Home video round up: First Into Darkness details, TNG details, and hope for DS9!

Amazon have now made their listings for Star Trek Into Darkness on Bluray and DVD available for pre-order, and updated them with the first details of the various releases. Like the previous film, there will be a high end bluray release with a collectable. Last time it was a model of the USS Enterprise, this time it appears to be a new version of the QMx phaser, and unlike the current version it seems this phaser has the rotating stun/kill barrel function. Very cool!

 

 

 

If you don't want something so fancy, there are currently three other options listed: Either 3D bluray, standard bluray, or DVD. No news yet of what extra features there will be. The previous film had many more releases, issues with other collectables, and in single or multi-disc options; so I wouldn't be too surprised if more options appear over the coming months.

Here is the current Region A cover design for the 3D bluray. Amazon are currently using a poster as stand-in for the other releases:

And here are the current Region B designs, again for 3D bluray, standard bluray, and DVD:

Into Darkness in expected in September. Before then we have Enterprise Season 2 (currently available to pre-order for less than £25 in the UK!), and TNG Season 4 to look forward to. Continue after the jump for details of those releases, and positive news for the potential of DS9 on bluray:

TrekCore recently released full details of the extra features on the next TNG releases. Here's CBS's description of the new features on TNG Season 4:

In addition to all-new commentary tracks on select episodes with some of the franchise’s biggest names including writers Ronald D. Moore and Brannon Braga, and director Rob Bowman, the collection also includes brand new special features exclusive to the release including never-before-released deleted scenes.  With “RELATIVITY: The Family Saga of Star Trek – The Next Generation,” fans will uncover special insight into particular challenges facing the production of the fourth season.  This multi-part documentary focuses on the series’ evolution after its critically acclaimed third season turned the show into a crossover hit, while also giving viewers a special look into the personal relationships and family bonds of the crew of the Enterprise with key episodes such as “Reunion” and “Brothers.”

Also, “In Conversation: The Art Department” special feature offers unprecedented insight into the creation of some of the series’ most iconic designs through interviews with production designer Herman Zimmerman, illustrator Doug Drexler, illustrator and technical consultant Rick Sternbach, scenic art supervisor Michael Okuda, scenic artist Denise Okuda and FX maestro Dan Curry, each revealing fascinating background into how the series cemented the look of the 24^th century.

The new audio commentaries are:

• Rob Bowman and Mike & Denise Okuda on Brothers.
• Ronald D. Moore, Brannon Braga and Mike & Denise Okuda on Reunion.

Deleted scenes will be from The Best Of Both Worlds, Part II, Family, Brothers, Final Mission, The Wounded, Galaxy’s Child, Qpid, and The Host.

And here is the description of new content coming with the feature length release of Redemption:

Along with an extensive audio commentary from Moore and scenic artists/Star Trek consultants Mike and Denise Okuda, STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION – REDEMPTION BLU-RAY includes the exclusive documentary, “Survive and Succeed: An Empire at War.”  This newly produced special feature explores the Klingon mythology of Star Trek: The Next Generation and features all-new interviews with writer/producer Moore, who, in addition to “Redemption,” wrote some of the franchise’s most memorable Klingon storylines, and some of the actors who played the most renowned Klingon characters including Michael Dorn (Worf), Robert O’Reilly (Gowron) and Gwynyth Walsh (B’Etor).

TrekCore also recently posted some exciting news regarding DS9 on bluray. The amazing work that is currently being done to restore TNG is time consuming and expensive, but made easier by the fact that they are able to recompose existing film elements to make the special effects. In DS9 however CGI was used a lot more, especially in the big Dominion War battles. One big question is whether any of the original CGI files still existed, and could be used, to rebuild the episodes - If not, to make DS9 in HD they would have to recreate all those effects from scratch!

Well TrekCore got the answer to that question from effects artist Robert Bonchune, who explained that if the files exist, it should be relatively easy to re-render them in HD:

If you have all of the assets – all the ships that are needed – and you load the scene file, theoretically, if it loads all the ships with textures it needs, then yes, you’d just hit ‘render.’

[Deep Space Nine] is much more difficult for the last three [seasons] because of the combination of CG and motion control – and when there was CG, it was usually those massive, full-blown war scenes. Going back and revisiting it isn’t as simple as just hitting ‘render’, but it’s still pretty straightforward.

And then revealed that he does indeed still have those assets, ready to use again:

If they ask one of us – and if they use a team that uses LightWave – it’ll be much easier for them to redo… because the guys who worked on it, like me, have the assets. We have the original ships; we have most of everything that was used [in the making of the series]. That would eliminate a ton of the cost of rebuilding.

So, how would I approach it? The same way I did at the time – I’d figure out what was done in CG, and we’d just start from there. And today, it would be easier! Literally, you could just load the scene files and hit ‘render’ – it would be done! I mean, not everything… but a lot more than you’d think.

He was even able to render a shot for TrekCore!

Original SD shot

Ready for bluray HD shot!

Hope for DS9 on bluray grows! Check out TrekCore's full report for more details.