Original Star Trek to be re-released with new CGI effects
TonyDP
Inside the MonolithPosts: 4,307MI6 Agent
Of interest to Star Trek fans: starting in mid-September, Paramount will be releasing its original Star Trek television series to syndicated TV channels with new CGI effects. The episodes are also being remastered to HD quality.
This will probably be a controversial move for purists who feel the original episodes should not be tampered with. But hopefully it will introduce the original show to a new audience who might not otherwise be interested.
Here's an article on TV Guide's website with more info...
http://www.tvguide.com/News/Insider/?cmsGuid=%7BFFD672A7-68D2-4EE3-A18C-781FC2972A5B%7D
This will probably be a controversial move for purists who feel the original episodes should not be tampered with. But hopefully it will introduce the original show to a new audience who might not otherwise be interested.
Here's an article on TV Guide's website with more info...
http://www.tvguide.com/News/Insider/?cmsGuid=%7BFFD672A7-68D2-4EE3-A18C-781FC2972A5B%7D
Comments
MBE
Classic Trek is my favorite as well and will always hold a special place in my heart. Some of my earliest childhood memories after coming to America revolve around that show and it helped me to learn english and shape many of my interests that remain with me to this day.
I own the original series on DVD so I have no problem with what they're doing; I'm really looking forward to seeing this new iteration and I hope that it does introduce Trek to a new generation. It certainly won't be any worse than the recent drek that as passed for Trek.
It's nice to hear someone else appreciates DS9! I enjoyed the 'spirit' of TNG, but I thought DS9 had a lot more heart in it...and a series finale that actually had some thought and feeling (unlike ST:VOYAGER!)
But enhanced Trek FX? I'd have to see it to know for sure, but to quote Captain Kirk: "Sounds like fun!"
It'll certainly be interesting to see.I'm another DS9 fan.I really cared about that show's characters in a way I never did for any of those on the other programs.The writers producers and actors on DS9 really took the opportunity to make their characters evolve substantially--something that wasn't quite as true on the other ST shows.The stories were great and the series came to an end gracefully and logically.:)
Who would you guys like to see cast? I personally think that Kiefer Sutherland would make a terrific Captain James T. Kirk: he's about the same age as Bill Shatner was when he was Kirk, and he even looks a little like the young Shatner. There are rumors that Matt Damon is being sought for the job: he would be acceptable to me. I haven't really thought about the rest of the cast.
Batman: "The Hammer Of Justice is UNISEX!"
-Batman: The Brave & The Bold -
For the most part I found TNG to be a bore. Everyone was just so proper that they never seemed like they were having fun. Just imagine how much more fun Q would have had with Captain Kirk.
DS9 had the best collection of unique characters aside from the original. With a larger regular/revolving cast though it has more variety and complexity. It also seemed to be written to fit into a larger very complex plan where you could see all these small and large threads connecting and weaving in and out until the finale. The stories were mostly darker, but they also had fun and the characters on whole had much more of a sense of humor and warmth than those of TNG. I loved the series and would much rather have seen a film based on them than TNG which felt so sterile in comparison.
MBE
http://www.startrek.com/startrek/view/news/article/23775.html
I thought it contained some of the best-written television of its era---and in fact, rivalled the DC Fontana and Richard Matheson scripts of the original, on occasion.
I'm sure the same could be said about DS9, but the politics of a sedentary location in space---despite the obvious hook of being a 'hub' between sectors, and thus getting interesting people thru all the time---simply didn't have the same appeal. I preferred Voyager, and its hook: to get home. And, I personally could have stood more of Enterprise.
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
As for newer effects, well, I guess I've mellowed in that regard, not too long ago I'd probably have thrown a fit.
My only regret is I missed the Shatner roast on comedy central. That would have been much fun!
Also of interest is Nimoy's assertion that he has final casting approval for any actor chosen to play Spock. Given their "favored nations" contract, one can only assume that Shatner has similar powers with Kirk.
I'd love to see Shatner and Nimoy bookend any new movie. They're obviously too old to carry the film but their participation would be a nice nostalgic touch for old-school fans like myself. I'd also love to see Shatner's death from Generations undone somehow; I always found that a tacky stunt event and felt the character deserved better.
As for the newly remastered HD Classic Trek, you all may want to check out the DS9 episode Trials and Tribbleations (wherein the crew goes back in time to the events of The Trouble With Tribbles) to get a taste of what we can expect. That episode cleverly mixed footage from the old show with new and more detailed FX.
No announcements have made as to the other shows. As Klaus mentioned above, giving the original Trek the HD/CGI treatment is at least partly due to the new movie being developed by JJ Abrams. Also, the FX on the other shows aren't nearly as dated as on the original series.
Also, IMHO, the original series (and to a lesser extent TNG) are the only Trek shows that have shown any significant lasting appeal after their original runs. The other shows quickly dropped off the radar.
I, too, would gladly see Kirk and Spock have a moment or two in the twilight...
BTW---Damon is Kirk, if I'm right...who's Spock?
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
I think the Matt Damon thing is still only a rumor. As far as I know, they're still hammering out a script. I honestly don't think we'll get any solid casting news for a few months at least.
I also own all the original shows on DVD, and I'd never part with them. But given my love of that old show, I'll probably break down and buy them all over again.
Now, as for the ultimate Classic Trek collectible, how about this (drools)...
http://masterreplicas.com/customer/startrek/startrek_product_detail.php?pid=8642
"If I were a rich man...la de da de da..."
Good to hear casting's still in the rumour stage...
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
Overall, I enjoyed it immensely. TOS was always my favorite iteration and the enhanced effects were a nice improvement without drawing attention away from the story. I was a bit taken aback at how subtle they were at first (very few new angles, little additional detail on the models) but overall they do fit organically into the show and provide a nice bit of new eye candy.
My biggests gripes concern the edits made to accomodate all the commercials. This is business as usual for commercial television but several scenes were truncated severely or cut out entirely.
It's also unfortunate that this new remastered edition is only available for syndication. Most channels seem to be airing it in the wee hours of the morning and you really have to go out of your way to find and watch it. Making it available to cable/satellite outlets would defnitely get the word out more.
But in the end, it left me wanting to see more and that's always a sign that they did a good job. I really look forward to their eventual release on DVD so that I can enjoy them properly and uncut.
They were definitely different. The blasts were a pinkish/reddish colored ball of gas with yellow streaks of lightning thru it, giving it a more 3 dimensional look. When the Romulan ship fires on the Enterprise and Sulu says it's dissipating, you can see it gradually become more and more transparent. So in that respect, it's appearance more closely follows the dialog.
Another standout segment was the section where the Romulan ship and the Enterprise pass thru the comet. Now it actually looks like a comet, complete with material spraying out from the back.
There was also a neat shot of the top of the Romulan ship during one of its flybys where you could make out the deck plates. And when the Romulans try to destroy the Enterprise with the self-destruct atomic warhead, there's a nice shot of the Enterprise slowly rotating in space, which replaces the old static shot of it tipped to one side.
The FX are nice and very similar in composition to their original counterparts; they don't hit you over the head with their newness except for a slightly different angle here and there and a little more detail.
http://trekmovie.com/2006/09/17/balance-of-terror-screenshots-before-and-after/
Funny how Star Wars tinkering always sets me on edge, yet I love Robert Wise's director cut. --I've always been an original Trek fan first and foremost -- man, Star Trek always deserved better then what they got in terms of effects and budget. They didn't have ILM, but the writing was more substantial and provoked more introspection, in my honest opinion.
And I love the details on the Romulan ships, just don't add or change scenes, that's really all that bothered me from George Lucas.
That's a great point Darenhat. One can't help but wonder if the color is a result of the remastering (implying that it was that way all along and had gotten dulled from years of neglect) or that the technicians who worked on the color weren't up on their Trek lore. I tend to think it's the former but you never can be sure.
I'm with ya Alex; Star Trek was always there right from my earliest childhood memories. It really shaped me in many fundamental ways and so I hold it in even higher regard than Bond.
I must be one of the few people on the planet who actually enjoyed ST:TMP (I thought it really caught that 2001 vibe and there was a great sci-fi story behind it all). I agree that the Director's Edition made it all that much better and had even more touches that harkened back to the original show.
Ironically, Trek did have ILM for several movies (TWOK, TSFS, TVH, TUC, Generations and First Contact) but other than TMP, Paramount never gave them the budget. I remember reading how Nicholas Meyer had to film scenes for The Undiscovered Country from certain angles because some of the Starfleet costumes had become badly worn and Paramount wouldn't pay for replacements.
As far as the Remastered Trek goes, oddly enough, most Trek fans (and as I'm sure you know, some of them can be really fanatical) are actually a little disappointed that CBS/Paramount didn't go further with the effects and liken certain things to the other shows (the warp drive effect and Romulan cloak being two prime examples). Personally, I thought the episode struck just the right balance, prettying things up a bit but still staying very faithful to the look of the old show. I'm also sure they'll get a little more ambitious as they go further along.
Maybe we'll see the cloaking device in "The Enterprise Incident" You never know. Oh, and I can't wait to see what they do with The "Doomsday Machine"
Got a favorite?
I always thought The Motion Picture and The Search For Spock were both solid, odd numbered pictures. Even ST V: The Final Frontier had some really great character moments to it. ST:TMP was a visual feast, I don't think it was ever equalled lookswise and the sets were all just amazing.
The Doomsday Machine was the first Trek episode I ever saw; I was 5 years old and still remember it like it was yesterday (Matt Decker's death scared the literal crap out of me). It's tough to pick just one show; the first that come to mind are:
Where No Man Has Gone Before
City of the Edge of Forever
A Piece of the Action
Trouble with Tribbles
Balance of Terror
Errand of Mercy (Kor was my favorite Klingon)
Journey to Babel
There are more (as well as a few I'd just as soon were never made) but those resonate most with me right now and are ones I'm looking forward to seeing spiffed up.
BTW, I love the new avatar ... "Your daughter is mine already!!"
My first was the one with Apollo, reason I remember it so well was my father kept getting irritated with the way Kirk was treating the god of poetry and fine arts. I must admit, I felt remorse as well. Especially after Leslie Parrish rebuffs him.
Incidentally, Lt. Carolyn Palamas and Barbara Bouchet were my favorite feminine guest stars.
And I noticed the sets at Walmart marked at $55. I had paid full price because I couldn't wait. Dammit.
http://trekmovie.com/2006/09/23/devil-in-the-dark-screenshots-and-videos/#more-209
I missed the episode myself because even though I set my DVD recorder's timer, I forgot to leave the settop box turned on. I particularly like the new animation when the Horta burns a tunnel thru the wall. The closing credits flyby is also very nice.