New TOS-R Effects Compilation Video

“without pushing beyond the level of effects that would have been possible in the 1960s”

Don’t you think if they were possible then…they would have been attempted? Sorry, I don’t agree. I know the budget was limited and I like the new ones. but that’s overstatement.

Rats, these vids often don’t work on my Mac. The QT player/web interface is iffy. No, it’s not ME startrek.com.

>>“without pushing beyond the level of effects that would have been possible in the 1960s”

Don’t you think if they were possible then…they would have been attempted? Sorry, I don’t agree. I know the budget was limited and I like the new ones. but that’s overstatement.

Congrats CBS-D! Great work.

Humm. Well, in the sixties computer animation was not possible at all. For this reason Kubrick – like many others who were into SiFi at the time (and the makers of TOS did so, too) used to film miniature ship models. The “level of what was possible in the sixties” is set just by the virtuosity of what Kubrick came up with and I suppose that the remastering folks just do not want to invest in just another rendering session while they sell the shortcomings of a low budget digital remastering as a benefit. Seen like that all that counts is just and only about the budget, and, well, thus they are really up to how they treated Trek when it was first made ;-)

I go to eleven baby!

Eh……damn posting delay which caused a double post!!!! 13th!!!

I’ve said it before, but what the heck —

On the whole, I like this remastering project very well. Having said that, the advancement of sfx in general is so fast that in less than ten years, I honestly believe this level of digital work will look very dated. I remember how amazed I was at “The Last Starfighter” (and for that matter the Genesis proposal sequence in TWOK.) Now, those bits look clunky, compared to say LOTR or Pirates. Give it a decade and Pirates will look as clunky as the first Star Wars film does now. Does that mean you keep replacing the sfx every stinkin’ decade? No. You enjoy the work as is. Can anyone here tell me you absolutely can’t sit through the original King Kong because it’s stop-motion photography and –gasp– black and white? If so, you’re a fool. TOS, in my humble opinion, should always be viewed as a creation of the 60’s. It’s dated and flawed, and magnificent. Not long ago, I looked at what would become my wife’s engagement ring under a high-powered scope. It’s full of cracks and holes. Geez. But, on her finger, it’s absolutely gorgeous.
Bottom llne: gussy up the old gal all you want, as long as you remember her name: Star Trek. It’s the stories, characters, and fun that matter.

I am wondering if the above posts, which are very common on this website in terms of their negativity on TOS Remastered, are artifacts of the internet or not. I suspect it is. That artifact is that the most passionately negative individualsmake the loudest noise and the “silent majority” tends to be much more positive. I guess the alternative is that most t people really are angry and disappointed in the Remastered project.
When a customer service agent does a great job, most people do nothing, but when they provide bad service most people speak out. Sometimes I ask to speak to a supervisor to let them know I was provided with excellent service. I think that people should do that more.
With that philosphy in mind, here goes:
I for one consider the remastered project to be an unexpected gift. How many forty year old shows get remastered at all? Think about that. How many can you name? We are LUCKY. But not if one is dedicated to a half-empty glass worldview. Yeah, the remastered effects could be better. But for the most part they are superior to the original effects, and the worst of the original effects have been eliminated. For example, in the original, unremastered episodes the Enterprise usually orbited the same exact planet, (no matter what the episode) except for occasionally shading it blue instead of orange.
Now,at least I can show the episodes to my son, and many other parents can, without the kids laughing and disregarding the show, which has so much to offer in terms of characters, plots, and philosophy. The new generations would tend to disregard all of that because of the poor original effects- they have grown up on a different sensibility.
And there is the JOY, for me, of seeing something new in a show that is 40 years old- not knowing what to expect when a scene is remastered. That alone is wonderful- the show was frozen for us that have seen the episodes dozens of times over the years- and this brings it alive again as a viewing experience.
Life is too short. Of course everyone is entitled to their opinion and of course people don’t have to like it. But is the remastered project really THIS BAD? If people are this angry about Star Trek being remastered, I have to wonder in what other way the potential for enjoying life is being squandered.
There’s a lot to celebrate here. Am I the only one who can feel good about this project? Anybody out there?

Does anyone know who did the music for this video?

Hey, I just watched “This Side Of Paradise” on HD-DVD and I’ve gotta say that Spock was a player when under the influence of the spores on the planet………….in fact, he was kind of…..a pig….Good for him!!

Spock, most times, was a naysayer
Once he got on the planet, a player!
He smiled all the time
Got laid on a friggin’ dime
Serving in Starfleet didn’t stand a prayer!

17. Gary Seven – December 2, 2007

Well said.

My axe is almost sharpened…….

I did see that Autodesk article some months ago on their site. I had been curious what package they were using and I was surprised it was Maya as there are the other packages used.

#17, #26

Agreed. Very well said. It is far too easy to be negative and to be critical than to be positive and to give praise. So, the compliments tend to go quiet, unspoken, and overlooked. That said – love the compilation and the music. I’d also love to find out where the music is from. Thanks, Anthony for the video!!

I would have to say that I am 90 percent pleased with the remastered effort. Overall, it looks great. The originals are still there for us to enjoy, so I have no problem with the remastered effort at all.

There is a shot from Mudd’s Women on the Rigal Planet, I think that is new…

I realized something watching that compilation. I’ve had my ups and downs with the work CBS-D has done, but seeing many of those FX shots in sucession reminded me that they’ve actually done a pretty good job overall. Of course, they didn’t show any of those clunky shots from the first few epsidoes they remastered (the video seems to be more of a “best of” compilation), but I really enjoyed watching it.

Anyway, back to my realization. While I think the work CBS-D is putting into this project is well done, I’ve come to the conclusion that it doesn’t really fit the “look” of TOS. Perhaps it was seeing the FX shots on their own without any live-action scenes, but I couldn’t help thinking “this stuff looks great, but it just doesn’t look right.” It’s an entirely subjective thing, and difficult to put precisely. Perhaps, if I hadn’t watched TOS for the past 35 years with the original FX, then the new ones wouldn’t seem a bit out of place. They are out of place, though. Very well done, but still out of place.

Is there anyone out there who could possibly be watching the episodes for the first time ever, who has never seen the original FX and knows only those done by CBS-D? If so, I’d love to hear their take on how well they integrate into the live-action scenes.

This isn’t at all meant as an indictment of the work CBS-D is doing. It’s just an observation that struck me as I watched the clip reel (which I wish I could download to my desktop and watch at my convenience). I know others have mentioned similar opinions in the past. I can now see where they’re coming from. Still, I wish CBS-D continued success and I’m looking forward to seeing what they come up with for future episodes.

I have. Prag, it was freaking funny!

okay, that was beautiful, sweet, everything i’ve always wanted from the project. too bad fer youse guys who hate it. god, i love technology.

Ok, what’s up with the nightclub music in this?

I’ve made my opinion known in other forums before. I’m kinda 50/50 on this. I’ll admit, most of what they included on this video is good stuff (except the shield hits in the battle sequence, though I think the first one shown has a bit of tweaking) and there are a lot of good exterior shots.

However, I do think that this is an incomplete project. There are some things that this project could have done that they didn’t do. Phasers for example could have been addressed. We saw the awesome potential in “Wink of an Eye.” Things such as adding a tractor beam when dialogue called for it. Fixing some of the display screens. Heck, they changed to a digital clock, why not go further? I also think that all sound effects could have been digitally rerecorded (as the originally sounded) and that all the music could have been digitally rerecorded (as originally composed, the same way the opening theme was). Things like warp effects could have been done too.

We do have to keep in mind that new effects were not a part of the original vision of this project. So under the circumstances, with many of these episodes pretty much being thrown together, there’s some good stuff.

However, I do think that giving Trek a 2007 style would better help to ring in new fans. While the new effects may work for folks who were 10 in the 60’s, I’m not sure they do the trick today.

I’m sorry to say this, but eventually, Trek will need to have a more updated look to their effects if it wishes to remain an amount of relevance in culture.

#9 Sven K, you bring up an excellent point. Reminds me as a kid in the 70’s reading “The Making of Star Trek”. I was appalled at the problems Roddenberry and crew had with small budgets and time constraints. I remember reading somewhere, don’t know if it was “Making of ST”, where Roddenberry had so much on his plate that actors where actually standing around waiting for their lines while Gene was still writing them. Someone would actually walk into his office and stand on his desk waiting for him to finish writing the next scene. Don’t know if that’ a true story or not, maybe someone else here can confirm that.

By the third season Gene was burnt on the whole process and decided to move on to other things. From what I recall, one of the things he was frustrated at was the limited budget for special effects. While known as a great writer and idea man, contrary to what some believe, Gene was also a big fan of technology and special effects. What set him apart, was his ability to balance story line and effects, although there were times he was unable to do that. He left TOS at that time disappointed that he wasn’t able to include more and better special effects into the series, especially the third season. As much as we all cherish TOS, it sounded to me like he walked away from it wanting it to be so much more than what it was.

I think in the beginning of this project, the special effects guys may have been a little apprehensive about going beyond remaking the original special effects and putting their own “artistic values”, if I may, into the project. I don’t always want to see a frame for frame remake of the old effects. They have proven to me that when they “opener ‘er up a little”, they do an excellent job of providing a fresh look while staying true to the original series. I hope they continue in that direction.

I don’t agree with those wanting to leave TOS alone, nor do I agree with those who want to see the Enterprise do “barrel rolls”. I really like the majority, but not all, of the effects I’ve seen on TOS-R. I applaud them for listening to constructive criticism and making changes, such as the nacelle cap issue. I don’t have a problem with those who criticise the current effort, as long as it makes sense and isn’t extreme. I applaud you for your criticism, as it is based in fact and makes sense. I’ll bet if we where able to interview some of the effects guys, they would mirror your opinion.

It is frustrating to see the unrealistic time constraints yet again being put on the production of this series. When I see frames of the old series reversed and not corrected, I am puzzled, because I know they were that way in TOS because of time constraint issues, not artistic value. I don’t have a problem with CBS wanting to make a profit, in fact, I want them to. But it doesn’t seem to me that it would take that much more to allow the special effects guys to do the job they want to do. It’s not like the old days where you had to wait for sets and models to be built. I can’t imagine the pressure those guys are under.

i thought the new effects shots look pretty crap, tbh. They obviously didn’t have very much money (which isn’t their fault, of course) but the whole exercise seems like a bit of a money-spinner to me.

What was wrong with the old effects?! I’ve always though they looked pretty cool. I certainly think that the Enterprise looked a lot better in the originals than in the remastered versions

35. Buckaroohawk

I’m one of those watching the episodes for the “first” time with these new effects. I don’t know what to think anymore.

Originally, I loved the new effects. Anything would be better than the grainy, matte-lined, fuzzy planet orbits. I still love them, but I’m beginning to see why people are complaining.

They’re almost too nice. Too clean (especially when looking at something on the grainy viewscreen). Too dark sometimes (compared to the bright interiors and planet surfaces).

I wish they could be more seamless, but I don’t think that’s possible. For what they are, they work and I’d rather have them than the originals. But I’m beginning to see why some are still complaining.

Hate to stir the pot, but that’s how I’m feeling today.

For the most part, I’m loving these new effects and look forward to each new episode. Having said that…I find it ironic that I’m getting just as “tired” of the new CGI “stock” shots as I was of the original “stock” shots. No matter how good it looks, it’s very obvious when they use the same orbital fly-bys and space travel shots over and over and over.

I wish every shot could be slightly different. I realize that isn’t practical, but it would be alot more fun than counting how many times in one episode I see that SAME red star pass by the new improved E.