I’m watching The Original Series again
- Thread starter The Laughing Vulcan
- Start date
Re: Operation Annihilate!
Funny, I can't argue with any of your criticisms and yet, I can't really bring myself to dislike this episode. (Personally, I've always kind of liked the fake vomit as sfx. Bet that kept a Taiwanese factory busy for a week!)
I think this a perfect case of a serviceable piece of a weekly television show. It's really only when we take in context of the entire series and the expectations from the true standout efforts that this episode suffers.
Balance of Terror it ain't. But it also isn't Spock's Brain.
I think this is a case where the relative newness of the show catches up with everyone. Some of the (perfectly valid) criticisms might not have happened by the end of the season or during the second season, simply because I think everyone involved with the production had the experience to prop up a weak story.
Please keep it up LV. I'm really enjoying the chance to relive these episodes.
Funny, I can't argue with any of your criticisms and yet, I can't really bring myself to dislike this episode. (Personally, I've always kind of liked the fake vomit as sfx. Bet that kept a Taiwanese factory busy for a week!)
I think this a perfect case of a serviceable piece of a weekly television show. It's really only when we take in context of the entire series and the expectations from the true standout efforts that this episode suffers.
Balance of Terror it ain't. But it also isn't Spock's Brain.
I think this is a case where the relative newness of the show catches up with everyone. Some of the (perfectly valid) criticisms might not have happened by the end of the season or during the second season, simply because I think everyone involved with the production had the experience to prop up a weak story.
Please keep it up LV. I'm really enjoying the chance to relive these episodes.
Re: The Devil In The Dark
It's funny, but I never regarded this episode as a horror show. Having viewed it originally in the mid sixties at the height of the race riots, I saw it as a warning about prejudice. How those that we hate because they are different can turn out to be good if we just take the time to get to know them and if we don't change our ways we will continue to alienate new races and escalate violence.
The true reason I love this episode however, is Bone's famous line "Dammit Jim, I'm a doctor not a bricklayer!"
It's funny, but I never regarded this episode as a horror show. Having viewed it originally in the mid sixties at the height of the race riots, I saw it as a warning about prejudice. How those that we hate because they are different can turn out to be good if we just take the time to get to know them and if we don't change our ways we will continue to alienate new races and escalate violence.
The true reason I love this episode however, is Bone's famous line "Dammit Jim, I'm a doctor not a bricklayer!"
Re: Operation Annihilate!
OK, I just got up to Operation Annilate. I have to agree with your criticism. This has always been one of my least favorite episodes. Right down there with the space hippies heading out for Eden.
OK, I just got up to Operation Annilate. I have to agree with your criticism. This has always been one of my least favorite episodes. Right down there with the space hippies heading out for Eden.
Catspaw
The Enterprise is orbiting a barren world when it loses contact with the landing party, consisting of Scotty, Sulu and a redshirt. Redshirt Jackson beams up alone, dead. Then he delivers a chilling warning; the ship is cursed and must leave. Naturally, Kirk isn’t going to leave his men behind, so he, Spock and McCoy beam down, leaving assistant engineer DeSalle in command, and a fresh-faced young ensign named Chekov manning the science station. Illogically, it’s a foggy day, populated by apparitions of witches and gusts of wind that guide them to a spooky castle. A black cat tricks the trio into taking a trip through a trapdoor. When they wake up, they are chained to a dungeon wall, being guarded by Zombie Sulu and Zombie Scotty. A flash of light later, and they are granted an audience with the sorcerer in charge of the castle, an enigmatic man named Korob. The feline Sylvia, who takes a dangerous liking to the starship captain, soon joins him. These two are beings of strange power, magic for want of a better word, and are soon threatening Kirk and the Enterprise with voodoo, of all things. There is dissension in the ranks though, with Sylvia’s lust for power beginning to worry Korob. With McCoy turned into a zombie, a giant cat terrorising the landing party, and the Enterprise encased in a block of Perspex, will our heroes escape? Find out next week…
Oh good grief! If Season 1 ended on a low point with Operation Annihilate!, then Catspaw sees Season 2 scraping the bottom of a barrel. This is one episode that I find hard to comment positively on or even extensively. This was Trek’s Halloween episode and it is an ill-judged affair that just doesn’t sit well in the sci-fi genre. The problem is fundamental. A horror story will only work if your protagonists are scared. Here, Kirk and Spock treat this escapade like just another day at the office, with even the strangest of occurrences hardly rating a raised eyebrow from Spock. I don’t know if this was an uncomfortable episode to make, but I find watching these characters wasted on this story uncomfortable to watch. You’re wasting your characters if they spend much of the episode as mindless zombies in thrall to a femme fatale in a leotard. I’m not at all certain that the motivations of the aliens are ever made clear, they clearly have power, but their initial warning implies that they want the ship to leave, yet fascinated by their humanoid forms, they decide to toy with the Enterprise crew instead, just like a cat playing with a mouse. But for what purpose do they wield this power? What do they want with their captives? Why create a planet of illusions in the middle of nowhere?
It’s a cut and paste of Treks past and yet to come, and none too concrete at that. Once again Kirk faces beings of great power, and just like Trelane before, these beings rely on a conveniently fragile instrumentality, although here there is no back up. Of course Kirk manages to seduce the alien female, and use his wits to defeat the menace. His crewmembers are co-opted into the aliens’ schemes, although this time there is no mention of Landru or the ‘body’. Also the wizard and familiar motif represented by Korob and Sylvia will be revisited with Gary Seven and Isis. Landing party losing touch with a ship, ship threatened by strange powers requiring solution from down below, it’s Trek by numbers. This episode is really noticeable only for Chekov’s debut. He hasn’t started comparing everything to Mother Russia yet, and sports a hairpiece with a life of its own, but aside from a few deadpan droned annunciations of doom, he’s a lively addition to the crew.
But to be frank, there is only one moment in this episode that I enjoy, it’s when chained up in the dungeon, Kirk begins to call McCoy with a ‘Bones’ but hastily rephrases that to ‘Doc’ after spying a skeleton hanging next to the doctor. Otherwise, this episode is a bust.
The Enterprise is orbiting a barren world when it loses contact with the landing party, consisting of Scotty, Sulu and a redshirt. Redshirt Jackson beams up alone, dead. Then he delivers a chilling warning; the ship is cursed and must leave. Naturally, Kirk isn’t going to leave his men behind, so he, Spock and McCoy beam down, leaving assistant engineer DeSalle in command, and a fresh-faced young ensign named Chekov manning the science station. Illogically, it’s a foggy day, populated by apparitions of witches and gusts of wind that guide them to a spooky castle. A black cat tricks the trio into taking a trip through a trapdoor. When they wake up, they are chained to a dungeon wall, being guarded by Zombie Sulu and Zombie Scotty. A flash of light later, and they are granted an audience with the sorcerer in charge of the castle, an enigmatic man named Korob. The feline Sylvia, who takes a dangerous liking to the starship captain, soon joins him. These two are beings of strange power, magic for want of a better word, and are soon threatening Kirk and the Enterprise with voodoo, of all things. There is dissension in the ranks though, with Sylvia’s lust for power beginning to worry Korob. With McCoy turned into a zombie, a giant cat terrorising the landing party, and the Enterprise encased in a block of Perspex, will our heroes escape? Find out next week…
Oh good grief! If Season 1 ended on a low point with Operation Annihilate!, then Catspaw sees Season 2 scraping the bottom of a barrel. This is one episode that I find hard to comment positively on or even extensively. This was Trek’s Halloween episode and it is an ill-judged affair that just doesn’t sit well in the sci-fi genre. The problem is fundamental. A horror story will only work if your protagonists are scared. Here, Kirk and Spock treat this escapade like just another day at the office, with even the strangest of occurrences hardly rating a raised eyebrow from Spock. I don’t know if this was an uncomfortable episode to make, but I find watching these characters wasted on this story uncomfortable to watch. You’re wasting your characters if they spend much of the episode as mindless zombies in thrall to a femme fatale in a leotard. I’m not at all certain that the motivations of the aliens are ever made clear, they clearly have power, but their initial warning implies that they want the ship to leave, yet fascinated by their humanoid forms, they decide to toy with the Enterprise crew instead, just like a cat playing with a mouse. But for what purpose do they wield this power? What do they want with their captives? Why create a planet of illusions in the middle of nowhere?
It’s a cut and paste of Treks past and yet to come, and none too concrete at that. Once again Kirk faces beings of great power, and just like Trelane before, these beings rely on a conveniently fragile instrumentality, although here there is no back up. Of course Kirk manages to seduce the alien female, and use his wits to defeat the menace. His crewmembers are co-opted into the aliens’ schemes, although this time there is no mention of Landru or the ‘body’. Also the wizard and familiar motif represented by Korob and Sylvia will be revisited with Gary Seven and Isis. Landing party losing touch with a ship, ship threatened by strange powers requiring solution from down below, it’s Trek by numbers. This episode is really noticeable only for Chekov’s debut. He hasn’t started comparing everything to Mother Russia yet, and sports a hairpiece with a life of its own, but aside from a few deadpan droned annunciations of doom, he’s a lively addition to the crew.
But to be frank, there is only one moment in this episode that I enjoy, it’s when chained up in the dungeon, Kirk begins to call McCoy with a ‘Bones’ but hastily rephrases that to ‘Doc’ after spying a skeleton hanging next to the doctor. Otherwise, this episode is a bust.
Re: Catspaw
Oy, this is a bad one. I'm often amazed that "Catspaw" is forgotten when Trek fans trot out the list of the worst.
Amazing that Robert Bloch wrote it. That's a trifecta, I guess: One great ("Little Girls"), one good ("Wolf in the Fold") and one awful. Oh well.
Oy, this is a bad one. I'm often amazed that "Catspaw" is forgotten when Trek fans trot out the list of the worst.
Amazing that Robert Bloch wrote it. That's a trifecta, I guess: One great ("Little Girls"), one good ("Wolf in the Fold") and one awful. Oh well.
Metamorphosis
Epsilon Canaris is at war, and it is imperative that the Federation mediates a solution. To that end, Commissioner Nancy Hedford has been assigned the mission. Unfortunately due to an oversight, she failed to receive the necessary inoculations, and subsequently came down with a potentially life-threatening disease. Which is where this episode begins, aboard a shuttle ferrying the Commissioner, Kirk, Spock and McCoy to the superior medical facilities of the Enterprise. Hedford is typically dismissive of Starfleet in general and Starfleet doctors in particular, and she is even less pleased when a strange energy field intercepts the shuttle and drags it off course. Consisting of ionised hydrogen and oddly charged energy, it tows the shuttle to the Gamma Canaris asteroid belt and deposits it on a planetoid with an Earth like atmosphere and gravity. The shuttle has been rendered inoperative by the being, and the officers are exploring their environs when a human resident of the worldlet meets them. Cochrane, as he introduces himself, says that he has been marooned here for years, and while he admires the sleek lines of the shuttle, announces that they are just as marooned as he is. Still, ever the host, he invites them back to his residence. He’s overflowing with questions for the visitors, and is bluntly appreciative of female company after all this time. His familiar face niggles Kirk though, and the primitive nature of the equipment at his shelter only adds to the enigma. When the truth is unveiled, it is a shock; this is Zefram Cochrane, inventor of the space warp, lost and presumed dead for 150 years. When he vanished he was 87 years old, but now he has the body of a younger man, and has been rendered practically immortal. Kirk presses him further, and learns that he was rescued by the energy being, the Companion, and brought to this place and rejuvenated. It has kept him here ever since, catering to his every whim. When he professed loneliness in the hope of being freed, the Companion brought Kirk’s shuttle instead. But the war is still being fought, and Commissioner Hedford is dying without the treatment she desperately needs. Kirk will do whatever it takes to get off the planetoid, even if it means attacking the Companion.
I both love and hate this episode. In many ways it is classic Trek, emphasising the importance of communication over violence, celebrating love regardless of race, species or even state of matter. Add to that, the mythological aspects of the episode, painting in some of Trek’s back-story by introducing Zefram Cochrane, inventor of the warp drive. I’m also always impressed with the sets for this episode, with the planetoid quite effectively realised.
But there are many points to this episode that simply aren’t executed effectively, or are just plain flawed. The pacing is off for one, with the story seeming quite tiresome. Some of the characterisation is off, Hedford is another typical bureaucrat that is at odds with the Enterprise crew, and Zefram Cochrane is a woefully bland character. I suppose it balances out the reimagining of First Contact, where James Cromwell portrayed an alcohol soaked caricature (appropriate given the tone of the film). Here Glenn Corbett’s Cochrane is almost a cipher, with little to mark him as a rounded and complex individual. His responses are almost exactly as you would expect from a generic character brought forward 150 years in time, and it’s only when he pronounces his opinion on interspecies romance (which allows Kirk et al to nod knowingly at the parochial attitude) that he displays some personality. It’s almost a presage of The Savage Curtain, and it is as if Kirk has conjured up his expectation of the heroic Cochrane and brought him to life. Some of the dialogue is creaky, Cochrane’s reaction to Hedford is almost nauseating, but I guess allowances must be made for the sixties (parochial?) attitude. Also Hedford freaking out, when Cochrane explained that they had been brought to the planetoid at his behest seems terribly misjudged. Curious editing shows up at the end, with Cochrane disgusted and annoyed by the revelation of the Companion’s feminine nature, yet in the subsequent scene joining with her once again.
Some may wonder at why such an important figure like Cochrane would be hard for Kirk to recognise. For one thing, Kirk wasn’t expecting to see him. But the records of the period would be awash with images of the man who gave Earth the stars. But consider this, how many people know how Stephen Hawking looked prior to the motor neurone disease that rendered him wheelchair bound? Similarly Cochrane’s discovery of the space warp must have occurred later in life, and his fame and notoriety would have come at an older age. Also, while he is introduced as Zefram Cochrane of Alpha Centauri, his frame of reference is always Earth, which makes me wonder at the early Trek fiction that made Cochrane a native of that world. I’m still fond of the idea of another civilisation at that star though. I also note Kirk’s observation that the Federation comprises 1000 planets. That is a pretty sizeable Federation, and one that is substantially larger than the comparative handful of worlds counted in later Treks, be they movies or spin-offs.
Scientific annoyances include the asteroids with atmosphere and Earth gravity. If it was just the one, so rendered by the Companion for the benefit of the Man, then that would be understandable, but when the Enterprise scans the belt, they find 34% of the asteroids could support life. Another unscientific point is Science Office Spock investigating the companion, by sticking his hand in, and getting a shock for his trouble. How logical is that? The universal translator shows up here, only one on the shuttle and comparatively bulky, which gives the impression that all the aliens encountered in the series have been speaking English thus far, as no other object of lightsaber dimension have been wielded by any one in prior episodes. Finally, Kirk Shatners his way through a speech about love and feeling (To Shatner, to gesticulate wildly, to over emote, to speak with an … odd speech pattern.) It happens often in Trek of course, but this is one of those rare occasions where it can shock me out of my suspension of disbelief. Two trivial points, I love it when Nancy/Companion gazes at Cochrane through the veil, and doesn’t Cochrane sound like Trip Tucker?
Metamorphosis is an attractive idea, a compelling story, let down by mediocre execution. But this episode still gave rise to the excellent “Federation” novel, so something good came of it.
Epsilon Canaris is at war, and it is imperative that the Federation mediates a solution. To that end, Commissioner Nancy Hedford has been assigned the mission. Unfortunately due to an oversight, she failed to receive the necessary inoculations, and subsequently came down with a potentially life-threatening disease. Which is where this episode begins, aboard a shuttle ferrying the Commissioner, Kirk, Spock and McCoy to the superior medical facilities of the Enterprise. Hedford is typically dismissive of Starfleet in general and Starfleet doctors in particular, and she is even less pleased when a strange energy field intercepts the shuttle and drags it off course. Consisting of ionised hydrogen and oddly charged energy, it tows the shuttle to the Gamma Canaris asteroid belt and deposits it on a planetoid with an Earth like atmosphere and gravity. The shuttle has been rendered inoperative by the being, and the officers are exploring their environs when a human resident of the worldlet meets them. Cochrane, as he introduces himself, says that he has been marooned here for years, and while he admires the sleek lines of the shuttle, announces that they are just as marooned as he is. Still, ever the host, he invites them back to his residence. He’s overflowing with questions for the visitors, and is bluntly appreciative of female company after all this time. His familiar face niggles Kirk though, and the primitive nature of the equipment at his shelter only adds to the enigma. When the truth is unveiled, it is a shock; this is Zefram Cochrane, inventor of the space warp, lost and presumed dead for 150 years. When he vanished he was 87 years old, but now he has the body of a younger man, and has been rendered practically immortal. Kirk presses him further, and learns that he was rescued by the energy being, the Companion, and brought to this place and rejuvenated. It has kept him here ever since, catering to his every whim. When he professed loneliness in the hope of being freed, the Companion brought Kirk’s shuttle instead. But the war is still being fought, and Commissioner Hedford is dying without the treatment she desperately needs. Kirk will do whatever it takes to get off the planetoid, even if it means attacking the Companion.
I both love and hate this episode. In many ways it is classic Trek, emphasising the importance of communication over violence, celebrating love regardless of race, species or even state of matter. Add to that, the mythological aspects of the episode, painting in some of Trek’s back-story by introducing Zefram Cochrane, inventor of the warp drive. I’m also always impressed with the sets for this episode, with the planetoid quite effectively realised.
But there are many points to this episode that simply aren’t executed effectively, or are just plain flawed. The pacing is off for one, with the story seeming quite tiresome. Some of the characterisation is off, Hedford is another typical bureaucrat that is at odds with the Enterprise crew, and Zefram Cochrane is a woefully bland character. I suppose it balances out the reimagining of First Contact, where James Cromwell portrayed an alcohol soaked caricature (appropriate given the tone of the film). Here Glenn Corbett’s Cochrane is almost a cipher, with little to mark him as a rounded and complex individual. His responses are almost exactly as you would expect from a generic character brought forward 150 years in time, and it’s only when he pronounces his opinion on interspecies romance (which allows Kirk et al to nod knowingly at the parochial attitude) that he displays some personality. It’s almost a presage of The Savage Curtain, and it is as if Kirk has conjured up his expectation of the heroic Cochrane and brought him to life. Some of the dialogue is creaky, Cochrane’s reaction to Hedford is almost nauseating, but I guess allowances must be made for the sixties (parochial?) attitude. Also Hedford freaking out, when Cochrane explained that they had been brought to the planetoid at his behest seems terribly misjudged. Curious editing shows up at the end, with Cochrane disgusted and annoyed by the revelation of the Companion’s feminine nature, yet in the subsequent scene joining with her once again.
Some may wonder at why such an important figure like Cochrane would be hard for Kirk to recognise. For one thing, Kirk wasn’t expecting to see him. But the records of the period would be awash with images of the man who gave Earth the stars. But consider this, how many people know how Stephen Hawking looked prior to the motor neurone disease that rendered him wheelchair bound? Similarly Cochrane’s discovery of the space warp must have occurred later in life, and his fame and notoriety would have come at an older age. Also, while he is introduced as Zefram Cochrane of Alpha Centauri, his frame of reference is always Earth, which makes me wonder at the early Trek fiction that made Cochrane a native of that world. I’m still fond of the idea of another civilisation at that star though. I also note Kirk’s observation that the Federation comprises 1000 planets. That is a pretty sizeable Federation, and one that is substantially larger than the comparative handful of worlds counted in later Treks, be they movies or spin-offs.
Scientific annoyances include the asteroids with atmosphere and Earth gravity. If it was just the one, so rendered by the Companion for the benefit of the Man, then that would be understandable, but when the Enterprise scans the belt, they find 34% of the asteroids could support life. Another unscientific point is Science Office Spock investigating the companion, by sticking his hand in, and getting a shock for his trouble. How logical is that? The universal translator shows up here, only one on the shuttle and comparatively bulky, which gives the impression that all the aliens encountered in the series have been speaking English thus far, as no other object of lightsaber dimension have been wielded by any one in prior episodes. Finally, Kirk Shatners his way through a speech about love and feeling (To Shatner, to gesticulate wildly, to over emote, to speak with an … odd speech pattern.) It happens often in Trek of course, but this is one of those rare occasions where it can shock me out of my suspension of disbelief. Two trivial points, I love it when Nancy/Companion gazes at Cochrane through the veil, and doesn’t Cochrane sound like Trip Tucker?
Metamorphosis is an attractive idea, a compelling story, let down by mediocre execution. But this episode still gave rise to the excellent “Federation” novel, so something good came of it.
Friday’s Child
The Enterprise has been assigned the delicate mission to negotiate for mineral rights with a martial society on the planet Capella. It’s delicate because the Capellans are a proud sensitive people who are quick to take offence, and operate under a strict and convoluted sense of propriety. The reason why the Enterprise has been chosen is that CMO Leonard McCoy has had experience with the Capellans, and as such is ideal to brief Kirk on how to behave, and which taboos to avoid breaking. The mission seems ill omened from the start, the Klingons also wish to obtain the topaline supplies, and they aren’t above being underhand to do it. When the landing party consisting of Kirk, McCoy, Spock and Redshirt 37 arrive on the planet and find a Klingon agent already present, their reaction costs the life of one of their number. Politics on Capella has become complicated, and the surviving members of the landing party wind up smack in the middle of a power struggle between the existing Teer Akalla and his would be successor Maab. Akalla is happy doing business with the Federation, but Maab sees no problem with dealing with the Klingons, being more simpatico with their military philosophy. Meanwhile, the ship is drawn away from the planet by a distress call, leaving the landing party alone on the surface, unarmed and without communications. Just when they are most vulnerable, Maab launches his coup and kills the Teer. The Federation officers are just supposed to stand by while this occurs, but when Capellan customs require that the Teer’s pregnant wife Eleen be put to death, Kirk can stand aside no longer. While McCoy has to deal with a recalcitrant pregnant female, Spock and Kirk hatch an escape plan. (You didn’t think that Redshirt 37 survived?) Spock, Kirk, McCoy and Eleen must survive until the Enterprise returns, but that may be irrelevant if the planet falls to the Klingons.
‘Wagon Train to the Stars’ is how Trek has been described. This is one episode that wears its Western credentials on its sleeve. Substitute the Federation, Klingons and Capellans for hardworking cowboys negotiating in good faith for watering rights for their herd, unscrupulous traders offering firewater and rifles, and the noble savages/Injuns/native Americans whose land encompasses the resources. It isn’t the only time that the noble savage motif is revisited in Trek, with The Omega Glory and The Paradise Syndrome peopled with taciturn tribals. But it is Friday’s Child that is weakest on sci-fi credentials. That isn’t to say it isn’t enjoyable. I’m quite fond of the occasional Western, and this episode is entertaining for the most part, with good character moments and with the big three on top form.
There is only one real criticism I have with the episode, and that is with McCoy’s character. It is required by dictates of the story that he is an expert on the Capellans, and advises Kirk accordingly, yet from what we know of him as a Doctor, he is a sensitive, caring and compassionate man. No matter how much of an expert on Capellans he is, I can never accept that he can easily stand stoically by when the redshirt bites the bullet. It is Kirk who reacts to the death, yet McCoy remains unaffected, restrains his friend and is able to accept the death and move on. This goes against everything that I know of the character, and it is this one moment in the episode that I always find grating.
The Capellans are an interesting people, if a little too familiar in style. I do have to question some of the taboos created for them, for instance accepting food is tantamount to picking up a gauntlet. How does anyone ever eat on that planet? The character dynamic that forms between Eleen and McCoy is entertaining, as the headstrong chief’s wife locks horns with a stubborn Starfleet doctor. After a slapping war, McCoy tries a little psychology and emancipation. Speaking of psychology, Kirk works a little reverse psychology on both of his officers, with a ‘Well, if you don’t think you can do it’ raising the ire of both Spock and McCoy. But given that this society is apparently a pre-warp one, I have to wonder what happened to the Prime Directive, and while introducing high technology to the Capellans may not be too bad (after all the average Capellan isn’t going to knock up a phaser in his spare time), Kirk invents a bow and arrow for Pete’s sake. In a society that previously had no such weapon that could be as damaging as the invention of the stirrup was to the Roman Empire.
Trivia: The creation of a sonic weapon with the judicious use of two communicators, a tactic never seen again and introduced with a fair amount of technobabble seems out of place in this episode, and the pill that allows Kirk to set fire to a rock is laughable. The location shooting does the story justice, and there are several nice character moments, with Kirk admitting to wanting revenge, where Picard would claim having evolved beyond that (before unloading a Tommy Gun into a Borg). Also the second appearance of Chekov on Trek is a far more satisfying performance, with his tracking of the Klingon ship more lively and memorable, as well as the introduction of his ‘inwented in Russia’ trademark. I wonder how that went down in Cold War America. Another thing that bugs me is when Eleen clobbers McCoy with a rock. It’s lucky she didn’t kill him, as most rocks will cave in the average skull. In a day and age when the censors in the UK pick up any act of violence that can be easily imitated (headbutts are a no-no), it’s odd that the censors of the sixties had no problem with it, even with the pan away. Eleen must have been damn lucky, or had a lot of practice in knocking people out with rocks. I get visions of a mountain of dead, dazed and comatose Capellans who have been used by Eleen as training.
Friday’s Child has an entertaining fifty minutes to offer. While it lacks the usual sci-fi pretensions of the average Trek episode, and shows more than a hint of the Wild West in its story, it is still a fulfilling show. It would have been one of Trek’s best offerings were it not for the misjudgement in McCoy’s character with the death of the redshirt, and given that death, it seems out of place for the show to end with another collective chuckle on the bridge.
The Enterprise has been assigned the delicate mission to negotiate for mineral rights with a martial society on the planet Capella. It’s delicate because the Capellans are a proud sensitive people who are quick to take offence, and operate under a strict and convoluted sense of propriety. The reason why the Enterprise has been chosen is that CMO Leonard McCoy has had experience with the Capellans, and as such is ideal to brief Kirk on how to behave, and which taboos to avoid breaking. The mission seems ill omened from the start, the Klingons also wish to obtain the topaline supplies, and they aren’t above being underhand to do it. When the landing party consisting of Kirk, McCoy, Spock and Redshirt 37 arrive on the planet and find a Klingon agent already present, their reaction costs the life of one of their number. Politics on Capella has become complicated, and the surviving members of the landing party wind up smack in the middle of a power struggle between the existing Teer Akalla and his would be successor Maab. Akalla is happy doing business with the Federation, but Maab sees no problem with dealing with the Klingons, being more simpatico with their military philosophy. Meanwhile, the ship is drawn away from the planet by a distress call, leaving the landing party alone on the surface, unarmed and without communications. Just when they are most vulnerable, Maab launches his coup and kills the Teer. The Federation officers are just supposed to stand by while this occurs, but when Capellan customs require that the Teer’s pregnant wife Eleen be put to death, Kirk can stand aside no longer. While McCoy has to deal with a recalcitrant pregnant female, Spock and Kirk hatch an escape plan. (You didn’t think that Redshirt 37 survived?) Spock, Kirk, McCoy and Eleen must survive until the Enterprise returns, but that may be irrelevant if the planet falls to the Klingons.
‘Wagon Train to the Stars’ is how Trek has been described. This is one episode that wears its Western credentials on its sleeve. Substitute the Federation, Klingons and Capellans for hardworking cowboys negotiating in good faith for watering rights for their herd, unscrupulous traders offering firewater and rifles, and the noble savages/Injuns/native Americans whose land encompasses the resources. It isn’t the only time that the noble savage motif is revisited in Trek, with The Omega Glory and The Paradise Syndrome peopled with taciturn tribals. But it is Friday’s Child that is weakest on sci-fi credentials. That isn’t to say it isn’t enjoyable. I’m quite fond of the occasional Western, and this episode is entertaining for the most part, with good character moments and with the big three on top form.
There is only one real criticism I have with the episode, and that is with McCoy’s character. It is required by dictates of the story that he is an expert on the Capellans, and advises Kirk accordingly, yet from what we know of him as a Doctor, he is a sensitive, caring and compassionate man. No matter how much of an expert on Capellans he is, I can never accept that he can easily stand stoically by when the redshirt bites the bullet. It is Kirk who reacts to the death, yet McCoy remains unaffected, restrains his friend and is able to accept the death and move on. This goes against everything that I know of the character, and it is this one moment in the episode that I always find grating.
The Capellans are an interesting people, if a little too familiar in style. I do have to question some of the taboos created for them, for instance accepting food is tantamount to picking up a gauntlet. How does anyone ever eat on that planet? The character dynamic that forms between Eleen and McCoy is entertaining, as the headstrong chief’s wife locks horns with a stubborn Starfleet doctor. After a slapping war, McCoy tries a little psychology and emancipation. Speaking of psychology, Kirk works a little reverse psychology on both of his officers, with a ‘Well, if you don’t think you can do it’ raising the ire of both Spock and McCoy. But given that this society is apparently a pre-warp one, I have to wonder what happened to the Prime Directive, and while introducing high technology to the Capellans may not be too bad (after all the average Capellan isn’t going to knock up a phaser in his spare time), Kirk invents a bow and arrow for Pete’s sake. In a society that previously had no such weapon that could be as damaging as the invention of the stirrup was to the Roman Empire.
Trivia: The creation of a sonic weapon with the judicious use of two communicators, a tactic never seen again and introduced with a fair amount of technobabble seems out of place in this episode, and the pill that allows Kirk to set fire to a rock is laughable. The location shooting does the story justice, and there are several nice character moments, with Kirk admitting to wanting revenge, where Picard would claim having evolved beyond that (before unloading a Tommy Gun into a Borg). Also the second appearance of Chekov on Trek is a far more satisfying performance, with his tracking of the Klingon ship more lively and memorable, as well as the introduction of his ‘inwented in Russia’ trademark. I wonder how that went down in Cold War America. Another thing that bugs me is when Eleen clobbers McCoy with a rock. It’s lucky she didn’t kill him, as most rocks will cave in the average skull. In a day and age when the censors in the UK pick up any act of violence that can be easily imitated (headbutts are a no-no), it’s odd that the censors of the sixties had no problem with it, even with the pan away. Eleen must have been damn lucky, or had a lot of practice in knocking people out with rocks. I get visions of a mountain of dead, dazed and comatose Capellans who have been used by Eleen as training.
Friday’s Child has an entertaining fifty minutes to offer. While it lacks the usual sci-fi pretensions of the average Trek episode, and shows more than a hint of the Wild West in its story, it is still a fulfilling show. It would have been one of Trek’s best offerings were it not for the misjudgement in McCoy’s character with the death of the redshirt, and given that death, it seems out of place for the show to end with another collective chuckle on the bridge.
Re: Friday’s Child
Hate to sound like a mezzofinuch' (sp.?) but worst. costumes. ever.
I mean, rally now: carpet remnants?
Hate to sound like a mezzofinuch' (sp.?) but worst. costumes. ever.
I mean, rally now: carpet remnants?
Re: Friday’s Child
While I honestly DO like this episode a lot; on the above, I have to agree with you. I was also expecting to see a store like Carpetiria given a credit under Costuming for the episode.
But hey, what can you do when your budget is all tied up in SFX (which were VERY expensive)?
While I honestly DO like this episode a lot; on the above, I have to agree with you. I was also expecting to see a store like Carpetiria given a credit under Costuming for the episode.
But hey, what can you do when your budget is all tied up in SFX (which were VERY expensive)?
Re: Friday’s Child
Hey, Redshirt 37 had a name. Didn't Kirk yell it out, trying to stop him from pulling out his phaser. <Shatner yell> JACKSON!!!
or was it...
LARSON!!!
or was it...
Great take on the show. And I can't argue the points made, it's definately off in ways, a western plot it is, I gotta agree.
At this point, I usually come up with some excuse of "but the Klingons were pushing pre-warp planets into trade, an interstellar Cold War. The Federation seemed to bend it's Prime Directive when there is interference from another warp species. Or some such rubbish.
Hey, Redshirt 37 had a name. Didn't Kirk yell it out, trying to stop him from pulling out his phaser. <Shatner yell> JACKSON!!!
or was it...
LARSON!!!
or was it...
Great take on the show. And I can't argue the points made, it's definately off in ways, a western plot it is, I gotta agree.
At this point, I usually come up with some excuse of "but the Klingons were pushing pre-warp planets into trade, an interstellar Cold War. The Federation seemed to bend it's Prime Directive when there is interference from another warp species. Or some such rubbish.
Re: Friday’s Child
Grant, I believe.
Regarding Metamorphosis, I disagree with the Shatner criticism of his speech about love. I find this to be one of his better, passionate speeches. I always bought it and find this to be a good example of his ability. I remember reading a long time ago an article about mentioning this scene. After they filmed it the director said something like "that's why you pay him to be the star" or something.
Plum said:
Hey, Redshirt 37 had a name. Didn't Kirk yell it out, trying to stop him from pulling out his phaser. <Shatner yell> JACKSON!!!
or was it...
LARSON!!!
or was it...
Grant, I believe.
Regarding Metamorphosis, I disagree with the Shatner criticism of his speech about love. I find this to be one of his better, passionate speeches. I always bought it and find this to be a good example of his ability. I remember reading a long time ago an article about mentioning this scene. After they filmed it the director said something like "that's why you pay him to be the star" or something.
GodThingFormerly
A Different Kind of Asshole
Re: Friday’s Child
Friday's Child is neither here nor there as far as the conceptual and narrative qualities of the episode are concerned (although Julie Newmar's bitchy Eleen induced in this pre-teen fan an unhealthy fascination with pregnant women), but Kirk's mention of "Planetoid Colonies" during a Captain's Log VO made me feel all warm and gooey inside. For those interested, the phrase was coined in the late 1950s by GE-MSD engineer Dandridge Cole and popularized in his 1964 book (co-written with Donald Cox) entitled, Islands in Space: The Challenge of the Planetoids. Cole was credited as being the first to propose the use of hollowed asteroids for space colonies as well as the speculation that these highly integrated and organized societal containers may themselves someday form a completely new order of hyper-intelligent life in the universe. George Zebrowski's 1979 LitSF novel Macrolife: A Mobile Utopia is a notable dramatization of Cole's ideas.
TGT
Friday's Child is neither here nor there as far as the conceptual and narrative qualities of the episode are concerned (although Julie Newmar's bitchy Eleen induced in this pre-teen fan an unhealthy fascination with pregnant women), but Kirk's mention of "Planetoid Colonies" during a Captain's Log VO made me feel all warm and gooey inside. For those interested, the phrase was coined in the late 1950s by GE-MSD engineer Dandridge Cole and popularized in his 1964 book (co-written with Donald Cox) entitled, Islands in Space: The Challenge of the Planetoids. Cole was credited as being the first to propose the use of hollowed asteroids for space colonies as well as the speculation that these highly integrated and organized societal containers may themselves someday form a completely new order of hyper-intelligent life in the universe. George Zebrowski's 1979 LitSF novel Macrolife: A Mobile Utopia is a notable dramatization of Cole's ideas.
TGT
Re: Friday’s Child
the impression i got about friday's child unlike say private little war was this culture had been exposed to warp travel cultures knowingly for awhile. we do know there are other space traveling races beyond the federation who may not follow a prime directive.
it appeared the capellans had determined a long time ago to keep their way of life despite this exposure but benefit from trade from time to time.
remember bones at one time had been stationed there and said they were not interested in hospitals or advanced medical care.
the impression i got about friday's child unlike say private little war was this culture had been exposed to warp travel cultures knowingly for awhile. we do know there are other space traveling races beyond the federation who may not follow a prime directive.
it appeared the capellans had determined a long time ago to keep their way of life despite this exposure but benefit from trade from time to time.
remember bones at one time had been stationed there and said they were not interested in hospitals or advanced medical care.
Who Mourns For Adonais
It’s just another normal day on the Enterprise, as the crew go about charting another star system, one apparently devoid of intelligent life. Matters of greater import are occurring on the bridge though, as romance threatens to blossom between Scotty and A & A Officer, Lieutenant Carolyn Palomas. At least it threatens to blossom on Scotty’s part. Matters of the heart have to take a back seat when a giant green hand appears and halts the ship in its tracks. Held fast, the Enterprise isn’t going anywhere, and the crew searches for the cause of the strange anthropomorphized energy field. They don’t have to wait long, as a transmission soon comes in from a classical figure, congratulating his beloved children for making the journey across the stars to find him. Their long journey is now over, and they have found a world in which to take their ease and sup from the chalice of paradise. Kirk isn’t buying of course, and demands that his ship be released. It’s when the hand starts squeezing that he gets the point, and acquiesces to the being’s demand that a landing party pay a visit. Only Spock isn’t invited, he looks too much like Pan. Kirk, McCoy, Scotty, Chekov and Lt Palomas beam down to an Olympian idyll. The being introduces himself as the ancient Greek God, Apollo, and demands that the visitors worship him. It’s God versus Kirk once again, only this time, God has taken a liking to Carolyn Palomas, and Scotty’s jealousy is liable to get him on the wrong end of a lightning bolt. Meanwhile Spock is working to free the Enterprise from Apollo’s grip.
Kirk meets God, Kirk kills God, Enterprise warps off into the sunset. Rinse and repeat. I’m seriously beginning to regret starting this thread. Not because I’m tired of writing about the episodes, but that revisiting Star Trek with a critical eye is bringing out all its flaws in painful relief, and I am no longer able to cloak them in a veil of nostalgia. Star Trek had a base energy state to which it reverted to far too often, that of the God episode. While there was variety in episodes and stories, this particular one cropped up far to often, and certain themes and character traits become interchangeable between episodes. Aside from the God plot, this one recycles the misguided female idea. Just as ship’s historian Marla McGivers was tempted and charmed by Khan, here Archaeology and Anthropology officer Lt Palomas falls for Apollo. The relationship follows much the same course, with Palomas so smitten by the demigod that she winds up acting against her Captain. Fortunately she doesn’t slip into outright betrayal, and is instrumental in saving the ship in the end.
Scotty begins a series of disastrous relationships with women here, at least that’s the way it looks given the evidence of this episode. I seriously hope that there is more to the Scotty Palomas relationship beneath the surface than presented here, otherwise the sort of jealousy he displays, given that the two of them had barely progressed beyond the coffee and chat stage, is seriously out of proportion. This episode has me wondering if our Scotty was a stalker. By the same token, Palomas obviously doesn’t feel the same, just as McCoy opines early on, easily forgetting her Celtic suitor for the Hellenic charms of the celestial hunk. Even when Scotty gets zapped, she still finds nothing wrong in getting her groove on with the god. This episode serves as Chekov’s first landing party, and this is a thoroughly refreshing episode in terms of the Ensign’s presence. We learn the legend of the Minsk Cat, and despite his relative immaturity, he’s all for getting to grips with Lieutenant Palomas, just in case Kirk needs the help. He manages to make more of an impression in this one episode, than Sulu did in most of the first series.
Then there is the god. How do I approach this? It’s one of those ancient spacemen tales, the idea that our ancestors were uplifted by visitors from the stars, taught by big black monoliths, gifted the secret of fire, the wheel, the silicon chip, and that we owe our civilisation to higher powers. That Greek civilisation worshipped Gods that were very real is an attractive idea in Sci-Fi, it’s obviously repeated in shows like Stargate with Egyptian gods. I just hope that one day Ganesha doesn’t show up on a TV show. This episode also has an idea I very much like, that Gods are defined by their worshippers, that without adulation, they fade away. It’s an idea I see repeated in the Discworld books of Terry Pratchett. But the Trekverse conceit that Gods visited Earth, inspired civilisation, then left to wait for their worshippers to catch up to them is bizarre. I just don’t see a real world argument that justifies Apollo waiting 5000 years for humans to reach his world so that he can be worshipped once more, in an idyll full of Greek columns, laurel leaves and togas. It only makes sense if Apollo is insane. I can see advanced aliens, immortal and powerful, visiting Earth and helping human civilisation, but in doing so presenting themselves as gods, to couch their technological miracles in terms that primitive man could understand. Apollo seems to have believed his press, come to accept the image as the man, and adopted the mantle of a God. In his loneliness, the myth became the man, and he actually began to desire worship. The Apollo we see is a tragic, pathetic figure, driven insane in his solitude.
Trivia: For those who debate the interpretation of Turnabout Intruder’s apparent misogyny, a world that doesn’t allow women Captains, this episode supplies further fuel for the fire, with McCoy’s statement that Starfleet women, “find the right man and leave the service”. That’s pretty unequivocal, the idea that women’s careers end as soon as that wedding band goes on the finger, and also adds weight to the argument that there were no women Captains in Kirk’s time. Uhura on the other hand shows ability as more than just a switchboard operator, taking a soldering iron to her board in the effort to create a subspace bypass circuit, and getting a pep talk from Spock of all people. I think it was this episode that gave Kyle a name, and Kirk’s comment supports the notion of religion in the 23rd Century, albeit a monotheistic one. An odd note is the speech that he uses on Palomas to remind her of her duty, it’s the right tone to take, but he contrasts the god against humanity, of human feeling, of human contact. It seems a vaguely bigoted attitude in a multi-species service. Technobabble… m-rays?
It’s an enjoyable episode, with some lively performances, but the God story is beginning to wear thin now, and it’s only the beginning of season 2. We still have Vaal to come yet.
It’s just another normal day on the Enterprise, as the crew go about charting another star system, one apparently devoid of intelligent life. Matters of greater import are occurring on the bridge though, as romance threatens to blossom between Scotty and A & A Officer, Lieutenant Carolyn Palomas. At least it threatens to blossom on Scotty’s part. Matters of the heart have to take a back seat when a giant green hand appears and halts the ship in its tracks. Held fast, the Enterprise isn’t going anywhere, and the crew searches for the cause of the strange anthropomorphized energy field. They don’t have to wait long, as a transmission soon comes in from a classical figure, congratulating his beloved children for making the journey across the stars to find him. Their long journey is now over, and they have found a world in which to take their ease and sup from the chalice of paradise. Kirk isn’t buying of course, and demands that his ship be released. It’s when the hand starts squeezing that he gets the point, and acquiesces to the being’s demand that a landing party pay a visit. Only Spock isn’t invited, he looks too much like Pan. Kirk, McCoy, Scotty, Chekov and Lt Palomas beam down to an Olympian idyll. The being introduces himself as the ancient Greek God, Apollo, and demands that the visitors worship him. It’s God versus Kirk once again, only this time, God has taken a liking to Carolyn Palomas, and Scotty’s jealousy is liable to get him on the wrong end of a lightning bolt. Meanwhile Spock is working to free the Enterprise from Apollo’s grip.
Kirk meets God, Kirk kills God, Enterprise warps off into the sunset. Rinse and repeat. I’m seriously beginning to regret starting this thread. Not because I’m tired of writing about the episodes, but that revisiting Star Trek with a critical eye is bringing out all its flaws in painful relief, and I am no longer able to cloak them in a veil of nostalgia. Star Trek had a base energy state to which it reverted to far too often, that of the God episode. While there was variety in episodes and stories, this particular one cropped up far to often, and certain themes and character traits become interchangeable between episodes. Aside from the God plot, this one recycles the misguided female idea. Just as ship’s historian Marla McGivers was tempted and charmed by Khan, here Archaeology and Anthropology officer Lt Palomas falls for Apollo. The relationship follows much the same course, with Palomas so smitten by the demigod that she winds up acting against her Captain. Fortunately she doesn’t slip into outright betrayal, and is instrumental in saving the ship in the end.
Scotty begins a series of disastrous relationships with women here, at least that’s the way it looks given the evidence of this episode. I seriously hope that there is more to the Scotty Palomas relationship beneath the surface than presented here, otherwise the sort of jealousy he displays, given that the two of them had barely progressed beyond the coffee and chat stage, is seriously out of proportion. This episode has me wondering if our Scotty was a stalker. By the same token, Palomas obviously doesn’t feel the same, just as McCoy opines early on, easily forgetting her Celtic suitor for the Hellenic charms of the celestial hunk. Even when Scotty gets zapped, she still finds nothing wrong in getting her groove on with the god. This episode serves as Chekov’s first landing party, and this is a thoroughly refreshing episode in terms of the Ensign’s presence. We learn the legend of the Minsk Cat, and despite his relative immaturity, he’s all for getting to grips with Lieutenant Palomas, just in case Kirk needs the help. He manages to make more of an impression in this one episode, than Sulu did in most of the first series.
Then there is the god. How do I approach this? It’s one of those ancient spacemen tales, the idea that our ancestors were uplifted by visitors from the stars, taught by big black monoliths, gifted the secret of fire, the wheel, the silicon chip, and that we owe our civilisation to higher powers. That Greek civilisation worshipped Gods that were very real is an attractive idea in Sci-Fi, it’s obviously repeated in shows like Stargate with Egyptian gods. I just hope that one day Ganesha doesn’t show up on a TV show. This episode also has an idea I very much like, that Gods are defined by their worshippers, that without adulation, they fade away. It’s an idea I see repeated in the Discworld books of Terry Pratchett. But the Trekverse conceit that Gods visited Earth, inspired civilisation, then left to wait for their worshippers to catch up to them is bizarre. I just don’t see a real world argument that justifies Apollo waiting 5000 years for humans to reach his world so that he can be worshipped once more, in an idyll full of Greek columns, laurel leaves and togas. It only makes sense if Apollo is insane. I can see advanced aliens, immortal and powerful, visiting Earth and helping human civilisation, but in doing so presenting themselves as gods, to couch their technological miracles in terms that primitive man could understand. Apollo seems to have believed his press, come to accept the image as the man, and adopted the mantle of a God. In his loneliness, the myth became the man, and he actually began to desire worship. The Apollo we see is a tragic, pathetic figure, driven insane in his solitude.
Trivia: For those who debate the interpretation of Turnabout Intruder’s apparent misogyny, a world that doesn’t allow women Captains, this episode supplies further fuel for the fire, with McCoy’s statement that Starfleet women, “find the right man and leave the service”. That’s pretty unequivocal, the idea that women’s careers end as soon as that wedding band goes on the finger, and also adds weight to the argument that there were no women Captains in Kirk’s time. Uhura on the other hand shows ability as more than just a switchboard operator, taking a soldering iron to her board in the effort to create a subspace bypass circuit, and getting a pep talk from Spock of all people. I think it was this episode that gave Kyle a name, and Kirk’s comment supports the notion of religion in the 23rd Century, albeit a monotheistic one. An odd note is the speech that he uses on Palomas to remind her of her duty, it’s the right tone to take, but he contrasts the god against humanity, of human feeling, of human contact. It seems a vaguely bigoted attitude in a multi-species service. Technobabble… m-rays?
It’s an enjoyable episode, with some lively performances, but the God story is beginning to wear thin now, and it’s only the beginning of season 2. We still have Vaal to come yet.
Re: Who Mourns For Adonais
That's what HE said.
(HE being Harlan Ellison, of course. )
True as it is, it don't bother me. Maybe because I'm still trying to kill the fucker myself (in a metaphorical-psychological sense)...
That's what HE said.
(HE being Harlan Ellison, of course.
)True as it is, it don't bother me. Maybe because I'm still trying to kill the fucker myself (in a metaphorical-psychological sense)...
