Space: Above and Beyond

1995

Seasons & Episodes

  • 1
  • 0
7.8| NA| en| More Info
Released: 24 September 1995 Canceled
Producted By:
Country: United States of America
Budget: 0
Revenue: 0
Official Website:
Info

Set in the years 2063–2064, the show focuses on the "Wildcards", members of the United States Marine Corps Space Aviator Cavalry, 58th Squadron. They are stationed on the space carrier USS Saratoga, and act as infantry and pilots of SA-43 Endo/Exo-Atmospheric Attack Jet fighters.

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Space: Above and Beyond Audience Reviews

Cubussoli Very very predictable, including the post credit scene !!!
CrawlerChunky In truth, there is barely enough story here to make a film.
Arianna Moses Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.
Mathilde the Guild Although I seem to have had higher expectations than I thought, the movie is super entertaining.
alex_i-0 I watched this show a long, long time ago. I can't remember details about it. But I loved it so much, I felt giving a little input. Every Thursday night I watched the show on TV. Afterwards I used to dream myself amongst the stars with the crew. For me it was simply magical.First of all. Almost all other sci-fi suck. Yes, they do. Star Trek and Babylon 5 are stupid, with stupid plots: "moral, political, politically correct parallels to or world".This one was different. Hardcore action with a big heart. You loved ALL the characters. You loved the dreamy, sometimes melancholic mood in the episodes. I hated them for killing the show. The ending was rough. No happy ending. Painfully realistic.So I recommend this show. Download it, buy it. Just watch it! And tell me if it doesn't make you dream reach for the stars!
skyking-14 I loved this show, but to the reviewer who chose to bash Star Trek in the process... as one who saw the original when it was originally aired, I can say that you should consider that without Star Trek, SAAB might never have been made! Whatever else you might think, the original Star Trek did the most that could've possibly been done with the technology and special effects of the time. They had to make up with talent, what later shows were able to disguise with fancy effects.No other science fiction series but Star Trek continues to have it's following. There is, to be sure, plenty of room to praise SAAB without slighting any other series. Star Trek changed the way we looked at the future, it's legacy is secure!
tlotr_tloz When a friend recommended me a classic SF series, I was excited. The story of some soldiers defending Earth somehow promised a lot. But I don't think I've ever been more disappointed with a series. It was bad. It had a lot of potential, but never delivered. I started calling it the "almost"-series, because it was almost cool. Almost good. It almost had a good ending, good characters, a good story. But it didn't. After half the series I really didn't expect much anymore. But it still managed to disappoint me. I just kept watching because I wanted to know how it ended. It had to get better near the end, right? Hardly. It's tempting to suggest how this show could have been much better, but I won't. I'll just point out why I (and my brother) didn't like this show. The acting is decent at best. The characters are not interesting enough and there is almost no character development. Two or three go through some changes at one point, but that's all. Overall, they lack something that you just expect marines to have: attitude. Our heroes are supposed to be the best of the best. Yet they run around like some school boys playing with toy guns. Did the writers of the show really think that shouting 'booyah!' every now and then would make them cool enough? The script has a lot of potential, but never achieves full glory. Some of the story lines are truly glorious, but somehow they managed to mess up most of them. Either the acting is subpar, the music suddenly stops when it needs to be dramatic as possible, or the characters utter the most silly and cliché words imaginable. The aliens are uninspired and lack intimidation. You need a lot of imagination to see something else than suited people. Every episode consists of a short story, but it only takes a while before you realize none of them seem to matter. Nothing big ever happens. They're sent out on a mission, run into trouble and barely make it back. They receive a medal and that's the end of the episode. With some notable exceptions, you might as well watch the first 2 and the last 2 episodes of the whole series. I understand that it holds a lot of nostalgia value for many people and I don't mean to offend them. There are some pretty good episodes, but they could have been so much better, even for the mid 90s. Most episodes are just not worth it. I had to go through a lot of trouble to find this series. I had to go through a lot more to finish watching it. o through in order to finish it.
Lee Alon It's hard reviewing this one with a straight face almost a decade and a half later. Through the lens of times passed, it frequently seems goofy and childish, yet the fond memories linger. This was supposed to be the ultimate sci-fi show when it came out, and although it didn't materialize like that in most regards, it remains a likable, no, lovable classic.So all those intervening months may render the costumes and settings slightly unconvincing and even woefully laughable at times – I found myself shaking my head at least once an episode, every episode, when re-watching the entire series on DVD. But the story and the various parts that make up Space Above and Beyond (SAAB) are just as evergreen and tantalizing as they were during the long-gone heyday of the 1990's, when the world was noticeably more innocent and before Lost et al took story arcs and mythologies to the next level.SAAB is firmly a 1990's gig – from its look and feel to the very obvious shadow government conspiracy, this is X Files/Millennium/Nowhere Man/Harsh Realm/Dark Angel territory with a huge helping of Wing Commander thrown in. Of course, a couple of years after this show bought the farm, Starship Troopers essentially lifted most of its look and basic tenets to awesome effect – oddly immortalizing SAAB while never acknowledging it.Like many of its stablemates, it too got the Fox cancel hammer slap bang on the noggin after just one short season. Not surprising and something that goes on to this day – at least the 1990's are with us like that. Thank you Fox. And also like its contemporaries, SAAB was big on telling multiple stories at the same time, but none as convoluted and passive-aggressive as the ones we're getting now.SAAB takes place in the 2060's, when humanity's at war with an alien civilization known simply as the Chigs. This is a racist term, not the actual name, which we never found out. Thanks again Fox.In the background are running some very complex themes, but we're privy to almost all that there is to them. InVitros are growth-accelerated humans born in tanks that look suspiciously like what was later used in The Matrix. They're an underclass that was designed for use as soldiers and workers, and by the events of the show, are rather marginalized and hated. Then there's the Silicates, a race of AI's that revolted against humanity and escaped into space only to cooperate with the Chigs, and a corporate-government conspiracy. Plus, creators Morgan and Wong made sure to include a lot of B/G texture and politics. The observant will be rewarded, and note much of that stuff would never go through self-censorship now – like subtle hints that China was retaken by Taiwan-based nationalists (their flag represents China in the inter-planetary war).But the basic premise is simple – five marines, the 58th squadron, are based on carrier USS Saratoga, where life is much like it was in Wing Commander. Missions, cut scenes and endless drinking at the bar. These guys are OK and it's too bad most didn't do too much afterwards. Kirsten Cloke is Californian Shane Vansen, Joel Le Fuente does Chicago native Paul Wang, Rodney Rowland is InVitro Cooper Hawkes, Lanei Chapman is New York geek Vanessa Damphousse, and Morgan Weisser is Nathan West, nominally the main character, although all get developed equally.The real stars, however, were the two officers – the amazing James Morrison shines as Col. TC McQueen, a more human version of Kirk (and an InVitro as well) and Tucker Smallwood puts in a marvelous showing as Saratoga skipper Commodore Glen Ross. The chemistry between these two is palpably awesome, made better by some excellently witty writing and dialogue. SAAB has quite a few LOL moments that are intelligent and genuinely funny, not idiotic. The writing was strong, and the military terminology and protocol quite extensive, although obviously unrealistic most of the time. The 58th are supposed to be flyers yet get engaged in all sorts of mundane tasks like guard duty and resupply runs. SAAB couldn't decide whether they were Top Guns or grunts – which took its toll on ratings, possibly.Also, it had some of the most annoyingly obvious red-shirts and character shields in history. Everyone outside the 58th, McQueen and Ross died sooner or later – mostly sooner, while nothing ever serious befell the cast. Even when stranded for months on a hostile planet they still looked fresher than the Losties, which is saying a lot. Speaking of planets, almost all those depicted in the show had human-friendly atmospheres and looked mysteriously like the Australian outback. But at least the aliens didn't speak fluent Oregonian like in some other shows.For its time, SAAB was very panoramic and included tons of detail. The effects still look passable today, and sometimes impressive. But the clearly unworkable assault rifles and BDU's are now really showing their age, or maybe ours, for back then I actually didn't notice how ridiculous they looked. Or maybe I just forgot.Either way, anyone with any interest in sci-fi needs to make tracks and get this series on disc. Anyone with a thing for the 1990's – doubly so. Now that the new X Files movie is out, there's an excuse to relive that spectacular golden age, so what are you waiting for?