Season three has always taken a beating from fans of Star Trek. It’s got more than a few silly episodes and it rehashes some season one and two episodes. But it’s not all bleak. There are more than a few classic episodes to be found in season three as well. The question is, is there enough good to outweigh the bad?
And there is a lot of bad to be found in this season. The season begins with the infamous “Spock’s Brain.” Aliens steal Spock’s brain and Kirk and his crew have to race against time to find it and stick it back in his body. Highlights include a McCoy fashioning a simple remote to make Spock’s body perform complex operations and Spock telling McCoy how to perform a brain transplant, while that transplant is being performed on Spock.
The season comes to an unceremonious conclusion (due to mid-season cancellation) with “Turnabout Intruder.” An episode that takes many giant steps backward for gender equality and establishes that women are forbidden from being captain of a starship. A jealous ex of Kirk swaps bodies with him (meaning lots of overacting by Shatner as he portrays Janet Lester in Kirk’s body), but because she’s crazy (and a woman) she can’t handle the stress of being captain and she soon begins to crack under the pressure. Sure, there are lots of examples of sexism in the original series, but this is one of the few cases where you can’t just chalk it up to being a product of its era. A terrible way to end the series.
There are also a number of other bad episodes. Through the course of the season bad time travel, evil clowns, and space hippies will also make their presence felt.
It’s not all bad though. There are a lot of good episodes here as well. “Let that Be Your Last Battlefield,” for example, does a great job portraying the senselessness of racism (though it’s not exactly subtle).
“The Enterprise Incident” is another great episode. An increasingly erratic Kirk takes the Enterprise into the Romulan neutral zone and soon finds himself prisoner. Spock, for his part, soon forges a bond with the Romulan sub-commander. As one might expect, there is more going on than meets the eye.
There’s also a rather good Klingon episode, “The Day of the Dove.” Klingons end up on board the Enterprise and war breaks out between the Klingons and the crew of the Enterprise. A mysterious alien entity seems to be doing everything it can to ensure the war is a perpetual one.
The episodes that don’t stand out as particularly good or bad are generally enjoyable. Some of them seem to be awfully similar to earlier episodes (for example “Whom Gods Destroy” has more than a few similarities to “Dagger of the Mind.”), but they still bring something new to the table.
The added digital effects are great. The changes are limited mainly to the Enterprise (and other ships), shots of the various planets, background and establishing matte paintings and minor effects (such as phasers). For the most part, the changes look great and manage not to interfere with the feel of the show.
There’s no question that season three is the weakest season of the original series. But just because its the weakest of the three does not mean it’s not bad by any means. Sure, there are some really cheesy moments, but there’s more than enough good here to satisfy any Trek fan.
The video is presented in 1.33:1, of course, and thanks to the re-mastering it looks great. At times, it looks a little too dark (particularly on the bridge), but great nonetheless. The audio is presented in Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround and is also of high quality.
There’s a decent number of extras, most of which are found on the seventh disc. With the exception of Billy Blackburn’s Treasure Chest Part 3, and the remastering of “The Cage”, all of the extras could be found on the previous, unremastered release. There are even a few extras that were included in that release that are missing from this one.
“The Cage” and “The Cage” (Extended version) – Extended version is from when the show was first aired on television in 1986 and includes an introduction and conclusion from the late Gene Roddenberry. Despite the name, both episodes are the same length. The non-extended version is digitally remastered, the extended version is not.
If you haven’t seen “The Menagerie” in quite a while, it is a lot easier to recognize the new footage in the extended version; anything that wasn’t shown in “The Menagerie” only existed in black and white format. Even though the vast majority of the footage aired as part of “The Menagerie,” it’s still great to see here in its entirety.
It’s also fun to wonder what might have been had the show been picked up without the need for the second pilot. Would Star Trek still have achieved the same level of success under Captain Pike? Or would we look back on it today as nothing but a forgotten relic? We shall never know.
Preview Trailers – One minute trailers for each episode.
Billy Blackburn’s Treasure Chest Part 3 – Stand-in/extra Billy Blackburn talks about his Star Trek experiences and showcases some behind-the-scenes footage. Runs about 11 minutes.
“To Boldly Go…” Season Three – A 22 minute featurette on season three of Star Trek. Talks about the fan campaign that helped give the show a third season, and the third season in general. Features interviews from cast and crew and fans involved in the mailing campaign to save the show. There are some great insights on the show, and some great anecdotes (like Nichelle Nichols on the Kirk/Uhura kiss). It’s also surprisingly honest about things that didn’t work (like “Spock’s Brain.”)
A Star Trek Collector’s Dream Come True – John Long talks about and shows off his reproductions of Star Trek props, including the phaser and the communicator. This one runs a little over 7 minutes.
It’s got a few more flaws than seasons one or two, but it’s still very much Star Trek. If you like the franchise, you’ll like this season.
If you already have season three on DVD, there is probably not enough value here to pick the remastered edition (unless you plan to sell or gift your original copy). If, however, you are wondering whether to go with the remastered or regular version, the remastered is definitely the way to go. It’s got better video quality and enhanced effects and it doesn’t do anything to interfere with the intention or the feel of the original episodes.
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Paramount presents Star Trek: The Original Series – Season 3 Remastered. Created by: Gene Roddenberry. Starring: William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, and DeForest Kelley. Running time: 1320 minutes. Rating: NR. Released on DVD: November 18, 2008. Available at Amazon.com
