Star Trek: The Original Series- The Complete Series 60th Anniversary Edition Blu-ray Review
“Star Trek: The Original Series” is sci-fi at its best.
60 years ago 1966’s “Star Trek” changed television and sci-fi as we know it. Creator Gene Roddenberry beamed Captain James T. Kirk, Mr. Spock, Dr. McCoy, Scotty, Sulu, Uhura, Chekov, Nurse Chapel and the rest of the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise into the homes of millions and showed us a hopeful vision of the future. Through three seasons and 79 episodes of this episodic series, some of the greatest minds in science fiction (D.C. Fontana, Harlan Ellison, Richard Matheson to name a few) explored deep themes about exploration, coexistence, equality, race, and working together. Sure, the crew of the Enterprise encountered conflicts and dangers such as viruses, alien threats, monsters, and death (namely those Starfleet officers in red shirts), but the heart and soul of the series was filled with intelligent and positive messages that never came across as preachy.
We all have our favorite episodes of this timeless series and, admittedly, there are many to name. The ones that really stand out to me are the intense cat-and-mouse game in “Balance Of Terror,” the Kahn centric “Space Seed,” the heartbreaking “The City On The Edge Of Forever,” Kirk vs. the Gorn in “Arena,” and, of course, the classic “The Trouble With Tribbles.” All of these episodes are wildly different in story and showed the scope and range of the storytelling. Sure, season 3 doesn’t compare to the first two, but every episode is still worth watching even if some of them are a bit on the clunky side. They all still have something to say.
You can’t talk about Trek without talking about the cast. William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, and DeForest Kelley are the core 3 here. Their individual performances and chemistry together elevate the series. Nimoy in particular made Spock his own and arguably helped create one of the best alien characters of all time. George Takei (Sulu), James Doohan (Scotty), Nichelle Nichols (Uhura), and Walter Koenig (Chekov) are invaluable to the series as well. You wish the characters had more screen time, but they all get their moments to shine.
You may prefer other Star Trek series, but you can’t deny the impact and the influence of TOS. It’s one of those rare shows that comes along and manages to endure throughout generations.
Video/Audio:
Presentation: 1.33:1 1080p. How does it look? No, this is not a new release, but rather a repackage that contains the same content as past Blu-ray releases. If you don’t own it yet, this is the perfect time to pick it up. The restorations are downright spectacular, but it would be nice to get a 4K release down the road.
Audio Tracks: 7.1 DTS-HD MA and 2.0 Dolby Digital Mono. How do they sound? The 7.1 track marvels but some may prefer the Mono.
Extras:
* Episode preview trailers
* “Spacelift: Transporting Trek Into The 21st Century”- An HD extra about the restoration
* Starfleet Access- Picture-In-Picture features for the episodes “Where No Man Has Gone Before,” “The Menagerie Parts 1 and 2,” “Balance Of Terror,” “Space Seed,” “Errand Of Mercy,” “Amok Time,” “The Trouble With Tribbles,”
* “Reflections On Spock”- Leonard Nimoy interview about Spock.
* “Life Beyond Trek”- Interview segments with William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, and Walter Koenig.
* “To Boldly Go…”- A featurette for each of the 3 seasons.
* “The Birth Of A Timeless Legacy” covers the origins of “Star Trek” and season 1 episodes.
* “Interactive Enterprise Inspection” (in HD).
* “Sci-Fi Visionaries”- A featurette on sci-fi/Star Trek.
* “Billy Blackburn’s Treasure Chest: Rare Home Movies And Special Memories”- A 3 part extra featuring home movies of a background actor.
* “Kiss ‘N’ Tell: Romance In The 23rd Century”- A featurette on the women of Trek and the romances their characters had.
* “More Tribbles, More Troubles” episode of “Star Trek: The Animated Series in HD with optional commentary by David Gerrold.
* The fantastic “Star Trek: Deep Space Nine” episode “Trials And Tribble-Ations” in HD.
* 2 “Trials And Tribble-Ations” featurettes titled “Uniting Two Legends” and “An Historic Endeavor”
* “Star Trek: TOS On Blu-ray”- A panel about the Blu-rays.
* “Designing The Final Frontier”- A set design bonus feature.
* “Star Trek’s Favorite Moments”- Cast and fans talk about their favorite TOS moments.
* “Writer’s Notebook: DC Fontana” is about the writer.
* “Kirk, Spock, And Bones: Star Trek’s Great Trio”- The title says it all.
* Enhanced Visual Effects Credits
* “Star Trek’s Divine Diva: Nichelle Nichols”- Nichelle Nichols interview.
* “Chief Engineer’s Log”- James Doohan extra.
* “Memoir From Mr. Sulu”- George Takei interview
* “Captain’s Log: Bob Justman”- A tribute to the producer.
* The unaired alternate pilot episode of “Where No Man Has Gone Before”
* 2 versions of “The Cage”
* “David Gerrold Hosts 2009 Convention Coverage”
* “The Anthropology Of Star Trek” and “The World Of Rod Roddenberry” 2009 panels.
* “Collectible Trek”- A look at the Trek merch and props.
* “Star Trek’s Impact”- Rod Roddenberry talks about the legacy of Trek.
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