vranir

I like this sequence, but it makes me think that the “Arise” scene at the end of RotS needs to be changed now.

Maybe this footage could be incorporated there with the RotS voiceover. That way, there’s no contradiction but a different context.

Overview

Beginning in the spring of 2020, I’ve made a considerable effort to re-edit each season of the live-action NuTrek series with the goal of producing something a bit more cohesive and similar in tone to the 90s shows that I grew up with. While these edits will certain not satisfy all detractors, they have greatly enhanced my viewing experience and caused me to enjoy rewatching shows that I would otherwise never revisit. The editing process has also helped me to gain a greater appreciation for the details and intentional heart that lies buried in much of the vanilla content. My hope is that these edits allow that good to shine more brightly. After multiple passes, rewatches, and the soliciting of private feedback, I’m happy to make this project a bit more public.

As always, please support CBS/Paramount+ by purchasing hard copies of the vanilla content or paying for a subscription with their service. Fan edits could not exist if the studios didn’t produce the raw material, and we all want them to keep doing that.

These edits will not:

• Remove the socio-political agendas present in the vanilla content
• Make Michael stop being an integral part of each DSC season plotline
• Make Picard a perfect person who has never made mistakes and has no regrets

These edits will:

• Make DSC and PIC somewhat more episodic
• Maintain major events and character arcs to ensure future continuity
• Heavily rearrange and trim scenes in order to reduce plot holes and inconsistencies
• Trim scenes to tighten pacing and improve the flow of each episode
• Moderate melodrama (excessive moodiness, insubordination, and/or supportive compliments)
• Trim select images and lines in order to maintain a PG-like rating (similar to 90s Trek)
• Standardize the length of all NuTrek seasons at 9 episodes ranging from 30-60 minutes in length

I wish that these edits could:

• Include footage that was never recorded to fill in some remaining plot and character gaps
• Include finished versions of some deleted scenes
• Include a host of new VFX shots to change certain ship designs and costume details to increase universe-wide continuity (not within my skillset or budget)

Bottom line: If you hate NuTrek, you still probably won’t like these edits. If you find NuTrek tolerable but wish that it made a little more sense, was a little more family friendly, and wasn’t quite so melodramatic, these edits might significantly improve your viewing experience.

Please note that these edits are not professionally created. All changes have been painstakingly made using Apple’s default Quicktime and iMovie applications. The content has been created using a combination of screen-recorded from a legal source, mkv ripping from official BluRay disks, and incorporation of additional audio from the official soundtracks. The files that I currently am making available contain visual compression issues, especially in darker backgrounds, which may be especially noticeable on higher-definition screens. In the future, as I gain more experience and have access to better hardware, software, and hosting bandwidth, I intend to redo these edits at a higher quality level, using programs like Topaz and DaVinci Resolve to enhance these specific shots, but that is probably at least a year away.

Finally, I would be remiss if I did not publicly thank the following people/organizations for their inspiration, feedback, and/or direct contributions to this ongoing effort:

• DeepHomage (on YouTube)
• Big Screen (on YouTube)
• Wraith (on FanEdit)
• BionicBob (on FanEdit)
• Trekyards and Sam Cockings (on YouTube etc.)
• FanFilmFactor (on Fanfilmfactor.com)
• Jammer’s Reviews (on Jammersreviews.com)
• Nathaniel Booth

Editing Samples

DSC 2x06 - Discovery Jumps to Section 31 Headquarters
(link at https://drive.google.com/file/d/1N8DIRo_b-ftFPlxXkx6aVK1dopYhL7-9/view?usp=sharing)

In the original version, Discovery warped to Section 31 headquarters. In my edit, the spore drive was disassembled following season 1 and they haven’t used it since, but the urgency of the situation causes Pike to order its reactivation. This is the most complex set of scenes that I have put together and involved splicing audio and visuals from three different episodes into a cohesive sequence. This video shows all three vanilla scenes, followed by my final amalgamation.

PIC 1x02 - Admiral Clancy
(link at https://drive.google.com/file/d/1fJdMrv-N5ssHTi_xGsV3kAOrxRFt60yy/view?usp=sharing)

In this infamous scene, Picard asks Starfleet for help in finding Bruce Maddox and is rejected by an angry admiral who “talks like a sailor.” In my edit, the admiral listens as Picard makes a more organized case, then rejects him a more diplomatically but still firmly. This video contains both the almost-vanilla (censored) and edited versions for comparison.

PIC 2x04 - Meeting Guinan
(link at https://drive.google.com/file/d/10hZGm-TcTLUvL8FQjy9AUZ48Fw6LHD_L/view?usp=sharing)

In the original version, Picard beams in, sees the sign for 10 Forward Street, realizes where he is, and enters the bar. Since this will be the first appearance of Guinan in my edit, I wanted to make it more nostalgic, so I added a flashback, much like the one that season 3 uses with Data whistling from “Encounter at Farpoint.” This video shows the vanilla sequence, three flashback approaches that I considered, and what I ultimately used. Additional footage is from the remastered version of TNG; additional music is from the PIC season 2 soundtrack.

Released Edits and Biggest Changes (PM for more information)

DSC season 1

• The Klingon scenes are greatly reduced.
• There is less melodrama and fawning over certain characters.
• There is no Harry Mudd. While I liked him, taking that plotline out greatly streamlined the season.
• A certain character doesn’t get murdered.
• The war is resolved in Discovery’s absence, and Starfleet doesn’t consider using genocide to win.
• Future VFX may swap out some ships for more traditional designs seen in ENT and SNW.

DSC season 2

• The spore drive gets turned off until it’s actually needed mid-season.
• A certain not-murdered character doesn’t get resurrected in a way that makes little sense.
• The threat is from the present, not the future (it only grows to become apocalyptic in the future).
• There are no quasi-Borg fake outs.
• The second Red Angel is only responsible for the signals that follow the events of “Perpetual Infinity.”
• Kelpians do not suddenly know how to fly starships.
• Future VFX may reduce the number of unmanned drones in the final battle to make it less busy.

DSC season 3

• There are no references to the 32nd century and a few are changed to place the season in the 28th.
• There is no Grey rebirth. While I appreciate the intent, and “Forget Me Not” is lovely, I never understood why he is the only host who ever got to come back to life, and he also doesn’t do much.
• The seed-ship adventure is gone in order to streamline the season.
• The Burn is solved by chance proximity, not research that should have been done by others 100 years earlier.
• The ensign is an ensign, not somehow also the XO.
• There are no turbolift roller coasters.
• Future VFX may replace random 23rd century background ships, modify the ensign’s uniform to remain consistent, and use AI vocals to solidify the new 28th century setting.

PIC season 1
(full changelog at https://drive.google.com/file/d/1uHUnvk3iaxKlBtvknul1aqg8VYze0bCO/view?usp=sharing)

• Picard’s illness/mental issues are present throughout the season, not just at the start and end.
• Soji and Narek’s relationship is more of a slow build instead of a quick-start and plateau.
• The cube gets some use.
• There are no tentacles, and instead a there is more Trekian resolution.
• There is no random wrap-up sequence to end the finale.
• Future VFX may heavily reduce the number of ships in the Starfleet and Romulan fleets, add a bit of diversity to those fleets, and restore a couple of battle shots of La Sirena but without holographic duplicates. It may also revisit and refine the de-aging of Data, especially in the first scene.

In-Process Edits

PIC season 2 (initial edit complete - this edit is being revisited to recontextualize it)

• The plot builds at a more even pace, with fewer and shorter interruptions.
• Q is implied to be, or directly is, responsible for more of the coincidental story elements.
• The search for Jurati happens in a single episode to convey more urgency.
• There are no stretches where important characters randomly disappear in the midst of their stories.
• There is no last-minute drama surrounding the launch.
• The FBI side-plot is repurposed.
• Q’s interventions are clearly tied to his TNG appearances with white light and the “Q Flash” sound effect.
• Hints of the First Contact soundtrack are sprinkled throughout to amplify the Borg vibe.
• Future VFX may create a partially de-aged Q to help distinguish his initial tampering with his current presence in the 21st century scenes. It may also enhance the Borgified look of the assimilated soldiers.
  NOTE: This season has been moved back to “In-Process” because it will be getting a major rework to position it after the events of season 3. With this new ordering, Picard will be focused on his childhood in part because of his new identity as a father, these Borg will truly be a new direction following the final defeat of the Borg we knew, and Rios will have rejoined Starfleet in part because they lost so many senior officers during the Frontier Day massacre. My ultimate hope is to use VFX to combine the closing Ten Forward scenes from seasons 2 and 3 into a final sequence that pays homage to all of the major TNG and PIC characters.

DSC season 4 (rough edits through episode 4 of 9)

• There is still no Grey rebirth. This is making the Zora arc a challenge, but I’m not giving up.
• The second half will be very compressed. One of my biggest goals with the season is to improve the flow while trimming roughly half the episodes in the second half. I’m trying to essentially merge every two episodes. We’ll see if that works out.

SNW season 1 (brainstorming - on hold while I see how season 2 expands the myriad season 1 storylines)

• Implement minor tweaks for better cohesion with my edit of DSC season 2.
• Rearrange episodes to spread plot lines across the season (T’Pring, Mbenga’s daughter, Pike’s destiny).
• Tone down the Alien parallels in “All Those Who Wander” while not changing the essential facts.
• Move Una’s arrest to the start of season 2.

Adywan’s version has been my go-to for a few years now, but I like what you’ve done here to build on his work. I’d be interested in seeing this, especially as New Hope is one of my favorite Star Wars films.

It wouldn’t become my go-to version, however, unless it ends up as a larger project that covers the complete trilogy.

While I’m enjoying the show so far, I’d like to see it recut as a single “Star Wars Story” movie, making a type of side-show trilogy with Rogue One and Solo to bridge from the prequels to the original films.

What if the crawl established that the Jedi are there to broker peace between the Gungans and Naboo, then we introduce them in conference w Boss Nas? There’d be no random scene in the woods, and they’d simply take JarJar with them when they leave to meet with the Queen.

I too love the visual of the Gungan city, but I also completely understand it being removed.

Regarding Palpatine, I’d argue that it’s likely not a mystery that he becomes the emperor. When Amidala says that they need his help, most of the audience is going to think “Oh no.”

That said, it doesn’t have to be immediately obvious that he’s truly behind everything going on. If set up the right way, the audience can piece the truth together at the same time as the characters. To me, that’d be a more interesting journey - thinking that we’re rooting for the bad guy because he’s helping against the other bad guys but then realizing that he was behind everything all along.

I like it, especially the thread about the ambassadors and some of the new JarJar lines, but the following still stand out to me as (unavoidable?) issues:

• The number of quick scenes make it feel a bit choppy.

• How did the Jedi get to the planet? Why are they in the woods?

• Do we have to tip our hand w Sideous so early? I’d ideally like to see Dooku instructing them, setting up the overall Separatist threat, then reveal that he’s secretly taking orders from elsewhere in Ep2.

This may have been suggested before, but what if the Sideous hologram was a Dooku hologram?

I’m not sure how many times I’m going to watch this, so I’ll wait for the polished version. That said, I’m really looking forward to this edit! Thank you for putting it together.

As someone else who couldn’t make it through vanilla Clone Wars, I highly recommend these edits as a way to enjoy what the series offers.

He drops his cover in order to kidnap Satine, aided by the distraction of the spider droid and the coming Separatist boarding droids. It’s not clear what he had planned beyond that, but it doesn’t seem slipshod to me.

A lot of the Plo’koon and clone dialogue was also pretty redundant - same topics and sentiments being repeated, not much dimension being added each time. I personally prefer more cuts if it means more concentrated substance.

I like the Malevolence as it is in the current edit. I think the biggest problem was the constant buildup of it as a mystery ship. You’ve already reduced that angle in 2.0.

I agree that the less Ventress talks in New Padawan the better. It bugs me to no end how often these characters know one another by name when we’ve never seen them interact or have only fought each other in fighters etc.

I think focusing on that invasion stuff would be the best short-term gift to the community.

I’ve always been fine with the Mandalorian seasons as they were released, but I’m looking forward to using this edit as a special movie in the middle of the series.

Of course I’d like ENT too, but pace yourself, good man!

Thank you for introducing me to Cad Bane ahead of his appearance in Boba Fett. It’s much more fun when one can recognize the cameos.

I like it and what it does for his character (every little bit helps). The last line is very unclear though.

I actually don’t mind the end of season 4 as the finale. It leaves things open, but it also wraps up enough. More satisfying than SGU I think, probably comparable to the SGA finale.

For SG1, which premiere version are you planning to use? I personally prefer the final rerelease where they made some cuts (no nudity or awkward Carter line about genitalia) and replaced the giant glider with a shuttle.

While I agree that Bane’s infiltration goes nowhere, it is what lets them know he’s still alive and presumably has the holocron. Otherwise, they’d reasonably conclude he died in the explosion.

Here’s my detailed feedback and custom follow-up edit list for the final three episodes of Season 1. As always, most is subjective, but feel free to take anything that you want.

Please do note the text issue for “Children of Night” and the two text issues for “The Future of the Force.”

CHILDREN OF NIGHT

• The opening text uses the word “Whilst.” Though technically correct, it is the only instance in any of these crawls where you use an archaic term like this. I suggest replacing it with “While” for consistency.

• Made a slight trim to ObiWan and Anakin’s conversation during the initial fighter battle, just trimming mildly corny banter.

• Trimmed the most over-the-top “Master!” during the Ventress flashbacks, since it just took me out of what was otherwise a pretty serious sequence.

• Trimmed the appearance of Ventress right after the witch contacts Dooku. This leaves the plan a little more vague for a few more minutes, in order to build intrigue.

• Trimmed a redundant “Yesss” from Ventress.

• Shortened Ventress’ speeder ride to only include her arrival in the male village. I just got tired of seeing people go past those fleshy bag trees.

• Trimmed a redundant line about letting the challenge begin. Now, only Ventress says it, as a VoiceOver.

• Trimmed Savage’s line about his brother being weak. Now, he simply kills him, without dialogue or clear emotion. He is a machine.

• Trimmed Ventress’ advice to Savage so that it is now simply to never sympathize with the enemy.

• Cut all of Dooku’s analysis of the situation on Deveron. Instead, he says that he needs proof of Savage’s skills and is sending him there.

• Cut the scene where word of the massacre arrives at the Jedi temple. A lot of what was said was redundant and a tiny bit corny. Instead, we now transition immediately from Dooku calling Savage his apprentice to their lightsaber training.

A STRIKE AT THE HEART

• Made small times during Bane’s planning scene so that the story moves ahead faster and more of his cards are held close to his chest. The plot will become clear enough as the episode progresses. I also minimized the conversation about the safe, since that’s not really an issue in the edit.

• Significantly trimmed Anakin and Padme’s dialogue to be less cringy. Yes, it matches their tone in “Attack of the Clones,” but I think it works better and maintains its heart if toned down.

• Minimized the dialogue between Bane and the fish-like hacker, mainly because I didn’t care for the hacker and wanted him to simply do his job.

• Trimmed Bane’s redundant line about the senators giving him their com links, both before and after the Palpatine scene.

• Trimmed Bane’s recognition of Anakin (in two instances). Now, Anakin is considered simply a random Jedi who got in Bane’s way.

• Made a number of small trims during Anakin’s fight with the IG unit, tightening the flow of the sequence.

• Trimmed Anakin’s vocal reaction to being shot at by Bane’s team.

• Trimmed some of Bane’s dialogue immediately after breaking into the temple. Again, his character doesn’t seem like someone who would tell his colleagues his plans beyond exactly what they need to know in the moment.

• Trimmed much of Anakin and ObiWan’s conversation about the security breach. Because this is a compound episode, the conversation completely ignored what just happened in the senate building, which should be at the forefront of Anakin’s mind. By cutting the dialogue right after Anakin says that something’s happening, we can infer that they went on to talk about the entire situation.

• Trimmed the dialogue by ObiWan and Yoda about someone being disguised as a Jedi and Ahsoka needing to check on the librarian. It all seemed like intelligence that was gathered in a cut scene. Now, Yoda just tells Ahsoka to be vigilant because he senses deception, and she figures the rest out on her own.

• Trimmed Ahsoka trash talking Bane after his arrest.

THE FUTURE OF THE FORCE

• There is a typo in the opening text: “Artefact” > “Artifact”

• The opening paragraph also reads very awkwardly. I suggest “is reeling after the senate hostage crisis and a simultaneous heist from the Jedi temple.”

• Cut several establishing shots and Bane scenes during the opening battle, in order to move into the central plot faster.

• Trimmed some of Yalaren’s exasperation with Anakin. They’ve been together all season, and he should be used to Anakin by now.

• Trimmed Rex’s line about waiting for orders while Anakin is trying to figure out a plan to board the ship. It just felt awkward to me.

• Agan, cut some of Bane’s monologuing to the droids. He doesn’t seem like someone who would readily share what he is doing with the people around him.

• Cut Anakin repeating that Ahsoka should wait for him as she chases Bane.

• Cut some of the short scenes aboard the Venator and some of the exterior shots of the Separatist ship, in order to keep the focus on Anakin, Ahsoka, and Bane.

• Cut Ahsoka calling Bane “Slimo,” both times. The second cut (in the Gungan city) was not as smooth as I’d like, but I really didn’t like that line.

• Cut Anakin almost staying behind on the ship to chase Bane some more. Now, he and Ahsoka run straight to the launch bay to evacuate.

• Cut Anakin’s odd “hmm” after Ahsoka tells him that the holocron was destroyed.

• Cut the final scene of Ahsoka at the temple. I know that you really like having it there, but to me it still feels a bit random and my personal preference is to end the episode on Anakin and Palpatine.

Thank you, as always for your extensive work on this project. I can’t wait to get into Season 2!

Oh, one quick issue I noticed - there appears to be an extra vertical text line poking through during the opening crawl, kind of like an echo of the text behind it and slightly to the right. I’m not sure if it’s a lower layer showing up or what, but it does catch the eye in an otherwise pretty flawless production.

I was hoping everything was okay for you.

I’m definitely interested in both of your new projects - EFC is uneven but wildly underappreciated and SG1 is just classic. That said, I’m most interested in getting a decent number of episodes released for whatever projects you choose to focus on. I’d rather have a full season of 1 or 2 shows than 4 episodes each of 6 different shows. If splitting your efforts more broadly prevents burnout though, maybe that is the best way to go.

Since he doesn’t remember getting out of the sarlac in his armor, maybe don’t show that part? You could cut away after he uses his flame thrower inside the sarlac or start with him disoriented, being found by the Sand People.