The revamped version of RoboCop won't be known as the first Blu-ray title to undergo some serious retooling due to widespread outcries over quality (or should we say, the lack thereof), but the film will finally be headed to BD in just under a month. Reportedly, the remastered, unrated edition will land on October 9th for around $39 MSRP, but will strangely not include any bonus features. Nevertheless, the content has apparently been "authored in MPEG2" and will be delivered on a 25GB disc with DTS HD and French / Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital audio tracks. Here's to hoping this version makes it past reviewers, eh?

[Via HighDefDigest]

FUNimation is kicking off its support of the Blu-ray format by releasing one of its biggest anime franchises, Dragon Ball Z this winter. Dragon Ball Z Broly: The Legendary Super Saiyan and Broly: Second Coming are due on store shelves November 13th, fully remastered in 1080p directly from the original Japanese 35mm film, along with a new 5.1 surround sound mix and HD special features. No word on pricing yet, but FUNimation expects to follow up by releasing other popular catalog titles in high definition as well.

CBS and Paramount have lived up to their promise of more details on the Star Trek:The Original Series Season 1 HD DVD/DVD combo boxed set at Comic-Con, announcing the 10 disc set will debut November 20th. As seen in the HD broadcasts, the visuals have been updated, along with remastered audio with a Dolby TrueHD soundtrack. HD DVD exclusive special features include picture-in-picture video commentaries, an interactive tour of Enterprise, a documentary on the remastering process, rare home videos and additional information on seven of the episodes. All that Star Trek goodness that comes packaged in a "futuristic, clear case" with an SRP of $217.99, and still no word of a Blu-ray release.


[Thanks, Cameron]

We can imagine quite a few Fifth Element faithful were ready and willing to hand over MSRP in order to take home one of the first Blu-ray copies of the quasi-cult classic, but the overwhelming response from those hoping for the best was nothing short of unpropitious. Thankfully for those still hanging on for some type of retribution, Sony announced that it would be exchanging the original copies out with fresh, remastered iterations just as soon as the cleaner, smoother, and more BD-worthy version went gold. Of course, it'd be awfully good to know whether to waste your time with such a process if the new flavor was just a minor upgrade, and we're quite relieved to hear from HighDefDigest that Sony nailed it this time around. From the overall image quality improvement to the unexpected addition of a Dolby TrueHD audio track, the differences were more than noticeable to the discerning eye, so if you managed to save yourself from snagging the subpar edition the first go 'round, it looks like the updated cut may actually be worth your while.

We know, the wait is most definitely not enjoyable, but here's a few more details to hopefully tide you over until Star Trek: The Original Series is finally launched on HD DVD. Reportedly, the disc will feature "never-before-seen footage exclusive to the next-gen edition," including behind the scenes 8-millimeter footage taken during the original production of the show. Additionally, it's being hinted that the studio is planning to give Comic-Con attendees a "first peek" at the long-awaited release on July 26 at a special event, and while there's still no word on this title making its way to Blu-ray, we'd be fairly surprised if it didn't make the jump in due time.

Considering what a mythical reference title The Fifth Element was when released on DVD (and Superbit, and Laserdisc!), it was surprising to see it reviewed as just another softly-focused, dirty, and scratchy launch title for Blu-ray. Many reviewers and fans complained about the lackluster MPEG-2 encoding, and the general poor quality of the transfer. Sony has announced details and contact information about a plan to exchange the first -- now discontinued -- batch of Blu-ray Discs for the remastered edition, due to be released in July. The new version is a new 1080p transfer from a different master, and includes Dolby TrueHD as well as uncompressed PCM audio. It will also be encoded in MPEG-4 AVC, which will hopefully show off the improved compression of the newer codec. Quite an olive branch from Sony for those who have already picked it up, and a show of good steps toward making Blu-ray titles the best they can be. Now the question remains, how many of the other initial MPEG-2 Blu-ray titles will be remastered like this?