The Star Trek Monthly Monday Thread

[Dan North]

You guys need to cover the excellent episode of Columbo with Shatner and Koening in it. Then you have to do the Nimoy one. I am re-watching old episodes of this classic because of Falk's unfortunate death and I forgot how good it is!

[APLUK]

Shatner did a couple of Columbo's and it was always a fun show to watch. RIP Mr Falk. Did you guys know WHOM GODS DESTROY was one of 4 episodes of STAR TREK banned by the BBC?

Andy

[NewFun#6]

[Dan North]

God is a pretty touchy subject in Britain as the country has (even more-so then the US) a very god-fearing idealogy. Then again I've never seen the episode so it might not be god-related.

[APLUK]

[Arthur Ratnik]

[Dan North]

When I lived over there it was overtly religous. Wow, everythings changing.

[NewFun#6]

[Bibliomike]

"Miri" was probably banned because Kirk is flirting with an 18 year old. (Well, ok, she's really like centuries old, but to outward appearances...)

Doesn't Marta get blown up off-screen? Been a while since I've watched it, but, c'mon, it was 1968... how much are they gonna show onscreen?

Was the announcer for the "Arsenal of Freedom" trailer a different guy than usual? Not the usual "STAAAAAR trek" inflection! He's back for "Symbiosis" (and thus all is right with the world).

I may be wrong, but I think this is the last time the saucer is separated, ever, until "Generations." Am I forgetting something? (Probably.) I know it's only the second time it was done (although it may have been threatened on other occasions), so I get what you're saying, Scott, regarding it "getting tired by this point" -- it is all recycled footage, as you point out -- but, to be fair, it was only the second time it was shown.

I was surprised neither of you mentioned the scene between Picard and Crusher (except to compare her to Dr. Zaius -- Really, Chris?) underground. Again, haven't seen it in a while, but I remember it as a fairly touching and interesting scene, one of the few long-term character development beats TNG did in its early run, developing the awkward emotional relationship between the two characters. Gates McFadden especially plays that scene well.

I still like "Symbiosis" better than you two do, because I think all the guest actors do fairly good jobs. The first act is fairly comic -- how often do characters talk like real people in "Star Trek," after all? I love hearing Picard hail the freighter captain who responds, "Um, yeah, sure, if you think that'll help." It's a nice beat. Judson Scott is a little clumsy and wooden throughout but, somehow, it works with his character. I do agree the Nancy Reagan-esque "Don't Do Drugs" scene is very lame and very 80s and has not aged well, but, to her credit, Denise Crosby does about as much with it as anyone possibly could; and, as Chris suggests, it does organically fit her character's background, because surely drug abuse would have been rampant on her failed colony world. And, sure, the invocation of the Prime Directive is way off-base, as it often was in early TNG. It went from becoming a reasonable rule against "contaminating" still-developing cultures to a convenient excuse for Starfleet to avoid messy entangelments, even when the Federation's ideals clearly call for intervention (as here, as Chris argues). Still, for a kid who'd been a fan when only TOS was around, I don't think the Prime Directive is mentioned in any of the TOS theatrical films, so it made a really nice call-back to TOS days. It even made me start (but abandon) a story in which Picard's involvement in Jack Crusher's death was revealed to be the result of some attempt to circumvent the Prime Directive, which I thought would explain Picard's obsessive clinging to it, and the awkwardness of that whole conversation in the 'lift with Crusher. I really liked Scott's explanation of why Crusher didn't recognize the addiction problem right away.

Not for nothin', but I don't think Picard's (granted, overly done) asking for his officers' opinions undermines his authority. It's not as though he doesn't have any ideas of his own; he's leading by giving space for discussion and possibly dissent before he makes his final decision. The buck still stops with him. Good leaders are open to hearing others' ideas and taking from them what is of value, so, good on Picard, I say. And Kirk did exactly the same thing in early TOS, too -- e.g., "Balance of Terror," even as late as "Return to Tomorrow" (... "Risk is our business!") -- so there's that.

[NewFun#6]

There's a saucer sep in Best of Both Worlds Part II.

[Bibliomike]

[Bibliomike]

Haven't seen "Whom Gods Destroy" recently, but I've often wondered how long the "required reading at the Academy" reading list would be if someone went through and compiled all the references. There's Garth in this episode; General Korrd from "Star Trek V"; and I think there are more that escape me right now (maybe Lawrence Marvick, who designed the engines?). I even did a "wink/nod" to the tradition of "required reading" in my Strange New Worlds story (SHAMELESS PLUG ALERT!) <g>

My no-prize effort: Maybe the chess code is standard procedure for penal colonies, only. I dunno. I've always kind of liked it, even though it doesn't ever show up again.

[Arthur Ratnik]

[NewFun#6]

You must remember, Mike, that this appraisal comes from the guy who"s also all hot for Chewbacca's wife, Mala!

[Boober9]

Here is something regarding Star Trek that I found amusing. We have a "free" paper around Ames, IA called Toons. In it is a strip called "Dog Eat Doug". It is mostly about a Dog and a baby(Doug). Here is a link.


I am hoping this works and you can click on it. Otherwise, please visit the site as listed above.
Enjoy.

[NewFun#6]

[Joe Anthrax]

Just a notice to anyone who is a Netflix subscriber. All the episodes of TOS and Enterprise are for view streaming in HD as of July 1st. Most of the episodes of TNG and Voyager are up as well (currently they only list 100 episodes each, but they reach into season 5 for both of them, well past "Best of Both Worlds Pts 1 & 2"), and I guess they will be posting the rest later this month. DS9 is supposed to come to streaming sometime in October for whatever reason, maybe licensing. The TOS episodes are the remastered ones, and they look gorgeous!!! I watched "A Piece of the Action" for the upcoming STMM episode, and the remastered colors are amazing. There is even a green lighting coming from underneath the consoles at communications that was either added or I had never noticed until the HD remastering. I also watched "The Doomsday Machine" and the effects on the Constellation and the machine itself were perfect. Plus the way the Enterprise skimmed over the hull of the machine while firing phasers was awesome. If anyone was on the fence about getting Netflix, I would say this should be a reason to jump in on the service.

Joe -- And I swear that I have no vested interest in the company...I just think this is the best way to fill my, or anyone's, Star Trek fix -- Anthrax

p.s. If I don't get around to posting tomorrow, I hope everyone here in the states (sorry Andy ) has a great 4th of July!

[Dan North]

I waited with baited breath for that Netflix stuff and it's great! I second everything Joe said.

[APLUK]

[Dan North]