The 1997 historical fantasy series on FOX titled ROAR, was canceled within it's first season. Which was a real shame to most of us who watched and enjoyed the new program. After all, having a rank of 71 on the Neilsen's isn't all that bad compared to most of FOX's prime-time series ... not every show can have the success The X-Files gave the up and coming network. And USA Network's infamous Xena and Hercules series sure hadn't shown the numbers needed to keep themselves on the air, at that time. But, as with all things related to the "suits," network executives quietly buried the summer offering to the appropriate gods of television. And yet, one cable channel has risen to reanimate another doomed or dead series, if only to present the fans the remaining shows that were in the can. Eight shows were aired in the summer of '97, but we will get the chance to see the remaining 5 shows on SciFi Channel, when the series re-airs April 2nd, 2003.

ROAR was a promising new entry from famed creators, Shaun Cassidy (yeah, I know, one of the Hardy Boys, but he is all grown up now as an Executive Producer/Writer/Creator of hot shows like CBS's smash hit, The Agency) and Ron Koslow (WB's newest superhero saga, Birds of Prey). Shaun Cassidy had just wrapped up the complete series, American Gothic, while Ron Koslow had an amazing success with CBS's beloved critically acclaimed fantasy love story, Beauty and the Beast. Put these two together for another nontraditional fantasy series, and watch the sparks fly ... or so everyone hoped.

ROAR also had an impressive cast ... well, it seems impressive now. Heath Ledger (A Knight's Tale, The Patriot, and the upcoming The Order) played Conor, a young Celtic warrior prince who must defend the last of the 5th century tribes in England from the barrage of attacks from a conquering Roman Empire. Freedom has a name, and that name is the ROAR - the roar of the land, the roar of the people - think of it as the equivalent to the Star Wars - the Force. Conor's father, King Derek has been feuding with a rival tribe led by King Gar, attempting to unite the tribes. However, King Gar's wife Queen Diana has ties to Rome, including the mysterious roman sorcerer and advisor Longinus, played by Sebastian Roche (plays Kurt Mendall in Showtime's Odyssey 5). King Gar wipes out Conor's village, save one - Fergus, the tribe's warrior champion, played by John Saint Fergus (who has been seen in other genre series, Buffy, Crusade, Dark Skies, and Babylon 5). Conor and Fergus band together with troubled teen, Tully (Alonzo Greer) a beautiful, yet fierce and recently rescued slave, Caitlin (Vera Farmiga), the wise and powerful wizard, Galen (Norman Kaye), and guided by the ROAR, in the hopes of clearing a path to freedom for his people.

As you watch these stories unfold, you'll find that this short saga is as much about the tragically doomed roman, Longinus, as it is about young Conor's own quest. A brilliant and complex contrast to the typical good versus evil fantasy stories. While unlikely that this series will ever have a new life span, this is a nice treat from SciFi Channel to catch the entire 13 episodes of this 1997 sleeper.

ROAR airs Wednesdays at 10pm beginning with the Pilot episode April 2nd, 2003

For more info visit the SciFi Channel's homepage for the series:

http://www.scifi.com/roar/