Day of the Dove: Discuss
- Thread starter Methuselah Flint
- Start date
For a 50 year old show, TOS did a much better job imagining strange life forms than any of the future incarnations.
This is one of those episodes that grew on me as I got older. The planet scene has always been excellent, but when I was younger the one-dimensional aspects of the shipboard drama bored me, and even the obvious metaphor did too. I'm not sure exactly when or how I changed my mind, but a lot of it has to do with my appreciation of Mara. Chekov's attempted rape of Mara is one of the more dramatic moments of the entire series, despite its understatement, which is typical in the presentation of many of those moments. But beyond that drama, the whole story essentially depends upon Kirk first changing Mara's mind and then later the two of them changing Kang's. So, Mara is an indispensable element of the story.
Mara's rape scene was removed from the BBCs transmission for many years, leaving us perplexed as to why Kirk slugged his navigator at the time! It looked like he was going to chop her with the sword but the next minute he's hurled to the wall by Kirk and then karate chopped!
JB
JB
I always wondered what happened to those severly wounded crewmen who were still in sickbay when the alien took off at the end of the episode.
I've always wondered how people hundreds of years in the future would be so proficient in sword play.
It seems self evident due to Next Gen that Klingons are good with bladed weapons but other than Day of the Dove, were Klingons in the original series ever shown using bladed weapons?
I always enjoyed the episode though.
There was actually a quick line in the episode about how the Klingon Empire has maintained a dueling tradition, and Kirk assumed that the Klingons morphed material into swords because they knew it would be to their advantage.
It's cool that this quick line was carried over into decades of portraying the Klingons later.
Absolutely! And, considering the budget, most of the creations produced are (imho) sci-fi works of art.
This is not the first time I've read your comments about BBC censorship, johnnybear. Thank you for sharing. It seems ridiculous that many of the scenes you've mentioned were removed, and I appreciate the additional perspective. I think TOS did an awesome job of keeping the battles suspenseful and exciting, yet clean, so your testimony always strikes me as excessive controls.
Unlike modern action scenes that show every gruesome detail, I have absolutely no qualms about allowing my daughter to watch the original adventures. The camaraderie of the crew and their ability to overcome fantastic challenges, despite personal obstacles is edifying. Were the scenes removed by network choice or by government mandate? Just curious...
Yes. Fred Phillips, makeup, and Bill Theiss, costumes, worked wonders in creating the myriad of aliens that Kirk and crew encountered.
C
C57D
Guest
This is not the first time I've read your comments about BBC censorship, johnnybear. Thank you for sharing. It seems ridiculous that many of the scenes you've mentioned were removed, and I appreciate the additional perspective. I think TOS did an awesome job of keeping the battles suspenseful and exciting, yet clean, so your testimony always strikes me as excessive controls.
Unlike modern action scenes that show every gruesome detail, I have absolutely no qualms about allowing my daughter to watch the original adventures. The camaraderie of the crew and their ability to overcome fantastic challenges, despite personal obstacles is edifying. Were the scenes removed by network choice or by government mandate? Just curious...
Having too grown up in 60's and 70's UK I can recall the censorship that Johnnybear mentions. My personal impression is that it was the BBC self censoring to avoid any imposition from the government. But also there was a popular (?) group at the time called the National Viewers and Listeners Association led by the controversial and bombastic Mary Whitehouse. They would vociferously complain about any media that seemed evem slightly racy. The BBC fell afoul of them many times !
Last edited by a moderator:
Yes, Kor had a small dagger in Errand of Mercy. He grabbed it from his desk but had to drop it because the Organians had made all weapons too hot to handle.
As for the BBC, they even banned a few episodes altogether, including Miri!
Kor
Absolutely! And, considering the budget, most of the creations produced are (imho) sci-fi works of art.
This is not the first time I've read your comments about BBC censorship, johnnybear. Thank you for sharing. It seems ridiculous that many of the scenes you've mentioned were removed, and I appreciate the additional perspective. I think TOS did an awesome job of keeping the battles suspenseful and exciting, yet clean, so your testimony always strikes me as excessive controls.
Unlike modern action scenes that show every gruesome detail, I have absolutely no qualms about allowing my daughter to watch the original adventures. The camaraderie of the crew and their ability to overcome fantastic challenges, despite personal obstacles is edifying. Were the scenes removed by network choice or by government mandate? Just curious...
Well The Day of The Dove scene you could argue was not the right thing for a child to see on television but the majority of scenes excised by the BBC were just to fit the show into the slot and they never bothered to alter the cut years later either! How can you justify cutting Kirk's first meeting with his attorney Samuel Cogley in Court Martial and scenes with The Gorn in Arena without a credible reason?
JB
C
C57D
Guest
C
C57D
Guest
Apologies for the blank post! Train jerked and finger hit wrong button on mobile!!
Maybe you were taken over by an unseen force which whirled and whistled in the corner of your room, C57D? 
JB
JB
C
C57D
Guest
Totally. And given Auntie Beeb's disdain for any scifi (even its own), its a wonder that any of that programming made sense!!
I do remember watching Holiday Trek as a youngster,C5! One episode every morning at Christmas and holiday times back in the mid seventies! Great times!
JB
JB
C
C57D
Guest
Johnnybear that both sounds a little Cthulhuic and more fun than the 7:40 train to Glasgow that is actually throwing me around.Maybe you were taken over by an unseen force which whirled and whistled in the corner of your room, C57D?
JB
C
C57D
Guest
Your memory's is better than mine on that point Johnnybear. But I do recall seeing ST (Miri and Spectre of the Gun are the two I recall the most) on the Beeb back in those heady days.
Loved TOS then, love TOS now.
Similar threads
