I got the HD set and it is good but I have got to find the original series untouched. Which one of the DVD or BD is the best to get. I have read some of them have some sound or lip sync issues but I am no expert so I will ask here
What the the best version of the original series that is actual original, not enhanced?
- Thread starter CaptainMike
- Start date
Any sync issues are almost certainly in the home entertainment center itself. Yes, "digital is better," but sync issues are not uncommon after sound bars and other items are added to the system where sound and video go off in separate directions.
The only other "sound issues" I can think of is the strange fetish the home video publisher has with amping up the rumble of the warp engines, and always through those scenes when you are trying to listen to the Captain's log. To overcome that, you must go back to the earliest home video version you can find (like VHS). And there's been some fan discussion about little changes, like radio music heard in the background of "City On The Edge Of Forever" being altered.
TY
Here is a review from Amazon I was checking out. I was wanting DVD only, mainly for my grandfather, and thought this was interesting
IF YOU WANT TO SEE THE OLD VERSIONS-- as seen on network and in syndication from the 1960s to the early 2000s with the original (Matt Jefferies) special effects and space shots, and original opening credits, you want the set that comes in the RETRO EGG boxes (colored in the colors of the uniforms: mustard yellow, sky blue, and red). These are the versions that long time fans remember. The original footage was cleaned up (a first round of "remastering" years ago) but kept intact. The 1960s special effects, which were state of the art at the time, are intact. In the classic exterior stock shots, the Enterprise is blue-gray. Depending on the shot, the nacelles of the ship (the "exhaust pipes") have either the bulb or vents. The opening credits are the originals: the Enterprise---with the vent nacelles---heads for the right side of the planet, then shifts to the left. The music is orchestral only for the first season episodes, with the woman's worldess vocal for the second and third seasons.
IF YOU WANT INDIVIDUAL EPISODES OF THE OLD VERSIONS-- look for the versions sold in 2-episode cases. The (ugly) packages of these feature photos of the cast members on the covers, with a Star Trek in a florid funky type going vertically up the front of the boxes. Type in the name of the episode you want in the search window. Only the old versions of the episodes are sold separately this way.
For those who can accept nothing less than the original episodes as they were, stick to the above.
IF YOU WANT THE NEW REMASTERED VERSIONS WITH NEW CGI EFFECTS--- you want the set that is packaged in the RECTANGULAR BOXES WITH SILVER TRIM. The footage has been remastered (a subsequent round of remastering in 2006-7). These versions, which began being sold in 2007-8, come with the completely new exterior space shots by the CBS special effects team of Michael Okuda, replacing all of the Jefferies original stock shots. Some of the new CGI shots mirror the old ones, but some are completely new (the ship from different angles, new closeups, etc.), but "in the spirit" of the old. All space shots were redone. The Enterprise is gray. The nacelles of the ship are shown with the bulb (but the bulb is "unlit"). The angles of the Enterprise orbiting is different. Many scenes on the planet (background, etc.) have been redone, some even reshot. The opening credits are completely new, using new CGI. In the opening, replacing the shot of the ship going to the right, then left of the planet is a shot of the ship going wide to the right of the planet. The music is redone, with a new vocal. Currently, only these remastered episodes are showing on syndicated TV, the old ones are off the air, nowhere to be found. These remastered ones are also the ones sold via Amazon direct HD.
The review above doesn't mention the Blu Rays offer both.
I'm gonna be honest: I prefer the early DVDs. The prints are great, the colors are closer to how I remember them growing up (no making Kirk's uniform closer to the avocado "stage color" when it was gold on TV). There are glitches in a few of the transitions from when they pieced the episodes together for HD, and the sound mix - while wrong - is more pleasant than what we get on the erroneously labeled "broadcast mono mix." You also get some bonuses like the "electric violin" theme in the first season (on too many episodes but at least it's there) the original credits for the first two broadcast episodes and the correct Paramount logos in the third season. I also notice some edge enhancement in the blu rays that I find distracting and I see far too many details; Shatner's toupee line and Nimoy's ear seams are difficult to unsee. Also the original effects hold up better in SD.
Of course, the downside is the awful sound mix. The added sound effects and incorrect music in some spots is glaring.
Needless to say, it's all in what you look for. If you want the sharpest, brightest and most colorful picture, the Blu Rays are it. If you want the above, go for the older DVDs. If you want anything close to the correct sound mix, go all the way back to VHS and Laserdisc. But the picture quality is awful on HDTVs
I'm gonna be honest: I prefer the early DVDs. The prints are great, the colors are closer to how I remember them growing up (no making Kirk's uniform closer to the avocado "stage color" when it was gold on TV). There are glitches in a few of the transitions from when they pieced the episodes together for HD, and the sound mix - while wrong - is more pleasant than what we get on the erroneously labeled "broadcast mono mix." You also get some bonuses like the "electric violin" theme in the first season (on too many episodes but at least it's there) the original credits for the first two broadcast episodes and the correct Paramount logos in the third season. I also notice some edge enhancement in the blu rays that I find distracting and I see far too many details; Shatner's toupee line and Nimoy's ear seams are difficult to unsee. Also the original effects hold up better in SD.
Of course, the downside is the awful sound mix. The added sound effects and incorrect music in some spots is glaring.
Needless to say, it's all in what you look for. If you want the sharpest, brightest and most colorful picture, the Blu Rays are it. If you want the above, go for the older DVDs. If you want anything close to the correct sound mix, go all the way back to VHS and Laserdisc. But the picture quality is awful on HDTVs
Last edited:
I just started a rewatch going back to my old dvd sets ,mainly because even the original effects versions on the blu ray sets are not original, they've had the intro's altered, the themes redone. New viewers will never know the 2nd pilot episode, where no man has gone before , had no voice over narration as they've added one. and a bunch of other changes to "clean" them up
Does the mono track on the BR have a narration-free credits for WNMHGB? I would've thought it does. I'd have to check.
Yes the blu ray "mono" track has the narration free theme.
I think @Dave Scarpa's point is that anyone who is seeing the show on TV for the first time since 2006 ish won't see all the little things we saw for those decades. There are some nice little bits of trivia in the music and effects that were lost, or at least obscured, because the original versions are not being aired.
I think @Dave Scarpa's point is that anyone who is seeing the show on TV for the first time since 2006 ish won't see all the little things we saw for those decades. There are some nice little bits of trivia in the music and effects that were lost, or at least obscured, because the original versions are not being aired.
Last edited:
Similar threads
