corbomite < WNMHGB
- Thread starter drew
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I should imagine that Kirk and McCoy had known each other before they served on The Enterprise! Is there any info on why Paul Fix didn't stay on the ship?
JB
JB
GR wanted Deforest Kelly from the beginning. If GR had had his way DF would have played Boyce alongside Jeffrey Hunter in "The Cage." Fortunately that didn't play out or else how to explain Boyce/McCoy played by the same person? It would have created an issue come time to make the two-part "The Menagerie."
DF was also unavailable for WNMHGB and hence we got Paul Fix as Dr. Piper.
It's possible Piper replaced Boyce at some point before McCoy came aboard sometime after the events of WNMHGB.
I was never fond of Piper as played by Paul Fixx. He just seems so completely out of place, but both Boyce and Piper were meant to evoke the "old country doctor" type of character GR was aiming for. Yet both come across as practically ready for retire. McCoy as played by DF came across as much more dynamic than his predecessors.
DF was also unavailable for WNMHGB and hence we got Paul Fix as Dr. Piper.
It's possible Piper replaced Boyce at some point before McCoy came aboard sometime after the events of WNMHGB.
I was never fond of Piper as played by Paul Fixx. He just seems so completely out of place, but both Boyce and Piper were meant to evoke the "old country doctor" type of character GR was aiming for. Yet both come across as practically ready for retire. McCoy as played by DF came across as much more dynamic than his predecessors.
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I like the cut of the third season uniforms, but I like the sheen of the earlier velour fabric better.
I think the idea is, why didn't/couldn't they go above or below the barrier instead of straight through it?
If the script had been the same, then I think it could have been edited without too much hassle. Boyce's name was only spoken in dialog twice. Once, when he says "Boyce here" off camera. Kelly could have recorded a new line "McCoy here." Then, when Pike and Boyce are talking, Pike says "Boy, I've had it, Phil." The "Phil" part could have been muted. I can't remember if Boyce's name appeared visually on any name plaques.... good reason to watch the episode again.
Kor
I think the idea is, why didn't/couldn't they go above or below the barrier instead of straight through it?
If the script had been the same, then I think it could have been edited without too much hassle. Boyce's name was only spoken in dialog twice. Once, when he says "Boyce here" off camera. Kelly could have recorded a new line "McCoy here." Then, when Pike and Boyce are talking, Pike says "Boy, I've had it, Phil." The "Phil" part could have been muted. I can't remember if Boyce's name appeared visually on any name plaques.... good reason to watch the episode again.
Kor
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Corbomite scores slightly higher for me because it has more of an ensemble feel and features more of the recurring characters that we come to know and love. Also, the theme of Corbomite is to fight against your fears and your instinct to destroy. To look for better alternatives, to build bridges. It's just a bit more hopeful than a monster of the week that must be destroyed story.
Well put--TCM is--at its end--an alien encounter / "test" story (not unique), with the sideline about the unprepared crewman. In the 2nd pilot, the identity of man individually, and as a species, man's (ultimately) ungodly hubris, as well as the price of the drive to explore parts unknown was--probably more than any other ST episodes--stating much of the series' reason to be. What it could be. It is no surprise that of all considered stories, this one had all elements in place to sell the series.
Until he became the mayor's toadie in the Grinch movie. Then, he was just, "oh brother".
Power corrupts. Absolute power corrupts absolutely.
These all became the subject of a nebulous general order a la # seven or were co-opted by Section 31.
Personally, I prefer "Where No Man Has Gone Before" over "Corbomite Maneuver." But the first 2 episodes filmed with Kirk and Spock are the perfect bookends to introduce those 2 characters. "Where No Man" opens with a chess game to illustrate that Spock is the logical one and Kirk is the more emotional of the two. Spock's logic saves the day when Kirk is emotionally compromised over stranding/killing Mitchell. In "Corbomite" we have Spock's logic with his chess game idea coming up a bit short. Kirk using the poker analogy instead because he realizes that sometimes you can use your emotions in a tight spot to bluff your way out of a tough situation. Logic saves the day one time and emotion saves the day the next time. You realize right off that these 2 people need each other in order to make the Enterprise's mission so successful. Both episodes are equally important, after that it's just a matter of preference as to which one strikes a stronger chord with you.
Why are you assuming that the character name would still be changed if the actor stayed the same? If DeForest Kelly had played Boyce, then in all likelihood the ship's doctor would have stayed Boyce.Besides, they already had that problem with Edward Madden. He played the geologist on Pike's Enterprise in "The Cage" and later served on Kirk's Enterprise as Fisher in "The Enemy Within." No Vulcan biology to explain why he barely aged in 13 years, either. Maybe he was the son or the nephew of the guy from "The Cage"?
It should perhaps be noted that the idea that scary alien is not really a menace--and that a powerful alien is "testing" humanity--were much fresher and less cliche when TCM first aired. And certainly hadn't become a STAR TREK cliche yet.
I remember the "twist" ending with Clint Howard being genuinely clever and surprising when I first the saw the episode back in 1966. It felt like a good episode of The Twilight Zone, which was pretty much the gold standard for sci-fi TV shows back then.
It may be that some of that ending's impact is lost now that we've all known the twist for fifty years or so . . ..
I remember the "twist" ending with Clint Howard being genuinely clever and surprising when I first the saw the episode back in 1966. It felt like a good episode of The Twilight Zone, which was pretty much the gold standard for sci-fi TV shows back then.
It may be that some of that ending's impact is lost now that we've all known the twist for fifty years or so . . ..
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