As befits the BBC???s reputation for producing some of the world???s best nature documentaries, the five-disc set Planet Earth is an epic travelogue, focussing on different ecologies and the unique animals that inhabit them. Once again, Sir David Attenborough provides the narration, as the cameras fly across the surface of the earth, zooming in to give us a bug???s eye view one minute, zooming out to give us an eagle???s perspective the next. The BBC???s cameramen filmed more than 200 locations, resulting in some truly spectacular footage, much of which has never before been seen--such as the rare sight of an endangered snow leopard hunting in the Himalayas, or great white sharks leaping from the water as they hunt. The creators of Planet Earth endured some of the world???s most hostile environments, from the deepest ocean depths to an Antarctic blizzard to a fetid, cockroach- and bat-infested cave, just to grab a few moments of film; it???s worth watching the "Making of" shorts that accompany each episode, in order to see just what lengths they had to go to. The three extra episodes here--Planet Earth: The Future--provide a sobering finale, as Sir David practically pleads with viewers to cherish the animals that we share this planet with, before it???s too late. --Ted Kord

My brother just bought this for me (I put him up rent free for months when he came back from traveling). One of the best things he has ever got me. There are five DVDs and I've already watched three, I've only had it a week.

When you watch it your just in awe of the scenery, it's beautiful. There is a purposefully made score for it that just adds to the enjoyment. As for people that say they can't hear David Attenborough because of the music, they must be deaf the music always quietens down when he talks. I love the Planet Earth Diaries parts, it's very enjoyable to watch.

I may be wrong but I think this was the first or first major nature progamme to be filmed fully in HD and it's all the better for it.

WOW!! what can i say it is incredible never before have i seen so many different animals plants oceans beasties climate changes(natural ones)from the arctic across and right around our world, fabulous i wish i had bought it a couple of years ago. i haven't bought the high definition five disc set but have played the standard five discs on a blu-ray player. the shot of the great white sharks, well buy it honestly you will be so enthralled, also how the crew patiently waited days just for the right shots on film. Val

I'll be short and get directly to the point. Yes, the documentary contains amazing videos. Things you probably never sow before, and didn't know they exist. The nicest things are the views from high above the scene that gives an entirely richer understanding.

However, the title "Planet Earth" is misleading. The documentary is NOT about The Planet but is the animal life of the planet and more exactly about the Other animal life of the planet (I hope you understand here that this totally excludes HUMANS). The humans are somehow in a basic untold way the BAD animal that we should not talk about. Anyway this is not the problem here. The problem is that the title should have mentioned that the focus is not on the planet but on the animal life of it.
Another word of advise: if you are disturbed by seeing animal cruelty on other animals then you shouldn't watch it, or at least be warned: there are many ugly scenes.

For the beauty of most of the images, especially those showing rare species, this is a nice documentary, very good for your collection.

Wow, what a fantastic series! And to see our planet from such a different view!

First of all, I am not one for watching nature documentaries, (can't stand all that blood and gore when a prey is caught and torn to bits) but I caught a glimpse of this series, when previewed on Oprah, and thought my hubby would like it, and got it for him. All I can say is that I was the one who devoured every minute of it. There was no gut-churning bloody imagery, so it was right up my alley and I was riveted.

Every episode is packed with images so beautiful and breathtaking that it will leave you speechless by the splendor of it all. All I can say, if you're like me, give this a chance and watch it. You won't make a mistake. It will bring tears to your eyes to see what a wonderful and amazing planet we live in.

Don't hesitate! This is five-star in every way - and I've little to add to the other five-star reviews of this excellent series. In my view, this is right up there with the best of the best.

I would also point out that disc 5 of this box set, entitled 'Planet Earth - The Future' contains three excellent documentaries (namely, 'Saving Species', 'Into The Wilderness' and 'Living Together') that would justify the cost of this box set by themselves. Yet the blu-ray version of this series (which I also bought) does not include these excellent documentaries - the blu-ray version instead replaces these with two somewhat middling documentaries (entitled 'Desert Lions' and 'Snow Leopards').

So, in my opinion, this standard DVD version of 'Planet Earth' is better quality even than the blu-ray version. Not to say considerably cheaper price-wise (on Amazon)!

As regards the viewing comparison between the standard DVD version of 'Planet Earth' and the blu-ray version of the series, well, I watched both, and both are outstanding. So there is really no reason to pay more for blu-ray on that evidence.

Indeed, I now think, on that evidence, that those with HD TV would be better off buying a DVD upscaler/player, which is much cheaper than a blu-ray DVD player. Amazon sell a selection of these; something like the multi-region Philips DVP 5980, or similar, would likely do just fine.

A final point: Those of you who are looking for wildlife documentaries set somewhere in the British Isles could also check out the excellent 'Wild Mann' DVD (2005) by Steven Ianson. This title is, however, sometimes difficult to track down.