Apollo 14: Complete Downlink Edition

Rating:
Summary: Apollo 14 The first long colour mission
Review: This mission was the first to be fully transmitted in colour from start to finish (the Apollo 12 crew accidently pointed their camera at the sun and ruined it). As such it was the first time people could view the moon in colour for the duration of the mission.

It is also a mission that is rarely seen, despite the astounding 16mm film of the flag "raising". It was the last mission to not feature the rover and its remote controlled camera. So essentially the view is a lock down. However, I must say that I find this fascinating as I really get a feel for the isolation of the astronauts on the moon. They did supplement the TV feed with 16mm footage and multiple photos, so you are never really at a loss for something to watch. The clever folk at Spacecraftfilms have synchronised the film material to the TV footage so you can select the angle function on your remote to see simultaneous sequences.

The men then venture off on foot to Cone Crater, and alas had to leave the TV camera locked down at the LM site pointing towards them (while also making allowances for the sun angle). Again this is supplemented with addition material.

As the other DVD sets covering the complete downlinks from Spacecraftfilms, there are the pre-flight tests, suit ups, Saturn 5 rollout, multi angle liftoff, and all the material acquiring during the journey to and from the moon. You even get to see the problems in docking which delayed the lunar landing.

I now have all sets of the Apollo lunar landings and my appreciation for what was done has grown considerably. The desire by the people at Spacecraftfilms to make an excellent and comprehensive record of these missions is welcome addition to the vacuum that has existed since the landings. Its what I always wanted to see, and I am glad that I finally can.