Star Trek Thoughts - Part 10
Jun. 10th, 2026 09:56 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
chris_gerribI am continuing my ongoing (semi-) rewatch of Star Trek: The Original Series. This post will cover the first 4 episodes of Season 3, which was the last season to air. Herewith, thoughts.
General: Season 3 exists because fans lobbied for it. However, the studio was not fond of it and it's (lack of) ratings so they cut the budget. Overall, I found this batch of episodes second-rate at best - something that does not appear to be budget-related. Specifically:
1) Spock's Brain - aliens surgically remove Spock's brain and insert it into their Controller. Kirk overacts and there's a lot of wandering down empty corridors. The ending, where apparently we just abandon the people to their fate, is, well, crappy.
2) The Enterprise Incident - Keith R. A. DeCandido calls it an idiot plot, and well, it is. Although not obvious, the budget cuts are starting to hit - the Romulan ship interiors are obviously Enterprise sets with different lighting.
3) The Paradise Syndrome - I found pretty much all of the "Kirk as an Indian" scenes cringeworthy, and again the plot is weak. Why not divert the asteriod first then investigate? Or why not leave a search party while the rest of the ship goes to divert the asteroid? The only redeeming quality (somewhat reduced by the Great White Savior aspects of the story) is that we actually see Kirk grieve over a death.
4) And the Children Shall Lead - space aliens have taken over children who can use fear to control adults. Probably the best of a bad bunch, although I felt that the crewmembers should have been made of sterner stuff.
Like I said - not the best run of episodes.
General: Season 3 exists because fans lobbied for it. However, the studio was not fond of it and it's (lack of) ratings so they cut the budget. Overall, I found this batch of episodes second-rate at best - something that does not appear to be budget-related. Specifically:
1) Spock's Brain - aliens surgically remove Spock's brain and insert it into their Controller. Kirk overacts and there's a lot of wandering down empty corridors. The ending, where apparently we just abandon the people to their fate, is, well, crappy.
2) The Enterprise Incident - Keith R. A. DeCandido calls it an idiot plot, and well, it is. Although not obvious, the budget cuts are starting to hit - the Romulan ship interiors are obviously Enterprise sets with different lighting.
3) The Paradise Syndrome - I found pretty much all of the "Kirk as an Indian" scenes cringeworthy, and again the plot is weak. Why not divert the asteriod first then investigate? Or why not leave a search party while the rest of the ship goes to divert the asteroid? The only redeeming quality (somewhat reduced by the Great White Savior aspects of the story) is that we actually see Kirk grieve over a death.
4) And the Children Shall Lead - space aliens have taken over children who can use fear to control adults. Probably the best of a bad bunch, although I felt that the crewmembers should have been made of sterner stuff.
Like I said - not the best run of episodes.
