The Star Trek Thread

[Koko]

19 hours ago, RochesterRob said:

  Tonight's review will be of the episode Patterns of Force airing on WHEC 10.5 Rochester Heroes & Icons.  In short the Enterprise is sent to investigate why a Federation observer has gone silent on a planet that to that point had very primitive space travel and weapons.  In very little time we find once Kirk and Spock have beamed down that the planet's culture is currently modeled after Nazi Germany.  After a time filler capture, escape, recapture run Kirk and Spock finally infiltrate Nazi headquarters to finally find the answer as to what happened to the observer.  In the end Kirk is able to use what is left of the observer to head off an interplanetary war and in the process eliminate the source of the original problem.

 

 

  Guest Stars : Skip Homeier as Melokon.  Homeier is not given a whole lot to do but is very effective in the time allowed.  I've seen him recently on other '60's shows such as Combat and his acting skills are very notable.  He does well playing very intense driven characters.  Also, abruptly Homeier quit Hollywood during the early 1980's for reasons never disclosed.  Sad as it was more of a loss to television and movie viewers than Homeier.  David Brian plays the Federation observer John Gill.  One of the subplots is Gill is obviously drugged to the point of sitting in a stupor.  I've seen less of Brian but from what I have seen it seems he should have been given more to do.

 

 

 Plot : Aside from a power grab for Homeier's Melokon we do not get a good explanation as to the motivation of the other players on that world for going with a Nazi movement.  Later in the episode it is revealed that quite a number of high ranking officials are actually sympathetic with beings from a neighboring world who want peace.  Given what we see I don't know how they would have pulled off a coup without intervention from Kirk.  One thing that bugged me was Kirk's explanation that Gill chose Nazi Germany as the example due to efficiency.  While not extremely extravagant with resources I don't know that Nazi Germany would be the first example of efficiency that I would think of.  They did have iron and coal within their grasp and a decent food supply.  They were never as disadvantaged as the Japanese who were not abundant in any resource during the same era.  

 

 

  Enterprise Crew : Not much for Shatner and Nimoy to chew on for this episode.  Shatner did his typical over compensating for an episode that did not have a whole lot of depth to it.  

 

 

  Writing : The dialog was passable at best.  Gill's intervention in this planet's culture was not good.  The starting and finishing point was "Nazi's are bad."  Duh.

 

 

  Summary : Analysis of the television industry was unknown by the general public when this episode was filmed.  Desilu had recently been sold to Paramount and it became obvious that the approach was just get the darn thing produced.  Star Trek will never be confused with shows such as St Elsewhere or the Soprano's but did have certain standards that made its first season enjoyable.  Those same standards were obviously set aside by the second half of the second season.  Anyways as to this episode.  Shatner overcompensates as said before to make up for a poor story and dialog.  Guest Stars not used to their best abilities.  Simplistic moral touted all through out.  I give it a C.  

 

Little later trivia that came from this episode: The John Gill character, in his role as a historian, was referenced in graphics in the Enterprise episode "In a Mirror, Darkly", when mirror Archer is looking up the Federation bios of the main universe characters. Yes, they actually wrote up bios for a scene where you really couldn't see the screen without pausing and blowing it up.

[Wacka]

On ST:TNG there are a couple of things not seen by the viewer. In the diagram in Engineering of the Enterprise there is a car on a cargo bay and  a hamster wheel where the warp engines are located.  To the right of the crew (viewers left) on the bridge there is a sticker that says "186,000 mps. Its not just a good idea, it's the law."

[RochesterRob]

  The heck with it.  I could have reviewed Assignment Earth for tonight but the instigator in me wants to take on Spock's Brain which airs tomorrow night.  Officially, tonight's review will be of the episode Spock's Brain airing Thursday July 15 on WHEC 10.5 Rochester Heroes and Icons.  In short the Enterprise crosses paths with an alien female who has the ability to remove brains from humanoids.  After recovering from imposed unconsciousness the Enterprise follows residual propulsion readings to a system having 3 habitable worlds.  After a tough guy moment Kirk turns the tables on the alien female and restores Spock's brain to his body.

 

 

  Guest Star : Marj Dusay as the alien woman who is the leader of her world.  I give her credit as an actress as the character she portrayed was limited intellectually without the benefit of computer enhancement.  Her "brain and brain, what is brain?" is immortal among series fans as the 3rd and final season kicked off signaling a clear decline in the production values of series.  Her character might as well been commenting on the administration of Paramount Studios.

 

 

  Plot : Pretty tricky to analyze without being insulting.  Alien has need to run its society with a humanoid brain junctioned to a computer system.  In what is said to be 10,000 year intervals where this replacement is required that no advancement was made to full artificial intelligence to run planetary systems?  Weird that the MO would leave the brain donor technically alive which was very convenient to the plot.  Also, given the schism mentioned that the same society needs to resort to basically farm animal husbandry to keep its race going throughout the many thousands of years it has been around.  The males live on the surface which has an environment equivalent to Northern Canada or Scandinavian Europe.  So food production is possible yet they feel the need to run into traps set by "the givers of pain and delight."  Presuming that delight lasts a few moments and the pain lasts far far longer you would think that they would just take some walrus fat slathered on their you know what and well..................................

 

 

  Enterprise Crew :  A good episode for Walter Koenig.  Chekov is given something important to do such as providing Kirk with a brief well thought out analysis of the 3 habitable worlds in the Sigma Draconis system and which world would most likely have Spock's brain.  Much better than the standard "phasers locked on target" that he gets most episodes.  A fair episode for James Doohan who's Scotty was getting very uneven treatment by then in terms of capability.  Some weeks by then the character was written as being barely able to fix the 100 dollar special push mower that you bought at the mass discounter store.  Not a standout episode but just one that does not insult the character.  I should give a shout out to Nimoy as no doubt this episode did a lot to sour his attitude towards the series and yet he plays this episode straight.

 

 

  Writing : In terms of constructing a story I thought the writing was pretty fair.  We go from an unexpected abduction of Spock's brain to a world that is dystopian for interesting reasons.  As said before some intelligence is bestowed on the Enterprise crew to deduce where to look for Spock's brain.  Things trail off a bit as the clickety-click response by Spock to McCoy's controller which looks like one step above a Fisher-Price toy was a bit much.  Then Kirk having to pound sand through a 10" piece of pipe to get the story to the point where Spock's brain is reunited with his body was not satisfying.  It should be said that the writer Lee Cronin is just a pen name for the legendary Gene Coon who provided many thoughtful contributions to the series.  Coon died not long after the series ended so no way of knowing what his intentions were for Spock's Brain and how much got changed as things went into production.

 

 

  Summary : A tale of two halves which is a term we use to often describe a football game.  Here the first half is fairly interesting as an alien abducts Spock's brain and the Enterprise pursues that alien.  Then we are given a glimpse of that alien's society.  The second half devolves into standard 1960's fare with thuggish guards and hot women wearing revealing costumes complete with nonsensical motivations for their acts.  I give a B + for the first half and a D - for the second half with an aggregate grade of D +.  

Edited July 14, 2021 by RochesterRob

[RochesterRob]

  Tonight's review will be of the episode Spectre of the Gun airing on WHEC 10.5 Rochester Heroes  & Icons.  In short the Enterprise is sent as an emissary to an alien world with the goal of offering membership to the Federation.  An immense distrust of dissimilar beings coupled with highly capable telepathy makes the Enterprise command crew undergo a test as to being worthy or unworthy of contact.  In the end a repeated through the series demonstration of the sanctity of life proves to the aliens that contact with the Federation is warranted.  

 

 

  Guest Stars :  Certainly not a strength of the episode but not a hinderance either.  Rex Holman appears as one of the Earp gang and would appear in ST : V plus had many appearances in shows such as Gunsmoke.  Ed McCready is recycled from Miri (creature-boy) and The Omega Glory (doomed Chief Medical Officer of the Exeter) to be the Flaggstaff, AZ barber.

 

 

  Plot :  Not original at this point as yet another episode where an alien race reaches into its bag of tricks to determine if humans are worthy of venturing deep into space.  Did not like the minimalist approach as to the set construction of the OK corral.  Obviously, as Westerns were still big draws on television it would be no problem coming up with materials, props, and costumes on a budget from the Paramount warehouse.  I guess the Bonanza Virginia City set was unavailable for use that week but would have provided some multidimensional imagery.

 

 

  Enterprise Crew :  Another episode where Chekov gets more to do than usual which is good.  Nice use of Vulcan discipline to make the crew see that the bullets were not real.  Despite being a third season episode no one character was short changed that was given time.

 

 

  Writing : As said just above the Vulcan discipline shown was a nice touch to an otherwise ordinary story.  I wish that just about any other premise would have been used other than the Clanton-Earp feud.  It had as little energy as possible for me personally.  About any other historical conflict would have been more interesting but at least these characters did not wear tailored shower curtains (Wink of an Eye).

 

 

  Summary :  The aliens as brief as their screen time was were as interesting as say the Metrons from the first season.  The concept of telepaths was still inviting by this points.  The OK Corral theme was disappointing.  The episode was not Shatner-centric.  I give it a C.  

Edited July 21, 2021 by RochesterRob

[Koko]

1 hour ago, RochesterRob said:

Did not like the minimalist approach as to the set construction of the OK corral.  Obviously, as Westerns were still big draws on television it would be no problem coming up with materials, props, and costumes on a budget from the Paramount warehouse.  I guess the Bonanza Virginia City set was unavailable for use that week but would have provided some multidimensional imagery.

 

I always assumed they went minimalist with the set to reinforce that it was an illusion.

[RochesterRob]

1 minute ago, Koko said:

 

I always assumed they went minimalist with the set to reinforce that it was an illusion.

  This was the official "explanation" as it was felt that the Enterprise officers would have only known of the OK Corral from one dimensional images.  But at least myself I don't think I ever had dreams that were one dimensional in terms of images.  Maybe it differs from person to person?  If that approach worked for you then fine.  

[Wacka]

I think you mean 2D. 1 D is a line. 

[RochesterRob]

  This week's review will be of the episode The Empath which will air Wednesday July 28 on WHEC 10.5 Rochester Heroes and Icons.  In short while the Enterprise landing party performs a routine contact mission with an outpost Kirk, Spock, and McCoy are whisked away to be subjects in a bizarre experiment centering around an alien mute.  The scientists managing the experiment have an impression made on them by the Enterprise officers.  This results in the world of the scientists offering their resources to save the population of the mute woman's planet from a supernova.

 

 

  Guest Stars : Kathryn Hays as the alien mute.  Soap opera fans will remember Hays as Kim from As The World Turns.  I wonder what she thought when she signed on for a part that had no spoken lines?  I think she did alright given she probably did not know what to do with some of the material.  That she could demonstrate basic emotions via facial expressions.  Alan Bergmann plays the lead scientist competently. 

Don't blink or you will miss Jason Wingreen as one of the station's observers.  Jason's main claim to fame was being Archie Bunker's beer slinger on All in the Family.  Is it Kelsey or Kelcy?

 

  Plot : Perhaps I am doing far too much extrapolation but the following is how I see it.  Our crew professes an inability to see the point of an experiment that requires a lot of suffering.  But I see it as perhaps an extreme measure of US foreign policy of the 1960's and in particular the burgeoning  concept of foreign aid.  Kind of a novel approach for the time for a government to pay material items including money to populations that may not pay in the same way back.  Many in the US were not overly approving back then to send money and material to those who may not have the same social or religious philosophy as most Americans who at the time saw themselves as predominantly Christian, capitalist, and anti-abortion.  They questioned sending money, food, etc. to people who may not share any of those values.  I've never seen The Empath written up with the above observation nor have seen any interviews by associated people with the production to know what they were aiming for.  So, I will just give my interpretation for others to agree or disagree with.

 

 

  Enterprise Crew : A good episode for McCoy as he demonstrates some compassion towards Spock of who he has trouble comprehending by slipping a knock out shot so the aliens will have no choice but to take McCoy for the next stage of the experiment.  I thought Spock might have given a logical explanation as to the motives of the scientists but was not.  I don't know if the writers thought if Spock identified with the alien scientist that viewers might be put off by the coldness of it.  I have similar feelings about Kirk's approach to the experiments.

 

 

  Writing : Good general construction of a story with a good climax.  Others may interpret differently.  Dialogue by the characters was not inspirational but satisfactory.  

 

 

  Music : I believe most of it was written and used ahead of this episode but the usage here was fairly good.  Probably could have used a couple new scores but the series was on autopilot at this point with the budget tightening as cancellation was happening in the near future.  

 

 

  Summary : It all depends on how you want to view this episode.  I wanted to say it commented about 1960's America and how it view people different than its base culture.  I can't say that the performances stood out but nobody stubbed their toes.  Whether the actors believed in the script did not matter as everybody was a professional and learned their lines without issue.  I give it a B.

 

 

  Post note : A couple of musical scores WERE written for this episode.  One being for the mute Gem.  Been too long watching syndicated cuts of Star Trek where 10 plus minutes are cut for commercial time.  A thousand pardons.  

Edited July 30, 2021 by RochesterRob

[RochesterRob]

  This week's review will be of the episode Requiem for Methuselah which will air Thursday August 5 on WHEC 10.5 Rochester Heroes and Icons.  In short while the Enterprise arrives at a planet in search of a rare substance needed for a medicine they find a being who has a long history in terms of having lived on Earth.  At first extremely resistant and hostile this being named Flint suddenly changes tone to welcome Kirk, Spock, and McCoy to his home.  Failure after failure of the refinement of the substance leads Kirk and Co to suspect that Flint has ulterior motives as to the extended stay.  This becomes revealed with the artificial lifeform Flint is working on in that he wishes to impart human qualities into it (her) to make it a suitable companion.  Tensions spike which results in the being undergoing failure operationally.  Ultimately, a understanding is reached between Kirk and Flint which has Flint rally his efforts in terms of more research but leaves Kirk emotionally drained until an intervention by Spock.  Maybe not so short after all.  

 

 

Guest Stars : James Daly as Flint.  Not noteworthy here but just like football sometimes when somebody sticks out it is for the wrong reason.  Louise Sorel as the artificial life form is not given a lot to do but is positively radiant in this episode.  She as an actress comes across as someone who just won the lottery.  Not in the elite of Star Trek guests but one who certainly earned her "Christmas money" as she put it in an interview.

 

 

  Plot : Things start of well enough in terms of the Enterprise seeking raw material to make a medicine then crossing paths with Flint who has a curious past.  The episode derails once we get to the point of exercising Rayna emotionally.  Can we really expect that Kirk who has encountered many interesting women in terms of sexuality and intellect (Edith Keeler) would be so enamored with a glorified sex doll?  Even if Rayna could talk classic Earth literature with Kirk would it really be the same as interacting with a living biological being?

 

 

  Enterprise Crew : I thought it was a little out of character for Spock to make Kirk forget the encounter while in Kirk's quarters at the end.  As mentioned in the plot portion Kirk is noted for wanting prime cut women now he is willing to sample a lab specimen?  McCoy is in balance but this is not what I would call an example of McCoy's best work nor Kelley's.  Another day at the office.

 

 

  Writing : I thought that Flint should have been the entire focus of this episode but maybe the writers just could not find a way to progress the character into an ultimate conflict then resolution.  Unsatisfying to have yet another individual in season three to over power the Enterprise to get what they want for the moment.  

 

 

  Music : Adequate.  

 

 

  Summary : I'm going to go straight to the things that bothered me about this episode which is an unsatisfying use of a historic being and Kirk sinking to the point of being excited about a "woman" that does not live up to the potential of Cherry 2000.  I give it a C + after a fair amount of pondering.  Apologies if the past couple of reviews have been subpar.

[RochesterRob]

  Once again I have a minor quandary as do I want to review the very last of Season 3 or revel in the glory of starting off on the first broadcast of Season 1?  Honestly, although not a great episode Turnabout Intruder offers more from a discussion standpoint.  Therefore this week's review will be of the episode Turnabout Intruder airing Wednesday on WHEC 10.5 Rochester Heroes and Icons.  In short the Enterprise meets up with an old acquaintance of Kirk's while investigating a research mission on Camus II.  The acquaintance Dr Janice Lester has bold ambitions in regards to Kirk namely having her inner being, spirit if you will, inhabit Kirk's body for the purpose of living out a life's dream of being a starship captain.  In the end Lester is undone by Kirk's indomitable spirit which was temporarily trapped in Lester's body.  

 

 

  Guest Stars : Sandra Smith as Janice Lester.  I think Smith excels at portraying both Lester and Lester as Kirk.  She handles subtle touches such as being comfortable with Kirk's background while acting as Lester-Kirk.  She presents the passion that Shatner would give when talking about past recent incidents such as the Tholian incident or the Vian laboratory in terms of coming to the aid of any Enterprise crew person.  She also handles the duties of portraying regular Lester as a woman unhinged by the sexism used to keep her down career-wise.  Harry Landers as Dr Coleman was just a matter of putting a call in to central casting to fill a hole that really mattered little as this was the series going out in a whimper as opposed to a big bang.

 

 

  Plot :  OK, I get Lester's motives but for a show that should be given a clean slate for every episode I had a problem with the concept of mind transfer.  That not only that one mind can move into a new body but at the same time the old occupant is forced into the first person's body.  And where did they think things were going with the "new" arrangement of Lester-Kirk and Dr Coleman?  They were heavily implied as being lovers before the Enterprise and Kirk came along.  And for the sake of not addressing homosexuality its implied that Dr Coleman was just going to walk away and live a "normal" life sans the benefits of being closely tied to a prominent starship captain?

 

 

  Enterprise Crew :  Shatner shines as Lester in charge of Kirk's body.  Complete with obsessing with his (hers?) finger nails and having presumably female attributed fits of anger.  Everybody else in terms of the regular crew is given something to do beyond normal duties.  A good episode for Takei, Doohan, and even Barbara Baldavin who gets dusted off after being absent from mid-Season 1 onward even if it is a different character.

 

 

  Writing : The breaking of the mind link if you will seemed a little improbable in terms of everything going back to normal.  There was a mission that the Enterprise was to engage in as far as a rendezvous with the starship Potemkin.  It seemed that the story diddled around far to long in terms of what was going on with Lester-Kirk instead of an immediate move to the next assignment which would have benefitted Lester but would have been logical for a ship held to some standard of normal.  

 

 

  Summary : Despite a campy body switch story if you look at the performances of Shatner and Smith the episode is a cut above camp.  Did the producers of Freaky Friday use this episode as at least a partial inspiration for their production?  I give it a B -.

Edited August 11, 2021 by RochesterRob

[RochesterRob]

  This week's review will be of the episode Mudd's Women airing tonight Wednesday Aug 18 on WHEC 10.5 Rochester Heroes & Icons.  In short the Enterprise rescuing the crew of a small spacecraft cripples the ship's power supply.  The captain of the small spacecraft attempts to exploit the situation for material gain by supplying would be wives to a nearby planet inhabited by miners.  In the end it is discovered the women are flawed but Kirk is able to salvage the situation before the Enterprise exhausts its reserve supply of power.

 

 

  Guest Stars : Roger C Carmel as Harry Mudd.  This is the first appearance of the scoundrel and trader and Carmel portrays Mudd without any sympathy but gives him a layer of charm.  Bravo.  A bad guy we can understand but not have one iota of sympathy for.  I often thought that Mudd was at least in part the inspiration for Hans Solo in the Star Wars franchise.  Gene Dynarski as Childress the lead miner.  I enjoyed Dynarski's performance as a hard and without cooth man who is willing to give up civilization for money and along with it a man who does not really give a damn about the concerns of others.  Disheartening, yes.  Not realistic, no.  The character allows the viewer a glimpse of the social and political landscape that the Enterprise exists in.  For one it is not readily allowed for KIrk to seize the crystals as the miners are implied as living in a zone outside the presence of Federation law.   

 

 

  Plot :  We would have no story but I thought that a ship like the Enterprise would only assume reasonable risk in a rescue effort.  Crippling the Enterprise for a ship that was not running an ID beacon seems well past reasonable risk.  The bulk of the story is pretty much contemporary fare in terms of selling would be brides to remote settlers.  

 

 

  Enterprise Crew : The first 10 or so episodes were pretty rough around the edges even for a show that was flying by the seat of its pants but this was a very good episode for Captain Kirk.  KIrk gets to make out of the ordinary decisions even if risky such as with Mudd's Ship.  Then KIrk has the task of bringing Mudd up on charges, dealing with the rescued women, and then the miners on Rigel 12.  Scotty gets to show his annoyance at the situation complete with being angry over the Enterprise being crippled.

 

 

  Writing : Drug abuse was far from being common knowledge in Middle America in 1966 but it was presented front and center here.  Bravo.  Fairly well paced with little time wasted.  A good message at the end in terms of want versus need in a relationship partner.  

 

 

  Music : Liked the brief score while the title card was shown.  Tense. dramatic.  

 

 

  Summary : The show as stated above was still finding its feet to walk on.  The ship's power systems were still being figured out as in this episode mention is made of lithium crystals versus the coming ultra rare dilithium crystals.  The Venus drug acts on Spock's senses where as I have feeling that later in the series that would not happen.  There is more to be said on this episode but I need to change gears for the next few hours so edits are coming.  Mudd, Kirk, Childress, Eve.  Mudd's Women is not a favorite for a fair number of fans and I was meah about it when younger but have grown to like it.  I want to give it an A- but feeling conservative this morning it gets a B+(+).

[B-Man]

33 minutes ago, RochesterRob said:

  This week's review will be of the episode Mudd's Women airing tonight Wednesday Aug 18 on WHEC 10.5 Rochester Heroes & Icons.  In short the Enterprise rescuing the crew of a small spacecraft cripples the ship's power supply.  The captain of the small spacecraft attempts to exploit the situation for material gain by supplying would be wives to a nearby planet inhabited by miners.  In the end it is discovered the women are flawed but Kirk is able to salvage the situation before the Enterprise exhausts its reserve supply of power.

 

 

 

Picture required..........

 

 

 

 

 

 

[RochesterRob]

  Circumstances dictate that I get an early start on this week's review due to the episode being a two parter airing on Tuesday and Wednesday.  Therefore the Menagerie pts 1 & 2 will be the subject for this week and airs on WHEC 10.5 Rochester Heroes and Icons.  In short Spock abducts his previous commanding officer who is now crippled to offer him solace on a planet that is off limits to the Federation due to its perceived sadistic ways.  Before it has ended the inhabitants of said planet have turned over a new leaf with the intent of offering the former commander a peaceful remaining existence.  All is made good with Spock and is proven that the intentions of all involved are altruistic.  

 

 

  Guest Stars : Malachi Throne as Commodore Mendez.  Not a lot to do but Throne displays a lot of energy to make his character quite believable.  Jeffrey Hunter as Captain Pike.  His work is limited to what was used from the original pilot.  Hard for me to gauge but certainly not bad.  It has been said he had a terrible relationship with Roddenberry which most likely was the single largest reason he was not brought back.  Meg Wyllie as the Keeper.  Had to be hard working the role knowing your voice was not going to be used but she gives a lot of effort with the facial displays.  

 

 

  Plot : This can be a hard story to swallow.  The state of affairs in medicine is hard to swallow even in 1966 when the story was being written.  The best that can be hoped for with Pike is a power chair with blinky lights?  Talos IV does not look like it has changed much in the intervening years but now they can readily handle an invalid?  What's worse is that we get "What are Little Girls made of" before we get "the Menagerie" in air order.  The answer to Pike's problem to date is on the planet Exo III with the android maker machine (a cringe worthy prop) and the transference of consciousness or brain (Android Corby's explanation is not totally clear) into the android body.  Was there so much evil in Doctor Corby's discovery that it had to be abandoned when some medical good could come of it?  I know network television relies on short hand if you will to present a story within the time allowed.  Did Kirk have the underground complex destroyed so nobody else would experiment with artificial life?   What would make Spock believe that despite a brief demonstration of compassion for Vina that the Talosian's would give the same for Pike.  One time use of instructions being fed into the computer then the computer manages the mission?

 

 

  Enterprise Crew : Kirk excels when placed into a precarious position in terms of Spock's court martial.  He wants to show impartiality but fights to give Spock every reasonable chance to explain his actions.  Sometimes an expression is worth a thousand frames of film as Kirk give that understanding smile before the fade out to the credits.  McCoy is also good at trying to figure out why Spock would go against regulations and orders.  The best for last as it is proven that Nimoy can be the focus of an episode. 

 

 

  Writing : Probably the most even episode in terms of dialogue distribution.  Several characters are given important things to mention or discuss.  The episode moves efficiently from Starbase to Enterprise to shuttlecraft and back to Enterprise.  Then Mendez's blowup then the court martial then the resolution with Pike going to Talos IV to live.  More to do with writing than plot in my mind but the board vote to make Spock guilty 3/4's of the way through was a hard gaffe to take.  Given Mendez's hardliner approach to then once that vote is in then Spock is off to the brig versus showing the rest of the original Talos story.  I guess it could be explained away by Talosian mental manipulation on KIrk and the rest of the court.  

 

 

  Music : Good interludes all through out including the ending of the first half of the story.

 

 

  Summary : An ambitious effort given it was a mandatory recycle of the pilot.  A piece of the puzzle in terms of Enterprise and Federation history.  A fairly Spock-centric episode.  What knocks this episode down is the approach of using Captain Pike as a complete invalid.  Could no better condition be hoped for?  I give it a solid B.

Edited August 22, 2021 by RochesterRob

[RochesterRob]

  This week's review will be of the episode Arena airing Wednesday on WHEC 10.5 Rochester Heroes & Icons.  In short the discovery of a decimated outpost leads Kirk into a personal showdown with the captain of the alien ship that the Enterprise was pursuing.  Just as Kirk gains the upper hand in combat he ponders what the true intent of the alien might have been.  This leads to an understanding between Kirk and an intervening alien power sparing Kirk and the Enterprise from destruction.

 

 

  Guest Stars : Carole Shelyne as the intervening alien.  A brief appearance but memorable as Shelyne displays the proper condescension for what the alien perceives as an inferior race in humans.  I don't know how much credit should be spread around for who portrayed the Gorn captain?  I don't mean it as a slam but rather more than one person took on the duties as the planetoid scenes were shot outdoors at Vasquez Rocks in the heat.  Background actor Bill Blackburn who often turns up as a supporting Enterprise crewman did the head shots avoiding being placed in a glorified wet suit. which was the Gorn body.  Hollywood stuntman Bobby Clark gets the full costume duty complete with throwing styrofoam rocks around.  Another credit for Ted Cassidy as the speaking voice for the Gorn.  Not especially noteworthy but I liked Grant Woods as the up and coming Lt Kelowitz.  He turns up in other episodes such as The Galileo Seven and wished he had turned up more frequently as he seems to get what the persona of a rank and file officer should be.  

 

 

  Plot :  I don't have much issue with this episode other than Kirk's supposed physical condition which makes him vulnerable to the Gorn due to the Gorn's lack of speed.  Could KIrk not have worried about the Gorn's intellect such as setting the trap.  While we are on the subject of the trap how lucky for Kirk was it the Gorn chose to move the rock which allowed Kirk to escape?  A tiny complaint for Dr McCoy who perhaps overstepping his boundaries on the bridge "appealing in the name of civilization."

 

 

  Enterprise Crew :  Good range for Shatner in terms of showing concern for the destruction of the outpost then dealing with the Gorn followed by dealing with the Metron.  Scotty squirming over whether the Enterprise should exceed design limits in terms of velocity.  Sulu gets to show a little glee as far as pursuing the Gorn vessel.  

 

 

  Writing : Another efficient episode as no one scene overstays its welcome.  Spock and McCoy get to show Roddenberry's template in terms of being trusted advisers to the captain.  Spock in particular outright questions whether the pursuit of the Gorn is warranted.  I found the dialog between Kirk and the Metron near the end among the best that the series had to offer.  Also, Ted Cassidy is allowed to voice some very fine trash talking by the Gorn Captain.

 

 

  Music : Good interludes while the title card is showed and the showdown unfolding between Kirk and the Gorn captain.

 

 

  Summary : This episode is penultimate Trek.  Lots of action.  Analysis of the Gorn through the filter of 1960's American foreign policy.  Well used music.  Shatner gets to spread his wings as an actor.  Other players are allowed to show their wares.  A satisfying climax.  I give it an A.  If the outdoor scenes were cleaned up a little in terms of the criticisms I made then it would warrant an A +.

Edited August 30, 2021 by RochesterRob

[B-Man]

4 hours ago, RochesterRob said:

  This week's review will be of the episode Arena airing Wednesday on WHEC 10.5 Rochester Heroes & Icons.  In short the discovery of a decimated outpost leads Kirk into a personal showdown with the captain of the alien ship that the Enterprise was pursuing.  Just as Kirk gains the upper hand in combat he ponders what the true intent of the alien might have been.  This leads to an understanding between Kirk and an intervening alien power sparing Kirk and the Enterprise from destruction.

 

 

  Guest Stars : Carole Shelyne as the intervening alien.  A brief appearance but memorable as Shelyne displays the proper condescension for what the alien perceives as an inferior race in humans.  I don't know how much credit should be spread around for who portrayed the Gorn captain?  I don't mean it as a slam but rather more than one person took on the duties as the planetoid scenes were shot outdoors at Vasquez Rocks in the heat.  Background actor Bill Blackburn who often turns up as a supporting Enterprise crewman did the head shots avoiding being placed in a glorified wet suit. which was the Gorn body.  Hollywood stuntman Bobby Clark gets the full costume duty complete with throwing styrofoam rocks around.  Another credit for Ted Cassidy as the speaking voice for the Gorn.  Not especially noteworthy but I liked Grant Woods as the up and coming Lt Kelowitz.  He turns up in other episodes such as The Galileo Seven and wished he had turned up more frequently as he seems to get what the persona of a rank and file officer should be.  

 

 

 

Funny coincidence, I have been watching all the old 1/2 hour Gunsmoke episodes (Boy, Marshall Dillon was a badass early on).

 

I was looking up all the actors in each episode and what they had done. Today was one Bobby Clark, and I was amused to see that he had "played" the Gorn Captain.

 

Well sure enough when I come back to BillsFans, there is your review of that great episode.

 

Keep up the great work, , and I am sure other geeks are really enjoying them.

[RochesterRob]

16 hours ago, B-Man said:

 

 

Funny coincidence, I have been watching all the old 1/2 hour Gunsmoke episodes (Boy, Marshall Dillon was a badass early on).

 

I was looking up all the actors in each episode and what they had done. Today was one Bobby Clark, and I was amused to see that he had "played" the Gorn Captain.

 

Well sure enough when I come back to BillsFans, there is your review of that great episode.

 

Keep up the great work, , and I am sure other geeks are really enjoying them.

  Bobby Clark playing the Gorn captain is an interesting study in terms of the production aspect of television.  My understanding is that it took 15 minutes to outfit Clark in the costume with it being unbearably hot to the point where they could film 3 minutes worth of material before he pulled out of the costume.  Then it took a few hours of recovery before they could repeat the cycle.  They actually had another actor that came in to wear the costume and they still had to press Bill Blackburn in to do headshots which were not part of the original plan.  Then there is the issue of movement in the costume.  Once the headpiece is on the actor can not see nor hear.  So the film crew is useless to help the actor through his motions.  The best that he gets while rehearsing is somebody steering him with both hands on his shoulders to get an idea of number of steps needed plus any angling of body along with motions such as extending an arm.  While shooting he has to count things off such as number of steps or turning in his head and hope it all comes out.  He really has no time once on location to check the area out without being in costume.  All this happens before planning how Clark is going to interact with Shatner in the combat scenes.  Even when you can see and hear there is still a lot of coordination between actors to make a scene work and look believable.  Guys like Robert Conrad considered a good stuntman worth his weight in gold.  One reason why former Elvis bodyguard Red West was steadily employed on The Wild Wild West and was paid for his good service by becoming a regular on Conrad's Baa Baa Black Sheep.  Even when you can see there still can be the unexpected.  Glenn Strange of Gunsmoke fame appeared as the Frankenstein monster in Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein.  Strange recounted his work including shooting a scene where he hurt his ankle.  While in character he can not look around watching out for obstacles among other things.  His scene called for him to carry an actress and throw her through a window.  While doing this he does not see a cable strung across the floor that is used to power a camera.  He steps on the cable with his weight plus the weight of the costume plus the weight of the actress.  Once the injury happens he is out of action for a few weeks which ordinarily would shut the production down.  As luck would have it Lon Chaney Jr is in the same production and had played the monster before.  Chaney volunteers to suit up as the monster so the production can finish close to schedule.

  Until a person can read up on such accounts it is hard to envision how tough it can be to play what seems to be a simple role.  Anyways, throwing on a rubber suit plus enclosing head piece then try to walk through the southern California desert is far more difficult than it looks.  And while on the subject of the Vasquez Rocks shoots the temperature varies greatly during daylight hours especially late in the calendar year such as it was with shooting Arena.  Shatner actually wore thermals at some points during the production most likely early in the production day.  Then most likely ditched the thermals when the sun got high in the sky.

 

 

  For the purpose of disclosure there is a somewhat different account of Clark's time on Star Trek namely the book "These are the Voyages."  I think that a majority of the things I mentioned are in fact what took place while filming Arena.  That there were issues with comfort of the costume specifically overheating.  Clark's recollection is that he unzipped the upper part of the costume versus coming completely out which may very well be the case.  Nothing is said in the excerpt in terms of length of the take but being that Desilu was a rather cheap studio so a second actor (Gary Coombs) would not have been hired for similar duties if there were not problems.

Edited August 31, 2021 by RochesterRob

[Ann]

When are you gonna do the Trouble With Tribbles? Not that I am pushy or anything...

[RochesterRob]

34 minutes ago, Ann said:

When are you gonna do the Trouble With Tribbles? Not that I am pushy or anything...

  Maybe 4 weeks.  The formula currently is to pick an episode which airs mid-week on the H & I schedule with me having the review done at least a day ahead.  I figure one episode per week is about right so fatigue does not set in here.  Given the number of times I have watched the series I still seem to carry a little bit of rust in terms of some details.  I hope to be more polished as I go along.  I also wanted to do some bonus stuff and had thought about Bobby Clark appearing as the Gorn before B-Man's post.  There is quite a bit of source material out nowadays and I have to be careful not to post stuff that I recall from many years ago that has been more recently proven to be inaccurate.  Better times should be ahead.

[Crap Throwing Clavin]

On 8/31/2021 at 4:33 PM, Ann said:

When are you gonna do the Trouble With Tribbles? Not that I am pushy or anything...

 

FYI, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00HSSCFO6/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1 is worth the read.  The writer of The Trouble With Tribbles, David Gerrold, sold it to Star Trek as his first script, while still in college.  He basically wrote up the experience and submitted it as his senior thesis.  If you want to know how TV was made back then, it's a great read (and although TV's changed a lot, it hasn't changed so much that the book is no longer applicable.)

 

Funny...I just realized I have the 1973 paperback, which probably went for a third as much as the Kindle version goes for now.

[RochesterRob]

17 hours ago, Crap Throwing Monkey said:

 

FYI, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00HSSCFO6/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1 is worth the read.  The writer of The Trouble With Tribbles, David Gerrold, sold it to Star Trek as his first script, while still in college.  He basically wrote up the experience and submitted it as his senior thesis.  If you want to know how TV was made back then, it's a great read (and although TV's changed a lot, it hasn't changed so much that the book is no longer applicable.)

 

Funny...I just realized I have the 1973 paperback, which probably went for a third as much as the Kindle version goes for now.

  He also authored The World of Star Trek back in the early 1970's.  There also was The Making of Star Trek that Gene Roddenberry co-authored.  It took until the 1990's to get out that a lot of the narrative that Roddenberry set out had great inaccuracies in it.  That Majel Barrett and NIchelle Nichols in fact were hired on because of their personal connection to Roddenberry versus professional reputation.  That NBC lost interest because the show was not very profitable rather than not understanding the show.  That Roddenberry was not the sole inspiration nor sole contributor to the series from the studio offices.  Despite all that they were good reads for people that were interested in the television industry.  Someday I will read through These are the Voyages.