Spocks Brain would have been a passable episode if they had changed two things

[Herbert]

In my opinion, it was doomed much earlier, during the first exchange in sickbay where McCoy reveals that Spock's brain is gone, and William Shatner wears an expression on his face which veritably screams, 'Man, if this is the level of script we've stooped to, I hope they don't renew us for a fourth season!"

But at least Star Trek scripts never sank to the level of many Lost In Space scripts.

 

[Mytran]

If they had late-TNG/VOY era sophistication, and if they still had Spock's pre-injury transporter pattern saved away (unlikely in the episode as plotted), then maybe they could take a shot at it. It would have the advantage explaining how the spinal cord could be re-connected so perfectly.

The fact that they still don't do that in the TNG era (instead still doing medical surgery on patients) would indicate a severe limitation to the accuracy of transporter technology.

IMO, it's yet another nail in the coffin of the notion that the process doesn't operate by pulling you apart atom by atom (and then putting you back together the same way) because if it did and atomic-level of precision was indeed possible, then simple nerve connections should be no big deal

 

[ZapBrannigan]

The fact that they still don't do that in the TNG era (instead still doing medical surgery on patients) would indicate a severe limitation to the accuracy of transporter technology.

IMO, it's yet another nail in the coffin of the notion that the process doesn't operate by pulling you apart atom by atom (and then putting you back together the same way) because if it did and atomic-level of precision was indeed possible, then simple nerve connections should be no big deal

"Ethics" is an S5 episode of TNG in which Worf breaks his back, and the solution is to replicate a new, full-length spinal cord and swap it in surgically. They skipped over the problem of how to accurately connect its innumerable fibers to the brain, and then connect all the bodily nerves along its length, so his brain can pick up where it left off sending motor signals and receiving sensory messages, and not get a muddled mess of nonsense signals.

 

[Henoch]

The fact that they still don't do that in the TNG era (instead still doing medical surgery on patients) would indicate a severe limitation to the accuracy of transporter technology.

IMO, it's yet another nail in the coffin of the notion that the process doesn't operate by pulling you apart atom by atom (and then putting you back together the same way) because if it did and atomic-level of precision was indeed possible, then simple nerve connections should be no big deal

IMHO, the transporter uses an energy field to encompass whole objects, which "loosens" their molecular bounds and then "pushes" the energy-encapsulated molecules (its pattern field) into another phase/dimension (subspace transtator device?). The transporter then moves these out-of-phase molecules held together by the energy field via another energy beam through our solid phase/dimension from one location to another location (referred to as the matter stream?). Once relocated, it "pulls" the molecules back into our solid dimension (in its original pattern), then removes the energy field which causes the original molecular bounds to reestablish making the object whole again.

The "pattern" is the actual energy field holding the out-of-phase molecules together; not a 3D mathematical representation of every molecule in the object. If the pattern "degrades", then the energy field loses strength causing the field to distort or have zones of molecules shift out of position. When the pattern or energy field gets too weak, then the molecules become a dissociated mass/mess. A pattern buffer allows the pattern of be held longer with better energy strength in the transporter hardware (storage coil devices behind the chamber walls/floor).

Once the energy field is established on an object and starts to "loosen" the molecules, new objects and energy introduced are not converted, rather excluded from the transporter process, hence bullets, exploding starships, antimatter bombs, et. al. pass through the transporting object.

There's no sensor counting and 3D mapping of trillions of molecules or atoms for disassembly and reassembly, turning all the matter into an energy stream and back again. That would make it a disintegration machine. No thanks.

 

[MAGolding]

You forgot a zero

Who forgot a zero?

 

[ZapBrannigan]

Who forgot a zero?

I think he's saying the thread title should be 20 things, not 2.

 

[diankra]

"Ethics" is an S5 episode of TNG in which Worf breaks his back, and the solution is to replicate a new, full-length spinal cord and swap it in surgically. They skipped over the problem of how to accurately connect its innumerable fibers to the brain, and then connect all the bodily nerves along its length, so his brain can pick up where it left off sending motor signals and receiving sensory messages, and not get a muddled mess of nonsense signals.

Adied to which, the distinction betweenothe brain and the spinal chord is a bit arguable; part of the same system.

 

[Shaka Zulu]

The talking during brain surgery in of itself isn't that bad because they actually do some with the person awake, it was Spock's combination condescending and jejune attitude that made it look ridiculous. They could have had a light-hearted close but kept that at least a little more tense.
I mean, no one ever for a second would have thought Spock wouldn't be saved, right? He's the breakout star of the show! What would Star Trek have been without Leonard Nimoy! I shudder at the thought.

Indeed, this kind of surgery was already done in the early '30's here in Canada by Dr. Wilder Penfield, as shown here:

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[MAGolding]

I think he's saying the thread title should be 20 things, not 2.

Aha! Thank you.

 

[Qonundrum]

But at least Star Trek scripts never sank to the level of many Lost In Space scripts.

Would you carrot to explain further on that?



Though for every "Anti-Matter Man" and "Time Merchant" there were at least seven or twenty six oversimplified and/or poorly executed plot ideas... especially in season 2. Seaosn 3 did try to improve but wasn't successful, never mind that the oft-untold drinking game of "guess the reused prop's first appearance" was becoming a hit at college fraternity campuses across the globe...

If nothing else, "The Great Vegetable Rebellion" thankfully knew how to let the audience have some fun while playing it with massive sincerity, and it's clear they're struggling not to laugh in some scenes and nobody's going to blame them... unlike 96% of season 2, which is just horrid - and so bad they actually used the filming model of the J2 as an art deco object for one of the paper mache aliens in their cave and didn't tie it into the story! Even the cliche "Honey, we shrunk the family" trope to make Will Robinson wet his pants wasn't used.

 

[Ssosmcin]

I love Lost in Space. Truly. But I’m convinced The Anti-Matter Man is so well regarded only because the 6 or so episodes before it were so dire.

Try watching it after the first few episodes of the first season. Everything’s so over the top. Guy Williams shouted every line even before his evil double arrived... The robot moaning about how ugly he is...

Oy. Shave 10 minutes of BS from this one and it’s really solid. For Lost In Space...

 

[ZapBrannigan]

Lost in Space for me is about the music, the production design, and liking the people in it. Pretty much in that order. I'm in it for John Williams, the Jupiter 2, the Robot, and the main cast. Once in a while, alien technology will be eye-catching or intriguing, like "The Derelict", or the conveyor belt machine that turned bread dough into androids. Many episodes implanted lasting images and impressions in little Zap.

But if you watch the series straight through, you can get into a whole run of episodes here and there that are wildly unserious but not funny, and that serve up short rations of the good stuff, sometimes next to nothing. That's when the show tries your patience.

 

[johnnybear]

Shatner mouths his brain has gone in such a way that he's obviously in some kind of shock! His best friend is virtually dead and not in a conventional way! I think it's a reasonable episode myself, full of angst at seeing Spock as a zombie was also a bit scary for us the viewers!
JB

 

[ZapBrannigan]

The Robot is fine, despite his emotionalism. I'll watch Smith, Will and the Robot just to see the Robot. When Penny's with him I'll be 50 percent interested.

Lost in Space hugely favored Will, Smith, and the Robot because Jonathan Harris was the breakout star, and also because (according to Bill Mumy), this grouping always hit their marks and got their lines right, saving a lot of time. But when they mix it up, usually by pairing Smith with someone else, the show comes alive a little more-- precisely because you're seeing something different.

If the show had been more of a drama, I'd like to see Judy have a soft spot for Dr. Smith. That would really mess with Don's head.

 

[Qonundrum]

I love Lost in Space. Truly. But I’m convinced The Anti-Matter Man is so well regarded only because the 6 or so episodes before it were so dire.

Try watching it after the first few episodes of the first season. Everything’s so over the top. Guy Williams shouted every line even before his evil double arrived... The robot moaning about how ugly he is...

Oy. Shave 10 minutes of BS from this one and it’s really solid. For Lost In Space...

It's actually a fun show. In ways, season 3 has aged the best as I keep returning to it the most on the blu-ray set. Season 1 is robust but dated at times. Season 2 just tries to copy and paste the formula of "Batman" without a clue and fumbles at almost every turn. The one inside the robot is kinda fun, as well as the one with the tiny robots taking over (even if budget meant they all look like the Earth creation B-9, oddly... ) It's easy to see why Jonathan Harris switched gears to make Smith more a bumbler than a truly nasty villain - which probably aggravated some fans at the time...

"Anti_Matter Man" was a high point but they missed out on some opportunities to make it even better. No evil Will... And good grief, no heroic Smith to complement "our" Smith! And definitely listen to the cast commentary on the blu-ray, it never got stale... But, yeah, what's up with B-9 whining about his go-go appearance where he wouldn't be out of place in a white room with black curtains?

"Visit to a Hostile Planet" was a little campy and OTT but still highly enjoyable and in some scenes very well handled. I'd put that on top of "Anti-Matter" solely because it did more with its potential...

"Time Merchant" - for LiS - is also remarkably good, if not dated.

The one where Smith and Don end up being prisoners together was rather good...

The one with the hippies (one where hippies rule the planet because they can't grow old and apparently need to drain children's blood to find a cure for non-aging) is as warped as it is frightening. It just could have been told a ton better, Smith's wig was stupid, and for seeing go-go guys in the background with the pool table-turned-operating-table (!!) how come Penny was subjected to go-go girls? (This was the 1960s, everything was heteronormative without a second thought, and season 3 was cutting budget corners all over the place - even for Irwin Allen's standards so they weren't trying to hint at anything, not for a young kid's show made over five decades ago.)

The other hippie/beatnik one where they're rebels was irritating as heck yet fun for some bizarre reason that I cannot explain. Wasn't that the one with Lyle Waggoner (best known for Wonder Woman, among other things?) playing a robot?

Heck, even season 3's opener - logic gaffes aside and a few exist, unless the episode was heavyhandedly saying how such a reform system would not work to the point they all get to keep their weapons at time of incarceration (as well as typical 1960s anti-computer sentiments generously on display...), also had some solid moments in amongst a hit-or-miss bag...

 

[Qonundrum]

Lost in Space hugely favored Will, Smith, and the Robot because Jonathan Harris was the breakout star, and also because (according to Bill Mumy), this grouping always hit their marks and got their lines right, saving a lot of time. But when they mix it up, usually by pairing Smith with someone else, the show comes alive a little more-- precisely because you're seeing something different.

If the show had been more of a drama, I'd like to see Judy have a soft spot for Dr. Smith. That would really mess with Don's head.

Oh yeah! The Smith/Don double-act was always terrific!

And the one where Smith saves Don's life... in a cave? Or was that another episode? Season 3 also pointed out the addition of Smith actually saved the crew's lives due to the added weight on board - not bad, surprisingly...

 

[Tenacity]

seeing Spock as a zombie

Space Bimbo: Brain and brain, what is brain?"
Zombie Spock: "Brains."

 

[johnnybear]

Real zombies don't speak! They gurgle and gag a bit but don't mention brains, ever!
JB

 

[Tenacity]

"Brains."

 

[Ssosmcin]

It's actually a fun show. In ways, season 3 has aged the best as I keep returning to it the most on the blu-ray set. Season 1 is robust but dated at times. Season 2 just tries to copy and paste the formula of "Batman" without a clue and fumbles at almost every turn. The one inside the robot is kinda fun, as well as the one with the tiny robots taking over (even if budget meant they all look like the Earth creation B-9, oddly... ) It's easy to see why Jonathan Harris switched gears to make Smith more a bumbler than a truly nasty villain - which probably aggravated some fans at the time...

Sometimes season two worked really well. The Ghost Planet, Prisoners of Space, Wreck of the Robot and...er...well those are really a lot of fun. I liked The Thief from Outer Space more than I should, since I hate those kinds of episodes. But, yeah, that season was really the dregs.

Season three IS a lot better and I give Irwin some credit for recognizing that he really had to make some changes. While the show did fall back on the same old BS midway, for a while, it had some gems. I loved Condemned of Space, Visit to a Hostile Planet, Hunters Moon, Flight into the Future and even Space Creature. Then there was a dip... about four straight episodes of crap and then Anti-Matter Man and Target Earth were a nice return to form. I would say maybe 60% of the season was really fun, where the second season had like 6 episodes I can stomach.

When season one was great, it was amazeballs. But when it was bad, it was just a monochrome second season episode.