(yeah like we could forget!)
Are you a Trekkie, like me? If you are, you may have been tuning in to the Sci-Fi Channel everyday to watch their broadcast of the supposed "uncut" and supposed "restored" version of the classic Star Trek series from the late 60s. Now, at first glance, you'd think "uncut" meant "without commercials". Also you'd think "restored" meant that they had cleaned up the original print or added extra footage. Both assumptions would be wrong.
What "uncut" actually means is that all of the original footage is aired with an abundance of cuts for copious commercials. All told, in each 90 minute episode there are 30 minutes of commercials! That's compared to the standard 24 minutes of ads in a any other 90 minute broadcast. "Uncut"? Hardly.
Then the "restored" part seems to also mean that all of the original footage is aired. Of course, this is no huge deal, after all, if you want to see the classic Star Trek episodes the way the Sci-Fi channel is airing them, all you have to do is go to your local video store and rent the episodes. The only real benefit to watching the episodes on the Sci-Fi Channel are the short interview/host segments. But between the 30 minutes of TV ads and the 50 minutes of classic Trek episode, that leaves only ten minutes to hear supposed "Trek Insights".
Of course, three to four minutes of that is taken up with promos for the next few episodes and that episode's credits, you end up with 6 minutes of interview/host segments. And what's worse is that they've started repeating comments from the actors. So the next time you think the Sci-Fi Channel is cool, just remember ALL those times you had to listen to how proud Leonard Nimoy is to be a part of this "historic" rebroadcast and how Sulu was a "consummate professional" according to George Takei. I know there's no such thing as "truth in advertising" but this is ridiculous!
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