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Best Of Star Trek: Next Generation (The)
R1 - America - Paramount Home Entertainment Review written by and copyright: Anthony Arrigo (22nd May 2009). |
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The Show
 Now that J.J. Abrams’ reboot of the “Star Trek” (2009) franchise has beamed into multiplexes, making a truckload of cash in the process, it would seem only fitting for Paramount to release numerous configurations of this 40+ year old series in an effort to continue milking its dedicated fan base. In addition to some worthwhile new releases, such as Blu-ray editions of “Star Trek: The Original Series” Season 1 (1966) and “Star Trek: The Motion Picture Collection”, featuring films 1-6, they have also released a pair of “The Best Of” collections. This collection, “The Best of Star Trek: The Next Generation” (1987-1994), features 4 episodes culled from the series’ 7 seasons. Presumably, these are 4 episodes which fans consider to be among the best the show has to offer. Indeed, when I mentioned this disc to one of my hardcore Trekker friends, he immediately knew 3 of the 4 episodes it likely contained. I myself am a relative novice in the "Trek" universe. I’m a fan of the Original Series, as much for its camp as for its prescient storylines, but I’ve yet to see a single episode from any subsequent series. Likewise, I’ve seen “Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan” (1982), as any sci-fi film fan should, but I’ve never seen any of the other films. I think that I, as many other uninitiated viewers, had always viewed "Star Trek’s" many television series as being obtuse and far too cerebral to be enjoyable. Let’s face it, when you say “Star Wars” (1977) to someone they think of lightsabers, Darth Vader and the Death Star. When you mention “Star Trek” they conjure up images of pocket-protectors, angry nerds with endless middling questions and parents’ dark basements turned into makeshift viewing rooms. This fact alone intrigued me enough to view these episodes. After countless years of being the butt of nerdy jokes, I had to know if “The Next Generation” was as geeky as it’s been made out to be. Presented on a single disc, Paramount has included the following episodes: - “The Best of Both Worlds (Part I)” – The Enterprise encounters a Borg cube and, after a lengthy battle, the Borg manages to overtake the ship and abduct Captain Picard (Patrick Stewart). Once aboard, the Borg assimilates the Captain, making him one of their own, and the Enterprise is faced with the decision to destroy the Borg once and for all or risk everything to rescue their captain. - “The Best of Both Worlds (Part II)” – The Enterprise, with Riker (Jonathan Frakes) as acting Captain, manages to outwit the Borg just long enough to rescue Picard. Once they have him on board, he utters one word, “sleep”, which the crew attempt to decipher in order to stop the Borg ship from reaching Earth and assimilating its people. - “Yesterday’s Enterprise” – When a rift in the space-time continuum causes an early incarnation of the Enterprise to appear, Picard and the crew must find a way to send them back to their own time before their very presence alters the history of everyone on board. - “The Measure of a Man” – After docking with a new space station, the Enterprise encounters Commander Bruce Maddox (Brian Brophy) , a robotics specialist who hopes to disassemble Data in an effort to better understand his inner workings and replicate him. Fearing the experimental procedure could render him inoperable Picard and Riker force a court hearing to determine if Data (Brent Spiner) has the right to choose whether or not to be a part of the experiment. I have to admit, the episodes didn’t make anything about “The Next Generation” seem any less nerdy, but the truth is that these episodes were well-written and superbly acted. Just as the Original Series had done, the show continues to look at real-world issues as well as peering deep into the very nature of man. The primary cast is full of great actors capable of delivering solid performances, although my cinematic arch nemesis, Whoopi Goldberg, is a sore spot here, for me at least. The effects work is rather primitive, but seeing as how the show was made in the late 80’s/early 90’s, it’s no wonder the computer-generated imagery isn’t quite up to the level of today’s more awe-inducing effects. I wouldn’t go so far as to say that watching these episodes has spurred me to purchase the series on DVD, but for non-fans who don’t already own the DVD sets, and are curious about whether or not they will enjoy the show, this is a great purchase. My only complaint would be that I wish they had included at least 4 more episodes. Seeing as how the series contains 176 episodes it would have been nice to have a few more added to enhance the experience..
Video
"Star Trek: The Next Generation" is presented in its original broadcast aspect ratio of full screen 1.33:1 and, for the most part, looks decent given its age, but the image leaves much to be desired. It doesn’t appear as though Paramount has done any type of restoration here, as expected considering this is just a quick tie-in release, but the image is very soft with a near-total lack of sharpness. Colors look flat and dull and there is some digital noise present. Black levels, however, do look consistent which is a plus considering this show takes place in space.
Audio
Audio is available in English Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound, there are also Spanish and Portuguese Dolby Digital 2.0 mono tracks available. I did notice some minor pops, but overall the track is relatively clear and clean. Surrounds aren’t put to much use, but they do add some ambient noise sporadically. Subtitles are provided in English, Spanish and Portuguese.
Extras
There are no extras aside from a couple of bonus trailers for the following: - “Star Trek: The Original Series Season 1” Blu-ray promo runs for 1 minute and 19 seconds. - “Star Trek” film and television series Blu-ray promo runs for 32 seconds. - “Charmed” DVD promo runs for 50 seconds.
Overall
Even though this release is nothing more than an obvious attempt to capitalize on the release of the latest "Star Trek" film, Paramount has included some great episodes that casual fans may want to add to their collection. If you can find this disc for a good price, and you don’t own any of the seasons, then I would recommend picking it up.
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