Star Trek TNG & Enterprise Blu-ray release update

During the last year or so we have been spoiled with TNG and Enterprise Blu-ray releases. Finally being able to see them in HD has certainly altered their experience for fans. Enterprise officially already had a HD release in the iTunes store but in my opinion the experience is enhanced by viewing it on a proper HDTV. Now fans can look forward to Enterprise season 3 on Blu-ray which will be released January 7th. That is a bit later than I had hoped (so much for planning the holiday season). Fans will however be able to buy Star Trek TNG season 5 on November 19th.

Gratuitous

Both releases are highly anticipated because for both shows these seasons are said to be the best. With Enterprise the story will deviate from the previous two season with the controversial Xindi storyline. I say controversial because themes as casual genocide, drug abuse and a bit of gratuitous nudity certainly was the topic of much discussion on Star Trek discussion boards. The latter two themes were shoe-horned into the T’Pol/Tucker love affaire that only seemed to pay dividend in season 4. For season 3 it seemed at times that the shows creative staff were desperate to grab some better ratings. This desperation stands in conflict with the otherwise well executed Xindi storyline.

Inner Light

Star Trek TNG had its best time during season 4 and 5. The two seasons afterwards were good but seemed too desperate to focus on character development with mixed outcomes. Season 5 of TNG is of course best remembered for the episode ‘Inner Light’ and the two-parter ‘Unification’. I accidentally mentioned once that ‘Inner Light’ was a season 4 episode and in some sense it feels like one. Season 5 started a trend whereby the show focused on continuing plot lines and keeping old adversaries as continuing antagonists. ‘Inner Light’ is a Picard centric episode that feels very refreshing in that aspect and shows the possibility for serious drama on Star Trek. It is also considered Patrick Stewart’s finest Star Trek performance but I personally like the season 6 episode ‘Tapestry’ better.

TNG

Now that I have given you some reasons to also be excited about the releases it is time to mention what we can expect from the Blu-ray discs. For Star Trek TNG season 5 there is a press release that sums everything up nicely.

In addition to all-new commentary tracks on select episodes with some of the franchise’s most notable names, deleted scenes and a gag reel, the high-definition collection includes the newly produced featurette, “Requiem: A Remembrance of Star Trek: The Next Generation.” This two-part documentary explores the making of the series’ fifth season and focuses on the effect the
passing of creator Gene Roddenberry, which took place halfway through the season, had on the show as well as the production family. The tribute to the late creator includes key cast and crewmembers sharing their favorite memories of working with Roddenberry and bidding farewell to the Great Bird of the Galaxy.

The collection also includes the exclusive featurette, “In Conversation: The Music of Star Trek: The Next Generation.” Jeff Bond, author of The Music of Star Trek, moderates the conversation between the show’s composers Ron Jones, Dennis McCarthy and Jay Chattaway as the group discusses the challenges for writing each episode’s original score, working with a live orchestra and the team’s creative approach to scoring the series. The featurette also shares stories from behind some of the most beloved musical cues including the legendary Ressikan flute melody from “The Inner Light.

Season 5 was indeed the time that Gene Roddenberry died, in fact the episodes Unification are dedicated to him in his remembrance. ‘Unification’ will also get a separate Blu-ray release in the same spirit as ‘Best of Both Worlds’. Personally I think this is rather useless, the episodes are good but as a complete season it simply works better.

Here is the trailer for TNG season 5 on Blu-ray…

Enterprise

For Enterprise season 3 we not only will be getting the DVD extra’s but also two new documentaries entitled ‘A Time Of War’ and ‘Temporal Cold War: Declassified’. We shall see of they are any good. I am less than happy that most of the stuff is simply rehash from the DVD release but I guess the episodes themselves are the real reason we would buy the release. I will try and compare the Blu-ray release with that of the HDTV on technical matters because I didn’t do that previously. I hope the Blu-ray release will be a bump in the visual quality because the HDTV release felt rushed at times with so many ‘blurry’ scenes.

However, if there is one bane that Enterprise fans are suffering from it is the cover art of the Blu-ray discs. Season 1 was so-so but for season 2 they initially used season 1 press photo’s. Only after lengthy complaining was this decision reversed. As for season 3, well see for yourselves. The cover looks like a twelve-year old has just learned to Photoshop. If they redo the cover I wouldn’t be surprised if they just but Jolene Blalock’s naked ass just to get more pre-teens to buy the discs. With CBS anything is possible.

Here is the trailer for Enterprise season 3 on Blu-ray…

Check back here on www.SciFiEmpire.net for the reviews of TNG and Enterprise on Blu-ray.

Source; http://www.thetrekcollective.com/2013/10/new-details-of-enterprise-tng-and-movie.html