Region:
One
Genre:
Sci-Fi TV Series
Episodes
Disc One: “The Child”, “Where Silence Has Lease”, “Elementary, Dear
Data”, “The Outrageous Okona”
Episodes
Disc Two: “Loud As A Whisper”, “The Schizoid Man”, “Unnatural
Selection”, “A Matter Of Honor”
Episodes
Disc Three: “The Measure Of A Man”, “The Dauphin”, “Contagion”,
“The Royale”
Episodes
Disc Four: “Time Squared”, “The Icarus Factor”, “Pen Pals” “Q
Who?”
Episodes
Disc Five: “Samaritan Snare”, “Up The Long Ladder”, “Manhunt”,
“The Emissary”
Episodes
Disc Six: “Peak Performance”, “Shades Of Gray”
Stars:
Patrick Stewart, Jonathan Frakes, Brent Spiner, Levar Burton, Michael
Dorn, Marina Sirtis, Wil Wheaton, and Diana Muldaur
Guest
Stars: Whoopi Goldberg, John DeLancie, Majel Barrett Roddenberry, Carel
Struycken, Mick Fleetwood, John Tesh, Brian Thompson, Mitchell Ryan, Howie Sego,
W. Morgan Sheppard, Colm Meany, Joe Piscopo, Suzie Plakson, Daniel Davis, Terri
Hatcher, John Putch, Roy Brocksmith, and Armin Shimermann
Writers:
Jaron Summers, Jon Povill, Maurice Hurley, Jack B. Sowards, Alan Lane, Burton
Armus, Les Menchen, Lance Dicksons, David Landsberg, Jacqueline Zambrano, Trace
Torme, Richard Manning, Hans Beimler, John Mason, Mike Gray, Wanda M. Haight,
Gregory Amos, Melinda M. Snodgrass, Scot Rubenstein, Leonard Mlodinow, Steve
Gerber, Beth Woods, Keith Mills, Kurt Michael Bensmiller, David Assael, Robert
L. McCollough, Hannah Louise Shearer, Thomas H. Calder, and David Kemper
Directors:
Rob Bowman, Winrich Kolbe, Robert Becker, Larry Shaw, Les Landau, Paul Lynch,
Robert Scheerer, Joseph L. Scanlan, Cliff Bole, and Robert Iscove,
Approximate
Episode Length: 46 minutes each
Extras:
“Mission Overview Year Two”,
“Selected Crew Analysis: Year Two”, “Departmental Briefing-Year Two
Production”, “Departmental Briefing-Year Two: Memorable Missions”,
“Inside Starfleet Archives”
Languages:
English Dolby Digital 5.1 and English Stereo
Subtitles:
English Captions and Closed Captions
Packaging:
Gatefold Within A Box
Chapter
Stops: 8 Per Episode/176 Total
Sound:
Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound and Stereo Sound
Year
of Original Television Broadcasts: 1988-1989/DVD Release: 2002
Home
Video Distributor: Paramount Home Entertainment
Reviewer:
Mark A. Rivera
Remaining
true to their commitment toward releasing the entire series of “Star Trek: The
Next Generation” on to DVD-Video bi-monthly, Paramount Home Entertainment is
beaming down the next box set in the award winning series, “Star Trek: The
Next Generation: The Complete Second Season On DVD.” Due to the Writer’s
Guild Of America strike of 1988, only 22 “Next Generation” episodes were
produced, which aired from November of 1988 through July of 1989 on syndicated
non-cable broadcast television. This latest box set presents all 22 episodes
across 6 dual layered DVD-Videos packaged in a burnt orange gatefold much like
the color or Lt. Commander Data’s Uniform during “Star Trek: The Next
Generation” and this gatefold is packaged into a sturdy silver and burnt
orange box much like the first season’s packaging. There is an insert inside
the box set with a collage of the crew of the Enterprise – D circa the second
season on one side and a cross section of the Enterprise – D complete with
arrows detailing what is what aboard the starship and an alphabetical listing of
all the season two episodes.
The
interactive menus are set up to reflect the style of the 24th century
computers aboard the Enterprise with the main menu for each disc featuring a
full motion window of all the episodes on each disc and submenus detailing the
choice to “Engage” or play the episode chosen, “Communications” or
choose between the English Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Soundtrack or English
Stereo Soundtrack and optional English Captions, “Chapter Log” to give the
viewer an index of 8 scene choices for each episode, and “Return” to go back
to the main menu. The main menu for all discs shows what appears to be a
computer generated diagram of Lt. Commander Data’s “Positronic Brain”
while the first 5 disc submenus show a molecular readout and the sub menu for
the extra features on disc six shows what appears to be a representation of a
humanoid body, but I cannot be anymore specific because the picture is not
anymore specific as to what exactly one is looking at.
Notable
episodes in the six-disc set include “The Child,” which introduces the
character of Dr, Pulaski, played by Original Series Star Trek Veteran Diana
Muldaur, whose character as described by Gene Roddenberry in one of the
featurettes included within the set as being something like a female Dr. McCoy,
but no formal establishment of her character being a relation to the character
bought to life by DeForest Kelley was ever made during the entire run of the
series. Whoopi Goldberg steps in as the mysterious El-Aurian bartender Guinan,
Geordi La Forge is now the Chief Engineer of the Enterprise, Worf now wears the
Starfleet colors appropriate to being the Security Chief of the Enterprise-D, we
learn the name of the Transporter Chief as played by Colm Meaney is O’Brien,
and Wesley Crusher is allowed to remain aboard the Enterprise while his mother
serves as head of Starfleet Medical during that season, which explains why her
character is unseen during season two.
“Elementary
My Dear Data” features the accidental creation of the computer generated
life-form Moriarty, which not only builds upon possible implications first
introduced in the first season episode “The Big Goodbye” but foreshadows the
development of the self aware Holographic Doctor of “Star Trek: Voyager”
approximately 6 years before his introduction. The sentient holodeck program
character Moriarty would appear again in the Next Generation season six episode
“Ship In A Bottle.” “The Measure Of A Man” has Picard defending Data’s
rights as an artificial sentient being. “Contagion” features the second
appearance of the Romulans in “The Next Generation.” “Q-Who” features
the introduction of “The Borg” along with the third series appearance of
John DeLancie as “Q,” and “Samaritan Snare” gives more background
information on the early career of Jean-Luc Picard, which would be dramatized
and explored even further in the excellent season six episode “Tapestry.”
Majel Barrett Roddenberry makes her second appearance as Lwaxana Troi in
“Manhunt,” which features Mick Fleetwood under tons of makeup as an Antidean
ambassador, and “The Emissary” features the introduction of Suzie Plakson as
“K’Ehleyr, a Klingon love interest for Worf and mother to their child
“Alexander,” who would appear in the season 4 episode “Reunion.” The
Ferengi make their third appearance on “Star Trek: The Next Generation” in
the episode “Peak Performance.” Other guest stars to appear in season two
include John Tesh, Brian Thompson, W. Morgan Sheppard, Terri Hatcher, John Putch,
Roy Brocksmith, and Armin Shimermann.
All
22 season two episodes are presented in their original (1.33:1) aspect ratio of
their television presentation and in which they were shot. The quality is better
than any analogue cable broadcast or previous home video version I have ever
seen, but the source materials have aged a bit so some scenes show grain that
was inherent from the original film stock and is not a result of the compression
transfer. A full and vibrant new English Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Soundtrack
as well as the original English Stereo Soundtrack is included along with
optional English Captions and Closed Captions encoded on to all six DVD discs.
The
extra features are also presented in a (1.33:1) aspect ratio with English Stereo
Sound and optional English Captions. The first featurette “Mission Overview
Year 2” covers the changes made in season 2 after the success of season 1 and
has a running time of nearly 15-minutes. The “Selected Crew Analysis”
featurette features more interviews, particularly with regard to actors who
either appeared in season 2 specifically or a character that changed between
seasons 1 and 2 and has an approximate running time of 14-minutes.
The
best and most interesting featurette is the “Starfleet Archives” tour hosted
by Trek Coordinator Penny Juday, who for the “Star Trek” universe is
probably as equal an authority on “Star Trek” props as Steven Sansweet is
for “Star Wars” and the Luscasfilm Archives. There is some mention of props
to be used in the upcoming tenth feature film “Star Trek: Nemesis” and this
featurette has a running time of nearly 18-minutes. A production featurette that
runs for nearly 18-minutes and a “Memorable Missions” featurette that covers
such season 2 episodes as “The Icarus Factor,” “Loud As A Whisper,”
“The Dauphin,” “Elementary, Dear Data,” “Up The Long Ladder,” “The
Emissary,” and “The Measure Of A Man” wraps up the extra features in this
DVD set and has a running time of 16 and ˝ minutes.
All
of these featurettes include a mix of old and newly filmed interviews as recent
as December of 2001. Overall, this is a great set that will satisfy both “Star
Trek” fans and sci-fi collectors alike. “Star Trek: The Next Generation: The
Complete Second Season On DVD” Box Set will debut on Tuesday, May 7, 2002,
from Paramount Home Entertainment.
©
Copyright 2002 By Mark A. Rivera
All Rights Reserved.
The Top Ten TV On DVD-Videos Of 2002 As Reviewed At GENRE ONLINE. NET