By Jennifer Larson
Digitally Enhanced Original STAR TREK episodes return to syndication the weekend of Sept. 15!
Depending on where you stand on the issue of a TV classic being altered, you will either be elated or horrified by this news. The plan is to release digitally remastered episodes for our viewing pleasure. The premiere episode will be “The Galileo Seven,” which was the one that had Spock in command of the shuttlecraft Galileo. But, you hardcore fans already know that. The question is, will the enhancement of these episodes improve the quality of the show, or go down in history as being as disastrous as colorizing old movie classics?
I get the argument here. I mean creative and directorial decisions are made based on the tools that are available at the time. The being said, who can resist watching William Shatner’s overacting and stilted performance as Capt. Kirk with the help of today’s technology? For me, STAR TREK was high camp, at best. The joy in watching was in the acting that proved little more than caricatures of how they believed space travelers would act. Not to mention special effects that were akin to showing a spaceship flying through the air with the help of strings, and visible ones at that. Blasphemy I know, to all you trekkies out there.
I guess the fact that they are airing these episodes for one-weekend shows that not even the powers that be are confident this will work out. But I have to believe that with all those people out there who have been watching STAR TREK their whole lives, it is more important to know that there are stations out there willing to re-air any part of the series, than it is to complain about the fact that they “enhanced” it. As far as what the digitally remastered version will provide us with, we will get to see a computer enhancement of The Galileo in flight as well as a remastered version of the theme music. Come on, how bad can it be to hear that song clearer and stronger than before? My bet is that once you watch it, you’ll be humming that tune for days to come.