Amazon.com

MGM is grouping episodes from the new Outer Limits anthology series by theme rather than chronology for DVD, and this first collection compiles six episodes that focus on matters of the heart (and other body parts). Alyssa Milano's nude scene in "Caught in the Act" will probably garner the most attention, but the disc's strongest hour is "The Human Operators," a thoughtful, award-winning take on man vs. machine that's adapted from a story by science fiction legends Harlan Ellison and A.E. van Vogt. This reworking of the 1963-1965 science fiction series is competent but lacks the palpable suspense of the original series. Also, there's no sense of new ground being broken with its stories; the original series took risks with its parables on war ("Soldier") and technology ("O.B.I.T."). The new Limits also tackles issues, but the end results pack a lesser punch. Hardcore sci-fi fans may take to this tempered-down version; all others will find it mildly diverting. --Paul Gaita ... Read more

Reviews (8)

Nice
I like the themed DVD series. I would have rathered by series but the themed ones are just as good. My only complaint is that MGM is really slow and need to get out the rest of these shows!!!

"The Outer Limits" - just a mystic dream
Hi there...I'm from Germany and I like the series very much, too.
I searched nearly the whole Internet to find episode guides and other information about the series. Today I have found out, that the copmplete series will NOT come out on DVD in our country.

Of course, the two Discs are not bad, but where's the rest ??

"The X-Files" is also out there, but why not "The Outer Limits" ?

However, I'll buy the Original Soundtrack - that's enough for the moment.

And let us hope that at least the two DVDs will also come out in our language.

Mike

Pushing the limits
The original OUTER LIMITS series aired in the early 1960s. It was often compared with its rival (and more popular) show, THE TWILIGHT ZONE. However, there was a distinctive difference between the two shows. TZ only sometimes had stories that belonged in the science fiction genre, while OL was STRICTLY 100% of the science fiction genre.

In the mid-1990s the show idea was renewed on SHOWTIME. Being on SHOWTIME meant that the writers did not have to worry about censors. So, what resulted was a science fiction show with a nice blend of eroticism. The current DVD is 4 of the top episodes from the seasons on cable.

3 of the 4 stories deal with the concept of artificial intelligence, which is a "biggie" at this juncture as we stand right on the threshold of making AI a reality. The fourth story is the most "pure" science fiction story as it takes place almost entirely in outer space.

From the eroticism side of the house, it is good to see that the nudity / sensuality is not contrived in the stories. Rather, it follows along naturally w/the storyline. For me that is the whole KEY to making eroticism "work."

The biggest names in the casting are Alyssa Milano, Natasha Henstridge and the voice of Malcom MacDowell. The sultry Milano does a nude scene which is likely enough to entice a great many people to purchase the DVD. Milano does a memorable job of going from the innocent girl-next-door to seductive vixen in World Record speed.

Although I have never been a huge fan of behind the scenes material on DVD, this does offer a decent package of the thoughts and perspectives of the creation of the storylines. It also gives us some insight from one of the makers of the original OL.

If you like science fiction movies and short stories, you will like this movie. If you like erotic movies, you will like this DVD. If you like science fiction movies AND erotic films, you will LOVE this one!

Good Episodes But...
video transfer quality was poor. Lots of video noise artifacts, making enjoyment of episodes a struggle. Very disappointed. What kind of "master" did MGM use, a copy of a copy?! 2/5

ahhhhh! just right
i usually like television on dvd to come out by the seasons, but i am glad ...no make that ecstatic that m.g.m decided to put these by themes. with six 45 minute stand alone episodes on each disk seperated by themes you can't go wrong......even if M.G.M follows its historical pattern of releasing a few dvds of a series and then following that up with a complete box set you won't regret buying these especially at this great price. ... Read more

Amazon.com

The consequences of time travel are the thematic framework for thiscompilation of episodes from the revamped Outer Limits anthology series,produced for the Showtime network. The six stories compiled here are indicativeof the new version's competent but uneventful nature; scripting, performances,and direction (all hampered by the program's low budget) rarely live up to theplots' potential or the drama and suspense of the original series. AmandaPlummer's Emmy-winning turn as a scientist who travels 50 years into the past tocommit a murder in the Season Two episode "A Stitch in Time" is the highlight ofthe disc; the rest (culled from the series' seven-season run) offer well-wornvariations on time travel themes. The full-frame disc includes "The Outer LimitsStory," which offers talking-head interviews with executive producers PenDensham and Mark Stern, as well as featurettes on each episode. --PaulGaita ... Read more

Reviews (15)

Some good, some bad
Time travel is a very difficult topic to have a story about, mostly because of the holes one can place in time and space. However, these in general were very good stories.

Easily, A Stitch in Time is the best episode.... and one of the best time travel stories I have experienced in a long time. They do a very good job of exploring these holes that are created. This is also the best Outer Limits episodes that I have seen so far.

Okay, I've got a soft spot when it comes to storied dealing with families. I really enjoyed Tribunal. Other than the fact that the main character would need to speak Yidish, English, and German fluently for this story to make sense... it really pulled at the ol' heart strings.

Gettysburg really turned me off. Maybe I was surprised to see Prentice again. Maybe it was because of what Prentice was trying to accomplish. It seemed like there were a million different ways to change what he was trying to prevent from happening, and he chose the most complicated way to do it.

I said, "What, Prentice again!!!" when Time to Time came on. The statement by Prenice's co-worker on what it takes to time travel would have been cute and funny if it didn't completely put a huge hole in the former two stories. It reminded me a bit of the movie, "Millennium."

Deja Vu reminded me of a Star Trek episode where Data went through the same thing that Kevin Nealon did and also Groundhog Day (one of the best movies EVER!!!). It was entertaining once, but I think it lacked the shock and awe that the writers were going for (none of their big surprises were big surprises).

And Patient Zero. Okay, a big hole is building a time machine to go into the past and stop something from happening because at this time you lose the incentive to build the time machine in the first place and sending that person back. So, the person shouldn't exist in the first place and the universe shoud blow up. This episode was predictable all the way and left me very disappointed.

Overall, I really liked the first two episodes and Deja Vu. The others I never really got in to. I know that time travel is a difficult subject (I still haven't found the perfect one yet, but A Stitch in Time came VERY close), but the three episodes I didn't like forced me to dock the movie two stars. Also, I would love it if the Outer Limits didn't do themes, but released it season by season. I might have liked these all more if I hadn't watched one story after another. I also have a feeling that they WILL release them season by season in the future and I'll regret these purchases. Of course, I'll need a time machine or just have to wait to find out if I'm correct.

Outer Limits Time Travel Stories
This DVD has 6 "Outer Limits time travel stories" of the series. Maybe with a little luck, we will see the series put out on DVD by season.

1) A Stitch in Time - season 2 - Jamie Perrin of the FBI investigates the murder of 17 men that have been killed with the same gun over the last 50 years. The gun is traced to Dr. Theresa Givens who was 5 years old at the time of the 1st murder and to add to the mystery the gun had not yet been invented.

2) Tribunal - season 5 - At the Birkenau concentration camp Leon Zgierski watches Karl Rademacher shoot his wife and send his daughter to the gas chamber. A time traveler who grabs Radermacher's jacket sees the event.

3) Gettysburg - season 6 - Andy and Vince spend their weekends reacting battles from the Civil War. When their picture is taken with an old camera they find themselves on the eve of an 1863 battle.

4) Time to Time - season 7 - A daughter travels back in time to change her father's destiny.

5) Déjà vu - season 5 - Mark Crest builds a teleportation machine to transport some animals across the desert.

6) Patient Zero - season 7 - A man from the future arrives in the present to kill the carrier of a plague that could destroy humanity.

For all time
The SHOWTIMES cable channel has brought back the 1950s science fiction series THE OUTER LIMITS. In it the series has updated technology & special effects as well as theme-lines to match the late 20th century.

SHOWTIME has begun to release some of the "best-of" on DVD via general motif. Each DVD has 4 episodes. The previous installment was called SEX AND SCIENCE fiction & the stories were a nice blend of eroticism & Sci-fi.

The current DVD contains 4 episodes centered around the concept of time travel. Of the 4, the 2nd story [THE TRIAL] is by far & away the most poignant. It details a story about a Jewish concentration camp and is vividly moving. The 2nd story alone is worth the price of the DVD.

3 of the 4 stories are about a time-traveller from the future (including THE TRIAL). Of all 4 episodes, the fourth is the weakest. They layer on some elements from the 2nd and 3rd stories and it all comes across as being very ad-hoc.

If time travel is an interest of yours, here is a DVD with some fresh approaches to the topic. If you prefer erotic science fiction, I would recommend the 1st OUTER LIMITS compilation of stories. If (like me!) you are an avid sci-fi fan across-the-board, I would think both DVDs should be in your collection.

Top of the Crop to Bottom of the Barrel
These episodes range from some of the very best of the Outer Limits (Stitch in Time, Tribunal, Deja Vu) to the mediocre (Gettysburg, Time to Time) and the out-and-out bad (Patient Zero). Still, based on the superb quality of the three good ones (Tribunal in particular is a very intelligent treatment of time travel -- look carefully at the Nazis that take the old man's daughter away from him in the flashback sequence, for example)this is worth the money.

A must have.
Did you like the New Outer Limits? If so, this is an excellent DVD for you to own. I really wish they would come out with the seasons in box form, but this will keep me happy until that day arrives. A very well done edition. In every way. ... Read more