Shore leave : power drain

[PCz911]

In shore leave, the phasers, then the communicators the the enterprise itself experienced power drains.

Example: sulus phaser didn't fire at the samurai
Example: Spock calculated he had just enough power to beam down

Now if the power was used to create all the creatures/things for just 7 people...them how the heck were they going to get enough power for 400 plus folks on shore leave?

If the power drain wasn't for that, then why the heck was there any drain at all? (ok, convenient maguffin)

 

[johnnybear]

Maybe to put the crew in jeopardy as part of the game! Only later did they realise that the landing party didn't know how to play!
JB

 

[Timo]

That explanation was probably the intended one: it was all part of the fun. But why would the Caretaker want to prevent beam-downs of further players? Wouldn't, say, falsifying of communications traffic be the simpler and more effective means of heightening the jeopardy, the underlying assumption being that only those who actually visit the planet are interested in being amused?

We can always blame it all on the machinery being rusted out already - after all, TAS later indicates the place was falling apart, either from use, disuse or sheer age.

Timo Saloniemi

 

[Commander Balok]

If the power drain wasn't for that, then why the heck was there any drain at all? (ok, convenient maguffin)

My understanding is that the equipment was malfunctioning. The problems ended when the Caretaker involved himself, but I could have gotten that from (1) my imagination, (2) Blish's novelizations, or (3) the episode itself. I just don't remember.

It could be the Caretaker was suspended, somehow, until needed. And it took time to revive him. "Park's closed. Moose out front shoulda told ya." Now that one did come from my imagination.

 

[MarsWeeps]

I always wondered how Sulu knew that someone was beaming down "from the bridge."

SULU: Yes, sir. (sound of a transporter beam) Look. Someone beaming down from the bridge.

 

[CorporalCaptain]

My interpretation was that the crew were tired and wanted to go on shore leave. The garden landscape was created because the crew wanted to go chillax in a place like that.

Four-hundred-thirty tired crewpersons had responsibilities but also wanted to be relieved of them. The planet attempted to realize their confused and undirected desires, but because the desires were unfocused (e.g., do I want my console on or off?) it produced a gradual drain on ship and equipment.

A little wonky maybe, but that's all I got.

I always wondered how Sulu knew that someone was beaming down "from the bridge."

SULU: Yes, sir. (sound of a transporter beam) Look. Someone beaming down from the bridge.

That's an awful line of dialog!

 

[scotpens]

I always wondered how Sulu knew that someone was beaming down "from the bridge."

SULU: Yes, sir. (sound of a transporter beam) Look. Someone beaming down from the bridge.

He probably meant to say "Someone from the bridge beaming down," but how would he have known the person beaming down was a bridge officer?

It's just a bad bit of writing that didn't get changed in the final script. Hell, it could have been fixed in post -- just have George Takei say "ship" instead of "bridge" when they looped the dialogue (which was always necessary when shooting on location outdoors).

 

[Melakon]

Considering that Roddenberry was on location with them, sitting under a tree rewriting pages to remove some fantasy elements, we're probably lucky if the episode makes any sense at all. He just wasn't able to catch everything.

 

[GSchnitzer]

I always wondered how Sulu knew that someone was beaming down "from the bridge."

SULU: Yes, sir. (sound of a transporter beam) Look. Someone beaming down from the bridge.

He probably meant to say "Someone from the bridge beaming down," but how would he have known the person beaming down was a bridge officer?

It's just a bad bit of writing that didn't get changed in the final script. Hell, it could have been fixed in post -- just have George Takei say "ship" instead of "bridge" when they looped the dialogue (which was always necessary when shooting on location outdoors).

http://www.trekbbs.com/showthread.php?p=3506104

Well, the final shooting script actually says "Someone's beaming down from the ship." Not bad writing. Just bad delivery of lines and bad script supervising by Mr. George A. Ritter.

 

[PCz911]

Considering that Roddenberry was on location with them, sitting under a tree rewriting pages to remove some fantasy elements, we're probably lucky if the episode makes any sense at all. He just wasn't able to catch everything.

I agree that this is the reality. But if we think about the in universe rationale, I'm hard pressed to think of why there was a power drain at all.

And, if I were to nitpick, the various WWII planes shown and implied to be just the one kill me!

Overall, however, the story is enjoyable enough.

 

[ThankYouGeneR]

Maybe to put the crew in jeopardy as part of the game! Only later did they realise that the landing party didn't know how to play!
JB

That is what I would think too.