Has anyone seen the remastered original Star Treks?

[Altalazar]

I went to the startrek.com site yesterday and discovered something I had heard nothing about - they were remastering original series episodes, one at a time, with modern special effects, including not just space shots, but any shots there was an effect, even if it was just a matte painting.

It was an interesting and cool idea, I thought, to update it so that you aren't so distracted by the cheesy (for today) special effects. I'm sure some purists will be scandalized, but not me. I like things like that that take you back into the story instead of constantly being distracted by the strings, so to speak.

I wonder, though, has anyone here actually seen any of the remastered episodes? I don't even know where they can be seen in my area, if at all. I hadn't heard a thing about it until now. You'd think scifi channel would have this, but they don't. What's up with that? And what's up with the radio silence on it.

Oh well, at least they are keeping someone busy on Star Trek.

 

[Mouseferatu]

I've seen a few. They're pretty nifty, actually. At least the ones I've seen, the effects are obviously better, yet are still sufficiently "in character" for the series that they're not at all distracting.

In some low-effects episodes, you can barely tell the difference; the only new shots might be a view of the Enterprise, or the planet it's orbiting. In others, like the Doomsday Machine, the difference is huge.

Overall, I'm quite happy with it, and looking forward to more.

 

[Ranger REG]

Old news. For some episodes I've seen they were pretty conservative with the additions. For the most part they displayed different planets, complete with cloud formations. Other times, they enhanced the weapon fires. And there were some interior enhancements like the chronometers.

 

[Flexor the Mighty!]

I've seen a few. They're pretty nifty, actually. At least the ones I've seen, the effects are obviously better, yet are still sufficiently "in character" for the series that they're not at all distracting.

In some low-effects episodes, you can barely tell the difference; the only new shots might be a view of the Enterprise, or the planet it's orbiting. In others, like the Doomsday Machine, the difference is huge.

Overall, I'm quite happy with it, and looking forward to more.

Ditto. As he said, the shows with a lot of space effects shots like Doomsday Machine are quite improved with the remaster. I'll buy the DVD set when it comes out.

 

[Holy Bovine]

Ditto. As he said, the shows with a lot of space effects shots like Doomsday Machine are quite improved with the remaster. I'll buy the DVD set when it comes out.

Ditto, ditto. I saw the Doomsday Machine a few weeks ago and it was awesome (always one of my favourite eps too). I can't wait for the boxed set although the price will certainly be astronomical.

 

[sniffles]

I've seen several, since they're airing both on Spike TV and on a local channel in syndication. The special effects look nice, true to the original designs but with the added advantage of not being restricted to simple camera movement.

Interestingly, we were watching "Space Seed" the other day and admiring the new graphics for the Enterprise and Botany Bay, but were amused to see that an old continuity bobble had been left in. At one point when Kirk bends over Khan his communicator falls off his belt, and McCoy stares at it intently as if waiting for the director to yell "Cut!"

 

[Man in the Funny Hat]

I've been watching them faithfully since they started airing them (by tivo since they air at 1 am or so). As has been said the actual improvement varies by the number of effects shots in the original episode. What gripes me about them, having just finished watching the entire series on DVD, is that it is apparant that the episodes are then still being chopped down prior to airing to increase commercial time. I don't know if that's just HDnet (or whatever channel it's airing on, I can't recall) or if maybe that was actually done as part of the remaster-reissue process.

Either way it bugs the hell out of me. I was amazed in watching the DVDs to find scenes I'd never seen in 30 years of watching Trek reruns. In sydication they just savaged the original episodes. It then grates that someone should go through the effort of remastering and re-doing effects only to once again see the original episode cut shorter that it was.

Many of these remastered episodes I have kept on the machine and watched them a few times again.

 

[Mouseferatu]

From what I've read, they remastered the entire, uncut episodes (and it is those that will appear on the eventual DVD collection).

So long as they appear in syndication, however, they will continue to be cut, since an hour of TV today has something like 10 more minutes of commercials than it did in 1969. :\