Buck Rogers in the 25th Century
Tags: sci-fi

Plot synopsis:
In 1987, NASA astronaut Captain William "Buck" Rogers is piloting the space shuttle Ranger 3 when he flies into an unexpected space phenomenon and is frozen for 504 years. In the year 2491, his shuttle is found drifting in space by the alien ship Draconia, which is headed to Earth for a trade conference, under the command of Princess Ardala and her aide de camp, Kane, a former native of Earth. Rogers is revived from his cryogenic sleep. Princess Ardala is visibly attracted to Buck, but Buck rebuffs the Princess and is put back on his shuttle and sent towards Earth.
It turns out though the Draconians are actually planning to conquer the Earth through staged pirate attacks on Earth's shipping fleet, forcing Earth to seek a treaty with the Draconians and unwittingly opening up their defenses to the invaders. They plant a homing beacon aboard Roger's shuttle to track a way past Earth's planet-wide defense shield. Buck lands in New Chicago and is immediately taken into custody by Colonel Wilma Deering of Earth's military forces. He is interrogated and learns that Earth has been rebuilt over the centuries in his absence following a nuclear holocaust, and now the only thing left is this big city surrounded by desert wasteland. Over the course of his time in detention, Buck makes the acquaintance of Dr. Elias Huer, the leader of Earth's Defense Directorate, the AI computer Dr. Theopolis, and the robot drone Twiki.
While recounting his encounter with the Draconians, Buck notices several discrepancies and suspects that the Draconians must be armed, contrary to the terms of the trade meeting. Against advice, Buck ventures outside the city to the ruins of old Chicago in an attempt to see that what he has been told is real, eventually finding his own parent's grave and having to be rescued by Wilma and her troops from the mutants inhabiting the ruins. Following Buck's return to the Inner City, the Draconian tracking device is found aboard his ship, and the authorities accuse Buck of espionage. Buck claims the Draconians set him up, and eventually Wilma persuades Dr. Huer to test Buck's claims by requesting a meeting with Princess Ardala and Kane aboard the Draconia. The Draconian marauders attack their flagship as a diversion, but Buck manages to destroy them single-handedly, thus earning Wilma's respect.
At the official diplomatic reception, Ardala, who is still attracted to Buck, invites him back to the Draconia, but Buck merely goes along to find out the truth behind the Draconians. On the ship, Ardala says she needs "a man, a REAL man" to rule by her side and offers Buck the position. After drugging Ardala, Buck explores the ship and discovers their plans to attack Earth, which is imminent. Dr. Theopolis and Twiki, who have followed Buck aboard, eventually meet up with him and alert Earth to the Draconian threat. Wilma immediately scrambles Earth's starfighters and attacks the Draconia, while Buck sabotages the Draconian bomber fleet prepared to attack Earth and fights off Ardala's bodyguard Tigerman. During the battle, the Draconia is critically damaged, but Buck, Theopolis and Twiki are rescued by Wilma before the ship explodes. Ardala and Kane also escape the Draconia's destruction in a shuttlecraft, while Kane vows to return and to take his revenge on Rogers.

Review: If that phrase puts you in the mind of Gil Gerard, Erin Gray and lots of "Star Wars"-derived FX, you already know where a movie like "Buck Rogers" is coming from.If not, then let me enlighten you.Most everyone familiar with sci-fi know Buck's story (frozen astronaut from 20th century is revived in the 25th century, must learn to re-adapt).
Felix Silla makes a good impression as Twiki (with a more-than-equal assist from Mel Blanc's voice wizardry) and as Princess Ardala, Hensley gives what must be the most sensual performance from an alien up to that point in time.But the special effects are clearly from the '70s, as is the music (disco music in the 25th century?
A long time ago, in a childhood far, far away...I remember seeing 'Buck Rogers' in the theater in 1978, back when 'Star Wars' was king of the box office, 'Battlestar Galactica' was smashing all ratings records, and science-fiction was experiencing a renaissance of sorts - it was a great time to be a kid.'Buck Rogers' struck me as an all-right kind of guy:  dashing with the ladies, quick with a punch, did a nifty spinning side kick, had a way with a laser pistol, occasionally danced a little disco.The movie itself was a harmless piece of fluff.
Which, at the time, was me.But 'Buck Rogers' had something going for it, something none of the other sci-fi shows ('Battlestar Galactica', et al) had going for them.Erin Gray.Oh, yeah.
BUCK ROGERS IN THE 25th CENTURY could easily have become dated camp, by now (Rogers' disastrous space tour was supposed to have occurred in 1987...did we miss it?), but there's such a sense of joy and humor to the production that it actually is more fun to watch today than when it was briefly released, theatrically, in 1979.
(And in the "Is this a coincidence?" department...Her character is named Ardala, and wears a horned headpiece...Could George Lucas have been influenced by her when he created Natalie Portman's Princess Amidala in STAR WARS: EPISODE ONE - THE PHANTOM MENACE?) The other major male roles are filled by Henry Silva, as Ardala's superbly evil partner, Kane, and Tim O'Connor, wise and sympathetic, as Earth scientist Dr. Huer.
Ignore Twiki, the low-tech R2D2 rip-off (Mel Blanc voices him, with dialog lapsing into disco-era clichés and bad sexual puns), and Dr. Theopoulis (the talking Frisbee...well, that's what he looks like!), and concentrate on the decent FX and Gil Gerard's charismatic performance...and I think you'll find BUCK ROGERS a winner!.
It has lots of hokey, enjoyable dialog, a zippy story of a guy returning 500 years later and dealing with everything he has missed, lots of familiar faces from my childhood, and the aforementioned Erin Gray who actually is fairly tame in this pilot/movie released for public consumption in theaters(Pamela Hensley as Princess Ardala gets to get the motors running in this one!).
Returning to it has brought back fond memories, and unlike some shows that interested me as a child but made an unfavorable impression in middle age - Buck Rogers withstands the test of time and is still fun to watch.
Other notable performances in this pilot are again Erin Gray(I don't know why but my mind keeps shamelessly drifting to her, Hensley, Tim O'Connor in the thankless role of Dr. Huer, Joseph Wiseman, and Henry Silva as Kane.
Twiki the annoying robot is in here, and I am sure I liked him when I was younger but now more than anything I find his role to be unnecessary and a serious detractor from the plot as he seems to be able to understand Buck's language and speaks it with 20th century references to the point of Ad Nauseum.
Gil Gerard is a handsome block of wood playing Captain Buck Rogers, an American astronaut launched 500 years into the future and finding himself in the middle of a space war.
Pamela Hensley is the sultry villainess Princess Ardala while Erin Gray is the no-nonsense Colonel trying to get Rogers out of her way (he seems more interested in loosening her up than flirting with the seductive princess).
Others were a bit uneven; like Star Trek TMP, and this film.The effects were fine, for the time period, but can't hold a candle to today's CGI, or even ILM's work of the era.
buck rogers following in the aftermath of failed battlestar galactica was a corny but fun movie,and TV series following.it is a far cry from the classic original with buster Crabbe,who was gearing up for his last flash Gordon serial,you know flash Gordon conquers the universe in 1940.this movie serves as a pilot after a few edits at the end.Gil Gerard plays buck rogers.the special effects were pretty good,before the upcoming computer graphics so popular now.the cast is very good as well beautiful sexy and smart Erin Gray plays col Wilma deering,Tim O'Conner plays Dr.huer,Pamela Hensley as the sexy slinky and villainous princess ardala.with sinister Kane (Henry Silva)at her side.in the series Micheal Ansara assumes the role of Kane.i first saw buck rogers as a feature film at the movies.in like a few weeks later it seems it was on TV as series.about a year after battlestar galactica was canceled.incidentally buck rogers was also produced by Glen Larson.oh yeah there's also the little robot twiki played by Felix Silla.and voiced by the late great Mel Blanc(bugs bunny,Barney rubble,porky pig,etc;etc;)like i said its corny but fun,its not up to Star Wars but its fun to watch.the series lasted for two seasons.the second season was'nt as enjoyable as the first,since it was revamped and they tried to make it like star trek.as a blast from the past buck rogers delivers some good solid camp.I'm giving it 7 out of 10..
As I recall, it was reported in the press that Larsen said the "Buck Rogers" and "BattleStar Galactica" series were scripted long before "Star Wars" was released theatrically.
The success of "Star Wars" obviously gave network executives the impetus to give these two the "Green Light".If anything, "Star Wars" began to more resemble "Buck Rogers" in adding the romantic aspects that were obviously missing from the first episode of "Star Wars".Except for the war in outer space, "Buck Rogers" was a highly original movie that had the guts(though not the first obviously) to tackle the post nuclear holocaust, and the division between the "haves" and "have nots" on earth (its too bad this was not pursued more in the TV series).
Bad guys, good guys, lots of laser blasts in space: just everything you crave for, if you like sci-fi in that ueberlife comic and pulp magazine style.With Gil Gerard as Buck Rogers and Erin Gray as Colonel Wilma Deering we get a charming duo (love is in the air, even if they still don't know it) fighting the bad guys and saving Earth and humanity.The synopsis tells us everything we need to know: a 20th century astronaut emerges out of 500 years of suspended animation into a future time where Earth is threatened by alien invaders.What else!?
Buck Rogers in the 25th CenturyThe key to deterring space invaders is making the Earth as inhabitable as possible.Fortunately for the future earthlings in this sci-fi movie, modern man almost succeeded.Awoken from suspended animation in 2491, Buck Rogers (Gil Gerard) finds his home world a wasteland besieged by space-pirates being held at bay by Earth's defensive shield.Teaming with a resistance Colonel (Erin Gray), a doctor (Tim O'Connor), a supercomputer and a robot (Mel Blanc), Buck plans to thwart the nefarious plans of an enemy envoy (Pamela Hensley, Henry Silva) headed to New Chicago for a peace treaty.Based on the operatic outer-space comic strip from the 1920s which inspired Star Wars creator George Lucas, this 1979 feature-film adaptation is hindered by its made-for-TV origins, and its similarity to the aforementioned galaxy far, far away.However, unlike Star Wars, you can rest assure that all of Buck's droids are out of the closet.Yellow Light.
It proved to be a modest hit (raking in $21 million), and thus NBC commissioned it to be turned into a weekly series.It starts off with a rather Bondian opening title sequence, featuring several lovely ladies wriggling and writhing their way around, over and under a sleeping Buck Rogers (Gil Gerard) as a vocalized version of the 'Buck Rogers' theme plays.
There is also a special-effects bonanza near the end of the film, when a hologram from the Draconian Warlord appears to chastise Kane (Henry Silva) for launching the attack (and failing!) before his arrival.All of these aforementioned scenes were cut out in the TV Release, to make room for commercials, and to appease network censors.
The only two reasons to watch this are Erin Gray and Pamela Hensley..and only Hensley shows any amount of skin in this one outside the opening credits.If you want real Buck Rogers adventure, I suggest you look to the excellent serials instead...but if you are a fan of the two ladies mentioned above, you might enjoy this rather innocent adolescent fantasy which fulfils the dreams of many a teenage boy-what with two gorgeous women chasing after you-the dashing swashbuckling adventurer..
I can recommend this movie (and the series) to everybody who likes the late 70s and early 80s, something else than Star Wars and especially something else like Battlestar Galactica..
I remember going to see buck Rogers in the theater shortly after the release of Star Wars.
I didn't know who Buck Rogers was but the movie was likable and the series was interesting and well done despite the era that it was done in.
He finds an Earth ravaged by nuclear war (the scene in bombed-out Chicago is particularly amusing to me, as a life-long Chicago native, even if the sets look NOTHING like State Street)but with survivors carrying on in underground cities.Earth is about to be atacked by the evil Draconians, led by a lovely but devious Princess.
Anyway, the Draconians pretend to offer Earth help defeating some "Space Pirates", but the Pirates are really Draconian fighters.What follows are some classic space battle scenes, a lot of running around in dark spaceship corridors, and a classic love triangle between Buck Rogers, the Evil Princess, and a female fighter pilot from Earth.
THE STORY: In 1987 Captain William "Buck" Rogers (Gil Gerard) solo-pilots a space shuttle when a meteor storm freezes him into an orbit that returns him to Earth 500 years later.
They return Rogers to Earth where he meets Col. Wilma Deering (Erin Gray), Dr. Elias Huer (Tim O'Connor) and a curiously phallus-looking robot drone, Twiki (voiced by Mel Blanc), accompanied by the A.I. computer Dr. Theopolis (voiced by Howard F.
This pilot movie (and the series) is quite cartoony and the effects are downright lame compared to the awe-inspiring "Star Trek: The Motion Picture," which came out (at the end of) the same year.
So "Buck Rogers" scores well on the female front.The film is hard to rate because, on the one hand, the cheese-factor is so high with the comic book tone, flimsy sets, dubious special effects and banal storytelling, but the main protagonists and guest stars are outstanding and somehow pull off the material.
Nevertheless, I can't in good conscience give "Buck Rogers in the 20th Century" (aka "Awakening") a higher rating.THE MOVIE RUNS 89 minutes.GRADE: C+.
Titled "Armageddon: 2419 A.D.", the story had spelunker, Anthony Rogers getting caught unawares in a cave filling up with a sleep-inducing gas; kind of like having a cavern full of ferrous oxide (that's Laughing Gas, Schultz!) He slept in that next night for a record 500 years; only to awaken to a future Planet Earth dominated by a pack of outlaw gangs.NEWS about this Sci-fi pulp magazine unqualified success of the appearance in the Amazing Stories lineup soon spread far and wide.BEfore long the John Dille Company had negotiated a pact with the author, Phillip F.
The adaptation changed Buddy's name, century of birth, occupation and relationship to Miss Deering.FINALLY in getting down to today's special guest dissectee in this BUCK ROGER movie.FIRST of all, Buck (Gil Gerard) was now a wise cracking NASA Astronaut, who was held in an orbit around Earth in a Space Capsule filled with that old laughing gas stuff.
There he meets up with Wilma (Erin Gray-Woo,woo,woo,woo!), Dr. Huer (Tim O'Connor), one Princess Ardala (Pamela Hensley-Woo,woo,woo,woo!) and Killer Kane (Henry Silva).
You see, the movie is classified as being 'Made for TV', it did have an extensive theatrical release early in the year; only to be shown on NBC as the premiere, special length episode of the BUCK ROGERS TV Series.
Didn't the special effects look pretty good at that time (just like in Galactica)?
Gil Gerard has a lot of energy in the role of Buck Rogers, and he makes the silly concept work.
They look amateur now, but were not then.Buck Rogers was originally released to theaters in 1978, and showed up as a TV series later that year.
Gil Gerard strikes just the right balance of winking coolness and bewilderment as Buck and Pamela Hensley is very sexy as the evil Princess Ardala.Fast, funny and recommended..
When i first saw the movie on video i was 12 years old, and was addicted with the series to.at that time Buck Rules and the special affects were not that bad at that time but they should not put that Disco music on the series to.
They should make a remake of the movie from 1979 with the C.G.I. effects of today ,with a new script how he could save earth in the 25th century,a whole new SF/adventure with Buck Rogers in the 25th Century with the special effects of today.
Instead of being Earth-based, it was set in a "Star Trek" type of format with Buck and his lovely sidekick (Erin Gray, who was a blonde in the the first series and a brunette in the second) looking for human life in the galaxy.
Shows like this should be for fun, not forums for political indoctrination.Also in the second series, the show also committed near heresy by not bringing Mel Blanc back to voice the robot Twiki.
In the wake of "Star Wars" cute little droids were in, and Buck Rogers had Twiki.
Voiced by Blanc in the first series, Twiki's role was to come out with twentieth century expressions Buck had taught him.
And finally, middle fingers up for series two, after which "Buck Rogers in the Twenty-Fifth Century" disappeared into a timely oblivion.Between "Star Trek" and "Far-Out Space Nuts" this show probably flops closer to the latter.
Buck is then recovered by the Draconian envoy, lead by princess Ardala (Pamela Hensley) and Kane (Henry Silva).
When Buck gets back on Earth he meets, among other earthlings of course, colonel Wilma Deering (Erin Gray) and two robots Dr. Theopolis (Howard F.
The adventurous feel of the film is almost comparable to Star Wars.And speaking of Star Wars, a film that came out two years prior to Buck Rogers, we get to the special effects, which are okay, but not Star Wars quality, which were a lot better even in the non touched up new distributions.
Capitalizing on the popularity of Star Wars, with a lower budget than producer Glen Karson's Battlestar Galactica, "Buck Rogers in the 25th Century" is catered to a television audience who loves the combination of sci-fi, action, and babes.
Gil Gerard's signature role is Air Force Captain and astronaut of Ranger 3, William "Buck" Rogers, whose space ship is adrift after a cryogenic mishap freezes him, awakening 504 years later, in the 25th century, the Planet Earth is not the way he left it, a Holocaust having wiped out most of mankind, cybernetic beings restoring the world slowly, humans actually answering to them.
A lot going on plot-wise in our introduction to the series, including Buck becoming friends with Twiki, a "midget" robot ("Bidi-bidi-bidi"), and sphere cybernetic robot named Dr. Theopolis (softly voiced by Howard F Flynn); carried around on a necklace by Twiki) , who accompany him on various adventures such as his journey outside the inner city, seeing the remnants of what was Chicago (visiting his parents' gravesite) with radioactively scarred mutant humans who try to hunt them down in a trap and on board the Draconian's finest ship when he attempts to interrupt their plan to attack Earth.
Star Wars is an obvious inspiration for the series as Earth's squadron and the masked Draconian attack ships appearing as supposed pirate marauders engage in space battles.
Good 1970's Fun. I loved watching Buck Rogers when I was younger.
Buck Rogers in the 25th Century was the pilot movie that set-up the television series of the same name.
I doubt there's anyone with even a passing interest in science fiction who doesn't know the basic plot: After having spent 500 years floating in space in a state of suspended animation, Buck Rogers is revived by aliens from Draconia.
Buck must adjust to his new surroundings, prove his loyalty to those left on Earth, and help defeat the Draconians.If you're looking for a deep, meaningful storyline, big budget special effects, or award caliber acting, Buck Rogers in the 25th Century probably isn't for you.
But if you just go with it and take it about as seriously as the people who made it seem to be taking it, Buck Rogers in the 25th Century can be a fun, entertaining experience.
One thing I get a kick out of watching Buck Rogers in the 25th Century some 30 years after it was made is the "look" of the film.
"Captain William 'Buck' Rogers" (Gil Gerard) is an American astronaut who has taken off on a 5-month deep space flight.
Personally, I think Gil Gerard fit the role as Buck Rogers almost perfectly and having two lovely women like Erin Gray (as "Colonel Wilma Deering") and the aforementioned Pamela Hensley makes it even more enjoyable.