Star Trek: TOS 2.6 - The Doomsday Machine

Review 34 - Episode 35

The One that's a bit like Moby Dick

Well, what can you say? Superb episode with lots of great scenes, but a couple of weird things I'll note at the start to get them out the way. No Uhura? No Uhura and replaced by some blonde white chick? What the hell was going on there? Chekov also MIA I can just about accept as he's new, but Uhura? It's odd, she doesn't really do much, but when she's missing it's strangely jarring. Also, Kirk in his green tunic? I'm not sure if this was to differentiate him to Decker, but along with the new sets, it almost seemed like a relaunch show.

Anyway, none of the above is really important. What we have here is a giant ship (?) that eats planets and travels across space and eats more planets. For all eternity. The Enterprise's sister ship, USS Constellation (bit odd that name if they're Constellation class, though I suspect it's retroactive and there were no classes in these days) is badly damaged and only Commodore Decker is alive onboard, his crew beamed to the supposed safety of a planet, before they were killed by the Planet eater. He's not taken it well and sets about claiming the Enterprise and attacking the Doomsday Machine.

Kirk and Scotty stuck on the Constellation have great scenes together as Kirk desperately tries to get the ship up and running and Scotty for the first time really shows what a miracle worker he is, getting the engines and phaser banks working. He also fixes the transporter's on the Enterprise and saves Kirks life by a whisker (nice to see Kyle again, who's accent wavers but I think is meant to be English)

The main drama is Decker in command of the Enterprise and Spock obviously desperate to return and collect the captain, but refusing to break star fleet rules of command. His scene with McCoy as he offers a route to get rid of Decker then takes it away in the same breath is highly amusing, yet frustrating at the same time. Spock has never seemed more Vulcan and alien in this episode. McCoy is sadly missing for most of this episode, which surprised me as I thought he'd be in cahoots with Spock to overthrow Decker. It's a fine performance by William Windom, at times level headed, yet a nervous wreck and constantly on the verge of losing it. Here is a commander who has faced his worst nightmare and lived, yet wished he was dead. The giant ship really does look like some sort of space whale and it's good there was no explanation for it or where it came from beyond an interesting theory from Kirk.

Odds and sods: Sulu is once again relegated to driver guy and I'm surprised how little he has to do in these early episodes; it's great seeing another Federation ship and this is another episode that makes the universe bigger; I had no idea Decker in The Motion Picture is supposed to be Deckers son. Makes his character more interesting.

Quite Simply, another great episode.

5/5


Overall Star Trek Franchise Rating so far: 103/170

Star Trek: TOS 2.5 - Amok Time

Review 33 - Episode 34

The One were Spock Vs. Kirk

This is always considered something of a classic by Trek fans and is one of the few to have saturated other media and joe publics knowledge. It's not hard to see why. There is so much going on in this episode that it's hard to sum up, so I'll take them one at a time.

The main theme of this episode is Spock's need to return to Vulcan and experience Pon Farr, a biological need to mate that drives emotions and violence. There is a certain frustration watching this as we know Spock will die if he doesn't return home, yet he seems willing to sacrifice himself as long as his customs aren't revealed. It obviously mirrors certain aspects of religions on earth such as arranged marriages and the secrecy of rituals, but you feel like screaming at the TV "Tell him you're dying you Vulcan SOB!!" Kirk also comes across quite harsh in not simply trusting that Spock has to go home, demanding to know an answer. It's easy with hindsight to simply wonder what is the big fuss, but Vulcan rituals do seem quite intense.

This is also the first episode where Kirk, Spock and McCoy are really bonded as friends for life and the scene in the lift where Spock invites them down as friends is quite touching. Kirk putting his career on the line for Spock is also another line drawn in the sand and it's interesting watching these knowing that he will sacrifice everything for Spock in the Movies.

The Vulcan rituals actually come across quite mysterious and ancient, no mean feat given the production values on the show. A lot of this must go to Celia Lovsky who brings an authority and presence to the role of T'pau and the proceedings. I can just about forgive the fact that Spock simply doesn't just say "it's to the death captain" and no one tells Kirk before accepting the challenge. It's worth it simply to see Spock in the heat of blood lust trying to kill Kirk. The solution by McCoy is simple, yet logical, although it wouldn't be very effective if they fought with blades for the whole fight. Spocks reaction at seeing Jim alive is also brilliant and probably guarantees this top marks on it's own. The only thing is, won't T'pau be rather annoyed she's been tricked? And wouldn't Kirk never be able to officially go back to Vulcan as he's meant to be dead?

Odds and sods: Chapel appears again and is still love sick over Spock, who doesn't appreciate her soup (another great scene, Spock looking angry for the first time - in fact any scenes with Spock angry are good); Chekov and Sulu are also good with their banter over course plotting. only Uhura is left out and Scotty's MIA.

So, very important episode from the Vulcan backstory aspect and probably helped make the Trek universe deeper and more rewarding.

5/5

Overall Star Trek Franchise Rating so far: 98/165

Star Trek: TOS 2.4 - Who Mourns for Adonais?

Review 32 - Episode 33

The One with the giant hand

I can't deny the image of a giant hand coming towards the enterprise isn't startling and it gets your attention but it still must be one of the silliest openings to a trek episode. Unsurprisingly, a being with "God like powers" , in this case Apollo, captures the Ship and wants the crew to worship him. Kirk, Bones, Chekov, Scotty and random love interest Palamas are trapped on the planet, whilst Spock, Uhura and occasional regular Kyle try to break free.

This is all very predictable and normally God like episodes really get my goat, but this has a few things to recommend it. Firstly, there is some great dialogue for Kirk, especially at the start with McCoy talking about Palamas being married off. Chekov also has some nice one liners and Bones is thankfully back to his normal self and not moaning about ridiculous things. Also there is a rare love interest for Scotty, though he is a bit OTT everytime she disappears.

Spock and Uhura rarely interact with each other with any meaningful dialogue, so it was nice to see Spock complimenting her and Uhura doing some engineering work. Nice change. Sulu is unfortunately doing his thing.

Finally, the actual end scene of Apollo beaten and confused, with Kirk feeling genuine sympathy for him was a surprisingly emotional scene and caught me off guard. Lovely last line as well.

Of course, when all is said and done, there's still a dirty big hand in space and the girl once again falls in love far too fast, but the final act and some unusual groupings make this quite watchable. However, the amount of Reality shifting/God like being episodes is beyond the joke, so I'm going to start a running total and see how many more we get. God I hate them.

3/5

Overall Star Trek Franchise Rating so far: 93/160

Number of episodes involving God Like beings or reality shifting powers: 10

Star Trek: TOS 2.3 - Friday's Child

Review 31 - Episode 32

The One with McCoys "baby"

Quite entertaining. Our Trio are on a planet trying to negotiate mining rights with warrior race when who pops up but a Klingon. Cue the quickest red shirt death ever and blatant prime directive busting and you've got scuffles and chases and a reluctant pregnant queen in tow.

I need to say here, this is the 3rd episode in a row that Kirk, Spock and Bones are on the planet and the Enterprise is dragged away or out of contact. Now I love the relationship between them, but you need to have them interacting with other characters or this may get old fast. It may be a factor of watching these in production order, but I'm not sure.

It's nice to see the Klingon's back and the hatred by Kirk even in these early episodes is strong. I would actually class this as a McCoy episode as he's got to look after the queen and baby as well as being the expert on this planet and culture. Poor Spock is sometimes just required to say dry one liners and raise an eyebrow.

The Enterprise is diverted away by a fake emergency call and once again, Scotty, Sulu, Chekov and Uhura are on the bridge, doing their thing. I was quite disappointed there was no battle with the Klingon ship, but I'm sure budget reasons played a large part in it. Julie Newmar is excellent as the guest star (I've wrongly been calling Eleen a queen, but she is in all but name) and it makes a change from the usual girls who either swoon over Kirk or start crying and screaming.

Enjoyable, but I maybe expect more from Fontana.

3/5

Overall Star Trek Franchise Rating so far: 90/155

Star Trek: TOS 2.2 - Metamorphosis

Review 30 - Episode 31

The One with Zefram Cochrane (v.1)

An episode that's interesting more from a historical point as Cochrane would appear in First Contact many years later as a quite different character.

The Trio and Nancy, a diplomat, are hijacked in their shuttle by a mysterious force and forced to land on a planet where they meet Cochrane and mysterious force known as the Companion who loves Cochrane.

Nancy's character is quite bad in this, whining for no apparent reason and screaming uncontrollably out of the blue. McCoy also doesn't come across very well and I've noticed that the writers tend to have him argue or be annoyed even if it's a clear situation where nothing can be done and it makes him look rather silly at times. This is also the 2nd episode in a row where Kirk, Bones and Spock are marooned on a planet whist the Enterprise looks for them.

Cochrane is incredibly bland and stiff in this episode which makes it quite funny as too the womanizing, drunken bum he apparently used to be. There is also a scene where he feels completely uncomfortable with the idea of the companion loving him that reminded me of someone who finds out a girl is a boy or some sort of sexual discovery. I'm probably reading to much into it, but i think the metaphors there.

It's also a bit of a cop out that Nancy is about to die and she has been saying how she never loved, when the companion merges with her. I'm sure if she was fit and healthy is would be a different situation entirely. Also of interest is the universal translator, the 1st time it's appeared in the star trek universe. Scotty and the rest of the gang are on the bridge doing there usual thing, but at least Scotty seems to be in charge now.

It's an okay episode, but nothing startling or special, and a bit boring in places.

2/5

Overall Star Trek Franchise Rating so far: 87/150

Star Trek: TOS 2.1 - Catspaw

Review 29 - Episode 30

The One with the giant cat

(Since we're now into Season 2 and the cast and costumes are now established, there's no real reason to keep reviewing the episodes in production order. However, since I've started this way, I might as well continue, so this season and the next will be production order still.)

Wow. this one blew me away. With us being into Season 2, the home of the Mirror Universe and Chekov coming into the cast, I was expecting great things from these episodes. Let us hope that this 1st one I've reviewed of this Season is not a benchmark as it is without doubt one the worst hours of Trek ever produced. And I've seen some bad Voyagers.

I don't know where to start? Sulu and Scotty are on the planet and don't respond to hails. The bold trio of Kirk, Spock and Bones (who now gets his credit in the title) beam down and encounter a strange castle with witches, dungeons and black cats. Sulu and Scotty are "zombiefied" in this episode, so mainly walk very slowly around and keep a blank face. On the enterprise, Chekov is introduced with one of the strangest hair cuts ever - it's makes his head look the size of a pumpkin. There's also a new Red shirt in charge, DeSalle, who gives Chekhov a hard time, then seems to warm to him. I don't know if he's ever seen again, probably not, but seems a waste of a good part for Sulu or Scotty.

The trio on the ground are imprisoned and encounter 2 aliens with "God like powers" who can change reality, etc. Yep, this old fan favourite is back. There's lots of walking slowly in fog, following a black cat who turns into Sylvia, who is meant to be stunningly attractive, but has one of the largest barnets I have ever seen. It would give Marge Simpson a run for her money. She is of course instantly in love with Kirk and the way he seduces her is squirmy, sleazy and cringe worthy stuff. She then turns into a GIANT CAT and starts chasing them around. At the end, they are revealed to be TWO TINY PUPPETS whose strings you can clearly see and dissolve into smoke.

I mean, Squire of Gothos was bad, Mudds women was bad, but this makes them out to be masterpieces. Fucking horrendous. Never ever watch this.

0/5

Overall Star Trek Franchise Rating so far: 85/145

Star Trek: TOS 1.29 - Operation: Annihilate.

Review 28 - Episode 29

The One with the flying jellyfish

Silly monster this episode, but there are a few things that make this worth watching. The crew visit a planet that had been infested with flying parasites that attach themselves to a host and infect them, spreading madness. Actually, this is slightly garbled, as they mention that they want to build ships and infest the galaxy, but at the same time they seem randomly violent amd kill their hosts, so slightly confusing.

The monsters look awful, like rubber vomit that is being thrown like a Frisbee. There's no getting round the fact they are so comical that it ruins any suspense or danger.

So what is good about it? Well, important from Kirks point of view as his brother, Sam and his wife are killed (again, by the monsters? What is their M.O.) and have left a child, Peter, Kirks nephew. To be honest this is quite a traumatic day for Kirk, but it doesn't really come across that he's upset much.

The other key scenes are Spock, who's now infected, and McCoy debating, squabbling and ultimately McCoy feeling guilty when he thinks he's blinded Spock for no reason. Spock and McCoy onscreen together are always good value.

It's enjoyable enough, but forgettable all the same and impossible to take seriously. Even the title is camp.

2/5

(So, here we are at the end of Season 1 of TOS. Indeed, the 1st season of ANY Trek. I enjoyed it a lot more than I thought I would. When I decided to do this trek marathon, TOS was a series that I'd never seen properly and had never had much interest in watching, even though the films and various media always referenced it. I still think you have to be in the right frame of mind to watch it and ignore the blatant sexism, dodgy special effects and clunky dialogue at times. But on the whole, it's more sophisticated than you might think and some of the technology still seems pretty future proof even now. Right, onto Season 2!)