Star Trek Remastered
Posted at 6:46 am | Filed Under Blu-Ray, CBS, HD DVD, High Definition TV, Science Fiction, TV Blogs
Star Trek has been an icon of TV since the mid-60s and generations have grown up watch the Original Series in syndication ever since. By the late 80s, when Star Trek The Next Generation came along, the effects and backgrounds in the Original Series were looking decidedly tired.
While the original Star Trek was recorded on film, made heavy use of primary colors and used lighting techniques common in movies, The Next Generation was shot on video, everything was in pastel shades and very flat lighting was used.
Recording on video continued with the two ensuing series: Deep Space 9 and Voyager. DS9 was darker in theme and darker in lighting. The pastel shades and flat lighting used in TNG were replaced by a return to primary colors and higher-contrast lighting in Voyager.
Then, after a 15-year exposure on TV, Star Trek in its various guises whimpered to a close when Star Trek: Enterprise was canceled in its 4th year in 2004.
ST: Enterprise had been shot using the new High-definition cameras that became available to the industry in the late 90s and was one of the high-def series aired in re-runs as HDTV fever took hold amongst consumers.
Then around 2007, rumors started appearing about a new Star Trek movie. The ever-popular franchise became something of a phoenix rising from the ashes. And, on that wave of anticipation, CBS decided to overhaul the Original Series, and replace the aging effects and backgrounds with new, pristine CGI effects.
First released on the now defunct HD-DVD format, the results were a revelation. Since the Original Series was shot on film, and film is an inherently high definition medium, Star Trek was easily remastered for high-definition release. Each frame of every episode was given a contrast boost, color corrected and scratches, smudges and imperfections removed. The new CGI effects were seamlessly dropped into the episodes, adding to the atmosphere and ambiance. The result is a whole new experience – Star Trek The Original Series for a 21st Century audience. Star Trek has never looked so good!
What people tend to forget is that Toshiba, who were backing the HD-DVD format, funded the remastering costs for the Original Series. When HD-DVD folded, it looked like Star Trek’s high-def outing was “Dead, Jim”, and only the first season of Trek was ever released.
However, Blu-Ray’s popularity has ensured that funding was found to release the Original Series on Blu-ray high-def instead, though it took another couple of years. Now, all three seasons of Classic Trek are available on Blu-Ray.
While the remastered editions are available on standard DVD, the Blu-Ray versions are of higher quality. And on the Blu-Rays, you also get the original episodes with all their original effects, so you can compare old with new.
Since TNG, DS9 and Voyager were all shot on video, it’s very unlikely we’ll ever see high-def releases of these series. Enterprise may make a Blu-Ray debut in the future, however. But for now, Star Trek: The Original Series is it.
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