William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy and others trek across the TV screen in a case of Star Wars

Listen up.
This is of paramount importance.
Especially if you are a Trekkie.
Paramount is about to unleash a universe of “new” releases on DVD that will empty your wallets and length your book shelves.
Smart marketing indeed, since this marketing move comes in anticipation of J.J. Abrams’ "reinvention" of the Star Trek franchise.
But first . . .
On November 17, 2009, the world will go where no one has gone before when the "new" Star Trek debuts.
Bursting with “spectacular action” (The Hollywood Reporter) and “pure filmmaking exhilaration” (Rolling Stone), Abrams’ Star Trek franchise was hailed by critics and embraced by long-time and new fans alike, earning more than $375 million worldwide.
The cast is chock full of young people we never heard of . . . Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Zoe Saldana, Karl Urban, John Cho, Anton Yelchin and Simon Pegg. We have heard of actress-turned-shoplifter Winona Ryder and the original Dr. Spock himself, Leonard Nimoy. Read our candid chat with Shatner here: www.examiner.com/x-4636-Pittsburgh-Stage-and-Screen-Examiner~y2009m3d5-Shatner-Speaks-Will-there-be-a-Priceline-to-pay-for-such-candor.
Abrams is excited. And why not? The DVD release will bring countless more money into his deep pockets. “I cannot wait for fans of Star Trek to check out the home entertainment release of the film. The behind-the-scenes features on the DVD get a wonderful look at the crazy, hard work and incredible fun that went into making this movie. The cast and crew were truly extraordinary to work with; watching these special features, you'll see why.”
This new Star Trek may not be of paramount importance to everyone, but it is to Paramount. A few weeks before it takes off, they are reaching back and pulling out the old stuff.
Among the bunch: Star Trek: Original Motion Picture Collection (which includes the first six Star Trek films); the Star Trek: The Next Generation Motion Picture Collection (featuring the four Star Trek films starring the Next Generation crew, plus a bonus disc with more than an hour of additional content); Star Trek: The Original Series: Season Two.
Ho hum. The only thing that sounds remotely interesting is that ST:OMPC includes Star Trek: The Captains’ Summit, a 70-minute round-table discussion hosted by Whoopi Goldberg in which William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, Patrick Stewart and Jonathan Frakes share candid moments and intimate details about life on the set.
This news leads to a wars among stars. And big-budget sci-fi flicks.
A week or so after the Start Trek invasion, Lucasfilm Ltd. and Warner Home Video hurl out the four-disc Star Wars: The Clone Wars: The Complete Season One. “Live the adventures again and again, and dig deeper into the first season with a comprehensive look behind-the-scenes of the popular animated series!: the hype promise those willing to shell out the suggested retail price of $44.98 ($59.99 for Blu-ray).. Sure, you get four discs containing all 22 episodes from the groundbreaking first season–including seven extended "director’s cuts"–as well as companion featurettes for each episode and an exclusive 64-page production journal.
Supervising director Dave Filoni gushes, “I’m a longtime Star Wars fan, and the same is true for a lot of the guys working on the show . And as a fan, I know that Lucasfilm can be pretty secretive. They’re famous for it. But we’re all so proud of the work that’s gone into The Clone Wars, and we wanted to share some of our production tricks, and open up the vault and reveal our efforts. You’re going to get unprecedented access, to see the nuts and bolts of our series, from concept to finished animation.”
Created and executive produced by George Lucas, the first-ever TV production from Lucasfilm Animation explores the tumultuous time between Episodes II and III of the live-action saga, expanding the scope of Star Wars beyond anything seen in the feature films. With the fate of the galaxy hanging in the balance, the heroes of the Republic–including the valiant Jedi Knights and their loyal clone troopers–fight bravely to repel the attacks of the evil Separatists and their droid army.
Says Lucas: “The live-action saga was just the beginning. The universe is vast, and there are so many more stories to explore beyond Anakin’s fall and redemption. The scope of the war gives us the perfect vehicle for a weekly series, allowing us to look at how the conflict has affected the farthest reaches of the galaxy, including characters, creatures and races we only glimpsed in the feature films. Animation has allowed us to visualize the worlds and characters of Star Wars in all new ways.”

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