Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		0.0
Overall		4.0

Department S: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov December 21, 2017

"Department S: The Complete Series" (1969-1970) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors Network Releasing. The box set contains sic discs but there are no bonus features. In English, without optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

The look

Three unique characters are the stars of the show -- Jason King (Peter Wyndgarde), Stewart Sullivan (Joel Fabiani), and Annabelle Hurst (Rosemary Nichols). The men enjoy acting as if they are some very distant relatives of Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson, but most of the time carry themselves as Swinging Sixties clubbers who were forced to get a real job when the good times ended. The woman is elegant and flirty, frequently behaving as if she is fully aware that there is a hidden cameraman somewhere in the back that is dying to capture on film that embarrassing moment when she accidentally breaks a heel. These colorful characters, however, are anything but exotic loonies. They are specialists working for Department S -- a very, very secretive branch of Interpol whose primary function is to solve unsolvable criminal cases.

Each episode of the show is only approximately fifty minutes long but there are surprises galore. In fact, a number of the cases that the specialists are presented with are so odd that that they quite easily could have been conceived in the distant corners of Chris Carter’s glorious mind. For example, in The Man in the Elegant Room the specialists are dispatched to figure out the purpose of a posh room built inside a large abandoned hangar as well as the identities of the dead girl laying on the floor and the dim-witted man next to her. In The Man From “X” the authorities detain a man in a spacesuit wandering around London but no one has any idea who he is. Can the crew from Department S solve the mystery? In The Trojan Tanker a large tanker crashes somewhere in the middle of the countryside and the man responsible for the disaster discovers that its precious load is actually a beautiful blonde. The trio from Department S is once again dispatched to investigate. In The Treasure of Costa del Sol the specialists need to find the thread that links a treasure, two dead strangers, and a list of seemingly random phone numbers. Things get even more bizarre in One of Our Aircraft is Empty where the authorities are shocked to discover that a plane that has just landed is completely empty.

The entire show, which ran in the United Kingdom between 1969 and 1970, has a very heavy retro vibe that now makes it incredibly attractive. Past reports reveal that it was shot with a very decent budget and given the elaborate sets, stylish clothing, and wonderful on-location shooting it sure looks like a genuine effort was made to create something truly special. However, the real quality comes from the great writing and the top cast. Wyngarde is absolutely spectacular as the flamboyant but strikingly intelligent operative who can typically see things that virtually everyone else misses and his flawless performance gives the show the bulk of its chic flavor. Fabiani adds a sense of conventional level-headedness when things begin to look really weird and also looks great. And Nicols is the wild card that is equally effective as a beautiful distraction and a crucial partner that knows the value of thinking out-of-the-box. Fabulous entertainment.

The twenty-eight episodes of the show were directed by Cyril Frankel, Ray Austin, John Gilling, Gilbert Taylor, Roy Ward Baker, Paul Dickson, and Leslie Norman.

BOX SET CONTENT

DISC ONE

1. The Man in the Elegant Room
2. The Pied Piper of Hambledown
3. A Cellar Full of Silence
4. The Trojan Tanker

DISC TWO

5. Handicap Dead
6. Six Days
7. One of Our Aircraft is Empty
8. The Treasure of the Costa del Sol

DISC THREE

9. Black Out
10. The Double Death of Charlie Crippen
11. The Man Who Got a New Face
12. The Shift That Never Was
13. Who Plays the Dummy?

DISC FOUR

14. Les Fleurs du Mal
15. Last Train to Redbridge
16. Dead Men Die Twice
17. A Ticket to Nowhere
18. The Ghost of Mary Burnham

DISC FIVE

19. The Man From "X"
20. Death on Reflection
21. The Perfect Operation
22. The Duplicated Man
23. The Mysterious Man in the Flying Machine

DISC SIX

24. Spencer Bodily is Sixty Years Old
25. A Fish Out of Water
26. A Small War of Nerves
27. The Bones of Byron Blain
28. The Soup of the Day

Department S: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.33:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Department S: The Complete Series arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Network Releasing.

The entire show has been fully restored from the original 35mm elements and my guess is that the people that did the restoration work are the same team that restored the different seasons of The Professionals. I mention this because I wish to highlight two things: First, the quality of the scan is outstanding and the raw masters are probably flawless. Second, as it was the case with the different seasons of The Professionals, after the masters were created and before the data was transferred to Blu-ray someone did some very light denoising corrections. There is nothing really seriously troubling, but it is pointless and frustrating work because the raw masters are superb. (Obviously, I have not seen them, but I can tell because the visuals are frequently striking). So, some of the side effects that trained eyes are likely to noticed could have been completely avoided (see screencapture #17). Other than that, the restored footage looks terrific. Detail and clarity are very pleasing, while the color grading is done with a great awareness of how primaries and nuances should be properly balanced. Image stability is fantastic. Finally, there are absolutely no traces of age-related imperfections. My score is 4.25/5.00. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray release. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your player or PS3 regardless of your geographical location. For the record, there is no problematic PAL or 1080/50i content preceding the disc's main menu).

Department S: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio audio track on this Blu-ray release: English LPCM 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are not provided for the main feature.

The audio has been fully remastered and the end result is spectacular. Indeed, it is hard to imagine that depth, clarity, and balance can be any better. There is also a fantastic range of nuanced dynamics that further help the intended atmosphere. My only minor complaint pertains to the lack of optional SDH subtitles that could have been helpful.

Department S: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

There are no supplemental features to be found on this box set.

Department S: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

If I had to describe Department S: The Complete Series to someone that is curious about it but has absolutely no idea what to expect from it, I would say the following: Imagine that Chris Carter and the great producer Harry Alan Towers bumped into each other while having a drink in a chic night club in London sometime during the early 1970s. Now imagine that they chatted a bit and decided to do a TV show together. Carter then delivered all the bizarre stories with the mandatory crazy twists, while Towers added the exotic flavor and kitsch. This may sound like an unusual description of this show, but I think that it accurately sums up the type of entertainment it offers. Of course, if you remember seeing it back in the days, then you already know what to expect. All of the content in this box set has been fully restored and is perfectly playable on North American players, but there are no bonus features. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.