ALL SCI-FI

[PumamanRedux]

Star Cops is a BBC sci fi program which mixes the science fiction and mystery [procedural] genres ..

Star Cops aired in 1987. I saw a few episodes the series on a PBS station in 1991 and was intrigued by the premise ...

The series is set 'in the year 2027, a time where Interplanetary travel has become commonplace, it starred David Calder as Nathan Spring, commander of the International Space Police Force — nicknamed the "Star Cops" — who provide law enforcement for the newly developing colonies of the Solar System. The series follows Spring and the rest of his multinational team as they work to establish the Star Cops and solve whatever crimes come their way. Operating in a relatively accurately realized hard SF, near-future, space environment, many of the cases that the Star Cops investigate arise from opportunities for new crimes presented by the technologically advanced future society the series depicts and from the hostile frontier nature of the environment that the Star Cops live in.' [synopsis is borrowed from wikipedia]

Star Cops only lasted nine episodes. I found the show interesting. Each character had a reason for being on the Star Cops and that made things more realistic than in shows we would see in the future:

These descriptions were borrowed from somewhere on the web ... I'm not sure if my bios of the characers would have come out as well as these:

Nathan Spring (David Calder)
Nathan Spring is a 41-year-old Chief Superintendent in the British police force who reluctantly accepts promotion to Commander of the International Space Police Force with the brief of turning them into a full-time professional police force. Spring is a career policeman who has become disenchanted with the prevailing methods of policing which, he feels, are too dependent on computer logic and not on human instinct.

David Theroux (Erick Ray Evans)
Spring's second in command is Chief Superintendent David Theroux, an American. Theroux, an engineer, started out in the US space program but quit and joined the European space effort instead. At first he is shown working as a traffic controller and part-time Star Cop on the European space station Charles de Gaulle. Movie buff Theroux generally tries to maintain an air of wise-cracking, cool detachment

Colin Devis (Trevor Cooper)
When Spring's girlfriend, Lee Jones, is killed the task of investigating the murder is handed to Chief Inspector Colin Devis of the London Metropolitan Police, "one of the Department's all-time cretins". Devis' pursuit of the killer, an agent of the British Secret Service, costs him his job but Spring compensates him by hiring him, at the rank of Inspector, for the Star Cops Although Devis is not the sharpest investigator, is heart is in the right place and he is fiercely loyal to Spring.

Pal Kenzy (Linda Newton)
Australian Pal Kenzy is fired in episode 2 by Spring for corruption. Determined not to go quietly, Spring is forced to reinstate her when she foils an attempted hijacking on the Earth-Moon shuttle.

Anna Shoun (Sayo Inaba)
Rounding off the team is Dr Anna Shoun, a 29-year-old general physician from Japan. Spring takes her on when she is fired for betraying her employers, the multinational Hanimed corporation
Alexander Krivenko (Jonathan Adams)
is the Russian commander of the Moonbase where the ISPF have their headquarters. A winner of the Nobel Prize for Medicine, it is Krivenko's research into bone damage that has contributed to enabling humanity to access space easily. Although the Star Cops are independent, Spring's relationship with Krivenko is often deferential and he frequently seems to capitulate to Krivenko's wishes

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One can watch this series via youtube

Episode 1: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLiIOt3RQJ5DKjr0yzgCoxqbKYZqtJkz4D

Episode 2: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLiIOt3RQJ5DIpylpSKZyw4SiDFJiMCzQL

Episode 3: http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLiIOt3RQJ5DLbZJFlGRml6lsqN67M898z

Episode 4: http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLiIOt3RQJ5DJeg5Jkxa9o7C2okrpOviKx

Episode 5: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLiIOt3RQJ5DKw3aMBk_XSOrK8gW4vm7-w

Episode 6: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLiIOt3RQJ5DLKeCBKb7geLmO0w7MQwfQs

Episode 7: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLiIOt3RQJ5DIL6mpz9PMxKPvUmwfIDP5-

Episode 8: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLiIOt3RQJ5DLRKA1meCgO_KjrRhREtDUe

Episode 9: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLiIOt3RQJ5DKsk_BOcY6wSPPqxh0IA0vg

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oh yeah here is a great Nathan Spring quote:

[Bud Brewster]

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First rate review, sir. Thanks for adding to our humble boards prestige by providing such a wealth of information. I wasn't aware of this series, and finding out they're on YouTube is a real treat.

And the picture quality looks very good.

Thanks!
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[PumamanRedux]

Welcome Bud . . . I think there is one video / audio issue in an episode after #5,, but the video doesn't stop . . . its a minor issue in my mind.

Considering the show is only on dvd in the UK . . . I'm glad I can see it at all in the US

I possibly could hype the #$%^ out of the show, but I'd rather the viewer of this entry watch and decide on whether to invest time after looking at the video

[alltare]

I was impressed by the way the actors were able to simulate zero gravity as they moved around in space.

The series is available on DVD at Ioffer.com in region 1 format for ~$15.

[PumamanRedux]

Nothing new to say about this show .. here's hoping people have checked it out over the years

[Bud Brewster]

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I'll see if Netflix has it.
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[PumamanRedux]

Sadly its only streams on youtube in the US, Bud ... There is /was an official UK DVD set

Special features about the show:


Star Cops An Introduction: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2dDAznkYGwo

Lights Camera Inaction: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2GAT45P7lNs

The Cult Of Star Cops: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4zad1EtE2Eg

[Bud Brewster]

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Whoa, look at this! To heck with Netflix, the whole series is indeed on Youtube. Here's episode one, and you can easily access all the rest from this link.

Thanks, PumamanRedux.

I don't suppose you have a shorter nickname you go by sometimes. I can't quite bring myself to call you Puma or Mr. Redux. Any suggestions? I mean, other than, "Stop whining, Brewster! It ain't that hard to type!"
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_______Star Cops S01 E01 An Instinct for Murder


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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[PumamanRedux]

Star Cops has been uploaded in 10 minute chunks [my links above] or in full episode format [your last post]....

Year's ago one could only view it in chunks

I can be called Mike if you like ... but don't call me late for dinner

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qoYsfbq3vMc

[Gord Green]

Thank you!

I downloaded the series and extras and burnt them to a data DVD. I'll binge watch them soon and let you know what I think.
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There comes a time, thief, when gold loses its lustre, and the gems cease to sparkle, and the throne room becomes a prison; and all that is left is a father's love for his child.

[Bud Brewster]

[Gord Green]

It took me a couple of years, but I finaly got to look at this series....AND i LOVED IT!

I confused this program with the SPACE PRECINCT series , another "police" series taking place in space. There is NO real comparison between the two! STAR COPS had no aliens or interstellar adventures! It was totaly placed in a very realistic background of real space background and was focused on solving a detective centered story based around some very interesting characters. True, it portrayed many of these characters in what could be considered a very stereotypical mode, but that (In my opinion) just added to the tapestry of the mystery to be solved.
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There comes a time, thief, when gold loses its lustre, and the gems cease to sparkle, and the throne room becomes a prison; and all that is left is a father's love for his child.

[PumamanRedux]

Glad to read Gord, alltare and Bud et al liked Star Cops ..

By the way . . .

In 2018, Big Finish continued the story with audiobooks and audiodramas , with original cast members David Calder, Trevor Cooper and Linda Newton joined by new characters played by Rhakee Thakrar and Philip Olivier.

https://www.bigfinish.com/ranges/v/star-cops

[Bud Brewster]

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Good Lord, that's a beautiful website! Thanks for sharing it with the folks here at All Sci-Fi!
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)