Customer Reviews

Cosmos - Carl Sagan [Full Screen Collector's Edition] [7 Discs]

5 star:		(48)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

After watching COSMOS for the third time, I am continously impressed by the bravery and insight of Dr. Sagan's vision for humanity. COSMOS's overarching theme is an introduction to the natural sciences for the general public. Astronomy, Biology, Chemistry and Mathematics are wonderfully reduced to their core concepts. Dr. Sagan may be the only person I know who manages to explain Einstein's special relativity without algebra. For those amongst the general public who wish to understand just what a four dimensioned universe is, there is no better series today than COSMOS. Dr. Sagan stays true to his populist belief that science belongs not only to the scientists, but to all humanity.

However, anyone with a university degree will probably be familiar with the science Dr. Sagan speaks of. The shining jewel of COSMOS is not its scientific content, but its deeply humanistic message of hope. We have all heard about the cruelty of the so called "real world" and "human nature." But Dr. Sagan shows us that human bravery and intelligence has transformed our world for the better and that our world is what we make of it. In one of the most poignant moments of the entire series, Dr. Sagan describes the human longing for an explanation of the universe as an eternal part of our species. We, citizens of the 21st century, are the first generation of human beings priviledged with some of the answers to the questions that have fascinated our ancestors.

Dr. Sagan also outlines the philosophy and history of science. This is especially essential to today's society in which science has become increasing gadgety. While cell phones, computers, the internet, designer drugs populate every segment of our society, the philosophy of critical thinking, factual analysis and of questioning every statement, the very heart of science remains as rare today as ever. Our present civlization is forever indebited to those brave men and women who choose the pain of truth rather the comfort of lies. For those who ever wondered how we human beings progressed from tribal hunters to technogical beings, Dr. Sagan's documentary provides a riveting account.

Finally and perhaps most importantly, Dr. Sagan's documentary provides a unifying vision for the future of human kind. We have reached a time in the development of our species when the power in our hands is extraordinary. The destiny of our world and our species is fully in the our own hands. We can either use this power to continously squabble amongst ourselves, to fight our pointless wars and to poison our environment with blatant waste and race headlong to self annihilation, or... we can set aside our differences, recognize the fragility of our world and embrace the common destiny of humanity to explore the final frontier. Dr. Sagan does not pretend that this journey will be an easy one; every age and time has had those who would at the expense of our world, stirr up hatred, fear and greed. However, by showing that science is our candle in the dark, Dr. Sagan encourages each one of us to struggle against the irrationality and ignorance inside each of us to literally reach for the stars.

From the beginning of time to the future of our world, Dr. Sagan's account of the struggle of the human mind to attain sentience is highly passionate while at the same time even and objective. Science, he describes, is the ultimate manifestation of our humanity, the quest of starstuff to understand itself.

I am pleased to say that as the light from Dr. Sagan's house continue to pierce the darkness of Ithaca's gorges to inspire me, so too does his visionary work: COSMOS.

My first exposure to this brilliant TV series was when I was still at school; and all I knew of Carl Sagan then was he was an astronomer. I was interested in Cosmos because I am a fan of Science Fiction, thus I wanted to see what sort of show Cosmos was. Well...I was very surprised, it wasn't a science fiction show as such, but a science-fact-documentary-type program of self-discovery through Dr. Carl Sagan's perspective-A Personal Voyage.

This personal voyage also imprinted on me as I watched Cosmos week after week, As I too was interested in the Stars of the Heavens. Later I would read several books authored by Dr. Carl Sagan, to try to get to know him better, I am also into science fiction so reading `Contact' by Carl was a must. Sadly I didn't finish the book because I felt it was too boring, thus I felt Carl was not a very good sci-fi writer. (naturally some of you may think I'm wrong)

Anyway, back to business. Watching Cosmos again was a real thrill for me as it took me back all those years, even so, this TV Series back then and even now has no equal. If religion has the Dalai Lama, then science has Carl Sagan, he presented Cosmos in a way that you can understand it, and after each episode, you would walk away feeling you knew something that you didn't know before. The series is just as fresh now as when it first appeared back in 1980.

History Lesson 1: Cosmos: A Personal Voyage.

Now a bit about the show.

This thirteen-part television series was written by Dr. Carl Sagan, Ann Druyan, and Steven Soter, with Carl Sagan as the show's presenter. It covered a wide range of scientific subjects including the origin of life and a perspective of our place in the universe. It won an Emmy and a Peabody Award and has since been broadcast in more than 60 countries and seen by over 500 million people.

A book to accompany the series was also published. Cosmos was produced in 1978-79 with a $6.3 million budget, with over $2 million additionally allocated to promotion.

Cosmos is notable for its groundbreaking use of special effects, which allowed Carl Sagan to apparently walk through environments that were actually models rather than full-sized sets. Example: The Library of Alexandria. The soundtrack to Cosmos is just as impressive and included pieces of music provided by Greek composer Vangelis.

History Lesson 2: Cosmos: The Series.

Let's look at the episodes presented on seven DVDs in this edition.

Episode 1: "The Shores of the Cosmic Ocean"

The first DVD has the above episode and has an Ann Druyan Introduction.

Episode 2: "One Voice in the Cosmic Fugue"
This episode has the Cosmos Update, 10 Years Later (1990), presented by Carl Sagan.

Episode 3: "The Harmony of the Worlds"

The second DVD has episodes 2 &3.

Episode 4: "Heaven and Hell"
This episode has the Cosmos Update, 10 Years Later (1990), presented by Carl Sagan.

Episode 5: "Blues for a Red Planet"
This episode has the Cosmos Update, 10 Years Later (1990), presented by Carl Sagan.

The third DVD has episodes 4 &5.

Episode 6: "Travellers' Tales"
This episode has the Cosmos Update, 10 Years Later (1990), presented by Carl Sagan.

Episode 7: "The Backbone of Night"

The fourth DVD has episodes 6 &7.

Episode 8: "Journeys in Space and Time"
This episode has the Cosmos Update, 10 Years Later (1990), presented by Carl Sagan.

Episode 9: "The Lives of the Stars"
This episode has the Cosmos Update, 10 Years Later (1990), presented by Carl Sagan.

The fifth DVD has episodes 8 &9.

Episode 10: "The Edge of Forever"
This episode has the Cosmos Update, 10 Years Later (1992?), presented by Carl Sagan.

Personal Comment: Interesting to note that this update may have been film in 1992, as a computer diagram shown by Carl is dated 1992, thus I must conclude that perhaps, all the updates on the DVD were not done in 1990, (Although assumed) but in 1992 at the very least.

Episode 11: "The Persistence of Memory"

The sixth DVD has episodes 10 &11.

Episode 12: "Encyclopaedia Galactica"
This episode has the Cosmos Update, 10 Years Later (1990), presented by Carl Sagan.

Episode 13: "Who Speaks for Earth?"
This episode has the Cosmos Update, 10 Years Later (1990), presented by Carl Sagan.

The seventh DVD has episodes 12 &13.

Personal Comment: This DVD set states it has been Digitally Remastered, and it shows in parts, but in some scenes (live-action and animated film) throughout the series, there are no touch-ups, this is because the original may have been unable to be repaired, or those responsible just left the film as is. In any case, the untouched film/negatives does not degrade Cosmos as a whole-so enjoy.

One very big mistake about this DVD Edition is that it does not have a special hour-long interview conducted by Ted Turner with Dr. Carl Sagan. This is considered a must to complete Cosmos as a whole. This missing 14th episode: "Ted Turner Interviews Dr. Carl Sagan" must be added to future DVD releases. Why it wasn't included here is a mystery. (In the past this episode was available on video) I would have loved to have seen it.

History Lesson 3: Cosmos: The Music

For those who want to know about the sound track.

In 1981 a soundtrack LP was released on RCA records shortly following the series' airing. The LP contained short bits of popular and classical songs used throughout the series that were edited into musical overtures or collages. The signature theme "Heaven and Hell, part 1" by Greek synthesist and composer Vangelis was also included.

In 2002 a special "collector's edition" 2-CD set of the music from the series was released to coincide with the Cosmos: A Personal Voyage DVD. The 2-CD set contained complete versions of many of the songs from series, unlike the original release which contained only snippets of the various songs.

Track listing for 2-CD collector's edition:

CD 1:
1] Heaven & Hell, part 1 -- Vangelis -- 1975
2] The Year 1905 -- Dmitri Shostakovich -- 1957
3] Alpha -- Vangelis -- 1976
4] Cranes in their Nest -- Goro Yamaguchi
5] Clarinet Concerto A major -- Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart -- 1791
6] The Pachelbel Canon -- Johann Pachelbel -- 1680
7] Metamorphosis -- Jeffrey Boydstun -- 19xx
8]The Sea named Solaris (BWV 639) -- Johann Sebastian Bach/Tomita -- 1714
9] Partita for Violin solo no. 3 in E -- Johann Sebastian Bach -- 1726
10] The Four Seasons:Spring -- Antonio Vivaldi -- 1725
11] Sonata D-Dur für Trompete, Oboe und Basso Continuo -- Gottfried Finger -- 169x
12] Concerto for Mandolin in C major -- Antonio Vivaldi -- 1725
13] The Tale of Tsar Saltan -- Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov -- 1899
14] Legacy -- Larry Fast -- 1975
15] Russian Easter Festival Overture -- Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov -- 1888

CD 2:
1] Pulstar -- Vangelis -- 1976
2] Vishnu symphony no. 19, opus 217 -- Alan Hovhaness -- 1966
3] Melancholy Blues -- Louis Armstrong -- 1923
4] Aquarius -- Galt MacDermot -- 1968
5] Beaubourg, part 2 -- Vangelis -- 1978
6] The Planets: Mars -- Gustav Holst -- 1915
7] Alien Images 1 -- Jeff Boydstun
8] Fly...Night Bird -- Roy Buchanan -- 1974
9] Entends-tu les Chiens aboyer? -- Vangelis -- 1977
10] Le sacre du printemps -- Igor Stravinsky -- 1913
11] Prayer of St. Gregory -- Alan Hovhaness -- 1946
12] Bulgarian Shepherds Song Izlel je Delyo Hajdutin -- Valya Balkanska
13] Comet 16 -- Vangelis -- 1986 (only the special edition of Cosmos)

Personal Comment: It may have been fate, but one of my favourite musicians is Vangelis, and his music adds another level of excellence to Cosmos; and the other musical additions by famous musicians gives the TV Series that added distinction.

Again, I feel the CD soundtrack should have been included in this edition, perhaps in the future, there would be a "Deluxe" Edition of Cosmos, that would have it. I'm sure as would others that listening to the music of the series will enhance its appreciation.

Final Thoughts.

Cosmos is the best TV Series that presents the mysteries of life, our world, and our place within the Universe; and even today, we are still trying to understand. Dr. Carl Sagan's thoughts for our world, who sadly is no longer with us and he will be missed. But his insight and his message to the human race through his TV Series is just as relevant today as it was back in 1980.

The thing is, do you wish to listen, do you want to hear? If you want to understand just a little, then Cosmos is for you. This series leaves for me anyway an afterthought of who we really are in the Universe and our place in it, but also to question our ourselves, our beliefs, our being to an almost spiritual sense. This earth is the only known planet that supports human life, we may wonder about other worlds, other intelligent life elsewhere, but if we are not careful, the human race will kill itself to extinction, before we have a chance to make ourselves known to the Universe. The eyes of God are watching.

Take the journey of wonder, of amazement, of reflection, of beauty, of knowledge with Carl through a voyage of discovery and remember...remember and never forget...we are all made of star-stuff.

Cosmos

On the Shores of the Cosmic Ocean, I hear One Voice In the Cosmic Fugue, speaking of The Harmony of the Worlds, that are like Heaven and Hell, so many worlds, so many colours, I feel the Blues For a Red Planet, such Traveller's Tales enrich the sky full of Stars that are The Backbone of Night, where one Travels In Space and Time, experiencing The Lives of Stars on The Edge of Forever, it is The Persistence of Memory, that I ponder the thoughts, "Who Speaks For Earth?"

From the Encyclopedia Galactica.

Thanks to Wikipedia, for additional information complete this review.

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This landmark series narrated and co-written by astronomer, astrophysicist, professor, and author Dr. Carl Edward Sagan (Nov. 1934 to Dec. 1996) is the most watched series in public television history.

Sagan takes us on "a personal voyage" through the cosmos (from the Greek meaning universe, harmony) in his "ship of the imagination."

To me, this series is and was so popular for many reasons. One reason is the diversified scientific information (especially historical information) it presents. Along with this you have Sagan's narration with his deep, articulate, punctuating voice. As well, the background music (classical, electronic, and even some "Pink Floyd") is superb and all images (with some new footage) are mesmerizing.

There are many things Sagan says that makes you think. For example, the words that title this review are the first words Sagan utters. Other personal favorite quotations include:

(1) "The suppression of uncomfortable ideas may be common in religion and politics but it is not the path to knowledge. And there's no place for it in the endeavor of science."
(2) "If you wish to make an apple pie from scratch, you must first invent the universe."
(3) "Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence."
(4) "The Earth and every living thing are made of star stuff."
(5) "You have to know the past to understand the present."

There is no need to update this series. However, brief updates are provided for many episodes. Sagan narrates these updates that were recorded a decade after the original broadcast.

To get an idea of the wide-range of topics covered, I will give the names of the chapters or scenes of each episode. Note that each episode begins with an "opening" and finishes with "end credits." (The exception is episode #1 that has an "Ann Druyan Introduction"-Druyan was Sagan's third and final wife as well as the co-writer of this series along with Steven Soter-before the opening.)

Also, I will provide additional information in [square brackets] where I feel it is necessary to do so.

Episode #1:

(1) The Cosmos (2) Spaceship universe (3) Spaceship galaxy (4) Spaceship stars (5) Spaceship solar system
(6) Planet Earth (7) Alexandrian library [great ancient library in the Egyptian city of Alexandria] (8) Ages of science (9) Cosmic calendar.

Episode #2:

(1) Spaceship cosmic matter (2) Heike crab [crabs with curious markings on their backs] (3) Artificial selection
(4) Natural selection (5) Watchmaker (6) Cosmic calendar (7) Evolution (8) DNA (9) Miller-Urey experiment [experiment in 1950s where the stuff of life was made] (10) Alien life (11) Update

Episode #3:

(1) Astronomers vs Astrologers (2) Astrology (3) Laws of nature (4) Constellations (5) Astronomers
(6) Ptolomy/Copernicus (7) [Johannes] Kepler (8) Kepler and Tycho Brahe (9) Kepler's laws [of planetary motion] (10) The Somnium [one of the first works of science fiction written by Kepler]

Episode #4:

(1) Heaven and Hell (2) Tunguska [a place in central Siberia] Event (3) Comets (4) Collisions with Earth (5) Planetary evolution (6) Venus [second planet from the sun] (7) Descent to Venus (8) Change (9) Death of worlds (10) Conclusion (11) Update

Episode #5:

(1) Martians (2) [Percival] Lowell (3) Edgar Rice Burroughs (4) [Robert] Goddard (5) Inhabited Planets (6) Mars (7) Viking Lander [probe that landed on Mars in 1976] (8) Life on Mars? (9) Mars' rover [a roving vehicle] (10) Terraforming [changing an alien landscape for one suitable for humans] Mars (11) Update

Episode #6:

(1) Voyager, JPL [respectively, spacecraft that surveyed our solar system & eventually became interstellar and Jet Propulsion Laboratory of NASA (2) Traveler's routes (3) Dutch renaissance (4) [Christiaan] Huygens (5) Huygens-conclusion (6) Traveler's tales (7) Jovian [or Jupiter, fifth planet from the sun] system (8) Europa and Io [two moons of Jupiter] (9) Voyager ship's log (10) Saturn and Titan [respectively, sixth planet from the sun and its largest moon] (11) Update

Episode #7:

(1) What are the stars? (2) Brooklyn schoolroom [Sagan was born in Brooklyn] (3) Mythology of the stars (4) Ancient Greek scientists (5) Science blossoms (6) Democritus [lived 430 BC] (7) Pythagoras [lived in the sixth century BC] (8) Plato and others (9) Distance to the stars (10) Evidence of other planets [beyond the solar system]

Episode #8:

(1) Constellations (2) Time and space (3) [Einstein's] Relativity(4) Leonardo da Vinci (5) Interstellar Travel (6) Time travel (7) Solar systems (8) Cosmic time frame (9) Dinosaurs (10) Immensity of Space (11) Update

Episode #9:

(1) Apple pie (2) The very large (3) Atoms (4) Chemical elements (5) Nuclear forces (6) The stars and our sun (7) Death of stars (8) Star stuff (9) Gravity in Wonderland (10) Children of the stars (11) Update

Episode #10:

(1) Big Bang [leading theory for the origin of the universe] (2) Galaxies (3) Astronomical anomalies (4) Doppler Effect [important effect of sound and light waves] (5) [Milton] Humason (6) Dimensions (7) The universe (8) India
(9) Oscillating universe (10) VLA [very large array of radio telescopes] (11) Update

Episode #11:

(1) Intelligence (2) Whales (3) Genes and DNA (4) The Brain (5) The City (6) Libraries (7) Books (8) Computers (9) Other brains (10) Voyager

Episode #12:

(1) Close Encounters (2) Refutations (3) UFOs (4) [Jean Franscois] Champollion's Egypt (5) Hieroglyphics (6) Rosetta Stone (7) SETI [Search for ExtraTerrestrial Intelligence] (8) Arecibo [Radio/Radar Observatory located in Puerto Rico] (9) Drake Equation [equation formulated by Frank Drake for estimating the number of advanced technical civilizations in the Galaxy] and contact (10) Encyclopedia Galactica (11) Update

Episode #13: (my personal favorite)

(1) Tlingit and Aztec Indians (2) Who speaks for Earth? (3) Nuclear war and balance of terror (4) Alexandrian library (5) Hypatia [the last scientist who worked in the Alexandrian Library] (6) Big Bang and the stuff of life (7) Evolution of life (8) Star stuff (9) What humans have done (10) Who speaks for Earth? (11) Update

The DVDs are practically perfect in picture and sound quality. All the DVDs are remastered, restored, and enhanced.

Finally, there is a book titled "Cosmos" (1980). Sagan elaborates in this book: "The book and the television series evolved together. In some sense each is based on the other...[the] book goes more deeply into many topics than does the television series...each episode of the television series follows fairly closely the corresponding chapter of [the] book; and...the pleasure of each will be enhanced by reference to the other."

In conclusion, if you want to learn something and be entertained at the same time, then you must see this landmark series!!!

(First broadcast on PBS in 1980; updates recorded 1990; 13 one hour episodes; full screen; 7 discs)

<<Stephen Pletko, London, Ontario, Canada>>

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This is prehaps the most inspiring documentary about the earth and our place within the universe. I have seen the series about a dozen times and its just as interesting each and every time. This would be great material for children learning about the world around them..

+Fred

I have loved this series since I was 21, when it first aired, bought the book, the record, and years later the VHS tapes, which eventually all but wore out. I am from the UK, and I regularly searched for this series world-wide hoping it would be released on DVD - and here it is. This is undoubtedly the best series ever to be released for television, as the popularity of it, even after 22 years will testify, you will not be disappointed with this purchase, especially if you are from the UK, as this version has a lot of extra footage in it making each episode one hour long, leading me to the conclusion that the version aired and released on VHS in the UK was edited down. The music has been re-mixed, the whole lot is digitally re-mastered and it is a great pleasure to own such a landmark series on DVD - at last.

This mini-series was originally aired on the local PBS station about 30 years ago, and was responsible for getting me interested in science as a kid. Carl Sagan's delivery of the material is captivating without having to be flashy. I hear there are plans for a modern remake of this show, but this DVD set is worth a look.

I would rather it take longer to find. I dont see how it can take over a week to ship a product, it is still an excellant possession to have in your hand for anyone who is passionate about science.

This is an incredible show that I remember from my youth. I am now sharing this fantastic series with my son. Thanks Carl Sagan

Cosmos is a fabulous serious. I have been watching the videos repeatedly since being introduced them, and am constantly learning and being reminded about the beauty and awe of this universe, in a thought-provoking manner that is both scientific and philosophical. Sagan is an amazing speaker and thinker, and I am thoroughly grateful he put a project that explores human and universal histories in such a lovely manner.

You can find many other reviews better written then I could attempt. But Carl Sagan has always been a inspiration to me. His way of explaining even the most complex scientific notions so that anyone can understand them is something we don't see much of these days. Although the series is older, most, if not all of it is still relevant in todays society. The universe is an incredible place, and the more we understand it, the easier it is to see the beauty of the reality that we live in.