Buck Rogers in the 25th Century (TV Series) Awakening (1979) User Reviews

20th Century astronaut Buk Rogers awakens after being in suspended animation for over 500 years in his spacecraft

[jefffisher65-708-541158 · 7/10 · 13 July 2013]

I was one of those of saw "Awakening" in its theatrical run prior to the television showing. so was primed for the debut of the series. At age 13/14, I wasn't disappointed with the likes of Erin Gray and stunning Pamela Hensley on-hand by no means. Ms. Hensley must be one of the hottest women to grace American television (and a few films )in the 1970s and 1980s. I won't repeat much of what others have said here about "Awakening," since they have covered it pretty well - I also liked the theme song 'Suspension' played during the opening credits as Buck cavorts with several nice space beauties in his mind over the glowing title of his name while he slumbers(not a bad way to spend eternity had he never been found).

I did find the business of Buck being able to sabotage most of the Draconian fighters single-handedly a bit much; then, as noted, nobody took the project overly-seriously which did help matters in this case. The sequence where Buck dumps Tigerman(# 1) into bed with Princess Ardala is still hilarious, and I think Ms. Gray does a fine job as the jealous/scorned woman when she thinks Buck has chosen Ardala over her near the conclusion.

Ms. Hensley seems to be somewhat embarrassed by this series, or part, which is unfortunate given how many fans it won her(although I enjoyed her on 'Matt Houston' as well in the 1980s) after which she seems to have retired from the screen.

All in all, Buck Rogers... may never be counted as great television, but Gil Gerard did fine in the title role, and there are certainly worse examples of science fiction on U.S. television.

Fun feature length pilot for the enjoyable TV series

[Woodyanders · 8/10 · 13 February 2011]

A meteor shower in 1987 sends brash and impudent smartaleck astronaut William "Buck" Rogers (a fine and affable performance by Gil Gerard) and his space shuttle off orbit. Buck is awakened from 500 years of suspended animation in 2491 and must convince the Earth defense directorate that the wicked, but alluring Princess Ardala (luscious brunette knockout Pamela Hensley deliciously vamping it up with lip-smacking aplomb) and her Draconian flagship are planning on taking over our planet. Director Daniel Haller, working from a cheerfully silly and self-parodic script by Glen A. Larson and Leslie Stevens, wisely takes none of this foolishness seriously: the gloriously tacky theme song "Suspension," a funky sub-James Bond-style opening credits sequence complete with sexy half-nude ladies, the rather chintzy (not so) special effects, the colorfully broad characters, a hilarious sequence with Buck teaching Ardala some hot fancy disco moves at a posh dance hall, diminutive and lovably irritating comic relief robot sidekick Twiki, and, most of all, an amusing and engaging line in blithely inane tongue-in-cheek humor ensure that this baby is a thoroughly likable and entertaining lightweight diversion throughout. The cast have a ball with the campy material: Erin Gray gives a perfectly frosty portrayal of the uptight Colonel Wilma Deering, Henry Silva handles his customary villainous chores with his trademark slimy skill as Ardala's evil henchman Kane, and Joseph Wiseman contributes an energetic cameo as the furious King Draco. A vicious gang of radiation-scarred mutant scavengers, several pitched spaceship dogfights, and a fierce mano a mano confrontation between Buck and a brutish Tigerman (hulking behemoth H.B. Haggerty) keep things lively and exciting. As a sweet extra bonus, the ravishing Ms. Hensley wears a few skimpy outfits that show off a lot of her fine shapely figure. A worthy first episode.

Five Hundred Years Later...

[claudio_carvalho · 7/10 · 9 November 2023]

In 1987, Capt. William "Buck" Rogers is sent to space by NASA in a five-month-assignment in a shuttle. However, there is a malfunction of the life support system and Buck Rogers is frozen. Five hundred years later, in 2491, the mothership Draconia finds his shuttle and tows it on board. Ruck Rogers is awakened without any physical or mental damage, and is introduced to Princess Ardala and his assistant, the Earthling Kane. They order to repair his shuttle, but plant a tracking device to find where is passage through the Earth defense system. Their secret agenda is to invade and conquer Earth that is protected by a shield. Buck Rodgers' shuttle is escorted by Colonel Wilma Deering and her pilots to Earth. Soon he learns what had happened to the destroyed planet and the robot Twiki is assigned to stay with him. But the Earth Defense Directorate believe Buck Rodgers is a pirate or spy and the Draconians are their allied, and Buck Rodgers tries to convince them the truth.

"Awekening" is the pilot of "Buck Rogers in the 25th Century"/ a 1979 series. It is a good episode even watching for the fist time in 2023, and has the same style of "Battlestar Galactica" from the late 70's, both on the trail of the successful "Star Wars" (1977). There are flaws in the screenplay, but the 2:00 hrs. Episode is engaging and funny. Erin Gray and Pamela Hensley are beautiful women and another attraction of this show. Looking forward to see the next episode. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Awakening"

A great start to the series.

[BA_Harrison · 19 March 2008]

Awakening, the feature-length pilot episode of the TV series Buck Rogers in the 25th Century (which was released theatrically here in the UK), is an excellent exercise in camp sci-fi which opens with a brief explanation of Buck's predicament (a malfunction in his spacecraft causes him to be frozen in space for 500 years), and is followed by a gloriously tacky title sequence in which sees our hero canoodling with various space-babes on a giant fluorescent light in the shape of his name.

Following these amazingly bad opening credits (which are accompanied by the catchy theme song, 'Suspension'), we see Buck's craft intercepted by the Draconians (led by the slutty Princess Ardala, played by Pamela Hensley), who are on their way to Earth to sign a treaty that will see them granted limited access to Terran airspace, in exchange for help in the fight against space pirates, who have been attacking Earth's trade ships. In reality, however, the Draconians are planning to conquer Earth—their flagship being full to the brim with fighter craft armed to the teeth.

Buck is awakened, suspected of being an Earth spy, and sent on his way back 'home', little knowing that his craft has been fitted with a device that will send details back to the Draconians on how to beat Earth's defence shield .

On his approach to Earth, Buck is intercepted by uptight Colonel Wilma Deering (Erin 'hubba hubba' Gray), who escorts hims to New Chicago, where he is once again suspected of being a spy—this time for the pirates. Buck is found guilty and sentenced to death, but is given one last chance to clear his name: he must prove to Wilma Deering that his hunch about the Draconians being prepared for battle is true.

With a witty script, decent special effects, and a cast who have are obviously having fun with the material, Awakening is a terrific introduction to the series. Hensley is great as the sexy princess with a thing for 500 year old men, Erin Grey delights as frosty Wilma Deering (the horniest woman to ever fly a star-fighter), and Gil Gerard puts in a solid turn as the charming Captain Rogers, who has lost none of his ways with the ladies during his time frozen in space.

If you have a weakness for dated, cheesy TV trash. packed with innuendo and corny jokes, then watch Buck Rogers—it's perfect entertainment for those seeking some light-hearted sci-fi silliness.

Excellent pilot film to start a great series

[RogerMooreTheBestBond · 10/10 · 29 November 2020]

The 2-hour pilot for Buck Rogers in the 25h Century is slightly different than the Feature film. There are a few sexual references omitted along with the opening James Bond like scene and theme song. They added a scene where Dr. Huer asks for the Death Sentence of Buck to be put off so he can prove his innocence. There is also a scene at the end that sets up the series. Dr. Huer and Wilma ask Buck to join them and help them learn about his century. The ending scene has Wilma wearing her super tight outfit she wore during season 1. She looks great! She wore a teal suit here and wore a few different colors in season 1. The show starts with Buck being frozen for 500 years. He is taken in by Ardala and Cain who run across him in space. They are from Draconia and are in talks with Earth to get along better. They think Buck is a spy and send him to earth. Wilma and Dr. Huer along with Twiki and Dr. Theopolis greet him. They also suspect he is a spy for Draconia. He is later sentenced to death, but is allowed to find proff on the Draconian ship that he is innocent of the charges. Ardala falls for Buck and has some really steamt scenes with him. She wears a really sexy white bikini dress to a dance and looks flawless. Even Twiki says "What a Body". Buck ends up proving that the Draconians are planning to attack earth. He helps destroy the ship as Ardala and Cain escape. There is really a good cast for this show. All the regulars are well cast. Wilma and Ardala are hot and they are good in their parts. Buck is great as well along with Dr. Huer, Twiki and Dr. Theopolis. I cannot believe some people hate the Twiki droid character. He is a great addition to the show.

Buck Rogers: "Awakening"

[Wuchakk · 5/10 · 8 August 2017]

PLOT: In 1987 Captain William "Buck" Rogers (Gil Gerard) solo-pilots a space shuttle when a meteor storm freezes him into an orbit that returns him to Earth 500 years later. The shuttle is discovered in 2491 by the Draconian flagship under the command of Princess Ardala (Pamela Hensley) and her first officer, Kane (Henry Silva). They return Rogers to Earth where he meets Col. Wilma Deering (Erin Gray), Dr. Elias Huer (Tim O'Connor) and a curiously phallus-looking robot drone, Twiki (voiced by Mel Blanc), accompanied by the A.I. computer Dr. Theopolis (voiced by Howard F. Flynn). Buck learns that Earth suffered a planet-wide nuclear holocaust shortly after he launched into space, which has made Earth a wasteland, except for the impressively rebuilt New Chicago and some other cities. As Buck adjusts to the 25th century, he must convince the Terrans that the Draconians are scheming to conquer the planet.

COMMENTARY: Buck Rogers (the character) was originally conceived by Philip Francis Nowlan in 1928. This pilot double-episode (89 minutes) was originally released to theaters in March, 1979, as "Buck Rogers in the 25th Century" six months before it debuted on TV as the debut of the series, renamed "Awakening." In any case, the pilot (and series) is quite cartoony and the effects are downright lame compared to the awe-inspiring "Star Trek: The Motion Picture," which came out (at the end of) the same year. Not to mention the original Star Wars Trilogy that was popular at the time. Heck, for the most part, the F/X don't even hold up to The Original Series of Star Trek that ran from 1966-1969. No kidding.

This doesn't mean, however, that this pilot isn't entertaining. It is to a degree; just don't expect the maturity or quality of Star Trek (TOS). Star Trek is dramatic science-fiction whereas Star Wars is fantasy packaged as science-fiction, which is 'space fantasy.' "Awakening" (and the series in general) tries to walk the line between these two and ends up being inferior to both. But, again, this doesn't mean it's not entertaining in its comic booky way.

While the script for "Awakening" is okay at best (and most of the ensuing episodes as well), the main protagonists and most of the guest stars are outstanding. Gil Gerard in the titular role, for instance, is just as effective as William Shatner as Captain Kirk, maybe even more so, if that were possible. And then there's Erin Gray as Col. Deering, one of the hottest space babes in the history of film or television. Not to mention, Pamela Hensley has the requisite "looks that kill" as the oversexed antagonist, Ardala (although she doesn't personally trip my trigger; she's just not curvy enough). The rest of the series features a gazillion female guests who are often more beautiful than these two, especially the 1st season. So "Buck Rogers" scores well on the female front.

The movie is hard to rate because, on the one hand, the cheese-factor is so high with the comic book tone, flimsy sets, dubious special effects and banal storytelling, but the main protagonists and guest stars are outstanding and somehow pull off the material. It's amazing, but true. There's also something to be said for the nostalgic and innocent style of the pilot and series. Nevertheless, I can't in good conscience give "Awakening" (aka "Buck Rogers in the 20th Century") a higher rating.

Buck saves the day, in the second part of his first adventure.

[BA_Harrison · 19 March 2008]

The second half of pilot episode, Awakening, follows Buck as he attempts to prove his innocence, and foil the Draconian plan to conquer Earth.

Returning to the Draconian flagship, supposedly in order to woo Princess Ardala (after somehow managing to turn down sexual advances from gorgeous Colonel Wilma Deering), Buck discovers that it is the Draconians who have been attacking the Earth's trade ships: they have been posing as pirates, in order to force a treaty, thus giving them the chance to approach Earth unsuspected and launch an assault.

Buck saves the day at the last minute by loading explosives into the exhausts of the Draconian fighter craft, causing them to explode as they launch.

Awakening Part 2 rounds off Buck's first adventure rather neatly, with Wilma finally warming to our hero, Buck forming his friendship with diminutive silver drone Twiki and high-tech computer Dr. Theopholis, Ardala fleeing in an escape craft with henchman Kane, and Buck proving that no computer is a match for a 20th Century US air-force fighter pilot when it comes to space battles.