The Show

Star Trek's second season is when the show really began to hit its stride. The first season had given us some fantastic episodes, such as "Balance of Terror" (in which we first met the Romulans), "The Devil in the Dark" (after more than forty years, still one of Trek's best allegories), and "The City on the Edge of Forever" (often thought of as the Original Series' finest episode), but it had plenty of ironing out needed in many installments. The second season, however, shows a growth in the characters and some less hesitant storytelling than in the first season. It is also mostly free of most of the silliness that occasionally plagued the show's third season. This season has it all.

One of the second season's most notable differences from the first was the addition of Ensign Pavel Chekov, played by Walter Koenig. He was there as both an answer to The Monkees' teen heartthrob Davy Jones (a look at the ridiculous wig he wears in his first few episodes makes that obvious) and an acknowledgment that the Russians were the first nation to enter space. Chekov was the final addition to Star Trek's primary cast of characters. In addition, we learn a great deal about Mr. Spock and his home planet of Vulcan in two memorable episodes, "Amok Time" (the season's opener) and "Journey to Babel" (where we meet Spock's parents, Sarek and Amanda). We learn how deep his friendship with both Captain Kirk and Dr. Leonard "Bones" McCoy runs, too. Captain Kirk's character is also fleshed out a great deal this season in episodes such as "Obsession," in which we learn of a horrible event from his past, and "The Ultimate Computer" in which we learn about Captain Kirk's fears of becoming obsolete (a theme that would be echoed in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan). Dr. McCoy even gets two of his best outings in "Friday's Child," where he has to teach a woman to love her child, and "A Private Little War," in which he grimly serves as Captain Kirk's conscience as he (Kirk) must make a very difficult decision. Even Scotty (James Doohan) gets to shine in more than one episode. The second season shows us more about who these characters are as well as the deep loyalty and friendship they all share.

The second season also offers some of the most classic episodes of the entire franchise. "The Trouble with Tribbles" may just be the most popular episode of the Original Series, with such unforgettable scenes as a cargo bay's worth of Tribbles falling on Captain Kirk, and Scotty beaming the Tribbles to a Klingon ship. We also have "The Doomsday Machine," another great episode. It is a tightly packed adventure story with a tragic captain (portrayed magnificently by William Windom) trying to defeat an almost invincible alien machine. It also contains what has to be one of Captain Kirk's all time best lines: "You mean you're the lunatic responsible for almost destroying my ship?!" Then we get comic episodes such as "I, Mudd," in which we are re-introduced to an antagonist from the first season, Harry Mudd, and "A Piece of the Action," which overcomes a very silly premise (an entire planet modeled on 1920s Chicago gangsters) with humor and the avoidance of taking itself seriously. There is also "Mirror, Mirror," in which we visit an alternate universe where the Federation is a bloodthirsty empire, and "The Immunity Syndrome," in which the galaxy is invaded by a giant, one-celled organism that must be destroyed before it wipes out all other life. Star Trek's second season contains much more than its share of classic installments.

Throughout this rousing set of episodes, the thoughtful allegory and message of peace that are Star Trek's hallmark are very much present. "A Private Little War" is a savage Vietnam parable that offers no good solutions, and "The Ultimate Computer" is a cautionary tale about the dangers of over-reliance upon machinery. All in all, Star Trek's second season contains a treasure trove of classic adventures in the Final Frontier.

The Extras

• Enhanced Special Effects (Optional)
• Starfleet Access Commentary
• Billy Blackburn's Treasure Chest: Rare Home Movies And Special Memories Part 2
• Star Trek: TOS on Blu-ray
• "More Tribbles, More Troubles" (Star Trek Animated Episode #1)
• "Trials and Tribble-ations" (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Episode #503)
• "Trials and Tribble-ations" - Uniting Two Legends
• "Trials and Tribble-ations" - An Historic Endeavor
• "To Boldly Go ..." Season Two
• Designing the Final Frontier
• Star Trek's Greatest Moments
• Writer's Notebook: D.C. Fontana
• Life Beyond Trek: Leonard Nimoy
• Kirk, Spock & Bones: Star Trek's Great Trio
• Star Trek's Divine Diva: Nichelle Nichols
• CBS BD-Live
• Mobile-Blu
• Episode Previews
• Various Easter Eggs

As you can see, there is a lot of extra content on these discs. Bear with me, and we'll get through this together. Here's the rundown:

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Perhaps the coolest thing about this release is the fact that the episodes' visual effects have been enhanced and modernized. Purists need not worry, though, because this feature is entirely optional, and it can be toggled on and off without having to exit to the main menu. The effects are just a slice below Hollywood level, but they really look great. The shots of the Enterprise flying through space are where this feature is most used. No longer do you get a plastic toy Enterprise on strings passing static planets, unless that's what you want. Now the Enterprise is fully computer-rendered, and planets with detailed topography rotate slowly and beautifully. Practically all of the season's other effects, such as the giant green hand on "Who Mourns for Adonais?", are updated as well. "The Doomsday Machine" particularly benefits from this update due to its heavy reliance on such effects.

Starfleet Access is essentially episode commentary by multiple people, available on a handful of episodes. Occasionally, little information boxes pop up as well, providing brief character bios or definitions for things like Plomeek Soup. Starfleet Access is picture-in-picture only, so Blu-ray players incapable of displaying PIP will not be able to play these commentaries. They feature a plethora of writers and crew members discussing different aspects of the episode. Nothing too heavy, but it is all welcome information to any Star Trek fan. The range of people commenting on these episodes is impressive. "Amok Time" alone features story editor/writer D.C. Fontana, visual effects line producer Michael Okuda, visual effects associate producer Denise Okuda, and authors/Star Trek experts Garfield and Judith Reeves-Stevens.

"Billy Blackburn's Treasure Chest" is an interview with Billy Blackburn, the series' ubiquitous extra. Blackburn discusses the diverse roles he played on the show and the equally diverse costumes he had to don on a regular basis. Trivial and fun.

"Star Trek: TOS on Blu-ray" is an interview with the crew who worked on the remastering of the episodes in this set as well as David Gerrold, writer of the famed "Trouble with Tribbles" episode.
This featurette comes off mostly like a commercial for this Blu-ray set (one interviewee claims that the visual effects enhancement "opens a whole new world" to viewing the series). When they're done plugging themselves and Gerrold shows up to discuss "Tribbles," though, this supplement becomes good fun.

Disc four of this set goes Tribbles-wild. It features the season's episode "The Trouble with Tribbles," one of the most famous Star Trek episodes of any season, but it goes the extra light-year with Tribbles-related extras. First, we get episode one of Star Trek Animated, "More Tribbles, More Troubles." In it, David Gerrold has written a whimsical and amusing continuation to the Tribbles saga, featuring the return of both Cyrano Jones and the Klingon captain Koloth. This episode is a fun follow up to that Star Trek classic.

Then we get a thirtieth-anniversary episode from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, "Trials and Tribble-ations." This episode is pure television magic. Using startlingly seamless effects to insert the DS9 cast into the original "Trouble with Tribbles" episode, "Trials" is worth watching by even the most casual Trek fan. Moments such as O'Brien having to lie directly to Captain Kirk, and Dax reminiscing about an affair she had with Dr. McCoy will bring a smile to the face and maybe even a tear to the eye. This and "More Tribbles, More Troubles" are great treats for the many fans of that famous episode.

" 'Trials and Tribble-ations' - Uniting Two Legends" is a featurette with actors and writers of the DS9 episode talking about the decision to make it. They also discuss the process of writing and filming the episode, particularly in the light of their love for the original. It's good to see what they were trying to do with this follow-up and to hear about their feelings for the first.

" 'Trials and Tribble-ations' - An Historic Endeavor" goes over the DS9 episode from a production standpoint. We get everything from the designing of the sets to the technical process of inserting modern actors into a classic Star Trek episode. Another must-watch featurette for any fan.

" 'To Boldly Go ...' Season Two" is one of the few featurettes in which we hear from major actors from the show. While it features writers and minor actors generally discussing some of the episodes and scenes, what's more fun is hearing actors George Takei and Walter Koenig give two very different, though equally heartfelt, accounts of the beginning of their friendship on the set of Star Trek. Nothing very insightful in this bit, but it's fun to hear, nonetheless.

"Designing the Final Frontier" visits art director Matt Jeffries and set decorator John Dwyer. The two discuss some of the issues of set design on the Original Series and point to a few neat stories of set construction happenings, such as Dwyer's use of plastic lids for take-out cups as a high-tech wall fixture. In general, the two reminisce on budgeting and logistical problems and the overall fun they had working on the show. Another featurette with behind-the-scenes information that Trek fans will enjoy.

"Star Trek's Greatest Moments" is another featurette that lacks depth but that makes up for it with nostalgic reminiscences. This extra has the cast and crew of newer versions of the series (like Michael Dorn and Ethan Phillips), along with a few convention fans, talking about growing up watching Star Trek and discussing their favorite episodes.

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"Writer's Notebook: D.C. Fontana" has Fontana herself discussing her job as story editor on Trek. She explains what her job entailed and gives a nice rundown of her tasks as well as the use of her initials, D.C., rather than her real name, since it was generally thought that women could not write science fiction.

"Life Beyond Trek: Leonard Nimoy" is one of the more interesting featurettes. This is an interview with Nimoy at his home, in which he talks about his passion for photography and his endeavors in that art. He talks specifically about a photography project centered on the concept of time. He also explains his personal religious/spiritual basis for the Vulcan salute and how he occasionally incorporates it into his art.

"Kirk, Spock & Bones: Star Trek's Great Trio" is a short little rundown of those three characters. It doesn't have a whole lot of depth, but it does go over the chemistry the actors shared and offers some insight from Star Trek writers and experts.

"Star Trek's Divine Diva: Nichelle Nichols" is an interview with the wonderful actress who played Uhura. Nichols discusses her background in music (not acting, interestingly) and how she got involved in Star Trek. She goes into good detail about how she came up with her character's name (the "Uhura" part at least) and her ideas behind the character in general.

The set's BD-Live feature (for internet-connected Blu-ray players) leaves a lot to be desired. CBS BD-Live allows you to connect to the internet, ostensibly to interact with other people watching the episodes, but it offers a poor interface and little functionality. You can see a map of people watching the set across the globe but cannot get more specific information. There does not seem to be a way to actually interact with others who are logged in. Also, a few of the sub-features, such as "Movie Nights," are not yet operational. Other than that, you get a forum.

Mobile-Blu sounds interesting in theory but has its own problems. If you have an iPhone and a player connected to a wireless network, you can sync the two devices (supposedly it will support more mobile devices in the future). This allows you to use your iPhone as a remote control (neat, I guess), and you can also download video content to your phone. Unfortunately, a lot of people are having trouble with this feature, which isn't allowing the devices to detect each other. We had this problem as well and were thus unable to test the feature.

The rest of the extra content consists of simple episode previews and a few easter eggs. The easter eggs are short, one- to two-minute bits with crew members telling anecdotes about happenings on the set. They can be found by navigating to the red light with no text on the main menu.

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Video/Audio

Simply put, this is the best the original series has ever looked. Colors are vibrant, the picture is clear, and there is no dirt. Add in the enhanced special effects, and you have one heck of a visual treat.

The audio is presented in 7.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, English Mono 2.0 (again, for purists), Spanish Mono 2.0, and French Mono 2.0, with subtitles in English, Spanish, French, and Portuguese. The sound is very good, though occasionally sound effects can be far louder than dialogue. Everything comes through with great clarity, though. The back channels are mostly reserved for the score and various blips, beeps, and hums.

Packaging/Menus

The discs come in a Blu-ray case about as thick as a traditional two-disc DVD case. The DVDs are stored on each side of plastic pages within the case. Overall, it is just fine, though we had some problems with the last disc (located on the inner wall of the back cover) coming loose. This may have just been our case, but just know to be careful with the box.

The menu system emulates a view of Enterprise bridge controls. Especially impressive is one little detail pertaining to the listing of episodes. As you cycle through the episodes available on each disc, you are also presented with the (accurate) stardate for each episode. A very nice extra touch.

Conclusion

If you have any interest whatsoever in Star Trek, you need to buy this set. With twenty-six season episodes, two other episodes, loads of extra content, awesomely enhanced special effects, an astounding picture, great sound, and, oh yeah, a wonderful TV show in and of itself, how can you go wrong? This Blu-ray set is worth every penny (the $129.99 MSRP means you will likely be paying only $80 or less) and will keep you occupied for hours.

Click here to buy Star Trek: The Original Series - Season Two on Blu-ray