Episode of the Week : A Piece of the Action

[Botany Bay]

 

[StarCruiser]

It's a fun episode - not the best, but entertaining.

 

[T'Girl]

We get some history with dates, Kirk driving a stick, and the rules for fizzbin.

Give it a seven.

 

[Sparkle Fabulosa]

I really like it! It's such a fun episode.

Kirk lying about the card game and the guy falling for it
Kirk's driving
He and Spock talking like gangsters



*Fizzbin, that's what it was!

 

[JE Smith]

It has my favorite tag scene of the entire series. "In a few years, the Iotians may demand... a piece of our action!" FANFARE.

Love it.

 

[TOSalltheway]

Superior Star Trek comedy. I have never been a fan of Tribbles. In that episode we are on the verge of war and famine but for some unknown reason the crew conducts themselves as if they were in an Three's Company episode.

A Piece of the Action has a REASON for their behaviour, trying to blend in and beat them at their own game using only old stereotypes on which to base their behaviour.

 

[Ssosmcin]

I've never liked Star Trek as an out and out comedy. This episode, like "I, Mudd," goes too far, dragging characters out of character to sell the jokes. While I don't think Tribbles was the best episode by a long shot, at least everyone stayed in character, making it that much funner. It's a different style of humor.

There is one laugh in this episode and it's from Spock: "I would advise ya's ta keep dailin', Oxmyx." But, again, it's way out of character. However, in his case, it's funny, because Nimoy underplays it. Shatner, on the other hand (and I'm his biggest defender), makes a meal out of the sets. Too much so.

This rates a 3 from me.

 

[Marsden]

^I see what you're saying but for me, these same things makes it an eight.

I don't like silly comedy for comedy sake, but while there was at least one gangster killed and there was a threat of being shot by the landing party, I don't think Kirk took a bunch of thugs with guns as a credible threat. That makes him less serious and that's the "out of character" at least partially I think you see. He is much more serious in other episodes, but I think he, Kirk the character as well as Shatner the actor, is having a good time putting it over on the natives, driving the car, and whatnot. Hence the lingo, especially when he uses it that one last time on the ship. It's not just trying to speak to them how they would better understand but it's like a new thing that amuses him at the time. And Spocko telling Bela to keep dialing is again the landing party trying to communicate with the natives with their own mannerisms.

Or maybe I'm over compensating again.

 

[plynch]

Gave it a 2 cuz it must have SOME redeeming feature and it's not That Which Survives.

But, I would de-canonize it if I could.

 

[BillJ]

7.

Fun outing. It doesn't always have to be serious, its entertainment.

 

[Kor]

I always enjoy this episode. If the characters act a little different than in other episodes, to me that just supports the idea that the whole Trek concept was supposed to be a semi-anthology, and we shouldn't get so hung up over continuity and "cannnnnon."

Kor

 

[Melakon]

Spock puts his feet up on a desk for perhaps the first time in his life.

'Nuff said.

 

[CrazyMatt]

7. Hard to be too critical of this episode given its intentional comedic bent... but this type of episode--which played almost a self parody at times--can't be done more than a couple times in a series or self parody becomes self mocking.

And Shatner's a joy to behold as he "explains" how fizzbin is 'played.'