Episode of the Week : Let That Be Your Last Battlefield

[The Old Mixer]

Padding out the running time...with running time!

 

[ZapBrannigan]

Well, this theory that I have--that is to say, which is mine-- ...is mine: Sometimes people need to have something hammered directly into their cranium. Sometimes things can be too obvious and it hurts the story, but in this case, as an almost full, unabashed allegory--and also almost feels like a stage play--the episode succeeds brilliantly. I give it one of my higher ratings from season 3. 4.5 out 5 stars. 9/10

Your stage play comment struck me, because "Last Battlefield" seems like the kind of script that guest actors would love. They get to come in and project a huge performance, blast away, emote the house down, and maybe win an Emmy or something. Walter Koenig said somewhere that he wouldn't mind if Chekov was demoted and tossed in a jail cell, as long as he got to deliver a good soliloquy. Actors love to give emotional speeches, and this episode has them, big time. I'm sure actors would jump at the chance to do "Last Battlefield" as a play, and take it on the road.

Lou Antonio (Lokai) had a great many acting jobs, and one I remember well was on Bewitched where he played a chimp given human form for a day ("Going Ape," 1969). He created a hybrid persona, with animal mannerisms and human quirks, and he nailed the unique "gymnastic" grace that apes have when they're climbing or swinging on something. He was obviously a dedicated character actor who put a lot into his performances.

 

[UnknownSample]

Those running scenes give viewers the time for the weight of the situation to sink in. As the two of them get shattered into pieces inside, by picturing what must have happened, we imagine also. Those stretches of weary running are actually the climax of the episode.

Some situations are HUGE. What if it had happened to Earth, would we be demanding they take the drama down a few notches?

 

[UnknownSample]

Yes, he did not look comfortable with running , at all. I wonder if they wore them both out to make it real.

 

[J.T.B.]

It's one I can enjoy watching as an unintentionally comic episode, but I'd never say it's good. Gorshin is always fun to watch, though. I give it a 3.

Yes, he did not look comfortable with running , at all. I wonder if they wore them both out to make it real.

Hopefully not, because it does not look real at all. I always figured the fake-exhausted, listless slow jogging was so they could have shots of decent length without running out of set. I agree it feels padded, but personally it gives me a good laugh every time.

 

[Drusilla's valet]

I like the heavy-handedness of this episode. It prepared me for the last half of MASH, otherwise known as The Alan Alda Show.

 

[Red Shirt]

I like LTBYLB message about how unrelenting hate is an empty path.

 

[Kor]

As others have said, very good message, but rather heavy-handed, and too much running. I rated it a six.

Still, it's fun sixties television that I can watch while kicking back in a space-age lounge chair with a fez, dressing gown, and a mai tai.

Kor

 

[Marsden]

Fezzes are cool.

 

[johnnybear]

Nah, I gave it a ten coz it was gooHood!
JB

 

[Jerikka Dawn]

Here's a scary thought. Can we suppose that the people of Cheron had mirrors?
If they did. That means that every time they looked into a mirror. They saw the face of their enemy.

Wow. I'd never thought about that. It opens up interesting areas of speculation into the psyche of the Cheron people and the dynamics of the conflict. That'd be something interesting to see explored on screen.

 

[Capn Nick]

It might be heavy handed, but obviously being subtle didn't work. I saw this episode when I was a kid as a rerun on TV when I was probably 10 and have thought about it often in the 20 some years since. It's timeless and I'm not even sure they understood how timeless it is. The starkness might have been making one specific point but it is at the very core of the human drama. Us and them. Them and us. Always mirror images. Remembering this episode has put me in my place more than a few times, when I failed to consider the other as a reflection of myself. If the poll were still open, I'd give it an 11

 

[CrazyMatt]

Padding out the running time...with running time!

Ouch.