As a massive fan of Star Wars, Galaxy Quest, and sci-fi in general, it might be surprising to hear that I haven't really seen all that much Star Trek. I saw the reboot films, parts of Wrath Of Khan, a few episodes here and there, and Galaxy Quest. That was pretty much it. But with all the Star Trek shows slowly heading to Paramount+, a streaming service I don't intend to get, I thought this is a better time than any to get through at least the big ones (TOS, TNG, and DS9). And thus begins the biggest undertaking on this entire website:
Even to this day, I think Star Trek's core premise is really novel for a science fiction show. There's no big villain to stop or goal to achieve, it's just a team going on a cosmic exploration for five years and then returning home to report their findings. The original series uses a pretty episodic structure, but I think it really works with this premise. Every episode feels entirely different in terms of genre, feel, aliens, planets, it's like you never know what you're going to get. However, this also means that the quality of this original series can be pretty hit or miss at times. While there are plenty of fantastic episodes that still hold up really well, there are also quite a bunch of stinkers, as well as episodes that are good but with a big poorly-aged element. I think this first season actually has more great episodes than bad, especially in its nearly consistently strong second half, but even it struggles with some pretty blatant sexism despite how groundbreaking it was for its time.
Still, for a show made in the 60s, Star Trek generally ages better than it has any right to. The practical effects can look pretty good at times, the lighting and cinematography can be downright stunning, the sets and costumes are colorful and distinct, and the diversity of the cast has been talked about ad nauseam. The space sequences got remastered in the early 2000s with CGI and they really do look fantastic, with highlights being Balok's ship, Murasaki 312, and Trelane's planet. Even for 2000s CGI, I think it looks consistently great. Even more, unlike Star Wars's attempt at a remaster, the CGI is only used to touch up effects that may have looked pretty bad in the original version and nothing more. There are no massive story changes or scene replacements, just the general CGI touchups. And even then, all of the non-space effects remain purely practical, meaning that there are plenty of bad and cheesy effects to laugh at.
While the episodes can be incredibly varied, what does stay pretty consistently strong are the characters. Obviously, the main trio of Kirk, Spock, and Bones is the highlight here. Their dynamic is fantastic and the heart of the show. But even individually these characters are great. Kirk is a really likable captain and while Shatner's acting can be a bit goofy at times, he plays the character with such charisma and earnestness that I still really enjoy watching him. Spock is definitely the most interesting character in the cast, with his struggle between his human and Vulcan half, and I think Nimoy's acting is easily the best of the whole cast. Bones... Outside of the main trio, though, the show does a good job of letting everyone on the Enterprise get chances to shine, with Sulu and Uhura also being highlights. However, I do think some of the female characters get some pretty bad material, particularly the nurse Chapel and especially Yeoman Rand. Rand's actor left halfway through the season and given the episodes she stars in, I totally understand.
Since The Original Series feels like more of an anthology, consisting of entirely standalone episodes with a range of quality, I wanted to review each one individually, and give them a score from 1-5:
The Man Trap: This was the first Star Trek episode to air, and I don't think it works really well as a pilot. It doesn't spend much time introducing the characters and world, instead throwing you right into this episode's main conflict. Even as someone who knew this cast, I spent most of this episode incredibly confused. However, as its own episode, The Man Trap is solid. It's tense, contains some fun interactions between the cast, and has some really good effects, especially in regards to "Nancy".
Charlie X: An improvement over the premiere, Charlie X does a really good job at exploring its themes on adolescence and isolation. Charlie's actor does a really good job of feeling like a realistic teenager, and the downbeat ending definitely caught me off-guard. I think the effects can be a bit cheesy when it comes to Charlie's powers, but otherwise, I thought this one was alright.
Where No Man Has Gone Before: Originally intended to be the actual pilot of Star Trek, this episode definitely looks a lot different than all the others. The costumes, Spock's eyebrows, the absent characters, it makes this episode feel a bit cheap. It's a shame, though, since the rest of WNMHGB is pretty fun. It's a nice balance of thoughtful commentary, sci-fi action, and escalating tension.
The Naked Time: Funny, sharp, and character-driven, The Naked Time is easily the best episode yet. There are just so many good moments here, like Sulu with a rapier, "Sorry, neither", Spock crying, literally everything about Riley, the first Vulcan neck pinch, and the crew accidentally inventing time travel?! Even presentation-wise, the soft lighting gave this episode a comfy feel, and Spock's scenes were really well-shot and acted. After this episode, I knew I was in it for the long haul.
The Enemy Within: This is an episode with high highs and low lows. Shatner does a good job at making his two counterparts feel distinct, the message about balancing passiveness and aggressiveness is a good one, and the big confrontation on the bridge is fantastic. However, Rand's attempted rape by evil Kirk isn't well-handled in the slightest, and the simplification of the two Kirks as "good" and "evil" loses a lot of potentially interesting nuance.
Mudd's Women: Something that I will bring up a lot in these reviews is that the worst kind of media isn't bad, it's boring. Mudd's Women is already a bad episode. It's sexist, convoluted, and is focused around a character who is way less likable than the show thinks he is. But worst of all, it's not even entertainingly bad. Mudd's Women is a dull episode with no tension, stakes, or excitement. I wasn't hooked at all, rather it nearly put me to sleep.
What Are Little Girls Made Of?: I'm not a big fan of those Kirk-centric episodes, since the interactions between the cast is one of this show's biggest strengths. While this episode's main storyline about replacing people with androids isn't super original nowadays, it was still fairly tense, with scenes like Kirk-android on the Enterprise and Korby killing both himself and Andrea really sticking out to me.
Miri: This episode was really just unremarkable. It had an interesting concept of this civilization of immortal kids, yet focused nearly entirely on a pretty unoriginal infection plot. I also thought Kirk's interactions with the titular character was a bit uncomfortable to watch due to the pretty obvious age difference. Otherwise, this was another boring one.
Dagger Of The Mind: This episode has a lot of similarities to What Are Little Girls Made Of? in structure, but I think this episode was an improvement because of its Spock and Bones subplot. Not only did it give the two characters a chance to interact and do something, but it led to the really cool "mind-meld" scene. The Kirk stuff was alright too, with the tension increasing as you learned more info about Adams.
The Corbomite Maneuver: This episode was so intense and gripping that it made me forget how most of it just took place in a single room. Given the premise of exploring unknown worlds and alien life, I really liked seeing the Enterprise crew being stumped by tech they had absolutely no knowledge of. The themes on the cold war were obvious but effective, Kirk got some badass moments, and the remastered effects were fantastic, making even a spinning cube in space feel threatening. I will say, though, the alien at the end being a child with an adult voice was very creepy.
The Menagerie: In addition to Where No Man Has Gone Before and The Man Trap, Star Trek had an unaired pilot called "The Cage" which had a mostly different cast, and it was pretty good. The Menagerie manages to include that entire unaired pilot within a mystery plot about Spock acting out of character, and it mostly works. However, watching The Menagerie feels like watching two episodes at the same exact time, and while I thought both of them were great, jumping between the two felt jarring.
The Conscience Of The King: This was another fairly unmemorable episode. I like the contrast between the actual events of the episode with the Shakespearean plays, the mystery about Kodos was interesting, and it was great to see Riley again after The Naked Time, but there were also a lot of pretty dull stretches, and the romantic subplot between Kirk and Lenore was a bit of a bore.
Balance Of Terror: There's a lot to love in this episode. We got the first appearance of the Romulans, some pretty well-done commentary on bigotry, the show's first full-on space battles, and an impactful and bittersweet ending. While I still probably prefer Corbomite for how bizarre Balok's tech is, I think Balance Of Terror works as a strong followup since the Enterprise crew isn't being played with this time. The Romulans intend to kill, and that adds a lot of tension and stakes to the episode.
Shore Leave: Similarly to The Naked Time, this episode explored the cast a bit, albeit in really comedic fashion. Shore Leave went an extra step in the surreal direction, resulting in an episode with the White Rabbit, samurai, knights, World War II fighters, and a crazy fist fight. While it lacks the emotional hook or thoughtfulness of the TNT, the sheer unadulterated 60s camp made this one a joy to watch.
The Galileo Seven: Another solid episode, The Galileo Seven gave Spock, McCoy, and Scotty the bulk of the screentime rather than Kirk as usual. It's a tense episode as things slowly get worse and worse for the titular crew, and Spock's rigidity is taken apart fairly well. However, the rest of the crew did seem a bit harsh towards Spock at times, and it didn't really handle its theme of logic vs emotion all too well. I also think the remastered Murasaki 312 looks absolutely stunning.
The Squire Of Gothos: Similarly to Shore Leave, this was another bizarre episode. The concept of the crew being played with by a reality warper is a cool one, and it leaves you wondering how they'd be able to escape. There were tons of neat effects and strange sequences, with my favorite being a planet chasing down the Enterprise, but the best part is the antagonist Trelane. William Campbell did a great job with making him immature and childlike to the point where he becomes scarily unpredictable.
Arena: This was one of those episodes I was aware about prior to this watch, and I'm surprised at how much more it has to offer than just the infamous Gorn fight. Yes, the Gorn fight is pretty cheesy, though I think it's really fun. And even with all the goofy action, there's a bunch of really solid themes about violence. This isn't one of my favorite episodes since the first half is probably more intense than the actual "arena fight", but I still enjoyed it. At the very least, I can see why Arena is a classic.
Tomorrow Is Yesterday: I'm not a massive fan of time travel. It's so common yet so rarely done well, not everything can be as airtight as Steins;Gate or Lost Season 5. This episode is filled to the brim with plotholes and paradoxes, but it makes up for being incredibly cute. Kirk's dynamic with Christopher is really enjoyable, the one-liners and interactions were funny, and there's something so charming about watching the Enterprise crew face off against the real life military.
Court Martial: After a whopping six really solid episodes in a row, this was the first one in the while that just didn't grip me all that much. It's the second "courtroom drama" episode after The Menagerie, and unlike that episode where Spock's motivations leave you intrigued, it's obvious that Kirk didn't intend to kill anyone. Even more, the courtroom scenes just weren't all that interesting. This wasn't a bad episode, it was watchable, I just couldn't bring myself to care about it much.
Return Of The Archons: "The Purge" is my least favorite movie of all time. I'm not gonna ramble about why here, but a big sticking point is its flawed premise. So color me surprised when I learned that The Purge was inspired by this very episode, and even more, I actually enjoyed it! It's a legitimately creepy episode with a strong opening and a lot of substance. It helps that "Festival" is once a day rather than once a year, the episode isn't just a glorified home invasion plot, and the themes are more based around conformity and indoctrination rather than human psychology.
Space Seed: I can say I definitely wasn't expecting Khan to show up. I thought he was just in the movie! He's still a fantastic villain, though, probably the best in the series yet. He's charismatic and cruel, coming the closest to completely taking over the Enterprise. I think some of the characters like McGivers and Kirk make some dumb decisions in their glorification of Khan, but in terms of its overall plot, this was a very fun and tense thriller.
A Taste Of Armageddon: In terms of the actual story, this episode was alright. The computer-generated war made some of the plot points a bit confusing, but overall, it was a fun watch with a strong conflict and some great Scotty moments. Thematically, though, A Taste Of Armaggedon is fantastic, and probably one of the best aged in the whole show. The anti-war message is incredibly well done, and the themes of how death can be normalized through statistics to the point where no one questions it anymore is still relevant today!
This Side Of Paradise: I didn't love this one all that much. The main plot about the spores wasn't all that interesting, so the highlight really just ended up being Spock. Spock showing emotions and falling in love is such a strange premise, but Nimoy manages to do wonders with the material, nailing the comedic and dramatic elements of the story. I also liked the pretty downbeat ending, as Spock reveals that was the only time he was ever happy.
The Devil In The Dark: This episode was cute, though not entirely creative nowadays. The main storyline of trying to kill a creature only to learn it was kind has been repeated to death by now, but it's executed pretty well here. There's a nice focus on the core trio of Spock, Kirk, and Bones that lets the three shine, the Horta monster has a charmingly silly design, and the message of compassion is optimistic and heartwarming. For such a subterranean episode, The Devil In The Dark was surprisingly comfy.
Errand Of Mercy: Klingons! The coolest thing about Errand Of Mercy for me outside of the debut of one of Trek's most well-known species is that the Enterprise crew isn't actually correct for a lot of the episode. Kirk keeps trying to fight a war for the Organians, ultimately making things far more complicated for them. The twist that they're actually godlike beings that are too evolved for violence was well-foreshadowed, and it really put into perspective just how needless the Human-Klingon fighting has been.
The Alternative Factor: The other really bad episode of this season, unlike Mudd's Women, this one was at the very least entertaining, even if it was still awful. The concept of alternate universes could have worked really well in Star Trek, but Lazarus's actor wasn't good, the effects were painfully bright, and the script was incredibly repetitive due to rewrites. For all intents and purposes, this was a truly awful episode, but it was at least fun to watch at times.
The City On The Edge Of Forever: This is easily the most iconic episode of the series, and I totally get why. It holds up so well in so many ways! Seeing Kirk and Spock try to live in 1930s New York City is compelling, the main conflict of a drugged Bones nearly destroying history is both hilarious and tense, Edith is a very well-realized character, the fact that the episode takes place on Earth means the set design and effects still hold up, and of course, that tragic ending between Kirk and Edith is fantastic, and shows some of Shatner's best acting in the whole show. It all adds up to the season's most well-crafted episode, and a definite high point in the series.
Operation: Annihilate!: Coming after the best episode in the season, Operation Annihilate feels like an odd note to end the series's first season on. It's not bad, per se, but it's a fairly standard episode about the crew fighting insanity-inducing parasites. There are some finale-ish elements here, though. Kirk goes through the winger, losing some family members, but the episode rarely spends time on this subplot and let him mourn. Spock's subplot fares a bit better, as we at least get to learn a bit more about Vulcans. But otherwise, this is just such an unambitious note to end the season on.
Overall, the first season of Star Trek's first series was a lot better than I expected, as I ended up enjoying way more episodes than I expected. It has a bit of a slow start and definitely aged poorly at points, but the characters, creativity, and second half are all great.
4/5 Stars
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