Who likes Planet of the Apes? Ok, you can put your hands down. No, who REALLY likes Planet of the Apes? Ok, for you people I have something for you. 20th Century Fox is letting the apes out of the cage with the Planet of the Apes: Ultimate Edition. This set has everything. No seriously, it has everything!

I used to work in Century City, a block away from where a lot of Conquest of the Planet of the Apes was filmed. As a big POTA (Planet of the Apes) fan, I am really excited about this set. The best thing about this set is that it combines everything that has been produced on film or TV related to my favorite collection of simians. The bad thing about this set is that, it includes everything. In addition to the original five Apes movies the set also includes the 2001 Tim Burton re-make.

The Planet of the Apes Live Action TV show (referred to by my friend Joe as, Starsky and Hutch on the Planet of the Apes) is also included, as is the previously unreleased animated TV series. I am really excited to see the animated series. I don’t remember much of it when it aired but I have heard some good things about it. When it comes to TV versions of films, the risk of dumbing down the source material is always present. Some shows have been able to be modified for TV and still remain close to the source material, like Alien Nation, Clone Wars or Highlander. Other shows have not fared as well such as The Crow.

As far as extras go the original Apes film comes as a two disc set. It was previously released as Planet of the Apes (35th Anniversary Edition). The extras on the bonus disc include the (the excellent) previously released documentary, Behind the Planet of the Apes. There are also trailers, posters, dailies and featurette from 1972 called, A Look Behind the Planet of the Apes. The 2001 remake also boasts a two disc set, which was also previously released.

The 14 disc set comes in a plastic bust of Caesar as he appeared in Conquest of Planet of the Apes (in his green work jumpsuit). The Limited edition hand crafted bust has synthetic hair, hand painted facial features, fabric uniform and realistic hair. The suggested retail price of the set is $179

Unless another Apes film or tv series turns up in the next couple of years (which I doubt), this could be the last Planet of the Apes purchase you ever have to make. I might just ditch my current POTA DVD’s in favor of this set.