With all the movies out in 4k format now, I think it might be interesting to do a "never noticed that before" thread, similar to the one in the TOS forum (link below) to discuss things that we see now but didn't notice in the past. It could be minor visual details or other subtleties...anything you want to point out. I'll start. I watched TWOK the other night in 4k, and I noticed a number of things that I hadn't really seen or made significant note of before: 1. There is a little sign / indicator next to the bridge turbolifts that illuminates through the second half of the movie that says "Turbo-Lift Inoperative Below C-Deck" 2. At the end of the film, when Kirk and Spock are having their last conversation through the transparent wall, the dilithium / anti matter reactor conduits can be seen in the background, but they are no longer displaying the "lava lamp" effect. Instead, they just look like a bunch of twinkly lights inside the tubes. 3. Chekov and Terrell both do a subtle "quick multiple blinks" thing with their eyes while under the influence of the eels, particularly when they are lying about something. 4. In the background on the Enterprise bridge, after Kirk has used the prefix code to chase the Reliant away, the "shield status" graphic on the wall next to the weapons console shows the top view of the Reliant, not the Enterprise. It's out of focus, but it's definitely the Reliant, which I thought was an excellent little detail. 5. When Spock says "company dismissed" after the inspection in the torpedo bay, the crew in attendance breaks off in very choreographed fashion. A fair chunk of the crew turn and walk through the airlock door that leads to the travel pod, which seems odd. 6. There are some subtle background noises I never noticed before, or if I did I had forgotten. In the lobby at the simulator facility, you can hear birds chirping. In Kirk's appartment, you can hear what I assume is supposed to be fog horns on ships in San Fransisco Bay (?) 7. There is a break in continuity in the Director's edition. Right in the scene where Kirk and Spock are debating whether or not Khan will follow them and "the concept of the human ego," a female extra walks past the scene, heading left-to-right (if you are looking aft toward the turbolift doors). Then the camera cuts to Kirk, and the woman is no longer there. Then, when the turbolift doors open and deposit David on the bridge, the woman can be seen walking again, right where she should have been if the extra scene had not been re-inserted. 8. When the doors to the bridge whoosh open and the voice says "This is starfleet operations, Enterprise is clear for departure" there is a brief view of the main viewscreen. It is "off" (displaying no picture) and there is pair of fast-flashing red indicator lights on the bottom of the viewer, moving in much the same fashion that the indicators below the screen in TNG flash. 9. Speaking of lights, when the Enterprise phasers the hell out of the Reliant's bridge, we cut inside to the damage, and as the giant piece of stuff falls from the ceiling, you can see there is a large red indicator light flashing on the helm/navigation console that we have never seen before and never see again. It looks like it is right in the middle of the console, and it's long (maybe two feet) and very thin, and it blinks off and on, kind of like the old indicator did in TOS. This one is in the same general location, but is located on the flat surface of the console, and doesn't protrude. Anyway, let me know if you all have seen or found anything interesting in your re-watches.
You don't actually need 4k for either of these, but: In the first battle with Reliant, a couple of crewmen enter the bridge wearing hazmat suits that I don't believe we see anywhere else in the entire series. Also, last re-watch I noticed how often in TMP you could see everyone's junk through the one-piece uniforms.
Following up on this, I presume this must be the suit in question on the right. I'm curious if this was new for TWOK or if it's leftover from TMP. While googling for the above I discovered something I'd never picked up on before: the engineering crew holding helmets in the background in TMP. Doesn't look like the ones from TUC.
Considering how tight the budget was on TWOK and how much they recycled from TMP, I'd imagine it had to be a leftover. They couldn't even afford to make new uniforms for the cadets in TWOK, opting to dye old uniforms from TMP instead. So I can't imagine they'd make something brand new for a hazmat suit that's barely seen in the background for just a few seconds of screen time. A lot of the alien ambassador costumes made for TMP were barely seen in that movie, either.
Speaking of TWOK's tight budget, the thing that always stands out to me is the cheesy Infinity Mirror hanging in Spock's quarters—available at Spencer Gifts back in 1982 for $9.99.
Nimoy was NOT a fan of Spock's quarters in TWOK, especially the huge IDIC symbol made out of reflective pieces. He likened it to a Sparklett's water truck. He must've shot it through gritted teeth when he was directing TSFS. Nimoy apparently liked Spock's quarters in TUC much better, which he felt was appropriately dark and mysterious.
That's the safe bet, I agree, but it being made for TWOK isn't so farfetched, either. It's pretty much the standard engineering suit dyed orange with an added hood. I can imagine it being presented along with the red cadet uniforms and Meyer responding, "Hmm, nah, the white ones were fine... But now that we've got one of these maybe we can throw it in the background somewhere."
I do remember some interview where Nimoy or a production designer talked about trying to class-up Spock's quarters in TSFS, and, aside from the tapestry, they are pretty different. Different mirrors, different chairs, different tchotchkes, and, of course, the dark and moody colored lighting that hides everything but the giant tapestry. As long as he was happier when they were shooting it.
Yeah, true. If they could dye one costume, they could certainly dye another. You wonder when during TWOK Spock found the time to redecorate. During the journey to Regula I?
I don't know about the hood (though, given how overbuilt TMP was with the Phase II background, having all the production design geared up for an ongoing series and not one movie, I'd bet it was made then and not for TWOK), but I'm sure we see the orange version of the radiation suit in the movie at some point. Here it is, right after Ilia is killed, when Scotty is telling the bridge that they're about to melt the engines fighting against V'Ger's tractor beam.
I debated with myself over whether to submit this one because it actually gets less noticeable the more you look at it in stills, but despite the Klingon ambassador in IV and VI being the same actor in the same outfit in mostly the same makeup, if you watch them in close proximity he almost looks like a different person - like, he goes from being a slim(mer) young(er) black dude to an old fat white dude. Alot of that is probably John Shuck himself getting older, fatter, and whiter (hey it happens), but it's actually kind of striking, and I'm not totally sure all that covers it, either (I think it might be the eyebrows). Here's a publicity still from TVH so we can see him in brighter lighting:
Oof, yeah probably not in good taste for me to even mention that, especially since I think it's mostly the change in hairstyle and TVH's more visible eyebrows that I'm picking up on than anything. I guess I was inspired to post because since he didn't have any closeups in TVH it wasn't until I saw it in Hi-Def that it hit me "wait a sec, he looks alot different," and I thought for sure he must've had a change in his makeup design, beyond even the different skin tone.
One of the things I noticed in TMP when I saw it in 4k for the first time was the fiber optic style cables visible on some of the open panels during repairs / launch preparation.
I finally watched the latest Director's Cut for TMP this morning, and there was something I'd never noticed before when the Ilia Probe makes its first appearance: Its shoulder is a bit wet and glistening from materializing inside the sonic shower. https://movies.trekcore.com/gallery...cal-2021/ch21/st-tmp-remaster-bluray-0934.jpg