Star Trek – The Original Series: Season Two (Remastered DVD Edition/CBS DVD)
Picture:
B- Sound: B- Extras: B+ Episodes: B+
Star Trek – The Original Series:
Season Two
returns to DVD in a new remastered format.
The new release is not exactly what fans were expecting after the recent
HD Season One re-issuing, but this
new 2008 remastering is the closet fans will see to high definition for a
little while.
Like a
moment from George Lucas Strikes Back, the new remastering of Star Trek – The Original Series: Season Two
both enhances the series’ color and picture quality, while adding/altering
digital effects to the original model work that appeared in the 1960’s
broadcast. Previous reviewers have
basically cited the alterations to the Original
Series as an atrocity to television history, but this reviewer actually
likes the updated look. After years of
viewing the Star Trek series with
its original (classic) model work and view screens, it is a nice way of blowing
off the dust and bringing the series into the 21st century. Purists, like those who want to crucify
George Lucas for the Star Wars – Special
Editions, may see the 2008 remastering as a mutilation of something that
there was nothing wrong with, but in actuality the new digital look (for the
most part) is refreshing and welcome.
There are times when the obviously rushed digital inserts are annoyingly
blatant, but at the same time the updating of the string and cardboard models
of the past is a more than solid upgrade.
Like the Star Wars – Special
Editions, however, this reviewer fears that these will be the only editions
of Star Trek – The Original Series
that fans will see in the future, unless they actually purchased the 2004
release. All future Blu-Ray releases
will seemingly only feature these remastered episodes and that is a shame. Whereas this viewer can whole heartedly
proclaim the quality of these remastered episodes; fans must have the ability
to switch back and forth between altered and unaltered episodes with ease. Here is to hoping that the studio sees the
advantage in offering an ultimate Blu-Ray collection.
There is
not much to say about Star Trek – The
Original Series, besides it is the epitome of classic sci-fi
television. The Second Season of Star Trek
the Original Series, arguably, offers some of the franchise’s best
episodes. With Season Two containing the full 26 episode run, fans are once again
treated to some classic Star Trek that
changed television history forever.
Moments like the Spock/Kirk battle to the death scene, which has been
satirized too many times to count (Futurama
stands out to this reviewer), makes the Second Season insanely memorable.
Whereas the First Season established
the series, the Second Season gave Star Trek its staying power through
creative storylines, powerful characters, and a progression of varying paths
that gave the show an endless amount of possibilities. From planet destroyers too parallel universes
(too even Spock with a beard), it is all here in all its glory with Star Trek – The Original Series: The Second
Season (Remastered DVD Edition).
The
technical features on this new remastered set have been discussed as far as the
aforementioned digital additions in this review, but overall this release is
certainly an upgrade from the 2004 DVD release; though not quite as good as the
1080p picture of the HD side of the Season
One release. The picture is
presented in a vibrantly colorful 1.33 X 1 full screen that though still holds
a fair bit of grit and debris is the nicest the series has ever looked. The red, blues, and yellows all ‘pop’
throughout the episodes and the digital enhancement gives the series a
crispness that it has never felt before.
The sound is crisp and clean in its Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround track,
but fails to have the same great upgrade as the picture quality. Whereas this 2008 release is a clear audio
upgrade from the 2004 DVD with its better use of the full surround spectrum;
more time was seemingly put into the picture rather than the sound.
The
extras are only a slight upgrade from the 2004 DVD set; offering fans only one
new extra with Billy Blackburn’s Treasure Chest: Rare Home Movies and Special Memories
Part 2. The small treasure trove of personal footage
is Blackburn recounting his time on the Star
Trek set and the impact the series had on his life, as well as the
world. The featurette is under 15
minutes, but seems to pack in a lot of valuable information you can’t find
anywhere else. All the other features
are the same as those viewable on the 2004 DVD release, so don’t be
disappointed if you have already spent hours sifting through the already
released material. The extras are just
as good a second time around, but most fans probably already own it.
This
viewer was not set to stunned, when viewing Star Trek – The Original Series: Season Two (Remastered DVD Edition) but
it was refreshing, enjoyable, and as classic as ever. A Blu-Ray release is something that can not
come soon enough, but for now this remastered set fits the bill.
- Michael P. Dougherty II
