STUDIO: Paramount
RELEASE DATE: November 18, 2008
STARRING: William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, Nichelle Nichols, George Takei, James Doohan, and Walter Koenig
CREATED BY: Gene Roddenberry
FEATURES: Billy Blackburn’s Treasure Chest: Rare Home Movies and Special Memories Part 3
"To Boldly Go" - Season Three
A Star Trek Collector’s Dream Come True
Life Beyond Trek: Walter Koenig
Chief Engineer’s Log
Memoir From Mr. Sulu
Star Trek’s Impact
Collectible Trek
Captain's Log: Bob Justman

Still no Star Trek on Blu-Ray?!? Come on. The HD-DVD release of the first season of Star Trek: The Original Series was one of the coolest sci-fi releases of 2007. It was very expensive but it was the f-ing Enterprise in HD! For Trekkies, it was a dream come true. Not only was it the classic episodes but they were remastered - new and improved Star Trek. And it wasn't just a new CGI shot here and there a la the Special Editions of Star Wars. No, there was much more to the enhancements of the first season of Star Trek, often making subtle changes to scenes that only hardcore fans would even notice were any different. And it didn't stop there. The special features on the first remastered season of Star Trek in its HD-DVD Combo form were spectacular. Fans eagerly anticipated the even-better season two (actually, it's the best season of the show, in my opinion). But then the format war ended and Paramount didn't switch the remastered version of season two to Blu-Ray, releasing it on standard definition only. But season three would land on Blu-Ray, right? Nope. Just a few months later, it's standard-only again. It's a gorgeous, fantastic, wonderful standard edition, seven-disc set, but you KNOW you're going to be double dipped. Don't say we didn't warn you.

The third and final season of Star Trek comes in a unique, collectible, clear plastic case that will look very good on the collector's shelf but is actually not well-designed on a practical level. I have a feeling that anyone who opens and closes it to watch the nearly 24 hours of episodes enclosed will chip or break it. Packaging that stands out from the crowd is great, but make sure it's practical too. Inside the case, fans will find seven discs and a series of postcards that detail what's on each disc (once again, creative-but-flimsy packaging). Each of the 24 episodes have been meticulously remastered from the original camera negative and are presented with new state-of-the-art visual effects and a new 5.1 soundtrack. So, the picture looks a ton better than the other standard edition release of the second season of Star Trek but not as good as the first remastered season on HD-DVD. If you're starting with this season, you will be blown away by the new look of the Enterprise, which blends in well with the original scenes and doesn't stand out like a lot of added CGI shots often do. The original score has also been re-recorded and even William Shatner's classic opening monologue ("Space, the final frontier...") has been digitally remastered. The show looks and sounds amazing.

Personally, if I'm picking one season of Star Trek: The Original Series then it's the second one, but the third is certainly not bad either. Stand-out episodes include the excellent "The Enterprise Incident", "The Tholian Web", and "The Day of the Dove". Two versions of the original pilot - "The Cage" - are also remastered and included. I love all three Star Trek seasons. It's hugely influential in my adoration of science fiction, but the third is probably the worst. I would never advise that you not include some Star Trek in your collection, but if you can only have one remastered year of this great show, make it number two. This one is for the collectors. Special features in the set are preview trailers for every episode, a few featurettes, and the true gem, "Billy Blackburn's Treasure Chest" - a series of rare home movies shot behind the scenes of many people's favorite show. Blu-Ray, HD-DVD, Standard, whatever - true Trekkies will need to pick up this set just for those home movies. Just set aside some money for the Blu-Ray version that you know you'll have to get eventually.