Star Trek Episode Review- TOS 125: Devil in the Dark & 126: Errand of Mercy

125- Devil in the Dark:
-Premise: The crew is sent to assist a mining colony where the miners have been attacked by an unknown creature in the caves.

-Quest Comments: This episode could be summarized with three words- "Turn! Zoom! Scream!". As each time the creaure attacks, they turn at the camera, which then zooms right at them as they scream. Everytime,e xactly the same way.

Actually not a bad episode overall, except that the spheres-are-eggs element is made way too obvious the moment Spock first remarks about them near the episode's start. Also, for a creature so set on protecting it's eggs, it's rather odd that it would cause a cave-in in an area containing some of the eggs.

"Average".

And remember- "Turn! Zoom! Scream!"


126- Errand of Mercy:
-Premise: The Enterprise must help bring a strageticly located planet to the side of the Federation before the Klingons can.

-T2Q Comments: This was a pretty good episode, once one gets past the old smooth foreheaded Klingon look (thankfully explained in a two-parter on Enterprise, at least).

Kor is an interesting villian (one who apparantly made a few appearances on DS9, played by the same actor- who, it took me awhile to realize, was the same actor who played Baltar on the original Battlestar Galactica), though the Organians likely being powerful beings was too obvious (though perhaps it's not so bad, if taken in the context of the Trek sgaa being viewed in chronological order, where an episode of Enterprise has already revealed the Organians as powerful beings).

And Kirk was a bit too bull-headed (even he should have been smart enough to maintain a more convincing cover for more than 30 seconds).

Also, Kirk's comment at the end that "we think of ourselves as the most powerful beings in the universe- it's unsettling to discover that we're wrong" is just a damn odd one to hear since they've met at least a half-dozen beings more powerful than humans in this season alone.

Still, given the Kor, Klingon and Organian connections to the greater mythos, not to mention being pretty watchable, this episode is "Definitely Essential."

(images via Memory-Alpha: The Star Trek Wiki)

Star Trek Episode Review- TOS 123: A Taste of Armageddon & 124: This Side of Paradise

123- A Taste of Armageddon:
-Premise: Sent to open diplomatic relations with a world, Kirk discovers a society that ahs been at war for 500 years- only the war is fought virtually by mathematical compuyation, and the casualties are sent into suicide booths, to maintain the war without destroying the culture and infrastructure.

-Quest Comments: Kirk: 2, Computers: 0. A pretty solid episode- fairly decently acted and it definitely has that old-school written sci-fi feel to the story concept. Only shortcoming was the diplomat acting like a fool for the first half of the episode, but at least he wizened up towards the end.

Still, having him be a more believable and effective diplomat less susceptible to obvious deception could have made this a a really great episode. So, while good, it almost has a "missed opportunity" vibe to it, so far as that facet goes. "Average".

Also, someone should tell the Q Continuum that someone has been trying to make hats funnier than theirs.

124- This Side of Paradise:
-Premise: The crew, sent to evacuate colonists from a world being exposed to harmful radiation, finds the population to be of perfect health- and under the influence of spores that induce happy feelings, which begin to infect the entire crew.

-Quest Comments: This is definitely a "been there, done that" for this series, as much of the concept (mainly the "outside influence making populations content, and how that stagnates a society" angle) is a retread of "Return of the Archons", while the spreading spores harkens back to The Naked Time.

However, this episode isn't all that offensive or annoying like Naked Time, nor does it have a huge element left unexplained like the Festival from Archons- it's just kinda dull for the most part.

Also, the flower that spores Kirk comes out of nowhere, which is kinda funny since it makes it seem like the flower is stalking him, hehe.

And the last Captain's log entry is spoken aloud to nothing but the transporter console. There's also the girl's line that she's "never seen a starship before", which is pretty funny considering she would have had to have been on a starship to have been brought to the planet in the first place (as the colonists were only there for a short period of time, not long enough for her to have been born there and grown to that age), not to mention she and Spock had met elsewhere at some point in the past.

I also have to comment that any attempt thus far to make Spock work with feelings has never really been executed very successfully- every time I see him smiling with a grin, i just keep being reminded of Nimoy's Hobbit song...

I'd classify it as "OK, But Not Essential".

(images via Memory-Alpha: The Star Trek Wiki)

Star Trek Episode Review- TOS 121: Return of the Archons & 122: Space Seed

121- Return of the Archons:
-Premise: The crew, investigating the dissapearance of another ship from 100 years ago, encounter a world being brainwashed into a peaceful and tranquil society.

-Quest Comments: I liked this one- though not as much as others. Still, I got a crack out of the "You will be absorbed!" line, if only because I had that line as a sound file on my computer lonnng ago (probably about 10 years at least) that I had downloaded off of AOL, but never knew where it was from.

Anyways, the only major problem with the episode is the "festival" riots that played a prominent role in the early part of the episode was never explained, so it comes across as pretty random after all is said and done. Another "OK Episode, But Not Necessarily Essential".

Bit of trivia: this is the first time they mention the prime directive and the first time Kirk talks a computer to death. Kirk: 1, Computers: 0.

122- Space Seed:
-Premise: Episode to which Wrath of Khan is the sequel to. The Enterprise discovers a sleeper ship carrying several enahnced humans aboard- including one Khan Noonien Singh.

-Quest Comments: KHAAAAAANNNN!!!!! Though the chick who falls for Khan is written too weak for my tastes, her addiction to him is played well. Any complaints aside- Khan is cool, and watching Ricardo play him is just fun. With it being the basis for Star Trek II, it, above any other episode in this series, so far as I can tell, is Definite;y Essential.

(images via Memory-Alpha: The Star Trek Wiki)

Star Trek Episode Review- TOS 119: Tommorrow is Yesterday & 120: Court Martial

119- Tommorow Is Yesterday:
-Premise: An accident ends up sending the Enterprise back in time to the 1960's.

-Quest Comments: Fun little time travel adventure. This was originally going to be a 2-parter with The Naked Time, but they were separated, and doing so basicly renders that little time travel forumla thing at the end of TNT irrelvant since it's not used at all in this episode. The "transporter replacement" trick at the end for returning the various people really made no sense at all, though. Ah well, neither did the "drop-kick across time" in Enterprise, so it's kind of a running theme with Trek time travel stories I guess

Kirk's one line, responding to the threat of being locked up for the next 200 years, of "That ought to be about right." was actually pretty good too. Unexpectedly clever for the generally poor dialogue the show has.

In the end, with the time travel aspect, I'll put this one in as "Definitely Essential".


120- Court Martial:
-Premise: Kirk is put on trial for possible negligence in the death of a crew member when the computer logs contradict his statement of events.

-Quest Comments: Ok, Starfleet court episodes generally suck. I'm not opposed to having a court drama episode, but this one was done very poorly, and has a couple really terrible performances (the guy who died and his daughter- must be genetic) combined with some bad plot holes.

You have the one lawyer who makes a big deal of books vs computers, but does nothing to challenge the computer until Spock shows up, basicly willing to give up without any cross exaimination. I'd have fired the buffoon.

Additionally, the romance with the prosecution chick really doesn't add anything to the plot or any drama or tension between them- what little there is feels artifical as a result.

Also, I can't help but laugh at the guy who insists on finishing the court despite the fact that the ship is losing orbit- hello? you're crashing. Maybe you should finish that little court thing later.

There's also the plot point of them amplifying the audio aboard the ship (1 to the 4th power...which would be...1), which, while an interesting idea, is not executed or integrated well at all. If we can hear people's heartbeats, why not their breathing or all the talking on the bridge? Or the various machinery?

Also, it seems the only tool in engineering is a really big wrench. LOL! And why does the entire ship shake from Kirk pulling some power cables? The engines weren't on, so there's no kickback taking place. "That. Does Not. Make. Sense. If Chewbacca lives on Endor, you must acquit."

The court rules that this episode, though not entirely unwatchable, is forgettable. Court adjourned.

(images via Memory-Alpha: The Star Trek Wiki)

Star Trek Episode Review- TOS 117: The Squire of Gothos & 118: Arena

117- The Squire of Gothos:
-Premise: A powerful being fascinated by mankind's past keeps members of the crew inside his mansion, manipulating the reality around them at his will.

-Quest Comments: Not a bad episode, though I started to suspect this was the "Futurama episode ending" episode towards the end. Still, though some silliness occur at times (am I the only one who find Uhura to be an absolutely worthless character?) no particularly terrible 60's acting pops up, so it ends up being a decent episode. I'll classify it in the same "Average" grouping.

Also worth noting that one Trek book out there suggests Trelane is actually a member of the Q, which is an interesting connection should it ever be canonized.

118- Arena:
-Premise: After a Starfleet outpost is destroyed by an unknown ship, the Enterprise pursues, only for Kirk to be forced to face his opponent, a Gorn captain, in personal combat on a planet by more powerful entities.

-Quest Comments: This ones pretty cheesy (I mean, that Gorn costume and his slow-mo punches are just laughable), but it is watchable. The chemistry solution was rather obvious though (Kirk can't be that dense). When watching this I suspected this was the episode that had footage used in Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey, and I was right ::).

Overall, given the Gorn presence (later seen again on Enterprise) and the Bill & Ted connection, I'm willing to list it as "Potentially Essential, But Not Necessarily Good".

(images via Memory-Alpha: The Star Trek Wiki)

Star Trek Episode Review- TOS 115: Shore Leave & 116: The Galileo Seven

115- Shore Leave:
-Premise: Finding an uninhabited world for the crew to take some shore leave on, once on the planet they begin seeing things from their mind, including Alice in Wonderland, WW2 Planes and a bully from Kirk's past.

-Quest Comments: Though not particularly terrible (except for the guy in the rabbit costume), I just couldn't bring myself to care about this episode. And what is with this show and Irish stereotypes? LOL!

Overall, pretty forgettable.


116- The Galileo Seven:
-Premise: Investigation of a cosmic event ends with a shuttlecraft and 7 crewmembers stranded on a planet inhabited by hostile giants.

-Quest Comments: A pretty good Spock-centric episode, though Spock's logic-based mindset is taken to almost cartoonish levels at times, which hampers the episode a good deal. I'll put it in the "Average" grouping.

Also worth noting the Commisioner's uniform looks very much like the ones eventually used on Enterprise.

(images via Memory-Alpha: The Star Trek Wiki)

Star Trek Episode Review- TOS 113: The Conscience of the King & 114: Balance of Terror

113: The Conscience of the King:
-Premise: When an actor is suspected of being a mass murderer believed dead, Kirk take ssteps to try and prove his identity, while the only surviving witnesses to those past deeds start ending up dead- and Kirk could be next.

-Quest Comments: Actually a pretty good mystery episode with an interesting idea through the plan behind the execution (no pun intended) of the murders. Acting overall, shy the female guest star, was unproblematic, the actor in particular was better than average for a guest star.

An offhand comment of the murderer having his own idea of Eugenics and that "he wasn't the only one" makes a nice hint/setup for Kahn as well, which I think, when combiend with the overall quality of the episode, elevates to "Potentially Essential".

114: Balance of Terror:
-Premise: When a Romulan ship capable of cloaking begins attacking Federation outposts along the Federation/Romulan Neutral Zone, the Enterprise engages in a game of tactics against the aggressor.

-Quest Comments: Some good action, and the sub-battle feel to things was pretty interesting (and, in a way, is echoed years later in Wrath of Kahn). A little weird seeing Spock's father as a Romulan, though.

Was surprised they mentioned Remus this far back- I had assumed that was something created for Nemesis, as opposed to a throwback to TOS. The only real oddity is the calling for phasers when they are obviously firing torpedoes (this was obviously produced early on when they were still figuring out what was what, or at least didn't care so much what was what).

The obvious Romulan connections to TNG, Nemesis & Enterprise, as well as the decent action, definitely place this episode into the "Definitely Essential" category.


(images via Memory-Alpha: The Star Trek Wiki)

Star Trek Episode Review- TOS 110: The Corbomite Manuever & 111/112: The Menagerie

110- The Corbomite Manuever:
-Premise: After encountering and destroying an odd cube-shaped probe that blocks their way, a larger shift captures the Enterprise and threatens it's destruction.

-Quest Comments: This was surprisingly good- the first episode of these first 10 to actually feel somewhat on par with modern Trek shows, though the ending's execution leads a bit to be desired in it's somewhat anticlimactic nature and somewhat silly child-w/voiceover approach (wasn't this a Futurama episode?).

I also really like that this is the first episode where the characters seem to be clicking properly- there's some good humor here, and it feels like the crew. Might make for a good introductory episode if I shift the episode order around later, to help fill in the ejection of the various pilots.
Though no major connections I'm aware of for this episode (a later episode does make a joking reference to this, though), I think it's quality allows it to be placed into the Definitely Essential category.

111 & 112: The Menagerie, parts 1 & 2:
-Premise: After Spock hijacks the Enterprise and sends it on course for the forbidden planet of Talos IV, he is forced to stand trial for his actions, where he uses video testomony of the events from The Cage in his defense.

-Quest Comments: Basicly The Cage split into two parts to accommodate a clipshow-like framestory with Kirk and co. Once I got past the funny now-obvious Futurama/Pike-blinking-wheelchair reference connection, it was still hard for me to really get into this episode, especially having seen The Cage beforehand since I was able to deduce Spock's purpose in his actions long beforehand, which made the unnecessity of using the "video testimony" all the more blatant- as Kirk said at the end, Spock could have just told them.

Now, if one hadn't seen The Cage, there might have been some more mystery to Spock's actions to draw the viewer in, but the same conclusion is eventually reached, which is disappointing.

Additionally, the "Kirk show feel" doesn't quite mesh well with the "Pike show feel", which just hampers the episodes further.

If it wasn't for those two points rendering the episodes somewhat pointless, I'd have normally considered The Menagerie to be preferable viewing in favor over The Cage, since it has a Pike/Kirk transition of sorts thats still grounded in the Kirk show. As it is, The Menagerie didn't levae me with a good enough impression to really consider it essential, and so, IMO, it joins the same classification as The Cage itself does, though for different reasons mentioned above. "Ok, But not Necessarily Essential".

Why they even bothered to do a special theatrical screening of the Remastered version awhile back (outside of it being the only 2-parter) instead of showing 2 or 3 popular/good episodes that would have made for better theatrical viewing (say, Doomsday Machine, Space Seed & Amok Time), I'll never understand.

(images via Memory-Alpha: The Star Trek Wiki)

Star Trek Episode Review- TOS 108: Miri & 109: Dagger of the Mind

108- Miri:
-Premise: the Enterprise discovers a duplicate of Earth, and on it's surface a group of children- survivors of a plague that kills adults.

-Quest Comments: I actually recall seeing at least some of this episode at some point in the past. Anyways, not a bad episode, but nothing I particularly cared about. The kids were ugly and annoying. Acting got a bit hammy towards the end when Kirk convinces Miri she's infected. And there was absolutely no explaination why the planet was an exact duplicate of Earth (which, shy of an illusion, is super-silly to begin with, but I would have thought there'd have been some attempt at making it relevant). Forgettable.

109- Dagger of the Mind:
-Premise: When a former doctor and current inmate of a penal colony escapes aboard the Enterprise, suspciion is raised of a doctor there who is using a neural neutralizer to control the minds of inamtes.

-Quest Comments: A decent episode, no major problems, except for perhaps some of the Kirk/Helen material the doctor was putting into his mind, which didn't serve much purpose. I'm kinda mixed about it, really. I'll rank it under "Average". The first use of the Mindmeld is noteworthy though, which could give it vague relevance to a couple of the 4th season Enterprise episodes.

(images via Memory-Alpha: The Star Trek Wiki)

Star Trek Episode Review- TOS 106: Mudd's Women & 107: What Are Little Girls Made Of?

106- Mudd's Women:
-Premise: Rescued from a damaged ship, Harry Mudd and the three women he ahd aboard as cargo are beamed aboard the Enterprise. The women have an unusual effect on the men.

-Quest Comments: Aggghhh! Whether it's these three chicks, Posion Ivy or Hathor, the stupid "woman turns guys around her into mindless zombies" plot element never works and is just painful to watch, let alone a 60's production of it. Couldn't make it halfway through this one (had even blocked the memory of it, thus my earlier "only episode I ever skipped" comment for The Man Trap). The fact that this Mudd guy comes back for another episode fills me with dread. To the trash bin with this garbage.



107- What Are Little Girls Made Of?:
-Premise: Chapel is reunited with her fiance, Dr Korby, who has discovered a technology that can create android replicas of people.

-Quest Comments: Ah, finally, an actual decent episode! What a relief. That robot dude was pretty huge (well, or Shatner is just tiny). Barely any "60's syndrome" touches present, if at all. If I'm remembering correctly, also our first away team Red Shirt kills (though it's possible I may have missed some from the episodes i didn't finish).

Funny that they went to a duplicate Kirk story element so soon after Enemy Within (though I guess the original airing order may have switched things up a bit).

Anyways, with a lack of apparent connections to other episodes, I'll classify this one as "Average".

Also, the actor who plays Korby has a strong resemblance to Connor Trinneer (of Enterprise and Stargate Atlantis fame)

(Inspirational Posters via EchoSphere)
(Other images via Memory-Alpha: The Star Trek Wiki)

Star Trek Episode Review- TOS 104: The Naked Time & 105: The Enemy Within

104- The Naked Time:
-Premise: An unknown disease is brought aboard the ship and, transmitted by touch, begins infecting the crew, removing their inhibitions and playing up their fantasies.


-Quest Comments: Another step up in quality, but still not "actually good". Now, granted, this may have come first, but we've seen the "crew is infected by something that spreads by touch" angle in many other shows since and have accomplished it more effectively. The one guy is a pretty annoying actor, but I think his character was meant to be annoying (and a lovely Irish stereotype at that...). Still, a "nice try". Plus, "Sulu...with a sword?!"

However, since this apparently is loosely tied, either directly or thematically, with a TNG episode ("The Naked Now"), as well as the crew discovering a formula for time travel (which will apparently come into play in a few episodes as it was originally intended to be a setup for a second part that was turned into a stand alone episode), but I just can't see that that's enough to classify an episode of this quality as anything but "Ok Episode, But Not Essential".


105- The Enemy Within:
-Premise: A transporter malfunction splits Kirk into two versions of himself- one calm and intellectual, the other raging and emotional.

-Quest Comments: Still rising, this episode was actually somewhat interesting overall- it's only flaws being some of the acting and dialogue ("I'M CAPTAIN KIRK! I'M CAPTAIN KIRK!" is about as funny to quote as "TRASH BAGS!" from the A-Team, only, unlike the A-Team, it was never intended to actually be funny).

This one goes into the "Ok Episodes, But Not Necessarily Essential" category. You feel bad for Sulu, though- they could have just sent him a damn shuttle, afterall.

(images via Memory Alpha: The Star Trek Wiki)

Star Trek Episode Review- TOS 102: Charlie X & 103: Where No Man Has Gone Before

102- Charlie X:
-Premise: Adolescent Charlie is dropped off aboard the Enterprise. Found to have powerful telekinetioc abilities and governed by his immaturity, he lashes out at people with his powers, making them vanish and becomes obsessed with Yeoman.

-Quest Comments: Plagued by "60's syndrome" acting and touches, pretty painful to watch. Avoid it. Trash it.

103- Where No Man Has Gone Before:
-Premise: As the Enterprise encounters an energy barrier at the edge of the galaxy, a crewman and friend to Kirk begins gaining god-like powers which threaten the more insignificant around him.

-Quest Comments: An improvement over the first 2 episodes, there's some interesting things here with the crew member becoming more and more powerful. It is however hampered by it's attempted romance subplot, which has that "guy glances suggestively while girl looks back in a pout-gaze to look screwable" element that is encountered far too often in the series and just makes things laughable.

Overall, it's not terrible, but it's not that good either. Generally "Forgettable". But, it is the first time they cross the galactic border in the series and, depending on what episodes you decide to ultimate drop from your viewing order (combined with a little episode order rejiggering) it could be used as a vague introductory episode to the series to be bookended by a later "past the galactic border" episode, if one was so inclined.

Also, some lovely work with the Remastered effects.

(Inspirational Posters via EchoSphere)
(Other images via Memory-Alpha: The Star Trek Wiki)

Star Trek Episode Review- TOS 101: The Man Trap

101- The Man Trap:
-Premise: The Enterprise drops off medical supplies to a planet, where McCoy encounters another doctor he formerly had romantic involvement with. However, it turns out it is really a shape-shifting salt vampire.

-Quest Comments: Honestly, I couldn't finish this one, it's just awful. This is the only episode in the franchise I had to just turn off. Definitely not a good introductory episode, and, thankfully, not related to any other episodes, so we'll let this one be the first clunker in the waste basket. "Trash". Avoid it.

On the plus side, a salt vampire is still more of a vampire than anything in "Twilight" ;)

(image via Memory Alpha: The Star Trek Wiki)

Star Trek Episode Review- TOS 100: The Cage

(Before we get started, I'll note that for this leg of the project, I used the episode order listed on tv.com, thus episode numbers are labeled and ordered accordingly. I don't know if it's the most accurate one or not, but it's the one I used. Additionally, as we encounter them, I keep a running tab on time travel and alternate universe events, because I'm just a sucker for those kind of stories)

100: The Cage
-Premise: Pilot episode focusing on the previous captain of the Enterprise, Christopher Pike, as they investigate a distress signal which lures Pike and his ship to Talos IV, where a race with powerful mental abilities use their powers of illusion to trap Pike in a zoo-like facility.

-Quest Comments: Despite being a pilot, this one is actually pretty decent and has a slightly more serious/mature feel to it (though the big brained aliens are still silly, and it's hard not to crack up at Spock's exclaimation of "The women!!")

The Number One character played Mrs Roddenberry actually improves the general dynamics of the crew arrangement and, in retrospect, is sorely missing from the actual series and actually makes a whole lot of sense; thankfully the position would be resurrected later on with Riker in TNG. The Cage is more of a show that was not to be, replaced with what we know now, though I can't help but think it might have been a better show.

Lacking any solid transition from Pike to Kirk, I wouldn't reccomend this be viewed as an introduction to the series itself, and so it kind of remains a standalone oddity of interest. So, with that in mind, and given aspects of The Menagerie two-parter, I'd put this one down as an "Ok, But Not Necessarily Essential" episode.

As an aside, the "Remastered" version of The Menagerie does a great job of making the introductory "zoom into the bridge" camera motion from this episode into one continuous shot from exterior to interior.

(image via Memory Alpha: The Star Trek Wiki)

Star Trek: An Episode Review Journey- Introduction

Back in 2004, after absorbing so much of the great series Babylon 5, I started to become curious about watching it's once-competitor, Deep Space Nine (of which numerous similarities and accusations of copying between the two shows were observed over the years) and I really wanted to see how they compared. Especially since what little I did see of DS9 back in the day when it first aired was apparently just before it started to get good and it's major war plotline began.

But then I got to thinking, well, I know DS9 was birthed out of The Next Generation, but I don't remember too much about TNG, other than a few choice episodes (The Best of Both Worlds, etc), and had never seen much of the (lesser quality) early seasons even back when I was watching it.

And then I got to thinking, well, I've never really ever watched a whole episode of The Original Series, either (mostly due to styles and tropes of the era that made me inclined to turn it off), let alone the whole series (though I had thoroughly viewed most of the TOS films). There were bound to be some episodes of interest (the origin of KHAAAAN, for example) that could be seen as "essential" if one wanted to get the important broad strokes of the franchise. So, why not start at the beginning and just hit the whole franchise in order (release order that is)?

Well, that's what I did. As of this posting I'm still watching TNG Season 6 & DS9 Season 1, but I figured I could archive here the comments I've jotted down on each episode during the course of this project, starting with TOS.

With this project, I basically set out to determine what episodes would be considered "Definitely Essential" (introduced important recurring events/characters/etc, or is just so damn good that it shouldn't be missed), what episodes were "Potentially Essential, But Not Necessarily Good" (episodes featuring lesser events/etc that recur down the road, and/or are possibly of lesser/questionable quality), "Good Episode, But Not Necessarily Essential" (most likely worth seeing, even if it doesn't contain "essential" or recurring elements), "Average" (take it or leave it), "Ok Episode, But Not Necessarily Essential" (possibly tolerable, but not a good example of the series-likely has some awful moments of some kind), "Forgettable" (bad episodes, really no reason to watch them other than for completeness sake) & "Trash" (avoid them like the monkeyfighting plague).

In a way, it is a rating scale. If you ignore the "Definitely" and "Potentially" Essential categories as must-sees anyways, that leaves 5 categories. In other words, a scale of 1-5, with 5 being the best:

5: Good Episodes
4: Average Episodes
3: Ok Episodes
2: Forgettable Episodes
1: Trash

One thing I'll be very forthright about: I'm a very harsh critic when it comes to period production styles that do not hold up to the test of time. I call it "60's Syndrome". The acting styles, though not used by all actors, prevalent at the time (I hesitate to call them cartoony, but they' lack the realism of modern techniques), ridiculously cheesy lighting and camera choices (how a well lit room in a wide shot suddenly become dark and shadowy in close-ups of male characters, except for a band of light across their eyes, or, for the ladies, going into sudden soft focus), etc. However, I do not hold the F/X at fault. That limitation was not their fault. The others they chose.

So, in short, I seek out the episodes that could be viewed today and still be considered watchable or good, without any sense of nostalgia to excuse the aforementioned weaker elements (in other words, no "Well, remember, at the time, it was good." excuses). Good today is good today, no excuses.

I'll post an entry for each episode, with a premise description, followed by my comments. Initially they'll usually be relatively brief, but over time, the comments evolve into almost a flow of consciousness reaction to the episode as I watch it.

(Inspirational Posters via EchoSphere)
(Other images via Memory-Alpha: The Star Trek Wiki)