The Center Seat: 55 Years of Star Trek: DVD Review

In the history of television you would be hard pressed to find a a franchise that has had the longevity of Star Trek. Star Trek debuted on NBC from September 8, 1966 but when the three seasons ended no one would ever have thought that there would be many additional series, movies and reboots to follow.

In 2021 for the 55th year anniversary of the original release a documentary series was produced featuring cast and writers interviews. The series was entitled The Center Seat. Now for the first time this documentary series is available on DVD thanks to Mill Creek Entertainment.

This 11 episode documentary series takes viewers on a definitive journey through the TV series, animated shows, movies and more. The interviews with the cast, crew, and experts – including one of Leonard Nimoy’s final in-depth Trek interviews. The series was created in partnership with The History Channel and the producers of the Netflix series The Movies That Made Us and The Toys That Made Us. Now while this series doesn't break any new ground, it is still a very entertaining and for what it was.

This series consists of 11 almost hour long episodes. Cheryl Gates McFadden Dr. Beverly Crusher in the Star Trek: The Next Generation expertly narrates this documentary series. She does a tremendous job. In my humble opinion if you are going to have someone narrate this documentary it needs to be a Star Trek member. And if it couldn't be William Shatner or Patrick Stewart Gates McFadden is a great choice.

Disc One: Lucy Love Trek / Saturday Morning Pinks / Trekking through the 70s - Phase II and The Motion Pictures / Trek Goes to the Movies

Disc Two: Whales, Gods, and Pepto Bismol / Queue for Q / Dancing with Syndication in the Pale Moon Light / Voyage(r) to the Delta Quadrant

Disc Three: It's Been a Long Time / Starships A-Z / The Stars Above

Disc Four: Bonus Material - Leonard Nimoy Interview (uncut) / Nichelle Nichols Interview (uncut) / Kirstie Alley Interview (uncut)

These 11 episodes have been transferred to 4 DVD. The episodes are presented in anamorphic widescreen 1.78:1 aspect ratio. The audio is a Dolby Digital audio. There is also the option for English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing. These episode because they were produced in 2021 look sharp clean and the transfers are crisp.

As amazing as it is to have the 11 episodes of this documentary series that would be enough to make this DVD a must buy. But Mill Creek Entertainment added an additional 4th bonus disc that includes the uncut interviews. including the final interview of Leonard Nimoy before his untimely passing. This is a tremendous bonus!

Now just as a special note, as amazing as this series is. It is very good to realize that this series is not for the entire family. There is a lot of talk of drugs, adult themes and language. So parental guidance is defiantly suggested.

As a Trekker not Trekkie! A Star Trek fan I truly enjoyed this series. It tracks from the original series to Enterprise. the Nest Generation to Voyager. Deep Space Nine to Picard. Talk about in depth! Also I love hearing stories from these actors and actresses that lived the lives 'in the stars'. It was such an entertaining documentary series, I will defiantly be re-watching it sometime down the line.

So if you are a Trekker The Center Seat: 55 years of Star Trek is one amazing release that you need in your collection. Head over to Amazon or Deep Discount and order your copy.