Sunday, September 17, 2006

"In a different reality, I might have called you 'friend'."

By sheer luck, I discovered last night that one of Buffalo's TV stations had an episode of the Star Trek: The Original Series on last night. The original episodes are getting "Lucasized" with new special effects, primarily on exterior space shots. Even though I hadn't seen this particular episode, "Balance of Terror", in many years, the new effects still stood out in my eye. Not that the new effects are bad, mind you, but that the show's original look is pretty much burned on my brain. Still, for the most part, I found the new effects to be mostly in the same spirit as the old ones, although the whole exercise seems a tad odd to me -- digitally updating archaic special effects, but in such a way as to make the new digital effects look like the old archaic ones! Anyway, I just hope they don't do anything to the Horta when they get to "The Devil in the Dark".

And "Balance of Terror" is still a hell of an episode. I'd actually forgotten how good it is.

(Speaking of the Horta, the old DC Comics Star Trek book actually had a Horta as an officer on the Enterprise. In one hilarious moment, a feline-like alien used that Horta officer as a scratching post.

OK, I guess you had to be there.)

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Oh, that was great! The Grond, a race of cat aliens and their arch-enemies the Ajir. If I recall correctly the Horta's name was Lt. Nahrat, who was created by Diane Duane - who wrote that particular 2-part story, and used him in her and husband Peter Morwood's Trek novels.

I always liked the thing about him being fiercely loyal to Kirk because she was a friend of his mother. Those DC Trek comics were great, even if Tom Sutton couldn't draw William Shatner to save his life...

Tosy And Cosh said...

I've never seen an episode of Star Trek in my life, so if I do check these out, the new effects won't bug me. ;)