TOS S01E27 The Alternative Factor (2 out of 5 stars) Baffling and repetitive, this muddled entry suggests that there was little gas left in the tank (although it was 20th in the production order) as much time is spent running around, achieving little. The first real dud of the season, this is borderline nonsensical with Kirk blithely letting a dangerous lunatic roam around the ship, getting himself trapped in an alternate universe, not trusting McCoy and generally making matters worse wherever he can. It’s hard to know what’s less convincing, the overlaid shots of a nebula to suggest a rip in space and time, or Robert Brown’s disappearing/reappearing facial hair. Dilithium crystals (not just lithium) are at the heart of the Enterprise.

TOS S01E28 The City on the Edge of Forever (5 out of 5 stars) We join the ship in the midst of a crisis. Sulu’s own console turns on him, and in the midst of the action, McCoy mistakenly gives himself a shot of a tricky drug and goes berserk. It’s one of the most action-packed teasers of the whole first season – and has almost nothing to do with what makes the episode itself so well-remembered.

This is another one I know very well, but I know the shape of the story more than I remember any of the details. There’s some lovely lighting on the planet set – and Uhura gets to join the landing party, so we have another full set of Top Trumps this episode. When the landing party stumbles across a magical talking do-over door, this seems to be the way to save McCoy. But McCoy flings himself through and undoes the present. Kirk and Spock decide (during a commercial break) to go through and stop him.

The existential terror of the results of McCoy’s actions and the desperate measures which the crew must take give way to some Voyage Home-style shenanigans in Depression-era New York, with some lovely comic timing from Shatner and Nimoy. It’s a testament to the quality of the writing and the comfort of the actors that these tonal shifts don’t jar. And then – bang! – there’s Joan Collins just being fabulous all over everything, purring “A lie is a very poor way to say hello.” She’s sensational and her psychological evaluation of Kirk and Spock is captivating.

After a lot of episodes in which Kirk has let his libido do the talking and the men on board ship have been reduced to imbeciles by the sight of an attractive woman, we get out first honest-to-goodness love story. Kirk and Edith Keeler are a perfect match, but almost as soon as they start getting to know each other, we (and Spock) now how this must end. McCoy saved Edith’s life and to get back everything he knows, Kirk will have to watch her die. It’s gut-wrenching stuff. And if that isn’t good enough for you, McCoy says “I’m a surgeon not a psychiatrist.”

About the only thing wrong with this episode is the name – a relic from Harlan Ellison’s first draft, subsequent revisions by Fontana, Coon and Roddenberry rendered it meaningless.

TOS S01E29 Operation – Annihilate! (3.5 out of 5 stars) The duh-duh-duh revelation at the end of the teaser is that Kirk has a brother (but not for long). I have crystal clear memories of the crew exploring that location and phasering those parasites, presumably from watching this episode on BBC2, but it isn’t one of the greats. Space madness is a bit ho-hum after various earlier episodes going over the same ground and it’s hard to be too invested in Spock falling victim after everything else we’ve seen him go through. Nurse Chapel is back (with a new wig).

Once again, nothing gets past Scotty, but the rest of the crew seem to be suffering from fatigue (well, it is the end of the season) as they really aren’t thinking things through properly. No attempt is made to give Spock any protective eye-wear, they couldn’t wait five minutes for the test results to come through, Spock himself seems unaware of how his own biology functions, and Kirk’s nephew is placed in mortal danger and then never referred to again.

That having been said, this is decent stuff with good location work, and the cast are as good as ever. It just doesn’t have the power and energy of the very best of this year’s episodes.

Season One observations

  • My decision to explore classic Trek was an excellent one and I’ve thoroughly enjoyed almost all of these. The best have been better than I ever expected and the duff ones were very thin on the ground.
  • It’s noteworthy that the pitch – exploring the unknown – gradually gives way to the Enterprise mainly floating around Federation space. It also becomes an instrument of the state which when it does find new worlds and new civilisations, aims to impose its values on them. This approach has benefits and drawbacks, as will become clear over subsequent decades.
  • I guess I shouldn’t be, being so familiar with the movies, but I’m very struck by the fact that this is the Kirk and Spock show – and in that order. Whole episodes go by without Sulu, Scotty, Uhura or sometimes even McCoy. The relationship between captain and first officer is wonderfully detailed and fascinating. Why did no-one want to explore any of the supporting cast in anything like the same depth?
  • Average star rating for Season 1 was 3.75. Best episodes: Balance of Terror, Space Seed, This Side of Paradise, The Devil in the Dark, The City on the Edge of Forever. Worst episodes: What Are Little Girls Made Of?, The Conscience of the King, The Alternative Factor.
  • Right, everybody get some rest, recharge your batteries, and then sharpen your pencils and start coming up with ideas for Season Two.