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The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy Customer Reviews (4 - 6 of 13 Reviews)

BBC-TV's 'Hitchhiker's Guide' Looks More Primitive Than Ever FULL SKULL BABY!

Since its first appearance in 1978, "The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy" has proven to be a surprisingly durable piece of work; it has survived the transition from radio to print to stage to screen, and will undoubtedly continue to survive in fresh new adaptations for generations to come. Although many reviewers have compared it to "Star Wars", I think a more appropriate analogy would be to compare it to "The Wizard Of Oz".
L. Frank Baum (the Douglas Adams of his day) published "Oz" in 1901, and its success inspired him to pen numerous sequels and a series of silent films featuring the characters from the books. Although Baum's films were imaginative for their time, watching one today is a chore that not even an Oz fanatic can do twice. New advances in film technology made the big-budget 1939 version possible, but those same improvements also made Baum's early films unwatchable. In his lifetime, Douglas Adams feared that his 1981 TV adaptation of "Hitchhiker's Guide" was doomed to suffer the exact same fate. With the release of the film version in 2005, his prophesy came true.
Although the radio and print versions of the series had their limitations, the fans could at least use their imagination to fill in the gaps. When the TV version appeared, the unique creations of the imagination were suddenly erased forever, crudely replaced with cheaply-made props and foam-rubber aliens. Despite the best efforts of BBC-TV's technicians and craftsmen, the TV series resembled a stage play more than a science-fiction movie. The only aspect of the radio series that improved with the transition to TV was the narration, which was cleverly illustrated with animated graphics that were lovingly detailed with hidden jokes for fans.
Since first-time viewers are likely to be distracted by the amateurish special effects in the production, the compilers of the "Hitchhiker's Guide" DVD package have decided to draw attention to them in hopes of turning a minus into a plus. A bonus disc is stuffed full of documentaries showing the laughable efforts of the BBC technicians (Zaphod's expensively-crafted extra head can't even close his eyelid), and all six episodes feature subtitles that sadistically point out every technical glitch for your pleasure.
Technical note: the stereo remix may present some problems for viewers not eqipped with surround sound speakers. Peter Jones' narration is often isolated on one channel, which will cause considerable confusion if you're not using that channel. In addition, Deep Thought's voice is drowned in reverb. The simplest way to make the soundtrack intelligible is to choose the mono mix in the setup menu.
The "Hitchhiker's Guide" remains one of the wittiest and cleverest series ever produced for radio, and I strongly recommend that you seek out the original BBC Radio productions from 1978-1979. I'm recommending this TV version only to long-time fans of the series. Newcomers are advised to see the movie - but only after you've read the books.

Hilarious--Deserves more than 5 stars! FULL SKULL BABY!

The recent trailers for the new big screen film adaptation of Douglas Adams' The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy have brought back memories of the BBC's 1981 television adaptation of Hitchhiker's Guide produced by Alan J.W. Bell. Simon Jones resprises his radio series role as Englishman Arthur Dent, who awakens on the worst Thursday morning ever to find a wrecking crew ready to demolish his home to make way for a bypass. David Dixon plays Arthur's friend Ford Prefect, an alien field researcher for the Guide who tries to explain to Arthur that the Earth is about to be destroyed to make way for a hyperspace bypass. Mark Wing Davey reprises his radio series role as former Galactic President turned fugitive Zaphod Beeblebrox, and Sandra Dickinson plays Tricia "Trillian" McMillan. Doctor Who fans may recognize the late Valentine Dyall (The Black Guardian) as the voice of the super computer Deep Thought, or Peter Davison (The Fifth Doctor)as the "Dish of the Day" at Milliway's. And Star Wars fans will be pleased to see a brief cameo by the original Darth Vader himself, David Prowse. The bonus features disc is also packed with lots of fun extras--my favorite being the BBC Omnibus Tribute to the late Douglas Adams. I'm definitely looking forward to the Hitchhiker's Guide movie which opens in theaters April 29th, but I still love this early 80's adaptation of Hitchhiker's. Grab your towel, pour yourself a PanGalactic Gargle Blaster, and enjoy this BBC adaptation of Douglas Adams' hilarious science fiction masterpiece.

Toweltastic man! FULL SKULL BABY!

H2G2 is a masterpiece. For those unfamiliar with the story, the earth is a big supercomputer constructed to determine the meaning to life the universe and everything. It inadvertently gets blown-up to make way for a intergalactic bypass just milliseconds before it finally computes the answer. We follow our hapless hero on his journey to that discovery and the answer itself!

The theatrical sets are decidely low budget but the writing is of the highest calibre. I have to admit to enjoying the books much more than the DVD. However, the characterization and delivery of Marvin the paranoid android is hillarious.

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