Rating summary

Movie		5.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		0.5
Overall		3.5

Star Trek: The Original Series - Origins Blu-ray Movie Review

See how it all began.

Star Trek's resurgence can be mostly attributed to Director J.J. Abrams' brilliant franchise reboot films, films that have captured the broad public imagination in quite a way none of the other, older pictures or television series ever could. Certainly the Star Trek universe, before Abrams' films, enjoyed a huge cultural awareness, with terms like "shields up," "red alert," "beam me up, Scotty," and "'dammit Jim, I'm a doctor, not a (fill in the blank)'" all parts of the everyday lexicon. Those sorts of things helped propel Abrams' films, but more than any popular culture riff it was the wide foundation and huge amounts of source material for Abrams to pull from to build his own vision of the future that helped shape his films into special, unforgettable cinema achievements. That source material, the origins of everything that has helped propel Star Trek into a repurposed cash cow for Paramount, can be found in Star Trek Origins, a collection of five classic, iconic original series episodes that helped define the universe and set into motion so many of the events that have shaped all future Trek since. This collection merely reassembles the episodes onto one disc. There are no new bonus features beyond newly recorded Rod Roddenberry introductions. Episode summaries are included below. For a more thorough review of each original series season, please see Blu-ray.com's reviews for season one, season two, and season three.

"Botany Bay?...Oh no!"

• The Cage: The Enterprise discovers an old-style distress signal from the Columbia, a vessel which crashed 18 years ago. Captain Pike is tiring of making the hard decisions, wishing instead to settle down to a life of tranquility, but when Mr. Spock informs him that there are eleven survivors from the crashed ship on the planet, Pike orders the Enterprise to change course to Talos IV for further examination. A six-man away team beams down to the surface where they soon find the survivors, though it is quickly revealed that they are being monitored by subterranean aliens. Soon thereafter, the survivors disappear and Captain Pike vanishes. He finds himself the object of study, the aliens placing him in various scenarios and attempting to elicit physical and emotional responses from the Enterprise's captain in hopes of fooling him into a false sense of ease so he might embrace the idea of breeding with his mysterious and beautiful female companion, Vina. Meanwhile, the Enterprise crew uses every means at their disposal to penetrate the aliens' lair, but to no avail.
• Where No Man Has Gone Before: The Enterprise beams a small object on board, a disaster recorder from the S.S. Valiant. The recorder recounts the tale of the Valiant's crew learning as much as possible about -- and becoming increasingly frenetic in their pursuit of knowledge of -- Extra Sensory Perception, or ESP, prior to her destruction. The Enterprise passes through a barrier that confuses the ship's equipment, and a crewman and longtime friend of Kirk, Gary Mitchell, is seemingly wounded during the incident. His eyes now silver in color, he gains the ability to read at an alarming rate and his powers of ESP begin to increase geometrically, soon becoming a dangerous threat to the ship. The Enterprise approaches Delta Vega, a barren planet that may be suitable for marooning Mitchell before he takes complete control of the ship with only his newfound extraordinary powers.
• Space Seed: The Enterprise encounters an ancient Earth vessel, circa 1990, and Dr. McCoy detects faint heartbeats on board. The ship is the S.S. Botany Bay, housing dozens of survivors from Earth's third World War. Ship's historian McGivers finds herself infatuated with the leader of the centuries-old and hibernating crew of the Botany Bay, a 20th Century tyrant named Khan Noonien Singh (Ricardo Montalbán). During and after his recovery from the long sleep, Khan shows impressive and seemingly superhuman physical, recuperative, and mental powers. When he regains full physical and mental capacities after nearly two centuries of slumber, he hatches a plan to take control of the Enterprise -- with McGivers' help.
• Errand of Mercy: The Enterprise receives word that negotiations with the Klingon Empire have fallen apart. Both sides are on a war footing, and conflict seems inevitable. Kirk has been ordered to rush to Organia, a strategically important planet bordering the Klingon-Federation disputed territory, in hopes of securing its safety and ensuring it doesn't fall into Klingon hands. Data shows the planet to be a low-tech, largely primitive world. Kirk and Spock are greeted warmly by the Organians and their pleas heard, appreciated, understood, and debated. However, the Organians refuse to accept the Federation's help. Meanwhile, Spock's sensors suggest that Organia has seen no technological advancement for millennia, effectively making it an "arrested culture" and creating only a deeper mystery on a world poised to become a major front in a deadly war. Unfortunately, the Klingons arrive on Organia in strength and with occupying forces. Kirk and Spock, with the cooperation of their Organian hosts, are disguised as natives and must deal with a Klingon occupation while the Enterprise, under the command of Lt. Sulu, may be forced to fall back to Federation territory and return with a larger, stronger force.
• The Trouble with Tribbles: The Enterprise is en route to deep space station K-7. The quadrant in which it lies is under dispute between the Klingons and the Federation, with the claim on Sherman's Planet in the middle of the upheaval. K-7 sends a priority one distress call that signifies it to be under heavy attack. The Enterprise responds ready for battle and at red alert, but they arrive to find the station appearing to be in a relative state of peace. They have been summoned to guard "quadrotriticale," the only form of grain that will grow on Sherman's Planet. Mr. Niz Baris, the Federation's Undersecretary of Agriculture, fears attack on the supply, a move that would significantly weaken the Federation's claim on the planet. Just as Kirk is ordered to lend full cooperation to the task of securing the grain's safety, a Klingon warship arrives at the station. Claiming to be at the station for shore leave, the Klingons are granted a small contingent on the station, their number to be matched by Starfleet security personnel. Meanwhile, Lt. Uhura falls in love with a small, cuddly creature known as a "Tribble." She brings the creature aboard the Enterprise only to find it reproducing at an alarming rate. Though the creature seems to be of no benefit, its unwanted presence nevertheless leads Kirk and Spock to discover the identity of a saboteur aboard K-7.

Star Trek: The Original Series - Origins Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

For a complete review of each original series season's video quality, please see Blu-ray.com's reviews for season one ("Where No Man Has Gone Before," "Space Seed," "Errand of Mercy"), season two ("The Trouble with Tribbles"), and season three ("The Cage").

Star Trek: The Original Series - Origins Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

For a complete review of each original series season's audio quality, please see Blu-ray.com's reviews for season one ("Where No Man Has Gone Before," "Space Seed," "Errand of Mercy"), season two ("The Trouble with Tribbles"), and season three ("The Cage").

Star Trek: The Original Series - Origins Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

The only included supplements are brief and newly recorded episode introductions with Rod Roddenberry, son of Star Trek Creator Gene Roddenberry.

Star Trek: The Original Series - Origins Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Star Trek: The Original Series - Origins will probably find but a limited audience on Blu-ray. While these are five of the finest episodes the original series ever produced, they're already available on the pricier, but better-valued, season sets. Fans just getting into Star Trek thanks to Abrams' films and who wish to explore for the first time, or for the first time in a long time, the source universe, will get the most out of this collection. Video and audio qualities are identical to the season releases. No extras have been added or included save for brief Rod Roddenberry intros. Recommended to newcomers. Of those who already own the season sets, only the most die-hard Trek collectors should pick this up.