Product Description

The crew of the Odyessy a space shuttle orbiting above the Earth's surface looks on in horror as the Earth explodes before their eyes. Commander Chuck Taggart (Peter Weller) a geneticist (Sebastian Roche) Taggart's son (Christopher Gorham) a TV newswoman (Leslie Silva) and an astronaut (Tamara Craig Thomas) escape on a shuttle into space where they're met by a mysterious being who offers to transport them back five years in time to try to save Earth. Armed only with a bit of computer code referring to "Leviathan" Taggart is determined to save the planet. But when the Odyessy crew discovers that even the smallest action on their part can quickly change the course of history in unexpected and potentially devastating ways they must band together and proceed with caution for their rescue mission to succeed.System Requirements:Running Time 935 Mins.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: ACTION/ADVENTURE/THRILLERS Rating: NR UPC: 043396138032 Manufacturer No: 13803

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #21891 in DVD
• Brand: Sony
• Released on: 2006-04-25
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
• Formats: Box set, Color, DVD, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: Portuguese, Japanese
• Number of discs: 5
• Dimensions: 1.00 pounds
• Running time: 935 minutes

Amazon.com
While flying under the ratings radar on Showtime, Odyssey 5 drew loyal fans with a premise that could have yielded fascinating developments beyond its 19-episode run. Before taking show-runner jobs on UPN's ill-fated Star Trek: Enterprise and Fox's 24, creator-writer-producer Manny Coto dreamed up this provocative pastiche of sci-fi ideas, connecting an end-of-the-world scenario with a time-travel twist and an alien invasion plot with X-Files overtones. You could argue that Coto's reach exceeded his grasp, since none of these elements combine to form a fully satisfying whole (especially since the series was cancelled before it reached its intended conclusion), but there's something to be said for the show's entertaining tangents and unexpected complications. It all begins when the five-member crew of the space shuttle Odyssey witnesses the shocking implosion of the Earth, leaving them stranded and doomed to suffocate when their air supply is depleted. Instead, they are rescued by the Seeker (John Neville), a crystalline alien in human form, who sends them (or at least, their mental and spiritual essence) five years back in time, reunited with their physical bodies with a mission to discover what went wrong and save Earth from oblivion.

Peter Weller stars as the brash, foul-mouthed Commander Chuck Taggart, a seasoned flyboy whose 22-year-old computer-whiz son Neil (Christopher Gorham) must now cope with being physically 17 again, reliving high-school (including his first serious relationship) while investigating possible causes of Earth's destruction. Along with geneticist Kurt Mendel (Sebastian Roché), shuttle pilot Angela Perry (Tamara Craig Thomas), and TV news reporter Sarah Forbes (Leslie Silva), their quest leads to the discovery of sentient nano-bots, synthetic humans, and a far-reaching conspiracy masterminded by a NASA splinter group secretly known as "the Cadre." In his pilot episode commentary recorded with Weller in 2005, Coto outlines some of the ideas he would've developed had the series run longer, and these 19 episodes serve up plenty of surprises that hint at the series' untapped potential. That makes Odyssey 5 both fun and frustrating--we're left dangling with an unresolved cliffhanger--but the ensemble cast makes it worthwhile. While the writing skews toward juvenile silliness on some occasions (and veers into full-on comedy with guest star Ted Raimi in the entertaining episode "The Trouble with Harry"), it's clear that Odyssey 5 was pushing conventional boundaries of TV science fiction. For that reason alone, it's a shame it lacked the audience that would've warranted additional episodes. --Jeff Shannon

Customer Reviews

Exceptional series cut down by the idiots at Showtime
An intelligent well written series that was cancelled too soon "Odyssey 5" only ran one season on Showtime before the network in its infinite wisdom (much as the Sci-Fi Channel did with "Farscape") to pull the plug before writer/creator/producer Manny Coto had a chance to resolve the story. Coto went on to revive "Star Trek: Enterprise" surprising the best two seasons of that show and providing one of the most compelling story arcs "Enterprise" had. He's since gone on to co-producer and writer "24". Even without its resolution "Odyssey 5" is a worthwhile show to watch. Working on a shoestring budget compared to most shows Coto managed to produce a number of intelligent episodes with some outstanding acting and effects work. Although the DVD set lacks the powerhouse extras we see on some releases it does include a terrific commentary track on the pilot episode with Manny Cotto and Peter Weller providing the play-by-play on the shooting of the show and unshot episodes.

While completing a routine mission to service a satellite the crew of the Space Shuttle Odyssey 5 Commander Chuck Taggart (Peter Well), biologist Kurt Mendel (Sebastian Roch?), Neil Taggart (Christopher Gorham), astronaut Angela Perry (Tamara Craig Thomas) and TV newscaster Sara Forbes witness the implosion of the Earth. Suddenly the human race with the exception of these five individuals has been wiped out. Running out of oxygen and with no options the crew wait for their end aboard the Space Shuttle. They're saved by an alien who calls himself the Seeker (John Neville "Baron Munchausen" and "The X-Files") whose own world was also wiped out by a mysterious force referred to as Leviathan. It seems the Seeker has been trying to contact other intelligent species for 300 years but each time he arrives it's the same-the world has been destroyed with all its inhabitants. The Odyssey 5 crew are the first survivors he's run into and he offers them the hope of averting Earth's destruction by sending their consciousness 5 years into the past so they can unravel who and what was behind the Earth's destruction.

While some episodes of the show could be a bit routine (for example the one where the crew begin losing their memory had a lot of potential but fails to deliver)the overall quality of the show was extremely high with intelligent scripts that dealt with difficult ethical and moral issues within a science fiction frame work. For example the series frequently deals with the impact when the crew tries to change tragic or difficult events in their own past and how things don't quite work out the way they had planned. Overall the show had much promise and I'm hoping that Coto returns to the show again either in a TV mini-series format (hopefully with the original cast) or film to resolve the cliffhanging conclusion of the show.


Sony has provided us with "Odyssey 5" on five dual layered single sided discs. Although there's some minor digital artifacts overall the show looks splendid. With sharp, bold colors and a strong 5.1 mix. The dialogue is clear and crisp while direction effects are particularly nice during the pilot episode.

While short on special features the show is presented as it aired on Showtime not the version that was broadcast on the Sci-Fi Channel. Manny Coto and Peter Weller provide an intelligent perceptive commentary track on the two hour pilot episode. It's a pity that Sony chose not to have them do a commentary track on any of the other episodes but I'm grateful that we got some extras with this set. I'm sure that Showtime probably had a behind-the-scenes featurette that they aired prior to the show's premiere but Sony would probably have to license that from Showtime. The price for the 19 episodes is a bit steep (but not out of line with other shows of its type) however given the excellent transfer, 5.1 mix and commentary track it's worth it. Coto doesn't share how the series was going to conclude in the commentary track as he has hopes that he might be able to revive the concept for a made for cable movie (Sci-Fi this is your chance to make up for screwing the pooch when you cancelled "Farscape") or a series of movies. I'm hoping that he can pull it all together as this series (and its fans) deserves to have a resolution worthy of its intriguing concept.

A terrific show that certainly deserved better treatment than it received from Showtime (hey if Showtime can keep on some of the trash they've committed to over the years they certainly should have lived up to the commitment to allow Coto to close out the series), "Odyssey 5" may frustrate a few fans because it doesn't have a resolution but the show's terrific writing and acting make this a worthwhile show to pick up for science fiction fans. I knew there was a good reason why I cancelled Showtime.

So why not 5 stars? The transfer is exceptional (5 stars) with great 5.1 audio. The show deserves it but without a resolution and only 1 extra (Manny Coto and Peter Weller's commentary track which is exceptional)the set gets four stars. Hopefully Coto can convince the Sci-Fi Channel (which ran the series recently) to spring for a six hour minin-series to tie up the loose ends much like "Farscape" (a show that Sci-Fi idiotically cancelled and then returned to for the concluding mini-series).

The Executives At Showtime Should Be Fired For Cowardice!
This is absolutley one of the best series I have ever seen in my 40 years of watching television! It's obvious why the executives at Showtime paniced: The show was way too subversive for a politically conservative medium like cable t.v.! The political and philosphical statements Odyssey 5 were literally making in each episode were just too much for the spineless creatures that rule the cable airwaves!

My favorite genre is science fiction & fantasy. I have seen the good, the bad, and the ugly over the years. Nothing, except for Star Trek, Farscape and Babylon 5 comes close to the genius and passion of Odyssey 5! I can think of few television series where I cared so much for each main character, or the extensive range of emotions felt. The series was like theater! There's no other way to describe it!

Had those responsible at Showtime kept Corporate at bay, instead of canceling the series literally in mid-sentence, the eventual controversey Odyssey 5 might have generated would've been good for business!

The only drawback the series had was the importance of watching each episode in sequence. But with all the recording technology now available, this minor obstacle would not have been very difficult to overcome!

The loss to science fiction was incalcuable by the obnoxious cancelation of this unique series. Perhaps, someone soon will have the courage to pick up the pieces and write a book, or make a movie, and finish the series with the same amount of passion and subversiveness as the creators of Odyssey 5 did! One can only hope!

One of the best sci-fi series...
This series is quite possibly my alltime favourite, Manny Coto is somewhat of a genius.

The five main characters (Chuck Taggart, Neil Taggart, Kurt Mendel, Angela Perry and Sarah Forbes) are played by great actors, and are deep interesting and the series explores each background.

The overall plot has been well thought out and is unpredictable so the audience doesn't get bored. The action doesn't ever stop, and there is a fair amount of humour between the characters too, especially in the episode featuring Ted Raimi.

It is definitely a show designed for a more mature audience, as the slightly excessive swearing and naked women make it unsuitable for children.

Seriously worth getting.

Krazy