It’s often said that Star Trek: The Original Series was one-third amazing, one-third watchable, and one-third meh. It’s safe to say during its three-season run of TOS had more than its fair share of stellar episodes. I agree with the common evaluation of the TOS run, with one exception… Spock’s Brain is good. It’s the funniest episode of any Trek ever.
Ok, now that I got that off my chest, and trust me, dear readers, this won’t be the first time I make this assertion. Far from it. Far, far from it.
I will be briefly covering THE IMMUNITY SYNDROME, REQUIEM FOR METHUSELAH, and THE TROUBLE WITH TRIBBLES. These episodes, while classics and exceptionally well-executed back in the dark and wild days of the1960’s
So, let’s kick back and start with my favourite of the three episodes I’m showcasing in this retrospective
The Immunity Syndrome
The show opens with Spock experiencing extreme pain. When asked what’s wrong, he answers he just felt the deaths of 400 Vulcans on the USS Intrepid. Immediately following this, the Enterprise is ordered to Sector 39 to investigate the disappearance of an entire star system.
When the crew arrives, they find the system is gone and a massive dark patch of space. Probing the area results in a high-pitched noise which renders half the Enterprise crew unable to function temporarily.
Spock informs them that the nose was caused by the enterprise passing through the dark space’s boundary layer. It is soon realized that the creature is draining mechanical and biological energy. This is confirmed when McCoy informs them that the crew is dying.
All attempts to counter the effects of the giant space amoeba (that’s a sentence I just wrote), and it’s decided to send Spock in a shuttle deeper into the entity to gather more information on their adversary.
Spock reaches the nucleus and informs Enterprise that it appears the creature is ready to reproduce. The creature is a potential threat to the entire galaxy and must be destroyed.
In the climax, Kirk uses an antimatter warhead attached to a probe to destroy the creature’s nucleus, rupture the membrane, and kill the creature before it can reproduce and wreak havoc across the expanse of the Alpha Quadrant n particular and potentially the galaxy as a whole. Although I firmly believe the Dominion and the Borg would’ve stopped them before the Alpha and Beta Quadrant powers couldn’t.
Now we move from conflict with a quasi-supernatural enemy for something more conventional.
The Trouble With Tribbles
The Trouble With Tribbles showcases conflict with both Klingon’s and the ubiquitous Tribbles.
The Trouble with Tribbles starts with the Enterprise arriving at the Deep Space Station K-7 for treaty negotiations related to a long-running planetary troubles on the Federation Colony Sherman’s Planet. The issues are exasperated when they receive word that the Klingons are poking around the area and looking to disrupt things.
Arriving at K-7, the enterprise finds there’s no violence and that Nilz Baris, a Federation undersecretary in charge of the Sherman’s Planet development project who ordered a stand down. Baris and his deputy, Arne Darvin, both fear the Klingon’s plan to actively sabotage the Federation’s efforts on Sherman’s Planet.
Part of the federation’s efforts to pacify Sherman’s world and bring it firmly under the UFP’s umbrella is the delivery of Quadro triticale, a high-yield Earth grain that can be grown on Sherman’s World. It is the fear of Baris and Darvin that Klingon’s intended to sabotage the grain shipment.
While on a short leave on K-7, Uhura and Chekov meet a Merchant named Cyrano Jones. Mr Jones is trying to sell small fuzzy creatures known as Tribbles. Uhura becomes enamoured with them, and Cyrano gifts her one.
Side note, Cyrano Jones has always reminded me of the Ferengi, which makes me wonder if he was the prototype for the Ferengi reconfiguration on DS9.
Back on the Enterprise, Kirk receives an order from Starfleet Admiral Fitzpatrick to render any and or all aid that Baris may require. The admiral informs Kirk that the safety of the grain – as well as the project – is the captain’s responsibility.
Kirk is exasperated and just then learns from Uhura that a Klingon battle cruiser has arrived within a hundred kilometres of K-7. Kirk orders the ship to go to red alert and for Lurry to be notified. Lurry, however, discounts a possible attack, as the Klingon ship’s captain, the badass Koloth, and first officer, Korax, are sitting in his office. Kirk orders the red alert cancelled.
The Klingon’s arrive, commanded by the great Koloth. The captain demands the Klingon’s be allowed shore leave on K-7 under the terms of the treaty of Organian.
As the story progresses, the Tribbles begin wildly reproducing. With the Klingon’s on K-7, Kirk orders the Enterprise crew to avoid all hostilities with the Klingon’s. In the K-7 lounge, a Klingon officer, Korax, insults the Enterprise. Scotty and a cadre of Enterprise Redshirts take extreme umbrage with this, and a brawl ensues.
Second side note. This fight scene and the attached dressing down by Kirk is one of my favourite scenes in the entire Original Series.
Following an extensive study by Dr McCoy, it’s determined that the Tribbles are born pregnant, and more than half of their metabolism is geared strictly for reproduction. These findings are of little help as the rapidly reproducing are on the verge of overrunning the Enterprise and K-7. It’s quickly realized the Tribbles have access to the grain via the K-7 air ducts.
When one of the K-7 storage bays, an avalanche of Tribbles showers don on Kirk and company. As they all dig out from the Tribble tsunami, it’s determined many of the Tribbles are dead or in the process of dying.
The Grain has been poisoned. Spock estimates the population of Tribbles at 1,771,561.
In the climax, it’s revealed that Darvin is a disguised Klingon, and he’d poisoned the grain to sow chaos on Sherman’s World, the population of which would obviously turn from the Federation to the Klingon Empire.
The plan is, of course, foiled. In a final dig at the Klingon’s, Scotty transports all the Tribbles to the Klingon ship. The crew has a good laugh over this. One day we may talk about the great Klingon Tribble Wars.
The Requiem for Methuselah
And finally, we reach The Requiem for Methuselah. Of the three episodes, I’ve chosen to recap, Requiem night be the most complex and nuanced.
The potentially fatal Rigellian fever is running wild on the enterprise, and the crew is anxious for a cure. The Enterprise makes for Holberg 917G to obtain Ryetalyn, the key ingredient needed to cure the illness.
After beaming down to the surface of the supposedly uninhabited planet, Spock, McCoy, and Kirk (Riker would not approve of this) are accosted by a robot sentinel named M-4. The robot’s master, a human-looking man named Flint, shows up and orders the away team off the planet or else.
After Flint refuses to allow the Enterprise crew to gather the much-needed Ryetalyn Kirk orders Mr Scott to lock ship phasers on their coordinates and prepare to fire if Mr Flint refuses to relent on his mandate for them to leave empty-handed. In the end, Kirk wins the standoff, and Flint relents.
Sent M-4 out to collect the Ryetalyn while inviting the landing team to his home.
Can I take a minute to address this?… Kirk is ready to die, taking his first officer and chief doctor with him. To save his crew. That’s a captain, damnit.
Flint’s house is magnificent and filled with what seems to be unknown art and music from Earth’s great masters such as Brahms ad Davinci. While Flint processes the Ryetalyn for them, Kirk meets Flint’s brilliant, beautiful assistant Rayna. Flint seems to encourage personal interactions between Kirk and Rayna.
Flint declares he left earth due to its savagery and points out the Enterprise’s weapons as proof that humanity has changed. Kirk tells Flint that if they were still violent savages, they would’ve simply taken the Ryetalyn from Flint as opposed to asking.
The irony of this statement after Kirk threatened to kill them all is not lost on me. Kirk becomes more and more enamoured with Rayna as he also discusses the nature of modern and historical humanity with Flint. At one point, he begins to wonder and question when the last time Flint was on Earth and how old he might be.
After a long conversation about whether Rayna is happy there with Flint, Kirk starts to kiss Rayna only to be stopped by a belligerent M-4 bent on Kirk’s death. Before the murderous robot can finish Kirk off, Spock destroys it with his phaser. Flint explains away the assault by claiming M-4 was designed to defend the house and its inhabitants.
Kirk begins to suspect Flint is very jealous of Kirk and Rayna. Rayna admits she loves Kirk more than Flint when he asks her to leave with him.
After performing a search, Uhura tells Kirk that there are no Federation records on Flint and Rayna. Realizing Flint is slow processing, the Ryetalyn behind a locked door sends Kirk, Spock, and McCoy looking for answers. After they gain access to Flint’s lab, they learn Rayna is an android.
After a short confrontation, Flint admits he is an immortal born in 3834 BC. Over the millennia, he had been many important individuals across Earth’s history. As he speaks, Rayna enters the lab and learns she is a robot becoming distressed at the truth of her existence.
Flint, using his vastly superior technology, decides to put the Enterprise and its crew into suspended animation for a thousand years. Kirk and Flight.
The fight is short and ends when Rayna shuts down due to an emotional overload. In the aftermath, Flint allows the away team to take the antidote and return to the Enterprise.
The crew is cured of the sickness. As they prepare to leave, McCoy informs Kirk that his scans of Flint show he is now ageing and will eventually die. He speculates that leaving Earth ended his immortality.
In the end, as I stated at the beginning of these scribblings, maybe thirty per cent of Original Series are excellent classics. Of that 30%, I’ve recapped three of the best for you. If ever there were examples of near-perfect early Star Trek storytelling, you have them here.
