Worst Season 1 episode....

[Warped9]

Inspired by another thread along similar lines here we'll have an actual vote for worst TOS episodes.

To simplify this we'll devide the series into seasons and then pick the least liked episodes against each other in a finale.

I'm not including "The Cage" because it was never aired as part of the series and the great bulk of the episode was utilized for the Season 1 two-parter "The Menagerie." I am thinking of later including TAS as TOS' fourth season just for the sake of discussion. We'll let the polls run for one week before moving on to the next one.


Season One is something of a challenge for me. During my last rewatch there wasn't really any episode I could say I truly disliked. There were a handful of episodes I thought were only fair and definitely could have been better. Yet in each one of them there were things I liked that kept me from seeing them as poor or all out bad.

“Mudd’s Women”
“Miri”
“The Conscience Of The King”
“The Alternative Factor”
“The Return Of The Archons”

Ultimately if pressed to choose then I'd have to say "The Alternative Factor." As I said it isn't that I think it's horrible, but that it is the weakest in terms of coherent story.

 

[BillJ]

"The Alternative Factor". Not sure we even need a vote here.

 

[Warped9]

"The Alternative Factor". Not sure we even need a vote here.

Well given some of the posts in the other thread we might be surprised which episode someone doesn't like. This poll could be interesting even if the end result seems clear cut. It could be interesting to read why some might dslike otherwise well regarded episodes.

 

[Admiral Shran]

"Mudd's Women". Though "The Alternative Factor" is a very close second.

 

[Vger23]

"Mudd's Women". Though "The Alternative Factor" is a very close second.

That's where I'm coming from too.

 

[Noname Given]

For me: "The Man Trap" It was the first episode aired, but it was actually the 5th produced - and it's SO FULL of both contradictions to the premise of the series plus has Spock emotionally screaming at McCoy:

SPOCK: "It's killing the Captain. Shoot it, Doctor, quickly!"

ugh.

 

[Marsden]

Well, maybe you should have named the thread least favorite episode not named Alternative Factor?

But no, I see what you're saying, and I'm going to have to pick Alternative Factor for all of those reasons we've said.


My #2 least favorite is Miri. It's not bad, so much as I don't like it that much, although I do like it, I'd be in serious debt if I had to pay someone for every time I've said "Bonk Bonk on the head". I just find some of it to be off, as in making a huge discovery of another Earth and then it's just passed over for the rest of the time. That seemed like a bigger deal to me. Also, they have been eating out of cans for 300 years? What? I wouldn't ask if they didn't make a point of saying their food is running out, then it turns from a random nitpick to an actual plot point, what are they eating , then? Also, I didn't care for how the cure cures in a few seconds, but then like The Deadly Years, all future cures are not only perfect but instantaneous. One more thing, I love how Spock says he doesn't understand "the medical mind" I think Spock understood perfectly, Hmmm, here's a possible cure, I'll just leave for no reason to give Bones enough time to try it out on himself and act like I don't understand when I get back. Beaker full of death, indeed.

 

[Warped9]

The duplicate Earth was a bonehead idea. I like how James Blish handled it in his adaptation of the story where there was no mention of a duplicate Earth. The planet was essentially a forgotten colony that had cut itself off from Earth.

 

[Kor]

That's where I'm coming from too.

Hmm, me too. I enjoy Mudd's Women the least out of all first season episodes.
At least with The Alternative Factor, Lazarus's raving is rather entertaining, and I always liked the Nibblonian time ship.

Kor

 

[CrazyMatt]

"The Alternative Factor," hands down.....

 

[Marsden]

The only part of Mudd's Women I don't like is the end where Eve makes her self up with no make up and Kirk and Mudd give a double team coaching pep talk to Childress, it's just too "this is the moral of the story now, kids".
The rest of the story seems pretty solid, and we get some good world building, an essential part of any science fiction endeavor.

 

[3D ChessMaster]

Looking at a list of all the episodes just reminds me how good Almost all the episodes are. the Alternative Factor is the only one that I do not have a strong image of at least one scene or quote so it has to be it.
Man Trap is another poor one but it has enough interesting parts. I don't think Spock is being emotional in shouting at McCoy to shoot the monster, he is just logically shouting as he is trying to snap McCoy out of the illusion the monster is his ex girlfriend. Still why don't they use stun on the phaser it's the last of its species?

 

[KeepOnTrekking]

No contest--"The Alternative Factor." The science about only EXACT particles of matter and antimatter annihilating each other was silly. Lazarus having the run of the ship was not smart security. Both Lazaruses seemed crazy until the very end when Kirk had the final talk with the one in the antimatter universe about setting the trap. Masters being in charge of engineering matters seemed off unless Scotty (who would rather read technical journals rather than take shore leave) was offship somewhere.

My 2nd choice would have been "Mudd's Women." Still unsure how Eve could transform herself from "windblown in a storm" into a beautiful woman just by taking colored gelatin. I can retcon in my mind the Venus drug having some Deltanlike pheromones and that their miraculous transformation was from the crewmen's point of view kind of like the "fish-eye" lens shot from "The Tholian Web" when the crewmen go insane...but not the gelatin placebo. Also, Mudd and his women, although under security guard, still had enough latitude to get around the ship enough to steal a communicator and cause trouble.

3rd place would be "Miri." Beside the throwaway line of an exact duplicate of Earth that didn't really contribute to the plot in any way, just having all the children yelling and screaming "Nyah, nyah" and "bonk, bonk" throughout slowed whatever dramatic momentum this episode had.

 

[CorporalCaptain]

I entertained alternative factors such as "Miri" and "The Return of the Archons," but there was no alternative.

"The Alternative Factor"

 

[Paradise City]

I liked The Alternative Factor. It always had a psychedelic quality to it.

I dislike TOS when it features children prominently. Those episodes are as irritating as scraping a blackboard.

 

[johnnybear]

Even though the ladies were quite hot I've never been a great fan of Mudd's Women! I didn't like I Mudd either and that was worse! Very embarrassing to watch with your family that one!
JB

 

[OtherGene]

I voted for 'Shore Leave' then instantly regretted it as I do enjoy that episode and it's lunacy but, meh, I had to pick one.

Shame about The Alternative Factor getting so many votes. Come on guys, Lazarus is STILL OUT THERE FIGHTING!

 

[Botany Bay]

The production staff in '66-67 were mighty unhappy with Court Martial. The ending did seem rushed, and it could've done with a bit of a reworking, but it's not the worst of the bunch.

After the mysterious last minute script changes, the wheels fell off Alternative Factor completely. This one gets my vote.

To complete my bottom five, add Mudd's Women, Miri and Operation--Annihilate!

 

[JimZipCode]

It is the will of Landru – that we name Return of the Archons as the worst episode.

Mudd's Women has some excellent world-building in it. And I love the rawer edge of early season 1. Even though they haven't fully fleshed-out Spock's character yet – his knowing smirk when we first meet the women would later be established as COMPLETELY out of character – but the overall worldliness contributes to the smartness of the story.

The obvious alternative is The Alternative Facdtor, and that is terrible. But Archons is just squirmy and embarrassing.

 

[Xotika]

Voted Mudd's Women - it is too annoying overall. The Alternative Factor comes close second.

I would add Menagerie because the framing sequence makes no sense but footage from The Cage saves it, so definitely not the worst.