Production Order Group Viewing 2018

[Henoch]

The tractor beam has a greater range than the transporter. Who knew?

Makes sense; reach out and pull them into transporter range. Also, I like to think the tractor beam is based on the deflector technology (one pulls, one pushes), so it makes sense that both tractors and the deflectors, sometimes called the deflector shields, must be able to reach out very far distances to deflector space matter away from the FLT ship or other ship as in Mudd's Women.

 

[Poltargyst]

The Way to Eden

Ah, Lt. Palmer is back taking over for Uhura. She stands out in my mind for being in The Doomsday Machine. That's a nice bit of continuity.

LOL, Kirk's a Herbert. In the academy, Kirk was voted "most likely to be a Herbert."

Spock: "I am not Herbert."
Adam: "He is not Herbert." You mean that's all you have to say?

They're looking for Eden! Sha Ka Ree! Qui'Tu! Vorta Vor! Don't you dummies know it's in the center of the galaxy?

Adam: "Gonna crack my knuckles and jump for joy. I got a clean bill of health from Dr. McCoy." Ha ha.

Hmm, Christine dyed her hair. It's darker.

Irina's pretty. Good on ya, Pavel. And I see she's carrying on the new and very important bare midriff tradition established last week. A tradition I highly approve of.

Okay, so there's Scotty's reaction when he first sees the hippies, and then there's this incredibly rude crewman they make a point of showing staring down Irina with distaste (unless he's checking out her midriff which I would understand) along with all these derogatory comments made by various characters about the hippies. As the episode goes on, the hippies' behavior becomes far from exemplary, but even at the beginning there's a real prejudice about their looks. This crew has seen Gorns, Hortas, Mugatos, Andorians, Tellerites and showed less distain than they show for these peoples' looks. I know they want to emphasize the conflict the establishment has for the hippies, but I'm not sure I quite buy the crew acting this way.

Spock: "Doctor Sevrin is insane..."
Kirk: "I'll have Bones check him out." Another situation where it should be Helen!

As Chekov and Irina kiss, Spock: "I am not receiving." Chekov definitely is.

What a great menacing smile Skip Homeier does as Sevrin listens to the music in his cell knowing his evil plan is underway. Skip did a great job with the role.

It's a fun jam session. I like it when Spock breaks out the Vulcan harp. Sounds good too.

This episode feels like it has less content than other episodes. I think because we spend time listening to the music.

Huh. Tongo Rad has his own neck pinch.

Kirk: "I used to get into a little trouble when I was that age, Scotty. Didn't you?" Yeah, Scotty, Mr. "I threw the first punch on K-7."

This crew truly does the impossible. Curing diseases and technical issues in a matter of minutes, finding mythical planets.

In other episodes they no sooner stick the front of the saucer section into the Romulan Neutral Zone and they are confronted by Romulans before the nacelles have cleared the border. Here, somehow they make it far enough into and back out of Romulan space to reach another system and never see a Romulan. Romulan border security has become lax.

What a bunch of hypocrites these Sevrinites are. Them and all their Oneness and Reaching, and they have no problem stealing ships, deceiving, and harming the crew.

Reused footage of Christine falling when they turn on the sonics? Her hair's a lot blonder than earlier in the episode.

Of course Kirk is the only one able to fight through the pain of the sonics to turn them off. His love of the Enterprise again making him overcome all things harmful?

Poor Adam. Ate the forbidden fruit and died.

I think they could have physically stopped Sevrin from eating the fruit if they tried.

Another episode with a social message. It seems to be a commentary on modern life, but it doesn't seem to pick a side, showing the pros and cons of both sides. Clearly we need society with its rules and its order and we need discipline if we're going to accomplish something in life. Society provides benefits, allow us to progress, can develop the cure to Sevrin's Synthococcus novae. But society can isolate us, cut us off from nature, expose us to things human bodies weren't meant to be exposed to. Society caused Sevrin's disease. The hippies are right to want freedom of expression and action, to get back into relationships with others and nature. But they display lack of discipline, naivete, hypocrisy, arrogance, willingness to harm others to get what they want. I'm left feeling like the episode wants us to have balance. We need society and technology to survive, but it must be balanced with strong relationships and a respect for nature.

I'm also catching a whiff of one of TOS's ongoing themes that there is no paradise. Humans were meant to toil and work hard to achieve.

Okay episode. I'll put it one step above Meh due to Irina's midriff, Spock's harp, and the music which makes the episode unique.

Alien Watch! The Sevrin gang!

Season 1
Talosians
That big ugly Rigellian guy Pike fought in illusion
Vina as an Orion girl in illusion
Glimpse of other aliens captured by Talosians
Ron Howard's brother
That dog from Enemy Within
Salt monster
That hand plant...Gertrude
Spock (duh)
Charlie's parents (Thasians)*
Romulans!
(Ruk)
Miri's planet kids (bonk bonk)
Giant ape creatures of Taurus II
Shore Leave Caretaker guy
Trelaine and his folks*
Gorn
Metrons*
The Lazerii
The remarkably human-looking aliens of Beta 3. (RotA)
The remarkably human-looking aliens of Emineminar VII (AToA)
The Triffids of Omicron Ceti III (TSoP)
The refreshingly non-human-looking Horta
Organians*
Klingons! (Remarkably human looking).
(The Guardian of Forever)
Flying pancakes

Season 2
Sylvia and Korob
The Companion
The remarkably human looking (though tall) Cappellans.
Native Pollux IV-ians (Apollo and his gang)
Full-blooded Vulcans
The remarkably human looking citizens of Argelius II (WitF)
Redjac
The People of Vaal (Gamma Triangulians)
Crew of the ISS Enterprise
The remarkably human-looking** (except for maybe a dot on their forehead) Halkans
Tribbles (not at all human looking)
The remarkably human-looking citizens of...892-VI. Is that what they call this planet? (The Roman one.)
Tall guys, short guys, Andorians, Tellurites, purple lady, Orion made up like an Andorian. (JtB)
The remarkably human-looking people of Neural. (APLW)
The awesome Mugato!
Shahna, Lars, Tamoon, Kloog, Thrallmaster Galt, and the Providers
The Cloud from the Tycho system.
The BIG FREAKIN' AMEBA!!!!!
The remarkably human-looking Iotians. (Gangsters)
Kelvans! Who really look like big, cool squids but choose to look remarkably human.
Sargon and the gang of not-quite-omnipotent aliens.
Remarkably human looking Zeons of Zeon and Ekosians of Ekos. (PoF)
The remarkably human looking Yangs and Coms of Omega IV.
Isis! Who looks remarkably like a cat until she wants to look remarkably human.

Season 3
The decidedly non-human looking Melkotians.
The remarkably human-looking Elasians and not so human looking Troyians.
Lawyer in a muumuu. Remarkably human-looking but maybe that was on purpose.
The remarkably human-looking Morgs and Eymorgs of Sigma Draconis.
Kollos the Medusan
Gem the Empath (remarkably human looking)
Vians (the OTHER bumpy-headed aliens)
Tholians!
The remarkably human-looking Fabrini of Yo Mama.
The malicious swirly ball of hate (DotD)
The remarkably human-looking Platonians who are douchebags except for Alexander
The fast, but still remarkably human looking Scalosians.
The remarkably human-looking image of Losira.
The Cheron boys, Bele and Lokai
Lackey's of Garth's some of whom are more human-looking than others.
Way too many remarkably human-looking Gideons.
Discorporated Zetarians and some recently departed Federation scholars and researchers of various races.
The remarkably human-looking Ardanians and their amazing midriffs.
Sevrin is Tiburonian, Rad is Catullan. If the others are aliens, they are remarkably human-looking.

*Alien Watch sublist: omnipotent aliens!
**By request

 

[Poltargyst]

They talk about Kirk, Spock, and Droxine's father. Doesn't that invalidate the test? Or did Kirk change the rules again?

Hmm, you might be right.

 

[Henoch]

Shortly after Dr Sevrin escapes, Adam slips out of the Rec Room using a small, never before seen exit located behind the angled wall beams. How helpful of the ship’s designers to include this feature!

The exit leads to a narrow passageway with restrooms on each side plus a second entry/exit to another concentric corridor. Adam, "Excuse me, but I have to hit the head."

 

[ZapBrannigan]

It's a reused bit from SPOCK'S BRAIN. Could be she didn't want to have her new perm hit the floor, or more likely it's third-season cost-cutting. They've even got the tired ''Sulu looks at Kirk'' stock-clip in DAY OF THE DOVE during the turbulence.....never mind his facial expression is too serene for that situation.

And he's wearing a different uniform. It was shot specifically as stock footage during "The Corbomite Maneuver"

 

[Phoenix219]

THE WAY TO EDEN

• Spock identifying with the Space-Hippies is a surprising but nonetheless fitting development of his character (and gets a satisfactory explanation in the episode itself). His rapport with Adam is very natural, he connects with the young man without ever breaking his own stoic character.

The Way to Eden

They're looking for Eden! Sha Ka Ree! Qui'Tu! Vorta Vor! Don't you dummies know it's in the center of the galaxy?

I love that one of the most hated episodes and disliked movies can make each other better, add context, and stay consistent! Growing up with Sybok and all of the legends and lore have absolutely affected how Spock is reacting in this situation.... and remembering this situation may very well have influenced Spock's actions during TFF. Either way, it shines a light on both galactic myths and Spock's mindset concerning philosophy, religion and paradise.

 

[Laura Cynthia Chambers]

It’s amusing that disobedient teenagers completely baffle Scotty! In fact he really doubles down as the “old man” of the crew, completely unable to even consider what drives these troublesome youths.

I guess he's used to the more mature youth he works with on the ship. 17 year old yeomen and the like, all very professional. I'm pretty sure Scotty never hijacked a civilian ship for a joyride. Everybody tends to to look at their own wild pasts with rose-colored glasses, if they look at all.

I get the impression there’s a missing back story here; Spock believes it’s a real planet of extreme natural beauty, which suggests that it had been discovered at least once before in recorded history. But by who and when? And why is it now deadly to the core?

I wonder if it's part of top secret Vulcan history. Maybe one of the worlds they ruined in their violent pre-Surak days and attempted to hide?

 

[plynch]

I really like "Eden." There are good character moments. It was . . . fun.

 

[Commishsleer]

The Cloud Minders

...

Weird that the torture chamber is so close to the visitor's quarters that you can hear people being tortured while in your room. I guess they're trying to make some kind of statement to visitors.

LOL. Perhaps is hard to find a dungeon to do your torture in in a cloud city.

I hate hate hate this episode because of the Spock Droxine thing. Because its so unlike him and well Droxine is so unworthy of him. On paper she looks a good match, beautiful, well read, well bred but she's also racist and elitist. Something you hope Spock would perceive as more important.
However perhaps if they had some writers from S1 they might have saved this episode for me. Perhaps if the Enterprise had been visiting the planet for a while and Spock and Droxine had some sort of established 'thing' going on before there was a distress call from the affected planet. The Enterprise could have been coincidentally there on a diplomatic mission. Then Spock's 'romance' might have been more believable.

The Way to Eden

Ah, Lt. Palmer is back taking over for Uhura. She stands out in my mind for being in The Doomsday Machine. That's a nice bit of continuity.

\

Ithink Lt Palmer is great. She seems very professional.

But Uhura has more personality...

I don't think Eden is TOS worst episode.
I like it that for once Spock is the weakest against some attack.
I like the Chekov romance angle although the multi Russian accents grate after a while.
I dislike it that Severin's gang knew that his attack against the crew members of the Enterprise was intended to be fatal including Irina but they were all forgiven easily in the end.

 

[Poltargyst]

LOL. Perhaps is hard to find a dungeon to do your torture in in a cloud city.

I hate hate hate this episode because of the Spock Droxine thing. Because its so unlike him and well Droxine is so unworthy of him. On paper she looks a good match, beautiful, well read, well bred but she's also racist and elitist. Something you hope Spock would perceive as more important.
However perhaps if they had some writers from S1 they might have saved this episode for me. Perhaps if the Enterprise had been visiting the planet for a while and Spock and Droxine had some sort of established 'thing' going on before there was a distress call from the affected planet. The Enterprise could have been coincidentally there on a diplomatic mission. Then Spock's 'romance' might have been more believable.


Ithink Lt Palmer is great. She seems very professional.

But Uhura has more personality...

I don't think Eden is TOS worst episode.
I like it that for once Spock is the weakest against some attack.
I like the Chekov romance angle although the multi Russian accents grate after a while.
I dislike it that Severin's gang knew that his attack against the crew members of the Enterprise was intended to be fatal including Irina but they were all forgiven easily in the end.

I don't think Eden is the worst either. It has enjoyable moments. I agree with how easily the Sevrinites get off at the end. Reminds me of the Kelvins getting off so easy after killing the yeoman and taking over the ship.

 

[Henoch]

I don't think Eden is the worst either. It has enjoyable moments. I agree with how easily the Sevrinites get off at the end. Reminds me of the Kelvins getting off so easy after killing the yeoman and taking over the ship.

Or Khan, too. At least, Ben Finney and Ron Tracey were arrested, but we never learn their sentences (if any).

 

[Mytran]

REQUIEM FOR METHUSELAH

Now there’s a plague on the ship itself? Jeepers!
How many virulent, utterly deadly plagues is that now?
Fortunately Kirk, Spock, McCoy, Uhura and Scotty are not infected. Hurrah for main character powers!

With pretty much a cast of just 5 actors and the action confined to Flint’s mansion, this is another episode that is basically a stage play, something that’s quite a common occurrence this season.

This episode looks at the consequences of being immortal, a condition many energy beings in Star Trek have already experienced. However, this is the first time we see a flesh and blood creature having to deal with such an existence. The actor playing Flint does a fair job in portraying this, but any real nuance is hampered by the numerous sub-plots: romance, love triangle, notions of ownership and what it really MEANS to be human. Oh, and one of the characters is a surprise android! Couple that with an absurdly short timescale (just 4 hours) and we’re left with a jumble of Star Trek tropes mashed together with just too much force to be effective storytelling.


OTHER THOUGHTS

• So, the aged Flint lives alone on an entire planet with just a robot and a young, naïve female for company. It’s fairly well known that The Cage was inspired by “Forbidden Planet”, but this episode seems to lift huge chunks from the movie wholesale!
• Flint owns the planet. The WHOLE planet! How does that work? And yet Kirk not know this information even though it is in the Enterprise’s computer banks (Uhura finds it later). Shouldn’t Kirk be expecting to meet with Mr Brack upon beaming down?
• Spock drinks the brandy. With that and his flirty behaviour towards Droxine he’s really loosened up this season!
• McCoy says he want to supervise M4 processing the rhyetalin into medicine, then allows himself to be separated by a screen. D’oh!
• Rayna says that she is scared, so Kirk takes the opportunity to grab her then snog her! It is clear that Kirk gets his pop-culture status as a womaniser mainly from Season Three.
• It seems that Spock has really been blitzing the Earth history books lately, recognising such minute details as Brahm’s handwriting on sight. That’s extreme even by Spock’s own standards!
• It is indeed most fortunate that M4 did not detect Spock and deactivate his phaser, allowing him to save Kirk’s life. Spock lampshades this but it doesn’t excuse lazy writing.
• And then it turns out that Flint quickly built a replacement M4 anyway. This is worse than that time Spock pretended to be blind!
• Rayna being an android is a classic sci-fi twist and a Trek staple. Also, this is the only way that a perfect, ultimate woman can exist (according to the episode, anyway!)
• Flint has a machine that can shrink passing starships to the size of a desktop model. How convenient! I wonder how often he uses it?
• When Flint “shrinks” the Enterprise, it seems that Kirk peers into the Bridge through the main viewscreen. Did Flint also transform it into a window? That’s a wacky concept by itself.
• Flint’s lab features at least one piece of machinery that we see aboard the Enterprise (the tall, blocky unit that Kirk crashes into during the fight) They probably bought them from the same universal supply company
• The drama ends YET AGAIN with a speech from Spock summing up the themes of the episode. Good effort from Nimoy with mediocore material, AGAIN. But for some reason that’s not the end of the episode and we get that little scene in Kirk's cabin.

RIGELIAN FEVER
The episode starts with a massive info dump, but plays the situation very seriously. Kirk is ruthless in his goal of attaining the ryetalyn , initially playing the “death by suicide” card with Flint. This is not a man who’s going to be easily diverted from - oh, hello pretty lady…
McCoy yet again gets to ply his southern charms on the young lady, just like he did with Miranda Jones in Is There In Truth No Beauty. He’s still quite a smoothie.
But then Kirk swoops in to romance her like a horny teenager! In fact, he’s operating at Warp 9 speeds this week, falling head over heels in love in just a couple of hours! Along with Spock drinking the brandy and McCoy forgetting to supervise M4 processing the ryetalyn, it seems likely that they are all infected with the Rigelian fever and hallucinating many of the out of character moments.
Later on the medicine is ready and it’s finally time to get back to the ship, but Kirk has apparently fallen in love with Rayna and wants to hang out with her some more. What the heck?
I suppose it’s possible that now that he knows (or suspects) Flint’s motives, is he doing this on purpose to antagonise his host? But why prolong the deception afterwards? McCoy’s final speech suggests that he at least thought Kirk had genuinely fallen in love and Kirk’s own actions support this. It’s GOT to be the Rigelian fever, right?

The final scene in Kirk’s cabin is bizarre and unnecessary. McCoy’s speech confirms Kirk’s remorseful state who is apparently so upset that he falls asleep on the spot. Hmmm…on Stratos, he fell asleep in the guest room within minutes, now he’s dozed off at his desk. Is the 5 year mission finally catching up with him?

Kirk rambles on about both he and Flint being lonely men with their behaviour being inappropriate – but it’s a poor shadow of his similar monologue back in The Naked Time. Then finally, Spock adopts an awkward pose and proceeds to wipe out a portion of his captain’s memory. That’s got to be against regulations!


All in all I have to wonder - what really occurred down there on the planet? Was there a real Mr Brack and his staff who had to put up with 3 delirious Starfleet Officers as they rampaged though his retirement home for hours until, finally, he was able to persuade them to take the rhytalin and just get the hell off his planet?

 

[ZapBrannigan]

"Requiem" is one of my favorite episodes. To summarize what I've said in the past about this one:

- The fembot-as-companion is an intriguing Twilight Zone concept ("The Lonely").

- Kirk inspecting the 3-footer as if it's the real Enterprise was mind-blowing for a model-building boy like myself in the syndication years.

- When Kirk confronts Rayna in the lab, there's a gorgeous medley of love themes from "Elaan of Troyius" and "The Empath." The music alone would make the episode for me. Seriously.

- I also enjoy McCoy's soliloquy to Spock about "the things love will drive a man to." I think it stands alongside his "Balance of Terror" speech ("In this galaxy...") as one of the best things ever written for McCoy.

 

[Pauln6]

I've never really taken to the episode but it's arguable that Flint drugged Kirk to heighten his emotions. That’s probably the only explanation that makes sense. His attitude here after such a short space of time is incredibly out of character and clumsy.

I can get on board with immortal aliens more than some random immortal human, especially one who has access to technology that exceeds the Federation without any clear explanation beyond plot convenience.

Rayna is frustrating. She's meant to be a genius but is whittled down to a vulnerable love interest who finds any sense of agency to be overwhelming. It seems like a waste of a great concept.

 

[Henoch]

I've previously stated that I propose that Flint cranked up the pheromone transmitters in Rayna to high. Flint was trying to get an emotional response of love out of Rayna. He hoped that Kirk would bring it out of her, so, after Kirk leaves, Rayna would be able to love him.

 

[Maurice]

They talk about Kirk, Spock, and Droxine's father. Doesn't that invalidate the test? Or did Kirk change the rules again?

Yep. They’re talking about men. Bechdel fail.

Fitting for a thread recently so full of adolescent drooling over bare midriffs etc.

 

[ZapBrannigan]

Fitting for a thread recently so full of adolescent drooling over bare midriffs etc.

I don't know what you're like in person, but your online persona has been very bitter lately.

Star Trek often portrayed female characters, or shirtless Kirk for that matter, as sexy-looking people. Sex appeal was part, yes a small part, of Star Trek's DNA from Episode One, with Susan Oliver looking leggy and fabulous. And as humans, we respond to beauty.

If you are trying to enforce a new ethos in which the human body is a sexless, genderless "social construct" not to be noticed by "good" people, then... whatever that is, it's not in keeping with The Original Series. We have a Discovery forum if you're interested, and I haven't been there, but I assume it's woke as hell.

 

[Maurice]

I don't know what you're like in person, but your online persona has been very bitter lately.

Post not poster. Remember that?

Nothing "bitter" about my personality. Just the casual sexism on this board and the endless adolescent drooling over "babes" has long ago gotten tiresome. I can see why so few women post here.

TOS' antiquated sexism isn't an excuse for acting like a horny 12-year old IMHO.

 

[ZapBrannigan]

Post not poster. Remember that?

Nothing "bitter" about my personality. Just the casual sexism on this board and the endless adolescent drooling over "babes" has long ago gotten tiresome. I can see why so few women post here.

Okay, but I don't think women would be flocking to this board no matter what we said.

TOS' antiquated sexism isn't an excuse for acting like a horny 12-year old IMHO.

We're smart people. We can come up with some excuse. But I would complain too if I thought it was crossing the line, or becoming constant. The spirit of sex on TOS was alluring but never prurient.

 

[Pauln6]

Post not poster. Remember that?

Nothing "bitter" about my personality. Just the casual sexism on this board and the endless adolescent drooling over "babes" has long ago gotten tiresome. I can see why so few women post here.

TOS' antiquated sexism isn't an excuse for acting like a horny 12-year old IMHO.

Lol. Yeah I've seen threads asking who is your favourite yeoman and it boils down to men voicing opinions on which one was hotter. Admittedly, it's not as if the yeomen characters get to do much on which to rate them in any other way... Hottest coffee maybe? That would be Rand, since she makes it with her phaser.... Best Kirk Fu would be Landon... Best female drives... Jury's out on that one.