Yeah, they were just modified over a longish period - the first season uniforms were given a collar and the piping was removed. There's an extra in the background of Sarek (I believe) wearing a uniform with both the collar and the piping. It was all done by some time in the fourth season I think.
I agree the Season 3-7 uniforms did get a little too poofy at times, but they are still easily my favorite Trek uniform. They were bold and colorful and they looked sharp as hell on the actors. And yeah, it IS pretty distracting seeing the two different versions throughout Season 3. Especially when one version looks cool and modern, and the other looks like a dated 70s scifi costume.
While I never rated the show, surely the Enterprise ones are the most realistic? They had pockets and everything!
I liked the bib from the TWOK era, but that's it. The red didn't work for me and the rank insignia was not obvious enough. My favorite Starfleet uniform is the FC uni. I also liked Picard's jacket. That lady with the TWOK/FC combo had the right idea.
My favorite uniforms were the FC/late DS9 ones... but I'm not a fan of it being a one-piece jumpsuit. The version with the separate jacket is what gets my vote.
IMO, it's the most futuristic and original rank insignia (although there is a loose correlation between those rank pins and the sleeve stripes in TOS).
What about the engineering and security uniforms from the movies? Should they have stayed? I liked them. I guess Roddenberry probably thought the security uniforms looked too militaristic.
Yes, this is very nice and I have always felt like it would be more realistic if the uniforms were more "uniform". I often wondered why the uniforms didn't include the color on just the collar and cuffs. It seems to me that would be more in keeping with a military/diplomatic organization. Of course, I am no clothing designer and I have not forgotten that the uniforms needed to meet the needs of an audience rather than the needs of a real crew...just mho
It seemed in Generations that the DS9/VOY uniforms were being used as optional work/away team fatigues. That might have been at the discretion of Picard, IMO.
TMP was the movie Roddenberry had the most direct control over, this would have included the design of the security guard costume. Getting rid of that costume would have been the decission of the TPTB after Roddenberry was kicked to the curb into a "advisor" position.
^But he didn't chose to bring them back for TNG, of which he did have ultimate control. That's the point Jay is making I think.
I seem to be of the opposite opinion of a lot of people. I think the 2 piece TNG uniform is a decent looking uniform (that being said, the FC uniform is my favorite TNG-era uniform). Probably the one thing that bothered me was the heartbeat stripe in the midsection. It looks too 1980s to me. It would have looked better to be straight across the midsection instead. Now, I liked the color scheme of the DS9\VOY uniforms, but, I did not like how they looked more like a jumpsuit than a uniform. The FC uniforms fix that look. Personally, BESIDES just using the FC uniform from the beginning, if I were to design a uniform based on the TNG series uniform, I would have combined the the 2-peice TNG style with the DS9\VOY uniforms: making the uniform all black using their shoulder color scheme of the DS9\VOY uniforms. The TNG uniform I had a problem with and a special hatred for, though, was the dress uniform that was literally a dress!!
Heartbeat stripe? Are you talking about the cut of the branch-colored inset? That's supposed to invoke the bottom of the Starfleet insignia with the top reversed on the back.