The problem with being a devoted fan of Star Trek is that
in order to be able to relive all your favorite moments in Trek lineage, you
have to be a millionaire. With seasons of every series in the Trek catalogue
costing $100+, it’s hard to justify spending that amount of money on DVDs.
The math is simple: $100 times 7 seasons = $700. Multiply that times three series
= $2100. Now add the three seasons of The Original Series,
and four of the most recent one Enterprise, you’ve got
another $700. So, hey, look at that: in order to watch Star Trek
whenever one wants, you’ve got to shell out $2800. Oh, and I didn’t
include sales tax. If you look up the word “absurd” in the dictionary
there’s a picture of Star Trek DVDs.
THE FAN COLLECTIVE
Though I don’t think it had Trek fans best monetary interests in mind
when they began this promotion, Paramount used StarTrek.com
to conduct a number of polls, asking fans to vote for their favorite episodes
within certain themes: The Borg, Time Travel, etc. The results were to be put
onto smaller DVD collections titled “Fan Collectives.” The first
such release is now here for us Trek fans with smaller bank accounts. The
Borg Fan Collective is a pretty good set that features 14 Episodes
from three different Trek series. The four-disc set doesn’t really have
much to offer in terms of special features, but for the purpose it serves, I
think it handles things just fine.
THE EPISODES
As I said, the Borg Fan Collective features 14 episodes, taken
from the series of Star Trek: Enterprise, The Next
Generation, and Voyager. Each episode offers some
sort of relevance to the overall Borg storyline. The set only has one episode
from Enterprise – which fits because there was only one
Borg related episode in the series. So, the remaining 13 episodes are split:
six from The Next Generation and seven from Voyager.
I remember voting for the episodes when StarTrek.com
was running the promotion, and I really can’t think of any better episodes
to include on the set. In fact, I don’t think there are many more Borg
related episode besides what is on the collection anyway. I will say however,
what is on here is great. Any fan of Star Trek knows that the
Borg are an amazing foe, and consequently have made for some of the best science
fiction stories out there. “The Best Of Both Worlds Parts 1 & 2”
set a standard for incredible storytelling in The Next Generation. Also included
from that series is “Q Who,” “I, Borg” and “Descent
Part 1 & 2.” The Voyager episodes include: “Scorpion Parts 1
& 2,” “Drone,” “Dark Frontier,” “Unimatrix
Zero Parts 1 & 2” and the series’ finale “Endgame.”
With Voyager taking place in the realm of the Borg home world(s), the show had
a number of exciting stories dealing with the ship’s encounters with the
Borg. There is only one episode from Enterprise, “Regeneration,”
and it is kind of continuation of a story started in one of the more recent
movies. Trek fans will know what is going on. If you’re not a Trek fan
I’m surprised you’re still reading this.
SIGHTS & SOUNDS
I have to be honest. As I was watching “The Best Of Both Worlds”
the picture seemed a little washed out to me. I don’t think it’s
my TV either. The colors didn’t seem as bright and outstanding as compared
to “Endgame,” or “Regeneration,” (newer episodes). Since
I don’t have the seasons on DVD, I am not able to compare the transfer
to this DVD set to those. But the episodes for Enterprise and
Voyager look just fine. All of the episodes are presented in
Full Screen, except for “Regeneration” which is in television Widescreen
(like all of Enterprise was). The set has English subtitles,
and English 5.1 and 2.0 Dolby Digital Surround. It is also the only available
language track.
PACKAGING & LAYOUT The Borg Fan Collective comes in a very nice looking slipcover,
and the book-style disc holder is also very nice. The coverart is excellent
all over the set, and even the disc stomps look great. There is no insert booklet/liner
notes, but I thought that was acceptable. There’s enough dialogue on the
back of the cover and inside the disc holder to suffice.
The menus are simple, but lack aesthetics. There are no animated intros, or
anything to speak of really. The disc simply boots to a simple episode list
menu. I’m a little surprised actually, as I would have expected something
more from Paramount. Even though this isn’t a huge set, it was
put together for fans, by fans, so it would have been nice to give those fans
a little more bang for their buck.
SPECIAL FEATURES
Sadly, the collection has little to offer in the realm of special features.
There are no featurettes, or exploratory documentaries about the Borg, or the
episodes. All that is available is in the form of commentaries, and there are
only three at that (out of 14 episodes). There is an audio commentary from writers
on “Regeneration,” and text commentaries from the Okudas on “The
Best of Both Worlds 1& 2,” and “Unimatrix Zero Part 2.”
The text commentaries are always fun though because there is so much trivia
to be divulged. I’d definitely suggest turning those on when you’re
watching!
WHAT’S NEXT?
The first release in the Star Trek Fan Collective series is
definitely a great set for those of us who cannot afford to buy the full seasons
of the different shows. The concept is good too because it takes some of the
best themes and sets of episodes from all the different Trek series and puts
them together in a nice little package. This Borg collection has a number of
great episodes that any Trek fan will enjoy watching. I believe the Time
Travel Fan Collective is next to be released. I, personally, am looking
forward to that the most. I’ve seen the episode list for the set and it
contains a number of my favorite episodes. But for now, the Borg Fan Collective
gives those of us who can’t afford to spend thousands of dollars a little
glimpse into the final frontier.
Fan Collective Episodes: A
Fan Collective Extras: D
Sights & Sounds: C
Packaging & Layout: A Overall DVD Score: B
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