Question: SE02ep09: Metamorphosis

[Captain Tracy]

Does anyone possibly know the reason - besides the obvious writers-answer that it traps the characters into the story until they solve the puzzle and win their escape - why The Big 3 and Commissioner Nancy Hedford are traveling by shuttlecraft to the Enterprise; instead of having the Enterprise travel to the planet to pick up Hedford?

When we join the story, en medias res, K,S, Mc, and Hedford are already enroute from Epsilon Canaris III in a shuttlecraft to rendezvous with the Enterprise so that Hedford can be treated for her condition aboard the Enterprise; but, we are never told why they had to use the shuttlecraft, and, what the Enterprise itself was so otherwise engaged in that the ship simply couldn't simply pick up Hedford directly.

We are never told this.

I've not had the pleasure of reading any of Gene Coon's notes; but, I know some of you have - or, had access to other story outlines/early drafts/ etc. - which might have ended up on the cutting room floor in final production. Therefore, I'd like to know if anyone has any further background on this story; specifically the answer to the plot hole large enough to... to, fly a shuttlecraft through... which answers the question of
why they are using the shuttlecraft at all.

Insights - documented or speculative - would be highly appreciated.

 

[ZapBrannigan]

One thing we can say: this episode proves that the shuttlecraft has warp drive. Its use would make no sense otherwise.

We can sling fan theories for the OP question. Maybe the Enterprise was quite near its pickup of the Commissioner when a super-urgent emergency call came in and the ship had to bug out at once. So they ran down to the Hangar Deck and took the shuttlecraft with a basic plan for the Enterprise to swing back there ASAP.

And this requires that, for some reason, the Commissioner could not just sit tight where she was. She had to bug out immediately, too. So Kirk came flying. From an action adventure standpoint, that might be a more exciting episode than the one we saw. But it would be kind of a JJ-Trek episode. All chase and gasp.

 

[Captain Tracy]

Well, yes, everyone can "sling fan theories" - and, I'd interested to read them! - but, the point is that the script, as it appeared on film, never gives us even a shade of a clue to the answer as to 'the why of the shuttlecraft' in the first place.

The main problem to confound the serviceability of an 'Enterprise gets called-away to deal with an emergency elsewhere' common Star Trek plot-device for use in this episode is: 'Time-Frame'.

By this I mean, from the dialog, we learn that the transportation/travel-time from the planet to the designated rendezvous-point with the Enterprise in space will take 4 hours.

This creates a big problem in the telling of the story if we go with the 'other emergency elsewhere' answer, because it is notoriously difficult to schedule a prearranged rendezvous at a designated point in time and space - and be there to meet it - when one element needs to go deal with an emergency situation; of which, dealing with emergencies are habitually difficult to determine when - Time-wise - the emergency will actually be quelled - and, the emergency responders will be free to go about their business and make their scheduled rendezvous.

The other problem with any sort of "off doing an emergency mission elsewhere" story solution is, after the shuttlecraft crew is back in contact with the Enterprise, and ready to head home, Mr. Scott - nor, any other crew members for that matter - never delivers any line of script along the lines of: "... and, we the delivered the highly-perishable medicine to the plague-victims on Beta Gamma V without incident, Sir,"; which makes it seem that whatever and why-ever the Enterprise had to be elsewhere was so inconsequential, that no one bothered to mention anything about it - before, during, nor, after-the-fact.

One might try to get around this by saying, well it wasn't an emergency, the Enterprise was just off doing a 'milk-run' delivery; and therefore, Mr Scott was confident he could get the ship back to make the rendezvous in plenty of time to meet the shuttlecraft.

Well, if we make that the reason for separating K,S, Mc, and the ailing Hedford from the Enterprise by putting them in the shuttlecraft, then logically, the reason for the 'call-away' for the Enterprise cannot be pedestrian in comparison to the emergency medical rescue of a sick and dying Federation representative from Peace-Talks during an active war.

The third problem is there is never any dialog between The Big 3 about "hoping Mr Scott can get to that big emergency in time to save the dire situation in that other place."; which by it's absence, indirectly informs me - the viewer - there is no other emergency or other important mission occurring.

The reason has to be something along the lines of: Hedford can't use the transporter, so she must go by shuttlecraft; which might work if you don't look too closely, except for the big problem with that is that such an answer in no way answers why the Enterprise needs to be 4 hours distant from the planet - which would be out of transporter range anyway.

I'm telling you, solving this thing is a real puzzler as to how to make this story work honestly, based on the facts presented on the screen.

@ZapBrannigan You bring up an excellent story point: "Why can't the Hedford just sit tight where she is, until the Enterprise can arrive to beam her up to sickbay?"

This question is not answered for us either; any more than the 'why the shuttlecraft' question is not answered.

It seems to me - and, I have no way of confirming this - that the answers to these glaring story-questions were, at some point in time, part of the script or story treatment - and, got cut, at some point between script revisions.

I would be very hard pressed to accept that a writer as talented as Gene Coon was, would not have initially constructed his story with an air-tight plot structure.

Gene Coon was the furthest thing from a 'fast and loose' writer.

I feel like this story, the way it ended up on film, had it's establishing exposition which perfectly set-up the scenario dynamics, might have been cut from the shooting script; as well as, the denouement with which to tie-up the outcome of whatever it was that caused isolating The Big 3 from the Enterprise.

If anyone knows, please share what you know; and, if not, please feel free to "sling" any "fan theories"; which could make this story tighter.

 

[BK613]

Don't know any more than has been said but my slung theory would be that there are peace negotiations under way and the Enterprise is armed and the shuttlecraft is not.

 

[Captain Tracy]

@BK613 - That is an outstanding potential puzzle piece; I like it!

If we go with your "fling", then, we could reasonably assume a '4 hour' - at what speed, who knows? - 'No-Fly Zone' surrounding the planet in question for armed vessels; being the plausibility for honestly using the shutttlecraft, and, honestly pushing the Enterprise away at the same time.

I like it; I really like it!

Does anyone see any 'holes' in that?

Your puzzle-piece also speaks to @ZapBrannigan's excellent question of why the soon-to-be dying Hedford cannot just "sit tight" until the Enterprise arrives to beam her up - it's armed; and therefore, the Enterprise can't enter the 'No Fly Zone' to beam her up.

You know, if this story-element - your "fling" - had been supplied to us through the dialog, not only would it have closed the holes - at least the ones I could see and spoke to - but, by justifying the 4 hour travel/time distance, and playing that fact off of Hedford's ever-deteriorating medical condition, would have heightened the tension of the story, by honestly pointing to the time constriction of the distance/time between the ship's sickbay, the dying Hedford, and the frustration of being trapped on the Cochran's planet.

 

[alchemist]

It seems to me - and, I have no way of confirming this - that the answers to these glaring story-questions were, at some point in time, part of the script or story treatment - and, got cut, at some point between script revisions.

I would be very hard pressed to accept that a writer as talented as Gene Coon was, would not have initially constructed his story with an air-tight plot structure.

Gene Coon was the furthest thing from a 'fast and loose' writer.

I feel like this story, the way it ended up on film, had it's establishing exposition which perfectly set-up the scenario dynamics, might have been cut from the shooting script; as well as, the denouement with which to tie-up the outcome of whatever it was that caused isolating The Big 3 from the Enterprise.

If anyone knows, please share what you know; and, if not, please feel free to "sling" any "fan theories"; which could make this story tighter.

Sorry, there's no answer in the story outline or the script drafts (first draft through shooting) regarding the question as to why the shuttlecraft is traveling to the Enterprise. Maybe there are some notes in the UCLA collection that could help. Is that the Trek signal I see being shined for @Harvey and @Maurice?

 

[Maurice]

Sorry, there's no answer in the story outline or the script drafts (first draft through shooting) regarding the question as to why the shuttlecraft is traveling to the Enterprise. Maybe there are some notes in the UCLA collection that could help. Is that the Trek signal I see being shined for @Harvey and @Maurice?

I’m in crunch mode project and don’t have time to dig through the papers at the moment.

 

[Timo]

I don't see any particular reason to think the writers would have considered a "reason" for the situation. Why should they?

We have three people in the shuttlecraft to keep the guest star company. One of them makes sense: she's ill, and McCoy is a doctor, even if his bedside manner is atrocious.

There is no reason to have either Kirk or Spock aboard, though. No reason, that is, other than them being the stars of the show. The writers are not making any visible effort at justifying their presence - so it would appear unreasonable to think they made any effort to justify the shuttle use.

So fan theories really are the only thing we can resort to. And those are fairly easy to come by, as regards the shuttle:

1) The ship had better things to do. She usually does. Insert thing.
1.1) The engine room looks different from this episode on. Perhaps the ship went to have it fixed? (Looking at ya, Mytran.)
2) The region is dangerous for starships, not so much for small shuttles.
2.1) We hear asteroids mentioned; perhaps a ship would have to tread carefully there, wasting time, while a shuttle could go full throttle.
2.2) Said asteroids come as something of a surprise to both sets of heroes, though. So perhaps this star system is hostile to starships for another reason. As suggested above, the locals might shoot at warships, not at harmless shuttles.
2.3) Or then the system itself reduces warp to walking pace. We get this a lot in TOS and later Trek: extreme warp is visibly slow as molasses when attempted close to a star. Not all stars, but Earth's Sun is notorious in this respect in "Tomorrow is Yesterday" and ST4:TVH among others. Better have a shuttle stuck in those molasses than the ship.

It's much harder to explain why Kirk and Spock would be aboard.

A) They have a role to play in the diplomatic game. (But none is ever mentioned!)
B) They were there on different business altogether, fortunately for the sick Commissioner. (Really weak.)
C) The Commissioner asked for them. (She really should have asked for somebody else. These folks barely talk to her when she's fucking dying, and ultimately abandon her to possession by a space monster.)
D) The mission of the ship called for the absence of the main heroes. (It would be fun to come up with a mission that would require this!)

1 through 2.3 and A through D is way more thought than the writers would have needed to put into this: the episode doesn't hinge on explanations or rationalizations, and doesn't collapse for their total absence.

Timo Saloniemi

 

[Maurice]

Looked through the Roddenberry papers and there are not many memos about this script (this is pretty common for staff written scripts because these people worked a few doors from each other and could just chat about things). No one mentions the "issue" discussed in this thread, which suggests it was not seen as a problem.

 

[ZapBrannigan]

No one mentions the "issue" discussed in this thread, which suggests it was not seen as a problem.

In script writing, there's a case to be made for not filling in too many blanks, for not cluttering the flow with exposition you can do without. Commissioner Hedford's little backstory in the teaser was enough expository burden. Putting in more to explain the starship's absence would be real clutter.

It's always awkward when characters have to patiently tell each other, for our sake, what they already know themselves. It has to be done artfully and held to a minimum.

So: If we show that Kirk is using a shuttlecraft, the audience will assume he has a good reason. And before they can get stuck wondering what that might be, we've drawn them into the story we do want to tell.

 

[Captain Tracy]

@Maurice - Thanks for taking the time to check it out; I sincerely appreciate your effort.

Well, at least we have @BK613 's most excellent "fling" to justify using the shuttlecraft in Metamorphosis; and, justification for keeping the Enterprise at distance.

Now.... On to trying to determine a honest justification for using the shuttlecraft in The Galileo 7 by sending it into the Murasaki-312 quasar-like phenomena.

Murasaki-312 by nature massively scrambles sensor-readings. Therefore, if the thing's interference is strong enough to overwhelm the superior and enhanced sensors on the Enterprise at distance, what then is the honest justification of sending the Galileo 7 in for "an up-close look", when it should be a foregone expectation that the shuttlecraft sensors, being closer to the powerful source of interference, would be even more overwhelmed; rendering it's sensors equally useless - all this, before, being pulled off-course, to crash land.

So, we all know that the crew has to put in the shuttlecraft otherwise they can't crash land, and, if they don't crash land we don't have a story... which is wonderful, but, just like in Metamorphosis, can we find, or, does there exist already, an honest justification for putting the crew into the shuttlecraft in the first place?

 

[BK613]

Technically, I used the word "slung." Never used the word "fling."

 

[Captain Tracy]

@ZapBrannigan - Yes, and when writers do what you are pointing to, it often comes off like a public service announcement of heavy exposition, which can drone on for half-a-page of torturous soliloquies; however, in the case of some Star Trek stories, often, one or two lines of dialog between two characters - or, using the handy-dandy 'Captains' Log' expository device - would have nicely supplied the justification and closed the holes.

I would not presume a justification, anymore than I would presume a character motivation for a characters' actions or speeches, just because it happens in-print or on-screen.

I demand more of writers; and, Star Trek's writers being some of the best in the business in their time, I demand the most out of.

Why?

Because they usually deliver, beautifully; and when they don't, I have to ask: "Why?".

@BK613 - True; I have a natural habit of rewriting other's scripts.

 

[blssdwlf]

Does anyone possibly know the reason - besides the obvious writers-answer that it traps the characters into the story until they solve the puzzle and win their escape - why The Big 3 and Commissioner Nancy Hedford are traveling by shuttlecraft to the Enterprise; instead of having the Enterprise travel to the planet to pick up Hedford?

When we join the story, en medias res, K,S, Mc, and Hedford are already enroute from Epsilon Canaris III in a shuttlecraft to rendezvous with the Enterprise so that Hedford can be treated for her condition aboard the Enterprise; but, we are never told why they had to use the shuttlecraft, and, what the Enterprise itself was so otherwise engaged in that the ship simply couldn't simply pick up Hedford directly.

We know from "The Menagerie" that a shuttle is almost as fast as the Enterprise's maximum warp and is only limited by fuel and life-support. The shuttle had already traveled an unknown amount of time and was only under 4 hours and 21 minutes to rendezvous with the Enterprise before being nabbed by the Companion. Hedford's condition started to deteriorate around when the Enterprise realized the shuttle was late and was backtracking them so 5 to 10 hours had passed by then.

It's likely that just waiting for the Enterprise to arrive at Epsilon Canaris Three to pick them up might have taken too long and meeting partway would've increased Hedford's chance of survival given that a shuttle is almost as fast as the Enterprise.

As to why the shuttle was there in the first place, I like BK613's idea that is an unarmed shuttle and the Enterprise is not. I'd take it further to suggest that Kirk, Spock, McCoy and Hedford arrived to mediate in the shuttle. At some point Hedford contracted Sakuro's disease and they had to leave for the Enterprise.

edit: Murasaki 312 - When Kirk sent out the shuttle in "The Galileo Seven" no one expected the entire sector to be ionized. It is likely that the shuttle was meant to get close to experience the ionization and get those readings like Spock did with a shuttle in "The Immunity Syndrome".

 

[Captain Tracy]

@blssdwlf - "... As to why the shuttle was there in the first place, I like BK613's idea that is an unarmed shuttle and the Enterprise is not." - Yes, I too like it, a lot! "...I'd take it further to suggest that Kirk, Spock, McCoy and Hedford arrived to mediate in the shuttle." - Now here is more useful postulating, thank you!

What you suggest solves a common problem with honest justifications in more than a few Star Trek stories, and that is, the uncomfortable question of why the top 3 senior officers are off-ship in the first place.

With what you suggest, we can justify the The Big 3's presence, if the big 3 are there as Federation Representatives, who are attending and accompanying Hedford planet-side while she does her peace-talk thing on the warring planet. That makes the presence of K, S, and McC, required and honest; and... would even warrant a costume-change, if they were properly put in their dress uniforms - which, would visually and indirectly point to the importance of Hedford's mission.

VERY nice add; thank you!

In the case of the justification you additionally offered in the case of The Galileo 7, I'll have to go back and check it out against the exact details as presented in that episode; and, check out the serviceability of what you suggested, before I can comment meaningfully. Unfortunately, that means I have to also look at Galactic High Commissioner Ferris' ugly mug... again!

Unfortunately, both Spock and Boma's statements regarding the shuttlecraft instruments going crazy as the shuttlecraft nears the effect, contradicts: "Murasaki 312 - When Kirk sent out the shuttle in "The Galileo Seven" no one expected the entire sector to be ionized.",

Latimer: "Sir, these instruments have gone crazy."
Boma: "That's to be expected, Mr. Spock; Quasars are extremely disruptive, just how much, we don't know."
Spock: "Considerably; Mr. Boma."

So, that not only puts us right back where we started with no honest justification for sending out a shuttlecraft in the first place; but, deepens the problem, as it is "known and expected to be considerably disruptive" to the very instruments that are to be used on the mission.

Which is even more justification not to send out a shuttlecraft; unfortunately.

Oh well, good try, just the same; but we all get 3 tries for a quarter; so please, keep "flinging" more possibilites

 

[blssdwlf]

Unfortunately, both Spock and Boma's statements regarding the shuttlecraft instruments going crazy as the shuttlecraft nears the effect, contradicts: "Murasaki 312 - When Kirk sent out the shuttle in "The Galileo Seven" no one expected the entire sector to be ionized.",

Latimer: "Sir, these instruments have gone crazy."
Boma: "That's to be expected, Mr. Spock; Quasars are extremely disruptive, just how much, we don't know."
Spock: "Considerably; Mr. Boma."

So, that not only puts us right back where we started with no honest justification for sending out a shuttlecraft in the first place; but, deepens the problem, as it is "known and expected to be considerably disruptive" to the very instruments that are to be used on the mission.

Which is even more justification not to send out a shuttlecraft; unfortunately.

Depends on where you emphasize the unexpectedness.

LATIMER: Sir, this indicator's gone crazy.
BOMA: That's to be expected, Mister Spock. Quasars are extremely disruptive. Just how much, we don't know.
SPOCK: Considerably, Mister Boma.
MEARS: Mister Spock, radiation is increasing.
SPOCK: Stop forward momentum, Mister Latimer.
LATIMER: I can't, sir. Nothing happens. ​

Boma expected the indicators to go crazy - but he didn't know by how much. Apparently a shuttle seemed more appropriate than say a probe. Note that they didn't expect the shuttle to get pulled into the Murasaki event either. And on the same vein, they didn't expect a complete sector to get impacted because if they knew then Kirk would've kept the Enterprise and the shuttle even further away to investigate.

KIRK: That thing out there has ionized this complete sector. None of our instruments work. At least four complete solar systems in the immediate vicinity. And out there somewhere, a twenty four foot shuttlecraft, off course, out of control. Finding a needle in a haystack would be child's play.​

Otherwise it would mean Kirk knew that they were within the ionization zone and that the shuttle was in danger of getting sucked into it which I seriously doubt.

 

[Captain Tracy]

@blssdwlf - Your point about what is being emphasized is very well made; however, from the way I personally interpreted the speeches, I'm hearing the information exchange as: Mr. Spock, the highly-informed Senior Science Officer, schooling the junior Lt. Boma; that Quasor's are "considerably" disruptive in their scope of impact on instrumentation; as a fact Boma is apparently not as properly informed on as he should be, in Mr. Spock's estimation; hence the quip by Spock.

However, considering your point on where the emphasis could also be placed, Spock would then be concurring with Boma; and, Spock's quip of "considerably", would then be pointing to, and agreeing with "just how much, they don't know." By this latter interpretation, then yes, Spock would properly be confirming and reinforcing Boma's statement that there is a "considerable amount they do not know" about the hazards of Quasars to the operation of instrumentation.

I agree with you that the former interpretation paints an even bleaker picture to the question of: "why send out a shuttlecraft all?"; where again, I agree with you that,"it would mean Kirk knew [suspected] that they were [could be] within the ionization zone and that the shuttle was [might be] in danger of getting sucked into it."

I'm trying to give the Captain every [benefit of the doubt] to lessen of bleakness of the conclusion the former interpretation informs and implicates when one extrapolates; however, at the same time, I am also hearing the famous: "Risk is our business" speech, from the Captain; as a counter-balance.

So, who knows.

In either case, we are still left with the nagging Missing-Why to the question of: "Why send a shuttlecraft in the first place?".

I also agree with you when you state: "Apparently a shuttle seemed more appropriate than say a probe."; being what I would consider as reasonable assumption based on the fact that they are not sending a probe - BUT, we also don't know 'Why?' that would be - so, upon closer examination, that reasonable assumption turns into double-talk in attempt to talk our way out of not having the honest answer to the first Why in the story.

In other words, we can't just say: "They're sending the shuttle because they're not sending a probe."; as the cause and the justification to put the characters in the shuttlecraft - that would be dishonest story-telling - and, would get busted the moment someone asked: "But, why can't they send a probe?". Then, another double-talk non-answer would have to be invented, which is just a lot of bad dancing around not having a tight story.

There must be a legitamate cause which brings about an honest justification as the effect of that cause - The Why.

If the script - or, us, in this case - cannot answer or construct an honest justifiable cause to answer Why send a shuttlecraft out, versus sending a probe, versus using the ship to investigate closer, based on what we see, hear, and know about these characters, the situations they are in, the actions they take, and, the dialog of their speeches, then the story format is not drama, the format it is not action-adventure, the story-format spirals down and descends into the absolute lowest format of the theatrical play: The Melodrama; which, by definition: "Does not observe the laws of cause and effect." a.k.a. The badly written Fairy Tale.

Star Trek is too good a story-telling vehicle for that - even though, yes, obviously it did happen from time to time; but that, is entirely different topic.

I believe, just as the holes in Metamorphosis were beautifully filled-in and closed, honestly, by working the story information and implications, I'm hoping the same success can be had with the holes in The Galileo Seven story.

 

[BK613]

Kirk is required by standing orders to mount an investigation. Using the shuttlecraft risks seven people and using the Enterprise risks 430 (plus any on New Paris if the Enterprise doesn't make the rendezvous.) That seems like a reasonable risk assessment for scientific inquiry. And the risk assessment changes when the mission goes from scientific inquiry to rescue and/or recovery.

(Of course, I also would like to believe that they used a telemetry probe like in The Immunity Syndrome first and it wasn't robust enough for the job. A shielded shuttlecraft would be the next logical step.)

 

[Captain Tracy]

@BK613 - True, the Captain is under standing orders to investigate all Quasars and all Quasar-like phenomena; but, what justification do we have that he can't just fly the ship up closer to do the investigation from the safety of the Enterprise?

Yes, I completely agree with your added down-side of the people potentially affected at the New Paris Colonies, if something were to compromise the Enterprise as a delivery vehicle - You're pretty damn good at this exercise!

Yes, one single line in the script from Uhura reporting that the probe failed, would have served to close that hole perfectly; and with series continuity

The other thing is, If we go with "known risk" as justification, then we have to justify that against the "Risk is our business" speech, and, all the times the Captain didn't use the shuttlecraft, and instead, flew the ship up to, or into, the risky situation.. like the barrier at the edge of the galaxy, etc. - but then, we enter the really dark waters of continuity from script-to-script; a death-spiral.

While it is true that risking 7 people versus 430 plus the potential others is good math; but, if we go by that, then would we have the different problem of justifying Spock, McCoy, and Scotty all in the dangerous shuttlecraft at the same time, when an Officer of lesser-value to StarFleet could command the mission; and, why does this mission require the presence of a starship's Chief Surgeon and it's Chief Engineer?

That's a lot of gold braid to risk on an ad-hoc secondary mission, to the primary mission of getting those drugs to the New Paris Colonies.

So, we could solve the one problem by getting the shuttlecraft on it's way honestly, but if we use the "risk less people" answer, then, we create a problem with justifying loading it up with the 3 most senior officers. Which makes having Mr. Spock, McCoy, and Scott on-board; and in this case, I would say, especially McCoy, even tougher to justify.

I was thinking more along the lines of: Perhaps there is a regulation that Federation Bueracrats like Ferris, who while high-ranking in terms of position, are not Field Command Personnel, and therefore, cannot be exposed to unnecessary risk in the performance of their bueracratic duties while they are in the field - which forbids using the Enterprise to investigate in this case - can't expose Ferris or his Mission to known risk - and if for now, we just assume the probe is not the proper choice for some valid reason, or, that Uhura reported no telemetry from the probe, then it would become the shuttlecraft gets used by default - honestly.

But then, even with those givens, we are right back to: How do we justify putting all that gold-braid together on the same shuttlecraft for this required B-mission?

To Quote: "Your logic was flawless, Captain... we are in grave danger."

This is a hard nut to crack!

 

[CorporalCaptain]

Don't know any more than has been said but my slung theory would be that there are peace negotiations under way and the Enterprise is armed and the shuttlecraft is not.

That's not bad.

For another range of possibilities:

Maybe the Enterprise had to go perform a task that had already been scheduled, which Scott was fully qualified to accomplish.

The Commissioner's illness was obviously unplanned, and if the Enterprise was the only ship in range that could treat her, then a side mission in a shuttlecraft might have been the only feasible way to save the Commissioner.

As for what the previously scheduled mission was, the Enterprise was often rendezvousing with this or that Federation ship, so maybe it was something like that.

As to why Spock and McCoy accompanied Kirk, McCoy's need was obvious. Spock may have come along at Kirk's request, maybe for the company on a tedious mission, but also maybe as copilot, to be ready to take the controls while Kirk gave the Commissioner his personal attention as an honor and a courtesy.