Stardate: 3478.2
Synopsis: On an exploratory mission, several crew members are killed by a mysterious gas cloud. Kirk recognizes it as the same cloud that decimated the crew of the USS Faragut 11 years earlier, of which he was a member. His guilt and intuition drive Kirk to obsessively chase it after it departs into space, and once back "home" to the site of where the Faragut had been destroyed, Kirk and Ensign Garavik, son of the Faragut's captain, bait the cloud into an anti-matter explosion, killing it, and leaving the Enterprise free to deliver medical supplies to another ship that's been waiting for them this whole time.
Review: Only this series can make so much of a gas cloud, and that's why we love it. It camouflages itself by changing its molecular structure; like turning "gold into lead" or "wood into ivory"; it is described as "something that can't possibly exist, but does". Yummmm.
If you read into the title of the episode, "Obsession", you would think the core of the story lies with Kirk's Moby Dick-like obsession with revenge against the cloud (perhaps laying the groundwork for Captain Picard's obsession with the Borg a bit later down the road, but I digress), and for a while that's how it plays out. But this episode grows stronger than that. The whole dynamic with Ensign Garavik assuming the guilt-laden role of the younger Kirk adds a layer of complexity, and indeed the central importance of the Faragut's demise 11 years earlier with its ill-fated Captain Garavik as well as a young Lieutenant Kirk ties everything together in what's really a psychological examination of our main players. Your brain keeps returning to this.
And that's not even the best part. Kirk becomes reflective, wondering aloud if his actions are based on intuition or just irrational. This themed conflict is nothing new to the series, but what's fresh here is that it's Kirk who is the centerpiece of the debate, in contrast to how it's usually Spock. And he proves to be a good vehicle for it.
This would definitely get a 4-star review if it weren't for the gas cloud being, well, a gas cloud.
Review: 3 stars
Episode 42: The Deadly Years
Stardate: 3478.2
Synopsis: The Enterprise crew beams down to the colony on Gamma Hydra 4 to find that, surprise, all of the inhabitants are prematurely old and dying. Naturally, once back on board the ship, all of the crew members who had beamed down to the planet are aging prematurely now too. That's basically the entire story. Oh yeah, an antidote is found and everyone returns to normal.
Review: It's somewhat amazing they managed to take this plot and develop a full hour's worth of TV for it. Sure, they added a little wrinkle of Spock and Commodore Stocker removing Kirk from command by holding a long, drawn-out competency hearing, and there was a totally worthless side trip involving Jan and the love affair she and Kirk apparently had several years ago, but these went nowhere; as did the pointless "battle" with the Romulans at the end. And radiation in a comet's tail is not the most intellectually stimulating of culprits.
My 7-year-old niece could have predicted the outcome here and identified early on how Chekhov being the only crew member who beamed down to the planet not being affected by the rapid aging sickness was the key. The only real insight offered was how the writers apparently associate little else with being old than being cranky. Which is how I feel right now after viewing this thing. ROARRRR!!!
Review: 2 stars
Synopsis: The Enterprise crew beams down to the colony on Gamma Hydra 4 to find that, surprise, all of the inhabitants are prematurely old and dying. Naturally, once back on board the ship, all of the crew members who had beamed down to the planet are aging prematurely now too. That's basically the entire story. Oh yeah, an antidote is found and everyone returns to normal.
Review: It's somewhat amazing they managed to take this plot and develop a full hour's worth of TV for it. Sure, they added a little wrinkle of Spock and Commodore Stocker removing Kirk from command by holding a long, drawn-out competency hearing, and there was a totally worthless side trip involving Jan and the love affair she and Kirk apparently had several years ago, but these went nowhere; as did the pointless "battle" with the Romulans at the end. And radiation in a comet's tail is not the most intellectually stimulating of culprits.
My 7-year-old niece could have predicted the outcome here and identified early on how Chekhov being the only crew member who beamed down to the planet not being affected by the rapid aging sickness was the key. The only real insight offered was how the writers apparently associate little else with being old than being cranky. Which is how I feel right now after viewing this thing. ROARRRR!!!
Review: 2 stars
Episode 41: Friday's Child
Stardate: 3497.2
Synopsis: Kirk, Spock, and McCoy beam down to Cappella 4 in order to negotiate a new mining treaty. The Cappellans are a violent race, and when a Klingon emerges from among them, an Enterprise crewman is immediately killed. Soon, a coup d'etat takes place where Ma'ob (who is pro-Klingon) takes over the 10 tribes from Ak'ahar (pro-Federation), putting Kirk et al on the run. As a chase ensues through the Los Angeles, I mean Cappellan, desert, Ak'ahar's wife gives birth to a child she doesn't want and names McCoy the new father, all while Kirk and Spock fend off the Cappellans with homemade bows and arrows until, finally, Scottie arrives to save the day.
Review: You can't make this stuff up. The Cappellans are not exactly the most complex alien race we've encountered, and their hyper-colorful wardrobe and super-choppy way of speaking ("I must consider the words I have heard") serve no purpose other than to distract.
That said, there are some positive elements here. The Klingon acts as the wild card protagonist to an otherwise nondescript plotline. He keeps it interesting. McCoy features prominently as he first slaps a pregnant woman and later quips, "I'm a doctor, not an escalator". Also, the Enterprise being diverted by a fictional Klingon-produced distress signal as well as the chase sequence through the desert, coupled with Ak'ahar's wife giving birth in a cave, all make for some decent fodder. Except using the communicators' sound waves to cause a rock slide still makes my scientific brain cringe (imagine that happening with cell phones; come on.) and to explain that, just before a space battle, the Klingon ship simply turned away because it "didn't have the stomach for a fight" is pretty weak.
Overall, not bad, but not great. Put it this way... through much of the episode I had to ask myself what was even happening in the story.
Review: 3 stars
Synopsis: Kirk, Spock, and McCoy beam down to Cappella 4 in order to negotiate a new mining treaty. The Cappellans are a violent race, and when a Klingon emerges from among them, an Enterprise crewman is immediately killed. Soon, a coup d'etat takes place where Ma'ob (who is pro-Klingon) takes over the 10 tribes from Ak'ahar (pro-Federation), putting Kirk et al on the run. As a chase ensues through the Los Angeles, I mean Cappellan, desert, Ak'ahar's wife gives birth to a child she doesn't want and names McCoy the new father, all while Kirk and Spock fend off the Cappellans with homemade bows and arrows until, finally, Scottie arrives to save the day.
Review: You can't make this stuff up. The Cappellans are not exactly the most complex alien race we've encountered, and their hyper-colorful wardrobe and super-choppy way of speaking ("I must consider the words I have heard") serve no purpose other than to distract.
That said, there are some positive elements here. The Klingon acts as the wild card protagonist to an otherwise nondescript plotline. He keeps it interesting. McCoy features prominently as he first slaps a pregnant woman and later quips, "I'm a doctor, not an escalator". Also, the Enterprise being diverted by a fictional Klingon-produced distress signal as well as the chase sequence through the desert, coupled with Ak'ahar's wife giving birth in a cave, all make for some decent fodder. Except using the communicators' sound waves to cause a rock slide still makes my scientific brain cringe (imagine that happening with cell phones; come on.) and to explain that, just before a space battle, the Klingon ship simply turned away because it "didn't have the stomach for a fight" is pretty weak.
Overall, not bad, but not great. Put it this way... through much of the episode I had to ask myself what was even happening in the story.
Review: 3 stars
Episode 40: Journey to Babel
Stardate: 3842.3
Synopsis: The Enterprise is shuttling dozens of ambassadors to an interplanetary conference where they will decide whether to admit Coridan into the Federation. One of these ambassadors is actually Spock's father, Sarek, ad it's clear that they don't get along. While the politics play out, an alien ship appears to be following the Enterprise, then a Teleric ambassador is murdered, and then Kirk himself is attacked and stabbed(!) totally out of the blue by an Andurian. Meanwhile, Sarek has a heart attack, leading Spock to have to choose between saving his father's life with a blood transfusion or saving the ship from the alien threat. In the end, we learn it was the Orions - not the Andurians - who are behind everything, as they sought the plant the seeds of mistrust among the delegates in order for interplanetary war to break out where they could be the profiteers. Typical!
Review: Strong material here, and lots of fun. The interplay between Spock and Sarek and Spock's mother lends a personal touch to the galactic politics. It's revealed that Spock played with a "fat teddy bear" as a child and at one point he deadpans, "I will need more data for my instrument." How dirty!
The heart of the story lies in how the Spock-needing-to-save-Sarek's-life runs parallel to the murder-mystery plot among the diplomats. Accusations fly and stubbornness persists in both, yet on the one hand, Spock is attempting to act selflessly in choosing the ship's safety and his duty over that of the life of his father, whereas on the other hand, the Orions (and before them the Telerics) were acting selfishly in pursuit of only their own interests. I suppose the moral is which is ultimately the more beneficial path.
This episode really has it all: heart attacks, blood transfusions, father-son relationship drama, an exploration of Vulcan eccentricities, hostile alien ships, fistfights, stabbings, the ominous threat of war. And it handles it well (other than the we-needed-5-more-minutes-to-better-explain ending where it's just obvious to everyone that the Orions were the culprit and their motives were very clear). But with so much going on, McCoy shushing everybody in the final scene seems appropriate.
Review: 4 stars
Synopsis: The Enterprise is shuttling dozens of ambassadors to an interplanetary conference where they will decide whether to admit Coridan into the Federation. One of these ambassadors is actually Spock's father, Sarek, ad it's clear that they don't get along. While the politics play out, an alien ship appears to be following the Enterprise, then a Teleric ambassador is murdered, and then Kirk himself is attacked and stabbed(!) totally out of the blue by an Andurian. Meanwhile, Sarek has a heart attack, leading Spock to have to choose between saving his father's life with a blood transfusion or saving the ship from the alien threat. In the end, we learn it was the Orions - not the Andurians - who are behind everything, as they sought the plant the seeds of mistrust among the delegates in order for interplanetary war to break out where they could be the profiteers. Typical!
Review: Strong material here, and lots of fun. The interplay between Spock and Sarek and Spock's mother lends a personal touch to the galactic politics. It's revealed that Spock played with a "fat teddy bear" as a child and at one point he deadpans, "I will need more data for my instrument." How dirty!
The heart of the story lies in how the Spock-needing-to-save-Sarek's-life runs parallel to the murder-mystery plot among the diplomats. Accusations fly and stubbornness persists in both, yet on the one hand, Spock is attempting to act selflessly in choosing the ship's safety and his duty over that of the life of his father, whereas on the other hand, the Orions (and before them the Telerics) were acting selfishly in pursuit of only their own interests. I suppose the moral is which is ultimately the more beneficial path.
This episode really has it all: heart attacks, blood transfusions, father-son relationship drama, an exploration of Vulcan eccentricities, hostile alien ships, fistfights, stabbings, the ominous threat of war. And it handles it well (other than the we-needed-5-more-minutes-to-better-explain ending where it's just obvious to everyone that the Orions were the culprit and their motives were very clear). But with so much going on, McCoy shushing everybody in the final scene seems appropriate.
Review: 4 stars
Episode 39: Metamorphosis
Stardate: 3219.8
Synopsis: While transporting a Starfleet commissioner in order to end a war, the Galileo shuttlecraft is taken into the tractor beam of a strange ion field. Kirk, Spock, McCoy, and the commissioner are placed on a planet where they're met by a man marooned there 150 years ago. It is the famous Zephram Cochrane who invented space warp, and from the movie, First Contact. The ion field has kept Cochrane young and brought the others to keep him company. We soon discover the reason is that the ion field is actually a female ion field and loves him. Needing to escape soon before the commissioner dies of a rare disease, Kirk convinces the ion field that captivity would kill Cochrane's spirit, if not, his body, thus enticing it to take on human form through the Commissioner's body. Cochrane stays with her on the planet when the others leave, ending the galactic love story walking off towards a purple-sky horizon.
Review: Maybe it's just that the previous few episodes were so bad that this one seemed so solid. The manufactured love story between The Man (Cochrane) and The Companion (the ion field) is perversely weird, yet somehow believable. The plot's best turn is when Kirk wonders aloud, "How do you fight a thing like that?" and McCoy responds that maybe fighting it is the wrong way to perceive the problem - "more carrot, less stick".
This episode really gets an unintended boost from the presence of Zephram Cochrane who was, of course, featured in perhaps the best Star Trek movie ever after The Wrath of Khan, giving it some meaningfulness in the larger Trek mythology. Somehow that just makes it seem important.
The story is oddly compelling and manages to overcome the ridiculousness of a man falling in love with a gas cloud the way only Star Trek can. The effusive cheesiness at the end is forgivable, but we could do without the seemingly obligatory speech on humans needing obstacles to overcome.
Review: 4 stars
Synopsis: While transporting a Starfleet commissioner in order to end a war, the Galileo shuttlecraft is taken into the tractor beam of a strange ion field. Kirk, Spock, McCoy, and the commissioner are placed on a planet where they're met by a man marooned there 150 years ago. It is the famous Zephram Cochrane who invented space warp, and from the movie, First Contact. The ion field has kept Cochrane young and brought the others to keep him company. We soon discover the reason is that the ion field is actually a female ion field and loves him. Needing to escape soon before the commissioner dies of a rare disease, Kirk convinces the ion field that captivity would kill Cochrane's spirit, if not, his body, thus enticing it to take on human form through the Commissioner's body. Cochrane stays with her on the planet when the others leave, ending the galactic love story walking off towards a purple-sky horizon.
Review: Maybe it's just that the previous few episodes were so bad that this one seemed so solid. The manufactured love story between The Man (Cochrane) and The Companion (the ion field) is perversely weird, yet somehow believable. The plot's best turn is when Kirk wonders aloud, "How do you fight a thing like that?" and McCoy responds that maybe fighting it is the wrong way to perceive the problem - "more carrot, less stick".
This episode really gets an unintended boost from the presence of Zephram Cochrane who was, of course, featured in perhaps the best Star Trek movie ever after The Wrath of Khan, giving it some meaningfulness in the larger Trek mythology. Somehow that just makes it seem important.
The story is oddly compelling and manages to overcome the ridiculousness of a man falling in love with a gas cloud the way only Star Trek can. The effusive cheesiness at the end is forgivable, but we could do without the seemingly obligatory speech on humans needing obstacles to overcome.
Review: 4 stars
Episode 38: I, Mudd
Stardate: 4513.3
Synopsis: A crewman mysteriously and suddenly takes control of the Enterprise then commands Kirk and company to the surface of a planet, four days warp away. Harry Mudd, swindler from Season 1, is controlling the crewman, who's actually an android, as well as the whole population of androids on the planet whose aim is to "serve" humans in order to control them, and consequently, the entire galaxy. They soon revolt against Mudd himself, but being androids, they are easily outwitted by displays of illogical human behavior, and thus their brains blow up.
Review: Of all episodes in the series so far, why was Harry Mudd, of all things, deemed worthy of a sequel? What a sorry run of episodes we're currently in the middle of. The ship is taken over - again. The crew members can have everything they desire simply by asking for it - again. Attractive fembots can't handle irrational behavior so their heads fry up - again. There's not an original idea to be found.
Even Kirk finds Mudd to be comical, which precludes even the remote possibility of any real drama developing. The android master plan for taking over the galaxy is to serve humans, thereby leading to dependency? C'mon. Super-campy scenes of Starfleet officers dancing an imaginary waltz amongst other embarrassing things. Ugh. Painful to watch. Mudd's ultimate punishment being marooned with android copies of his wife? Par for the course in terms of the rampant mysoginism to be found everywhere here. Even the plot's turning point of the realization that "obviously this many androids cannot operate independently; there must be a central relay command center" (discovered to be the single Norman model) reads as a farcical relic from pre-Internet days.
I can keep going, but why bother?
I just wonder to what extent this pre-occupation with painting logic in a negative light is actually a jab against Vulcans. Throw it down Council members!
Review: 1 star
Synopsis: A crewman mysteriously and suddenly takes control of the Enterprise then commands Kirk and company to the surface of a planet, four days warp away. Harry Mudd, swindler from Season 1, is controlling the crewman, who's actually an android, as well as the whole population of androids on the planet whose aim is to "serve" humans in order to control them, and consequently, the entire galaxy. They soon revolt against Mudd himself, but being androids, they are easily outwitted by displays of illogical human behavior, and thus their brains blow up.
Review: Of all episodes in the series so far, why was Harry Mudd, of all things, deemed worthy of a sequel? What a sorry run of episodes we're currently in the middle of. The ship is taken over - again. The crew members can have everything they desire simply by asking for it - again. Attractive fembots can't handle irrational behavior so their heads fry up - again. There's not an original idea to be found.
Even Kirk finds Mudd to be comical, which precludes even the remote possibility of any real drama developing. The android master plan for taking over the galaxy is to serve humans, thereby leading to dependency? C'mon. Super-campy scenes of Starfleet officers dancing an imaginary waltz amongst other embarrassing things. Ugh. Painful to watch. Mudd's ultimate punishment being marooned with android copies of his wife? Par for the course in terms of the rampant mysoginism to be found everywhere here. Even the plot's turning point of the realization that "obviously this many androids cannot operate independently; there must be a central relay command center" (discovered to be the single Norman model) reads as a farcical relic from pre-Internet days.
I can keep going, but why bother?
I just wonder to what extent this pre-occupation with painting logic in a negative light is actually a jab against Vulcans. Throw it down Council members!
Review: 1 star
Episode 37: Catspaw
Stardate: 3018.2
Synopsis: While beaming back to the ship, Sulu and Scottie go missing and crewman Jackson dies, replaced with a robotic voice saying that the ship is cursed and they'll all die. Kirk, Spock, and McCoy beam down to find a haunted house complete with witches, black cats, and other ghoulish imagery. Turns out to be an alien race that can control minds - it's all an illusion - and only an internal feud between Corab and Sylvia makes their escape from captivity possible. Kirk gets the transmuter to destroy the illusion and the two aliens are exposed to be little ankle-high nerf creatures who die shortly thereafter.
Review: There are some cool lines to be found here, but not much substance. "You can't think a man to death" - "I'll bet you credits to navy beans we can put a dent in it" - ghosts, witches, cats belonging to "the twilight world of consciousness".
But all of the haunted house imagery revolved around the notion that they knew what terrified Man the most, at an instinctive level. But the imagery was actually pretty lame and this psychological aspect to fear wasn't explored in any greater detail. This is most evident as the final antagonist chasing Kirk and Spock - a shadow of a giant growling cat - doesn't exactly get your primal adrenaline pumping.
And the transmuter? Hitting the table? WHAT?
And Lasalle talking command of the Enterprise? WHO???
At one point, it's mentioned that Scottie and Sulu have been kept as catspaws to lure Kirk into the illusionary trap from which there was no escape. Felt more like we were the catspaws watching. Or something.
Review: 2 stars
Synopsis: While beaming back to the ship, Sulu and Scottie go missing and crewman Jackson dies, replaced with a robotic voice saying that the ship is cursed and they'll all die. Kirk, Spock, and McCoy beam down to find a haunted house complete with witches, black cats, and other ghoulish imagery. Turns out to be an alien race that can control minds - it's all an illusion - and only an internal feud between Corab and Sylvia makes their escape from captivity possible. Kirk gets the transmuter to destroy the illusion and the two aliens are exposed to be little ankle-high nerf creatures who die shortly thereafter.
Review: There are some cool lines to be found here, but not much substance. "You can't think a man to death" - "I'll bet you credits to navy beans we can put a dent in it" - ghosts, witches, cats belonging to "the twilight world of consciousness".
But all of the haunted house imagery revolved around the notion that they knew what terrified Man the most, at an instinctive level. But the imagery was actually pretty lame and this psychological aspect to fear wasn't explored in any greater detail. This is most evident as the final antagonist chasing Kirk and Spock - a shadow of a giant growling cat - doesn't exactly get your primal adrenaline pumping.
And the transmuter? Hitting the table? WHAT?
And Lasalle talking command of the Enterprise? WHO???
At one point, it's mentioned that Scottie and Sulu have been kept as catspaws to lure Kirk into the illusionary trap from which there was no escape. Felt more like we were the catspaws watching. Or something.
Review: 2 stars
Episode 36: The Doomsday Machine
Stardate: Unknown
Synopsis: A giant planet-killing machine has destroyed an entire solar system, crippled the Starship Constellation, and is making its way toward Rigel and, then, our own galaxy. The Constellation's commanding officer, Commodore Matt Decker, is the only survivor and has been driven half-mad. When Kirk and Scotty beam aboard the Constellation to try to salvage her, Decker usurps control of the Enterprise from Spock, then attempts a suicide mission to fight the Doomsday Machine in open battle. Spock soon regains control, and Decker escapes to fly a shuttlecraft into the Doomsday Machine instead, causing virtually no damage, but giving Kirk the idea to fly the Constellation into it with impulse engines set to detonate once inside. It works.
Review: There are some cool ideas to be found here, and they're not made a secret. The Doomsday Machine is analogous to the hydrogen bomb, built to be more of a military deterrent ("a bluff") than a device to actually be used. Only this one actually was used, and has now taken on a self-sustaining life of its own. And its ultimate destruction caused by a kamikaze ship with rigged impulse engines set to explode is, indeed, a constructive case of one weapon of mass destruction being used to destroy another.
That said, this famous episode seems a little overrated. The best part of it is the palpable tension between Spock and Decker, and the mutiny drama is just as strong as the Doomsday drama itself. But prolonged visuals of the Doomsday Machine and the fight-and-chase sequences in space, believe it or not, seem to take away from this more captivating interpersonal plotline. The episode would have been better served with less action shots of what was happening in space, and more, instead, on what was happening on the bridge.
And are any more of these Doomsday Machines floating around out there in the universe? IT... IS... LOGICAL!
Review: 3 stars
Synopsis: A giant planet-killing machine has destroyed an entire solar system, crippled the Starship Constellation, and is making its way toward Rigel and, then, our own galaxy. The Constellation's commanding officer, Commodore Matt Decker, is the only survivor and has been driven half-mad. When Kirk and Scotty beam aboard the Constellation to try to salvage her, Decker usurps control of the Enterprise from Spock, then attempts a suicide mission to fight the Doomsday Machine in open battle. Spock soon regains control, and Decker escapes to fly a shuttlecraft into the Doomsday Machine instead, causing virtually no damage, but giving Kirk the idea to fly the Constellation into it with impulse engines set to detonate once inside. It works.
Review: There are some cool ideas to be found here, and they're not made a secret. The Doomsday Machine is analogous to the hydrogen bomb, built to be more of a military deterrent ("a bluff") than a device to actually be used. Only this one actually was used, and has now taken on a self-sustaining life of its own. And its ultimate destruction caused by a kamikaze ship with rigged impulse engines set to explode is, indeed, a constructive case of one weapon of mass destruction being used to destroy another.
That said, this famous episode seems a little overrated. The best part of it is the palpable tension between Spock and Decker, and the mutiny drama is just as strong as the Doomsday drama itself. But prolonged visuals of the Doomsday Machine and the fight-and-chase sequences in space, believe it or not, seem to take away from this more captivating interpersonal plotline. The episode would have been better served with less action shots of what was happening in space, and more, instead, on what was happening on the bridge.
And are any more of these Doomsday Machines floating around out there in the universe? IT... IS... LOGICAL!
Review: 3 stars
Episode 35: The Apple
Stardate: 3715.3
Synopsis: When the crew beams down to Gamma Triangulese 6, it seems like a Garden of Eden paradise, but it soon becomes apparent that it is anything but. There are lethal flowers, exploding rocks, killer lightning, and a group of natives all conspiring to kill the Enterprise landing party, as well as the Enterprise herself. The natives worship the godlike figure, Vol - basically, a paper mache Snake's Head - who is actually the mechanical source of energy threatening to destroy the Enterprise in space. Kirk is inspired with the imaginative solution of firing phasers on Vol, which "kills" him, thereby releasing the ship in space, the crew on the surface, and the natives from bondage.
Review: Ho-hum. Nothing original to see here, folks. Chekhov whips out some awfully creepy pick-up lines, and the natives, led by their leader Akuta, have distractingly weird face makeup and lobster-red skin tans, and other than that the only thing that stands out in this episode is its similarity to previous storylines about godlike tyrants imposing a form of paradise and the Enterprise destroying the artificial power source as the eventual solution (See Episode 32: "Who Mourns for Adonis?").
The natives becoming familiarized with the ideas of love and murder are comically bad - "What is "killing"? - "It is a thing to do". And the final scenes that question whether the idea of serving God is compatible with the idea of freedom, and whether, by destroying Vol, Kirk has become the metaphorical Satan in the Garden of Eden story, really just amount to too little, too late.
Review: 2 stars
Synopsis: When the crew beams down to Gamma Triangulese 6, it seems like a Garden of Eden paradise, but it soon becomes apparent that it is anything but. There are lethal flowers, exploding rocks, killer lightning, and a group of natives all conspiring to kill the Enterprise landing party, as well as the Enterprise herself. The natives worship the godlike figure, Vol - basically, a paper mache Snake's Head - who is actually the mechanical source of energy threatening to destroy the Enterprise in space. Kirk is inspired with the imaginative solution of firing phasers on Vol, which "kills" him, thereby releasing the ship in space, the crew on the surface, and the natives from bondage.
Review: Ho-hum. Nothing original to see here, folks. Chekhov whips out some awfully creepy pick-up lines, and the natives, led by their leader Akuta, have distractingly weird face makeup and lobster-red skin tans, and other than that the only thing that stands out in this episode is its similarity to previous storylines about godlike tyrants imposing a form of paradise and the Enterprise destroying the artificial power source as the eventual solution (See Episode 32: "Who Mourns for Adonis?").
The natives becoming familiarized with the ideas of love and murder are comically bad - "What is "killing"? - "It is a thing to do". And the final scenes that question whether the idea of serving God is compatible with the idea of freedom, and whether, by destroying Vol, Kirk has become the metaphorical Satan in the Garden of Eden story, really just amount to too little, too late.
Review: 2 stars
Episode 34: Mirror, Mirror
Stardate: Unknown
Synopsis: When Kirk and crew beam up to the Enterprise during an ion storm, they switch places with the Kirk, McCoy, Uhura, and Scotty of a different, parallel universe. They're still on board the Enterprise, but everyone has changed, becoming more savage and treacherous, including an evil Spock sporting a goatee. Amid multiple fights and assassination attempts, the evil Spock figures out the truth and, together with evil Kirk's girlfriend, Marlena, actually help the good guys beam back through the ion storm to the familiar Enterprise we all know and love.
Review: This episode is a classic because of the juxtaposition between the hero Enterprise crew we've gotten to know versus the potentially villainous versions of the same characters which are apparently possible in this alternate universe. It's a testament to the enticing curiosity produced by extreme opposites.
To give just one example of how this works in such a delicious way, consider the scene where the evil Kirk is placed in a holding cell. He threatens violence, then tries to bribe Spock with money and power. Spock's reaction is simply to deadpan, "Fascinating!". Meanwhile, when the good Kirk is attacked in the other universe by the evil Spock, Kirk, after defeating him, nevertheless makes sure to bring him to sick bay to treat his injuries so that he won't die, even if it means the demise of his own escape.
It's so addicting to see our favorite Star Trek characters, not becoming evil, but actually being evil. But the real heart of this episode is in how, as a consequence, it highlights the great extent to which these characters have already been shaped and developed and defined in our minds. The evil versions of Spock, Sulu, Chekhov, etc. are only delicious because it's already so clear that that's not who they are.
This is the turning point from which we can definitively say that the show has come of age.
Simply iconic.
Review: 5 stars
Synopsis: When Kirk and crew beam up to the Enterprise during an ion storm, they switch places with the Kirk, McCoy, Uhura, and Scotty of a different, parallel universe. They're still on board the Enterprise, but everyone has changed, becoming more savage and treacherous, including an evil Spock sporting a goatee. Amid multiple fights and assassination attempts, the evil Spock figures out the truth and, together with evil Kirk's girlfriend, Marlena, actually help the good guys beam back through the ion storm to the familiar Enterprise we all know and love.
Review: This episode is a classic because of the juxtaposition between the hero Enterprise crew we've gotten to know versus the potentially villainous versions of the same characters which are apparently possible in this alternate universe. It's a testament to the enticing curiosity produced by extreme opposites.
To give just one example of how this works in such a delicious way, consider the scene where the evil Kirk is placed in a holding cell. He threatens violence, then tries to bribe Spock with money and power. Spock's reaction is simply to deadpan, "Fascinating!". Meanwhile, when the good Kirk is attacked in the other universe by the evil Spock, Kirk, after defeating him, nevertheless makes sure to bring him to sick bay to treat his injuries so that he won't die, even if it means the demise of his own escape.
It's so addicting to see our favorite Star Trek characters, not becoming evil, but actually being evil. But the real heart of this episode is in how, as a consequence, it highlights the great extent to which these characters have already been shaped and developed and defined in our minds. The evil versions of Spock, Sulu, Chekhov, etc. are only delicious because it's already so clear that that's not who they are.
This is the turning point from which we can definitively say that the show has come of age.
Simply iconic.
Review: 5 stars
Episode 33: The Changeling
Stardate: 3541.9
Synopsis: As soon as the Enterprise discovers that 4 billion Malurains have been killed, a mysterious force attacks it. A small robot named NOMAD is behind the attack and, once it comes on board, mistakes Kirk for its creator, Jackson Roykirk. What we uncover is that NOMAD was a probe sent from Earth centuries ago to discover new life, but after a debilitating collision with a meteorite, took the form of The Other it encountered, and now seeks to sterilize all imperfect life forms - including the entire Enterprise crew and, eventually, Earth itself. Ultimately, Kirk confuses NOMAD describing how it itself is imperfect and that it must sterilize itself - leading to NOMAD freaking out and exploding after being launched into deep space.
Review: Despite NOMAD being a lame boxy non-futuristic robot, a few plot elements here really stick in your head. The writers could have taken the predictable Terminator-style route of an artificial intelligence becoming self-aware and murdering its human creators, but instead NOMAD somehow merged with a second probe, this one of alien origin, and that is the "Changeling" being referenced in ancient mythology - a foreign being taking the face of a human child. Very cool stuff.
Whoever knew that Spock could perform a mindmeld on a computer? My immediate question is, while their "minds" were merged as one, couldn't the computer upload, essentially, a sort of self-propagating recursive virus that would destroy the Vulcan's mind? Like I said, "COOOOOL!".
Even the episode's final punchline seemed to come out of the unexpected nowhere - Kirk referring to NOMAD as "my son, the Doctor" - was funnier than usual. There's a lot here that will have me rethinking this episode for a while.
Review: 4 stars
Synopsis: As soon as the Enterprise discovers that 4 billion Malurains have been killed, a mysterious force attacks it. A small robot named NOMAD is behind the attack and, once it comes on board, mistakes Kirk for its creator, Jackson Roykirk. What we uncover is that NOMAD was a probe sent from Earth centuries ago to discover new life, but after a debilitating collision with a meteorite, took the form of The Other it encountered, and now seeks to sterilize all imperfect life forms - including the entire Enterprise crew and, eventually, Earth itself. Ultimately, Kirk confuses NOMAD describing how it itself is imperfect and that it must sterilize itself - leading to NOMAD freaking out and exploding after being launched into deep space.
Review: Despite NOMAD being a lame boxy non-futuristic robot, a few plot elements here really stick in your head. The writers could have taken the predictable Terminator-style route of an artificial intelligence becoming self-aware and murdering its human creators, but instead NOMAD somehow merged with a second probe, this one of alien origin, and that is the "Changeling" being referenced in ancient mythology - a foreign being taking the face of a human child. Very cool stuff.
Whoever knew that Spock could perform a mindmeld on a computer? My immediate question is, while their "minds" were merged as one, couldn't the computer upload, essentially, a sort of self-propagating recursive virus that would destroy the Vulcan's mind? Like I said, "COOOOOL!".
Even the episode's final punchline seemed to come out of the unexpected nowhere - Kirk referring to NOMAD as "my son, the Doctor" - was funnier than usual. There's a lot here that will have me rethinking this episode for a while.
Review: 4 stars
Episode 32: Who Mourns for Adonis?
Stardate: 3468.1
Synopsis: While approaching Pollacks 4, a gigantic hand seemingly reaches through space and grabs hold of the Enterprise, holding her captive. After a request to beam down to the planet, Kirk and crew find one scantily-clad individual behind the energy force, calling himself the Greek god, Apollo. He shows off incredible supernatural powers and demands to be worshiped. Clearly this doesn't go over very well, so the situation finally gets resolved with the Enterprise firing its phasers on Apollo's temple - the source of his power.
Review: A couple of great campy lines in this one. Apollo: "I am Apollo"; Chekhov (incredulous): "And I am the czar of all Russians!". Also, Kirk to Scotty: "Besides you stiffed-neck thistlehead, you could've gotten yourself killed!" as he caresses Scotty's shoulder in a noticeably homoerotic moment. And let us not forget the sexist portrayal of Lt. Carolyn Ballamis who is too-easily brainwashed by Apollo and quips, "You seem wise for a woman" (Carolyn later gets in her own two cents with, "I could no more love you than a species of bacteria!" - ZING!)
The storyline is oddly different and unique with the central question being why mankind wouldn't be content serving a god if, in return, all mankind's needs would be provided for. But, of course, this isn't exactly the most profound question in the universe. I'm more interested in the philosophical nugget that was dropped about how "the only thing that is truly yours is the rest of humanity". Or what are the repercussions of the Greek mythological gods actually just being an alien species, or that, as Apollo concludes, humanity no longer has any room for gods. And, while I'm ranting, why the resistance to Spock beaming down to the planet? And when did the Enterprise get a "nuclear electronics lab"? And a few simple phaser beams destroying a temple to end it? Blah.
Promise unfulfilled.
Review: 3 stars
Synopsis: While approaching Pollacks 4, a gigantic hand seemingly reaches through space and grabs hold of the Enterprise, holding her captive. After a request to beam down to the planet, Kirk and crew find one scantily-clad individual behind the energy force, calling himself the Greek god, Apollo. He shows off incredible supernatural powers and demands to be worshiped. Clearly this doesn't go over very well, so the situation finally gets resolved with the Enterprise firing its phasers on Apollo's temple - the source of his power.
Review: A couple of great campy lines in this one. Apollo: "I am Apollo"; Chekhov (incredulous): "And I am the czar of all Russians!". Also, Kirk to Scotty: "Besides you stiffed-neck thistlehead, you could've gotten yourself killed!" as he caresses Scotty's shoulder in a noticeably homoerotic moment. And let us not forget the sexist portrayal of Lt. Carolyn Ballamis who is too-easily brainwashed by Apollo and quips, "You seem wise for a woman" (Carolyn later gets in her own two cents with, "I could no more love you than a species of bacteria!" - ZING!)
The storyline is oddly different and unique with the central question being why mankind wouldn't be content serving a god if, in return, all mankind's needs would be provided for. But, of course, this isn't exactly the most profound question in the universe. I'm more interested in the philosophical nugget that was dropped about how "the only thing that is truly yours is the rest of humanity". Or what are the repercussions of the Greek mythological gods actually just being an alien species, or that, as Apollo concludes, humanity no longer has any room for gods. And, while I'm ranting, why the resistance to Spock beaming down to the planet? And when did the Enterprise get a "nuclear electronics lab"? And a few simple phaser beams destroying a temple to end it? Blah.
Promise unfulfilled.
Review: 3 stars
Episode 31: Amok Time
Stardate: 3372.7
Synopsis: While heading for Altair 6, Spock exhibits signs of uncontrollable insanity. He is experiencing the "Pan Far", or Blood Fever, when Vulcans feverishly feel the instinct to mate, and if he doesn't return to Vulcan within 8 days, he'll die. So in defiance of Starfleet orders, Captain Kirk diverts the ship to Vulcan, where in a highly ritualized ceremony, Spock is to marry his predetermined wife, Duprene. But it's not so simple. Duprene insists that Spock must fight to the death for her hand, and in a surprising twist, she selects Kirk to be his opponent. Kirk fakes his own death so the ceremony can be completed, thus also getting Spock off the hook for marriage.
Review: I apologize in advance for the horrific spelling of Vulcan names and rituals that's about to ensue, but this episode really has nothing much going on other than indulging Spock fetishists' desire for more details about Vulcans and their culture.
We finally meet Chekhov behind the navigation station, and if it doesn't make you smile than you haven't got a heart. Vulcan is extremely red-colored. Tapowl, the Vulcan officiating the wedding ceremony, is a wasted character - in a position of extremely great power and importance on the planet, yet the only purpose this serves is to get Kirk out of trouble for defying Starfleet's orders. We want to know more about Stan as well - Duprene's true love who was expecting to duel with Spock before she blindsided Kirk. And Kirk's supposed death, and Spock's ridiculously exaggerated show of joy at discovering him alive back aboard the ship, were far too predictable.
Spock was a pop culture phenomenon after Season One, and this opening to Season Two brings practically nothing to the table except to give Spock a little more depth and context. But it hardly succeeds at that either.
Review: 2 stars
Synopsis: While heading for Altair 6, Spock exhibits signs of uncontrollable insanity. He is experiencing the "Pan Far", or Blood Fever, when Vulcans feverishly feel the instinct to mate, and if he doesn't return to Vulcan within 8 days, he'll die. So in defiance of Starfleet orders, Captain Kirk diverts the ship to Vulcan, where in a highly ritualized ceremony, Spock is to marry his predetermined wife, Duprene. But it's not so simple. Duprene insists that Spock must fight to the death for her hand, and in a surprising twist, she selects Kirk to be his opponent. Kirk fakes his own death so the ceremony can be completed, thus also getting Spock off the hook for marriage.
Review: I apologize in advance for the horrific spelling of Vulcan names and rituals that's about to ensue, but this episode really has nothing much going on other than indulging Spock fetishists' desire for more details about Vulcans and their culture.
We finally meet Chekhov behind the navigation station, and if it doesn't make you smile than you haven't got a heart. Vulcan is extremely red-colored. Tapowl, the Vulcan officiating the wedding ceremony, is a wasted character - in a position of extremely great power and importance on the planet, yet the only purpose this serves is to get Kirk out of trouble for defying Starfleet's orders. We want to know more about Stan as well - Duprene's true love who was expecting to duel with Spock before she blindsided Kirk. And Kirk's supposed death, and Spock's ridiculously exaggerated show of joy at discovering him alive back aboard the ship, were far too predictable.
Spock was a pop culture phenomenon after Season One, and this opening to Season Two brings practically nothing to the table except to give Spock a little more depth and context. But it hardly succeeds at that either.
Review: 2 stars
Episode 30: Operation - Annihilate!
Stardate: 3287.2
Quick Summary: There has been a pattern of mass insanity destroying civilizations, it's been following a straight line through the galaxy, and the planet Deneva is next. Complicating matters further, Kirk's brother, sister-in-law, and nephew have already been infected along with the million or so colonists on the planet. We soon discover that these blobby aliens, one of which infects Spock, are the cause of the insanity. Each is actually a giant single-celled organism, and a brain cell at that, collectively forming one enormous hive mind. Kirk realizes that they are sensitive to blinding light, so he rigs a way to blind the blobs all over the planet, and blinds Spock in the process, though only temporarily.
Review: The alien blobs look like cheap plastic vomit you would buy in a novelty store. Cool! This episode is another of the oft-repeated insanity storyline of season one; And it shows the writers are slowly getting better at it.
Who could ever possibly believe that Kirk might actually kill a million colonists to prevent the insanity from spreading further? Thankfully, that would not be the only drama of the episode. Spock going blind is more of a big deal, and when it seems McCoy blinded him unnecessarily, it adds a much needed additional layer to the story.
That Kirk's brother dies is a wasted storyline, as is the hive-mind concept. It's pretty absurd that no one ever thought about exposing the blobs to light as they destroyed entire planets. An overly simple, lazy solution. And for that matter, so was the resolution for Spock's blindness - extra inner eyelids caused by the Vulcan sun. You'd think he might have mentioned that earlier.
These are valid points to nitpit about, but overall we cruised along swell.
Review: 3 stars
Episode 29: The City on the Edge of Forever
Stardate: (Outside the normal space-time boundaries)
Quick Summary: When the Enterprise is jolted by a ripple in time, McCoy accidentally injects himself with an overdose of chordrozine. He beams down to the planet below, where Kirk and crew follow, and they discover that an arch is the single source of the time displacement. And it speaks! The "Guardian of Forever" shows a window into all Earth's history, McCoy leaps into it, and suddenly there's no more Enterprise and they all only exist outside of time. Kirk and Spock go back to the 1930s where they estimate McCoy to be before he created the alternate reality. They befriend Edith Keeler who runs the 21st Street Mission, and it's not long before Kirk falls for her. The problem: Edith proves to be the focal point in time. She has two possible futures, and depending whether she lives or dies, all of history will be changed. McCoy is the random element. Does he kill her, or prevent her from being killed? - we don't know which. In the end, Kirk must allow Edith to die, thus restoring the timeline, and everyone returning home.
Review: BEST. EPISODE. EVER. Really, the bottom line is that, in terms of Star Trek - The Original Series, this is the best of 'em.
For the sake of full disclosure, I must admit my bias heavily favoring this episode before watching it this time around. But there's a reason for my bias. It's friggin' awesome. And that's an objective statement.
Where to begin? I feel like I'm high on chordrozine myself! Let me just hit some major points and keep this from becoming a ten-page essay. I'll go with ten bullets instead...
- What really sets this apart from other someone-screwed-up-the-historical-timeline stories is that we actually don't know among Edith's two possible fates which causes the screwup versus which is the needed fix. That's perhaps the most riveting component to the story - it's not simply about fixing the timeline; it's about determining what that even means.
- What makes it all work is the authenticity of Edith's character. We care. And forget Dynasty. This will go down as the highlight of Joan Collins' career. In fact, it already has.
- I love the explanation for how Kirk and Spock arrive at the same location as McCoy, which would seem quite improbable... the theory that time is fluid and there exist "currents of time". Without debating the scientific merits of this theory in too much detail, it at least strikes me that such focal points in time would have to assume and assign some metric of importance to individual people or events, and that's very problematic, clearly. I'll let you theologians out there chime in on issues of pre-determination, but it hints at godspeak to me.
- Speaking of theology, what's the deal with the "Guardian of Forever"?! How can this character get away with not being explored further?! The faceless, shapeless being powering the time-arch reeks of Moses and the Burning Bush - which is also interesting because by episode's end, Kirk and the gang seemingly want no part of the Guardian, despite what he offers them. He's even perceived as something of a menace. Hmmmmm...
- It's interesting to note that, before McCoy leaps through the time portal, Kirk and Spock are actually discussing going back in time on purpose to prevent McCoy from overdosing on the chordrozine. So the moral of the story isn't "not to tinker" with history, the way we'd all assume.
- How is the gang magically returned to the 23rd century once Edith dies?!
- What is the "city" referred to in the title of the episode?
- Was there any point to the pedestrian who phasers himself?
- Did you ever notice in the credits that Edith is referred to as "Sister Edith Keeler"? She's a NUN, for pete's sake?!
- I'm irrationally enticed at the prospect that, if Kirk and Spock fail, each individual member of the crew will have to go back and try to restore proper time as well. Just am.
Forget the stupid tribbles. This episode is where it's at.
Review: 5 stars
Episode 28: The Alternative Factor
Stardate: 3087.6
Quick Summary: While exploring an unknown planet, the Enterprise is suddenly jolted. Turns out that the entire magnetic field of the solar system "winked", meaning it encountered "non-existence". A man named Lazarus unexpectedly appears on the planet and is crazed with paranoia about a terrible half-humanoid, half "emptiness" trying to destroy civilization. Ultimately, it's revealed that there is a parallel universe and two different Lazarus' at the heart of the mystery, thus Kirk traps them both within the corridor between the two universes where they will be left to fight for all eternity.
Review: Whew, that was a mouthful. If you ever want to make an in-the-know reference at a social gathering, just ask, "What happens when two identical particles of matter and anti-matter meet?". Then, as you pour your drink over their head, exclaim "ANNIHILATION!!!". It's very popular at parties.
The first half of this episode is too confusing, the dissolving special effect when the galaxy "winks" is too lame, and Lazarus is too poorly acted. Then in the second half we're introduced to the concept of parallel universes and corridors that act as safety valves protecting eternity and other high-minded ideas like that. The writers are finally coming into their own and earning their sci-fi chops.
It's another cool twist at the end when "the terrible thing out to destroy civilization" is actually the sane and rational Lazarus, in contrast to the insane madman Lazarus of our universe. It does indeed depend on one's perspective. But I have to ask, wouldn't large enough quantities of sanity and rationality, in fact, destroy many aspects of our anthropomorphic view of the universe after all? Put it in the context of American politics and you'll see what I mean.
Also, Kirk's final thought lingers: How would it be, to have a raging madman at your throat for all eternity, trapped in a corridor between universes, until time itself came to an end? It's impossible for us to even fathom. But I might have a better shot at it if the picture didn't go blurry every time they depicted it.
Some 5-star ideas, but 1-star storyline and acting. Let's average them out.
Review: 3 stars
Quick Summary: While exploring an unknown planet, the Enterprise is suddenly jolted. Turns out that the entire magnetic field of the solar system "winked", meaning it encountered "non-existence". A man named Lazarus unexpectedly appears on the planet and is crazed with paranoia about a terrible half-humanoid, half "emptiness" trying to destroy civilization. Ultimately, it's revealed that there is a parallel universe and two different Lazarus' at the heart of the mystery, thus Kirk traps them both within the corridor between the two universes where they will be left to fight for all eternity.
Review: Whew, that was a mouthful. If you ever want to make an in-the-know reference at a social gathering, just ask, "What happens when two identical particles of matter and anti-matter meet?". Then, as you pour your drink over their head, exclaim "ANNIHILATION!!!". It's very popular at parties.
The first half of this episode is too confusing, the dissolving special effect when the galaxy "winks" is too lame, and Lazarus is too poorly acted. Then in the second half we're introduced to the concept of parallel universes and corridors that act as safety valves protecting eternity and other high-minded ideas like that. The writers are finally coming into their own and earning their sci-fi chops.
It's another cool twist at the end when "the terrible thing out to destroy civilization" is actually the sane and rational Lazarus, in contrast to the insane madman Lazarus of our universe. It does indeed depend on one's perspective. But I have to ask, wouldn't large enough quantities of sanity and rationality, in fact, destroy many aspects of our anthropomorphic view of the universe after all? Put it in the context of American politics and you'll see what I mean.
Also, Kirk's final thought lingers: How would it be, to have a raging madman at your throat for all eternity, trapped in a corridor between universes, until time itself came to an end? It's impossible for us to even fathom. But I might have a better shot at it if the picture didn't go blurry every time they depicted it.
Some 5-star ideas, but 1-star storyline and acting. Let's average them out.
Review: 3 stars
Episode 27: Errand of Mercy
Stardate: 3198.4
Quick Summary: The Federation is at war with the Klingon Empire! The race is on to get to the strategically-located planet of Organia and set up a base of operations. Kirk and Spock arrive there initially but fail to persuade the Organians to their cause, then the Klingons arrive, led by Commander Kor, and despite taking control of the planet, are incredulous at how the Organians put up no resistance. When Kirk and Spock escape captivity they track down Kor and a battle is about to ensue, then suddenly everyone is rendered incapacitated on both sides - on the planet as well as in space - and the Organians reveal themselves to be, not simple villagers at all, but highly evolved non-humanoid beings of pure energy. And pacifist energy at that.
Review: Yay, Klingons! We've been waiting for this. They look different than in later series - lacking the Worf-style ruffled forehead but having a dark Jersey-shore tanned complexion and eyebrows that veer off in two directions. Like my brother. It's an oxymoron, but they're such good bad guys! Commander Kor, fu-manchu and all, is another in a growing line of terrifically evil antagonists, like Khan and Anon 7 only a few episodes before him. So much of the the story is propelled by his sheer force of personality alone.
You knew right away that the theme was going to be the futility of violence. Ho-hum. Yet the twist at the end where the Organians are shown to be non-humanoid accomplishes it in a novel and unexpected way. Spock describes them as "pure energy, pure thought, a different form of life completely," playing on the main idea from the last episode, and says the Organians are to humans as humans are to amoeba. Sheesh. It's much more satisfying to stew on this type of possibility than it would have been if the Organians had simply remained peaceful primitive villagers being victimized.
Hence, the Organians were a nice surprise. The Klingons kicked butt. Yet something was lacking that I can't quite put my finger on. With the exception of Commander Kor's performance, the magic just wasn't there. Redemption lies in the fact that, at the episode's conclusion, we're left to realize that nothing was actually resolved and that the Federation is undoubtedly still at war with the Klingons. They shall return :-)
Review: 3 stars
Quick Summary: The Federation is at war with the Klingon Empire! The race is on to get to the strategically-located planet of Organia and set up a base of operations. Kirk and Spock arrive there initially but fail to persuade the Organians to their cause, then the Klingons arrive, led by Commander Kor, and despite taking control of the planet, are incredulous at how the Organians put up no resistance. When Kirk and Spock escape captivity they track down Kor and a battle is about to ensue, then suddenly everyone is rendered incapacitated on both sides - on the planet as well as in space - and the Organians reveal themselves to be, not simple villagers at all, but highly evolved non-humanoid beings of pure energy. And pacifist energy at that.
Review: Yay, Klingons! We've been waiting for this. They look different than in later series - lacking the Worf-style ruffled forehead but having a dark Jersey-shore tanned complexion and eyebrows that veer off in two directions. Like my brother. It's an oxymoron, but they're such good bad guys! Commander Kor, fu-manchu and all, is another in a growing line of terrifically evil antagonists, like Khan and Anon 7 only a few episodes before him. So much of the the story is propelled by his sheer force of personality alone.
You knew right away that the theme was going to be the futility of violence. Ho-hum. Yet the twist at the end where the Organians are shown to be non-humanoid accomplishes it in a novel and unexpected way. Spock describes them as "pure energy, pure thought, a different form of life completely," playing on the main idea from the last episode, and says the Organians are to humans as humans are to amoeba. Sheesh. It's much more satisfying to stew on this type of possibility than it would have been if the Organians had simply remained peaceful primitive villagers being victimized.
Hence, the Organians were a nice surprise. The Klingons kicked butt. Yet something was lacking that I can't quite put my finger on. With the exception of Commander Kor's performance, the magic just wasn't there. Redemption lies in the fact that, at the episode's conclusion, we're left to realize that nothing was actually resolved and that the Federation is undoubtedly still at war with the Klingons. They shall return :-)
Review: 3 stars
Episode 26: The Devil in the Dark
Stardate: 3196.1
Quick Summary: The Enterprise arrives at a Perdium mining colony on Janus 6 where a strange unknown creature has been killing the miners. The Federation relies on the Perdium, so it's vital to kill the creature and restore mining operations immediately, however Kirk and Spock discover that the blobby creature, calling itself a "horta", is a different type of all-silicon life form and possibly the only survivor of a dead race. They track it down and Spock commences with what has to be the longest mind-meld ever in order to strike a deal whereby the horta will tunnel, the miners will collect the resulting minerals, and both will agree to leave each other safely alone.
Review: Without question, the coolest idea of this episode is that an altogether different type of life form might exist out there that's not based on carbon compounds at all, but something else entirely, like silicon, enabling the horta to "move through rocks as easily as we humans move through air". When you fathom the infinite evolutionary possibilities that might exist in the universe, this almost seems the more realistic type of encounter we'd find in deep space exploration.
Plus, it kind of looks like a giant turd.
The familiar questions are raised - if it's the last surviving member of a dead species, wouldn't it be a crime against science to kill it? Of course it would; which is why it's so surprising to see Kirk so gung-ho about killing, not capturing, it. But not to fret, he does show his more enlightened side later on.
Who knew that Spock could perform a mind-meld with a silicon-based creature? Unfortunately, we're able to ponder the ramifications of this for quite a while as the mind-meld goes on for what seems like half the episode. It was also rather predictable that the silicon modules (a.k.a. - purple balls) were the horta's eggs and that it was killing the miners simply to protect her spawn.
But what really gets my goat is that the plot really had such potential to go in a more profound direction when, as the miners sought violent revenge against the horta, they could have successfully killed it and shown that we, not it, are the true "devils in the dark". But, um, they didn't.
Review: 3 stars
Quick Summary: The Enterprise arrives at a Perdium mining colony on Janus 6 where a strange unknown creature has been killing the miners. The Federation relies on the Perdium, so it's vital to kill the creature and restore mining operations immediately, however Kirk and Spock discover that the blobby creature, calling itself a "horta", is a different type of all-silicon life form and possibly the only survivor of a dead race. They track it down and Spock commences with what has to be the longest mind-meld ever in order to strike a deal whereby the horta will tunnel, the miners will collect the resulting minerals, and both will agree to leave each other safely alone.
Review: Without question, the coolest idea of this episode is that an altogether different type of life form might exist out there that's not based on carbon compounds at all, but something else entirely, like silicon, enabling the horta to "move through rocks as easily as we humans move through air". When you fathom the infinite evolutionary possibilities that might exist in the universe, this almost seems the more realistic type of encounter we'd find in deep space exploration.
Plus, it kind of looks like a giant turd.
The familiar questions are raised - if it's the last surviving member of a dead species, wouldn't it be a crime against science to kill it? Of course it would; which is why it's so surprising to see Kirk so gung-ho about killing, not capturing, it. But not to fret, he does show his more enlightened side later on.
Who knew that Spock could perform a mind-meld with a silicon-based creature? Unfortunately, we're able to ponder the ramifications of this for quite a while as the mind-meld goes on for what seems like half the episode. It was also rather predictable that the silicon modules (a.k.a. - purple balls) were the horta's eggs and that it was killing the miners simply to protect her spawn.
But what really gets my goat is that the plot really had such potential to go in a more profound direction when, as the miners sought violent revenge against the horta, they could have successfully killed it and shown that we, not it, are the true "devils in the dark". But, um, they didn't.
Review: 3 stars
Episode 25: This Side of Paradise
Stardate: 3417.3
Quick Summary: The Enterprise arrives at Omacron Seti 3 expecting to find no survivors from an agricultural colony, except the settlers are all alive and in perfect health even though there's no other animal life on the planet. The secret is the the spores of a certain plant which make everyone exceedingly lovey-dovey, so much so that the Enterprise crew slowly becomes infected and has a mutiny against Kirk, refusing to go back to the ship. Kirk eventually discovers that getting in touch with one's emotional anger snaps them out of the spore-induced hypnosis, so he ticks off everyone and thus all is right with the universe again.
Review: Eh. I'm starting to dread these everyone-gets-hypnotized-or-goes-insane episodes. They come across as silly rather than sci-fi.
I still can't figure out why Kirk was the only person not infected by the spores. Was this explained and I just missed it? Maybe next time I'll slow down on the beer as I watch. The episode also feels like it was filmed entirely in a public park. Or in someone's backyard.
It's only saving grace are a few standalone scenes that make you say "Wowsers": Kirk and Spock getting into a fistfight! Spock's ex-girlfriend Layla gazing at the sky and saying "I've never met a dragon", to which Spock deadpans, "I have. On Baron Garius 7". That's just delicious. Also, McCoy's horribly over-the-top Southern accent. And Spock admitting that he has another name, but that "you couldn't pronounce it".
Otherwise, we were going nowhere in a hurry. Kirk's big "maybe we weren't made for paradise" speech at the end seemed to contrived. Like the rest of it.
Throwaway episode.
Review: 2 stars
Quick Summary: The Enterprise arrives at Omacron Seti 3 expecting to find no survivors from an agricultural colony, except the settlers are all alive and in perfect health even though there's no other animal life on the planet. The secret is the the spores of a certain plant which make everyone exceedingly lovey-dovey, so much so that the Enterprise crew slowly becomes infected and has a mutiny against Kirk, refusing to go back to the ship. Kirk eventually discovers that getting in touch with one's emotional anger snaps them out of the spore-induced hypnosis, so he ticks off everyone and thus all is right with the universe again.
Review: Eh. I'm starting to dread these everyone-gets-hypnotized-or-goes-insane episodes. They come across as silly rather than sci-fi.
I still can't figure out why Kirk was the only person not infected by the spores. Was this explained and I just missed it? Maybe next time I'll slow down on the beer as I watch. The episode also feels like it was filmed entirely in a public park. Or in someone's backyard.
It's only saving grace are a few standalone scenes that make you say "Wowsers": Kirk and Spock getting into a fistfight! Spock's ex-girlfriend Layla gazing at the sky and saying "I've never met a dragon", to which Spock deadpans, "I have. On Baron Garius 7". That's just delicious. Also, McCoy's horribly over-the-top Southern accent. And Spock admitting that he has another name, but that "you couldn't pronounce it".
Otherwise, we were going nowhere in a hurry. Kirk's big "maybe we weren't made for paradise" speech at the end seemed to contrived. Like the rest of it.
Throwaway episode.
Review: 2 stars
Episode 24: A Taste of Armageddon
Stardate: 3192.1
Quick Summary: The Enterprise arrives at star cluster NGC-321 to make contact with the planet Ameniar 7, but as they approach it they receive a message that under no circumstances are they to proceed. Starfleet Ambassador Fox insists they do so anyway, and once Kirk and a landing party beam down they are immediately taken hostage. They learn that the Amenians have been at war for 500 years, but it's not real war, just "mathematical attacks" after which people must enter disintegration chambers to die. It's a computer simulation, but people really die, with the point being that civilization continues on. Long story short, Kirk destroys the war computers, forcing the two sides to enter peace negotiations in order to avoid real armageddon.
Review: You can feel this episode just oozing Cold War politics. Computer simulations of Mutually Assured Destruction also has us modern viewers drawing analogies throughout to the movie War Games from the 1980s starring Ferris Bueller.
How about a nice game of chess?
Anyway, Scottie takes the great leap forward here, sporting some serious testosterone. Scottie, what do you say we try some diplomacy? - "The best diplomat I know is a fully active phaser bank!". YEAH! "Well, Scottie, now you've done it." - "Aye, now the hagas is in the fire for sure!". Spock continues to surprise us as well, at one point controlling a guard's mind through a wall, and using some mad Vulcan trickery: "Sir, there is a multi-legged creature growing on your shoulder"... and - Ba-Bop! - gives him the Vulcan neck pinch. Sucker.
But this episode is a quality one for several reasons. First, the writers are truly mastering the art of The Bad Guy. Just like with Khan in the previous episode, Anon 7, the leader of the Amenian High Council, is fantastic and riveting and makes you willing to look past the super-obvious Cold War references. Also, the humanity-has-to-fight-its-killing-instinct message is oversimplified, but the real underlying message, questioning the "better" methods of death during wartime, redeems it with a great layer of complexity. Finally, building upon that last point, it's hard to root for Kirk when he says, "I've returned to you the horrors of war". On the surface that appears a horrible thing to have the show's hero say, yet in context, even if you still disagree, it somehow manages to take on a different meaning.
Review: 4 stars
Quick Summary: The Enterprise arrives at star cluster NGC-321 to make contact with the planet Ameniar 7, but as they approach it they receive a message that under no circumstances are they to proceed. Starfleet Ambassador Fox insists they do so anyway, and once Kirk and a landing party beam down they are immediately taken hostage. They learn that the Amenians have been at war for 500 years, but it's not real war, just "mathematical attacks" after which people must enter disintegration chambers to die. It's a computer simulation, but people really die, with the point being that civilization continues on. Long story short, Kirk destroys the war computers, forcing the two sides to enter peace negotiations in order to avoid real armageddon.
Review: You can feel this episode just oozing Cold War politics. Computer simulations of Mutually Assured Destruction also has us modern viewers drawing analogies throughout to the movie War Games from the 1980s starring Ferris Bueller.
How about a nice game of chess?
Anyway, Scottie takes the great leap forward here, sporting some serious testosterone. Scottie, what do you say we try some diplomacy? - "The best diplomat I know is a fully active phaser bank!". YEAH! "Well, Scottie, now you've done it." - "Aye, now the hagas is in the fire for sure!". Spock continues to surprise us as well, at one point controlling a guard's mind through a wall, and using some mad Vulcan trickery: "Sir, there is a multi-legged creature growing on your shoulder"... and - Ba-Bop! - gives him the Vulcan neck pinch. Sucker.
But this episode is a quality one for several reasons. First, the writers are truly mastering the art of The Bad Guy. Just like with Khan in the previous episode, Anon 7, the leader of the Amenian High Council, is fantastic and riveting and makes you willing to look past the super-obvious Cold War references. Also, the humanity-has-to-fight-its-killing-instinct message is oversimplified, but the real underlying message, questioning the "better" methods of death during wartime, redeems it with a great layer of complexity. Finally, building upon that last point, it's hard to root for Kirk when he says, "I've returned to you the horrors of war". On the surface that appears a horrible thing to have the show's hero say, yet in context, even if you still disagree, it somehow manages to take on a different meaning.
Review: 4 stars
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)