The Essential Star Trek
posted by Tygrrius @ 10:46 PM
Last year, I started a list of the must-see episodes of the original Star Trek. Today, I present the final installment of that four-part series. Before we get started, though, here is a quick review for those of you just now tuning in.
Episodes are listed in production order—which I recommend for best understanding the evolution of the series and characters. Disc references are to the DVD season sets released in 2004.
#1 "The Cage" (Restored Version) [Season 3, Disc 7 (bonus feature)]
#2 "Where No Man Has Gone Before" (Season 1, Disc 1)
#3 "The Corbomite Maneuver" (Season 1, Disc 3)
#5 "The Enemy Within" (Season 1, Disc 2)
#7 "The Naked Time" (Season 1, Disc 1)
#9 "Balance Of Terror" (Season 1, Disc 4)
#12 "Miri" (Season 1, Disc 2)
#14 "The Galileo Seven" (Season 1, Disc 4)
#15 "Court-Martial" (Season 1, Disc 5)
#16 "The Menagerie" (Parts I & II) [Season 1, Disc 3]
#18 "The Squire Of Gothos" (Season 1, Disc 5)
#19 "Arena" (Season 1, Disc 5)
#24 "Space Seed" (Season 1, Disc 6)
#25 "This Side Of Paradise" (Season 1, Disc 6)
#26 "The Devil In The Dark" (Season 1, Disc 7)
#27 "Errand Of Mercy" (Season 1, Disc 7)
#28 "The City On The Edge Of Forever" (Season 1, Disc 7)
#31 "Metamorphosis" (Season 2, Disc 3)
#34 "Amok Time" (Season 2, Disc 1)
#35 "The Doomsday Machine" (Season 2, Disc 2)
#39 "Mirror, Mirror" (Season 2, Disc 1)
#40 "The Deadly Years" (Season 2, Disc 3)
#42 "The Trouble With Tribbles" (Season 2, Disc 4)
#44 "Journey To Babel" (Season 2, Disc 3)
#47 "Obsession" (Season 2, Disc 4)
#48 "The Immunity Syndrome" (Season 2, Disc 5)
#49 "A Piece Of The Action" (Season 2, Disc 5)
And now, the conclusion.
#53 The Ultimate Computer
Season 2, Disc 6
When an experimental computer system installed aboard the Enterprise malfunctions, the vessel begins firing real shots against four other starships in a war games training exercise. Will Kirk and crew find a way to disable the computer before the rest of the fleet is forced to turn on them?
William Marshall turns in a notable performance as the creator of the faulty computer, Dr. Richard Daystrom. Daystrom is one of the original Star Trek's best examples of a significant, non-stereotypical role for an African American.
"The Ultimate Computer" originally aired in 1968, less than a month before the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. I think it's difficult for those of us who were born after the civil rights movement to truly comprehend how much the United States has changed since then. Television is often a reflection of the times, but Star Trek was on the cutting edge in more ways than just technology.
#54 The Omega Glory
Season 2, Disc 6
You read that right, I'm including "The Omega Glory" on a "Best Of" Star Trek list. As a red-blooded American, I find it impossible not to love an episode that features James T. Kirk reciting the Constitution of the United States—even if William Shatner is Canadian.
The Enterprise investigates a loss of contact with the USS Exeter and she is found adrift in orbit around a very Earth-like planet. White, crystal-like particles inside otherwise empty uniforms are all that remain of those aboard. The Exeter's captain is still alive on the planet below, where he's playing loose with the Federation's Prime Directive of non-interference with native cultures.
#58 The Paradise Syndrome
Season 3, Disc 1
Some people turn their noses up at all of Star Trek's third season episodes. However, there were some unique adventures that season, including "The Paradise Syndrome." Aside from a couple of cringe-worthy moments, this has been one of my favorites for years. I am, after all, a sucker for sad endings.
On their way to divert an asteroid the size of Earth's moon, Kirk, Spock, and McCoy beam down to scope out a planet directly in its path. They find a large, pyramid-shaped obelisk, created with technology that may be greater than that of the Federation.
The planet's inhabitants turn out to be Native Americans of Earth descent. Without advanced technology, they could not have built the obelisk so the trio avoids contacting them. Kirk goes off alone to take one more look at the structure. As he calls the ship on his communicator, a trap door opens and he falls through. Grasping a computer console within to get up, Kirk accidentally unleashes a beam that wipes out his memory.
When a search turns up nothing, the Enterprise is forced to depart without her captain in order to intercept the asteroid. Meanwhile, the beautiful Miramanee—tribal priestess—and one of her handmaidens have made their way to their temple, the obelisk.
From out of the temple, walks Kirk. Both immediately confirm what we have all suspected for years, that Kirk is a god. The women bow down to recognize him as such, but Kirk still has no idea who he is, much less who they are.
This episode also contained some of the best special effects of any season. The shot of the Enterprise shown from the aft as she moves in reverse within the path of the asteroid was beautiful. The effect was later re-used several episodes later in "For the World Is Hollow and I Have Touched the Sky."
#59 The Enterprise Incident
Season 3, Disc 1
"The Enterprise Incident" starts with a foreboding medical log by Dr. McCoy. Captain Kirk seems to be buckling under the pressure of command, like so many others before him. An angry Kirk orders the Enterprise into the Romulan neutral zone and Romulans soon surround the vessel. To the astonishment of the crew, the Romulans are now using Klingon battle cruisers.
The Romulans order the Enterprise to stand down and demand that Kirk and Spock beam aboard the flagship. They do so and meet the Romulan commander (Joanne Linville), a woman who seems to share an instant attraction with Spock. The increasingly erratic Kirk blames the encroachment of the Enterprise on equipment failure, while Spock tells the Romulan commander that Kirk alone is responsible.
#63 The Empath
Season 3, Disc 3
"The Empath" is one of Star Trek's great morality plays. It features yet another "test" by a supposedly superior species. However, this episode has a unique feel compared to any other in the entire series. The biggest factors are Kathryn Hays' top-notch performance as the mute Gem and the simple yet effective sets. "The Empath," in fact, does feel like a play and is one of the best examples of high quality work being possible with a small budget.
#64 The Tholian Web
Season 3, Disc 3
The Enterprise finds the USS Defiant adrift in space. Her crew has gone insane and killed each other. While investigating aboard the vessel, Kirk and company find that the ship is phasing out of existence. With minimal transporter power, everyone but Kirk safely returns to the Enterprise.
Before the Enterprise can beam Kirk back aboard, the Defiant vanishes. Spock assumes command and Kirk is eventually presumed dead. I love most of the ship-based episodes, and this is one of the best of the lot.
Though he probably has less screen time here than any other episode, I still consider this one of the most important Kirk episodes. The captain manages to become omnipresent in his absence. Nichelle Nichols also turns in one of her best performances here. Uhura sees a ghostly image of Kirk after his death and everyone believes she has gone insane.
"The Tholian Web" also offers insight into the character development of Spock. Contrast his behavior here with "The Galileo Seven" from a couple years before. The once-cold Vulcan actually displays some warmth to his human colleagues. "Welcome back, Lieutenant," he tells Uhura. "Your absence was keenly felt, Mister Chekov," he tells the navigator.
To top all of this off are some terrific effects of the truly alien-looking Tholians and the energetic webs they weave.
#73 The Lights Of Zetar
Season 3, Disc 5
Scotty is always annoying when he's in love (or featured for more than two or three minutes in an episode), so you'll have to ignore that aspect of "The Lights Of Zetar" in order to find one of Trek's best-kept secrets: This is a terrific episode! Featuring a great opening scene and the dark ambiance of a horror movie, "The Lights Of Zetar" is an often overlooked treat.
The Enterprise encounters a group of "light beings" (that, oddly, can apparently travel faster than light—we'll let that one slide) which "possess" Lieutenant Mira Romaine (Jan Shutan), the object of Scotty's unfortunate affections. Sure, these light entities are aliens on a budget, but at least they feel alien rather than looking like nose jobs of the week.
Incidentally, this is the first Star Trek episode to feature a scene in 0g—weightlessness. Really cool!
#78 All Our Yesterdays
Season 3, Disc 6
Though it is essentially an inferior remake of "The City on the Edge of Forever," there's something oddly compelling about "All Our Yesterdays," which was the second-to-last episode to air of the original Star Trek.
Maybe it's the librarian with the perfect name, Mr. Atoz (Ian Wolfe). Or perhaps it's Zarabeth (Mariette Hartley), a political prisoner exiled into an Ice Age solitary 5,000 years in the past by an evil dictator who was apparently blind. There's also a strong performance by Leonard Nimoy, in perhaps his most convincing display of emotions as Spock. (There's no crying in Star Trek!)
Okay, it's Zarabeth. Without her, this episode probably wouldn't have made this list.
Arriving just before a planet's sun is about to explode, Kirk, Spock, and McCoy find that most of the inhabitants are missing. The only ones left are Mr. Atoz and several duplicates of him. When Kirk hears a woman screaming for help, he naturally runs off to assist and accidentally steps through a time portal. Don't you hate when that happens?
Seeing their captain vanish, Spock and McCoy of course run after him and vanish, too. Fortunately for them, it wasn't a vaporizer ray. Anyway, Kirk arrives just in time to save an annoying woman in the past. She soon accuses him of being a witch, since he keeps talking to an unseen voice named Bones. The captain is imprisoned as such and, worse, so is the annoying woman.
Spock and McCoy arrive in a different time period, much farther back, during the planet's Ice Age. McCoy nearly freezes to death and tells Spock to leave him behind. The Vulcan refuses, but soon a mysterious person dressed head to toe in fur appears and takes them to safety in a nearby cave.
The mysterious person turns out to be Zarabeth. She heats up the cave so much that she has to strip off most of her garments. Back in 1969, the NBC censors, in their infinite wisdom, went after "All Our Yesterdays" because Hartley's costume was originally too revealing. They demanded that shocking and disturbing imagery of Hartley's bare . . . belly button not be shown.
The rest of the actresses' body remained relatively unclothed through most of "All Our Yesterdays," though. Who says that Star Trek lost the vision of Gene Roddenberry in the third season?
As Zarabeth, Hartley heats up the cave, the screen, and Spock. "It is agreeably warm here," he tells her. Zarabeth's navel is kept safely hidden, though, so it's okay for the kids to watch this one.
In all seriousness, "All Our Yesterdays" would have made a much better series finale than the mediocre "Turnabout Intruder." It's unfortunate that Star Trek had to leave the air with such a weak finale, but at least Nicholas Meyer's Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country in 1991 eventually gave Star Trek the sendoff it deserved.
* * *
So, there you have it, the Essential Star Trek. If you only watch 35 episodes of Star Trek in your lifetime, make them these installments.
* * *
BONUS
Star Trek: The Film Frontier—The Essential Movies
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982)
Star Trek III: The Search for Spock (1984)
Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986)
Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (1991)
Episodes are listed in production order—which I recommend for best understanding the evolution of the series and characters. Disc references are to the DVD season sets released in 2004.
#1 "The Cage" (Restored Version) [Season 3, Disc 7 (bonus feature)]
#2 "Where No Man Has Gone Before" (Season 1, Disc 1)
#3 "The Corbomite Maneuver" (Season 1, Disc 3)
#5 "The Enemy Within" (Season 1, Disc 2)
#7 "The Naked Time" (Season 1, Disc 1)
#9 "Balance Of Terror" (Season 1, Disc 4)
#12 "Miri" (Season 1, Disc 2)
#14 "The Galileo Seven" (Season 1, Disc 4)
#15 "Court-Martial" (Season 1, Disc 5)
#16 "The Menagerie" (Parts I & II) [Season 1, Disc 3]
#18 "The Squire Of Gothos" (Season 1, Disc 5)
#19 "Arena" (Season 1, Disc 5)
#24 "Space Seed" (Season 1, Disc 6)
#25 "This Side Of Paradise" (Season 1, Disc 6)
#26 "The Devil In The Dark" (Season 1, Disc 7)
#27 "Errand Of Mercy" (Season 1, Disc 7)
#28 "The City On The Edge Of Forever" (Season 1, Disc 7)
#31 "Metamorphosis" (Season 2, Disc 3)
#34 "Amok Time" (Season 2, Disc 1)
#35 "The Doomsday Machine" (Season 2, Disc 2)
#39 "Mirror, Mirror" (Season 2, Disc 1)
#40 "The Deadly Years" (Season 2, Disc 3)
#42 "The Trouble With Tribbles" (Season 2, Disc 4)
#44 "Journey To Babel" (Season 2, Disc 3)
#47 "Obsession" (Season 2, Disc 4)
#48 "The Immunity Syndrome" (Season 2, Disc 5)
#49 "A Piece Of The Action" (Season 2, Disc 5)
And now, the conclusion.
#53 The Ultimate Computer
Season 2, Disc 6
When an experimental computer system installed aboard the Enterprise malfunctions, the vessel begins firing real shots against four other starships in a war games training exercise. Will Kirk and crew find a way to disable the computer before the rest of the fleet is forced to turn on them?
William Marshall turns in a notable performance as the creator of the faulty computer, Dr. Richard Daystrom. Daystrom is one of the original Star Trek's best examples of a significant, non-stereotypical role for an African American.
"The Ultimate Computer" originally aired in 1968, less than a month before the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. I think it's difficult for those of us who were born after the civil rights movement to truly comprehend how much the United States has changed since then. Television is often a reflection of the times, but Star Trek was on the cutting edge in more ways than just technology.
#54 The Omega Glory
Season 2, Disc 6
You read that right, I'm including "The Omega Glory" on a "Best Of" Star Trek list. As a red-blooded American, I find it impossible not to love an episode that features James T. Kirk reciting the Constitution of the United States—even if William Shatner is Canadian.
The Enterprise investigates a loss of contact with the USS Exeter and she is found adrift in orbit around a very Earth-like planet. White, crystal-like particles inside otherwise empty uniforms are all that remain of those aboard. The Exeter's captain is still alive on the planet below, where he's playing loose with the Federation's Prime Directive of non-interference with native cultures.
#58 The Paradise Syndrome
Season 3, Disc 1
Some people turn their noses up at all of Star Trek's third season episodes. However, there were some unique adventures that season, including "The Paradise Syndrome." Aside from a couple of cringe-worthy moments, this has been one of my favorites for years. I am, after all, a sucker for sad endings.
On their way to divert an asteroid the size of Earth's moon, Kirk, Spock, and McCoy beam down to scope out a planet directly in its path. They find a large, pyramid-shaped obelisk, created with technology that may be greater than that of the Federation.
The planet's inhabitants turn out to be Native Americans of Earth descent. Without advanced technology, they could not have built the obelisk so the trio avoids contacting them. Kirk goes off alone to take one more look at the structure. As he calls the ship on his communicator, a trap door opens and he falls through. Grasping a computer console within to get up, Kirk accidentally unleashes a beam that wipes out his memory.
When a search turns up nothing, the Enterprise is forced to depart without her captain in order to intercept the asteroid. Meanwhile, the beautiful Miramanee—tribal priestess—and one of her handmaidens have made their way to their temple, the obelisk.
From out of the temple, walks Kirk. Both immediately confirm what we have all suspected for years, that Kirk is a god. The women bow down to recognize him as such, but Kirk still has no idea who he is, much less who they are.
This episode also contained some of the best special effects of any season. The shot of the Enterprise shown from the aft as she moves in reverse within the path of the asteroid was beautiful. The effect was later re-used several episodes later in "For the World Is Hollow and I Have Touched the Sky."
#59 The Enterprise Incident
Season 3, Disc 1
"The Enterprise Incident" starts with a foreboding medical log by Dr. McCoy. Captain Kirk seems to be buckling under the pressure of command, like so many others before him. An angry Kirk orders the Enterprise into the Romulan neutral zone and Romulans soon surround the vessel. To the astonishment of the crew, the Romulans are now using Klingon battle cruisers.
The Romulans order the Enterprise to stand down and demand that Kirk and Spock beam aboard the flagship. They do so and meet the Romulan commander (Joanne Linville), a woman who seems to share an instant attraction with Spock. The increasingly erratic Kirk blames the encroachment of the Enterprise on equipment failure, while Spock tells the Romulan commander that Kirk alone is responsible.
#63 The Empath
Season 3, Disc 3
"The Empath" is one of Star Trek's great morality plays. It features yet another "test" by a supposedly superior species. However, this episode has a unique feel compared to any other in the entire series. The biggest factors are Kathryn Hays' top-notch performance as the mute Gem and the simple yet effective sets. "The Empath," in fact, does feel like a play and is one of the best examples of high quality work being possible with a small budget.
#64 The Tholian WebSeason 3, Disc 3
The Enterprise finds the USS Defiant adrift in space. Her crew has gone insane and killed each other. While investigating aboard the vessel, Kirk and company find that the ship is phasing out of existence. With minimal transporter power, everyone but Kirk safely returns to the Enterprise.
Before the Enterprise can beam Kirk back aboard, the Defiant vanishes. Spock assumes command and Kirk is eventually presumed dead. I love most of the ship-based episodes, and this is one of the best of the lot.
Though he probably has less screen time here than any other episode, I still consider this one of the most important Kirk episodes. The captain manages to become omnipresent in his absence. Nichelle Nichols also turns in one of her best performances here. Uhura sees a ghostly image of Kirk after his death and everyone believes she has gone insane.
"The Tholian Web" also offers insight into the character development of Spock. Contrast his behavior here with "The Galileo Seven" from a couple years before. The once-cold Vulcan actually displays some warmth to his human colleagues. "Welcome back, Lieutenant," he tells Uhura. "Your absence was keenly felt, Mister Chekov," he tells the navigator.
To top all of this off are some terrific effects of the truly alien-looking Tholians and the energetic webs they weave.
#73 The Lights Of Zetar
Season 3, Disc 5
Scotty is always annoying when he's in love (or featured for more than two or three minutes in an episode), so you'll have to ignore that aspect of "The Lights Of Zetar" in order to find one of Trek's best-kept secrets: This is a terrific episode! Featuring a great opening scene and the dark ambiance of a horror movie, "The Lights Of Zetar" is an often overlooked treat.
The Enterprise encounters a group of "light beings" (that, oddly, can apparently travel faster than light—we'll let that one slide) which "possess" Lieutenant Mira Romaine (Jan Shutan), the object of Scotty's unfortunate affections. Sure, these light entities are aliens on a budget, but at least they feel alien rather than looking like nose jobs of the week.
Incidentally, this is the first Star Trek episode to feature a scene in 0g—weightlessness. Really cool!
#78 All Our Yesterdays
Season 3, Disc 6
Though it is essentially an inferior remake of "The City on the Edge of Forever," there's something oddly compelling about "All Our Yesterdays," which was the second-to-last episode to air of the original Star Trek.
Maybe it's the librarian with the perfect name, Mr. Atoz (Ian Wolfe). Or perhaps it's Zarabeth (Mariette Hartley), a political prisoner exiled into an Ice Age solitary 5,000 years in the past by an evil dictator who was apparently blind. There's also a strong performance by Leonard Nimoy, in perhaps his most convincing display of emotions as Spock. (There's no crying in Star Trek!)
Okay, it's Zarabeth. Without her, this episode probably wouldn't have made this list.
Arriving just before a planet's sun is about to explode, Kirk, Spock, and McCoy find that most of the inhabitants are missing. The only ones left are Mr. Atoz and several duplicates of him. When Kirk hears a woman screaming for help, he naturally runs off to assist and accidentally steps through a time portal. Don't you hate when that happens?
Seeing their captain vanish, Spock and McCoy of course run after him and vanish, too. Fortunately for them, it wasn't a vaporizer ray. Anyway, Kirk arrives just in time to save an annoying woman in the past. She soon accuses him of being a witch, since he keeps talking to an unseen voice named Bones. The captain is imprisoned as such and, worse, so is the annoying woman.
Spock and McCoy arrive in a different time period, much farther back, during the planet's Ice Age. McCoy nearly freezes to death and tells Spock to leave him behind. The Vulcan refuses, but soon a mysterious person dressed head to toe in fur appears and takes them to safety in a nearby cave.
The mysterious person turns out to be Zarabeth. She heats up the cave so much that she has to strip off most of her garments. Back in 1969, the NBC censors, in their infinite wisdom, went after "All Our Yesterdays" because Hartley's costume was originally too revealing. They demanded that shocking and disturbing imagery of Hartley's bare . . . belly button not be shown.
The rest of the actresses' body remained relatively unclothed through most of "All Our Yesterdays," though. Who says that Star Trek lost the vision of Gene Roddenberry in the third season?
As Zarabeth, Hartley heats up the cave, the screen, and Spock. "It is agreeably warm here," he tells her. Zarabeth's navel is kept safely hidden, though, so it's okay for the kids to watch this one.
In all seriousness, "All Our Yesterdays" would have made a much better series finale than the mediocre "Turnabout Intruder." It's unfortunate that Star Trek had to leave the air with such a weak finale, but at least Nicholas Meyer's Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country in 1991 eventually gave Star Trek the sendoff it deserved.
* * *
So, there you have it, the Essential Star Trek. If you only watch 35 episodes of Star Trek in your lifetime, make them these installments.
* * *
BONUS
Star Trek: The Film Frontier—The Essential Movies
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982)
Star Trek III: The Search for Spock (1984)
Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986)
Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (1991)
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