Star Trek TOS Season 3- Remastered coming in November (1 Viewer)

[RickER]

And the alien masks come from Lost in Space...belive it or not!

 

[michael_ks]

Come to think of it, the Vians are a dead ringer for the aliens that want Will Robinson's brain in "Invaders of the Fifth Dimension", an episode broadcast some 4 years prior.

 

[Carabimero]

The masks look so much better on Star Trek.

 

[Ockeghem]

Michael,

I had to check my library to see if I owned that episode (Invaders From the Fifth Dimension). I see it is from season one, which means I own it.

I don't recall this episode, but now I am going to watch it.

 

[Nelson Au]

Guys-

I'm a little late to the party, but here's my pick for my favorite Season Three episodes, and sort of in order of favorites:

The Enterprise Incident
Elaan of Troyius
Day Of The Dove
Requiem For Methuselah
The Tholian Web
All Our Yesterdays
That Which Survives and The Empath ties so I can get it in the list.

Other shows that I like for various reasons:
The Paradise Syndrome- for the great argument between Spock and McCoy and what has become the source of unfortunate parody from Scotty's in-character concerns of pushing the engines too hard.

Spectre Of The Gun- For the eerie sets and the Corbomite Maneuver and Arena like ending.

Spock's Brain- Has some moments you never seen before, like the main bridge viewscreen where they interact with it, and Kirk looking at a chronometer off screen. And Chekov's moments.

Other episodes have their little moments.

 

[Nelson Au]

I had a chance to do some catch up with the Remastered Third Season Set the last few weeks.

I saw All Our Yesterdays, The Empath, Requiem For Methuselah, That Which Survives and Wink of an Eye as I recall.

I must be getting more sentimental in my older age. I have seen these 3rd season episodes so many times, I know them well, perhaps somewhere between 50 to 100 times.

What caught me off guard was when I saw All Our Yesterdays and The Empath. I have not seen them in a long time, at least 4 years,or since the last DVD sets. I really got into them more then I expected. The emotions they induce on the viewer is still there. I refer to the sad parting of Spock and Zarabeth. That was really good and got me. But the real surprise was the power of Gem and how she got so connected with Kirk, Spock and McCoy. I forgot that she touches Spock to read him and she smiled. She could sense the warm friendship with Kirk and McCoy. Her urging Kirk and Spock to go to McCoy when Spock was able to use the Vian's device to transport them was also as moving. Kathryn Hays did a really wonderful performance!

Even the ending of Requiem was still as good as it was. The thing I forget is how much the 3rd year so focuses on the three leads and the relationship Spock and McCoy reveals. Great stuff! In some ways, I'm begining to feel that the 3rd year has more strong character stories compared to the second, which had more action adventure.

The new CGI effects of these shows was nice, but I have to say that the content still shines brighter then the effects work in many episodes. Though perhaps because I am watching standard def discs, the 3rd year live action and parts of the second year live action still don't look as good as the first year in high def. But still looks terrific in it's color rendering!

I had been resisting watching the rest of the set as the remaining episodes are not as strong for me. But I think I'll keep going, inspite of episodes like Whom Gods Destroy! (no offense for those that like that one)

 

[RickER]

Nelson, look for the green make-up coming off of Batgirl, Yvonne Craig, onto Shatners hands when he grabs her wrists.

Just wanna ruin Whom Gods Destroy a little more for you.

I read they didnt remember how to do the paint for the Orion slave girl anymore.

 

[Nelson Au]

Good one Rick, I'll look for that!

I'm surprised, I really am getting sentimental. It's been hours since I saw The Empath and I still find the emotional aspects powerful and well done! And Kirk even has the speech about compassion at the end to wrap it all up in. Of course the music was a huge part of it too.

Doesn't help that I got home this evening to see that ABC was airing Sleepless in Seattle and I decide to find my DVD copy which was the first issue and anamorphic too! And I watched that. I even will admit to liking An Affair to Remember. What a nice film, haven't seen that Sleepless In Seattle in years. Hanks and Ryan were very good in that. But I digress.

 

[Lou Sytsma]

Nelson you are getting sentimental in your old age! I have always enjoyed the episodes you have listed. Empath in particular.

 

[Ockeghem]

Nelson,

Thanks a bunch for your reviews. For my own part, the third season of TOS is on a par equal with the first and second seasons. There are some 'gems' from that season, and they hold up well. And the 'clunkers' that some people often point to also have their good points.

 

[Nelson Au]

I sometimes get into these moods and like to wallow in it, Lou!

Maybe I'll put in Bullitt, Terminator 2 or another similar film and snap out of it!

Scott, I am surprised to be re-discovering the third season in a sense! I am looking forward to the rest, though there's not much left.

PS- I forgot to add that the new CGI effects at the end of All Our Yesterdays does really add to the poignant ending of that episode as you see the exploding sphere of matter from the sun hit and vaporize the planet Sarpedon.

 

[lukejosephchung]

Hey, Nelson, good to see you here. I'm waiting for the right price before I pick up Season 3, but I'm definitely looking forward to having it in my library! Thanks for the review, bud!

 

[Nelson Au]

Hey Luke! I'm sure there will be a good sale for the set pretty soon!

Due to Rick's post earlier, I decided to have a look at Whom Gods Destroy. Boy I have not seen that in so long! I could remember quite a few lines, but I had forgotten how over the top Garth was! Shatner had fun during that temper tantrum too.

Some things I noticed this time from the remastered live action. Marta, (Yvonne Craig) is often bathed in a green light.

The other prisoners are re-using costumes from other episodes. The stiff outer part of the Andorian costume that Thelev wore in Journey to Babel is worn by a human here and you can still see all the blue make-up that was smudged onto the top edge of costume by the actor during Journey to Babel.

And Garth is wearing old costumes too, Anton Karidian's robe and Commissioner Ferris' suit. And I had not noticed before that Cory's tunic is the same worn on Tantalus Penal Colony from Dagger of the Mind!

And I totally forgot the two prisoners who took Marta out are wearing the space suits used in The Tholian Web!

I didn't come away liking the episode any more or less. It was more interesting to notice how many pieces of other sets and costumes were re-used! And how wacky this episode was.

 

[David Podjasek]

So it looks to me like these remastered sets are all in 1.33:1 ratio?

I've downloaded a couple remastered episodes from Xbox Live and the aspect ratio switches to 16:9 for the new effects shots. I have to say I really like it that way... they just seem so impressive, and the fact that they are widescreen only adds to the impression.

It doesn't seem jarring at all to me either...

I really hope when they are released on Blu-ray they will consider using switching aspect ratios (now that Dark Knight has set the precident).

Also, one more question. Has season 1 been released as a DVD only set? I really don't want flippers with useless HD-DVD encodes on the other side...

Thanks!

 

[Carabimero]

The original aspect ratio is the original aspect ratio....I'm not sure how you could change it without stretching or a top and bottom chop job--it is what it is.

 

[David Podjasek]

No no... the aspect of the original material is still 1.33:1. The newly produced CGI special effects shots (which WERE produced in full 16:9) are presented in widescreen. So it switches back and forth. (on XBL)

 

[Ockeghem]

Nelson,

Good catches there. Other props that are reused are the various elements to the control panels on the wall seen in various episodes; I'm thinking also of the black countertop-like props we see during the scenes where Garth (as Kirk) transforms himself back to Garth, and during the uttering of the chess problem. Were any of Nomad's parts used in Whom Gods Destroy? I think so, but I can't recall without seeing the episode again.

 

[Nelson Au]

Scott, yes! The console that they were working to contact the Enterprise looks like a modified console on which the Romulan Cloaking device was sitting on. And the Cloaking Device was made of bits of Nomad!

A new friend I met this past year had seen, held, photographed and made a replica of the remote that Garth uses. It was originally a hand phaser with buttons added onto it!

In regards to the aspect ratio, the new CGI effects were made in 16:9 as a safety, for future use if they ever release Star Trek in 16:9. And in Japan, they did indeed release Star Trek TOS in 16:9 in 2007 for broadcast. They cropped the image top and bottom on the live action. I have not seen these, just one still frame from Balance of Terror and parts of Scotty's head is cut off in a shot of the bridge.

The HD-DVD's never had the option, as far as I know, to view the effects in full frame 16:9 for the US market. And based on info I've read, TOS on Blu Ray will be 4:3 and no options for inclusion of the original optical effects.

 

[Albert_M]

I posted this on the Star Trek thread below and not sure where best to ask, but can anyone tell me why the previous seasons sets are so expensive?

I would think that since season sets are still in print that the non "remastered" sets would be widely available for better prices....

 

[Nelson Au]

Albert-

The price of all Star Trek series has always been at the $100 mark per season up until recently with the release of The Animated Series and TOS Season 2 and 3 Remastered. I don't know why. In the past, many members blame Paramount for the high prices simply because they could and they know there is a loyal following with many who can afford it.

The HD-DVD set of TOS Season 1 was high too and that I can understand as it was the first to be on hi-def media and had both HD and SD. Though it was still very high. There is no SD version only of the Remastered Season 1 by the way. You have to buy the combo set.

Based on observations, it appears now that CBS who owns the TV division of Paramount and Star Trek, they've re-set the pricing for the Remastered TOS sets S2 and 3 to about $60.00. That's about what I paid

The previous Season Box sets of TOS that were released in 2004 I've seen at Costco for all 3 in one pack at a pretty good price. But that was a few years ago and I'm not so sure they carry it anymore. I took a look at Amazon and they average for $60 used per season. I was surprised for the prices of the new ones. My only guess is that anyone with New Old Stock of the 2004 set still price it at $100 because that's what they went for new. It could be out of print by now, and that's a surprise.

So it might be a good idea to buy the 2004 set now if you want the original non-remastered version if you find them.

I also saw that Best Buy's site still has copies of the original 1999 two episode per disc release for around $14 each. So you'd need to collect all 40 discs for the complete series. Assuming you can find all the discs.

This was an interesting question Albert as I had not looked into the past sets availability. It looks to me that the 2004 Star Trek TOS season sets could be getting hard to get now. Amazon might be the best bet. And if you already have them, I'd keep them.