K-9 The Complete Series
Here at Popdose I’ve become the resident Mystery Science Theater 3000 reviewer, and Shout! Factory has been generous enough to enable me to do so. But every so often, they send something different my way, just to keep me on my toes. Such was the case for K-9: The Complete Series
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Believe it or not, as geeky as I am, I’ve never seen an entire episode of Doctor Who. (Yeah, I’m the one.) It’s not that I think I’d dislike it. It just hasn’t caught me at a moment when I wanted to invest the time in it (No pun intended.) So, while I had vaguely heard of K-9, I didn’t know much about him, other than he was a robotic dog that appeared in some Doctor Who episodes. Unfortunately since this was filmed through another studio (and in Australia), there weren’t any other crossovers with Doctor Who characters or plotlines. (The only holdover being John Leeson as the voice of K-9.) This did, however, keep me from falling to far behind on what was happening.
The show places K-9 into a dystopian 21st century London. (Can’t we have a show where the future is portrayed as better than the present we’re in now?) The first show’s plot involves the agoraphobic Professor Gryphon, who is working on a Space-Time Manipulator. In so doing, he pulls in K-9 (as well as some evil turtle-like aliens called the Jixen). K-9 saves the day by self-destructing. However, he regenerates into a fancier robot now capable of flight (and of being a computer animated special effect). The show follows K-9’s adventures along with teens Starkey, Jorjie, the Professor’s assistant Darius, and the Professor himself as they do battle with exotic aliens (and a mysterious government organization that Jorjie’s mother is working for). While the publicity for this show compares it to Men in Black and Ghostbusters, the strangely costumed aliens give me a bit of a Power Rangers vibe as well.
Included with the set is an interview with K-9 (in full Thurston Howell mode), as well as a documentary about the making of the show, conducted by a Disney Channel-esque teen (which is appropriate since this showed on Disney XD in Australia). We get about a half second glance at the original K-9, something I wished they could have delved into more. A Doctor Who episode with K-9 (or even some scenes from one) would have been a nice addition, but I’m sure that it wasn’t available for Shout! Factory to license.
All in all, if you enjoy fun action adventure with resourceful teenagers, aliens, monsters, and of course K-9 himself, you wouldn’t be barking up the wrong tree by giving K-9: The Complete Series a try.
Here’s a preview:
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