ANCIENT ALIENS: SEASON 5, VOLUME 2
(not rated)
MOVIE: ***1/2 (out of 5)
BLU-RAY EXPERIENCE: *1/2 (out of 5)
STARRING
Robert Clotworthy as NARRATOR
Giorgio Tsoukalos as HIMSELF
David Childress as HIMSELF
Philip Coppens as HIMSELF
David Wilcock as HIMSELF
Studio: History/Lionsgate
Created by: Kevin Burns
BY KEVIN CARR
Back in the 1990s, around the time “The X-Files” was gaining popularity, I had a huge interest in the paranormal. I routinely listened to the Art Bell radio program, I wrote a column in the small zine “Pirate Writings” about surreal happenings and I tried to catch “Sightings” on television whenever possible.
Over the years, I’ve mellowed out a bit. It’s not that I don’t believe in certain paranormal accounts, and it’s not that I think everyone’s a crack-pot out there (though there are plenty of them out there, let me tell you). My focus has changed. I was exhausted by the brick walls that constantly sprung up in the field, and the interpersonal drama among researchers was sometimes too much to handle (as it is with any small field).
While I’ve never watched the History Channel’s program “Ancient Aliens” before, it was a nice treat to take a look at the second volume of the fifth season on Blu-ray.
Like many people, I initially rolled my eyes at the idea of an aliens series on the History Channel. However, sitting down to watch the show, it makes sense to be located here on the dial. Sure, “Ancient Aliens” is concerned about extraterrestrials and UFOs. However, it is appropriately framed in a historic context.
The episodes fall into a pretty standard format. An element from past civilizations is introduced, and not too long afterwards, narrator Robert Clotworthy asks whether there is an “otherworldly” explanation to it, followed almost immediately with a statement about “ancient astronaut theorists.” Cut to a stable of interviews with people like Giorgio Tsoukalos (famous for his crazy hair in the “I’m not saying it’s aliens, but it’s aliens” memes) and David Wilcock explaining why elements in disparate ancient cultures bear similarity to alien visitation stories.
So yes, there’s a certain level of crackpottery to these shows, and that makes it sensational and entertaining. Like the Art Bell radio show (now the George Noory radio show, whose host is found as an interviewee on this series), there’s no skeptic involved telling everyone they’re spouting hogwash. However, that would kill the spirit of the show, and I’m okay with this. A series entitled “Ancient Aliens” is not expected to present a balanced view of the entire opinion field.
However, once you get past the overabundance of Tsoukalos’ hair gel and the sometimes far-fetched claims of some of the interviewees, there’s some really great stuff in “Ancient Aliens.”
Volume 2 of Season 5 offers eight episodes of the show in the following subjects: “Emperors, Kings and Pharaohs,” “Alien Operations,” “Mysterious Relics,” “The Satan Conspiracy,” “The Anunnaki Connection,’ “The Crystal Skulls,” “The Power of Three” and “Magic of the Gods.”
The sole focus of this series is to tie together the religious and mythological stories from various ancient cultures together. Sometimes the information presented is quite compelling, especially when these various cultures feature stories that have alarming cross-over information.
More than just tying everything to ancient UFO encounters, “Ancient Aliens” offers a fun examination of potential explanation for greater concepts. Of particular interest, I found the examination of the legend of Satan to fascinating, especially in the recent context of science versus religion.
I’m not saying I believe everything that is presented on the series. In fact, I’m not saying I’m even buying ten percent of what’s said. However, for someone like me, who has never been a big history and/or anthropology buff, this series really captured my interest… even if it was for entertainment value and not for academic use.
The Blu-ray set looks very nice in high definition. However, there are no special features aside from some trailers for other titles in the History Channel / Lionsgate library.