Topic: Star Trek Episode Reviews

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Star Trek

Episode Reviews

Space, the final frontier. These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise. Its five-year mission: to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no man has gone before.

Episodes:

SEASON 1: The Cage (Vol. 40) The Man Trap (Vol. 3) Charlie X (Vol. 4) Where No Man Has Gone Before (Vol. 1) The Naked Time (Vol. 3) The Enemy Within (Vol. 2) Mudd's Women (Vol. 2) What Are Little Girls Made Of? (Vol. 5) Miri (Vol. 6) Dagger of the Mind (Vol. 5) The Corbomite Maneuver (Vol. 1) The Menagerie Part I (Vol. 8 ) The Menagerie Part II (Vol. 8 ) The Conscience of the King (Vol. 6) Balance of Terror (Vol. 4) Shore Leave (Vol. 9) The Galileo Seven (Vol. 7) The Squire of Gothos (Vol. 9) Arena (Vol. 10) Tomorrow is Yesterday (Vol. 11) Court Martial (Vol. 7) The Return of the Archons (Vol. 11) Space Seed (Vol. 12) A Taste of Armageddon (Vol. 12) This Side of Paradise (Vol. 13) The Devil in the Dark (Vol. 13) Errand of Mercy (Vol. 14) The Alternative Factor (Vol. 10) The City on the Edge of Forever (Vol. 14) Operation -- Annihilate! (Vol. 15)

SEASON 2: Amok Time (Vol. 17) Who Mourns for Adonais? (Vol. 17) The Changeling (Vol. 19) Mirror, Mirror (Vol. 20) The Apple (Vol. 19) The Doomsday Machine (Vol. 18) Catspaw (Vol. 15) I, Mudd (Vol. 21) Metamorphosis (Vol. 16) Journey to Babel (Vol. 22) Friday's Child (Vol. 16) The Deadly Years (Vol. 20) Obsession (Vol. 24) Wolf in the Fold (Vol. 18) The Trouble with Tribbles (Vol. 21) The Gamesters of Triskelion (Vol. 23) A Piece of the Action (Vol. 25) The Immunity Syndrome (Vol. 24) A Private Little War (Vol. 23) Return to Tomorrow (Vol. 26) Patterns of Force (Vol. 26) By Any Other Name (Vol. 25) The Omega Glory (vol. 27) The Ultimate Computer (vol. 27) Bread and Circuses (Vol. 22) Assignment: Earth (Vol. 28)

SEASON 3: Spock's Brain (Vol. 31) The Enterprise Incident (vol. 30) The Paradise Syndrome (Vol. 29) And the Children Shall Lead (Vol. 30) Is There in Truth No Beauty? (Vol. 31) Spectre of the Gun (Vol. 28) Day of the Dove (Vol. 33) For the World is Hollow and I Have Touched the Sky (vol. 33) The Tholian Web (Vol. 32) Plato's Stepchildren (Vol. 34) Wink of an Eye (Vol. 34) The Empath (vol. 32) Elaan of Troyius (Vol. 29) Whom Gods Destroy (Vol. 36) Let That Be Your Last Battlefield (Vol. 35) The Mark of Gideon (Vol. 36) That Which Survives (Vol. 35) The Lights of Zetar (Vol. 37) Requiem for Methuselah (Vol.  38) The Way to Eden (Vol. 38) The Cloud Minders (Vol. 37) The Savage Curtain (Vol. 39) All Our Yesterdays (Vol. 39) Turnabout Intruder (Vol. 40)

This is a series I been waiting to be able to watch all the episodes again... so since I know they are on the way... should be here some time this week... I thought I would get a thread ready for when they arrive.

I decided to watch these in the order they originally aired (Except for The Cage of Course). I also noted the Volume number for each episode... to make it easier for myself to find them as I need them. As you notice from the above... I will be jumping all over the place.

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I think I will watch some episodes of this today... help put me in the mood for this weekend! 

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Star Trek: Season 1

0. The Cage
Air Date: Unknown/Unaired
The Enterprise is lured to a planet by a repeating distress call. Capt. Pike and the crew find the aged survivors of a crashed spaceship. However, the crash and the survivors turn out to be illusions created by an advanced race of beings, with mysterious motives. They capture Capt. Pike and watch as they put him through false imagined adventures. But, the same woman keeps appearing in all these adventures with him.

Can Capt. Pike learn what the beings’ motives are, and can the Enterprise crew rescue their captain in time?

Guest Stars:
Susan Oliver
Leonard Nimoy
Majel Barrett
John Hoyt
Peter Duryea

My Thoughts:
Probably not surprising... but this is the first time I seen this one. I did find it strange not having the cast I was used to... but that soon faded as I got into the storyline. And I definitely enjoyed the story on this. As old as this series is... I liked how they did the alien beings. There is something to be said about the old school way of doing things over the all CGI effects of today. One thing I didn't care much for is how Captain Pike said how he wasn't used to a woman being on his bridge. And showed this in a few spots in the episode.  That is one thing I didn't care much for as it really went against what was shown in the entire series.

My Rating:

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Star Trek: Season 1

1. The Man Trap
Air Date: 09/08/66
When the U.S.S. Enterprise’s™ landing party arrives on planet M113 to give a routine medical examination to Robert and Nancy Crater, a nightmare unfolds when several members die, every trace of salt mysteriously removed from their bodies. Since McCoy was once deeply in love with Nancy, he's especially concerned for her safety.

Cast:
William Shatner as Captain James T. Kirk
Leonard Nimoy as Mr. Spock
Jeanne Bal as Nancy Crater
Alfred Ryder as Professor Robert Crater
DeForest Kelley as Dr. McCoy
Grace Lee Whitney as Yeoman Rand
George Takei as Sulu
Nichelle Nichols as Uhura
Bruce Watson as Green
Michael Zaslow as Darnell
Vince Howard as Crewman
Francine Pyne as Nancy III
Sharon Gimpel as M-113 Creature (uncredited)

My Thoughts:
Another episode I enjoyed quite a bit. This is the characters (for the most part) that I am used to seeing. This one has a good story. I liked how they did the shape shifting creature. Especially the work they did on the creatures original look... as you can see above. Looking at the above the creature looks almost sad.

My Rating:

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Star Trek: Season 1

2. Charlie X
Air Date: 09/15/66
The cargo ship Antares transfers Charlie Evans to the U.S.S. Enterprise on his way to Alpha Five Colony. Orphaned 14 years before, Charlie learned to survive on his own. Or did he? His parents crashed on a world inhabited by legendary beings.

Cast:
William Shatner as Captain James T. Kirk
Leonard Nimoy as Mr. Spock
Robert Walker as Charlie Evans
DeForest Kelley as Dr. McCoy
Grace Lee Whitney as Yeoman Rand
Nichelle Nichols as Uhura
Charles J. Stewart as Captain Ramart
Dallas Mitchell as Tom Nellis
Don Eitner as Navigator
Patricia McNulty as Tina Lawton
John Bellah as Crewman I
Garland Thompson as Crewman II
Abraham Sofaer as "The Thasian"

My Thoughts:
I never recognized this before... since I am also fairly new to the Twilight Zone series. But this episode reminded me so much of the old Twilight Zone episode... It's a Good Life with Billy Mumy. Basically being able to do anything he wants... just with the power of his mind. Definitely a good episode. Enjoyed it almost as much as the Twilight Zone episode.

My Rating:

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Star Trek: Season 1

3. Where No Man Has Gone Before
Air Date: 09/22/66
The flight recorder of the 200-year old U.S.S. Valiant relays a tale of terror–a magnetic storm at the edge of the galaxy. As the Enterprise nears the same barrier, Kirk elects to probe beyond its depths with disastrous results.

Cast:
William Shatner as Captain James R. Kirk
Leonard Nimoy as Mr. Spock
Gary Lockwood as Lt. Cmdr. Gary Mitchell
Sally Kellerman as Dr. Elizabeth Dehner
George Takei as Sulu
James Doohan as Scott
Lloyd Haynes as Alden
Andrea Dromm as Yeoman Smith
Paul Carr as Lt. Lee Kelso
Paul Fix as Doctor Piper

My Thoughts:
While this is the 3rd episode to air... it is the first to be produced. This is something that can be seen in some of the uniforms they wear. And Dr. McCoy isn't here yet. While still a good story... I didn't enjoy it quite as much as previous episodes. As you can see above... Sally Kellerman played a doctor in this episode. She is the actress that played "Hot Lips" in the M*A*S*H movie. I didn't realize this was her until I saw her name listed above. Some reason I just didn't recognize her.

My Rating:

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Star Trek: Season 1

4. The Naked Time
Air Date: 09/29/66
Sent to pick up a research team, the U.S.S. Enterprise™ finds the scientists dead. One of the landing party brings the disease back to the crew, forcing suppressed emotions to the surface.

Cast:
William Shatner as Captain James T. Kirk
Leonard Nimoy as Mr. Spock
Stewart Moss as Tormolen
Majel Barrett as Christine
Bruce Hyde as Riley
DeForest Kelley as Dr. McCoy
Grace Lee Whitney as Yeoman Rand
George Takei as Sulu
James Doohan as Scott
Nichelle Nichols as Uhura
William Knight as Amorous Crewman
John Bellah as Laughing Crewman

My Thoughts:
This is one of the few episodes I have seen multiple times. The last time not all that long ago in my The Good Old Days TV Thread. This is a right good episode. The virus spread so fast... just from the slightest touch. Correct me if I am wrong... but I think I remember they used this same storyline in Star Trek: TNG. I think I remember it anyway. And that they found the answer by going back into Captain Kirk's logs.

My Rating:

[DJ Doena]

but I think I remember they used this same storyline in Star Trek: TNG.

TNG 1x02 The Naked Now

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Guess I remembered right... Thanks Karsten!

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Star Trek: Season 1

5. The Enemy Within
Air Date: 10/6/66
A transporter malfunction causes Kirk to be split into separate beings: one compassionate, the other savage. Spock and McCoy suffer along with their friend as Kirk confronts a side of his nature no man should see. His only hope for survival is to reunite his two selves. But Kirk’s passive half is losing the ability to make decisions, and a stranded landing party is slowly freezing to death on the planet below.

Cast:
William Shatner as Captain James T. Kirk
Leonard Nimoy as Mr. Spock
DeForest Kelley as Dr. McCoy
Grace Lee Whitney as Yeoman Rand
George Takei as Sulu
James Doohan as Scott
Edward Madden as Fisher
Garland Thompson as Wilson
Jim Goodwin as Farrell

My Thoughts:
This is a good episode. I liked the storyline...and William Shatner really got to overact in this one. And I must say... I really got a kick out of the dog in the alien costume (see pic). It is so ridiculous (by today's standards)... but so fun. The one part of the storyline that did seem odd to me was that they had no way getting the crew members off the surface of the planet. Granted I don't remember a shuttle craft in the original series... though you would think they would have something like that.

My Rating:

[Tom]

Granted I don't remember a shuttle craft in the original series... though you would think they would have something like that.

I remember at least one episode with a shuttle craft. The first season episode "The Galileo Seven".

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Makes you wonder why they didn't send a shuttle craft for the stranded crew.

[DJ Doena]

Makes you wonder why they didn't send a shuttle craft for the stranded crew.

Gravitational ionization in the upper atmosphere prevented the use of crafts that rely on impulse engines.

[addicted2dvd]

Must have missed them mentioning it.

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Star Trek: Season 1

6. Mudd's Women
Air Date: 10/13/66
Kirk beams aboard the crew of a vessel destroyed by asteroids, but at a price. All but one of the Enterprise’s lithium crystals have burned out. The commander of the destroyed transport is Harry Mudd, scoundrel and space pirate. His cargo: three hypnotically beautiful women who immediately disrupt the normal workings of the ship.

Cast:
William Shatner as Captain James T. Kirk
Leonard Nimoy as Mr. Spock
Roger C. Carmel as Harry Mudd
Karen Steele as Eve McHuron
DeForest Kelley as Dr. McCoy
Maggie Thrett as Ruth
Susan Denberg as Magda
James Doohan as Scott
George Takei as Sulu
Jim Goodwin as Farrell
Nichelle Nichols as Uhura
Gene Dynarski as Ben
Jon Kowal as Herm
Seamon Glass as Benton
Jerry Foxworth as Guard

My Thoughts:
This one I found to be just an average episode. I never cared much for the character of Mudd. The storyline itself was lacking a little for my taste. But while not a favorite it is still an entertaining episode.

My Rating: