Customer Reviews

Dark Angel: The Complete Series

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I wasn't sure what to expect as apparently I missed out on the series when it aired in Australia a few years back. Originally I was in two minds whether to buy the set or not and was only looking at it because Jensen Ackles was in it. Then I saw that Michael Weatherly was one of the lead characters with Jessica Alba and decided to purchase both seasons. I was not disappointed at all. The first season set up the big picture of genetically altered humans and followed through on Max's journey to find out who she was. The writers didn't deviate from the 'plan' in season one at all and there wasn't an episode that I didn't like. Season Two mainly concentrated on the transgenics which were released from Manticore and to the main cast added Joshua (Kevin Durand) and Alec (Jensen Ackles). Just loved the way that each episode panned out with a special story about some of the 'mutant' transgenics. Once again the writers stuck to the 'plan' and mainly concentrated on the transgenics story and once again I was not disappointed by any episode. The finale was excellently done by the writers. I would recommend this TV Show to anyone who likes a bit of sci-fi. Some people didn't like it, but mostly I just couldn't stop watching the series until I had finished it.

Let's be real. While Fox has had alot of great series like The Simpsons, Family Guy, and MadTv, they've been notorious for killing shows long before their time. Dark Angel was one of them. I was a really big fan of the show from jump. I was 13 at the time and not a sci-fi fan in the least, but something about how well the show flowed and the characters drew my attention kept me hooked.

Jessica Alba starred as Max Guevara, a genetically enhanced (as in not a cyborg or any other type of machine) girl who escaped from a secret government owned and run breeding/super-soldier training institution called Manticore. Max (X5-452) was apart of the X-5 series (previous X series were unsuccessful) and along with her "brothers and sisters" (other X-5 kids) were exposed to nightmarish experiments and brutal warfare training, but eventually made the decision to run away. The first 5 minutes or so of the pilot episode chronicles their great escape. Max and eleven of her siblings succesfully escape, but are all separated. A few months later, a terrorist activated electromagnetic pulse (simply called The Pulse) hits and turns the US into virtually a third world country. All technology is destroyed and chaos abounds. Because of this, Max is able to slip into the real world unnoticed.

The rest of the show picks up ten years later and Max is living in Seattle working as a bike messenger at Jam Pony. She enjoys being a regular girl and chillin' with her friends. Her best friend is the always sassy, "tell it like it is" black lesbian Original Cindy (Valarie Rae Miller). Cindy has always got her back and some of the funniest lines in the series. Max squats with another close girlfriend named Kendra (Jennifer Blanc) who is quite hetero and always on the prowl. Her other two friends are the stoner with a heart of gold Sketchy (Richard Gunn) and the always optimistic Jamacian mon Herbal Thought (Alimi Ballard). Her very conservative and always grouchy boss Reagan Ronald aka Normal (he is the most normal out of the group hence the nickname) is always on her back with some snarky lines.

While Max's daytime life may seem normal, her nighttime activities are anything but. She's a cat burglar in order to pay off the very expensive funds that will help her track down her missing brothers and sisters. One night, after breaking into the apartment of Logan Cale (Michael Waverley), she's caught by the man of the house himself and the two soon strike up a business relationship. Apparently, Logan did his research and found out about Max's Manticore past. The barcode on the back of her neck was a dead giveaway (did I mention the barcode?). In exchange for helping Max find her siblings, she has to help Logan solve his mysteries. See, Logan is really the cyber journalist "Eyes Only" who hacks into cable feeds to spread "the truths" of the corrupt political society of not only Seattle, but America in under 60 seconds. Max agrees and the first season officially begins.

Oh yeah, Logan also has to protect Max from Lydecker (John Savage), her former Manticore trainer. He's been searching for "the kids" as he calls them for all the ten years they've been gone and he'll stop at nothing to get them back. To give a quick runthrough of the first season, a love affair ensues between Logan and Max (you so knew that was gonna happen), Max is able to find some of her siblings, and she manages to confront Lydecker (he's one cold dude) and try to take down Manticore in one of the best finales in tv show history. Well, to me anyway. Pretty awesome stuff. Now onto season 2.

Season 2 is alot different from the first. Without giving the season one finale away, Max ends up back at Manticore, but doesn't stay put for long. She escapes after taking the prison (that's basically what it was) down and releases all of the imprisoned transgenics. About that, not all of the "gennies" are quite human. Max has a bit of cat DNA herself (the episodes where she goes into heat are hilarious), but she still has a human appearance. The older ones, not so much. See, they were given too much animal DNA in their genetic cocktails so they possess more cross breed appearances. Like Joshua (Kevin Durand), Max's friend and adoptive brother. He was the first transgenic Manticore ever created and has a human body with a dog face. Still a sweetheart though.

Anyway, all the gennies are freed and manage to escape into society. The "regular" folks freak out and new villian Ames White (Martin Cummins) is called upon by the government to cover up the Manticore crimes by exterminating them. Needless to say, Max is on the top of his list. She feels it's her job to protect her transgenic siblings while laying low as best she can herself. Her relationship with Logan becomes complicated too. While back at Manticore, the bad guys figured out Max was in cahoots with Eyes Only (they still don't know he's Logan) and infect her with a virus that will kill him on skin to skin contact. The two try their best to keep their romance going, but Logan's new assistant Asha (Ashley Scott) tends to get in the way as well.

Another new character is fellow X-5er Alec (Jensen Ackles). Max meets him back at Manticore and the two form a love/hate sibling-like relationship. Alec (as in smart aleck) is a nice guy overall, but always looking out for himself and constantly on the look out for some get rich scheme. Sweet, but not too smart since he manages to get himself in trouble alot. Original Cindy, Sketchy, and Normal also return, but there's no mention of Kendra or Herbal Thought. Where'd the hell they go? Beats me. Anyway, the second season does border on a "transgenic of the week" feel, but it has a powerful "people fear and hate what they don't understand" message that's relatable to all people. The second season finale is awesome too, although there are a couple of storylines that don't get completely wrapped up.

To wrap it all up, The best thing about Max is that she walks a fine line between a hard ass and being vulnerable. She's not at all a girly girl, but she's also not afraid to let her feelings be known. If she's sad, she'll let it out without being dramatic and with all she's been through, can you really blame her? She's also witty and a smartass. While the show did end too soon, it had a great run with no boring episodes ever. Pick it up!

Top 5 episodes from season 1

1. Rising
2. Flushed
3. Hit A Sista Back
4. Meow
5. And Jesus Brought A Casserole

Top 5 episodes from season 2

1. Designate This
2. Bag Em
3. Hello, Goodbye
4. Dawg Day Afternoon
5. Freak Nation

I just wanted to let evryone know that i just order'ed this same set, and recieved it all good, and it is indeed BOTH seasons(12 disc's) of Dark Angel. like the other review states this is your best buy, unless for whatever reason you only want one af the seasons. i also only paid 32.00 for it (through Amazon), and i see that they have raised the price. still a steal at 45.00 for both, but if your thinking about getting this set, do so before the price gets raised again. i hope this helps!!

I just want to give people a heads up. This version is NOT widescreen.
If you have a widescreen TV, you should head over to Amazon.uk and order
the PAL (European) version. It's encoded in anamorphic 16:9 widescreen
format. The only downside is, you will need to play it back on a PAL-compatible DVD player or
hook your computer up to your TV, as all computers can play back PAL or NTSC.
It's a shame FOX gave us NTSC (American) viewers this cropped 4:3 version.
The version from Amazon.uk cost the same as this even with shipping, and took two
weeks to get here.
Hope this helps someone.
I'm still giving this 5 stars, because it's a wonderful show in any format.
Alba's best work by far, and she's in every frame, so it's a must buy for her fans.
Season One is good dark sci-fi action. Season two is more uneven, but still has a
lot of great moments.

I am a Huge Dark Angel Fan, loved the series, loved the charachters, very much miss this show!!

If you were a fan of TV show, then you know what to expect. IF NOT, then you are in for a treat. Good scripts, well acted & Jessica Alba - enough said!

I watch Dark angel appx 2 times a year just to see Jessica alba, Michael Weatherly and Jensen Ackles (sigh) They made a truely great series. I can't believe they ended it. But buy them both, watch the comments and get depressed with me that Jim Cameron etc, didn't carry it for another several more seasons

It's a great show staring Jessica Alba and Michael weatherly. They are off and on and forbidden what all great shows have and need.

I got both seasons in a timely fashion and the outside of the DVDs look to be in great condition. I haven't watched then yet to know if the DVDs are good or not but I have faith that they are.

This was a great series. That said, I understand why it was cut. Season 1 was really excellent, but season 2 meandered some and changed tone significantly.

What made season 1 so interesting was it's focus on Alba's character negotiating between two very different identities and trying to live a "normal" life despite being anything but.

Season 2 has aspects of this, but focuses far too heavily on gimmicks like extraterrestrials and bio-mutations. It was far more convincing and powerful when it stayed focused on trying to keep things closer to reality.

I would say that if you've any interest in scifi, Season 1 is definitely worth watching. Season 2 is still watchable and interesting, but it loses a lot of steam. I'd only get it if you're a hardcore fan.