Welcome
back to Underrated Trek, where I take a special look at Star Trek
episodes that I love…which may not be the most popular or even liked by
most. But today, we’re doing something a little different!
Fifty years ago today, September 8, 1966, something remarkable happened. Even though at the time, it was just another Thursday night watching Bewitched. Well, at least I am guessing that is what most people watched. On NBC a little show was premiering for the first time, a show called Star Trek! Could any of the people who tuned in on that September evening possibly imagine the silly images they saw on the screens was starting a phenomenon? I doubt it. It still amazes that back then, it was just another TV show. I always love to see old clips of promo’s and interviews the stars gave at the time, they talk as if it wee just an ordinary TV show. Of course, in 1966 that’s all it was. So what episode did they see? A little episode called :
Plot Synopsis:
The Enterprise has arrived at planet M-113 to provide medical exams to Professor and Nancy Crater. Nancy Crater and McCoy had been an item years earlier. Suddenly another officer goes after Nancy, only him to be dead a few minutes later. Nancy explaining he head eaten a poisoned plant.
While Spock determined the plant was poisonous, it couldn’t have caused the strange rings all over his face. Kirk would beam back down with two other crewmen, one Nancy would kill and take the place of. On the ship the creature roams he ship, oddly interacting with Rand and Uhura. Kirk and Spock find the dead crewman and deduce that have a intruder on the ship who can shape shift.
Turning back to Nancy, she gives McCoy sleeping pills and takes his place. Professor Crater reveals that Nancy was killed by the creature who shape shifts and lives on salt (which it absorbs from people, killing them) and he has been feeding it out of guilt. The fake McCoy later attacks and kills Crater, and is about to kill Kirk when McCoy reluctantly uses a phaser to finally kill it.
What I Liked:
The action scenes are decent, especially when Kirk and Spock confront Crater toward the end of the episode. Deforest Kelly is just fantastic as “The other” McCoy. He is in character and yet just out of character enough so we can clearly tell this isn’t really McCoy. Not really sure how Kirk and Spock were fooled by this, but I can ignore that. Though to be fair Spock does say the thought crossed his mind.
I once talked about how in the early days of TOS it was mostly Kirk, Spock, and McCoy and the others hardly contributed anything. This changed as creators realized how popular those characters were. But the funny thing is, this episode is a big exception to that. Sulu and Uhura, and heck even Rand, are very much involved with this situation in this episode. We even see Uhura being fooled by the Salt Vampire when it pretends to be an attractive black man. The supporting characters really chip in here, why did this stop after this episode for awhile? There are even some nice pointless character moments like one with Kirk and Uhura early on, and the arboretum scene with Rand and Sulu. And yes this is the episode where we spend a few minutes with Uhura flirting with Spock on the Bridge, which you know someone liked as it was expanded on in the Abrams Trek movies.
The design for the creature was pretty decent to be honest, especially considering some of the other designs we’d get like the The Gorn or the Mugatu later on. Speaking of designs, they made some futuristic salt shakers for he episode but deicded not to use them, What did they get turned into? Yep those little gadgets McCoy would wave around as medical scanners.
What I Hated:
When William Shatner talked about this episode on the Sci Fi network, even he admitted that Kirk’s attitude about killing the Salt Vampire (as it was called by fans) was a tad out of character. This is the same Kirk who would refuse to kill the Horta later on? That whole last scene where they finally kill the creature was badly done, overacting by Shatner and McCoy’s emotional turmoil could have been explored much more. Though the reveal of the creatures real form is startling. And I thought the body count in this one was kind of high, not sure why since more die in other episodes but here it bugs me. Though of all the people that die, no one is in a red shirt.
Some stuff just doesn’t add up. In the teaser the Salt Vampire somehow makes herself look different to three men at the exact same time. How? It never happens again after the teaser. McCoy is given red pills to make him sleep, yeah that sounds futuristic. And the decision to use more contemporary looking salt shakers was a silly one, yes that gave birth to McCoy’s medical equipment but it makes the scene where Sulu is using normal salt shaker look very dated rather than futuristic. At one point truth serum is brought up, yeah sure. Oh and they talk about how the Buffalo are extinct in the 23rd century. For the record they’re still very much around today.
Since it’s an early episode a lot of the sound effects are different than what they would become. The hallway is full of officers who seem to be working, this was diminish. We even see a woman in pants at one point. And like what happened in one or two early episodes, Kirk’s log entry reports things he couldn’t possibly know at the time.
Why didn’t the salt vampire (or whatever it was really called) simply talk to Kirk and tell them what it needed? In the briefing room scene it sounds reasonable! Crater says that the creature is intelligent. How many times in Trek does Kirk say he can provide various aliens whatever they need? It just ads to make Kirk look uncharacteristically blood hungry in the episode which thankfully didn’t take.
Fast Forward Moment:
I can’t say the teaser is pointless, but man is it slow. I am so glad they picked up the pace after the first few episodes. Teasers are supposed to pull your audience in not put them to sleep!
Final Thoughts:This was cleanly an early episode, But still a solid episode and a solid start. The characters weren’t quite there just yet. And the slower pacing hurts it. In fact I have never really cared for this episode, but being a special occasion I decided to talk about.
So, on this the official 50th anniversary, I wanted to take a moment to share my love for this franchise. Over the last year I have covered everything from episodes to movies to comics to novels to assorted other merchandise. I’ve talked before about how the movies got me into the franchise, I got into the original series thru my mother, I grew up with The Next Generation, have special memories watching DS9 in college and Voyager with my wife. I buy the merchandise and still watch the re-runs constantly, to this day. So what is it about this franchise that I loved and makes me still love it, even as other shows have come and gone?
On reason is the stories. What Star Trek does best is good stories which are well told, and that is one thing that keeps me coming back. As you probably know I am more of a story fan than an action fan, so it makes sense that I would like this over something like Star Wars (more on that at a later time) which while I love is more action oriented. Star Trek has existed for fifty years because it is smart, and one of the things Star Trek says is that we’ll be ok. That we’ll eventually work out our differences and the future will not only be positive, but we’ll become better. All you have to see is the multiracial crew and you can see that. You have to admire that.
One thing that pisses me off is the stereotype people have, that apparently unless you’re a child you can;t like Star Trek unless you’re a unemployed loser living with his parent who has never kissed a girl. Why is that? I think those people miss the point, this isn’t kid sci fi like the aforementioned Lost in Space or Flash Gordon. This is intelligent and well written TV, and when we wacth these episode we are really seeing a reflection of ourselves and how we live. This franchise has inspired scientists, astronauts, doctors, and countless other professionals who work today to make our lives better. So much of the technology we have today was inspired by this series, from the cell phone to the IPad (that one still astonishes me!). Do I have to even mention the conventions that bring millions every single year? Star Trek isn’t just part of pop culture, it literally changed the way we see the world. It seems like every time I watch an episode that is thought provoking I see something I hadn’t before, and when I see an episode that is more silly there is still something intelligent in there that keeps it from being Lost in Space levels of camp. And of course some episodes I have seen way more times than I’d like to admit.
Fifty years ago today, September 8, 1966, something remarkable happened. Even though at the time, it was just another Thursday night watching Bewitched. Well, at least I am guessing that is what most people watched. On NBC a little show was premiering for the first time, a show called Star Trek! Could any of the people who tuned in on that September evening possibly imagine the silly images they saw on the screens was starting a phenomenon? I doubt it. It still amazes that back then, it was just another TV show. I always love to see old clips of promo’s and interviews the stars gave at the time, they talk as if it wee just an ordinary TV show. Of course, in 1966 that’s all it was. So what episode did they see? A little episode called :
I decided the the best way to celebrate the official anniversary of
this wonderful franchise was to review the first episode that ever
aired. Why did this air and not the pilot? I guess it was part of a
sneak preview stunt, and the critics were very unimpressed. It did beat
it’s time slot thanks to the fact it was up against re-runs. But once
the new shows started up the series fell and fell in the ratings. So was
this episode a good start to this series? Let’s discuss.
Plot Synopsis:
The Enterprise has arrived at planet M-113 to provide medical exams to Professor and Nancy Crater. Nancy Crater and McCoy had been an item years earlier. Suddenly another officer goes after Nancy, only him to be dead a few minutes later. Nancy explaining he head eaten a poisoned plant.
While Spock determined the plant was poisonous, it couldn’t have caused the strange rings all over his face. Kirk would beam back down with two other crewmen, one Nancy would kill and take the place of. On the ship the creature roams he ship, oddly interacting with Rand and Uhura. Kirk and Spock find the dead crewman and deduce that have a intruder on the ship who can shape shift.
Turning back to Nancy, she gives McCoy sleeping pills and takes his place. Professor Crater reveals that Nancy was killed by the creature who shape shifts and lives on salt (which it absorbs from people, killing them) and he has been feeding it out of guilt. The fake McCoy later attacks and kills Crater, and is about to kill Kirk when McCoy reluctantly uses a phaser to finally kill it.
What I Liked:
The action scenes are decent, especially when Kirk and Spock confront Crater toward the end of the episode. Deforest Kelly is just fantastic as “The other” McCoy. He is in character and yet just out of character enough so we can clearly tell this isn’t really McCoy. Not really sure how Kirk and Spock were fooled by this, but I can ignore that. Though to be fair Spock does say the thought crossed his mind.
I once talked about how in the early days of TOS it was mostly Kirk, Spock, and McCoy and the others hardly contributed anything. This changed as creators realized how popular those characters were. But the funny thing is, this episode is a big exception to that. Sulu and Uhura, and heck even Rand, are very much involved with this situation in this episode. We even see Uhura being fooled by the Salt Vampire when it pretends to be an attractive black man. The supporting characters really chip in here, why did this stop after this episode for awhile? There are even some nice pointless character moments like one with Kirk and Uhura early on, and the arboretum scene with Rand and Sulu. And yes this is the episode where we spend a few minutes with Uhura flirting with Spock on the Bridge, which you know someone liked as it was expanded on in the Abrams Trek movies.
The design for the creature was pretty decent to be honest, especially considering some of the other designs we’d get like the The Gorn or the Mugatu later on. Speaking of designs, they made some futuristic salt shakers for he episode but deicded not to use them, What did they get turned into? Yep those little gadgets McCoy would wave around as medical scanners.
What I Hated:
When William Shatner talked about this episode on the Sci Fi network, even he admitted that Kirk’s attitude about killing the Salt Vampire (as it was called by fans) was a tad out of character. This is the same Kirk who would refuse to kill the Horta later on? That whole last scene where they finally kill the creature was badly done, overacting by Shatner and McCoy’s emotional turmoil could have been explored much more. Though the reveal of the creatures real form is startling. And I thought the body count in this one was kind of high, not sure why since more die in other episodes but here it bugs me. Though of all the people that die, no one is in a red shirt.
Some stuff just doesn’t add up. In the teaser the Salt Vampire somehow makes herself look different to three men at the exact same time. How? It never happens again after the teaser. McCoy is given red pills to make him sleep, yeah that sounds futuristic. And the decision to use more contemporary looking salt shakers was a silly one, yes that gave birth to McCoy’s medical equipment but it makes the scene where Sulu is using normal salt shaker look very dated rather than futuristic. At one point truth serum is brought up, yeah sure. Oh and they talk about how the Buffalo are extinct in the 23rd century. For the record they’re still very much around today.
Since it’s an early episode a lot of the sound effects are different than what they would become. The hallway is full of officers who seem to be working, this was diminish. We even see a woman in pants at one point. And like what happened in one or two early episodes, Kirk’s log entry reports things he couldn’t possibly know at the time.
Why didn’t the salt vampire (or whatever it was really called) simply talk to Kirk and tell them what it needed? In the briefing room scene it sounds reasonable! Crater says that the creature is intelligent. How many times in Trek does Kirk say he can provide various aliens whatever they need? It just ads to make Kirk look uncharacteristically blood hungry in the episode which thankfully didn’t take.
Fast Forward Moment:
I can’t say the teaser is pointless, but man is it slow. I am so glad they picked up the pace after the first few episodes. Teasers are supposed to pull your audience in not put them to sleep!
Final Thoughts:This was cleanly an early episode, But still a solid episode and a solid start. The characters weren’t quite there just yet. And the slower pacing hurts it. In fact I have never really cared for this episode, but being a special occasion I decided to talk about.
So, on this the official 50th anniversary, I wanted to take a moment to share my love for this franchise. Over the last year I have covered everything from episodes to movies to comics to novels to assorted other merchandise. I’ve talked before about how the movies got me into the franchise, I got into the original series thru my mother, I grew up with The Next Generation, have special memories watching DS9 in college and Voyager with my wife. I buy the merchandise and still watch the re-runs constantly, to this day. So what is it about this franchise that I loved and makes me still love it, even as other shows have come and gone?
On reason is the stories. What Star Trek does best is good stories which are well told, and that is one thing that keeps me coming back. As you probably know I am more of a story fan than an action fan, so it makes sense that I would like this over something like Star Wars (more on that at a later time) which while I love is more action oriented. Star Trek has existed for fifty years because it is smart, and one of the things Star Trek says is that we’ll be ok. That we’ll eventually work out our differences and the future will not only be positive, but we’ll become better. All you have to see is the multiracial crew and you can see that. You have to admire that.
One thing that pisses me off is the stereotype people have, that apparently unless you’re a child you can;t like Star Trek unless you’re a unemployed loser living with his parent who has never kissed a girl. Why is that? I think those people miss the point, this isn’t kid sci fi like the aforementioned Lost in Space or Flash Gordon. This is intelligent and well written TV, and when we wacth these episode we are really seeing a reflection of ourselves and how we live. This franchise has inspired scientists, astronauts, doctors, and countless other professionals who work today to make our lives better. So much of the technology we have today was inspired by this series, from the cell phone to the IPad (that one still astonishes me!). Do I have to even mention the conventions that bring millions every single year? Star Trek isn’t just part of pop culture, it literally changed the way we see the world. It seems like every time I watch an episode that is thought provoking I see something I hadn’t before, and when I see an episode that is more silly there is still something intelligent in there that keeps it from being Lost in Space levels of camp. And of course some episodes I have seen way more times than I’d like to admit.
The action is good too, especially the later series, and the aliens are not only well done but very memorable. From Klingons to Tribbles to Q to The Borg, the villains are as iconic as the main characters. And I love The Enterprise. It’s hard to describe just how much I adored that vessel. I tried to build a model but, ah, that didn’t happen. I’m sure I am not the only person to dream about being on that bridge (Star Trek Experience in Vegas was like a dream come true). There is also the mythology, this is something I have heard William Shatner talk about. Some say comic book superheroes are the present day version of the ancient myths. I submit that Star Trek is also. For years all we had for mythology in this country was the Old West. I think Star Trek filled that void. Yes there are other examples of modern mythology, but Star Trek did it first. In a nutshell, mythology is stories which help us to understand the world around us, and who we are as people through tales of heroes vs villains. Sound like a certain TV show you know?
But the biggest reason, for me anyway, is the characters. Kirk, Spock, and so on. I don’t know if it was lucky casting or brilliant writing, but I simply adored these characters. The way they complimented each other and interacted off each other was just fantastic. TOS with Kirk, Spock and McCoy being the perfect blend of logic, heart and the middle of both. And the other cast members added their own special flavor. These characters just clicked, and I loved watching them. TNG had the same luck with casting, a little less so for DS9 and really less so for Voyager and even worst for Enterprise. I enjoyed watching their adventures and one I wanted to keep coming back and spend time with. Honestly there aren’t many shows that were like that for me. How much did I love them? Well when I was younger and shy and insecure, Star Trek was there. I wrote Star Trek stories all the time, once in awhile those (more far fetched I admit) stories involved them helping me in some silly way. Don’t get me wrong the stories were mostly terrible. But those little fantasies helped me through some tough times. And maybe that’s why to this day, years later, while I have outgrown the fantasies and stories I still like to come back and spend time with these characters. They will endure for all time. Which are my favorite? Hmmmm I’ll have to think on that one!
And that is why I love Star Trek and always will. Thanks for reading this rant. So comment below and let me know why you love this franchise, and what keeps bringing you back. And I have to thank Manic Expression for giving me this platform to share my love for this franchise, twenty-five years ago I would have killed to have had it when I went nuts celebrating the 25th anniversary. There will be a few more Trek articles coming thru September (I know at least one idea I will probably do), but for now,
Happy 50th Anniversary Star Trek! Live Long and Prosper.
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