Jupiter Moon Volume 1: Episodes 1 To 11 (Two Discs) (UK)

I was very shocked and indeed surprised to read the original review on this site. Needless to say it was full of factual inaccuracies.

There are no egg box and detergent bottle effects (well none that I have seen), but it does indeed feature some amazing model shots designed by British Aerospace, built to be fully functioning and at over 5 metres in length, and filmed on 35mm film on one of the largest stages in Europe.

The acting is fine, some were (and still are) working in leads with the RSC, whereas others have gone on to Hollywood success. Anna Chancellor and Lucy Benjamin are famous names now, and Mel Gibson plucked Fay Masterson from Jupiter Moon to star in his won film and she has worked with many other Hollywood names since.

The writing is second to none in the "soap" game, and the science fiction concepts are fantastic. The second disc on this set goes on to explore the mysterious phenomena that has engulfed the Ilea (and yes it is actually named after the Inner London Education Authority), and the final scenes are thrilling, exciting and extremely dangerous.

One for the Star Cops fans as opposed to those who like their scifi full of monsters, blasters and transmat beams, but it is definitely well worth watching.

The soundtrack was written by the award winning Alan Parker, and is presented in its original stereo mix (fairly rare for the time) and only loses marks for not being surround, The picture is what you would expect for a TV series.

The extra features are well above what is the norm for archive TV series, and although not in the same class as the Doctor Who releases, they certainly are a lot better than others.

Overall a great series, and an adventure I can`t wait to embark upon again.

I`ve now seen Jupiter Moon on DVD and it is excellent - the picture so much clearer, and the acting and stories as good as I remember. Bearing in mind the "official" review on this site, isn`t it odd that the BBC Online reviewer calls it "genuinely thrilling sci fi and fantasy drama" and adds that it is "fun, arch, scary and a joy to watch." Perhaps your reviewer simply didn`t understand the series or get the jokes.