“Space … the final frontier. These are the voyages of the Starship Enterprise. Its 5-year mission: to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no man has gone before!”
Star Trek: The Original Series finally makes it to high definition. If you’re anything like me, you’ve been waiting for this day for what seems like centuries. They’re here. One of the best features about this set is the multi-angle option. Remember how we were promised all of this control way back when DVD’s first hit the market? We got the same promises when Blu-ray arrived, but we weren’t going to hold our breath. Hey, I still have a red, yellow, blue, and green button on my Blu-ray remote. What are they ever going to be good for? Anyway, we finally have a use for the angle button. You can use it to toggle between the new digital f/x Paramount recently created for the show, or you can watch the original f/x if you’d rather. With that button you now have the ability to toggle between the two. Through the use of branching technology you can go between them as often as you like and never stop the show. I will warn you, however, that many of these shots occur so quickly that the 1-second delay in transition might not allow you to see the entire segment. It also does not change while the video is in pause. It’s one of the best new features out there.
Paramount was bold indeed when they undertook the remaster project of the original series. Not only did they clean up the prints, but they took the decidedly risky option of redoing most of the f/x shots from the original prints. We all know just how cheesy the old work looked when compared to today’s computer abilities. You could see a box around spacecraft that allowed the obvious cutout to maneuver through a cardboard star field. There were often mix-ups where phaser shots would be used for photon torpedo commands, and the opposite. The planets often utilized matte paintings that look somewhat ridiculous now. We forgave these flaws with a complete understanding of the limitations the crew had at the time. While Star Trek showed us computers that were remarkably similar to the PC’s we use today, down to the floppy drives of our own yesteryear, the use of computers to create f/x was still many years away. So Paramount decided to “fix” these “flaws” and make much of the show look like it might have had it been produced today. It was a serious risk because of the extreme possessiveness fans have for these kinds of shows. Just ask George Lucas how much fans like their sci-fi tinkered with. The project encompassed a few years, and the results are quite attractive. But how do they stand up for the fans?
I have heard very little complaint about these efforts. Most of the shots appear to be identical in scope to the originals, and with a few exceptions don’t appear to detract from the rest of the show. It helps that the restoration process itself has made even the original material look quite fresh, but more about that in the video portion of this review. I have to say I was about as skeptical as anyone when I first heard of this enormous undertaking. I knew that if they didn’t get the right people, there would be too much of a temptation to show off. I’m glad to report that every shot is respectful and not as overpowering as it could have been. There is a lot of respect paid to the source material, and the f/x appear to blend in almost seamlessly. You might even find yourself unsure if a shot is new or old, particularly planet-side additions. There was more than one occasion I had to dust off my old laserdisc collection and make some side-by-side comparisons. To me, those moments of uncertainty said more about the project than anything else. Imagine if we had gotten some George Lucas wannabe on this project. There would have been so much effort spent to dazzle us that the simplicity, and yet genius of these episodes would have been lost. I’m happy to report the results are something I think Roddenberry himself would have approved of. And now you can have your cake and eat it too with the toggle option I described earlier. So, what’s not to love?
Let’s go back to where it all began. Back to a day before television executives did what the combined forces of the Romulans and Klingons couldn’t do: end that five year mission. As you watch through these first episodes you’ll literally see the series transform from the early sets, props, and designs of the first pilot toward the Star Trek that would finally fit as comfortably as a custom tailored uniform. The show was finding its feet. If you’re a fan, and honestly, who isn’t, none of this is new to you, except now you can relive those days through the modern technology of high definition. If you’re not a fan, now is your chance to start at the beginning and catch up to the rest of us. With the new film on the horizon and the hopes of more than one generation of fans on the line, what better time than now? What better format than Blu-ray? Let’s play a little game I like to call: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly.
Season 1
The Good:
The Man Trap: If anyone was wondering about how good an actor DeForest Kelley was, they need look no further than this episode.
Mudd’s Women: Alas, if only we could have had more than two Mudd episodes. Who couldn’t love that charming space con artist?
The Enemy Within: Sure, Shatner had a tendency to overact, but he really does a great job of selling the two Kirks here.
The Menagerie: What a great way to get some use out of the original pilot.
Balance Of Terror: This claustrophobic Run Silent Run Deep knockoff was some of the best drama Trek ever delivered.
Errand Of Mercy: Tons of Trek lore here including the Organian Treaty.
The Galileo Seven: It’s here that the Spock and McCoy relationship really hits its stride.
Arena: This is one of my favorite episodes. I know the Gorn really looked bad, but there’s something about the show that has always stood out for me.
Space Seed: One word: Khannnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn!
The Devil In The Dark: OK, this is my wife’s favorite. “I’m a doctor, not a bricklayer”, classic.
City On The Edge Of Forever: Ellison never stops complaining, and I hate the guy, but was there ever a more dramatic and emotional episode? One of the best episodes of Trek in all of its incarnations.
The Bad:
What Are Little Girls Made Of: Just what are little girls made of, anyway?
The Squire Of Gothos: I’m constantly asked how I could love Q but hate this guy. There’s been speculation this is the Q Continuum. God, I hope not. Campbell just annoys the crap out of me. Sorry.
The Return Of The Archons: This was, unfortunately, the first show I ever saw in color. It aired the night we bought our first color television. I didn’t get it then. I don’t get it now. Get it?
A Taste Of Armageddon: Prime Directive? We don’t need no stinkin’ Prime Directive.
The Ugly:
Miri: What in the heck are those kids yelling, anyway? Bonk? Is this Batman?
The Naked Time: Spock’s gotta stop cryin’. Who really wants to see a half naked Sulu? I mean, really. I do like Uhura’s reply when Sulu calls her a fair maiden.
Dagger Of The Mind: Kirk gets the chair. It does have the very first mind meld, though.
Where No Man Has Gone Before: Get a load of those eyes.
Operation: Annihilate: Man, those bat-like creatures are ugly.
The Alternative Factor: If the Biblical Lazarus looked like that, we’d have had one less miracle in the Good Book.
Season 2
The Good:
Amok Time: Sci-fi great Theodore Sturgeon penned one of the most important episodes in the Vulcan mythology. Nimoy also gave us the famous “Live long and prosper” Vulcan hand gesture in this episode, based on a Jewish blessing he once observed as a child. Who can forget the Kirk and Spock battle? The scene along with its familiar music has been parodied a thousand times since. Finally who can forget that wide smile … just for a second … when Spock sees Kirk is still alive?
Mirror Mirror: Spock with a beard. That’s what I never forgot from the early days of seeing the episode. The Mirror universe was once the potential script for a film that never materialized. The world did make itself rediscovered in DS9 episodes and one of the best Enterprise arcs for that show’s entire run. We often wondered just what kind of an Enterprise that Kirk did encounter when he returned.
I Mudd: Roger C. Carmel created one of the most endearing bad guys in Star Trek history with Harry Mudd. His return in the second season is a highlight indeed.
The Trouble With Tribbles: Do I really have to talk about this one at all? A recent poll finds that this single episode is the most remembered of all of the incarnations of Star Trek. There are over 600 hours of Star Trek in one form or another, and Tribbles beats them all for enduring.
Journey To Babel: Outside of Nimoy himself, no one has given the Vulcan mythology more than D. C. Fontana. Here she gives Spock parents. Mark Lenard would go on to star in several of the films, once even as a Klingon. He would develop a close relationship with Picard in another generation. The murder mystery is almost forgotten.
A Piece Of The Action: Mobsters and Star Trek. How can you go wrong? This was another episode once considered to be followed up in a film. I really would have loved to see how that would have played out. Who can forget Kirk’s driving? When Kirk decides to get into character, it’s Shatner gold. Ask him, he’ll tell you himself. As kids we struggled to learn the game fizzbin, except when it was dark … on Tuesday.
The Omega Glory: I used the last five minutes of this episode in my honors American Government classes as a teacher. It’s priceless and quite appropriate for today when Kirk admonishes White Cloud for speaking the “sacred words” so badly and without meaning.
The Bad:
The Immunity Syndrome: A giant space cell. Are you kidding? Someone was really running out of ideas here. It does manage a touching Spock/McCoy moment, but it is the dumbest episode I’ve seen.
The Gamesters Of Triskelion: OK, so it features the only appearance of a porn star on a Trek episode. If that’s a highlight, you really have to worry. Of course, Kirk needs to teach her about love. When they fight on the patterned floor, no one ever even follows the rules. You can see combatants touching each other’s color all the time. They needed to put up a lethal force field. That would show them. Finally Kirk gets out of it by placing a bet?
The Apple: What’s with the white hair? The god looks like the entrance to an Expo show I once attended. Kirk conveniently forgets about that pesky prime directive … again. Another episode where Kirk has to give some love lessons.
The Ugly:
The Deadly Years: A pretty good episode at times, but get a look at that makeup. I know this was the late 60’s, but look at Planet Of The Apes or the earlier Universal Jack Pierce works. This looks like they spilled liquid latex over their heads.
Patterns Of Force/ Bread And Circuses: Aren’t these the same episode?
Return To Tomorrow: Good episode. Ugly? One word. Diana Muldaur. She’s Aunt Esther ugly.
Season 3
The Good:
The Enterprise Incident: Spock and Kirk set out to steal a Romulan cloaking device. Spock has to seduce the Romulan Commander while Kirk masquerades as a Romulan. Good stuff.
Spectre Of The Gun: Sure, the story’s been done already a half dozen times, but look at how good the characters are in this one. It’s Star Trek and good old time Western shoot ‘em up. And Chekhov gets the girl this time.
The Tholian Web: Maybe one of the best Treks ever. Kirk’s final orders are one of the more tender McCoy/Spock moments. The Tholians should have been used more. They finally did show up on Enterprise.
For The World Is Hollow And I Have Touched The Sky: A great McCoy episode, to be sure. The title is also one of the best lines spoken in a Trek episode.
Requiem For Methuselah: Shatner overacts badly here, but it’s one of the most original Trek episodes made. I did sense a bit of Forbidden Planet here, which is likely intentional, as Roddenberry has often credited that film as a major source of inspiration for Trek. Louise Sorel is also the most attractive of Kirk’s women.
All Our Yesteryears: I’m not sure why I like this one so much. I just do.
The Bad:
Spock’s Brain: Imagine Spock on a remote control device being led around in search of his brain. Wait a minute. You don’t have to.
And The Children Shall Lead: Didn’t we see the same episode in Miri? God, this one is awful.
Plato’s Stepchildren: Yes, I know this one is historic for having the first interracial kiss on television, but honestly, this one is severely bad. The Plutonians move the crew around like puppets. Too bad they couldn’t have exercised more control over the writers.
The Empath: Kelley considers this one of the show’s best. I know he plays a doctor, but that’s no excuse to self medicate. I love the late DeForest Kelley dearly, but this episode was slower than maple syrup poured on an Arctic stack of pancakes.
The Ugly:
The Paradise Syndrome: Good enough story, but Shatner’s acting here is particularly ugly.
Is There No Truth In Beauty: Apparently not. Diane Muldaur and a shiny alien that makes you crazy. That’s like asking Aunt Esther the title question.
Turnabout Intruder: The episode that killed Trek. ‘Nough said.
Video
Each episode of the series is presented in its original broadcast full-frame format. You do get yourself a full 1080p image here. I was disappointed to see that the codec was VC-1, which I find vastly inferior to AVC?MPEG-4. The bit rate seldom rises above 16 mbps. Certainly it’s better than anything we’ve seen, but is it the best we can see? I’m not sure. Don’t let that keep you from buying this set. It might not be the best it can be, but it is VERY good. Anyway, the restoration is a pretty sweet piece of work. Colors jump out like they never have before. I noticed details that I’ve been missing for over 40 years. I’ve seen these episodes hundreds of times, and I couldn’t help feeling like I was actually seeing them for the first time. Reds were particularly blazing for the first time ever. The new f/x shots blended in perfectly and exhibited an appropriate picture quality. The f/x were clear and clean, but yet made to look like the original film stock. Gone are some of the print flaws from earlier releases. The transfers are very clean. If for no other reason, you need to see Star Trek in a form that was never possible before even in first run broadcast. These episodes leap at you at warp speed.
Audio
The DTS-HD 7.1 Master Audio track is an awesome upgrade here. Again the key is that it does not impose itself as a distraction. The surround mix is negligible enough to fit in with what we remember while adding more on the dynamic side rather than any kind of aggressive mix. When the ship appears for the menu screen, you’ll hear sub response that I just never connected with the original show. The dialog has been obviously enhanced by the new mix with good results. The iconic incidental music is better than ever before. You get everything you’re used to, but better, in this audio presentation.
Special Features
All of the features from the individual sets are here.
Final Thoughts:
Just in time for the third new Trek film we get all 79 episodes plus the original pilot in one huge collection of Star Trek on Blu-ray. It makes a great gift or just a nudge for those fans who haven’t made the plunge yet. It’s a must-own. “To deny the facts would be illogical.”
