Alternative Factor - Worst Episode Ever?

Correction: Ellison had ONE drug dealing crewman who addicted another to a drug called "Jewels of Sound". That guy is the one who changed history by--ironically--doing a decent thing (saving Edith).

 

Thanks to you as well. I will check it out.

 

Just re-watched this episode after 30, maybe 40 years. I only watched to show my daughter how bad it was. I actually discovered that it is way worse than I had previously thought.

Right off the bat, before we get into any of the ridiculous and contradictory plot points, and my daughter noticed it, too, it just seems "off". It feels like this all the way through the episode. Part of it is extremely poor direction, but there's something wrong with the dialogue, and the way it's delivered. It's like everyone involved with the episode is having really "off" days, every day.

I won't go into every detail as to why this episode is the worst of the series (others have said, "This makes Spock's Brain look great!", and I agree), but here are a few:

1. The plot makes no sense, whatsoever. Even ignoring the problem with the basic premise of "If two identical particles of matter and anti-matter meet, it's the end of everything", which I will deal with, the plot is full of contradictions.

a. I only noticed this on this latest viewing, but Kirk and Spock realize that there are two Lazaruses (Lazuri?), but they NEVER ACTUALLY MEET (except for McCoy, alone, once, off-screen) the sane (anti-matter) Lazarus until Kirk meets him after getting zapped through by Lazarus’s ship, very near the end of the episode. WE see him go back and forth several times, but Kirk and Spock never meet the one that doesn’t have the bandage on his forehead.

b. The Lazuri bounce back and forth between universes, even though at least one of them isn’t near his ship. If they automatically switch places, then we don’t really need to worry about them meeting, do we?

c. Even though both of the Lazuri need to steal di-lithium crystals to power their respective ships, they bounce back and forth between universes a bunch of times BEFORE they steal the crystals. How’s THAT happening?

d. McCoy, as noted before, sees the 2nd Lazarus after treating the head wound of the first, but there’s no “winking out” occurrence, which is part of their switching universes.

2. This guy’s obviously nuts, but they let him wander all over the place by himself. One time, he leaves the bridge, and a security guy is standing right there, and they let him go into the turbo-lift alone. After he leaves, the security guy follows him. Another time, McCoy gripes about the security guy being there, so Kirk orders him away. Then, they leave him alone, and he gets up and leaves. Kirk, McCoy, and everyone else on the ship have somehow come down with a case of sheer stupidity.

3. The whole matter – anti-matter thing.

a. If the one Lazarus is “anti-matter”, then he would react with the matter in this universe, and turn into energy, as soon as he was in contact with it, and the same for the “matter” Lazarus when he went to the “anti-matter” universe.

b. THE BIGGIE: Matter – Anti-matter annihilation occurs because the particles ARE IDENTICAL! The particles are identical, except for one quantum property; electron/positron, proton/negatron, etc. The entire basis for the “crisis” MAKES NO SENSE! Star Trek was never really worried about making it’s techno-babble consistent, but any problems with it could usually be solved by minor changes in dialogue. THIS is a plot hole big enough to drive a starship through. A whole fleet of starships. A whole freakin’ universe!