TOS' worst episode.

"Alternative Factor", hands down.
Just nothing redeeming about that one... wasn't even stupid enough to laugh at. Just bad.

 

But...what of Lazarus('s beard)?

 

Even that magical property of being on, off, partially off, partially on, on the wrong character, does the show no favors. At least it did fairly well in its career.. it went on to become the hair of a bombastic yet popular 80s real-estate mogul.

 

I always like to imagine it escaped and ran away with Spock's Beard to a hairy paradise.

 

If only...
JB

 

I love Alternative Factor. I'm getting a room with it.

 

Anti Matter or matter though, Unknown?
JB

 

And The Children Shall Lead - Kids suck.
Mudd's Woman, I, Mudd - I don't like Mudd he is boring.
Spectre of the Gun - SO boring and shitty sets.

 

I'll watch a documentary on the mating cycle of fruit flies before I'll watch Plato's Stepchildren. Fred Freiberger....what were you thinking?

 

Alternative. (little known fact -- Shatner took hair from the beard to add to his wig.)
Plato's -- Maid me whine
And the Children. They ended up building the expanded rec room and this is where we got to see it.
I, Mudd -- you know Harry's gay because those girls he conjured up were not "tens." Really he could create perfect android women and the "Mazie" series was the result?
Tomorrow is Yesterday -- well actually it's 1967
Mark of Gideon -- early script title "Matter of Cheapness"
Turnabout Intruder -- really? all the other scripts they had left over from the 3 seasons were worse than this?
Deadly Years -- such a sad gimmick (tellingly the "middle" episode 39 before and 39 after) I wonder which 39 are considered better?

And yes, terrible sets for Spectre. Terrible. They thought we wouldn't notice?????!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Ditto.

Yet, I think that the characters are so awe-smackingly awesome, that regardless of the "worst efforts," the show remains the epitome of cool. It was never PC... and as a woman, I could care less. I loved it in "Spock's Brain" when Kirk's main focus was to know where the "women" were, and then later after being told that Kara is the leader, he still wants to know, "who's in charge... who controls the complex."

The fact that it evokes such emotional reactions (both positive and negative), IMHO, means that it qualifies as true art. Although I love them all, no other Trek has ever come close, I think.

 

Yeah, I've always wondered that too.

 

Of all the weaker episodes, "And the Children Shall Lead" absolutely takes the cake for me. I'd rather be forced to watch "The Alternative Factor" and "Spock's Brain" over and over again on an infinite loop for the rest of my life than sit through "And the Children Shall Lead" again.

Kor

 

You're aware, I assume, that the environment of "Tombstone, Arizona" was created by the Melkotians from Kirk's memories and knowledge of history, and therefore the sets were intentionally surreal and stylized?

Frankly, I've always considered "Spectre of the Gun" one of the better third-season episodes. Weak story, but a triumph of style over substance.

 

Yes, I was kidding and I like Spectre because of that. If you're going to do any type of parallel world -- for god sake, shake things up. That's why I hate Piece, Patterns, Tomorrow and Bread. Just run to wardrobe, then trot out to the backlot and voila a "Trek" episode for cheap.
I'll take a somewhat failed actual sci-fi themed episode over those cost saving travesties any day.

 

I always thought that when they started traveling back in time in "Tomorrow.." that the guard and Christopher should just faded away. Have Spock say, "We are approaching the point where the guard was beamed." and he fades away. Then after seeing that, Kirk and Christopher shake hands and then the same happens to him. It's not any better science wise but avoids the whole beaming into yourself idiocy and the use of the transporter as a cure-all.
When I was 10, I thought -- "that's stupid." and it only gets worse with time.

 

I realize I'm in a minority here, but I really hate Assignment Earth. It's not even really a Star Trek episode -- it's a pilot for a different show and Kirk and Spock make a cameo. It's so dull and Kirk and Spock are irrelevant bystanders. Ugh.

Turnabout Intruder would be a close second. Not a fan of Wolf in the Fold either.

 

Ironic humor doesn't always travel well on the Interwebz.

 

Miri and The Alternative Factor from season 1
The Omega Glory and Bread and Circuses from season 2
The Paradise Syndrome and the Children Shall Lead from season 3*

*That might change because I am only on the Tholian Web on my TOS watch.

 

I found the Miri episode very irritating. The Children Shall Lead, ditto. I cringe whenever kids appear in TOS.