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Star Trek The Next Generation - The Complete First Season

Star Trek The Next Generation - The Complete First Season

List Price: $139.99
Your Price: $111.99
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: STAR TREK IS BACK AND BETTER THAN EVER
Review: The cast of the ST:TNG is the best ensemble cast that was ever put together, they interact very well with each other and in the pilot, each character has a past that is somewhat revealed and explored fully in the coming episodes. I am really glad that the ST:TNG DVD's are in a complete package not like the Orginal Series, in that you only get two episodes. What a rip off.

I recommend this for any hardcore fan of the series.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A Must Buy
Review: Amazing! This package is simply a must have. With all 26 episodes of Star Trek TNG, you can have the chance to see it over and over again. The special feature also gives an insight to the side of Star Trek never before seen on TV. Even the box is great, although since its made of cardboard it may fall apart in the future. The fact that it's on DVD makes it even better audio-wise and visual-wise. A must have for any Star Trek fan.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Great family viewing
Review: We try, when possible, to watch movies as a family on Friday or Saturday evenings. Some times, however, time is tight and a two hour + movie just will run too late.

The Star Trek series is perfect for these situations. With running times of 45 to 50 minutes, we can watch one or two episodes and enjoy intelligent viewing. While in the first season the group was finding themselves as an ensemble, the episodes serve as the history for the subsequent excellent seasons.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Review and Advice for Better Viewing
Review: Here's an indepth review and tips for watching this set. Enjoy!

Audio: A-

Review- The episodes sound FANTASTIC in this set. The music and the special effects sound absolutely first rate. The dialog, is slightly less dramatic but was still fairly crisp and clear.

Tip- One minor flaw...there is a slight problem with dynamic range when these discs were remastered for 5.1 DD. The dialog and the music/sound effects have different sound levels. To solve this problem, consider setting the dynamic range on your receiver to standard instead of maximum. This solves the problem, but it is still annoying to have to reset your receiver every time you watch these Dvds.

Video: B-

Review- I was less than impressed with the video quality of SOME of the episodes. For some reason, there is a lot of grain on the print for what looks like several of the first 10 or so episodes. This is understandable, however, due to the video quality of the day.

But, what REALLY BOTHERS ME is that the picture is cropped in pan & scan video!!! If your Dvd player has a zoom out feature, reduce the image size by half and you'll see exactly what I mean. My guess, is that approximately 20% of the picture is cropped in the normal viewing mode! Here's a tip Paramount, reduce the image size and show the whole [...] image. If you would have done this, what we would have gotten would have been halfway in between a pan & scan and a letterboxed image. Why Paramount, why?

Tip- To make up for the sometimes poor image quality and the cropping effect, my advice is to watch the film in a 1/2 (or 3/4 if possible) sized zoomed image. You'll get a MUCH BETTER viewing experience by doing this. Be warned, however, that you will loose a substantial viewing area. For bigger TV's like 36" and above... no problem, but if you have a smaller 27" set and have the player set to 1/2 zoom it will now have the viewing image of a 20" set. Now, this becomes a trade off between size and seeing everything on the disc. Grrr.

Extras: C+

Well, it was nice that Paramount gave us something. We have about 45 minutes or so of special features on the disc with overviews of the first season. Not bad, but not great. What did annoy me was that there were no episode trailers (This would have only added 13 minutes to the last disc). You can go to the star trek website and view any trailer there, but the website uses a quicktime viewer with a [...sorry] little window and horrible resolution 300x200 ish for all the clips. One again, Paramount, you need to do better on this stuff. And, oh Yeah, what about bloopers? We know they are around.

Box Set Presentation: A- to B+

Although it is probably going to be difficult to keep this thing in good shape if you take it out of the box often (the insert is folded-over laminated cardboard) this package still looks mighty fine on the shelf. I do, however, have one issue to mention. I think that this set is a little bulkier than it had to be. Each disc is dual layered..but single sided. If they would have double sided the discs they would have been able to cut the depth of this boxed set down by half the size. Isn't this suppose to be a huge benefit of DVD over VHS, in that it can take up WAY LESS shelf space? If DS9 and Voyager is done the same way, you'll still need a couple of shelves to store your entire star trek collection on. A lot Better than ST:TOS on DVD, but it still could be significantly better.

Overall Review: A Good set, not a great set. But, what can you do...since this is your only option. However, why not write Paramount and ask them to have an offer to fix these problems. How about a blooper and trailer DVD that you can send away for if you send in the proof of purchase UPC's from all 7 seasons of TNG to Paramount. Hey, what about writing Paramount and adding your input? (Overall Opinion: B)

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Still thinking about buying this?
Review: If you are wondering if you should spend the money for this the answer is YES! I am only on the 3rd CD of the collection but it is TOTALLY different from watching it on TV. The audio is excellent if you have the 5.1 setup and the video is sharp and clear. Every episode is like watching a different DVD movie in 5.1 and NO COMMERCIALS! If you don't want to watch the opening theme each episode just click "skip" on your DVD remote and it takes you right to the episode. I sometimes forget and expect a commercial. I plan to get all of them as I finish a season.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Star Trek TNG is the Best!
Review: Star Trek TNG is the Best!
Patrick Stewart and Brent Spiner are brilliant. Even though this DVD has not yet been released, I have seen all the episodes on it and I love them all!

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Show got much better
Review: First of all, I am a huge TNG fan, not some jock coming on here to bash Trekkers. I really do love the show....but only beginning with season 3. This is by far the worst season. It feels very much like a continuation of the original series with corny storylines, strange technical bungles and other annoying flaws. The only decent episode in the entire season is the one with the Traveler. That is very entertaining, but the rest is pretty bad. And I can't stand the super-tight uniforms. That, to me, cannot be comfortable.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: the new beginning
Review: I was not able to view the first season when it was first aired. Watch it now on DVD is so powerful to me. There is no way one can really understand the development of the characters without see how they first met each other. "Encounter.........." introduce all character in a powerful story and sets the tone very well. I have even ordered the script.
In TV shows, we rarely see one season character has much impact as Tasha Yar. I still cannot get over the fact she was killed. Her character has such great potential as we all see in her guest episodes in "yesterday's enterprise" in season III.
Last but not least, I am certain you will notice a couple of people from the original series...

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Treasure in a Little Silver Box
Review: If you're reading these reviews, that means there's a good chance you are at least a semi-diehard fan of this second take on the Star Trek franchise. I grew up with the characters of TNG, they were a constant in my life. Whatever else happened, I could always count on them being there at 7:00 every Friday to whisk me away to places I could only dream of. Let's face it, Star Trek is not the kind of show that is universally appreciated. Some people just can't seem to get past the goofy outfits (case in question: 'Angel One'), or the lack of funds necessary to create aliens who have something other than a new forehead ridge to distinguish them (although as all us Trekkies know, this is because most humanoid races in the galaxy were seeded by an ancient Master Race...which is cool). The real charm of Star Trek lies in all the little things...
The cool story ideas: The T'Kon empire, an ancient civilization with Trillions of individuals leaves behind one last outpost, guarded by a being known as 'The Portal'. As if that isn't cool. That's from The Last Outpost by the way (1st episode on 2nd disc)
Neat special effects shots: The Enterprise approaches the orbiting space station and glides through one of the huge space dock doors. From 11001001 (3rd episode, 4th disc). Also, the clusters of nebulae and other galactic phenomenon in a part of the galaxy which no one will ever see again (probably) when the Traveler speeds the ship up to insanity death omega Warp during Where No One Has Gone Before (2nd epsiode, 2nd disc). And who can forget the image of the USS Stargazer (Picard's old ship), its four nacelles prominent, sailing toward them in The Battle (1st episode, 3rd disc).
Picard Moments: These are the times when Patrick Stewart dominates the screen, oozing stage presence, convincing us of the depth of his character and hinting at times past. This is amplified in later seasons, yet is still present during episodes such as We'll Always Have Paris (last episode, 6th disc) and Skin of Evil (3rd episode, 6th disc).
Starship Fights: Whenever Starships duke it out, it's automatically a wicked epsiode. No wicked starship fights in 1st season unfortunately.
Interesting ethical debates: The underlying foundation of many episodes. What would you do in the position of the Aldeans, who desperately need a new generation to survive? - When The Bough Breaks. If you had the power of a God, would you so easily give it up? - Hide And Q.

It's all of these elements and more which give Star Trek its charm and appeal. I've been watching this show since I was a kid, I need it to survive. Which is why a DVD boxed set containing an entire frickin' season makes me want to wet myself. I admit, I'm the kind of person who can find good aspects in just about anything, but Season One of TNG is a good buy for anyone looking for relief from 'Friends' and 'Fear Factor'. It certainly contains a couple episodes I can't stand (Encounter At Farpoint, is it just me, or is there some serious overacting going on...and Code of Honor, just because it's always on TV. Is there any reason they keep showing stupid Code of Honor?). Everyone has their pet peeve episodes however, and with 25 episodes, there's 99% cool, 1% stupid. I like dem odds, and you should too. The packaging is pretty swank as well, it's like you're opening a treasure box every time you want to grab a disc.

Summary: If you're like me, and the sound of the opening theme song somehow triggers endorphin release in your brain, you will want this. You will want it so bad you will wet yourself. That is all.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Good Begining
Review: I really enjoyed the first season and watching all of the personalities develop. There were only a couple of episodes that I decided to "skip". Worf's evolving appearance is cool to watch between the first shows and the second season.


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