Tag: Space 1999

Top 5 Comic Book Picks for 12/12/12

 

Avengers Arena #1 courtesy Marvel

Avengers Arena #1 Sixteen superpowered teens (including members of Runaways, Avengers Academy) wake up on an island with an ultimatum: fight or die! One of the biggest surprises of Marvel Now kicks off this week by Dennis Hopeless and Kev Walker. Imagine X-23 in Battle Royale and The Hunger Games and that gives you an idea!

Batman #15 The Joker holds all the cards. He knows Batman’s biggest secret. He’s predicted when all Batman’s allies and friends will be dead. The Riddler finds out the hard way that not even other villains are safe from the Joker’s mad final scheme.

Cable and X-Force #1 The son of Cyclops is back with a brand new team. Why have these mutant heroes been branded terrorists?

Fantastic Four #2 Marvel’s First Family blasts off across time and space. Can Reed keep the real motivation for this family vacation hidden from Susan? What new threats are waiting for them?

Space 1999: Aftershock and Awe A disaster blasts the moon out of orbit and across space. The crew of Moonbase Alpha will face outrageous aliens as they try to find a way home. I was a huge fan of this classic sci-fi series from the swinging 70’s but I didn’t know there was a comic book series. This trade paperback collects new stories of the crew of Moonbase Alpha.

By Editor

Space 2099

Space 2009 promo poster courtesy The Hollywood Reporter

  As a kid I loved (and often was frightened by) Space 1999. The Gerry and Sylvia Anderson British series will be reimagined by ITV Studios America and HDFilms as Space 2099 according to The Hollywood Reporter.

  The original series followed the crew of Moonbase Alpha. A nuclear waste accident blew the moon out of Earth’s orbit and across space. Commander Koenig and Dr. Helena Russell (real life married couple Martin Landau and Barbara Bain) and the crew encountered alien races and bizarre phenomenon over two seasons.

  My favorite character was Maya. Catherine Schell played the shapeshifting alien who joined the second season. The Princess from Psychon became the science officer and love interest for Tony (Tony Anholt) the head of security.

  My favorite alien monsters (they gave me nightmares as a kid) are in the two parter The Bringers of Wonder. The Alphan saw them as human visitors but Koening and Maya could see the truth. I describe the aliens as a cross between Sigmund the Sea Monster and a pile of Garbage covered with strips of raw bacon.

  Christopher Lee, Joan Collins, David Prowse, Brian Blessed and Sarah Douglas were among the notable science fiction genre stars who played guest roles in the series.

 I’m pretty excited about this reboot news. I always hoped a publisher would create a comic book tie-in to go with my Eagle spaceship toy. Thanks to Dark Horizons for the story. I got so excited I searched for the season two opener with the cool theme song. Check it out and dig the 70’s Sci Fi groove: