Monday 30 January 2012

£5 off with TNG: The Next Level

My copy of the TNG HD sample disc, The Next Level, arrived this morning, and I was pleasantly surprised to find inside a leaflet advertising the season one box set, and on the reverse, a slip that can be posted off to get a five pound refund when I purchase the season one set later in the year. At Amazon.co.uk's price for The Next Level, that effectively makes the sample disc just £1.99. Are there similar offers around the world?

The Next Level also comes in a slipcase; despite my general aversion to excessive packaging I find it wholly satisfying when books and DVDs come in slipcases.


As expected TNG in HD looks simply amazing, gone is that horrible pink tint, and the effects are stunning. There are bumps too though, while you can pick up lots of nice extra details, it's also seems more obvious when there are mistakes in the set dressing, and some of the wobbly steadycam work seems even more pronounced. The few seconds of upscaled footage in Sins of the Father are also alarming obvious; it does at least serve to demonstrate how impressive the new transfer is. I still feels very much a product of its time, and I've always found TNG seems to have aged the worst of the Trek series; this renewed version goes a long way to fixing that. While the cinematography and editing still feels dated in places (especially in Encounter at Farpoint) the picture quality is outstanding, and allows the detail and attention to the design of the series to really shine; I feel confident TNG will no longer feel like the ugly duckling of the franchise.




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