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What Changes Would You Like To See For "Spock’s Brain"?

I've long heard the old "Gene Coon meant it as a comedy" excuse, but a reading of his dead-serious outline does not bear this out. There's a synopsis at the first link, about half-way down. It's much better than the final episode, but still pretty damn bad.

Sir Rhosis
 
3 shadows in the Corner ripping the episode to shreds....

You know it deserves the MST3K treatment....

- W -
* Joel, I thought you said Star Trek was classy.... No, I said this was a CLASSIC, episode of Star Trek.... Oh *
 
I'm with Timo and Sir Rhosis on this one. Not only is the episode a hoot (in a good way) its seriously written too. How often did the series dip into harder science fiction like this?
 
Startrek.com as of this time has still to release the preview, however they did release a new picture of the Ion Ship:

320x240.jpg
 
FleetLord said:
Startrek.com as of this time has still to release the preview, however they did release a new picture of the Ion Ship:

320x240.jpg

I guess they thought the original was to "phallic" for the Eymorgs. :lol:
 
FleetLord said:
Startrek.com as of this time has still to release the preview, however they did release a new picture of the Ion Ship:

320x240.jpg
*Sigh* A totally pointless execrise replacing a perfectly fine original design.

The one thing that would immediately make "SB" fifty percent better would be a new title. Even something as simple as "The Controller."
 
Warped9 said:
The one thing that would immediately make "SB" fifty percent better would be a new title. Even something as simple as "The Controller."

That sounds like something from the Rick Berman-era, where one word title's became a cliche.
 
Actually, the title is perfect. It's got campy pulpy sci-fi weirdness written all over it. 'The Controller' makes it sound serious, generic and... bleh.
 
MeanJoePhaser said:
Warped9 said:
The one thing that would immediately make "SB" fifty percent better would be a new title. Even something as simple as "The Controller."

That sounds like something from the Rick Berman-era, where one word title's became a cliche.

I'd rather see another longer 3rd season title like:

Brain And Brain, What Is Brain? ;)
 
For His Head Is Hollow, Cuz They Have Took Spock's Brain

Actually, aside from the model shots, I hope they leave it along. The rear projection used on the viewscreen was perfect and my favorite part of the episode. If they replace that with the standard CG stars, that will take all the fun out of it. I also really enjoyed the green laser "horseshoe" when Kirk fires his phaser.
 
Nardpuncher said:
They should steal Spock's brain the same way Sylar does.
:guffaw: That would be well cool.


CoveTom said:
I think they just need to add a laugh track.

LOL, like the Star Trek in front of a live studio audience on youtube.

Hell, canned laughter will make the episode worth seeing again.



By the way, i hat the new ship. :rolleyes:
 
The new ship looks like a time release pill of some kind....

Here take this. it'll make the episode better....

- W -
* takes the pill *
 
Well, first and foremost that kid's aluminum spaceship toy model that passes for the Eyemorg ion ship needs to be replaced by something a LOT more advanced and better looking. Almost anything would look better than the original 1968 prop ship. I've seen Flash Gordon toys from half a century ago or more that look more realistic.
 
Ronald Held said:
Maybe so, but why does an alien ship need to visually look more advanced than a Federation vessel?

Becaue Scotty is drooling and effectively makes a comment that the ship is more advanced than anything he's seen; and also says outright in the opening teaser, "They could teach us a thing or two."
 
Here is a real design following principles laid down by Ernst Stuhlinger in "Ion Propulsion for Space Flight" in 1964:

http://www.reiszengineers.com/cosmos3.jpg

from here.

Here is the Matt Jefferies design:

http://tos.trekcore.com/gallery/albums/3x01/spocksbrain_014.jpg

Allowing very little for artistic license and the dialog's requirement that the ship be "unique", tell me what an "ion propulsion, high velocity" spacecraft will look like, and I'll bet you that Matt Jefferies checked his facts before drawing up something that would be dismissed forty years later by the cognoscenti as less realistic than "Flash Gordon toys from half a century ago".
 
I find it rather difficult to believe that Jeffries' aerodynamic fins would be inspired by the radiators of that ion propulsion study, or that there would be any connection between the long body of the ship in the episode and the long body of the study.

But perhaps Jeffries did do his homework. Too bad the results weren't very good. Hergé researched his moon rocket a lot, too, and still flunked on the "looks cool and functional and timeless" part. Never stopped the design from becoming iconic, though.

In any case, the less the ship looks like it would be propelled by ions Newtonically exhausted from the rear, the better... This "ion drive" is supposed to give that ship a velocity comparable to the warp six that Kirk uses for chasing her, after all.

Personally, I like to think that Dave Stern's "Cascade Ion Drive" in Daedalus / Daedalus' Children is the thing that is powering the warp drive of this impressive piece of tech. And obviously it's something related to the "polaric ion" nastiness of VOY "Time and Again", too! That is, mighty forces of nature unleashed to power a relatively conventional warp drive.

Timo Saloniemi
 
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