teqjack
OK, it is a bit dated (the USSR still around). And the effects are not terrific - but for what I am sure was a minimal budget, not bad, in fact if what I've seen was basically the pilot, pretty decent. Especially for 1986-7 TV. Come to that, the movie *Outland* with Sean Connery in 1981 is the only one I've seen to outdo *2001*, made in 1968 (they at least knew that you cannot see into a shadow without a light - that is still being done wrong in 2005)! And it is a cop show, not a science fiction show. So if you're expecting a space opera, forget it. But if you like cop shows, this is pretty darn good - at least episode one, which is all I've seen so far. And as a computer programmer since 1965, I know whence the lead character's skepticism comes - Hello son!
Qixotl
A neglected classic. Wonderful low-key SF tales - the titular police department has only a moonbase and a couple of space stations to deal with, but the stories are thought-provoking and frighteningly believable. Best of all, the good guys don't always win. Top-notch acting all round makes this well worth tracking down. Happy hunting...
The_Anti
Star Cops is something of a rarity, and it should be noted as such. It sacrifices glitz and glamour for plot and character development, something a lot of 'critically acclaimed' sci-fi shows lack.While like Doctor Who or Blake's 7, it did have it's budgetary constraints, and that is probably why the 'story before effects' way of writing developed. Something that can be applied to modern TV, overall. Unfortunately, flashes and bangs win out every day on American TV.Want a good explosion? Turn on Star Trek. Want a good story? Make it worth your while to track down this overlooked gem.
possum-3
No matter how many times I think about it, 'Star Cops' is still quite possibly the greatest science-fiction show ever on television.The premise is simple--cops in space, something that sounds like a recipe for schmaltz, but it's the execution that makes it rise head and shoulders above the capsule description. The characters, through the space of nine episodes, show more depth and range than a decade of latter-day 'Star Treks'. They have moments of irritability, seething rage, intense fear, mild annoyance and sheer terror, played out over plots that challenge the viewer to keep up. This is a show that improves exponentially with repeated viewings, with complexities opening up and incidental moments gaining significance as you become able to correlate them. The characters are often unlikeable, quarrelsome, and rude--much like real people.Dialogue is sometimes cryptic, requiring another viewing for you to understand the joke or the significance of the remark. Often, characters speak over each other's lines, much like real people.The plots, while often standard mystery fare, offer spins new to the science-fiction format, requiring a little knowledge of human nature rather than of physics or chemistry. It's never the science, or a simple whodunit--it's always the motive. The human element is always what is at issue.And NO SF SHOW has ever been so firmly within the possibilities of REAL SCIENCE, requiring no long explanations or technobabble justifications. It is, without a doubt, the most scientifically probable program that has ever been on the air.There are only nine episodes, and that's a pity. Blame the BBC for their infinite lack of wisdom. But at least there are NINE, and that's wonderful.
