It looks like I’m the only one of us who saw the revamped Star Trek on Saturday night, so I figured I’d chime in. (It was a total fluke that I caught it, by the way – I was at a friend’s barbeque and got too drunk to ride my bike home. But then I got to watch Trek at his house, so it worked out.)
Well, it was great. I actually had a Quicktime movie of the original episode set to go on my laptop (courtesy of Jordan), and during commercials I’d replay the original versions of what we’d just seen. The difference was astounding – more so because of how limited the older versions were. What was amazing was how literally the original scenes were used as a template for the new ones – if it was a shot of the Enterprise tipping nose-down after taking a hit, the Enterprise in the new shot was filling the screen the same way. Except it didn’t look like a murky, transparent Enterprise-shaped light blot that may have come from one of those Mego toys.
I wish that Lucas would have taken this respectful approach when doing the Special Editions. Ironically, I’m also a little bit worried that the new FX are a little too understated; not everybody will be able to do laptop comparisons like I was. But mostly I think we’ll look back on this as a really, really good idea. And that’s good television
And by the way that's not a still from the new Trek up there. I think that's a photo of the Playmates toy Enterprise released in the 90's.
4 comments:
Is there a correct way of referring to this new Trek? Is it Revamped or Redux or Special Edition or Director's Cut or what? It would aid my Google searches.
i read your blog frequently....i have watche star trek since 1966 when I was 10...they are still good and what strikes me most is that the acting level on the good scripts was so well done compared to today's shows....only the new battlestar comes close..love your site....dandanbul
Thanks for tuning in, Dan! I agree; the older days of television enjoyed a higher level of writing, at least with drama. I think it's partially because it still hadn't been too long since radio was the main thing, and the #1 tool you had to keep your audience hooked was the writing. This is especially true of a show like Star Trek, which took place in a fictional universe that had to be visually conveyed with a lot of plywood.
"I was at a friend’s barbeque and got too drunk to ride my bike home. But then I got to watch Trek at his house, so it worked out."
Not to poke fun, but this sounds a little geeky - would have been better if you had been at a friends house playing D&D of course, and you lived in your parent's basement....
L, D.
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