All Things Star Trek

[Valka D'Ur]

Porthos is the least interesting character in ENT, and that's saying alot...But seriously, I've seen the whole thing and I agree that ENT also had the most boring episodes of any Trek... easiest Trek to fall asleep to for sure...

I did sorta enjoy the Mirror Universe episode. There are some very good pro short stories to do with Mirror-Enterprise.

I guessed you didn't like Seven cause you never like what I like or agree with anything I say... (even when I agree with you...which never ceases to amuse me), so I had pretty good odds that since I like Seven so much, that you wouldn't.... and since you don't like T'Pol I was still 50% correct...

Okay, that's some of the weirdest reasoning I've seen from you.

I like Seven because like me, she's a fish out of water. She didn't grow up as other people did, and she's trying to figure out the 24th century of "pop culture" just as there are many things about this RL universe we inhabit that I just absolutely do not get. I could easily see Seven and I agreeing that small talk that conveys nothing of importance and sniping about which woman in the group has the best makeup or the best shoes or the most expensive handbag would just be irrelevant.

As as aside, I will say, having watched both VOY and ENT in their entirety... calling Seven a favourite, while not liking T'Pol at all is a little bit of a non-sequitur, since T'Pol appears to be a pretty obvious Seven retread. They're kindred characters, like Spock and Data or Data and the Doctor.

T'Pol and Seven have basically nothing in common other than an initial disdain for humans and they both wear catsuits. Seven eventually becomes a well-rounded character who changes considerably, and T'Pol stays... boring. Or so I've heard. It does help that Jeri Ryan is an excellent actress who can pull off anything and be convincing, while Jolene Blalock just seems to stand there like a piece of cardboard.

Anyway, I'm sure you have your reasons, at least I finally found something we agree on .

How do you feel about the Seven/Chakotay romance that came out of nowhere in Season 7?

 

[warpus]

Seven of Nine, when she started, was obviously just brought on for the "boobs in tight leather" effect. But then they actually developed her into an interesting character. This was all happening right after DS9 (my fav Trek show) ended so in my mind Voyager was not nearly on the same level as that show. I viewed it as a show with an interesting premise and a failed execution that wasn't really going anywhere. But hey, I'll watch a show with interesting characters any day, and they managed to turn 7o9 into probably the best character on that show. Which wasn't very difficult mind you, aside from the Doctor nobody was really very memorable.

 

[Sommerswerd]

I did sorta enjoy the Mirror Universe episode. There are some very good pro short stories to do with Mirror-Enterprise. Okay, that's some of the weirdest reasoning I've seen from you. I like Seven because like me, she's a fish out of water. She didn't grow up as other people did, and she's trying to figure out the 24th century of "pop culture" just as there are many things about this RL universe we inhabit that I just absolutely do not get. I could easily see Seven and I agreeing that small talk that conveys nothing of importance and sniping about which woman in the group has the best makeup or the best shoes or the most expensive handbag would just be irrelevant. T'Pol and Seven have basically nothing in common other than an initial disdain for humans and they both wear catsuits. Seven eventually becomes a well-rounded character who changes considerably, and T'Pol stays... boring. Or so I've heard. It does help that Jeri Ryan is an excellent actress who can pull off anything and be convincing, while Jolene Blalock just seems to stand there like a piece of cardboard. How do you feel about the Seven/Chakotay romance that came out of nowhere in Season 7?

Agree that the two Mirror episodes in ENT are good. Frankly, they are easily my favorite ENT episodes. T'Pol, like Seven (and Data, and Spock and Tuvok and Odo) has the whole "I don't understand all these human emotional irrelevancies" thing going on, and like Seven, it is a huge part of her personality/character. The dispassionate, analytical, outsider that you relate to so much with Seven is exactly what T'Pol's character is all about. (Which reminds, me... Odo has to get a mention for a possible top 10, perhaps even ahead of Janeway and Sisko).

Another thing... T'Pol "stays boring", in the sense that she remains dispassionate and analytical, while Seven slowly morphs into "Anna" under Janeway's tutelage and (awkwardly) through the Chakotay romance, which I am guessing you did not enjoy at all. Which, assuming I am right, raises another interesting point in reference to your tastes in characters. In a way, you are applying a double standard right? What I mean is, a big part of the reason you like Seven, is intentionally undermined by the whole Chakotay diversion, but you like her anyway... meanwhile, T'Pol stays all logical and Seven'ey for the whole series but rather than appreciating that, as punishment, she gets the "boring" label from you. Fascinating

And About that, Chakotay stuff... I never felt any chemistry between Seven and Chakotay, frankly, a relationship with Harry would have been more interesting (god knows Harry needed something relevant to do). But the whole thing seemed forced... a contrivance, basically... to shortcut us from Seven of Borg into Annika Hansen by making her more "human"... I thought the "Janeway's daughter" and even the Doctor's Phantom of the Opera (old unattractive mentor has a secret crush on his way too-young beautiful assistant) angles were much more useful and compelling ways of accomplishing that. And frankly, in many ways, her sexual inaccessibility (reminiscent of Troi/Reiker) made her more titillating, to the extent that this was (obviously) an intended aspect of her character.

Seven of Nine, when she started, was obviously just brought on for the "boobs in tight leather" effect.

I disagree. Seven was obviously used as eye candy, but full-borg Seven of nine was a compelling and thrilling character from the start. I think one episode in particular, "Scorpion" IIRC really put her on display as a thrilling, and terrifyingly duplicitous and powerful character... shades of Data ala First Contact and TNG-Brothers. At the same time, in her original full-borg form, she is completely (sexually) repellant... she was gross, but still awesome. All that sexytime stuff came several episodes after her introduction, and by then she was already a great character.

 

[warpus]

We'll have to disagree because for the first couple seasons I found her very 2 dimensional and boring

 

[Timsup2nothin]

She wasn't boring, she was borging, and a borg drone isn't called a drone because they are a dynamic individual. I'm glad they had the patience to make such an extended arc out of restoring her humanity, much like TOS progressed Spock in minute increments and TNG progressed Data in minute increments. I think if they had "turned her human" in a single episode it would have been a disservice to the power of the borg. It's unfortunate that Enterprise didn't last long enough for T'Pol to provide a similar overarching theme.

 

[Valka D'Ur]

Agree that the two Mirror episodes in ENT are good. Frankly, they are easily my favorite ENT episodes. T'Pol, like Seven (and Data, and Spock and Tuvok and Odo) has the whole "I don't understand all these human emotional irrelevancies" thing going on, and like Seven, it is a huge part of her personality/character. The dispassionate, analytical, outsider that you relate to so much with Seven is exactly what T'Pol's character is all about. (Which reminds, me... Odo has to get a mention for a possible top 10, perhaps even ahead of Janeway and Sisko).

Just because a character is dispassionate, analytical, and an outsider, that doesn't guarantee that I will like that character. I can't stand Data. I'm also not fond of Odo or Tuvok. But Spock and Seven? Oh, yeah, easily among my favorite characters, both of them.

Another thing... T'Pol "stays boring", in the sense that she remains dispassionate and analytical, while Seven slowly morphs into "Anna" under Janeway's tutelage and (awkwardly) through the Chakotay romance, which I am guessing you did not enjoy at all. Which, assuming I am right, raises another interesting point in reference to your tastes in characters. In a way, you are applying a double standard right? What I mean is, a big part of the reason you like Seven, is intentionally undermined by the whole Chakotay diversion, but you like her anyway... meanwhile, T'Pol stays all logical and Seven'ey for the whole series but rather than appreciating that, as punishment, she gets the "boring" label from you. Fascinating

Oh, do forgive me for not meeting your criteria for which TV characters I like.

I haven't watched the whole Enterprise series. I have considered rectifying that... as long as it holds my interest. TV shows have to have a reason to hold my interest these days, since there was a time for several years when I had no TV available and by the time I did, I'd basically lost interest in watching most things. Whole series have come and gone and I never knew they existed until I found them on Netflix and caught up.

But the impression that I did get, based on the Enterprise episodes I've seen, is that T'Pol has her nose stuck permanently into the air about humans, how barbaric and inferior we are... in short, she's racist, and why would I like a racist character?


I didn't like the C/7 romance because A. I don't like Chakotay; and B. It happened out of nowhere. It could have been introduced early in Season 7 and gradually developed throughout the season, and that would have been okay. But other than the episode where Seven has a holo-life with holo-Chakotay and then next thing they're having picnics in the cargo bay... that's too abrupt.

So fanfiction picked up where the show chickened out. There are several authors I follow who have written some pretty decent romances for Seven and Chakotay, and have managed to make it work (and make Chakotay a less boring character).

And About that, Chakotay stuff... I never felt any chemistry between Seven and Chakotay, frankly, a relationship with Harry would have been more interesting (god knows Harry needed something relevant to do). But the whole thing seemed forced... a contrivance, basically... to shortcut us from Seven of Borg into Annika Hansen by making her more "human"... I thought the "Janeway's daughter" and even the Doctor's Phantom of the Opera (old unattractive mentor has a secret crush on his way too-young beautiful assistant) angles were much more useful and compelling ways of accomplishing that. And frankly, in many ways, her sexual inaccessibility (reminiscent of Troi/Reiker) made her more titillating, to the extent that this was (obviously) an intended aspect of her character.

There are fanfiction stories that have Seven paired with other people... original characters, the Doctor, Ayala, and of course there are plenty of slash stories. One of them has Seven paired with Samantha Wildman (reminder to self: should check that one to see if any new chapters have been posted).

But I agree that they should have given Seven/Harry a try. Two socially-awkward people of similar age, common interests... the producers and writers threw away an opportunity there.

 

[warpus]

She wasn't boring, she was borging, and a borg drone isn't called a drone because they are a dynamic individual. I'm glad they had the patience to make such an extended arc out of restoring her humanity, much like TOS progressed Spock in minute increments and TNG progressed Data in minute increments.

It was well worth it in the end, but at first, yeah, to me she came across as a character that was just there for eye candy and not much else. Mind you I also did not like at all the way Voyager handled the Borg.

 

[Sommerswerd]

Just because a character is dispassionate, analytical, and an outsider, that doesn't guarantee that I will like that character. I can't stand Data. I'm also not fond of Odo or Tuvok. But Spock and Seven? Oh, yeah, easily among my favorite characters, both of them. Oh, do forgive me for not meeting your criteria for which TV characters I like.

I get that... I'm asking why? Jeez Valka, commenting on some quirk, or irony in your preferences isn't an attack... take it easy. You don't have to meet "my criteria". I don't have any "criteria". I'm just talking to you about why you like or don't like Trek characters. My specific observation was that the specific reasons you gave for liking Seven are also true for T'Pol... but you still don't like her so I wanted to hear if there were any other reasons you didn't like her... "I find her acting atrocious" or "there's something about her that rubs me the wrong way that I can't put my finger on" for example... who knows.

It's like you said "I like ice cream but not crushed ice" and I say "Why do you like ice cream?" and you say "Because it's cold... although I don't like it when it's too sweet" and I say "Well crushed ice is cold and its not sweet at all, so it's funny that you don't like it" and you respond by getting mad at me about "my criteria"... What gives?

But the impression that I did get, based on the Enterprise episodes I've seen, is that T'Pol has her nose stuck permanently into the air about humans, how barbaric and inferior we are... in short, she's racist, and why would I like a racist character?.

About racist characters... excuse me but characters being racist are the backbone of Trek. All the characters are racist. I mean you don't find Spock racist towards humans? Why? Cause he has a human friend? Quark isn't racist towards the "Hoo-Mahnz"? The Cardassians aren't racist? The Romulans aren't racist? Obrien isn't racist towards Cardassians? Worf isn't racist towards Romulans? I feel like everyone in Trek is being racist towards each other all the time... working through those issues is like half of what the show is about, right? I mean, the techy stuff (which is always resolved by rerouting through the main deflector anyway) is just backdrop for the social issues, relationship issues, sexism, civil rights, religion, etc... Anyway, we agree that the Chakotay romance was out of left field, I said as much (albeit in more wordy fashion).

 

[Valka D'Ur]

I get that... I'm asking why? Jeez Valka, commenting on some quirk, or irony in your preferences isn't an attack... take it easy. You don't have to meet "my criteria". I don't have any "criteria". I'm just talking to you about why you like or don't like Trek characters. My specific observation was that the specific reasons you gave for liking Seven are also true for T'Pol... but you still don't like her so I wanted to hear if there were any other reasons you didn't like her... "I find her acting atrocious" or "there's something about her that rubs me the wrong way that I can't put my finger on" for example... who knows.

It's like you said "I like ice cream but not crushed ice" and I say "Why do you like ice cream?" and you say "Because it's cold... although I don't like it when it's too sweet" and I say "Well crushed ice is cold and its not sweet at all, so it's funny that you don't like it" and you respond by getting mad at me about "my criteria"... What gives? About racist characters... excuse me but characters being racist are the backbone of Trek. All the characters are racist. I mean you don't find Spock racist towards humans? Why? Cause he has a human friend? Quark isn't racist towards the "Hoo-Mahnz"? The Cardassians aren't racist? The Romulans aren't racist? Obrien isn't racist towards Cardassians? Worf isn't racist towards Romulans? I feel like everyone in Trek is being racist towards each other all the time... working through those issues is like half of what the show is about, right? I mean, the techy stuff (which is always resolved by rerouting through the main deflector anyway) is just backdrop for the social issues, relationship issues, sexism, civil rights, religion, etc... Anyway, we agree that the Chakotay romance was out of left field, I said as much (albeit in more wordy fashion).

Given how acrimonious some of our OT interactions have been, you should realize that I'm used to your critical complaints about the fact that I have certain views of some things or some people.

I've told you why I like Seven. What else is there to say, besides the fact that there is so much more about her that the show could have explored but didn't? Granted, some of it had to do with "network standards." Seven could never have explored the possibility of same-sex relationships, for example, because the studio (and the audience) would have freaked out.

But fanfic is doing a hell of a job exploring this possibility (in mostly non-graphic ways, on the site I frequent). There are stories where Seven and Chakotay live happily ever after, stories where Seven is reunited with Axum (her lover from Unimatrix 01), stories where Seven and Chakotay break up and Chakotay goes back to Janeway, stories where Seven and the Doctor become a couple, and stories where Seven meets an original character. One of the stories I'm following has Seven and Samantha Wildman start dating and they eventually marry (Naomi likes having two moms, and the story explains why Samantha isn't really cheating on her husband).

Why don't I like T'Pol? Fine, the actress can't act worth a damn. Neither can anyone else on that show, with the exception of Scott Bakula... as long as it's not on Enterprise. I really enjoyed Quantum Leap, but he's a lousy starship captain. And overall, I just hate the whole premise of Enterprise. It's a retcon that makes no sense.

Yes, there are a lot of racist characters in Star Trek. Some of the characters have had life experiences that lead to such attitudes. The story's goal is usually to find out why the character has this attitude and try to get the character to overcome it - thus providing the audience with the morality play of the week.

I read a lot of fanfic. A lot. For me, good characters and interesting storylines inspire more stories than just those told on TV. I've got potential Seven of Nine stories spinning around in my mind that I really want to get written some day. I've already written some TNG stories... that are nothing but snarky satire, since I find most of the TNG characters too nose-in-the-air "I'm sooooo enlightened!" conceited. The number of Enterprise stories waiting to be written? Zero. I'm not remotely interested, not even enough to dash off a snarky filksong about them.


By this time, you're wondering, "If you hate these characters and shows so much, why watch them?", right? Keep in mind that I've been a Star Trek fan for over 40 years - longer than some people on this forum have been alive. Except for TOS and TAS, I've seen every new series and movie at the time when it premiered, not years later. Peoples' attitudes change over the years.

 

[Gen.Mannerheim]

I'm only the most casual of a ST fan but I have a question for the more serious on here;

Why do y'all think that the last two ST tv series, Voyager and Enterprise never capitalized on their premises the way that ST or Next Gen did?
Voyager's "lost in the Delta Quadrant" idea seems like the ultimate way to explore ST boldly go where no man has gone before mission. And Enterprise was a fantastic chance to show humanity as it was before the Federation as it made its first tentative steps into the galaxy. I haven't seen Voyager since it first came on, but I recently watched a bit of Enterprise on Netflix and it seemed to me that the whole pre-Federation vibe goes right out the window after the first 5 episodes. Outside of the Vulcans treating Humans like their mentally challenged cousins and Humans thinking of Vulcans are uptight & haughty jerks, the show quickly feels like the same generic Federation stuff as before.

Moderator Action: Please help us maintain a family friendly forum. Changed several words while not changing meaning. Thanks. leif

 

[Valka D'Ur]

I'm only the most casual of a ST fan but I have a question for the more serious on here;

Why do y'all think that the last two ST tv series, Voyager and Enterprise never capitalized on their premises the way that ST or Next Gen did?
Voyager's "lost in the Delta Quadrant" idea seems like the ultimate way to explore ST boldly go where no man has gone before mission.

The consensus on TrekBBS forum (a site where some of the pro novel writers, a script writer or two, and a lot of fan film production people hang out) is that while the writers and producers had some really interesting ideas, the studio wouldn't allow them to carry through with them.

An example is the "Year of Hell" storyline. That was originally supposed to last an entire season, with Voyager becoming more and more damaged, and the crew becoming more and more desperate to survive. It was supposed to be more like how the Equinox crew ended up, with a severely damaged ship, not much food, more dead/injured crew, and the captain having to toss out the Starfleet rule book just to survive.

But the studio said no, and so what could have been a really intense season turned into just another time-manipulation story with Janeway once again ramming the ship into the enemy ship (showing her suicidal tendencies yet again), only to have everything work out via the magic reset button.

And Enterprise was a fantastic chance to show humanity as it was before the Federation as it made its first tentative steps into the galaxy. I haven't seen Voyager since it first came on, but I recently watched a bit of Enterprise on Netflix and it seemed to me that the whole pre-Federation vibe goes right out the window after the first 5 episodes. Outside of the Vulcans treating Humans like their mentally challenged cousins and Humans thinking of Vulcans are uptight & haughty jerks, the show quickly feels like the same generic Federation stuff as before.

Openly-racist Vulcans... don't appeal to me in the slightest. I've stated my own reasons for not liking this series, and the reason it never worked as a prequel is because it took off on ridiculous tangents that were never addressed in the later (in-universe) series. Why introduce a temporal war if there was no indication of such a thing in any other series? Why use the TNG/DS9 "Augments" instead of the TOS background for Khan's people?

Enterprise wasn't a prequel to the Original Series. It was a prequel to The Next Generation. And that's why it didn't work.

 

[Gen.Mannerheim]

Enterprise wasn't a prequel to the Original Series. It was a prequel to The Next Generation. And that's why it didn't work.

Going into Enterprise, I thought it was supposed to show how Humans went from more cautions and militaristic to their more humanitarian Federation future gradually. But from the first Scott Bakula makes a few speeches about how "humans don't do the war thing anymore" and they literally leave their guns at home a couple of times. It made me audibly ask, "what's the point of this?"

 

[Valka D'Ur]

But from the first Scott Bakula makes a few speeches about how "humans don't do the war thing anymore" and they literally leave their guns at home a couple of times. It made me audibly ask, "what's the point of this?"

As I said, it's really a prequel to The Next Generation. Archer and Picard would have bonded over such a conversation, because Picard's preferred solution to an immediate problem was to call a meeting and talk the situation to death until Geordie came up with the appropriate technobabble solution, Picard would say, "Make it so," and the problem would be solved.

 

[CivCube]

TOS Season Three, 1968-69

Spock's Brain - Trekkies weren't prepared for the bold weirdness on display here, and it's been reviled as the "worst" episode ever since (well, maybe until "Threshold" showed up). I dig the heck out of it; the off-beat tone is unlike any episode since. It also serves as a thematic touchstone for the season regarding the human mind and its challenges in the 23rd century.

The Enterprise Incident - Fun thriller involving the Romulans, and one of three episodes where each of the trio falls in love with an alien leader and is tempted to stay. The cloaking device strikes a different chord this time, implying there is more to the universe than meets the eye, as we'll continue to see.

The Paradise Syndrome - The last episode shot outdoors, and it's gorgeous. It feels more like a movie than a TV episode. We also get Shatner at the peak of his scene-chewing powers ("I AM KIROK!!") and marrying a Native American refugee on an alien world. TNG later remade this episode, and it's easy to see why--the concept is a cool one.

And the Children Shall Lead - A spiritual successor to "The Squire of Gothos", with some imagery more startlingly relevant to today. The children could be today's online neo-Nazi trolls, hacking into machinery and people to create chaos. The Gorgon also calls to mind a William Blake painting, which puts the alien planet sets in a whole new light.

Is There in Truth No Beauty? - Season Three's themes are brought front and center in this classic episode. The final frontier may not be space after all, but empathy within the human condition. Every scene brings forth another aspect of this essay into exploring the limitations of our senses and the intellectual concepts they inevitably influence. Each person is trapped within their sphere and must travel into the space between themselves and others.

Spectre of the Gun - This episode was produced first but feels like it's mandatory to watch after "Beauty", as the ideas are brought into fantastic application. The crew travels now into their own history, a dream world of Hollywood sets and colonial determinism. Kirk and the gang demonstrate how mankind has evolved since the Wild West, but also travel while standing still, moving beyond the impulse to take what their eyes tell them at face value. Spock proves to be the mystic in this first third of the season, teaching them the skills they need to move into a deeper space than physical reality. The shot of the four of them facing down not only their oppressors, but also their own doubts and humanity's violent past, makes this one of the very best episodes.

Day of the Dove - More illusions, yet more alien intelligence. Although this is a lesser episode compared to the previous two (and let's face it, they're a hard act to follow), the latter help to justify what could have been one-note preachiness. The show is now talking directly to the audience in a more brusque way than before. War and violence are not only immoral, they are impractical and unrealistic compared to the real threats that must be confronted. It worked for me, although I'm sure it wouldn't for many.

For the World Is Hollow and I Have Touched the Sky - A fairly typical story of science triumphing over irrational religion, with the clever use of a hollow world as a visual metaphor for enclosed thinking, a literal illustration of being trapped in our own concepts, as "Beauty" warned. McCoy gets his turn at being propositioned, this time by the high priestess. He's the only one to initially accept in his right mind--loneliness is another theme visited several times this season, and it's hard for a human as purely authentic as McCoy to live in the chaos of exploration as reality bends around him. Even a society as restrictive as Yonada's can feel soothing with its consistency.

The Tholian Web - The Bones-Spock episode that needed to happen. Kirk is trapped between universes, and the blue-uniformed parts of the trio have to develop their working relationship to rescue the captain.

Plato's Stepchildren - This episode knew exactly what it was doing. Season Three, more than the previous two seasons, wants to illustrate its ideas by making the audience feel them. Here we definitely feel the anger and humiliation of slavery and abuse, especially in That Scene that goes for slightly too long. The episode's most poignant moment comes from Alexander, who is invited to take over the planet with the help of the trio. He refuses; he just wants to get out of that place and never think about it again. Who would want to live with sociopaths like the literally thin-skinned Parmen, who's very quick to say all the right things as soon as Kirk has the upper hand.

Wink of an Eye - Talk about accelerating too fast into a relationship. The idea of a civilization living between the moments of others is a cool one, and one that adds to the weirdness of Season Three, even if the story isn't that interesting.

The Empath - This could have been a Season One episode but I'm glad it's here. The abstract, selectively-lit set is pretty great, and the story makes a good companion to "Beauty". Is there a difference between empathy and compassion? The answer to that in this episode begins a thematic arc on what the Federation is philosophically about.

Elaan of Troyius - This is one of the few episodes this season that I didn't care for. There are a few fun ideas but it's clear the script needed a couple more revisions.

Whom Gods Destroy - The force field prison idea is reused for a mental asylum, where the show asks whether all tyrants are mentally compromised in some way. The climax is particularly memorable as Spock has to choose the real Kirk from the shapeshifter.

Let That Be Your Last Battlefield - I'm sure Roddenberry got a lot of criticism for being an "idealistic dreamer", and this episode is the response. The show blares at the Cold War politics of the time, blaming both revolutionaries and incrementalists for being too shortsighted and disconnected from human problems. Kirk takes the Riddler to task especially on this, forcing him to confront his own mortality in a game of chicken that is one of the best scenes in the series. Despite the crew's best efforts, Bele and Lokai knowingly return to a blasted Cheron, preferring even that over what they perceive to be a naive Federation.

The Mark of Gideon - This muddled episode has the opposite problem of "Elaan of Troyius": in trying to juggle the three themes of loneliness, overpopulation, and bureaucracy, there's too much going on to make a satisfying narrative.

That Which Survives - A strange, creepy episode where serial killers phase out of nowhere to kill you, yes, you in particular. Spock is the MVP of the episode as the acting captain, demanding more specific fact-finding and descriptions from his crew.

The Lights of Zetar - Scotty's a fun character until he gets more time in the limelight, where he becomes an insufferable tagalong. There is an idea hiding here about the validity of our thoughts as they interface with our sense of self. What we think is us might be truly alien in origin, even as we consciously invoke those same thoughts. Are we aware of all our influences?

Requiem for Methuselah - An episode that attempts to be feminist even as Kirk interrupts a woman to talk about her right to choice, even fighting over her like an object, because, uh, she actually is an object, created for a near-immortal man's pleasure. No, this doesn't get better in hindsight.

The Way to Eden - A companion to "Battlefield" that casts a critical eye at leftist movements that coast by on positive imagery alone. Chekov gets some good moments here, as does Spock, who totally shows the crowd he's not a Herbert by jamming along with them (clearly a good way for Leonard Nimoy to boost his music career). It's an interesting episode that casts the Federation as perhaps not quite the cutting-edge institution it wants to be. It gives credit where credit is due to disestablishment types while giving them a very healthy dose of side-eye.

The Cloud Minders - It's clear at this point that the production knew they were cancelled, and this episode was a money-saver. Sets are reused from previous episodes (including a shot of the cave entrance from "That Which Survives" that still has DeForest Kelley's shadow!) and story elements are lifted wholesale from "Methuselah" just a couple weeks prior. It does make the excellent observation about systematic racism perpetuating itself through unexamined influences. It might be preachy in the way that "Battlefield" is criticized for being, but it's also reflective of the show's mission statement.

The Savage Curtain - A fun sequel to "Arena" that does a little bit of worldbuilding along the way, as we see famous figures from Vulcan and Klingon history. And who can say no to Abraham Lincoln as your gladiatorial teammate?

All Our Yesterdays - A decent farce that turns time travel into an absurdist library. Spock's farewell with Zarabeth is somewhat affecting, knowing that she is dead for over 5000 years with just one step across a threshold. So it is with this show as we watch one more episode.

Turnabout Intruder - This episode, although probably the worst possible one to end the series with, surprised me with how feminist it managed to be despite many misogynistic elements. I think this episode was trying to show the female experience that wasn't often shown in 1960s television. It's not just that Kirk swapped minds with his ex, it's that we get a female Kirk, and the episode does a great job of showing her struggle to be believed by her peers. My jaw dropped in the courtroom scene, though--a man temperamentally unfit for office basically telling the crew to "lock her up", while the stoic Kirk looks on, not daring to show emotion. Like "And the Children Shall Lead", it's another episode that gained new relevance in 2016.

Top Tier, ranked
Is There in Truth No Beauty?
And the Children Shall Lead
Spectre of the Gun
Let That Be Your Last Battlefield
The Empath
The Paradise Syndrome
The Way to Eden
Plato's Stepchildren
For the World Is Hollow and I Have Touched the Sky
Spock's Brain
Turnabout Intruder
The Enterprise Incident
The Tholian Web
That Which Survives
All Our Yesterdays

 

[Valka D'Ur]

Spock's Brain - Trekkies weren't prepared for the bold weirdness on display here, and it's been reviled as the "worst" episode ever since (well, maybe until "Threshold" showed up). I dig the heck out of it; the off-beat tone is unlike any episode since. It also serves as a thematic touchstone for the season regarding the human mind and its challenges in the 23rd century.

"Brain and brain - what is brain?!"

I started a fanfic parody of this episode waaaay back... nearly 40 years ago. In my version, they ran off with Spock's ears.

The Paradise Syndrome

- The last episode shot outdoors, and it's gorgeous. It feels more like a movie than a TV episode. We also get Shatner at the peak of his scene-chewing powers ("I AM KIROK!!") and marrying the sorceress from "A Private Little War", now a Native American refugee on an alien world. TNG later remade this episode, and it's easy to see why--the concept is a cool one.

Nope. Miramanee was played by Sabrina Scharf, and Nona was played by Nancy Kovack (hard to believe she's 80 years old now!).

Day of the Dove

- More illusions, yet more alien intelligence. Although this is a lesser episode compared to the previous two (and let's face it, they're a hard act to follow), the latter help to justify what could have been one-note preachiness. The show is now talking directly to the audience in a more brusque way than before. War and violence are not only immoral, they are impractical and unrealistic compared to the real threats that must be confronted. It worked for me, although I'm sure it wouldn't for many.

This episode inspired some fascinating Klingon-centric fanfiction, available online at Orion Press (it's free to read). This series of stories has an excellent explanation for why the movie and TNG-era Klingons are different from the TOS-era Klingons.

Elaan of Troyius

- This is one of the few episodes this season that I didn't care for. There are a few fun ideas but it's clear the script needed a couple more revisions.

There were a couple of scenes that were filmed but deleted from the final version. It's a shame, because they included more of Uhura and Spock.

Requiem for Methuselah

- An episode that attempts to be feminist even as Kirk interrupts a woman to talk about her right to choice, even fighting over her like an object, because, uh, she actually is an object, created for a near-immortal man's pleasure. No, this doesn't get better in hindsight.

I've come to see this episode as a prequel/sequel to a TV series that wouldn't exist for another 30 years: Highlander. Would Duncan MacLeod be able to leave Earth and travel to other planets, or would he start to age, like Flint? There's some Highlander/Star Trek fanfic in which Richie Ryan joins Starfleet (yes, I know Richie dies in the series, but anything is possible in fanfic).

The Way to Eden

- A companion to "Battlefield" that casts a critical eye at leftist movements that coast by on positive imagery alone. Chekov gets some good moments here, as does Spock, who totally shows the crowd he's not a Herbert by jamming along with them (clearly a good way for Leonard Nimoy to boost his music career). It's an interesting episode that casts the Federation as perhaps not quite the cutting-edge institution it wants to be. It gives credit where credit is due to disestablishment types while giving them a very healthy dose of side-eye.

As someone who used to work backstage on the properties crew, doing musical theatre, I still get a kick out of the bicycle wheel being used as a musical instrument!

 

[CivCube]

"Brain and brain - what is brain?!"

I started a fanfic parody of this episode waaaay back... nearly 40 years ago. In my version, they ran off with Spock's ears.

I'm already loving it.

"Gentlemen, it's now or never. They'll never hear us coming--"

"WHAT, CAPTAIN?"

Nope. Miramanee was played by Sabrina Scharf, and Nona was played by Nancy Kovack (hard to believe she's 80 years old now!).

Whoops, fixed.

This episode inspired some fascinating Klingon-centric fanfiction, available online at Orion Press (it's free to read). This series of stories has an excellent explanation for why the movie and TNG-era Klingons are different from the TOS-era Klingons.

Now that is intriguing. I will have to look at that. Discovery is also returning to TMP-designs for the Klingons.

There were a couple of scenes that were filmed but deleted from the final version. It's a shame, because they included more of Uhura and Spock.

More Uhura is always encouraged.

I've come to see this episode as a prequel/sequel to a TV series that wouldn't exist for another 30 years: Highlander. Would Duncan MacLeod be able to leave Earth and travel to other planets, or would he start to age, like Flint? There's some Highlander/Star Trek fanfic in which Richie Ryan joins Starfleet (yes, I know Richie dies in the series, but anything is possible in fanfic).

See, that's the thing. She actually was rather interesting, which makes the reveal and Kirk's talking over her all the more frustrating.

As someone who used to work backstage on the properties crew, doing musical theatre, I still get a kick out of the bicycle wheel being used as a musical instrument!

Hey hey, let's use a wheel
'Cause we're for real
Ain't no plan like the Man
Needin' to be made to feel

 

[CivCube]

The Animated Series, 1973-74

The rerun era was put on pause when NBC approached Filmation (that would later make "He-Man" and the Not-Real Ghostbusters) to make more Star Trek. I say this to keep my thoughts in perspective on this period for the franchise. The animation is worse than machinima because most of the run was made in less than six weeks. There are hints here and there of more robust in-betweens (or any in-betweens) if the staff was given more time. And clearly, there is talent on display: the background art for many of these episodes is impressively detailed, and figure proportions are well designed whenever a character moves more than a few frames. Unfortunately, the time-saving shortcuts prove to be extremely distracting for modern audiences, such as blowing a face up to half the frame to hide having to animate other characters, reusing a neutral character template for various actions, reusing many shots for bridge scenes. Sometimes the rushed artist would forget to color over the template's red uniform, leading to strange artifacts like Uhura's miscolored uniform, or the phantom British transport attendant who appeared in one episode, but whose mustache in one reused shot stuck around long after. Despite all this, the show won a freakin' Emmy, much to D.C. Fontana's delight and envy, and it kept the franchise alive when fans would have been content, if not satisfied, to watch perpetual midnight reruns. So here's to you, context, and boo to you, crappy deadlines!

Beyond the Farthest Star - After the vertigo of voluntarily watching Filmation content wears off, there's a bit of Star Trek to be found here. The spirit of exploration is alive and well when the crew visit a (literally) ropy starship that would have been hard to set up in live action. As mentioned, the background art is well done and colorful. The art style itself is very Jonny Quest--Filmation was kind of the Hanna-Barbera to Hanna-Barbera, if you catch my drift. The spectre's voice is also very Filmation in how it sounds like a random passerby was paid five bucks to do a line reading. That said, its cry as the Enterprise leaves it stranded on a "dead star" (snicker) is actually genuinely sad. Yep, this is Star Trek.

Yesteryear - Hands down the best episode in the run. D.C. Fontana follows up on "Journey to Babel"'s description of Spock's childhood with Spock actually traveling to his past. Young Spock is animated fairly well--I love one moment where he throws up his hand in irritation at his pet. There's also an interesting suggestion in that time in this setting can be rewritten at any moment, regardless of the individual's actions. Time travel is very dangerous, indeed. An interesting idea that should be revisited.

One of Our Planets Is Missing - Spock demonstrates the same kind of compassion for a planet-devouring cloud creature as he did for the Horta in "Devil in the Dark". Try doing that in a modern show.

The Lorelei Signal - The Enterprise visits a manifestation of Gene Roddenberry's fetish for women. Uhura becomes acting captain! I do like how this run gives Nichelle Nichols more to do with voice acting, even if Uhura is often limited to moving her head ninety degrees.

More Tribbles, More Troubles - The implications of Tribble colonies is unnerving. Could microscopic Tribbles feed on gluten in the human body, leading to redshirts exploding in Tribbles? Will we eventually see a planet completely covered in Tribbles, if not a giant Tribble itself? The Klingons' exchange regarding a giant Tribble is great, though: "Don't shoot at that again. Ever."

The Survivor - This is probably the better version of both "Turnabout Intruder" and, surprisingly, "Metamorphosis". It manages to follow through in its themes rather well. Carter Winston as a Romulan spy has a much better motivation for taking over the ship than Kirk's ex. Carter's ex-fiancee also has a fascinating moment where she chooses to honor her love for Carter by continuing the relationship with the Carter that's grown in the shapeshifting alien--interesting questions to be found there. We also get one of the best Spock comebacks ever as Bones counts his blessings that there was no Spock double.

The Infinite Vulcan - Walter Koenig's first published work remakes "Spock's Brain" into something weirder. A giant Spock helping a reformed giant Eugenics Wars veteran? Why the heck not, it's Star Trek. Also, purple dragon-things with awful stock sounds that get copy-pasted into too many episodes.

The Magicks of Megas-tu - Echoes of "Star Trek V" are found here as the Enterprise journeys into the galactic core for the first time and encounters the Devil. The Salem witch trials are also turned on their head, as magic-using demons put the scientific Enterprise crew on trial for humanity's bigotry. Crazy enough to fit in with the Original Series.

Once Upon a Planet - The Enterprise returns to the planet in "Shore Leave", where its AI has gone rogue. Filmation walked on very thin copyright ice by copying Disney characters outright!

Mudd's Passion - Chapel doesn't get a lot of favors with her artificially boneheaded decisions, but she actually gets her own episode for once, which is great for Majel Barrett fans like me. Her scene where she hits on Spock with a love potion probably wouldn't fly today, but Spock's reaction remains amusing. Mudd also works better as an antagonist when he's trying to work only one mark, as opposed to an entire crew who already opposes him from the get-go. The animation quality also helps with the humor in an Adult Swim kind of way, like when the camera cuts to the transporter crew dancing with each other instead of helping the landing party.

The Terratin Incident - Okay, the Enterprise crew getting continuously smaller over several Filmation jump-cuts is funny. Sulu injuring himself because the dial throws him the equivalent of several stories is also funny. Space leprechauns? Funny finishing gag. #itsacartoonafterall

The Time Trap - Kirk attempts to work with Kor of "Errand of Mercy" to get their ships out of a time pocket. It's okay. The best shot is of the Enterprise connected to a Klingon battlecruiser like some Power Ranger mega-weapon.

The Ambergris Element - Here's a story that benefits from being animated. Kirk and Spock mutate into waterbreathers and help an underwater culture. Also features one of the best backgrounds in the run.

The Slaver Weapon - A Larry Niven story that features an interesting device from a bygone era. I'd like to see more stasis boxes pop up in the live action shows! I also really want the Kzinti to be an offshoot of the Xindi--too late, it's my head canon now. If Edosian slugs can show up in Enterprise, the reverse can be true for a cartoon made thirty years prior. But of course.

The Eye of the Beholder - Not a lot going on in this episode, although the trio's banter is as fresh as it was on the Original Series. Their process of figuring out the planet is actually rather entertaining.

The Jihad - The production shortcuts completely destroy the episode, with hilarious results. Possibly the most prime material for gifs and Adult Swim recuts. That said, Kirk's response to being hit on by the scout is genuinely witty.

The Pirates of Orion - I gotta say, the SS Huron's design, as well as the unmanned ships in "More Tribbles, More Troubles", are kinda cool. The story is one that would have been better served with more/better animation or filmed live action.

Bem - Interesting that this originated as an Original Series script. Bem is easily one of the worst characters in Star Trek history, although it might be mostly his voice I dislike. He's a Ray-Man with an irritating name and a highly punchable face. The episode is also a decent enough introduction for younger viewers to the idea of the Prime Directive; as a trained social worker who tries to honor self-determination, it's a cool thing that I approve of. And it put the "Tiberius" in James T Kirk.

The Practical Joker - Incredibly, the first appearance of the holodeck in Star Trek. Even more incredibly,

Spoiler :

Albatross - An interesting Bones scenario where he's nearly hung up to dry for a mistake he might have made nineteen years ago. Even if the nebula ended up being the real culprit, this remake of "Court Martial" still brings up the same good questions about how far we should go with enforcing professionalism. In a 1970s cartoon.

How Sharper Than a Serpent's Tooth - "Who Mourns for Adonais?" returns with a Mayan theme, with nearly the same word-for-word Kirk speech about humanity growing up. We also get a nifty Mayan backdrop, as well as a Comanche helmsman filling in for Sulu, presumably while Sulu was off filming a sequel to the long-running Green Berets franchise.

The Counter-Clock Incident - I never thought I would see Robert April in action, and here we are. In a sense, the Enterprise travels back in time to where we see him in his original captaining glory. We also get a nice, brief description of the Enterprise being built in the San Francisco bay. My brother made a good point about the Aprils' potential second life being a metaphor for Star Trek's second chance at new episodes. Pretty nifty all around.

Okay, this cartoon is not exactly Yogi Bear. It remains a vital part of Star Trek's history, with enough well-written stories that elevate it above historical curiosity and also effectively influenced the later live action shows. People today, including J.J. Abrams, often compare Star Trek to Star Wars as a saga, and use the same fan methodology of reducing everything to timelines and canon. Star Trek did not start this way, however. In the beginning, it was just the plucky TV show that could, with an audience's willpower that helped it to break the natural laws of 1960s TV ratings and transcend into our greater popular culture. This cartoon was another surprising achievement that equaled the surprise third season for the live action show. And so it keeps going.

Most Watchable, ranked
Yesteryear
The Counter-Clock Incident
One of Our Planets Is Missing
More Tribbles, More Troubles
The Survivor
The Practical Joker
The Magicks of Megas-tu
Mudd's Passion
The Slaver Weapon
How Sharper Than a Serpent's Tooth
The Infinite Vulcan
Bem

 

[Valka D'Ur]

Yesteryear - Hands down the best episode in the run. D.C. Fontana follows up on "Journey to Babel"'s description of Spock's childhood with Spock actually traveling to his past. Young Spock is animated fairly well--I love one moment where he throws up his hand in irritation at his pet. There's also an interesting suggestion in that time in this setting can be rewritten at any moment, regardless of the individual's actions. Time travel is very dangerous, indeed. An interesting idea that should be revisited.

This is my favorite of the Animated Series.

The Slaver Weapon

- A Larry Niven story that features an interesting device from a bygone era. I'd like to see more stasis boxes pop up in the live action shows!

Unfortunately, copyrights tend to get in the way of these things.

The Counter-Clock Incident

- I never thought I would see Robert April in action, and here we are. In a sense, the Enterprise travels back in time to where we see him in his original captaining glory. We also get a nice, brief description of the Enterprise being built in the San Francisco bay. My brother made a good point about the Aprils' potential second life being a metaphor for Star Trek's second chance at new episodes. Pretty nifty all around.

This episode is one why I think Enterprise should never have been made, at least not in the form it was. Robert April was the first captain, not Jonathan Archer and the rest of that bunch of boring characters. They had a chance to do it right, and they blew it.

Have you read the short story/novel adaptations by Alan Dean Foster? He did a terrific job of translating these episodes to prose form, and in some cases vastly expanded the stories with original material.

 

[CivCube]

Have you read the short story/novel adaptations by Alan Dean Foster? He did a terrific job of translating these episodes to prose form, and in some cases vastly expanded the stories with original material.

The one Foster I've read was "The Approaching Storm", a lead-up to Star Wars Episode II. That one double-downed on Jar Jar-type characters but still managed to be better than the actual film. I have no doubt that his Star Trek adaptations are worthwhile reading.

 

[Valka D'Ur]

The one Foster I've read was "The Approaching Storm", a lead-up to Star Wars Episode II. That one double-downed on Jar Jar-type characters but still managed to be better than the actual film. I have no doubt that his Star Trek adaptations are worthwhile reading.

They're the Star Trek Log series. There are ten of them, and the first six are anthologies of various Animated Series episodes. The final four are episodes that have a great deal of new material added, to make them novel-length.

Alan Dean Foster is one of my favorite science fiction authors, both for the space opera genre, and for TV tie-ins. George Lucas didn't write the novelization of Star Wars - Alan Dean Foster did. He also wrote the first original Star Wars novel, Splinter of the Mind's Eye. As for his original work, the Humanx-Commonwealth series is pretty good, particularly the Pip & Flinx novels. I had the pleasure of meeting Foster at a science fiction convention in Edmonton, in 1984. He's a very interesting person, and really friendly with fans. We've emailed a couple of times as well, when I had a question and comment about one of his books.