Star Trek: The Original Series - Season 1 [Blu-ray]

"Space: the final frontier. These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise. Its five-year mission: to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations... to boldly go where no man has gone before!" It would be hard to find many TV shows as wildly influential as the original series of "Star Trek," which inspired a devoted fandom, several spinoffs of varying quality, a string of films, and most recently an alternate-timeline reboot directed by J. J. Abrams.And it all started with "Star Trek: The Original Series, Season 1," a groundbreaking and intelligent sci-fi series that brought interstellar exploration to TV screens -- aliens, androids, strange phenomena and the odd planet that generates giant rabbits and school bullies. Yes, it has the late-sixties color schemes and miniskirts, but it also has a moral complexity and wide-eyed earnestness that most TV shows lack, along with crisp writing and a solid cast.In the twenty-third century, mankind has spread out among the stars, and established a Federation of like-minded worlds. The starship Enterprise is part of their Starfleet division -- and it does pretty much everything, from fighting hostile aliens like the Klingon and the Romulan Empires, investigating distress calls (including from a planet infested with pain-producing alien blobs), and exploring planets with weird and freakish creatures on them (including a furry creature that sucks salt out of its victims).The captain is James T. Kirk (William Shatner), who is assisted and guided by his two trusted friends: the logic-driven, half-Vulcan science officer Spock (Leonard Nimoy) and the crusty, blunt-spoken doctor Leonard "Bones" McCoy (Deforest Kelley). With the faithful crew of the Enterprise behind them, they travel through time, encounter godlike aliens, fall prey to some weird diseases (including one that makes you drunk!), crash a shuttlecraft, encounter a war fought with computers, and deal with androids, rock monsters, plague-infected kids, genetically-engineered Übermenschen, a giant lizard and the White Rabbit.A lot of stuff in "Star Trek: The Original Series" has become sci-fi cliche by now, but that only underscores that the entire first season must have been wildly fresh and groundbreaking when it first aired. There are a few episodes that are hit-and-miss ("This Side of Paradise"), but many of them are wildly inventive and cleverly-written -- and it's not just about weird alien Threat Du Jour. The Enterprise crew also deals with some truly bizarre problems, ranging from Kirk being accused of murder to a visitor from an antimatter universe.One of the best aspects of this season is that it never loses the human element. When the characters encounter problems, they often must grapple with issues of morality, revealing a great deal about themselves in the process -- Kirk's passionate love for a woman who is fated to die, his struggle to pass judgment on a mass murderer without giving in to his own base hatred, Spock's conflicted nature, his fierce loyalty to his old captain, an officer widowed during a battle, and so on. It's the personal part of the writing that gives it greater depth, beyond merely "Kirk fights with a big lizard-man by shooting diamonds at him." And yes, that does happen.As stories, these episodes are crisply and solidly written, with a good blend of intelligent sci-fi, action and pathos. The dialogue was well-written ("Do you play God, carry his head through the corridors in triumph? That won't bring back the dead, Jim") but with moments of humor to keep it from ever getting pompous ("I'll protect you, fair maiden!" "Sorry, neither"). That's what allows even the slightly silly (Spock attacked by a flying brain cell) to be pulled off well.It also has a very good cast, from the central three characters to the underused supporting characters like Uhura and Sulu. For all the gags about Shatner's acting, he plays Kirk as a man of both brains and passion -- he's driven and emotion, with a love for his ship, his crew and the unexplored crannies of the galaxy that rules his life. But he's also intelligent and canny, and more than once we see him outwitting a foe, whether it's making a primitive gun by hand or playing the ultimate bluff against a vast alien ship.And he has uniquely solid chemistry with Nimoy and Kelley, so that you can really believe that these three characters are fast friends who bicker, joke and advise each other... well, mostly Bones and Spock snipe at each other, while Kirk sits there smiling. Nimoy gives a brilliant performance as the half-Vulcan, half-human Spock, struggling with the emotions that his Vulcan nature doesn't allow him to express. Kelley plays McCoy as the exact opposite -- a fiery Southern doctor whose determination to do the right thing sometimes clashes with his duty. Yes, he boozes it up while on duty, but who doesn't want a doctor like McCoy?Few TV shows have had the impact on nerd culture that "Star Trek: The Original Series" has had, and the first season of this show is still an entertaining, thought-provoking story. Live long and prosper!

The Program:If I could find something new to say about Star Trek, that would be a feat in itself. Let it suffice to say that it's the most successful TV sci-fi franchise of all time, was a pioneering show in many respects, and is just darned entertaining to watch, whether you're a "true believer" or not.Season One of the Original Series is a great place to start for newbies and fanatics alike. We are introduced to the Romulans, Klingons, Khan, Starfleet, the Federation of Planets, and the whole crew short of Chekov, who appears in Season Two. We are presented with 29 episodes, at least 6 of which are absolute masterpieces, and another 10 of which are really, really good. In this package, you'll get classics such as "The City on The Edge of Forever," "Where No Man Has Gone Before," "Balance of Terror," "The Menagerie," "The Devil In The Dark," and "Space Seed." Overall, it's the Original Series' strongest season, and it only has two real clunkers in the group ("Shore Leave" and "The Galileo Seven").There's really not a whole lot to be faulted in this season. It's an absolutely rock solid item for any Trekkie, and indeed any sci-fi fan, to own.The Blu-Ray:So the question becomes, how is the presentation?Well, it should be said right off the bat that the HD transfers of these shows are absolutely sparkling. Detail is through the roof, making every smile line, button and dial, star, and ship detail just pop right off the screen. Black levels are rock solid, especially in space scenes. Color saturation is deeper than deep, and bright colors are radiant in a way that the previous DVDs just can't replicate. The show is presented in its original 4:3 aspect ratio - thank goodness CBS/Paramount didn't try to stretch these shows in a manner similar to many "HD" rebroadcasts of older shows on cable.The Original Series was shot on 35 mm film stock, which has more detail than any 480i TV broadcast can resolve (or 480p DVD for that matter). Thus, it is truly benefited by a high definition transfer. This isn't a release where you look at it and say "well, it looks pretty good for what it is." In fact, it has just as much fine detail and the same superior color as the newest shows currently broadcast on TV in HD. And it really does blow away the previous DVDs, too. There are, of course, a few shots here and there that betray their age. This is just the nature of the beast when dealing with 40 year old celluloid elements. But all told, a good 90% of the shots are competitive with modern HD. So as far as a video rating goes, it's at least 4 star material on average.Audio is a tad problematic. Some of the sound balancing seems to be a bit off - dialogue can have a tough time keeping up with music and sound effects. It's perfectly clear, don't get me wrong. But I found myself fiddling with the volume controls more than I'd like throughout an episode. On the other hand, the audio in general is great. The re-recorded theme song is breathtaking - especially when the Enterprise "wooosh-es" by from the front speakers to the rear surrounds. Red Alert klaxons and atmospheric sounds generally are mixed towards the surround channels. It's very cool.Special effects sequences have been redone with modern CGI and in high definition. For the most part they look great, and it is quite refreshing in the era of the "Lucas-ing" (or is it Abrams-ifying?) of old material that the producers of the new effects went to such great lengths to respect the original design aesthetic of the 1960's material. I will say I kind of wish they had done new model work, as CG still just isn't to the point where it looks "real" (setting aside the fact that this is inherently unreal stuff being filmed...). But I understand that it would never have been done in that case, since it costs so much more these days to do model work as opposed to CGI. On balance, having new effects is much more good than bad.But the kicker, and the reason it would be no big deal even if one hated the new effects, is the fact that the original effects are on the same disc. You can watch an entire show with the old or new effects, or, if you'd prefer to irritate your friends and significant others, switch between them in real time with the "angle" button on your remote. Are you paying attention, George Lucas? This is what we want in a Star Wars Blu-Ray! The beautiful new with the respected old, side-by-side. Big kudos go to CBS/Paramount and the Trek team for the job they've done here.Also included are several extra features. Mini-documentaries, mostly reprised from the previous DVD set, are included one on each disc. The "pop-up" text commentary from the DVD has been retained as "Starfleet Access," a combination video-text commentary. The videos are nice, but they talk over the audio from the episode, whereas the older text commentary did not interfere with the audio. I wish both could have been included. New features include a mini-doc on the HD restoration and effects, and a set of "home movies" from an extra on the Trek set. Especially cool is an interactive "tour" of the original series Enterprise, showing many nooks and crannies not often seen or discussed, on the same gorgeous HD CGI model that the new shots use. All in all, a healthy set of extras.The packaging is nowhere near as bad as some previous DVD Trek seasons, but it still has its issues. Why can we not be presented with episode titles on each disc? The discs are just blank silver paint, with loads of empty space that helpful titles could have occupied. Instead, the episodes are listed on the INSIDE of the Blu-Ray insert, and are covered by both the filler material in the front, and by a disc in back. Being required to pop out a disc to see the contents of three more is really not convenient.*****The audio niggles and the packaging stupidity might be enough to make some downgrade this to a four star rating. I am swayed however, by the consistently good (and occasionally astounding) HD clarity of the video, and the wonderful options for old and new special effects. The other things are minor issues in the scheme of things. This is a tremendously good presentation of an absolutely seminal television show and science fiction saga. The respect with which the "restoration" was handled is truly commendable.Any Trekkie/Trekker who has a Blu-Ray player should own this set. It's just that simple. If you are just a general sci-fi fan, you also should give this serious consideration.

What can I say that hasn't been said already? Loved Star Trek as a kid - remember vividly seeing the very first Kirk (pilot) episode when it aired and been hooked ever since. The quality on this Blu Ray is excellent, the colours vivid and sharp, as if it were filmed yesterday. Really enjoying watching all the episodes again. For some reason they are out of order - the pilot episode (Where No Man Has Gone Before) appears later on the first disc, when it would make sense to have it first, but that's no real big deal. What I found fascinating was that in spite of the naysayers who call it low budget and cardboard sets, in particular the attention to the lighting was outstanding; the stories date very well, the Enterprise's bridge from the outset looks pretty much as we will always see it, with minor tweaking as the years go by; the sound effects hold up extremely well and have been used throughout its TV and film history (you know, doors sliding, buttons activated, transporter beams etc), in fact it's all very accomplished and creative for the 1960s. Some really don't like Shatner's acting, but I love it and wouldn't change one bit of it. He will remain the only true captain of the Enterprise for me. As for the updated CGI on flypasts etc, I thought they were done admirably and unobtrusively - they added to the show, but of course purists can watch the originals without these should they so desire. If you're a fan of the series buy it on Blu-ray; you won't be disappointed.

The voyages of the Starship Enterprise, encountering new diverse cultures, life forms, adventures and dangers. On the surface, exciting space adventure centuries in the future, and just on that level, the show does it very well; on another level, a lot of the stories are morality plays, allegories of human problems on Earth in the 1960s and equally valid today. What makes the show so interesting is it's about humanity, character interaction, and how we deal with problems. The stories often question whether they (meaning we) have all the answers and do the right thing. Every episode has points of interest, great action, and exciting heroic and romantic incidental music. Who cares if a lot of planet surfaces are so obviously dressed sound stages. Because there wasn't a huge budget for sets and special effects, more emphasis had to be placed on story and characterisation. There are many terrific stories, and interesting characters head up the show. Captain Kirk, a thoughtful, intelligent leader, often headstrong and very hands-on, not afraid to kick ass or question, even disobey, his orders, to do what's right. Spock, the cool, logical science officer, half human, half alien, but with probably more humanity than many. McCoy, the passionate, caring medical officer, the voice of compassion and impulse. Spock and McCoy make up and inspire opposing yet complementary sides of Kirk's character and motivation. William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy and DeForest Kelley are superb in the main roles, they work and blend together really well - and that's just a summary of the main characters and leading cast in a terrific show mixing adventure, philosophy and humour.In the words of the great visionary, show creator Gene Roddenberry: 'I realized that by creating a separate world, a new world with new rules, I could make statements about sex, religion, Vietnam, unions, politics and intercontinental missiles. Indeed, we did make them on Star Trek; we were sending messages, and fortunately they all got by the network.'Watching all 79 episodes (Seasons 1 - 3) back to back reminded me just how good and enjoyable they are - it doesn't get much better than this! Star Trek was the first show I ever watched and enjoyed on TV and I still think it's great. The episodes stand up to repeat viewings and it is possible to find something to appreciate each time. There's plenty of humour, and while the stories are serious adventures, the show takes itself seriously but not too seriously, if that makes any sense. Of course, those who think it's silly, or camp, are welcome to their opinion, and will enjoy it too.Most of the 29 episodes in Season One are top-notch stories, with a good few submitted by published science fiction writers. On the whole the show is sound in terms of speculative science, authentic and credible, though allowance has to be made for very occasional slips not affecting the plot, for example in 'The Naked Time' the Enterprise is studying a collapsing planet and there are references to changes in the planet's mass, they mean density, sorry to nitpick! Also, the intention was probably to have a nautical feel to space travel to make it easier for audiences of the day to grasp the concept.Please note this review was written for the 2009 restored DVD edition - Amazon have also linked the review to the 2004 edition so the following comments will not apply to the earlier edition, except for comparisons.Working from the original film negatives, the restoration / remastering has been lovingly and sympathetically executed, picture quality is sharp and pristine, belying the age of the originals. Scratches and damage to negatives, seen on the 2004 edition as occasional white lines and marks, have been removed. Colour is rich and vivid, having been enriched with a touch of added contrast in places, beneficial for the most part, but not without exception - for example in the main series pilot, 'Where No Man Has Gone Before', Kirk and Spock's (then) gold uniform tops look greenish yellow after restoration, they are their proper rich yellow ochre in the 2004 edition. The original optical external special effects have been replaced by CGI, so for example instead of the iconic model Enterprise passing a diffuse looking planet, you now have a crisp detailed CGI Enterprise passing a detailed CGI planet. The CGI really scores in 'Tomorrow Is Yesterday' when the Enterprise passes the Sun - those few frames of CGI coupled with Alexander Courage's incidental music - awesome! The main title music has been re-recorded using the Fred Steiner cello arrangement version, with Shatner's 'Space, the final frontier ...' looped in. The attention to detail in the restoration can be seen in the main titles - the letter 'H' in 'Starring William Shatner' now has its bar upswept to match the font.Aspect ratio is 4/3 fullscreen. There are optional subtitles and plenty of featurettes of interest. My only grumbles of the DVD set are, the use of a horrid Scanavo DVD case means the episode list is obscured by the DVDs, and it is necessary to unclip one DVD to get to the one behind - this is not the case with my Season 2 set with the DVDs mounted on swivelling pages book style. Frustratingly, used copies of this Season 1 set have been seen with book style cases, so that would appear to be arbitrary. At the time of writing at just under £16 - about 60p per episode - this DVD set is excellent value and will hopefully give a lifetime of viewing pleasure.Footnote: I have recently (2019) added the 2016 Blu-ray set, though not an Amazon purchase, thought it helpful to add a few comparisons. There is the invaluable option to watch all episodes restored, either with the enhanced CGI external effects, as seen on the 2009 DVD edition, or the original optical SFX and model Enterprise. There is also the option of 7.1 sound, or what is claimed to be the original mono soundtrack, the latter ostensibly including the original recordings of the main title music - except they goofed: Season One was originally produced with two versions of Alexander Courage's main title music - the electric violin version was used for the second pilot 'Where No Man Has Gone Before' and the first eleven regular episodes produced ('The Corbomite Maneuver', 'Mudd's Women', 'The Enemy Within', 'The Man Trap', 'The Naked Time', 'Charlie X', 'Balance of Terror', 'What Are Little Girls Made Of?', 'Dagger of the Mind', 'Miri', and 'The Conscience of the King') and then the Fred Steiner cello arrangement was used for the remainder of Season One, starting with 'The Galileo Seven' - on the Blu-ray set only 'Where No Man Has Gone Before' has its electric violin version, with the cello arrangement on all other episodes. That first batch of episodes can be viewed with their correct original electric violin main title music on the 2004 DVD set. Extras on the Blu-ray include the original unaired version of 'Where No Man Has Gone Before' - spot several differences with the screened episode! The gold uniform tops (see above) are again greenish yellow on Blu-ray. Blu-ray episodes run about a minute and a half longer than the same footage on DVD, presumably due to different frame rates (NTSC at 24 frames per second vs. PAL at 25 fps) with a corresponding audio pitch difference. Comparing with official soundtrack CDs Blu-ray NTSC is the correct speed and pitch. Discs are conveniently mounted on swivelling pages, book style.

There is no doubt that the 1966 Star Trek show kick started a world wide science fiction revolution. But this unfortunately occurred well after its short-lived 3 seasons. Production studios executives with limited visions and even the shows stars did not have a clue about the vociferous demand that millions of fans would soon crave for all things Star Trek. After a decade of re-runs, it was the phenomenal success of Star Wars that proved the litmus test of the incredible potential consumer demand for space opera which eventually led to the first of a dozen feature films and four further hit Star Trek TV shows. Growing up as a kid in the early seventies Star Trek was the ultimate escapism, it had all the elements of classic science fiction stories, aliens, adventure, friendship, great character interaction, thought-provoking stories, fabulous space ships, cosmic vistas, laser guns, mobile phone-style communicators, and so much more. The only things that had come close before Star Trek had been serialized Flash Gordon of the 1930's and the timeless classic Forbidden Planet. Star Wars was a decade away as were all the other spin offs and variations, so only Kirk and co would sustain me and a legion of fans over the years. The shows influence of the young cannot be understated, bringing a fascination of science and technology that I would not be surprised, if like me many others have career paths along those lines. The Original Series in its time era, before CGI was an amazing show, but in the digital age of High Definition it has to said that the painstaking way it has been remastered was absolutely necessary and it looks simply fabulous. To those who are stuck in a time-stream they have the option to watch it completely in its original format! But to the new and the old you will get to see some brilliant seamless special effects that simply enhance the show and bring it forward across the digital threshold.Enjoy and may we continue to boldly keep going to galaxy's far far away!

I was barely two years old when the first season ended, but the series played a formative role in my preteens, mimicking in the playground the events of the episode from the night before. Captain Kirk was the voice of a 1960s liberal America, and I think the series's high ethical values have rubbed off on to me; at least I would hope so!This set features all twenty-nine episodes of the first season of the original Trek. Alas, it does not include the pilot of `The Cage', but the twenty-nine episode total is reached by counting separately parts one and two of `The Menagerie'. The second pilot - `Where No Man Has Gone Before' - is also here. I do not propose reviewing the series - you know what Star Trek is already, right? - but rather what follows is a concise review is of the extras.The first, and arguably most important extra is a twenty-minute film called `Spacelift'. This tells us how the film from the original series was made anew: how it was cleaned up and its contrasts strengthened, how exterior special effects were redone using CGI, but "respecting the original material", doing what the original artists would have done if they had been able. We also learn how the music soundtrack of each and every episode was re-recorded.A second really good extra is a ninety-minute film called `Beyond the Final Frontier', which celebrated the fortieth anniversary of the series and in which we follow from start to finish the setting up of a special auction in New York of memorabilia. This really is not as bad or boring as it seems: even my other half, who is not a Trekkie, found it engrossing.Other extras include the following: ten minutes of Shatner and his horses (yawn) in `Life Beyond Trek'; twelve minutes of Nimoy discussing in 2004 the character of Spock and his `I Am Not Spock'/`I Am Spock' books; sixteen minutes of `Sci-Fi Visionaries', focussing on the writers; thirteen minutes of "rare home movies and special memories" of series extra Billy Blackburn; eight minutes on "romance in the 23rd century" in a 2004 film called `Kiss `n' Tell'; a twenty-four minute film on `The Birth of a Timeless Legacy' (including excerpts from `The Cage'); and a nineteen minute review of season one called `To Boldly Go!' Finally, there is also a Trekker Connections quiz game for those who want to test the limits of their Trekkery.Overall this set offers a really good package on top of the series, the digital work on which has done wonders to the originals without compromising their authenticity.

Well, i too was a bit worried when i heard that this project was in the offing, but i was also excited, having grown up with the original series and been a fan for years.Having watched the old series time and time again, the one thing that jarred with it was the special effects, as they were very much of their time, and i always wished that they could be updated, much as the BBc have done with some of the classic Doctor Who DVD releases.I have to say that the effects really add a depth to the original show and complement it. They do not detract from Star Trek in any way at all.I cannot see how people can complain about losing the grainy old stock shots, which were always the same for every episode, and the wobbly-ness of the Enterprise's motion through space.These sequences have been replaced with smooth and eminently watchable bits which really bring the old Enterprise to life.The 'camera' zooms in, in a way that when you are used to seeing the original, catches your breath, and makes you go, 'wow!'But what is most impressive, is the way the planets on the scanner screen, and the other minor effects are achieved.True, the CGI effects are rather low tech, but these look in keeping in a way, with the 1960's camera work on the live action sequences.They do however, bring the original series into line with the films, and the other Trek series, not that i am too much of a fan of the later series anyway.Some of the stories are space heavy anyway, so these, with new effects, are just brilliant.Where No Man Has Gone Before, and The Galileo Seven, are notable.The latter makes full use of CGI that really makes the episode make more sense and look more realistic without sacrificing any of the original episodes charm.The bit where Spock jettisons the fuel and ignites it, making the Galileo burn a trail in orbit is visually breathtaking whereas before it was wobbly and so-so..The high price makes this a poor value buy unless you get a special price as i did on Amazon.I would agree with other reviewers that it would have been nice to have the originals on the reverse side instead of HD, then a good comparison could be made.I would also say the the episodes should have been arranged in order of manufacture, not viewing, as this would have visually made more sense, plus the inclusion of The Cage, would have been nice.But, if you can get this for a reasonable amount, then buy it. I don't think you will be disappointed.