme. Both these are terrific concepts but are scarcely enough story to have stretched across more than one episode. A little more teamwork is required to break "New Ground" on a planet fighting a war of ideology. Finally, the storyline concerning the Harcesis child from Volume 10 elicits a "Maternal Instinct" in Daniel after the discovery of mystical planet Kheb. But ultimately his agenda only brings them more trouble. As well a trailer for the next volume, the disc includes a nine-minute interview with Michael Shanks on his character of anthropologist Dr Daniel Jackson. He reveals his acting career was inspired by Richard Dean Anderson. There's also seven minutes with production designer Richard Hudolin explaining how the on-location Stargate takes an entire day to set up. --Paul Tonks

• Mahoromatic - Automatic Maiden - Vol. 3 | DVD | (21/02/2005) from £12.98   |  Saving you £7.01 (35.10%)   |  RRP £19.99

  For Mohoro Ando knowing when she will die has given her an opportunity to live and despite experiences that were painful or annoying at the time Mahoro cherishes each and every memory. As Mahoro prepares for a final battle with Ryuga one of Saint's top agents she reflects upon her life and braces for a battle that may greatly accelerate her expiration. In situations as this a year can literally feel like a lifetime! Episodes comprise: 9. Limelight 10. The Fate As A Wa

• Space: 1999 - Vol. 5 - Episodes 17-20 | DVD | (11/06/2001) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £15.99

  When it was made there had never been a more lavishly produced science fiction TV series than Space: 1999, which was British-made on a first-season budget of 3.25 million pounds and ran for two seasons from 1975-77. What keeps fans enthralled after all these years has only partly to do with the first-rate production values, the plausibly constructed spaceship models and expert special effects. The tone of the show is one of scientific dispassion, setting it apart from its TV SF predecessors such as Star Trek in which the mood is more generally convivial. Our heroes here are in dire circumstances that require cool heads as a survival trait: the moon and the 311 crew members of Moonbase Alpha experience a cataclysm, which causes the moon to break away from Earth orbit and travel endlessly through space. No TV series has created a more palpable feel of hard science fiction than this. Of course the show is not without its detractors, having been soundly lambasted for its many scientific errors. No less august a figure than Isaac Asimov criticised the show for the premise of the opening episode "Breakaway", which had nuclear explosions on the "dark side of the moon" somehow propelling it out of Earth orbit and flying through space without regard to any physical laws. And in "Earthbound" aliens travelling to Earth state it will take them 75 years to reach their destination, making one wonder why it didn't take the moon that long to encounter the aliens. While these are valid complaints, fans tend to remember the scientific seriousness of the series and the sense of awe created by the many strange creatures and phenomena the crew encounter on their journey through the Galaxy. --Jim Gay, Amazon.com

• Slayers - Gorgeous | DVD | (20/09/2004) from £25.25   |  Saving you £-5.26 (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Its' dark legacy began a thousand years ago. An evil creature was unleashed in the midst of a demonic war. The mighty warrior Culvert sealed the beast within the land never suspecting it would return for revenge. When Lina Inverse and her sidekick Naga the Serpent enter a kingdom that has been usurped by Marlene Mistress of the Dragons they have no idea of the terror awaiting them....

• Conan The Barbarian | DVD | (24/09/2007) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £9.99

  The Warrior Gladiator King. Through the history of mankind the times that are most recorded in mythology and song are those of the great deeds and fantastic adventures. Such a time was the Hyborean Age. Such a tale is the story of 'Conan The Barbarian'. Cimmeran Conan is captured as a child after his parents' savage murder by raiding Vanir led by Thulsa Doom head also of the snake-cult of Set. Fifteen years of agony first chained to the Wheel Of Pain grinding grain and then enslaved as a pit fighter forge a magnificent body and indominitable spirit. Freed miraculously one day by his owner Conan with his companions Subotai the Mongol and Valeria the Queen of Thieves sets forth upon his quest to learn ""the riddle of steel"" which his father has prophesied will confer ultimate power; and to kill the arch-villian Thulsa Doom...

• Project Shadowchaser III - Beyond The Edge Of Darkness | DVD | (17/01/2003) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £2.99

  A deep space mining vessel 'Siberia' propels itself on a collision course with the newly built 'Comstat 5' a satallite communication station and its unsuspecting crew. After the deadly collision the two space ships are irreversibly locked together plunging toward the gravitational pull of the planet Mars. The crew are forced to board the mysterious vessel in order to save themselves.

• The Tribe - Vol. 2 - Episodes 5-8 | DVD | (25/03/2002) from £7.86   |  Saving you £8.13 (50.80%)   |  RRP £15.99

  Let’s admit it right away, The Tribe may just be the best kids’ TV show ever. To be precise, it’s for older children and teenagers (and their parents will find it insightful, too), the very age group that occupies all the roles in this post-apocalyptic tale. Mixing the scenario of Lord of the Flies (except there are, y’know, girls in it as well) with the visual imagery of Mad Max and the angst-ridden psychodrama of Sweet Valley High, The Tribe tells of a near-future in which the world’s adult population has been wiped out by a virus. Of course, society’s infrastructure has gone, too, so the youthful survivors not only have to deal with all the usual trials and tribulations of childhood and adolescence but must also develop some form of functioning society of their own, without any form of adult intervention and with only the barest amount of technology. What happens, of course, is that all the social ills of the old world, from bullying to teenage pregnancy, are writ 10 times larger in the new. The ways in which the characters cope (or fail to cope) with these issues are both exasperating and deeply moving. --Roger Thomas

• Nemesis | DVD | (18/05/2015) from £5.49   |  Saving you £7.50 (57.70%)   |  RRP £12.99

  In the industrial wasteland just outside of Los Angeles, circa 2027,there's a covert war raging between the cyborgs and the humans. "86.5% is still human", insists superagent Alex (Jean-Claude Van Damme wannabe Olivier Gruner, complete with kick-boxing credentials and thick Euro-warble) but as the cyborg conspiracy builds around him he discovers that humanity is more than simply a matter of flesh and blood. Borrowing elements from Blade Runner, The Terminator, Escape from New York and The Road Warrior and looking ahead to digital "data couriers" of Johnny Mnemonic, director Albert Pyun turns the sci-fi spy story into an engine for a visceral thrill ride of sleekly designed action sequences driven by a dancing camera and a breakneck editing rhythm. It's a glorious triumph of style over substance, the vigorous pace leaving the story far behind and nimble set pieces belying a tiny budget with ambitious action choreography and impressive displays of property damage. Apart from a few clumsy special effects at the conclusion and the requisite collection of scene-chewing performances, Nemesis is a thoroughly entertaining piece of sci-fi trash, a classic example of cinematic energy overcoming the obstacles of plot. --Sean Axmaker

• Invasion - the Beginning | DVD | (28/01/2008) from £5.50   |  Saving you £11.75 (277.12%)   |  RRP £15.99

  After a woman's closest friends and co workers undergo extreme personality changes she begins to suspect that they have been replaced by malevolent alien invaders.

• The Chronicles Of Riddick | UMD | (24/10/2005) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

• Farscape 1.3 | DVD | (10/07/2000) from £9.98   |  Saving you £15.01 (60.10%)   |  RRP £24.99

  An international co-production of Jim Henson's Creature Shop, Australia's Channel 9 and Hallmark Entertainment, Farscape is genre television at its most ambitious, inspired both by the cult appeal of Babylon 5 and the continuing success of the Star Trek franchise. Making extensive use of CGI, prosthetics and state-of-the-art puppetry, Farscape takes a visual leap beyond previous shows. Admittedly, the basic premise may be borrowed from Buck Rogers (American astronaut catapulted to far-flung galaxy populated by strange aliens), while the crew have something of Blake's 7 about them (a motley bunch of escaped convicts pursued by a relentless foe), and ideas such as the living ship are borrowed from Babylon 5, but the Farscape concept has a freshness that makes it look and feel completely original. The production design is all bio-mechanical curves and the script never takes itself too seriously (fart jokes and double-entendres pop up when you least expect them). It must have been expensive to make, but it certainly looks (and sounds-in Dolby Digital 5.1) as if every penny made it to the screen. In true Buck Rogers style, Ben Browder plays leading man John Crichton as an all-American astronaut, although with a more believable sense of bewilderment; the supporting cast is a mixture of Australian and British actors, mostly disguised under heavy make-up.There are five more episodes from Season One on this third DVD box set. "They've Got a Secret" has D'Argo being accidentally ejected into space, as a result of which, secrets of his imprisonment are revealed. "Till the Blood Runs Clear" finds Crichton and Aeryn confronting bounty-hunters. In "The Flax", the crew get all tangled up with some Zenetan pirates. Blue-skinned Delvian priestess Zhaan meets more of her kind in "Rhapsody in Blue", but madness is the result. Finally, "Jeremiah Crichton" finds our human hero stranded on an earthly paradise where no machines will function; falling in love is just the beginning of his troubles.On the DVD: Special features here are a gallery of conceptual art and another star profile, this time of Anthony Simcoe's Luxan warrior character, D'Argo. --Mark Walker

• Ghost In The Shell - Stand Alone Complex - 2nd Gig - Vol. 4 | DVD | (31/07/2006) from £26.98   |  Saving you £-6.99 (-35.00%)   |  RRP £19.99

  While on the trail of Kuze Section 9 tracks down the person who made his one-of-a-kind prosthetic face. There's only one problem - the designer is dead. And the person who killed him is Paz or someone who looks exactly like him! Meanwhile Section 9 has some downtime which they put to good use. During a friendly poker game Saito recounts his first encounter with the Major; when they were both looking down the barrel of each other's guns! But there's still a lot of work left to be done as everyone tries to unravel the mystery of the Individual Eleven and discover the whereabouts of Kuze... Episodes comprise: 13. Make Up 14. Poker Face 15. Pat 16. Another Chance

• The Age Of Robots | DVD | (21/09/2015) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £14.99

  What is a robot? It is a shell for an artificial intelligence, a mechanical device capable of interacting with its environment, a machine that can autonomously perform an assigned task. Robots are also much more than this, something that escapes baseline definitions and has fascinated humanity for centuries. This series guides us through the discovery of the most intriguing projects that robotics has to offer, getting to know machines and ideas that will impact our future or are already part of our everyday lives. We examine a variety of robots in action - from androids created to entertain to machines designed to explore inhospitable habitats, from the wonders of biomimetics to the cities of tomorrow. A unique, exciting and accessible point of view that shows the viewer that robotics no longer belongs to science fiction but to contemporary reality.

• Dune (4K UHD) | Blu Ray | (23/12/2021) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

• Flash Gordon - Space Soldiers | DVD | (16/05/2005) from £23.99   |  Saving you £-11.00 (N/A%)   |  RRP £12.99

  Buster Crabbe stars as Flash Gordon in this classic 1930s serial presented for the first time on DVD. Humanity is doomed to destruction! A distant planet has broken its orbit and is headed straight toward the Earth. While Dr. Hans Zarkov works feverishly to finish a rocket ship of his own design internationally renowned polo player and Yale graduate Flash Gordon is a passenger on a small plane where he meets fellow passenger Dale Arden. When a meteor storm destroys their aircraft

• Dragon Dynasty | Blu Ray | (14/05/2012) from £5.77   |  Saving you £15.98 (398.50%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Returning from China, Marco Polo is given a stone by the Chinese Emperor after successfully establishing trading relationships with the country. Unknown to Marco, the stone unlocks the gates to the dragon world. When Marco is attacked on his journey, and the stone stolen, two fire-spitting dragons are released, bent on killing Marco and his companions. A merciless fight between man and beasts is about to begin...

• Twin Peaks - Fire Walk With Me | Blu Ray | (15/09/2008) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £14.99