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SILVERHAWKS:
VOLUME ONE (DVD)
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So finally after years of the eighties
series being available on other region sets and bootlegged complete
collections, “Silverhawks” is finally on official Region 1 DVD here in
America! I mean sure it’s a classic in its own right, but it’s never
been as good as “Thundercats” and my one concern upon receiving the set
by Warner was that we wouldn’t get a proper treatment and face the
failure of the “Thundercats” DVD’s that just were a giant “fuck you” to
collectors of the eighties nostalgia series. Does “Silverhawks” still
hold that same punch it did after so many years? Suffice it to say that
fellow nostalgia buffs like yours truly may almost be brought to tears
once the theme song pops up. At four disc and thirty two episodes,
“Silverhawks” is not as great as I can recall but still a strong science
fiction series in the tradition of “Thundercats” and “Battle for the
Planets” where an intergalactic force named the Silverhawks watches over
the galaxy and try to put a stop to Monstarr and his evil forces. My
favorite member was always Quicksilver and his friend Tallyhawk, and
writer Peter Lawrence manages to conduct a considerably mature pilot
episode that’s pretty murky and based around the origins of the group as
well as Monstarr.
There’s that and the little lessons at the end of every episode that makes for great characterization on Copper Kid, training to be a Silverhawk, but is really just blatant FCC induced educational material that we have to sit through at the end of every episode. Though I tend to be a hypocrite as I found myself shouting at the screen in many occasions. My problem with it is that we’re in a whole other reality so why should we have to learn about Earth and Venus? And what does it have to do with piloting? However, if you ignore all the flaws, “Silverhawks” is a great companion series to the likes of “GI Joe” and “Thundercats” with its fair share of great characters, a memorable theme song, and some great episodes that flex the storytelling skills of Peter Lawrence. They don’t make shows like this anymore; Rankin Bass were priceless. As for the DVD, we don’t get widescreen representation of the series, but then again this is from television, so considering the age, it’s passable. The quality is strong enough to where the sound and video are all clear as crystal and perfectly enjoyable for the collector or the family looking for a good time. There’s even an English and Spanish subtitle track for almost all audiences. With the Extras we have “Partly Metal, Partly Real” a look back at the series with the admittance that there were some “Thundercats” inspirations there while pushing the neo-noir in space angle, too. There’s even the interview with Maggie Wheeler (Janis from “Friends”), the voice of many of the characters who explains the freedom given during the recording sessions. Within the ten minutes we also get a glimpse at the fantastic “Silverhawks” Kenner toys that were created along with the series, and if you grew up during the time you’ll remember how incredible the merchandise was. As a bonus we also get a ten minute look at the making of the “Wonder Woman” animated movie and yes, I’m getting it. Keri Russell, Nathan Fillion, Rosario Dawson? I’m there, I’m very there.
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