{"id":6488,"date":"2013-11-23T23:52:01","date_gmt":"2013-11-24T07:52:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/moviemansguide.com\/main\/?p=6488"},"modified":"2021-09-04T16:59:05","modified_gmt":"2021-09-04T23:59:05","slug":"review-startrek-tng-s5-bd","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/moviemansguide.com\/main\/2013\/11\/review-startrek-tng-s5-bd\/","title":{"rendered":"Star Trek: The Next Generation: Season Five Blu-ray Review"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>\u201cStar Trek: The Next Generation\u201d<\/b> continues to find its footing and one can see its progression from season one to season five. While there are a few iffy episodes this year, the greats easily outweigh them.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
\n“Star Trek: The Next Generation”: Season Five (1991-92)<\/strong><\/p>\n

\n

 <\/p>\n

Genre(s): <\/b>Science Fiction, Adventure, Drama
\nParamount | NR \u2013 1182 min. \u2013 $129.99 | November 19, 2013
\n<\/b><\/p>\n

MOVIE INFO:
\n<\/span>Directed by: <\/b>Various
\nWriter(s): <\/b>Gene Roddenberry (created by)
\nCast: <\/b>Patrick Stewart, Jonathan Frakes, Brent Spiner, LeVar Burton, Michael Dorn, Marina Sirtis, Gates McFadden<\/p>\n

DISC INFO:
\n<\/span>Features: <\/b>Episode Commentaries, Featurettes, Deleted Scenes, Gag Reel, Episodic Promos
\nNumber of Discs: <\/b>6<\/p>\n

Audio: <\/b>English (DTS-HD MA 7.1), English (Dolby Digital 2.0), French (Dolby Digital 1.0), German (Dolby Digital 1.0), Castilian (Dolby Digital 1.0), Italian (Dolby Digital 1.0), Japanese (Dolby Digital 1.0)
\nVideo: <\/b>1080p\/Full Frame 1.33
\nSubtitles: <\/b>English SDH, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, French, German, Castilian, Italian, Japanese, Norwegian, Swedish
\nDisc Size: <\/b>Various
\nCodec: <\/b>MPEG-4 AVC
\nRegion(s): <\/b>A, B, C<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

THE MOVIE<\/strong> \u2013 4.5\/5<\/strong><\/h2>\n

\u201cStar Trek: The Next Generation\u201d Season Five<\/b> hums along gaining more momentum following a stellar fourth season but faces additional challenges, first and foremost, the passing of creator Gene Roddenberry who had incredible influence on the show and its direction, albeit his involvement had devolved due to illness for the last couple years. So with Roddenberry gone (passed 5 episodes into the season), the weight fell onto Rick Berman and others.<\/p>\n

Season Five offers many highlights from the conclusion in \u2018Redemption II\u2019 to perhaps the biggest moment Trekkies were looking forward to, the two part episode \u2018Unification\u2019 (which is available seamlessly on Blu-ray) where we get old meets new as Captain Picard (PATRICK STEWART) comes face to face with Spock (LEONARD NIMOY) whom the Federation believed to have defected to the Romulans. \u2018Unification\u2019 might not have been the best episode of the season, but it\u2019s still pretty darn good in its own right even if it served as promotion for the, at the time, soon to be released Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country<\/i> (on a side note, #6 is one of my favorite of the feature films).<\/p>\n

Another couple of highlights were \u2018Cause and Effect\u2019 which was a simple episode where the Enterprise gets caught in a time loop that ended with its destruction. It\u2019s masterfully directed by Jonathan Frakes keeping the suspense up through the full 40-minutes even with the repetition. \u2018I, Borg\u2019 is another amazing episode, as any would be involving anything Borg-related, providing Patrick Stewart to unleash his dramatic Shakespearean side he no doubt had bottled up \u2018til this point. And, of course, there is \u2018The Inner Light\u2019, not only the best of season five but easily tops for the entire \u201cStar Trek: The Next Generation\u2019 if not the franchise overall. Heartfelt and emotional, it\u2019s an amazing episode. As good of an episode as the season finale, and cliffhanger, \u2018Time\u2019s Arrow\u2019 was, it\u2019s easily overshadowed…<\/p>\n

As with previous seasons, season five does have a couple silly episodes, intentional and unintentional alike. You have your lighthearted episodes the latter of which in the episode \u2018Hero Worship\u201d in which Data (BRENT SPINER) rescues the sole survivor, a young boy, of a research ship which suffered catastrophic failures. Dealing with the trauma the boy decides to act more like an android and while this might\u2019ve been sweet on paper, it came across a bit ridiculous in motion, though Spiner\u2019s performance was pretty good. This was probably my least favorite episode of the season.<\/p>\n

Episodes (Favorites Marked with an Asterisk):
\n<\/b>1. Redemption Part II
\n2. Darmok
\n3. Ensign Ro*
\n4. Silicon Avatar
\n5. Disaster
\n6. The Game
\n7. Unification Part I*
\n8. Unification Part II*
\n9. A Matter of Time
\n10. New Ground
\n11. Hero Worship
\n12. Violations
\n13. The Masterpiece Society
\n14. Conundrum
\n15. Power Play
\n16. Ethics
\n17. The Outcast*
\n18. Cause and Effect*
\n19. The First Duty
\n20. Cost of Living
\n21. The Perfect Mate
\n22. Imaginary Friend
\n23. I, Borg*
\n24. The Next Phase
\n25. The Inner Light*
\n26. Time\u2019s Arrow, Part I*<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

SPECIAL FEATURES \u2013 5.0\/5<\/strong><\/h2>\n

As with the previous four seasons, this release comes with a matted slip cover<\/b>. The 6-disc set is housed in an HD Keep Case (wider than a standard Blu-ray case).<\/p>\n

Each episode comes with an Episodic Promo<\/span><\/b>.<\/p>\n

DISC ONE:
\nMission Overview: Year Five (17:54; SD)<\/span><\/b> \u2013 This is an older featurette which looks at some of the highlights from season five with interviews by the cast and crew.<\/p>\n

DISC TWO:
\nDepartmental Briefing Year Five: Production (15:17; SD)<\/span><\/b> focuses on the episode \u2018The Inner Light\u2019 and the make-up and sets for it. Again have archive interviews with those involved.<\/p>\n

Deleted Scene (1:30; HD)<\/span><\/b> on the episode \u2018New Ground\u2019<\/p>\n

DISC THREE:
\nDepartmental Briefing Year Five: Visual Effects (17:17; SD)<\/span><\/b> covers the VFX used throughout the series with some cool behind the scenes footage on how some of them were accomplished.<\/p>\n

DISC FOUR:
\nEpisode Commentaries<\/span><\/b> \u2013 \u2018Cause and Effect\u2019 with Brannon Braga (Episode Writer) and Seth MacFarlane and \u2018The First Duty\u2019 with Ronald D. Moore (Producer) and Naren Shankar (Episode Writer)<\/p>\n

Memorable Missions (18:03; SD)<\/span><\/b> is another vintage featurette this one with more comments explaining their favorite moments in season five.<\/p>\n

Deleted Scenes (10:44; HD)<\/span><\/b> for episodes \u2018Ethics\u2019, \u2018The Outcast\u2019, \u2018The First Duty\u2019 and \u2018Cost of Living\u2019<\/p>\n

DISC FIVE:
\nEpisode Commentary<\/span><\/b> \u2013 \u2018I, Borg\u2019 with Rene Echevarria (Episode Writer) and Mike & Denise Okuda<\/p>\n

A Tribute to Gene Roddenberry (28:23; SD)<\/span><\/b> is a look back at the \u201cStar Trek\u201d creator who had passed away earlier in the fifth season. It\u2019s a poignant featurette well worth watching if you haven\u2019t already.<\/p>\n

Intergalactic Guest Stars (15:50; SD)<\/span><\/b> chronicles the various guest appearances throughout the series such as Famke Janssen, Kirsten Dunst and, of course, Ashley Judd. Michelle Forbes also gets profiled as Ensign Ro.<\/p>\n

Alien Speak (12:49; SD)<\/span><\/b> examines the different languages featured.<\/p>\n

Deleted Scene (1:56; HD)<\/span><\/b> for \u2018The Perfect Mate\u2019<\/p>\n

DISC SIX:
\nEpisode Commentary<\/span><\/b> on \u2018The Inner Light\u2019 by Morgan Gendel (STORY WRITER) and Mike & Denise Okuda<\/p>\n

In Conversation: The Music of \u201cStar Trek: The Next Generation\u201d (1:14:21; HD)<\/span><\/b> \u2013This (VERY) in-depth featurette\/documentary examines the impact the score had, via roundtable discussion, on the series. Not for everybody though fans of the show and of music in general might find it to be interesting.<\/p>\n

Under Requiem: A Remembrance of \u201cStar Trek: The Next Generation\u201d<\/b> we get a two-part documentary: The Needs of the Many (29:58; HD)<\/span><\/b> and The Needs of the Few (28:59; HD)<\/span><\/b>. Both of these are excellent looks back at the series and the stories and debate it brought and the legacy Gene Roddenberry left behind. It contains new interviews with the cast and crew recounting their thoughts on Roddenberry before delving into some of the stories and characters in the season.<\/p>\n

Gag Reel (7:33; HD)<\/span><\/b> offers some flubbed lines and giggles from the cast.<\/p>\n

Deleted Scenes (7:00; HD)<\/span><\/b> for \u2018The Inner Light\u2019<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

VIDEO \u2013 4.75\/5<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Arriving on Blu-ray, \u201cStar Trek: The Next Generation\u201d Season Five<\/b>, like its predecessors, looks fantastic in every way. The show, presented in their original 1.33 full frame, and in 1080p high-definition, is tremendous with great detail levels and colors are absolutely vibrant without appearing blown out or pumped up by the restoration company. There is a bit of large grain in places but it\u2019s nothing major.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

AUDIO \u2013 5.0\/5<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Likewise, the DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 channel lossless track is remarkable showing everything off from the music\/score where the opening theme blares with incredible depth, crisp and clear dialogue levels making up the center speaker and, most of all, ambient noises either with the action-heavy scenes to the gentle humming of the Enterprise.<\/p>\n

French, German, Castilian, Italian and Japanese Dolby Digital Mono tracks also available and a wide selection of subtitles also are included.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

OVERALL \u2013 4.75\/5<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Overall, \u201cStar Trek: The Next Generation\u201d<\/b> continues to find its footing and one can see its progression from season one to season five. While there are a few iffy episodes this year, the greats easily outweigh them. Speaking as somebody who isn\u2019t as entrenched into the \u201cStar Trek\u201d mythos, I look at this series with the same eye as, say, \u201cCastle\u201d, I\u2019ve grown entrenched and cannot wait to watch the final two seasons of this epic series. As far as the Blu-ray is concerned, Paramount has once again released an amazing set with incredible audio\/video transfers and a wide selection of bonus features.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/i><\/p>\n

The Movieman
\n<\/i>Published: <\/b>11\/23\/2013<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cStar Trek: The Next Generation\u201d continues to find its footing and one can see its progression from season one to season five. While there are a few iffy episodes this year, the greats easily outweigh them.  <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[801,2203,2177,2178,2180,2179,1769,2046],"class_list":["post-6488","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-blurayreviews","tag-brent-spiner","tag-gates-mcfadden","tag-jonathan-frakes","tag-levar-burton","tag-marina-sirtis","tag-michael-dorn","tag-patrick-stewart","tag-star-trek"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/moviemansguide.com\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6488","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/moviemansguide.com\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/moviemansguide.com\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/moviemansguide.com\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/moviemansguide.com\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6488"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/moviemansguide.com\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6488\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":27024,"href":"https:\/\/moviemansguide.com\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6488\/revisions\/27024"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/moviemansguide.com\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6488"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/moviemansguide.com\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6488"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/moviemansguide.com\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6488"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}