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Post by TrekBeatTK on Jan 4, 2015 14:19:54 GMT -5
I don't know how long I'll keep putting these little random thoughts up, but for now they amuse me.
THE MAN TRAP -- We get to a slate of episodes that mostly have bittersweet endings. In this one, the very last of a species is killed because it is dangerous and we are left with the discomfort of having effectively wiped out a species for self-preservation. One wonders why they couldn't just beam it down with a whole bunch of salt.
CHARLIE X -- Poor Yeoman Rand is just constantly harrassed, isn't she? I think my new head canon is going to be that she left the Enterprise because she just couldn't take all the unwanted attention.
THE NAKED TIME -- I think it's great that they have Tormalan be the voice of thought that says we shouldn't be out in space at all. It's kind of nice to know that they acknowledge there are still people who think this great exploration of space is a waste and is doing more harm than good. I like when humans aren't homogenous in their opinions on Trek.
BALANCE OF TERROR -- The Romulan Commander is a great character. He's noble and questions the point of his mission, but also has a duty to follow orders even if he doesn't agree with them. He's just trying to get home. It is wonderful to make the first Romulan we meet so completely reasonable.
-TK
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Post by TrekBeatTK on Jan 7, 2015 7:39:51 GMT -5
More classic Trek thoughts from this week...
WHAT ARE LITTLE GIRLS MADE OF? -- The dinner scene with the two Kirks is very well-done and virtually seamless. But really, we watch this one for Andrea, don't we? Love how the script dances around the question of her being a sex-bot. Chapel does refer to her as a "mechanical Geisha" (not xenophobic, were we, 1960s?). Korby's assertion that it's ridiculous because androids don't love still doesn't mean she can't be used for life-like "release". Andrea herself implies as much when Kirk kisses her and she refuses saying, "I am not programmed for you." ...But then, the fact that Korby is also an android maybe makes this case of android-on-android stimulation less troublesome to the network censor? Or were they just duped.
MIRI -- Why is the title italicized? Ever notice that? This is the only TOS title that looks italicized for some reason. Kim Darby is lovely here. She has that rare ability to retain a kind of prettiness when crying; most women are at their ugliness when weepy. And she's always convincing. The episode does something smart with the "just like Earth" scenario: it posits a reason for why everything looks like the 1960s. The adults all died out and the children's lives prolonged so that culture stagnated for three hundred years. Compare this to "Lost in Space" which had an episode where Will returned to Earth, but they had to say that this was some backwards hick town that was thirty years behind the times to justify the "contemporary" stuff of the 1960s. While it's a bit silly to think of a world that is exactly like Earth up to a point, I thought it was cleverly built into the story. Unfortunately, there are other logical questions that are never sufficiently answers, like why the food is only just running out now, or whether the kids are nomadic in anyway, or what life on the rest of the planet looks like (surely more than one town is populated, right?). So maybe it's not the most thought-out premise, but I still enjoy this one a lot.
DAGGER OF THE MIND -- The writers had fun naming the female guest star this episode. She's named Dr. Noel and of course she met Kirk at a Christmas party. Cute. It's fun looking back at how unfounded the notion of Kirk as a "ladykiller" was in the first season. He was tied to the Enterprise and didn't allow himself relationships. He had feelings for his Yeoman but felt he couldn't act on them. So here, when we get the awkward meeting about something having happened at the Christmas party, its easy to think Kirk is embarrassed of his actions. Instead, it seems to me the episode implies Kirk is embarrassed that Noel was throwing herself at him and he had to duck her affections. I like that. Kirk is more complex than he's given credit (granted, some of this seems to change in season 2). Also, the idea of death by loneliness is a particularly chilling one.
THE CONSCIENCE OF THE KING -- Was there a bet among the writers who could make the censors' brain explode first? "Pulsing, throbbing... are you like that, Captain?" This is the first use of Shakespeare in Trek (apart from perhaps a stray quote), and it's very sophisticated in its structure. The title refers to the act in Hamlet of using a play to root out a killer, which is exactly what happens. Karidian in the role of Hamlet's ghost is brilliant; the haunting spirit that warns of an act of treachery and a killer among the people. Karidian is literally haunted by his past. Also, in some productions the role of Claudius and Hamlet is played by the same man (as it seems may have been the case in Karidian's production). This makes the parallels even more interesting, as Karidian is both the killer and the killed. He is Karidian, the sensitive man tormented by the past, and Kodos the Executioner. Lenore's roles also have story parallels. We see her in the beginning as Lady Macbeth, a woman who took matters of killing family rivals into her own hands (just as Lenore does). The constant repetition of "blood on my hands" recalls Lady M's famous "out, out damn spot!" speech. And she ends the story in madness, appropriate to her role as Ophelia. Apart from being a relatively engaging murder mystery, this is a very smartly written script, though perhaps in a way that only appeals to English majors.
-TK
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Post by captainbasil on Jan 7, 2015 7:52:58 GMT -5
Kim Darby was great in just about everything she did.
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Post by TrekBeatTK on Jan 7, 2015 8:34:51 GMT -5
Kim Darby was great in just about everything she did. She had a kind of radiant loveliness in her youth. A shame she grew up to look like the spawn of Diane Keaton and Neal Gaiman. But she has always been truly talented. -TK |
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Post by TrekBeatTK on Jan 9, 2015 10:05:27 GMT -5
THE GALILEO SEVEN -- A classic, but the budget hurts it. All the money seems to have gone into the shuttle, which is impressive, but that means all the stuff with giant spears looks silly (and the foam boulder that traps Spock). The writing still works, but I almost wish they had crafted the story without alien life on the planet because the execution isn't great. The giants don't ever seem a consistent scale either. Spock's attitudes are interesting, as he seems to show little concern toward dead crewmen, but is offended by the idea of killing the aliens. This is not the "it's killing the captain! Shoot it!" Spock of "The Man Trap". I guess his rationale is the Starfleet guys "knew the job was dangerous when they took it". (Worth mentioning as well that at this point in the series it seems more yellow shirts have died than redshirts.)
COURT MARTIAL -- I imagine the costume planning went something like this: "How do we sell that Jame Finney is young?" "Put her in a sailor suit?" "Good idea. But let's make it all future-y somehow." So Jame ends up in this shimmery metallic sailor suit thing that makes her look like Sailor Mercury (my sister referred to it as "mercury poisoning"). Many beats from this episode were lovingly ripped off by TNG for "The Measure of a Man". Interesting that this one has an impassioned speech arguing that man has rights because man is not a machine, and the latter is all about arguing a machine has the rights of a man!
THE MENAGERIE -- Whether you watch them in airdate, production, or stardate order, "Court Martial" and "The Menagerie" are always back to back which unfortunate. Not only because both involve a court martial, but because both are at Starbase 11 with two different Commodores. Is there more than one Starbase 11? Anyway, I also like how part 2 uses the captain's log to recap the events from the previous episode. The show has this device built into it, so it makes perfect sense, and yet Star Trek never again used a log as a recap! It works much better than "last time on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine". Also, it seems clear in the teaser for part two that Spock originally said "next week". I want to know who edited the word "week" out, when, and why.
-TK
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Post by TrekBeatTK on Jan 10, 2015 20:47:21 GMT -5
SHORE LEAVE -- It amuses me still, and Yeaman Barrows is cute. The fight with Finnegan ("Fight me, Jimmy boy!") goes on a bit too long. They sure did like mocking Irishmen back then!
THE SQUIRE OF GOTHOS -- William Campbell is awesome. He just steals the show and it's perfect. A shame the "900 years" thing is wrong.
ARENA -- Classic Trek makes a recurring theme out of third party mediators inserting themselves into violent disputes. "Errand of Mercy" does essentially the same thing.
-TK
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Post by captainbasil on Jan 12, 2015 7:44:53 GMT -5
I love Arena. It may be my favorite episode, though I rally love Charlie X too. I can watch both these episodes again and again. I agree the fight scene in Shore Leave is far too long. It's actually distracting and takes away from the story.
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Post by TrekBeatTK on Jan 12, 2015 11:41:01 GMT -5
TOMORROW IS YESTERDAY -- The fight choreography is fun in this one, with Kirk swinging from door frames and stuff. The ending with the return of Christopher has never made any sense to me, though, and it's a time travel idea that they never go with again.
THE CITY ON THE EDGE OF FOREVER -- I love the idea that embracing futuristic pacifism dooms the planet because it came at the wrong time. In the end of the episode, Keeler only seems to be in the street because she's going back to meet Kirk. So how did this play out in the original timeline?
THE RETURN OF THE ARCHONS -- A few too many ideas floating about here that aren't fleshed out. "Festival" is established and then ignored. It felt like there just wasn't time to do everything they wanted to do, and I'm sure some stuff got lost in rewrites. Why is Sulu so easily absorbed with one touch at the beginning when everyone else has to be carted off to an absorption room? Seems to be the first mention of the Prime Directive (and the first time it's broken).
A TASTE OF ARMAGEDDON -- If they've been at war for centuries, one could argue that war has become their culture and that altering that violates the Prime Directive. The idea of war becoming essentially a video game is prescient (video games as we know them were not quite developed, and later wars of the 20th Century would be seen in the public in such terms). Warfare usually comes down to lives lost, so making that the main focus is interesting. The flaw in their system though is if one of them developed a weapon to wipe out the entire populace. Then everyone would have to report for disintegration, and their culture would still die. But the idea of a kind of stale-mate cease-fire where war continues as long as body count does but no more destruction is interesting. People keep dying and there's an air of tension, but also a kind of balance. Is this a commentary of any sort on the Korean War or the conflict in Vietnam?
-TK
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Post by TrekBeatTK on Jan 12, 2015 18:02:15 GMT -5
THE ALTERNATIVE FACTOR -- I hate this episode. I consider it the worst episode of TOS. Other episodes are perhaps more objectively "bad" or silly, but this one is just a complete failure to be interesting. When the destruction of the entire universe is boring, that's a problem! I don't know if the blame is due to the rush job they had filming it after they had to recast Lazarus, but it just never works. The do parallel universes better in "Mirror, Mirror" where it's fun. Here we just get a lot of bizarre super-impositions and a mystery that's not interesting at all. Every series has its bad episodes, but most have at least some campy reason to watch. Even "Threshold" has award-winning make-up effects. But this one I actively hate and it's one of the very few that I dread ever watching again. It sticks out more because the rest of season one, even its relative failures, it still pretty solid. No hokey ideas here: it's good science-fiction ideas completely ruined in execution. Blah.
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Post by StarFuryG7 on Jan 14, 2015 0:31:28 GMT -5
THE ALTERNATIVE FACTOR -- I hate this episode. I consider it the worst episode of TOS. Other episodes are perhaps more objectively "bad" or silly, but this one is just a complete failure to be interesting. When the destruction of the entire universe is boring, that's a problem! I don't know if the blame is due to the rush job they had filming it after they had to recast Lazarus, but it just never works. The do parallel universes better in "Mirror, Mirror" where it's fun. Here we just get a lot of bizarre super-impositions and a mystery that's not interesting at all. Every series has its bad episodes, but most have at least some campy reason to watch. Even "Threshold" has award-winning make-up effects. But this one I actively hate and it's one of the very few that I dread ever watching again. It sticks out more because the rest of season one, even its relative failures, it still pretty solid. No hokey ideas here: it's good science-fiction ideas completely ruined in execution. Blah.
In other words, Goodnight. |
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Post by captainbasil on Jan 14, 2015 7:56:37 GMT -5
I have not seen it in a while. I just remember that I was underwhelmed. It's just bland.
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Post by TrekBeatTK on Jan 14, 2015 8:50:50 GMT -5
This episode had a lot of problems on both the writing and production ends, but all in all, I don't find it overly *boring* and don't *hate it* either frankly. At its core is an interesting, albeit mishandled, even *botched* in places, premise. But to rate it below "Spock's Brain" for cryin' out loud? Come on, TK. I mean, for God sake, even the AV Club rated "The Alternative Factor" better than "Spock's Brain" at a C-, whereas it gave the latter a D. Granted, that's a close call from their standpoint, but at least they had the good sense to give it a better grade by comparison. Other episodes are more objectively "bad" ("Spock's Brain", "The Omega Glory", "That Which Survives", "The Way to Eden"), but I like them more than this one. Most of those revolve around a failure to tell an interesting or believable story. Here we have what could have been an interesting story told in an uninteresting way. So maybe it's clearer to say it's my "least favorite", even if others are generally considered "worse". It's still easily the worst episode of the first season. And silly as it is, I still like "Spock's Brain". I can have fun watching "Spock's Brain". But I have never enjoyed a single viewing of "The Alternative Factor". -TK |
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Post by TrekBeatTK on Jan 14, 2015 9:12:20 GMT -5
SPACE SEED -- Watching this one again, I focused on the characterization of McGivers. I think there's a lot of truth in the psychology of how she was written and there may be feminists out there offended by it, but I give the show credit for it. On one hand, she's someone obsessed with history, and a certain kind of historical man. So naturally when one falls in her lap she gets all flustered, the same way we might if some young Starfleet crew-woman beamed down in front of us. But then we get into this weird abusive relationship where she wants to be with Khan even though he treats her badly, and he still weirdly comes to love and respect her even as he treats her like an inferior. The mind games involved in the "Do it because it is what you wish" scene are amazing and real. This stuff really goes on. And McGivers still chooses to stay with him. Watching what many would call an unhealthy relationship develop in this way gives a new wrinkle to Khan referring to her as his "beloved wife" in TWOK. McGivers feels like a fully-realized woman to me in this episode; not that all women are easily susceptible to strong personalities, but that she was an individual and her actions rang true to me. It may also be an interesting commentary on the future of Trek; as society becomes more tolerant, "progressive", and good, the past sometimes becomes fantasized. Maybe McGivers stayed because even when Khan scared her, she couldn't say no to a dream come true.
THIS SIDE OF PARADISE -- The plants are a nice bit of alien biology, though I wonder what the endgame is for the spores. They take over human hosts in order to what? Make them breed more plants? Like "Return of the Archons", this is another episode where Kirk destroys a "perfect" society because of his belief that life is about challenge. It fascinates me that Roddenberry's enlightened future constantly features the destruction of "perfect societies". Granted, the Enterprise is usually endangered, which makes it a slightly different matter. But for all the talk on one side about humanity improving, these early episodes have a constant undercurrent for humanity to recognize and retain its "animal", violent nature. In "The Cage" we see "primitive" emotions block the Keeper, and Pike is ultimately deemed unsuitable because he's too primitive. In "The Enemy Within" Kirk is less of a captain without his bad side. In this one, strong emotions like anger drive out the spores (people are only cured after they fight each other). And even "Taste of Armageddon" first acknowledges the killer instinct before telling us to overcome it by saying "not today". In these early episodes, the "perfect" Federation humans readily acknowledge their frailties and champion them as the spirit of risk-taking and exploration and striving for more. The series wants us to believe that ultimately humanity has to keep going after something or it doesn't know what to do with itself. This may be why the super-utopia of TNG (especially early on), when Roddenberry essentially said all problems were solved and humans had no conflict, never rang true to fans of TOS. James Kirk would have a thing or two to say about 24th Century life.
-TK
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Post by TrekBeatTK on Jan 14, 2015 22:34:49 GMT -5
THE DEVIL IN THE DARK -- The Horta may look a little silly today, but considering the episode was written around it, I think it holds up pretty well. LOVE how the bit that was shot off still pulses with life. This remains a fantastic episode with a nice mystery script (even if many viewers probably know where it's going pretty early on), and nicely directed, sort of like Jaws. The POV shots during some of the early attacks were cool. We get further exploration of Spock's sometimes seeming-contradictory feelings about preserving life. Even when the story seems a little ridiculous, Coon's script allows it to be, with dashes of humor (like McCoy opining "I'm starting to think I can cure a rainy day!"). Funny how the miners ultimately only back off when Kirk points out the economic benefits of helping the Horta. Isn't that always the way; it only matters if there's money to be made.
ERRAND OF MERCY -- Ah, the first appearance of the Klingons. Watching it this time, I felt like Kirk came off as a kind of typical liberal does today: insisting you agree with them because they know better and they are always right, and arguing about the rights to do what they want. That scene where he keeps trying to convince the Organian council of danger just reminded me so much of trying to converse with Massachusetts Democrats. But Kirk, unlike them, comes around at the end and realizes how blind he was being. I'm also not saying this is a direct one-to-one analogy, but it's something that came off to me this time. It's also interesting to hear Spock say that there are many Vulcan merchants when I don't think we have literally ever seen one in any incarnation of Trek.
-TK
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Post by TrekBeatTK on Jan 15, 2015 10:08:17 GMT -5
OPERATION--ANNIHILATE! -- Ah, the flying ravioli/rubber vomit monsters. There's lovely continuity here with the appearance of Kirk's brother Sam, first mentioned in "What Are Little Girls Made Of?" Unfortunately, the family issue is never fully resolved. What becomes of Kirk's now orphaned nephew? Was he beamed back to Deneva under the care of some family friend? Did he remain on the Enterprise when they left? We don't know. The show becomes so interested in Spock that it neglects the other patient. Maybe the episode was running long. I've noticed in the first season that Spock starts to get written like golden-age Superman in that he suddenly gets new Vulcan powers whenever the script calls for it. Apart from Nimoy's own invention of the FSNP, we got mild melds, telepathy, and inner eyelids in the first season.
On the whole I think the first season is one of the most consistent seasons of Trek and arguably the best. Season two has higher highs, but this first season rarely has a bad episode. For all the sturm and drang to get it onscreen, the end result is generally of very good quality. Its lowest points tend to be failures in execution for production reasons, but apart from "The Alternative Factor" (which still in conception sounds good) I don't think there's a bad episode in the bunch. But there are a lot of classics. It's a shame that we lost Rand, and that Uhura had less and less to do as the year went on. Great 29 episodes on the whole, though.
-TK
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Post by TrekBeatTK on Jan 16, 2015 16:10:52 GMT -5
CATSPAW -- Not particularly great, but it makes for a fun Halloween episode. Too bad the "giant cat" stuff at the end is so bad. I want that little Enteprise pendant! ...not for sympathetic magic or anything...
METAMORPHOSIS -- This one is so weird. First, because it seems to think love has to be sexual, as if there's no other form of love, even between males and females. When last I watched it, I thought it was very sexist. Watching it again I realize that Hedford is awful, but most of the civilian officials we've met on this show are awful. So it's not because she's a woman, it's because she's not Starfleet (Starfleet women are all quite lovely). But then we get that weird stuff with Cochrane being repulsed by the Companion's affections until she steals a human body, and suddenly he loves her and wants to live out his days with her. And never mind that the Companion probably could have just cured Hedford at any time, but was a selfish jerk about it, or that she sort of rapes Hedford and steals her life. We're supposed to be okay with it because 1) Hedford was a bitch anyway or 2) Hedford wants it because she has never been loved. Sorry, I'm still not okay with it. We are never given any motivation for the Companion's initial action of saving Cochrane. If she is in love with him, why? Why does she love this corporeal being so? In a way, it's a kind of bizarre retelling of The Little Mermaid, but much as I like Gene Coon, I find this episode just very bizarre and I don't know how to feel about it.
FRIDAY'S CHILD -- It's not all that good, but I like that they attempted to create a different culture and the production design is interesting (even if the costumes are a little silly). The whole episode felt a lot like European powers colonizing East Africa in the late 19th and early 20th Centuries. The Klingons probably are a better fit culturally, but we're meant to distrust them just because. (and then Kirk breaks the Prime Directive that he had just said they hold most valued.) If the cast hadn't been white, I bet audiences would call the show racist the same way they do "Code of Honor". But McCoy slaps a pregnant woman, so that's something I guess.
-TK
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Post by TrekBeatTK on Jan 19, 2015 20:19:07 GMT -5
AMOK TIME -- A near-flawless classic. I do question why Spock couldn't just take a shuttle though. Are they very short-ranged in TOS? Not much more to say about it because it's awesome.
WHO MOURNS FOR ADONAIS? -- Scotty really takes a beating in this one! They missed an opportunity to explain away his missing finger. He could have lost it in one of the attacks. I like that Chekov is actually very useful in this episode, being instrumental in all the problem-solving.
THE CHANGELING -- So Spock can mind meld with machines now? That crosses a line to me. Unless Nomad is a "life form" somehow with a consciousness he can tap, and even then I'm not sure how I feel about it. If we go with that though, then the ending is not Kirk outwitting a machine: it's Kirk talking his enemy into suicide. Puts rather a pall over the whole thing, doesn't it? It's not a bad episode, but I like TMP better. The Nomad effects are pretty good though.
THE DEADLY YEARS -- I like the balancing act of age bringing both experience and senility. Kirk must be relieved when he is no longer able to do the job due to age, but that doesn't mean that JUST because someone is young he can do the job. Kirk's experience is what makes him a good captain, and that comes with age as well. Shatner puts in a great performance here, and the writing of the hearing is very nice. Funny, McCoy is the only one whose ultimate aging looks a lot like the make-up job here (though in fairness, that's because we saw a very old McCoy which was also a make-up job).
-TK
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Post by TrekBeatTK on Jan 20, 2015 18:27:47 GMT -5
WOLF IN THE FOLD -- A Scotty episode! I like this one because it's so weird, and it's more successful than "Catspaw", I think. Though it's very weird to watch it knowing the bad guy is the voice of Piglet. "P-P-Pooh, d-d-did you know I'm also Jack the Ripper?"
THE DOOMSDAY MACHINE -- It's so weird for an episode to not have Uhura at communications. The rising suspense in this one is really good. There's a reason it's another classic episode. It makes a point about nuclear proliferation as a deterrent, but doesn't get preachy about it. We've now had a couple episodes where a ranking officer takes over the Enterprise and does something stupid while in command. Kirk naturally gets agitated. It's interesting then to realize that Kirk ends up doing the same thing in TMP.
-TK
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Post by TrekBeatTK on Jan 20, 2015 18:38:30 GMT -5
Here's another thought regarding THE CHANGELING:
Does anyone else see a bit of similarity between Nomad and a Dalek? It's a mechanical being with antennae and such that probe out and it's primary mission is to "Sterilize!" Reminds me some of Daleks and how they seek to "Exterminate!" I wonder if mirroring Doctor Who a little bit was conscious in any way, or completely coincidental.
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Post by captainbasil on Jan 21, 2015 6:43:49 GMT -5
They are somewhat similar, with the exception of the fact that Daleks are organic beings, not robots, but both do primarily exterminate other life forms. The Daleks were really popular in the 60's so it might have been planned.
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Post by TrekBeatTK on Jan 22, 2015 8:58:06 GMT -5
THE APPLE -- The title is an annoying misnomer, since Adam and Eve never ate an apple. That's a bad Latin pun that snuck its way into our consciousness. That aside, I end up with a lot of questions about how Vaal ended up being installed as their leader in the first place. What I do like about this episode is that Spock and McCoy discuss the question of violating the Prime Directive here. The show has done similar stories a few times already last season, and now they show is actually pointing out its awareness that the actions of the Captain might be debatable. And a bunch of redshirts die. This episode and the following one are the main reason the "redshirts always die" thing exists. Because when you watch season 1, you don't get that at all. Far more goldshirts die than red in the first 30 episodes.
OBSESSION -- Basically, it's Trek's first take on Moby Dick and works pretty well. Though it's curious that the episode seems totally fine with murdering an intelligent creature because God-forbid it reproduce. I get the rationale for it, but even Spock doesn't question this? I get that it's highly dangerous to humans, but that means eradication is the only option? It's just weird at this point in the series to not even get a dissenting opinion.
JOURNEY TO BABEL -- One of my top 5 TOS episodes, I think. For people who say classic Trek is boring, this is the one to show them. Sure "Corbomite Maneuver" is a bit slow and repetitive. But "Babel" is dense with intrigue and goings on. Every time you turn around, someone's stabbed in a hallway. Plus I think it's the only time we ever see gold midgets. The story with Spock also touches on people of mixed race and the difficulties involved. But it doesn't get hamfisted about it.
MIRROR, MIRROR -- The I.S.S. Enterprise is actually a lot like the Klingons. Everyone wears gold sashes and carries a knife, people rise in rank by challenging and killing their superiors, etc. I wonder if any of the stuff we got about the Klingons in TNG was directly inspired by this episode.
-TK
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Post by captainbasil on Jan 23, 2015 6:44:13 GMT -5
I love the Mirror universe concept and I loved the Star Trek Continues episode where even the opening credits were from the Mirror Universe's perspective. The concept has been overdone, I admit, but STC's take on it was great. It picks up right after the events of Mirror/Mirror.
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Post by TrekBeatTK on Jan 25, 2015 16:21:38 GMT -5
I, MUDD -- I'm amused by this one every time. The notion of saving the day with irrational nonsense is a lot of fun. Of all the times Kirk has defeated a computer, this is my favorite. The insanity of all the dancing and Scotty dying, and the invisible bomb, it's all just wonderful. One of the few times a sequel is superior to the original.
THE TROUBLE WITH TRIBBLES -- Another classic episode and I don't know that I really have anything to say about it. Kirk's interactions with Barris get me every time, and they play well after having watched so many stuffy obnoxious idiots boss Kirk around in prior episodes. Kirk finally gets to just tell one of them to shut up!
A PRIVATE LITTLE WAR -- The Vietnam allegory is still very weird to me. They really liked going "this planet is just like the garden of Eden!" in every other episode, didn't they? This time around, Kirk disturbs paradise by trying to balance what the Klingons did. Basically, it's Star Trek doing The Butter Battle Book, but advocating that a balanced arms race is the lesser of evils.
THE IMMUNITY SYNDROME -- It always feels like a silly episode (the one with the space ameoba!). The creature effects are actually rather impressive for the time though, when you really look at it, with all the layers and pulsing and shifting colors and shapes. It actually feels a lot like a Voyager episode.
BY ANY OTHER NAME -- How lucky that nobody got godlike ESP powers after going through the galactic barrier (but boy, that would be a great way to defeat the Kelvans!).
A PIECE OF THE ACTION -- It's a curious story positing a society whose holy book is one about American history. That's a nice idea, but that don't go too far with it, playing it up for the laughs and it works. I do wonder how they came to develop automobiles and guns so accurate to the period. Does the book have pictures too? Even then, can you make a working tommy gun from just a picture? Whatever. It's a shame they never returned to this planet.
-TK
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Post by captainbasil on Jan 26, 2015 8:03:49 GMT -5
I love 'A Piece of the Action". While not canon, Star Trek Outpost returns to Sigma Iotia II and one of the main characters on the series, Lt. Exler hails from there. When she attains a command post she is called "Boss" by her crew.
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Post by StarFuryG7 on Jan 29, 2015 17:54:01 GMT -5
This episode had a lot of problems on both the writing and production ends, but all in all, I don't find it overly *boring* and don't *hate it* either frankly. At its core is an interesting, albeit mishandled, even *botched* in places, premise. But to rate it below "Spock's Brain" for cryin' out loud? Come on, TK. I mean, for God sake, even the AV Club rated "The Alternative Factor" better than "Spock's Brain" at a C-, whereas it gave the latter a D. Granted, that's a close call from their standpoint, but at least they had the good sense to give it a better grade by comparison. Other episodes are more objectively "bad" ("Spock's Brain", "The Omega Glory", "That Which Survives", "The Way to Eden"), but I like them more than this one. Most of those revolve around a failure to tell an interesting or believable story. Here we have what could have been an interesting story told in an uninteresting way. So maybe it's clearer to say it's my "least favorite", even if others are generally considered "worse". It's still easily the worst episode of the first season. And silly as it is, I still like "Spock's Brain". I can have fun watching "Spock's Brain". But I have never enjoyed a single viewing of "The Alternative Factor". -TK |
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Post by TrekBeatTK on Jan 29, 2015 22:24:47 GMT -5
Yes, I know people can derive a certain twisted sense of "so bad it's good" enjoyment out of watching that one, but for the most part, I'm really not one of those people. It was a bad story and a bad script to begin with and never should have been produced. "The Alternative Factor," on the other hand, was an interesting story idea which fell victim to the normal processes of producing television shows back then, which was why it went wrong by comparison. It turned out very flawed as a result, but the underlying premise which could have made for a better, more solid episode is still there nevertheless. Maybe I'll feel a little differently about "Spock's Brain" watching it again this week. I agree there are things terribly shlocky about it (the climax with McCoy reattaching it while repeating "a child could do it!" is stupid). It's the other elements of the episode I like apart from the brain stuff. But yeah, "Alternative Factor" is not exactly a bad concept, it's just terribly produced so I never enjoy anything about it. It always just feels off somehow to me. "The Empath" feels off to me too, but in a good way. I think maybe what hurts it most is that it's in a pretty solid season and sits among really good episodes. It just brings the season to a halt for me. However, it is the first time we see dilithium crystals onscreen, so it's at least got a moment of Trek history going for it. I have similar feelings about certain TNG episodes with good concepts that were complete failures in execution ("Too Short a Season" comes to mind). -TK |
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Post by TrekBeatTK on Jan 29, 2015 23:01:06 GMT -5
THE GAMESTERS OF TRISKELION -- Another one that I don't love, but it's okay. It has good bits to it. There's something fun about describing the episode: a bunch of super-intelligent, disembodied brains derive their only thrills from betting on alien death matches. Chekov rebuffing the advances of his mannish lady keeper is worth watching.
BREAD AND CIRCUSES -- From this one and the episode above, we can prove there's nothing original about "The Hunger Games". There is something prescient about the satire of television violence on display here, even if they are using "ancient" Roman tropes to make their point. The "development just like Earth" thing is a little much, and it leads to the curious question of whether we're to believe the "son worshippers" are deluded and have just deified the teachings of some guy, or whether Christ in fact came incarnate to another world. Was this in their century, or ages ago? I like the simplistic shirt designs for the slaves and I really wish that they would sell them. I joked with my sister that missionaries should dress like that at conventions and ask people if they are Brothers of the Son.
PATTERNS OF FORCE -- I know there are people who hate this one, but I think its pretty good. The clever invention of subcutaneous transponders (rarely ever used again), the green wounds on Spock's back, the brilliant message that benevolent totalitarianism is impossible. This is an episode that the "progessive" Left could learn something from. There's always an "other", and there will always be opportunists. The fact that it's all due to some well-intentioned academic is both hilarious and chllling. I find it very interesting that Spock was allowed to have a hairy chest, when to this point all men we've seen shirtless have been hairless. I also like that the "just like Earth" parallels here were by design; that's a well-conceived story.
THE OMEGA GLORY -- Season two does a lot of "just like Earth" episodes, but this is the absolute lowest point for them. Believing that some other planet developed a Red China and an America complete with the same documents we did and the same flag is just the most absurd thing. This is an episode with like 12 ideas and none of them are properly serviced. At its core is a story idea that could have worked if done with more subtlety. This is one of the earliest stories pitched for the series; the network hated it then, and by the time it eventually aired surely no one had warmed up to it. No matter how many rewrites it went through, they weren't enough. The opening mystery on the Exeter? Great! What a great shocking teaser! And then it's thrown away for some metaphor about the US and Asian Communism. Okay, that could work too, but then it's made far too explicit. And suddenly we're to believe that after China wins the war, all the Yankees become American Indians and have names like Cloud William and forget how to read English? Might have worked if they were descendants of Earthmen, and this wasn't parallel development, but it's still silly. Meanwhile the other story about immortality and disease and whatever else takes a back seat while Kirk preaches about the Constitution. The idea of American ideals becoming their own kind of religion is also a good one (we literally have statue erected to liberty personified), but that doesn't go far enough either. What's the worst thing to be said about this one? Maybe that, however unconsciously, elements of it were ultimately remade as Star Trek: Insurrection. Easily the worst episode of season two, you get the sense when it's over that everyone involved (save Roddenberry, who seemed to see it with rose-colored glasses) said, "Let's never speak of this again."
RETURN TO TOMORROW -- A change to the "advanced energy beings" trope the show had propagated, because Sargon really is benevolent and really has good intentions. A shame nobody thought to swing them by Mudd's android planet and save the trouble of making bodies themselves. This was one of the earliest episodes I saw, and I liked it a lot then and still do now. It gives Nimoy something different to play, and while it's not the best episode ever, it has a few clever twists and is a fun yarn while it lasts.
THE ULTIMATE COMPUTER -- This one is more relevant today than it ever was, I think, with its debate about automation putting men out of work. But it is very fair about the other side of it too; what does the wunderkind do when his glory days are behind him? Steve Jobs has to keep coming out with a bigger better iPhone because what else can he do? The tech world has created this catch-22 where the makers and innovators have to keep advancing or feel useless, but the rest of the world may suffer from what is thrust upon them. Do we all need the "next big thing" every two years? No. A case could be made that it amounts to a lot of wasted time and resources. But there are no easy answers here in regards to "progress". I love that D.C. Fontana's script deftly addresses all of these points. Does Kirk object on principle, or is he hurt personally? Is Daystrom clouded by his need to be successful again? Even when it becomes an A.I. story, it never loses its focus on humanity. On the surface it's a simple idea, but it is explored with wonderful complexity and truth making a somewhat underrated highlight.
ASSIGNMENT: EARTH -- Ah, the back-door pilot that went nowhere. What's interesting here are the characters and backstory hinted at, but the primary story is pretty boring. The Enterprise is there for no reason (they went back in time for a history lesson?), they do nothing of consequence, and even Gary Seven's mission doesn't come off as anything particularly interesting either. Just sabotage a rocket so it does no real damage but scares them out of firing rockets. It doesn't sell me on a Gary Seven series, unfortunately. While he's cool, do I want to see him diffuse rockets every week? Maybe they'd have found a way to make it work. Sadly, all that really works in this episode is Teri Garr (who I could watch in anything) interacting with all the weird stuff around her, and Seven just trying to do his job. Kirk and Spock do nothing, and their little tease at the end is only more frustrating when we never see these people again (probably why the fanbase couldn't resist reviving them in other media). Back-door pilots are a tricky thing to get right in any case, but the fact that the story they hung it on wasn't very interesting makes this one fun on a first watch, but kind of boring after that.
-TK
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Post by TrekBeatTK on Jan 30, 2015 20:09:11 GMT -5
Season two had higher highs than season one, but also a fair share of middling episodes that stretched credibility too far at times (and a few clunkers). But the best stuff is well-remembered. The ultimate revival that was season three is an unfortunate mixed bag.
SPECTRE OF THE GUN -- I do kind of like this one for some reason. I find the stark minimalist set works very well, but does make some of the dialogue where they act as if this is really the 1800s not work. (There's a throwaway line explaining the set, but it feels like this wasn't worked all the way through the rewrite). I do think it's a cool set though, and I find it interesting that our heroes are cast in villainous roles. This is a great mind over matter story. It's not the best the show ever did, but there are little things about it that I like.
ELAAN OF TROYIUS -- I just don't like this one. It feels like an episode written because someone thought of a mildly punny title (on Helen of Troy). It's just "Taming of the Shrew" done not particularly interestingly to me. Kirk has a few nice moments, but why are the Klingons even in this? This is however I think the first appearance of the Klingon battle cruiser (production-wise anyway), unless I missed one somewhere. The Elaan tears are also a subject of curiosity because I'm never sure if her emotion in that moment was real, or if they were just crocodile tears designed to manipulate Kirk and keep her from Troyius by any means necessary. It's a forgettable episode, which proves true of most of the third season.
-TK
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Post by TrekBeatTK on Jan 31, 2015 20:13:33 GMT -5
SPOCK'S BRAIN -- And now comes the point where I will defend "Spock's Brain". Let's be clear, I don't think this is a good episode. But neither do I think it's the worst of the season or the series. "The Omega Glory" is worse, and "The Way to Eden" is no masterpiece either. I do think "Spock's Brain" got sidetracked into B-movie sci-fi when it has solid concepts and themes underneath. Other Trek episodes feature our crew as disembodied consciousness, but this is usually metaphysical. "Spock's Brain" is possibly the only episode that does it more logically (wink), with the removal of the entire brain. I like the gender dynamics at play (women described as "givers of pain and delight"). I think the sets and costumes are cool. Unfortunately, we don't get nearly enough backstory on the planet and its people, and the resolution of that element is sloppy. And yes, the climax with Bones reconnecting the brain is silly ("a child could do it!"). Still, even this has a teeny glimmer of truth to it, as actual brain surgery really does often require a patient to be conscious and responsive in order to be sure the correct areas are being worked on. Kirk's passion to save his friend (and the ticking clock on that) works well and prefigures The Search For Spock. It's unfortunate that the stronger elements drown in the cheesier brand of sci-fi that Trek had made a name by avoiding. We don't need the silly zombie Spock with the annoying clicking sound, nor some really terrible dialogue. Shatner does his best to not sound ridiculous spouting, "In search of his brain, doctor!" It is certainly a flawed episode. It's weak Star Trek, but would have made a great Lost in Space. I wonder if the troubled end result is why Gene Coon used his pseudonym on it. Still, love it or hate it, it makes for a great drinking game. Just drink whenever someone says "brain"!
FOR THE WORLD IS HOLLOW AND I HAVE TOUCHED THE SKY -- The Oracle's decision to welcome McCoy as one of the People made me see parallels to the Old Testament Israelites. The People are on their way to a promised land as directed by the Creators. McCoy can join them if he agrees to worship their Creators, accept the instrument of obedience in his flesh (like circumcision), and learn their ways. This struck me as very like Levitical law regarding resident aliens. This one is a beautiful episode in many respects for centering on McCoy. It has a great story concept, but is elevated by remaining a character piece. First McCoy wants to stay and die, then he wants to leave and live, and both seem motivated in true emotion. The quick resolution to his terminal illness is a little goofy, but I think this is a standout of season three. And I love the poetic title, the longest episode title ever.
-TK
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Post by TrekBeatTK on Feb 2, 2015 9:06:35 GMT -5
IS THERE IN TRUTH NO BEAUTY? -- The third season has a lot more camera experimentation, with directors choosing more weird angles and lenses. This is a good example, with some odd POV shots, including the one of Spock's "visor vision". This episode is a great example of how colorful TOS was with all it's reds and greens and the weird stuff in the Medusan box. I know it was mainly to exploit color television, but it's a shame that later trek seemed to get very monchromatic. It's understandable with ENT to a point, but VOY was going that way too.
THE THOLIAN WEB -- I like the exploration of what the ship under Spock's command would be like. The new space suits are better than the shower curtains they wore first season. The one problem with the web is that we never see the edges beyond our screen; what does it look like? Where do these fibers stop? Couldn't the ship just go around it? But it's a solid episode with ghost Kirk and some nice character moments.
-TK
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