The OFFICIAL STNG Next Level Bluray watch and review thread

[Trekker4747]

I hate to say it, but watching the 1st and 2nd seasons again, I'm starting to think Berman had the right idea by changing the music the way he did. As exciting as some of the early themes were, they DO make the show seem awfully corny and dated now.

The quieter, more classical music of the later seasons somehow made the show feel a LOT more sophisticated.

Watch the third season where the music was damn-near brilliant.

 

[DostoyevskyClone]

There's a bunch of questions we have to find answers to for the "poll project":

• Do we care to fashion the polls in such a way that I can extract the data for a page like the one I made for the TrekLit reviews?
• Because if so, we need per-episode polls, which requires per-episode threads. Which begs the question whether it's too late now that we have this thread for the entire sampler. And later, when full season sets arrive, what are we going to do then - open 22/26 threads at once? Hrm.
• What do we want the polls to be about? They have to pose a clearly defined question, not something vague enough to fit both "how did you like the ep?" and "how well do you think it was remastered?".
• The poll question and response options also should be fashioned in a way that allows comparisions between threads.

To answer the first two points: Yes; I think we should do per-episode threads, which I realize will involve a lot of threads when the first season set comes out. I think that’s a bridge we can cross closer to the time (though a simple poll question of: ‘How often would you like to see a new episode thread?’ will solve a lot of it. Majority rules!). Fundamentally, I think it’s important to get feedback for each episode. Some threads will have staying power, while some will not. Also, if a poster was wanting to post a thread related to something specifically in that episode, they could just post it in the poll thread instead. The Blu-ray release of season one seems like something many of us are eagerly anticipating (and it IS a pretty big deal), so I think it's alright for the forum to have a large number of threads devoted to it. I realize I'm not an admin, so easier said than done.

To answer the third point: do we have to have just one question in a thread? Could we not ask them seperately:

1. How did you like the episode (on a 1-10 scale)
2. How well do you think the effects were remastered? (I lean more toward the 5-point scale of ‘Outstanding’ through ‘Poor’ scale here because it seems harder to rate ‘effects’ on a broader range.

Again, a pre-poll will give us further ideas for questions that we might use for all episodes, but these seem like the two most fundamental ones to me. I'm partly inclined to suggest a random joke question that can be thrown in each time just for fun. For example, with 'Encounter at Farpoint,' we might ask "Worst Actor/Actress goes to...?"

To answer the fourth point: I agree. In other words, there needs to be consistency as far as asking the exact same set of questions 170+ times. I joke, but we really do need to do that, otherwise what’s the point?

For the time being, I think three threads for this sample is not a big deal. I do think we missed the boat by not having three threads from the get-go – let that be a lesson learned for when the first season comes out. Yes, it will sometimes get a bit cluttered in here. Two points on that: when season one does finally come out, do you foresee a lot of us being inspired to bust out our crappy standard-def season sets to talk about (whatever)? There will be episodes where people will vote and not have much to say, which is fine. To paraphrase Drago: If it dies, it dies.

 

[BillJ]

I hate to say it, but watching the 1st and 2nd seasons again, I'm starting to think Berman had the right idea by changing the music the way he did. As exciting as some of the early themes were, they DO make the show seem awfully corny and dated now.

The quieter, more classical music of the later seasons somehow made the show feel a LOT more sophisticated.

For me, it just made the show feel lifeless.

 

[Trekker4747]

I'm re-watching TNG on DVD right now and it's just amazing how... ugly it looks. I did discover watching it through a regular DVD player looks better than watching it through a Blu-Ray player.

 

[Beatnik]

I hate to say it, but watching the 1st and 2nd seasons again, I'm starting to think Berman had the right idea by changing the music the way he did. As exciting as some of the early themes were, they DO make the show seem awfully corny and dated now.

The quieter, more classical music of the later seasons somehow made the show feel a LOT more sophisticated.

I was thinking exactly the same thing the other day. It could just be familiarity, too. I identify the latter style with Trek, since it was used for most of TNG and all of DS9. It's familiar. S1 and S2, while more interesting, sound a bit more jarring to me.

...for better or worse.

 

[davejames]

I was thinking exactly the same thing the other day. It could just be familiarity, too. I identify the latter style with Trek, since it was used for most of TNG and all of DS9. It's familiar. S1 and S2, while more interesting, sound a bit more jarring to me.

...for better or worse.

Yeah, I'm certainly not saying the later style was ALL great-- the lack of exciting action music always frustrated the hell out of me as a kid-- but the general, overall mood just seemed like a much better fit with the show, and seemed like a better reflection of the more mature and dignified Picard as well.

The previous style seemed like it belonged more with the swashbuckling Captain Kirk.

 

[GalaxyX]

Man, after finally seeing this show in HD, it's almost painful to go back to the old DVDs now. I tried watching Where No One Has Gone Before last night, and I swore the picture looked worse than ever.

That is one I'm definitely looking forward to seeing remastered. Especially with all those incredible nebulas, starscapes, and warp effects (and that shot of Picard almost walking out into space should be cool to see in HD as well).

I may purchase S1 solely for this episode.

Other seasons will depend whether they fix shots that need a little "reimagining". So far it seems that they won't, but who knows, anything can happen.

 

[GalaxyX]

It is a shame CBS didn't release the Star Trek film blu-rays because Paramount didn't even go to the trouble of rescanning the negatives of the movies for the blu-ray release so they could save a bit of money. Instead of a new scan they chose to use old DVD masters that where scanned at 1080i and run them through a digital cleanup that removed the film grain from the picture and turned the crew into waxworks, only TWOK and Nemesis escaped this.... whereas CBS are going to the trouble of putting an entire show back into post-production and ensuring every last pixel of film information is untouched and perfectly presented, well done CBS! Shame on Paramount :P

It felt like watching Generations on the big screen at some points, it all looks wonderful. FYI I thought the CGI flyby at the beginning of The Inner Light to be ok and an acceptable alternative to the stock 4fter flyby

I watched a DVD afterwards and my god... they will never be watched again! Season 1 can't come soon enough.

Paramount are a bunch of dicks. Fuck'em

To take a tangent: I think Berman takes a lot flak from fans undeservedly in general. The guy managed the production of hundreds of hours of television, many of which you love, and they're great also because of him, not just in spite of him. Berman was heavily involved in creative aspects like editing almost all episodes, and even wrote a bunch of good scripts. Yes, you hear him getting blamed for certain choices by others involved in the making of the shows, but I think a large part of that is because it's a thankless job to be the guy who has to say "no" from time to time because he has the big picture to keep the ship afloat - it's easy to ruffle feathers and make enemies in that position. Certainly many others have also hailed him a wonderful producer over the years, anyway.

Go watch e.g. the oral history he did for the Archive of American Television. This wasn't a studio shill, he did love working on Star Trek and I'm grateful he did.

Then he shouldn't have allowed the death of Kirk. He shouldn't have allowed the destruction of the Enterprise D, and he shouldn't have allowed the death of Data and the God awful depressing ending of Nemesis. Fuck him!!

 

[Sho]

Language, dude, language ...

I'll go on record as never having had a problem with Kirk's death as shown in Generations. I agree Nemesis was poor all around, though.

 

[GNDN]

So I just travelled nearly 25 years back in time

I just couldn't resist. Found myself in Target today and picked 'er up. As good if not better than all the descriptions!! From the moment the preview started, I just couldn't take my eyes off the screen. The color. The detail. I've never felt Farpoint was as weak as some say. My impression may be bathed in nostalgia, but I just enjoyed the hell out of this episode and it immediately brought me back to my first viewing in 1987 when I watched the show twice in a row (my family had gotten a VHS recorder only a few years before)

Storywise, I find the inclusion of Q to be vital. There is a point counter-point between Picard and the crew finding clues to the mystery of Farpoint Station and Q's interjections, some helpful, some instigatory. There are wonderful character moments throughout and some fantastic dialog. Far from the 'blandness' that some complain of when referencing TNG.

Music cues are often excellent, especially the foreboding sting that accompanies the arrival of the mysterious ship. The sound mix was quite satisfactory throughout, emphasizing certain sound fx that I had failed to notice (someone had mentioned the sound of the power generators outside Zorn's office)

The visuals are just phenomenal. The filmic quality is astounding. Although the white dust flecks are noticeable, I would hardly call them a distraction. I have yet to view the other 2 episodes, so have no idea if the problem is present in them as well. The ship looks incredible, as do the uniforms and even the sets. Detail is phenomenal and I'm sure I'll be noticing more tid-bits (and minor goofs) as I rewatch.

Items of interest (in no particular order):
--The ship, OMG THE SHIP looks AMAAAAZING!!!
--When Picard and Data are defining the word 'snoop' there seems to be an odd bit of carpet near the base of the Ops station (perhaps hiding a power cord)
--I'm quite curious how Q's force field effect was created, as comparison shots seem to indicate it is the original effect (not a CGI recreation) I had always assumed it was early CGI or animation of the time
--Enterprise's main impulse engine remains lit even when 'full stop' is ordered (this remains true and consistent for when the star drive section is recaptured)
--The titles. I really don't like the quotation marks. Perhaps the comparison shots from "Inner Light" on the other thread prejudiced me, but for the title and the character credits of "Zorn" and "Q", the un-italicized quotes just look cheap.
--Picard's Ready Room off the Battle Bridge. Very cool little set, not seen again on the series (I believe) Really like the curved wall and angled ceiling.
--Tasha looks veeery good in her uniform
--Troi also looks quite good in hers. I don't mind the skant at all, and the color suits her wonderfully
--First shot of the separation sequence (before the sep itself) Is that the same matte of the Enterprise as scene in Sins of the Father? Looks very familiar to the screen caps, but I haven't compared it myself
--Q's judges robe is fantastic, as is his practical 'throne'
--O'Brien --Er, sorry, Conn Officer is 'Da Man!'
--When Riker calls the ship to be beamed up, he seems to 'double tap' his communicator
--When Troi complains of feeling 'pain' down in the tunnels, she seems to de-activate her communicator half way through, and yet Riker still calls to her to let her know he's coming.
--Matte painting of the planet is fantastic. I really don't mind the repetition.
--Bandi city under fire looks quite good
--Admiral McCoy!!! Awesome...
--"Lieutenant, do you intend to blast a hole in the viewer?" Great little scene all around and shows how vital Q is as a commentator

I really do like this episode. And now even more-so. I really REALLY want to watch the rest of Season 1 right now, but just know that the DVDs will be utterly disappointing!!

If it weren't so late, I would immediately re-watch Farpoint as I did the night I first saw it.

 

[Timo47]

First shot of the separation sequence (before the sep itself) Is that the same matte of the Enterprise as scene in Sins of the Father? Looks very familiar to the screen caps, but I haven't compared it myself

It's the same. You can easily compare the YouTube video that was posted of the saucer sep with the shot from SotF.
So it looks like that original shot of the Enterprise was lost. Perhaps they once intended to use it in Generations as well?

Speaking of Generations shots: wasn't this shot of the Enterprise (http://movies.trekcore.com/gallery/albums/generationshd/generationshd0978.jpg) originally done by ILM as well? Is it in EaF and if so how does it look?

 

[Trekker4747]

--Enterprise's main impulse engine remains lit even when 'full stop' is ordered (this remains true and consistent for when the star drive section is recaptured)

The impulse engine is always lit. Just because it's lit doesn't mean it's acting a force upon the ship (which probably requires a mass-reduction field around the ship.) It's nothing more than a thermal exhaust port.

 

[gaghyogi49]

First shot of the separation sequence (before the sep itself) Is that the same matte of the Enterprise as scene in Sins of the Father? Looks very familiar to the screen caps, but I haven't compared it myself

It's the same. You can easily compare the YouTube video that was posted of the saucer sep with the shot from SotF.
So it looks like that original shot of the Enterprise was lost. Perhaps they once intended to use it in Generations as well?

Speaking of Generations shots: wasn't this shot of the Enterprise (http://movies.trekcore.com/gallery/albums/generationshd/generationshd0978.jpg) originally done by ILM as well? Is it in EaF and if so how does it look?

The shot appears in both "Encounter at Farpoint" (The Enterprise approaching Q's net) and "Sins of the father" (The Enterprise approaching Qo'noS).
It's the original footage that also appeared on "Generations", so they must have been able to retrieve that footage.

 

[GNDN]

--Enterprise's main impulse engine remains lit even when 'full stop' is ordered (this remains true and consistent for when the star drive section is recaptured)

The impulse engine is always lit. Just because it's lit doesn't mean it's acting a force upon the ship (which probably requires a mass-reduction field around the ship.) It's nothing more than a thermal exhaust port.

Fair enough. Not a nit, and nothing specific to the HD, just a random observation. Seem to recall from TMP that the impulse glow intensifies during acceleration. I know they weren't getting that detailed on a television budget in 1987, (and that the technology would have advanced 78 years or so between installments) but it did catch my eye.

 

[DarkHorizon]

There are some wonderful little bits of continuity work in "Sins" that simply didn't register in SD - Picard has bits from the robe he wears on his uniform when he returns to the Great Hall, and is bruised from the punch he receives. Lovely little bits of attention to detail.

Also, the difference between the rescanned negative and the upscaled video master is quite astonishing!

 

[Squiggy]

Regarding the sound mixing in E@F...and I never noticed this before, but there are some times when the dialogue is just off mic. I think the most apparent time is right after Riker sees Troi again and Picard steps into the turbolift. Picard is giving a line of dialogue and he sounds like he's in a closet.

 

[davejames]

Well, I finally saw the last ep on the disc, Inner Light. I have to admit, this is an episode I never really thought much of at the time (probably just didn't seem action-packed enough for my teenage brain), and I don't think I've seen it all the way through since it aired.

Of course being older, I finally see what all the talk has been about, and it really is a damn good episode. I especially like that Picard doesn't really ever question who he is (like we usually see in these kinds of stories), but is FULLY aware of the truth and simply has to adjust to his new life on the planet.

And I love how Stewart really does make us see the Enterprise in such a strange and different way when he returns, full of crewmates that he hasn't seen in 30 or 40 years (I love that little moment where he has to simply stop and put his hand on the wall of the bridge, as if to convince himself it's real). It's kind of a shame we didn't get a followup episode showing him readjusting to life on the Enterprise, because I imagine that would NOT have been easy to do.

And yeah, the end is pretty powerful and emotional, but for me it's not the flute playing, but the moment before that when he clutches the flute to his heart. The pain and anguish on Picard's face at that moment is almost hard to watch.

As for the picture quality, it looked pretty damn good to me. I kept hearing how it was "grainy all the way through," but it was only the planet scenes that looked that way on my TV. The scenes on the Enterprise were as sharp and crystal clear as can be.

 

[GNDN]

Ok, just started watching Sins of the Father. Had to stop the disk just to comment on the damn quotation marks again

Really really not liking these. I know it's petty and silly, but really, just look at how the end quote bleeds into the r in Father. WTF is that about?

Full disclosure: Ok, to be honest, I was so absorbed in watching the gorgeous slow fly-by of the Enterprise that I didn't even register the episode title first time. I did a quick rewind to see how it looked, and yuck...

PLEASE CBS!!! Shrink or italicize the quotation marks. It really comes off as sloppy typesetting to me...

Gah, why does such a little thing bother me so much?

 

[davejames]

The quotation marks don't really bother me, but the font they're using does seem a lot more curvy that it should.

 

[roliver]

PLEASE CBS!!! Shrink or italicize the quotation marks. It really comes off as sloppy typesetting to me...

It's not a matter of shrinking or italicizing them...it's a matter of actually using proper quotes to begin with. And kerning them as well. It would take all of 10 seconds to properly set each episode title.