Roswell was a sci-fi series created by Jason Katims. The series ran between October 1999 and May 2002, originally developed and produced on the Warner Brothers television network until it was transferred to Paramount's UPN network in 2001 before eventually being cancelled.

The series ran for three seasons and was about aliens that crash-landed in Roswell, New Mexico. One of the aliens, Max Evans, played by Jason Behr, fell in love with Liz Parker, played by Shiri Appleby.

The series was also known as Roswell High and was based on a series of books by that name, published by Pocket Books.

In the UK, Roswell was shown on Sky TV but only the first two seasons were shown by the BBC. The BBC website has an explanation for their failure to show the third season. [1]

Basic premise

"September 23rd. Journal entry one. I'm Liz Parker and five days ago I died. After that things got really weird..."

As the show starts Liz (Shiri Appleby), Maria (Majandra Delfino) and Alex (Colin Hanks) are three best friends that go to school in Roswell. Liz is working at the Crashdown Cafè and is accidentally shot during an argument between two customers. After she falls another student, Max Evans (Jason Behr), rushes to her side and heals the wound just by touching it – saving her life.

Liz later discovers a silver handprint on her stomach and when she confronts Max he forced to admit that he is an alien. It is clear that he has strong feelings for Liz, although at the time she is dating Kyle Valenti (Nick Wechsler ).

Liz then discovers that Max, his sister Isabel (Katherine Heigl) and their friend Michael (Brendan Fehr ) are all aliens who emerged from incubation pods long after their spaceship crashed. The aliens all appear human and attend the same school in Roswell.

Liz is initially sworn to secrecy but eventually Maria and Alex learn the truth and these six become friends struggling to keep the secret, especially from the suspicious Sheriff Valenti (William Sadler).

DVD releases

These are the DVD release dates for region 1.

• Season 1 — February 17 2004
• Season 2 — October 5 2004

These are the DVD release dates for region 2.

• Season 1 — April 26 2004
• Season 2 — August 9 2004
• Season 3 — October 11 2004

The region 1 release had some songs on the soundtrack changed from the original broadcast versions as a result of license fees.

Trivia

• The theme song was Dido's "Here with me", from the album No Angel (1999).
• Jonathan Frakes, an actor well known for his role in Star Trek: The Next Generation, was an executive producer for a time and directed several episodes. He also appeared in the pilot episode as an MC, then as himself in two other episodes, "The UFO Convention" and "Secrets and Lies".

Main cast list

• Shiri Appleby as Elizabeth Parker (Liz)
• Jason Behr as Maxwell Evans (Max)
• Majandra Delfino as Maria De Luca, Liz's best friend and workmate
• Brendan Fehr as Michael Guerin
• Colin Hanks as Alex Whitman, Liz and Maria's best friend (1999-2001)
• Katherine Heigl as Isabel Amanda Evans, Max's sister
• William Sadler as Sheriff Valenti, Kyle's father
• Nick Wechsler as Kyle Valenti, Liz's former boyfriend

Other recurring cast members

• Emilie de Ravin as Tess Harding, another alien with human appearance (2000-2001)
• Jim Ortlieb as Nasedo, a shape-shifting alien
• Adam Rodriguez as Jesse Esteban Ramirez (2001-2002)
• John Doe as Jeff Parker, Liz's father
• Jo Anderson as Nancy Parker, Liz's mother
• Garret M Brown as Philip Evans, the adoptive father of Max and Isabel
• Mary Ellen Trainor as Diane Evans, the adoptive mother of Max and Isabel
• Diane Farr as Amy De Luca, Maria's mother

See also

• Roswell UFO incident
• References to Star Trek in Roswell
• List of science fiction television programs
• List of TV shows that have switched networks

External links

• The Crashdown – Regular news, episode transcripts, fan fiction, etc.
• Heaven can wait – Extensive cast list with pictures
• RoswellMovie.net – a community that campaigns for a Roswell movie
• Fox Home Entertainment – DVD information
• BBC cult pages for Roswell