ALL SCI-FI

[Bud Brewster]

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The first time I saw this episode many years ago, I realized I needed to buy the TOS box set and take my mind Back to the Future.

This episode does a great job of allowing the DS9 crew to interact with the Enterprise personnel, both with the on set actors in "new" TOS roles, and through digital FX.

____________________ Work Related Stress


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The plot elements of The Trouble with Tribbles are expanded in clever ways, such as combining the fact that the Tribbles don't like Klingons, and the Tribbles would obviously be an ecological threat on any planet where they were allowed to proliferate!

___Wisdom of Worf: On Enemies of the Klingon Empire


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I also admired the way they put Worf in the same room with the "classic" Klingons and then made a brief mention of the obvious difference!

____ Trials and Tribble-ations ("Those are Klingons?")


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I wish the clip below weren't so dark, but I wanted to include the wonderful scene in which the four DS9 crewmen "suited up" to blend in when they went aboard the Enterprise. Terry Farrell's appearance at the 1:10 mark in her short TOS uniform must have made our late friend Bulldogtrekker's heart do acrobatics when he saw that shot!

___________Blending In - Trials and Tribble-ations


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And before somebody asks this question:

"Did Bub make a sexy screenshot?"

I'll just smile and say, "Hey, do Tribble's make horny rabbit's seem like nuns?"

But as you can see from the clip, the scene is very dark, so I lightened it considerably.



Then I did a bit more work on it — including a few alterations on the dress to make it fit like a proper TOS uniform. (I shortened the hem and tightened the waistline.)



The bar fight in the The Trouble with Tribbles is the comic highlight of the entire series. And the DS9 version of that scene ramped up the comedy to warp 9!

In this episode we get Worf, Odo, Chief O'Brien, and Doctor Bashir, all gleefully mixing it up with the ornery Klingons, fighting side-by-side with the Enterprise crewmen to defend the honor of their beloved ship.

I compared the scene below to the actual bar fight in the TOS episode and I notice that in the DS9 version they added three Klingons sitting at another table across the bar, so that the good guys wouldn't out-number the bad guys too badly!

Watch the clip and take note of the moment right before the fight starts. After Scotty stands up and knocks the crap out the Klingon who delivers all the insults, the Enterprise crewmen stand up quickly and do the traditional "shove back their chairs" gesture.

Then the other two Klingons leap up and do the same thing, followed by an added scene of the three Klingons at the other table tossing back their chairs. And finally, the four DS9 crewmen jump and toss back their chairs as well!

It's Clobbering Time!

The editing of the enhanced fight scene is flawless, and the whole thing is an impressive example of the way CGI can make anything possible.

_______ The Bar Fight - Trials and Tribble-ations


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But the scene that made me decide to finally buy the TOS box set and reacquaint myself with this wonderful series was the integration of a scene in the corridor with Kirk and Spock at an intercom panel . . . while we see Captain Cisko and Jadzia Dax standing in the background!

It's glorious!

And notice the subtle inclusion of the original music at the beginning of the the scene, along with the fact that the Enterprise's corridor was recreated for the shots immediately after that, with dozens of extras in costume walking around like we see in the TOS episodes, doing Lord knows what!

_______Kirk and Spock - Trials and Tribble-ations


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Also, let's not forget the absolutely stunning young lady who boards the turbolift with O'Brien and Bashir! She rivals the most delicious space babes ever to appear on TOS. She has a second scene a bit later in which she invites Dr. Bashir to be in sick bay when she reports for her physical.

_____ The 23rd Century - Trials and Tribble-ations


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Somebody should create a profession "video tribute" to this lady, whose name happens to be Deirdre Imershein.

Oh . . . wait . . . here's a real nice one!

___________ DEIRDRE L. IMERSHEIN | TRIBUTE


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You know, guys, I've been saying for years that TOS will someday receive a series of new enhancements in which the physical sets themselves will be re-imagined with CGI, so that we see our beloved characters walking around in beautifully redesigned interiors which are far superior to the plywood and plastic sets this 1960s series was forced to use.

And to demonstrate how that day is drawing closer year after year, observe the way a character from DS9 can be placed seamlessly into a scene from TOS! If that can be done, then placing TOS characters into gorgeous futuristic CGI sets can't be far behind.

_______________ Sisko and Dax on the Bridge


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Hey, what a minute! That technology has already been pioneered by a man named Kevin George on his home computer! He posted the video below on Vimeo, and a YouTube members shared it.

______ CGI Replacement of the Enterprise Bridge


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Okay, we now know that the technology exists to preserve all the brilliance of the original Star Trek, and it can improve its less-than-perfect technical aspects so that the visual look no longer appears so badly dated.

Forgive me for saying this, but older fans who can only enjoy the series the way it looked when they were young and naive won't approve of these updates, because their love of series is based strongly on their personal nostalgia — not on the intellectual challenges which the stories present.

I feel sorry for those folks. The didn't really get this series when it first aired . . . and frankly, they never will.

However, those of us who look past the plywood and plastic sets, the crude special effects, and the limitations of filmmaking from 50 years ago, were inspired by the series' intriguing concepts and its sterling vision of mankind's technological future!

And now the current technology has caught up with the challenges of making this series look the way its producers wanted it to in the late 1960s. They did their best to inspire their audience back then to see the wonderful future they envisioned.

Thankfully, they succeeded!

The stories they presented back then (as best they could) can now be presented the way they would have done if today's technology had been available!

Ladies and gentlemen, I hope I live long enough to see the original Star Trek episodes presented in Imax and 3D! And think that day will come in the near future.

Meanwhile, enjoy this final YouTube video.

_____ Entertainment Tonight DS9 Tribble Episode


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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)