Review: Star Trek Enterprise Season 1 Blu-ray –

4.7 (580) · € 24.99 · En Stock

The first season of Star Trek: Enterprise finally arrives on Blu-ray. Enterprise was the only Trek show to be broadcast in HD but is the third to get the Blu-ray home video treatment. Find out how it turned out in the TrekMovie review below. REVIEW: Star Trek Enterprise Season 1 Blu-ray Transfer Star Trek: Enterprise was developed for HD (and widescreen) and so it wasn’t (didn’t need to be) remastered for Blu-ray like the original Star Trek and Star Trek: The Next Generation. Even still, the Blu-ray version looks better than the original broadcast, and obviously much better for the those who hadn’t yet upgraded to HDTVs back in 2001. And the transfer is certainly superior to the 2005 DVD release, and even slightly superior to the HD streaming available on Hulu, and Netflix. However, being that they are using the original masters circa 2001, the HD transfer from the original film doesn’t seem to have the richness or vibrancy of the recent TNG Blu-rays. This is due to the technology improving over the last decade. And in the case of the CGI special effects there is a noticeable granularity and some artifacts. This is due to the FX being originally done in 480p or 720p (depending on the scene) which was good enough for broadcast in 2001, but noticeably upscaled for the 1080p Blu-ray. There are no issues with the sound. The audio is DTS-HD MA 5.1 and gives you a better cinematic experience then the original DVDs and broadcast and is equal to what was delivered for the TOS and TNG Blu-ray releases. Special Features A highlight of this new release is the collection of special features. The set starts off with all the features from the previous DVD release. On top of that there are four new audio commentaries: Brannon Braga, James L. Conway, Dan Curry and cast members Connor Trinneer and Dominic Keating for “Broken Bow,” André Bormanis and Dan Curry for “Silent Enemy,” Mike Sussman and Phyllis Strong for “Shadows of P’Jem,” and finally Brannon Braga, director David Livingston and cast members Connor Trinneer (Trip Tucker) and Dominic Keating for “Shuttlepod One”). Each case these mixes humor with interesting insight into the making of the episodes and a lot of talk about the series in general. There is also a standalone chat with series co-creators Rick Berman and Brannon Braga which is the frankest discussion seen on any Star Trek home video release. The pair really open up and cover a lot of issues about Enterprise and about both of their long histories in the franchise. They discuss issues ranging from fan criticisms for “killing Kirk” in Generations to fighting stupid ideas from UPN execs like putting “hot” music bands on Enterprise (playing in the mess hall each week). They even discuss their meetings with William Shatner and explain why he never guest-starred on Enterprise (surprise…Shatner wanted way too much money). And if that wasn’t enough there is an excellent three-part documentary (“To Boldly Go: Launching Enterprise”) about the making of the show which includes more with Berman and Braga, along with new interview clips with production designer Herman Zimmerman, technical consultants Michael and Denise Okuda, writers Andre Bormanis, Phyllis Strong , James L. Conway and series leads Scott Bakula (“Jonathan Archer”), Connor Trinneer (“Trip Tucker”), and Dominic Keating (“Malcolm Reed”). Special Feature preview The first part of this doc again includes more frank discussions of the show. For example, fans who have derided the theme song will be surprised to see Braga and others join in the critiques. The first part of the doc also has fascinating insights into the development of the show. I would say that at times Braga and Berman seeming too defensive about the Enterprise. They talk about Star Trek ‘burn out’ and how they actually were against the idea of launching a new show so soon after Voyager ended. They also describe interesting early ideas about how they wanted the show to be more Earth-based but they studio demanded a more traditional Trek show and that the only way to convince the studio to let them change the setting to a prequel was the idea of weaving the “Temporal Cold War” plot into the series. In addition, the set includes an in-depth look at the making of the episode “Vox Solo” which was actually shot for a never-broadcast PBS show called “On the Set.” While that show never made it on the air, the feature was very interesting, especially for those who are interested in how TV shows are made. There are also some presentation videos used for the Network and Syndication which are nice to have but not that interesting. And of course all the previously mentioned DVD special features including HD version of the outtakes. Preview of Enterprise S1 Blooper Reel The Show Star Trek: Enterprise (or just Enterprise as it was called in its first season) was the fifth live-action Star Trek series. After each progressive show had moved the story of Trek further into the future, co-creators Braga and Berman decided it was time for a change so they decided to go back before original Star Trek with a setting in the never-seen before 22nd century. I always thought that the prequel idea was a good one. Not only had we seen enough of the 24th century (21 seasons and 3 feature films with another on the way), but it also brought the show closer to our reality and could make it more grounded than what was seeming more and more like a sterile future with little conflict (within the setting of the Federation). More important than the setting, were the characters. The variety of different personalities built in to the show was well thought out and (as usual with a Trek show) the producers brought in a very strong cast, led by Scott Bakula as Captain Archer, Jolene Blalock as the Vulcan science officer T’Pol and Connor Trinneer