This is PLANET EARTH!

If you caught the outstanding 11 part series, Planet Earth on the DISCOVERY HD Channel you already know this DVD set is outstanding. Some days I wondered why I pay for High Definition cable, and this show provided me the answer. The show looked stunning and spectacular, and I knew I wanted to get the show on DVD when it came out.

What is Planet Earth?

Simply put, Planet Earth is a 5 DVD set all filmed in High Definition that explores nature on our planet in an 11 episode series narrated by Richard Attenborough. If you watched it on TV, you may recall that it was Sigourney Weaver who narrated each episode. Each episode is about 45 minutes with a 10 minute behind the scenes feature added to that. When I first watched these episodes on the HD Discovery network, I learned new things, and saw new creatures on every single episode. Rare footage of lions hunting at night, strange creatures that live off sea grass off the coast of Australia, weird dezinens of the deep oceans, these shows have it all. The first four discs are the original 11 episodes from the HD Discovery network, and the fifth disc is three extra episodes focusing on endangered species, endangered forests and what we can do to preserve our planet Earth. All in all, there are 14 hours of viewing.

The show had a lavish production budget and was five years in the making and was filmed on over 200 locations around the planet.

How Does It Look? (includes comparison of original HD broadcast and DVD)

I watched this series on a 105" (that's 5 feet by 8 feet) DaLite Cinemavision Movie screen and an Optoma H30 projector. This entire series was shot in High Definition and it shows! (even on DVD which is really only 480p) Everything is in glorious wide screen and the video footage of this series really benefits from HD widescreen treatment. Scenes like overhead shots of a huge herd of caribou on the Canadian plains look stunning as do shots of lush jungle rain forests. I did a direct comparison of episodes that I recorded in High Definition on a Scientific American HDTV cable box/Digital Video recorder and the DVD. I recorded the show from Comcast Cable the HD Discovery Channel, one of Comcasts high definition channels. The DVD was played on a Pioneer 45A Elite DVD player. Both the cable box and the DVD player were connected via component cables to the projector. Aside from the obvious difference of Attenborough narrating instead of Weaver, the original HD image is sharper on panoramic shots, like overviews of the grand canyon, but is scarcely noticable on most scenes of animals. The scenes seem slightly brighter on side by side comparison on the original HD DVR recordings, but unless you flip back and forth between the two (as I did) it is not very noticable. You may have better results with an upconverting DVD player. When I upgrade to a Optoma HD70 projector and HD DVD or Blu Ray Player with HDMI connection, I will revisit and update this review. As of this date, I don't believe that this series is avaliable on HD DVD or Blu Ray, but it would be a good candidate for that. The DVD still really captures the incredible filming and detail. Nevertheless, on this DVD series the BBC has done a top notch job with this series and it shows.

How Does it Sound

The show is done in Dolby Digital Stereo and it also has subtitles for the deaf, and French and Spanish. Episodes are narrated by Sir David Attenborough instead of Sigourney Weaver. The narration is mostly exactly the same, but some very subtle differences emerged when I did my side by side HD broadcast DVD comparison. In describing Lake Malawi in Africa, Weaver says that it is bigger than the state of Massachusetts. Attenborough comments that it is bigger than Wales. Had I not watched the scenes in comparing, I never would have caught it.

The series is in Dolby surround sound, the sound is very good, and the narration is interesting, clear and entertaining. On the last disc, the sound is in Dolby Stereo.

The Episodes

Disc One

From Pole to Pole This episode sort of sets the stage for Planet Earth and gives us a quick tour of our planet from the north pole to the south pole.

Mountains Ever seen a snow leopard on the hunt? You will when you watch this episode on the wildlife that lives in the upper reaches of mountainous regions from the Andes to the Himalayas. Few people have even seen one of these rare leopards, let alone one of them hunting. I was also amazed at footage of the goats that actually live on the sides of sheer cliffs in Ethiopia's mountains.

Fresh Water Lakes, Streams, and rivers and the creatures that live therein are covered here. This is NOT a rehash of things that I had seen and learned on BBC's excellent Blue Planet. As a fish hobbyist, I was fascinated by the sections on Africa's Lakes, and the Amazon River, the natural habitat of a wide variety of Cichlids.

Disc Two

Caves Did you know the largest cave system was in Borneo? It is also the site of the largest pile of guano! Perhaps more than I needed to know, but this examination of both how caves are formed and the creatures that live in them was fascinating and a bit creepy!

Deserts I was amazed at the amount of life that lives in the harsh desert environment and how animals adapt to survive in these dry unforgiving lands.

Ice Worlds Even in the freezing cold, life exists. Even though DVDs by definition are not high definition, the HD filming shows in these amazing episodes. The snowy regions and sheets of ice have a quiet beauty that has to be seen to be appreciated.

Disc Three

Great Plains This show featured an amazing never before seen lion hunt in the middle of the night as they hunted for elephants. The plains are feast or famine depending on whether its the rainy season or the dry season.

Jungles I saw birds and frogs I had never before seen on this exploration of the jungles that fill the tropical parts of our planets. This episode was one of the most colorful episodes. The canopy of the jungles were filmed with special blimps and hang gliders that carried the high definition cameras silently over the tree tops.

Shallow Seas The creatures that live off the coast are featured in this episode. My favorite was a freaky kind of animal that lives in the shallow seas off the coast of Australia and eats the sea grass.

Disc Four

Seasonal Forests The overhead shots of the pine trees that line the northern hemisphere alone were breathtaking. This episode focuses on the amazing diversity of life that lives in theses forests. The forests that ring our planets upper hemisphere provide our planet with over 25% of our oxygen.

Ocean Deep The final episode of the series didn't fail to amaze me. I had already seen the incredible episode on the Deep Ocean in the BBC's Blue Planet series, and my son even did his 4th grade science project on it. However, this episode introduced Nick and I to even more amazing denizens of the deep.

Disc Five This last disc includes three episodes that were NOT a part of the original series. The disc is entitled THE FUTURE and the three episodes discuss the problems, solutions and ideas for the future of our planet earth.

Saving Species Filming this series had a dramatic effect on the film makers. This episode they discuss a variety of species that are threatened and will soon be around. Although I appreciated the message, this episode wasn't as interesting because it focused more on "talking heads" than actualy wildlife footage. Many experts spoke about different animals and plants that are on the way out from a variety of African frogs to even the mighty polar bear. The episode focuses mostly on the problem.

Into the Wilderness This episode discusses the conflicts between man and the wilderness itself. It focuses on the forests. Again, although I understand the message, much of this episode tends to be dry because it focuses more on talking heads than it does on the beauty of our planet.

Living Together As you may guess, this final episode focuses on what we can do to live together. Although these 3 episodes weren't as spectacular as the 11 episodes focusing on our planet, they are well worth watching, and contain information that anyone who enjoys this Planet Earth should know.

EXTRAS

Each of the 11 episodes on the first four DVDs contains a ten minute featurette that shows you behind the scenes to show you just how they captured the stunning shots in the episodes. You get to see the special hot air camera balloon crash into the trees, the set up for filming lions at night with infra red cameras and many other things. I found these special behind the scenes features to be quite interesting. They really add to your appreciation of what the men and women went through to bring this series to you.

Value

This series is at most book stores and video stores for $80.00. Borders had a one day sale for which I was e-mailed a 40% off coupon. You can bet that I purchased my DVD set the day I could use the 40% coupon. I believe that this set would be worth the full price, but if you can get it at a discount that is even better.

Summary

PLANET EARTH is nothing short of spectacular and amazing. The BBC has truly outdone itself with this series. I have watched many BBC shows including ones on the Life of Mammals and Blue Planet (a four disc 8 episode series on the oceans , lakes and rivers). My son and I have enjoyed all the shows we have seen by the BBC, and this one was the best one yet. If you have any interest in nature and our planet, PLANET EARTH is a must see series. If you can own it, it is one you would watch again and again.