As planned, my old friend Robert Meyer Burnett and I – joined by our significant others – saw Star Wars: The Last Jedi last night here in fiery SoCal. In Dolby Cinema no less, which is a helluva great way to see a film, let me tell you. We had absolutely perfect reclining seats, bright and vibrant laser projection, and Atmos sound to shake our backsides. And a good time was had by all, as you can see by the pictures.

But looking around on social media today, I’m struck by this thought: I kinda miss the days when people could just watch a movie. Seems to me, we used to know how to do that without all the handwringing and chest-puffery and whatnot. This is Star Wars, after all… not the Allied plans for the invasion of Normandy. [Read on here…]

“With Star Trek: The Next Generation, Gene Roddenberry proved that you can do Star Trek without Kirk and Spock and McCoy, that the dream of humanity reaching for the stars could be shared in many different ways, with many different characters, telling many different stories. And I think that all of us who love Star Trek are so much richer for it.” — Michael Okuda, co-author of The Star Trek Encyclopedia

The Digital Bits and History, Legacy & Showmanship are pleased to present this retrospective commemorating the 30th anniversary of Star Trek: The Next Generation, the first in a string of live-action television follow-ups to Gene Roddenberry’s legendary 1960s science fiction series. [Read on here...]

All right, we’ve got a couple things for you today...

First, as promised, we’re very proud today to present Michael Coate’s latest History, Legacy & Showmanship column here at The Digital Bits, entitled Still Boldly Going: Celebrating “Star Trek” on its 50th Anniversary! In this lengthy piece, Michael moderates a great roundtable discussion on the history of the beloved franchise with Trek luminaries Mark A. Altman, Jeff Bond, Robert Meyer Burnett, Marc Cushman, Daren R. Dochterman, Dorothy Fontana, Gary Gerani, David Gerrold, Edward Gross, Bill Kraft, Herbie J. Pilato, and Melinda Snodgrass. It’s a terrific discussion and a rare opportunity to hear from so many leading Treksperts all in one place. We hope you enjoy it and, as always… “Live Long and Prosper!”  [Read on here…]

“Star Trek has left a legacy of hope and optimism that humankind has a future. If we cultivate the potential of Infinite Diversity in Infinite Combinations so that we embrace a universe brimming with the riches of life in all of its forms, then humankind can evolve into something finer and nobler. I think that is what Gene Roddenberry meant when he said that the human adventure is just beginning.” — Bill Kraft, author of Maybe We Need a Letter from God: The Star Trek Stamp

The Digital Bits and History, Legacy & Showmanship are pleased to present this retrospective article commemorating the golden anniversary of Star Trek, Gene Roddenberry’s legendary science-fiction television series depicting the voyages of Captain James T. Kirk and his crew of the starship Enterprise.

The memorable television series premiered 50 years ago this week (September 6th, 1966, on CTV in Canada, and September 8th, 1966, on NBC in the United States), and similar to our other Star Trek roundtables (here and here) and classic television retrospectives (here, here, here, and here), The Bits for the occasion has assembled a Q&A with an esteemed group of Treksperts, historians and Star Trek writers who examine the best episodes and offer commentary on the show’s enduring appeal, influence and legacy.  [Read on here...]

[Editor’s Note: Be sure to like TheDigitalBits.com page on Facebook for breaking news, site updates on the go, discussion with our staff and other readers, giveaways and more!]

All right, we’ve got a busy week ahead of us! First of all, this is Comic-Con week down in San Diego, so we expect a lot of good genre titles to be announced or promoted on Blu-ray this week at the convention.

Speaking of which, Terminator Genisys is now officially available for pre-order on Blu-ray 3D Combo and Blu-ray on Amazon.com (sale price $31.99 and $22.99). No street date is official yet, but we expect one to be announced in the weeks ahead.  [Read on here…]

[Editor’s Note: Be sure to like TheDigitalBits.com page on Facebook for breaking news, site updates on the go, discussion with our staff and other readers, giveaways and more!]

We’ve got a bit of good Blu-ray release news for you today, and a new Bits staffer too! First the news…

Anchor Bay Entertainment has set The Walking Dead: The Complete Fifth Season for Blu-ray and DVD release on 8/25 (SRP $79.99 and $69.98). That’s the regular edition and, as always, there will be another McFarlane Toys Limited Edition too that will be announced shortly.  [Read on here…]

[Editor’s Note: Be sure to like TheDigitalBits.com page on Facebook for breaking news, site updates on the go, discussion with our staff and other readers, giveaways and more!]

We’re closing out the week today with official details about our Digital Bits panel down at San Diego Comic-Con! As many of you know, the Con announced the Thursday (7/9) program schedule yesterday, and we’re on it. Here’s our official panel description:

1:00-2:00 (Thursday, 7/9/15) Digital Bits Blu-ray Sneak Peek: Star Trek: Axanar

Join Digital Bits editor Bill Hunt, veteran Blu-ray/DVD producers Charles de Lauzirika (Twin Peaks, The Martian), Cliff Stephenson (Hannibal, The Hunger Games), and Robert Meyer Burnett (Free Enterprise, Star Trek: The Next Generation Blu-rays), and executive producer Alec Peters (Star Trek: Axanar), as they discuss major upcoming Blu-ray titles and 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray developments, and explain the groundbreaking process of creating studio-quality independent Blu-ray releases, including the new Prelude to Axanar: Special Edition. We’ll have audience Q & A and lots of great giveaways – don’t miss it! Room 23ABC   [Read on here…]

[Editor’s Note: Be sure to like TheDigitalBits.com page on Facebook for breaking news, site updates on the go, discussion with our staff and other readers, giveaways and more!]

We’re starting things off today with a new Blu-ray review from our own Tim Salmons, this time featuring Fox’s new Kingsman: The Secret Service, which just arrived in stores last week. Turns out, it’s a pretty fun little film that’s well worth your time.

We’ve also got a bunch of new title announcements to talk about…  [Read on here…]

“Star Trek: The Motion Picture provided a unique experience, leaving some audience members, myself included, elated at the prospect, “The Human Adventure Is Just Beginning.” — Robert Meyer Burnett

“I do feel very lucky to have been a kid while this amazing renaissance of fantasy filmmaking was going on.… Star Wars, then Close Encounters, then Superman, then Alien, then Star Trek: The Motion Picture… at least in terms of going to the movies, those are two-and-a-half years I wish I could experience again. It was a truly magical time.” — Mike Matessino  [Read more here...]

Here at The Bits today, Tim Salmons has turned in a review of Disney’s Frozen on Blu-ray. Do check that out.

Also, today happens to be the 15th anniversary of a little film called Free Enterprise, starring William Shatner, directed by our old friend Robert Meyer Burnett, and produced by Mark A. Altman (who also writes the occasional MOS DEF column here at The Bits). So our own Michael Coate has taken the opportunity to do a new interview with Rob and Mark for his latest History, Legacy & Showmanship column. You’ll find that here, so we hope you enjoy it! [Read on here...]