Ep. 13 The Conscience of the King

Kirk's old friend Leighton tricks Kirk into changing his course because he suspects that an actor in a traveling troupe is the infamous Kodos the Executioner, whom they both suffered under twenty years ago. When Leighton is found dead, Kirk takes his suspicions seriously, while falling for Kodos's gorgeous daughter.

It was fun that Riley was featured again, as one of the other survivors of Kodos's massacre, though weird that with 4,000 survivors of the colony, only nine would be alive who saw Kodos, and two would be on the Enterprise. I am glad Spock figured things out, but I though it odd that McCoy only thought that Kirk changed plans for a girl. The best part about the episode was that Shakespeare had made it to the 23rd century, though, which would be brought up again in Star Trek VI. And Uhura sang again. Though it appeared at first to be a simple mystery, there was an intriguing twist or two. Less action, more philosophical. Good episode. This, sadly, was Rand's last appearance.

RECURRING CHARACTERS:
DeForrest Kelley as McCoy
Nichelle Nichols as Uhura
Grace Lee Whitney as Janice Rand
Bruce Hyde as Riley
Eddie Paskey as Leslie

NOTABLE GUEST STARS:
Arnold Moss as Anton Karidian / Kodos
Barbara Anderson as Lenore Karidian
William Sargent as Dr. Thomas Leighton

Quote:
"Leave? But I only just got here?"
"Me, too."
"But you don't want to overstay your welcome, right?" ~ Lenore and Kirk

Ep. 12 Miri

The crew finds a duplicate Earth, circa 1960-ish, although everyone appeared to have died off then, which was about three hundred years ago in the time line. Kirk, Spock, McCoy, Rand, and their red shirts find a society of children, onlies, afraid of adults, grups, who died off. But how are there still children 300 years later? Because they only age a month every century! Of course the landing party gets sick, and begins to die, too. It was ok.

It was a message episode, about what violence does to us, and what danger lies in playing with science we don't understand. I did think it creepy when Kirk hit on Miri, or so it seemed when he told her she was 'very pretty' and he liked her name. Yes, she was over 300 years old, but physically she was ten. I don't think they intended it to be sexual, but that's how it came across to me, and it turned my stomach. And I still miss Scotty and Sulu.

RECURRING CHARACTERS:
DeForrest Kelley as McCoy
Grace Lee Whitney as Janice Rand
Jim Goodwin as Farrell
David L. Ross as Lt. Galloway

NOTABLE GUEST STARS:
Kim Darby as Miri
Michael J. Pollard as Jahn

Quote:
"Back on the ship I used to try to get you to look at my legs. Captain, look at my legs." ~ Rand

Ep. 9 Balance of Terror

"Balance of Terror" opened with the first Star Trek wedding. Two officers walked down the aisle to "Here Comes the Bride", until, as would become tradition on Star Trek, an emergency interrupts. The red alert klaxon blares. As it would become a running gag on all incarnations of the show, it's fun to see the first instance. And, of course, one of the couple died shortly before the ending credits. Tears. The rest of the episode was a very serious game of cat and mouse between the crew and the previously unseen by humans Romulans.

It is reminiscent of a number of movies, most involving submarines, where enemy commanders hunt in the dark for a hidden enemy. It also invokes the Cold War, with a long stand off between two powerful enemies. It was a drama-packed, great episode. I did find some bizarre occurrences, though. For instance, everyone knew they were at the Neutral Zone, and so should have familiarized themselves with human-Romulan relations. Yet Spock gave everyone on the ship a lesson over the intercom. Of course Spock (or in The Next Generation Data, etc.) had to give this lesson to the viewer, but the whole crew? Really? If anything, just telling Kirk would have sufficed, though the elementary info he gave should have already been known by the entire crew, especially Kirk. Also, the Enterprise was able to outrun an energy weapon? Really? Just how fast can it go? And lastly, was there enough reaction shot to Mark Lenard's reveal? Yes, I know the crew sees for the first time that Romulans look like Vulcans, but it still felt a bit much. I like to pretend that maybe they all noticed the striking similarity to the Romulan commander and photos they had seen of Spock's father, as they were the same actor, but I doubt it, as Spock's father had yet to appear on the series, and it wasn't mentioned. Still, it was a fun time.

RECURRING CHARACTERS:
DeForrest Kelley as McCoy
James Doohan as Scotty
George Takei as Sulu
Nichelle Nichols as Uhura
Grace Lee Whitney as Rand
Barbara Baldavin as Ensign Angela Martine

NOTABLE GUEST STARS:
Mark Lenard as Romulan Commander
John Warburton as Centurion
Paul Comi as Lieutenant Stiles
Stephen Mines as Lieutenant Robert Tomlinson

Quote:
"I hope we won't need your services, Bones."
"Amen to that." ~ Kirk and McCoy

Ep. 8 Charlie X

The crew take on a young man by the name of Charlie. Soon after he arrives, the ship that transferred him is mysteriously destroyed. Then crew men go missing, and Charlie ends up hijacking the ship with his mind. It's every teen boy's dream, to have ultimate power, but of course, he is not yet mature enough to wield it.

Interesting concept, executed in an interesting way. Notice I don't use the word great or fantastic, but overall, it was a decent episode. Not the top of the list, not the bottom. A memorable scene was Spock and Uhura's duet in the rec room. It was cheesy, but did allow for some crew bonding time, including with Rand, who was very much a featured player in this episode. It makes me wonder how she may have grown had she stayed on the show, and not been kicked off because of her personal issues. This one did have kind of a deus ex machina at the end, but it was necessary to end it well. Both this episode and "Where No Man Has Gone Before", which aired only a few episodes earlier, had similar issues, with Kirk and crew having to defeat a human with super powers, who could fight with their mind. At least this episode ended it a little more believably.

RECURRING CHARACTERS:
DeForrest Kelley as McCoy
Nichelle Nichols as Uhura
Grace Lee Whitney as Rand

NOTABLE GUEST STARS:
Robert Walker Jr. as Charles Evans
Patricia McNutty as Yeoman Tina Lawton

Quote:
"If I had the whole universe, I'd give it to you." ~ Charlie to Rand

Ep. 7 The Naked Time

The crewmen are struck by a disease that makes them drop their inhibitions, then not care and die.

It was Chapel's first appearance, who would be a major recurring character, and even appear in the movies. This episode also introduced the tricorder, a staple of Star Trek technology in every incarnation. The Next Generation had a sequel to this episode. Riley took over the ship and almost destroyed it, but in a twist, he did not die, and came back for at least one more episode and several books. It was a mostly fun episode with an undertone of danger. It did allow Sulu, Chapel, Spock, and others to really stretch their role, and Kirk almost seemed secondary, until he finally caught the disease. This episode was pretty cool, despite the corny ending where they discover time travel and get to live a few days over.

RECURRING CHARACTERS:
DeForrest Kelley as McCoy
James Doohan as Scotty
George Takei as Sulu
Nichelle Nichols as Uhura
Grace Lee Whitney as Rand
Majel Barrett as Nurse Christine Chapel
Bruce Hyde as Kevin Riley

NOTABLE GUEST STARS:
Stewart Moss as Joe Tormolen

Quote:
"And as for my anatomy being different from yours, I am delighted." ~ Spock

Ep. 6 The Man Trap

While visiting the planet to drop off supplies where McCoy's ex-girlfriend lives, the crew encounters a vampire who can change appearance and feed on salt.

This episode was cheesy from the outset. From the moment Kirk picked flowers for McCoy to give to his old girlfriend, to McCoy tasting the white substance to see if it was salt instead of scanning it, to the way Dr. Crater walked calmly away while avoiding Kirk and Spock, who were searching for him, to Rand munching on Sulu’s lunch while she carried him a tray, to the screaming flower hand puppet. It doesn’t make the episode less enjoyable, but this episode is a prime example of why the original series is now often considered a bit basic. It was also nice because McCoy and Kirk’s friendship was well established, and McCoy really felt like a principal player, which of course he would be soon enough. The only thing that seems off is how close Kirk and Spock and Kirk and McCoy are, when they don’t talk about a history together so one can only assume that they only met a short time ago from being assigned on the ship. It was cool to see Sulu in the botany lab, reminding us of what he did before he became helmsman. Sulu and Uhura also delivered fantastic performances, cementing their eventual permanence in the cast as well, when the series gave way to films. Also, best fight scene ever in the doctor's quarters, in a corny way.

RECURRING CHARACTERS:
DeForrest Kelley as McCoy
George Takei as Sulu
Nichelle Nichols as Uhura
Grace Lee Whitney as Rand

NOTABLE GUEST STARS:
Jeanne Bal as Nancy
Alfred Ryder as Professor Crater
Bruce Watson as Green

Quote:
"He's not trying to kill us, he's trying to frighten us, and he's doing a pretty good job." ~ Kirk

Ep. 5 The Enemy Within

Kirk is split in half by the transporter! Yes, yes, I know that transporter accidents happen on Star Trek all the time, but this was the first one. An 'evil', extra-overacting Kirk is on board. He beats up a technician and tries to rape his yeoman! The 'good' Kirk gradually begins to lose his confidence and slip.

This is what I don't get. The 'evil' Kirk doesn't get more ruthless. He begins evil and stays evil. Why did the 'good' Kirk seem fine, then begin to slip up? If they truly are different aspects of the same man, shouldn't the 'good' Kirk appear weak and indecisive from the beginning? That being said, it was still an intriguing episode that kept me hooked. Having Sulu trapped on the planet was a great hook to build the mounting tension. Uhura sat this one out. Though future episodes would be similar to this plot, this one was first, so it deserves the credit.

RECURRING CHARACTERS:
DeForrest Kelley as McCoy
James Doohan as Scotty
George Takei as Sulu
Grace Lee Whitney as Rand
Jim Goodwin as Farrell

NOTABLE GUEST STARS:
None

Quote:
"Do you think you can find a long rope somewhere and lower us down a pot of coffee?" ~ Sulu

Ep. 3 The Corbomite Maneuver

This episode was where the Enterprise was blocked in space first by a probe, and later by a ship. They are told that they will be destroyed. Kirk tells the alien Balok that the ship contains corbomite, a destructive element that will destroy Balok himself if he attacks Kirk. In the end, Balok is a peaceful alien who was simply testing them, and they become fast friends.

This is one of my favorite episodes because it is brilliantly written. Despite taking place almost completely on the bridge, it doesn't get boring. The drama is compelling, even without seeing the enemy alien until the end. And, of course, it is wonderfully acted. A great episode that could have been dull, pulled off fantastically. It also introducing Dr. McCoy, Uhura, and Yeoman Rand, who were important recurring characters. Sulu was on the bridge, and everyone finally had the right color shirt on, except Uhura, who was in gold, for some reason. My criticism is that Bailey, painted as a younger version of Kirk, leaves at the end of the episode. This marks two episodes in a row that interesting bridge crew members are taken off the show the same episode they are introduced. It also doesn't bode well for any future navigators, as the first two we see only last one episode a piece.

RECURRING CHARACTERS:
DeForrest Kelley as Dr. Leonard "Bones" McCoy
James Doohan as Scotty
George Takei as Sulu
Nichelle Nichols as Lt. Uhura
Grace Lee Whitney as Yeoman Rand

NOTABLE GUEST STARS:
Anthony Call as Lt. David Bailey
Clint Howard as Balok

Quote:
"Has it occurred to you that there's a certain inefficiency in constantly questioning me on things you've already made up your mind about?"
"It gives me emotional security." ~ Spock and Kirk