The Mark of Gideon question

[TomEvans]

My favorite part as a kid, the spooky floating faces notwithstanding, was the guy Spock tosses after nerve pinching his partner. He blocks a punch, flips the guy and he wriggles on the floor and goes to sleep.

I thought he did the Vulcan Neckpinch while throwing him down the hall.

Which is stupid, since we saw in Whom Gods Destroy, that he could do the Vulcan Neckpinch with BOTH hands at the same time (which they obviously also forgot about in the movie Into Darkness, where hes doing it on Khan with only one hand, when he could be using both.

 

[TomEvans]

Possibly. It's a very, very dialogue-heavy episode, and then suddenly, Spock beams into an empty "Enterprise" with no one to talk to—although he does then have a chat with Scotty. Frankly, Spock's decision to beam down to the switched coordinates (and by himself, no less) is not flawlessly logical, but the alternatives weren't terrific either. (Also, why didn't Kirk have a communicator with him as Spock did? Sure, the Gideons would have taken it or disabled it, but its absence is glaring.)

I can't really believe they thought the audience needed a catch-up at this late point (although I distinctly remember being quite confused as a kid, so perhaps at least some of the audience did ). Maybe they just thought the scene was too duplicative of what happened to Kirk.

Very little in the Treason Three is logical.

 

[Nerys Myk]

Very little in the Treason Three is logical.

"Turd Season" actually.

 

[Ssosmcin]

"Turd Season" actually.

It's not that bad. But YMMV

 

[Just a Bill]

It's not that bad. But YMMV

Yeah, there's a lotta babies getting discarded with the bathwater there.

 

[TomEvans]

"Turd Season" actually.

I know, I just like ''Treason Three'' better.

 

[ZapBrannigan]

I know, I just like ''Treason Three'' better.

But I had no idea what you were talking about until the replies came in. I love the third season, excepting only two or three episodes that don't thrill me.

 

[TomEvans]

I love the third season, excepting only two or three episodes that don't thrill me.

Oh, but those were GREAT!!!

 

[Phaser Two]

Oh, but those were GREAT!!!

LOL. Okay, thanks for the input. I think.

P.S., like @ZapBrannigan I love S3 and always will. I've mentioned this before in these parts, but I strongly suspect (although unfortunately I do not recall and have no way of finding out) that the first episodes I ever saw in syndication as a kid were S3 entries. That could in part explain my attachment to S3. However, there are plenty of other explanations, like (to take just two) (1) the heavy use of the Enterprise sets and (2) the generally more extensive—and often wonderfully written—dialogue, both serendipitous consequences of the slashed budget.

 

[Methuselah Flint]

LOL. Okay, thanks for the input. I think.

P.S., like @ZapBrannigan I love S3 and always will. I've mentioned this before in these parts, but I strongly suspect (although unfortunately I do not recall and have no way of finding out) that the first episodes I ever saw in syndication as a kid were S3 entries. That could in part explain my attachment to S3. However, there are plenty of other explanations, like (to take just two) (1) the heavy use of the Enterprise sets and (2) the generally more extensive—and often wonderfully written—dialogue, both serendipitous consequences of the slashed budget.

Yes I saw the latter half of S3 at an early age before the other seasons, hence my attachment to it. I get that.

 

[Just a Bill]

Each season has some idiocy, and each has some brilliance. It helps to consider everything on a case-by-case basis. Even my absolute worst episode, The Vagrant Dilithium Thief Who Kept Falling off the Rocks, contains some great elements.

But then again I like Spock's Brain and Turnabout Intruder. Quite a bit. So feel free to disregard my varying mileage.

 

[Phaser Two]

The Vagrant Dilithium Thief Who Kept Falling off the Rocks

 

[Doug Otte]

Thanks to this thread and all the wonderful comments, I rewatched this episode last night for the first time in many years. It's never been one I enjoyed. But this time, I realized the situation, dialogue, and acting are all very well done. Sure, we can quibble about the realism of the situation, but I now see it as one of my favorite third season episodes. And, Odona's dress was stunning.

 

[Rowdy Roddy McDowall]

And, Odona's dress was stunning.

Have you seen Rayna Kapec's?

 

[Just a Bill]

Yeah, Rayna's costume is the better one in my opinion. It seems like an actual elegant gown, whereas Odona's seems like just a sci-fi costume, exaggerated for the sake of looking alien. Both are better than the gratuitously silly things on characters like Shahna, Losira, and the Shore Leave floozies, and whatever Lenore Karidian's sparkly burrito abomination was supposed to be. But I'd have to say one of the best is that of the Romulan commander in The Enterprise Incident. Flatteringly feminine without going to excess or trying too hard to look alien or futuristic.

 

[Esteban]

Yeah, there's a lotta babies getting discarded with the bathwater there.

Time heals all wounds. But if you were there then, coming off the last reruns of the 2nd Season and hardly able to wait for September, then seeing "Spock's Brain", you knew something was very different.

I'd have to look up the airing order, but I do remember by the time I saw "Gideon" I'd pretty much given up.

 

[Ssosmcin]

Time heals all wounds. But if you were there then, coming off the last reruns of the 2nd Season and hardly able to wait for September, then seeing "Spock's Brain", you knew something was very different.

I'd have to look up the airing order, but I do remember by the time I saw "Gideon" I'd pretty much given up.

Eh, I was close enough to the original airdates to not have "time" do any healing. Granted, I do agree that if season 3 on NBC had kicked off with Spectre of the Gun, Spock's Brain wouldn't be the de facto cliche answer to "what is the worst episode of Star Trek?" It would probably bee seen as, at worst, a campy misfire with a solid first half.

But other than a couple of episodes that I remember groaning at as a kid as soon as they came on (The Mark of Gideon like you), I always enjoyed the third season. The great thing about syndication was that the show just ran and ran and ran. It was one long 79 episode season.

However, there are plenty of other explanations, like (to take just two) (1) the heavy use of the Enterprise sets and (2) the generally more extensive—and often wonderfully written—dialogue, both serendipitous consequences of the slashed budget.

I agree with these and I will add the fact that almost all of the comedy was dialed way the hell back, It was there as character bits. Comments and looks. Not full episodes with tinkly, chipper comedy music and a bunch of guys laughing so hard after losing a few crewmen that Scotty is literally gripping the door jamb while holding his stomach.

I find it sooooo much easier to buy a weirdo high-concept episode if the characters are taking it seriously. That's how I survive Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea. Or Arena, for that matter.

The third season was more serious and often more terrifying. Space got dangerous. They leaned a little more into horror and earned that 10pm timeslot a few times. And you know, those bottle episodes got the cast more involved. The Tholian Web is a great showcase for Nichelle and Walter.