Something prompted me to look up old videos of the BBC/Australian TV series The Tripods from 1984. It's sort of a post-War of the Worlds story (but not related) taking place in 2089 where alien tripods have taken over the Earth. Once people reach a certain age, they are "capped", adorned with a metal implant in the top of their head, that renders them complacent and subservient. The story is a journey of three boys looking to avoid the capping, traveling to join a resistance group.
I had actually video-recorded most of the episodes (VHS!) when they aired. Over-the-air, antenna reception, not very good. At one point I converted them from VHS to DVD and that was a further degradation. The internet ones' quality is SD, but about as good as it can be. I'd also missed the first two episodes so it was great to finally be able to see them.
It's only about 25 episodes, 2 seasons, and it was hard to find all the episodes in order but I got them from different sources. Some are even mislabeled, so if you pursue them search make sure the Chapter numbers onscreen are right. Through Season 1 so far. The visual effects are very basic and the music is cheesy 80s synthesizer but it all works. What doesn't work is some of the side trips that go on forever and weren't even in the books (the Chateau, the vineyard), but when it gets to the real events it's very compelling. It does have the distinction of being one of the very first shows to have rudimentary CGI for the opening and closing credits. I am mildly amused that I could create those myself now at far less effort and cost.
Looking forward to seeing Season 2 next, which I recall was much better than the first season as many more sci-fi elements are introduced.
