Rating: 
Country: USA
Release Date: April 4, 2006
Distributor: Paramount
Related Sites:
· Official Site: Star Trek
Grade: B+
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DVD Review: Star Trek Fan Collective - Time Travel
by R.J. Carter
Published: April 8, 2006
Paramount continues their series of Star Trek releases by theme with this nicely-packaged four-disc set devoted to time travel. Featuring episodes selected by online fan voting, the Time Travel Fan Collective set includes episodes from the original series as well as some from Voyager, Deep Space Nine and, of course, The Next Generation.
The set begins with the Enterprise NCC-1701 in orbit around Earth -- 1960s Earth! Having accidentally discovered the "slingshot effect" that would be used for future Star Trek time travel stories, the ship is spotted by the U.S. Air Force, which sends a fighter jet after them to confirm the UFO sighting. Kirk (William Shatner) orders the tractor beam be used to keep the jet back, but the craft is not strong enough to withstand the beam and breaks apart. They transport the pilot on board, and thus is first contact made with the past.
Or is it first contact? In a later episode of Deep Space Nine, "Little Green Men", Quark (Armin Shimerman) gets a shuttlecraft with a sabotaged accelerator. He, his brother, and his nephew, are on their way to Earth, and they eventually get there -- just in time to crash into the desert of Roswell, New Mexico.
Kirk signs a duty roster for Sisko in "Trials and Tribble-ations".
L-R: William Shatner, Nichelle Nichols, Avery Brooks
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Time travel stories in the Star Trek universe often lent themselves to comedic moments, but none quite so much as my all-time favorite, "Trials and Tribble-ations". One of the few times that time travel was done with intent, the show is a throwback to the original series episode, "The Trouble with Tribbles". Here, Charlie Brill plays an older Arne Darvin -- a Klingon designed to look human -- who uses a time orb to go back to the moment of his defeat at the hands of Kirk. He wants to replay the events and kill Kirk with a hidden bomb -- in a tribble, which were overrunning the ship at the time. Captain Sisko (Avery Brooks), Dax (Terry Farrell), Worf (Michael Dorn) and others must infiltrate a space station and the Enterprise to stop Darvin, bring him back, and leave time none the wiser. What makes this show interesting is the way the characters are insinuated into original footage, allowing for Sisko and Kirk to actually have a conversation. It also pokes a bit of fun at the older series lack of makeup effects, as Worf explains -- or rather, refuses to explain -- why the Klingons here look so much differently than he.
Despite having such interesting episodes as "Cause and Effect" -- TNG's response to "Groundhog's Day" -- and "All Good Things...", there is disappointment in this set as well. I, for one, find it hard to believe that the fans would leave out the classic episode "Assignment Earth". There's also some overlap with the previous thematic release of Borg episodes, as the set closes out with the Voyager finale, "Endgame". (Thank goodness there was no Q appearance in that episode, or we might see it yet again in the next fan collective!)
Featuring guest appearances by Kelsey Grammar, Meghan Gallagher and others, this is a fun little marathon for a geek-out weekend. Invite John Titor and Marty McFly over, open up some Doritos and some Jolts, and have a ball explaining the temporal anomalies that were left unadressed by each situation.
The only special features on this set are the text commentaries the underscore three of the episodes. All episodes are presented in full-frame format with audio in English 5.1 Surround or English 2.0, with optional subtitles.
Star Trek Fan Collective
Time Travel
Disc Guide
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Disc 1
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Disc 2
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Star Trek: The Original Series - Episode #021: Tomorrow is Yesterday (optional text commentary by Michael and Denise Okuda)
Star Trek: The Original Series - Episode #028: The City on the Edge of Forever
Star Trek: The Next Generation - Episode #163: Yesterday's Enterprise (optional text commentary by Michael and Denise Okuda)
Star Trek: The Next Generation - Episode #218: Cause and Effect
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Star Trek: The Next Generation - Episode #226: Time's Arrow, part 1
Star Trek: The Next Generation - Episode #227: Time's Arrow, part 2
Star Trek: The Next Generation - Episode #747: All Good Things...
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Disc 3
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Disc 4
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Star Trek: Deep Space Nine - Episode #400: Little Green Men (optional text commentary by Michael and Denise Okuda)
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine - Episode #503: Trials and Tribble-ations
Star Trek: Voyager - Episode #176: Year of Hell, Part 1
Star Trek: Voyager - Episode #177: Year of Hell, part 2
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Star Trek: Voyager - Episode #828: Endgame
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Ends May 28, 2013
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