Cookies, Spock: The 25 Best Original Star Trek Episodes
Thursday was March 11th, meaning it was 46 years ago today (11 March 1964) that Gene Roddenberry created the first Star Trek series bible, known as Star Trek Is…
Historically, I think this document (download the Star Trek Is… PDF file) is as far back as you can go in learning about Roddenberry’s intentions for the series with any degree of reliability, and I definitely think today’s anniversary is one worth observing. Although the series didn’t debut on television until September of 1966, Roddenberry’s ideas are pretty firmly established in his original pitch, and many of the suggested episodes ended up as actual Trek episodes, although many with altered (usually for the better) titles.
Not long ago I broke down after years of feverish inner debate and bought all three seasons on DVD. I bought the remastered sets, because I think for the most part the updating of the special effects and other improvements significantly enhance the viewing of the series; I do want to someday own the original episodes as they aired, too, but when you see the breathtaking shots of Vulcan added to “Amok Time,” or the gorgeous exterior shots added to “Requiem for Methuselah,” even the biggest Trek stickler will have to admit that seeing the episodes with enhanced effects is to see the episodes again for the first time, no matter how many times you’ve seen them. And believe me, there are some episodes I’ve seen literally dozens of times.
In watching the DVDs, I found myself surprisingly vulnerable to the charms of the original Star Trek. Some episodes are as bad as I remember (The Apple remains virtually unwatchable), but after being introduced to the series when I was probably 7 or 8 years old, it is quite a revelation to sit down with some of the very best ones and drink them all in with 44 years of life experience as a companion. The humanism of Roddenberry shines through, often in more subtle than expected ways, and I find the theatrical, play-like feel of many of the episodes quite charming and appealing.
It’s amazing to me to think that there are probably fans of Star Trek: The Next Generation, Voyager or any of the other Trek series who may have never seen all, or even any of the original series episodes. With that in mind, I wanted to share my list of my 25 favourite episodes.
Balance of Terror — The first appearance of the Romulans in Star Trek is a tense, politically- and racially-charged drama pitting two opposing starship captains against one another. Noteworthy not only for being the first appearance of actor Mark Lenard in Star Trek (he is better known for playing Spock’s father on the series and in the movies, as well as in a standout Next Generation episode), but for asking the hard questions about duty and honour.[my personal fave - jef]
The Cage — The original pilot, featuring Captain Pike instead of Captain Kirk, Majel Barrett as the unemotional First Officer known only as Number One, a shockingly emotional Mr. Spock, and a bunch of other crew members only ever seen in this episode. The network rejected this complex and thoughtful episode and requested a second pilot (an almost unheard-of second chance for Roddenberry and his series) with more action, which resulted in my next choice. [top 3-jef]
Where No Man Has Gone Before — The first episode with Captain James T. Kirk, and a great showcase for his character, as his best friend and crew member Gary Mitchell [Q?]receives godlike powers that threaten the entire ship, if not the universe. Like “The Cage,” I love this episode for how very different it is from every other episode of the series, with a different doctor, different uniforms, and the still-not-quite-Spock Mr. Spock. As a child, in the early 1970s, I can also tell you that the sight of Gary Mitchell’s glowing eyes as his power grew and grew scared the living shit out of me, and even now, I still get a little creeped out by them every time I watch this one (which is quite a lot).[this was the first episode of Star Trek I ever saw; I was 4 yrs old, and it was on in syndication in the 1970s]
For the World is Hollow and I Have Touched the Sky — Probably the strongest McCoy-centered episode, he gets to contract a terminal illness, fall in love, get married and find a cure all in one hour. It’s just a joy to watch DeForest Kelley exercise his acting chops, and I really dug seeing this one again.
Miri — Kirk and Spock learn what a "grupp" is from psychotic children who go completely batshit bonkers when they hit puberty...(wait for it...wait for it...) Just like their parents did! no? After their homicidal rage subsides, they die. "BONK BONK on the head! BONK BONK!!!"
A Piece of the Action — Kirk and Spock in pinstripe suits with Tommy guns, up against gangster Vic Tayback (Mel from Alice) on a planet permanently stuck in 1930s Chicago. What more do you need to know? [the only time traveling episode I really enjoyed-jef]
All Our Yesterdays — The final time-travel episode of the original series, this one is another sentimental favourite. How could you not love the situation, in which Spock and McCoy get separated from Kirk by thousands of years via a bizarre library in which you can pick a CD of the era you wish to travel back to. Spock and McCoy’s tense standoff in the icy wastelands of the past is one of the highlights of the series.[I lied; liked this one, too-jef]
Arena — Kirk’s battle, alone against a reptilian starship captain with a justified grudge (another politically thoughtful and thought-provoking episode) , is one of the most iconic in all of Trek, despite the fairly static costuming for the Gorn who is trying to kill Kirk. The remastered version allows the Gorn to blink, which I guess is something of an improvement. [I still have the Gorn Mego figure sans chaussures. ]
The Trouble with Tribbles — This remains hilarious good fun, one of the few episodes almost entirely grounded in comedy, and inspiring an absolutely astonishing Deep Space Nine episode in which the DS9 characters, through the wonders of digital technology, actually interact with Kirk and crew and take part in the original episode. I still laugh every time I see Bashir and O’Brien as part of the lineup when Kirk is trying to find out who started that brawl with the Klingons. The remastered DVDs feature the original and DS9 episodes as well as the Animated Series Tribble story all on one joyous, Tribble-filled disc. [saw it as a 4 or 5 yr old, so I loved it; didn't care for any of the Tribbles' later appearances in subsequents Treks-jef]
Journey to Babel — Worth watching for the great acting of Mark Lenard and Jane Wyatt (as Spock’s parents Sarek and Amanda) alone, “Journey to Babel” is a great showcase for Leonard Nimoy as Spock, as well. A terrific example of how Star Trek at its best could blend intrigue, drama and excitement with solid character- and world-building.
The Ultimate Computer — Star Trek frequently saved money by doing “bottle shows,” episodes set entirely on the ship. This one, in which an experimental computer takes over Kirk’s job running the Enterprise, is one of the best.
Assignment Earth — A “backdoor pilot,” for a series that was never produced, this one involves time travel, an interstellar secret agent and a super-groovy Teri Garr in a miniskirt. Another moment in Trek where you wonder what might have been if this idea had gone further. (It actually did in a five-issue mini-series for IDW created by John Byrne.)
The Empath — Perhaps the ultimate Kirk/Spock/McCoy episode, in which aliens bearing a striking resemblance to those from “The Cage,” (my son insists they’re the same race, although they aren’t) test the humanity and ethics of the three Enterprise officers, going to fairly extraordinary lengths (the McCoy torture scene is surprisingly grueling). Much of the episode takes place on a darkened soundstage with minimal lighting and props, and it makes for an effectively claustrophobic story.
The Tholian Web — This one is more about Spock and McCoy and how Kirk’s absence tests their own relationship. The scenes of Kirk floating transparent as he appears ghost-like to select crew members is either haunting or hilarious, or both. Watching this with my wife and son recently, when Kirk appears on the bridge and is mouthing words to Spock, I thought he was saying “Cookies, Spock,” but my wife and son agree that he was actually saying “Hurry, Spock.” I like “Cookies, Spock,” better.
[my faves above ^^^]
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[author's faves continue below vvv ][not that they suck, I just don't like them as much as the author does]
Requiem for Methuselah — Episode writer Jerome Bixby (who also wrote “Mirror, Mirror”) must have been fascinated by this outing’s central conceit — an immortal man who lives many lifetimes among humans only to pretend to get older and eventually move on before his secret is discovered — because he later used it in a movie script for an excellent little film called The Man From Earth (featuring Enterprise’s John Billingsley, FYI). Guest stars James Daly as Flint and Louise Sorel as Rayna play the hell out of their roles, Flint a 6,000-year-old man, Rayna his curious (in more ways than one) foster daughter. The love story between her and Kirk plays out a little quickly (I was thinking the episode could have used one establishing scene of them really getting to know each other better), but I’m sure time constraints prevented that. In any case, this is a fantastic episode with some real emotional punch, especially from the point where Spock tries to keep the truth about Rayna from his captain, up to the touching final moment in which Spock takes extraordinary action to protect Kirk from the pain of his own emotions.
The Enemy Within — I admit it, I am a Kirk kind of guy. Not that I command hundreds and am unbelievably lucky with the ladies, but the life story of James Tiberius Kirk has always fascinated me, and in re-watching all these old episodes I was really amazed by how I can enjoy the series on two levels simultaneously, both wrapped up in the drama of the story, and keenly interested in the actors doing their work, especially knowing as much behind the scenes stuff about them as I have learned over the years. So “The Enemy Within,” is an all-time favourite because it features twice the Kirk, as the captain of the Enterprise is split into two by an unbelievably contrived transporter accident. One good but weak, one evil and strong, Shatner chews up a metric shit-ton of scenery, and the subtext involving Kirk’s sexual appetites must have seemed daring to mid-1960s television audiences. As a side note, James Blish wrote an entertaining novel that is sort of a companion piece to this episode, Spock Must Die, which sees Spock split into two and details how the Enterprise crew deals with that problem.
Doomsday Machine — A fun, tense little story that has launched a thousand pieces of fan-fiction; is the titular device actually leftover from a millennia-old effort to eradicate the Borg? It doesn’t really matter, all you need to know is right here in this, one of the best episodes of Star Trek in any incarnation.
Amok Time — Another timeless classic, this one establishes much of the mythology of Spock’s home planet Vulcan (most of the rest of the lore will be handed down in “Journey to Babel,” featuring Spock’s parents). Spock must return to Vulcan to mate, as all Vulcans must every seven years of their adult lives. It’s almost impossible to imagine anyone that has not seen this episode, but in case that describes you, I won’t reveal the episodes surprises and joys. Suffice to say this is a key episode in establishing the complex relationship shared by Kirk, Spock and the ship’s Chief Medical Officer, Leonard McCoy.
Wolf in the Fold — A sentimental favourite, and one I’ll confess I haven’t gotten around to watching yet on my new DVDs, but will soon. As a child the reveal at the end terrified me, as an adult I still get a kick out of this fairly Scotty-centric outing, in which the centuries-old Jack the Ripper murders are revealed to be part of a much larger and deeper phenomenon. Paging Alan Moore and Eddie Campbell! [Scotty's big moment is as Jack the Ripper? He deserved better-jef]
Changeling — An episode that strongly influenced the eventual first Trek movie, as a robotic space probe is discovered by the crew of the Enterprise, in a greatly altered form. I collect the Playmates Trek figures from the 1990s, and the fact that they never made a Nomad figure (or accessory, at least) means to me that the line, really, was never completed. (That could be a whole other post, the 25 Trek characters I think should have their own action figures; I warn you, it may happen!)
City on the Edge of Forever — Probably the finest moment in all of Star Trek history, despite the compromises that went into its production, despite Harlan Ellison’s decades of bitching and moaning. It’s true that Ellison’s original script is a compelling and adult take on Roddenberry’s characters, but Ellison was in for one episode, Roddenberry and his team had to make the story work within the framework of an ongoing series. And they did, spectacularly. In all of Star Trek, there are no moments more heart-rending or emotionally honest than the climactic moment of City on the Edge, and unlike some Trek outings, this one takes the time to convince the viewer of the depth of Kirk’s feelings for the very doomed Edith Keeler. Spock’s conflicting emotions and stoicism in the face of what must be done are agonizing to experience no matter how many times one watches this absolute classic. Not just Star Trek’s greatest moment, but one of television’s all-time heights, as well. [meh-jef]
Tomorrow is Yesterday — This time-travel episode is a favourite for its scenes of Kirk and Sulu running around a 1960s military base, and for the humour the episode’s writers brought out of the characters and their temporal dilemma. This was originally supposed to be the second part of a two-parter that would have begun with “The Naked Time,” (an episode that ended with the crew flung back in time, but only three days, not hundreds of years), and I am intrigued by what might have been if they had followed through on that idea.
Space Seed — The episode that introduced Khan is an intriguing rumination on power and the nature of leadership. Kirk’s respect for Khan, even after he attempts to murder him and take his ship, is a lesson in realpolitik that many world leaders would do well to study. [overrated but DID father the greatest of Trek films in the first canon; Trek2009 was a better film, but had the handicap of re-invention rather than realization]
This Side of Paradise — Under the influence of alien spores, Spock’s emotions are unleashed and we get to see him fall in love, swing from a tree branch, and open a can of whup-ass on James Tiberius Kirk. It’s funny how similar a farmhouse on a remote Federation outpost resembles one you might find on a 1960s Paramount lot.
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