The Best Original Star Trek Episode

[audreyh1]

I favor the ones most mentioned as well.
Don’t know the title, but the one with Apollo wanting the crew to worship him was silly. But there’s a line where he introduces himself as the god Apollo. And then Checkov yells ‘and I am the czar of all the russias’. That always cracked me up.

Another one that wasn’t great but had one interesting notion. When Dr Daestrom has his new supercomputer take over the Enterprise. I think the notion that computers could control things at that level and replace the need for humans on a starship was fairly forward thinking for its time.

2001 A Space Odyssey was published in 1968, so it was contemporary.

Yeah - computers taking over humans and even going rogue. Not too unique - part of the contemporary sci fi genre.

 

[cooch96]

What always strikes me is how elegant the titles are of that series. Like tiny poems.

Maybe it’s just me.

 

[easysurfer]

I apologize if this was already mentioned, but I also like the one where the landing party was forced to re-live the gunfight at OK corral again and again. Was another chance to see Spock doing his mind meld thing .

 

[dixonge]

Last link didn’t work. Trying again...well, no, that didn’t work either! Is there some secret to getting YouTube videos to play here?

https://youtu.be/OptLgGtZ9_E

 

[easysurfer]

I don't know the titles to all the episodes, but read the episode where they Jame Bond type agent from the future visits to save earth was planned as of spin off tv show, but that never took off. That episode has a very young Terri Garr playing the bank secretary. Also, casting was between her and Dawn Wells (from Gilligan). Fun trivia.

 

[scrabbler1]

Easysufrer, the titles of the two episodes are:


"Assignment: Earth" is the time-travel episode which includes a young Teri Garr as a secretary to the alien time-traveler posing as an earth man.


"Spectre of the Gun" is the episode which tries to recreate the gunfight at the O.K. Corral.


The above 2 episodes ran consecutively, although several months apart because Assignment: Earth was the Season 2 finale and Spectre began Season 3, Star Trek's final season.


"The Deadly Years" was the episode where Kirk and other landing party members rapidly grow old except for Chekov.




MuirWannabe, "Who Mourns for Adonais" is the (somewhat silly) episode where Apollo wants everyone to worship him.




One thing Star trek was good at back then was featuring some beautiful women in guest roles, sometimes wearing skimpy outfits. Think about Angelique Pettyjohn in "Gamesters of Triskelion", Sherry Jackson in "What are Little Girls Made of?", and former Miss America winner Lee Meriwether in "That Which Survives."

 

[MuirWannabe]

2001 A Space Odyssey was published in 1968, so it was contemporary.



Yeah - computers taking over humans and even going rogue. Not too unique - part of the contemporary sci fi genre.

In retrospect, I agree with you. Not as unique as I was thinking.

 

[MuirWannabe]

Another one I liked was called The Changeling. I think.

A space probe called Nomad gets its mission confused and thinks it should kill all biological life forms. The logic Kirk uses to win the day is pretty good.

The first Trek movie had a somewhat similar plot, but I thought the series version was much better.

 

[Cessna152]

What always strikes me is how elegant the titles are of that series. Like tiny poems.

Maybe it’s just me.

Not just you. I ran across the same thing when I recently watched the old "Route 66" series - the episode titles were by turns elegant, poetic, and down-right baffling:

"A Lance of Straw"
"The Strengthening of Angels"
"The Beryllium Eater"
"A Fury Slinging Flame"
"How Much a Pound Is Albatross?"

Even though Star Trek and Route 66 would seem to be different genres, I found them to have a great deal in common - a new location each episode with a new set of problems to be resolved (or not) by the main characters.

Sadly, no way could I start a new thread asking for everyone's favorite Route 66 episodes and expect more than one or two responses.

This Star Trek fan does recommend Route 66 to other Star Trek fans. All Route 66 episodes filmed on location - no Hollywood back-lots. If you enjoy traveling you should enjoy seeing America as it was 50+ years ago, before the (then new) interstates and television completed the homogenization of American culture.

(For the record, the two most memorable episodes I have of Route 66 are titled "A Month of Sundays" and "Even Stones Have Eyes".)

 

[DrRoy]

Another one I liked was called The Changeling. I think.

A space probe called Nomad gets its mission confused and thinks it should kill all biological life forms. The logic Kirk uses to win the day is pretty good.

+1. "Your logic was impeccable, Captain. We are in grave danger."

 

[ncbill]

"it's...umm...it's green"

both TOS & TNG

 

[easysurfer]

Easysufrer, the titles of the two episodes are:


"Assignment: Earth" is the time-travel episode which includes a young Teri Garr as a secretary to the alien time-traveler posing as an earth man.


"Spectre of the Gun" is the episode which tries to recreate the gunfight at the O.K. Corral.


The above 2 episodes ran consecutively, although several months apart because Assignment: Earth was the Season 2 finale and Spectre began Season 3, Star Trek's final season.


"The Deadly Years" was the episode where Kirk and other landing party members rapidly grow old except for Chekov.




MuirWannabe, "Who Mourns for Adonais" is the (somewhat silly) episode where Apollo wants everyone to worship him.




One thing Star trek was good at back then was featuring some beautiful women in guest roles, sometimes wearing skimpy outfits. Think about Angelique Pettyjohn in "Gamesters of Triskelion", Sherry Jackson in "What are Little Girls Made of?", and former Miss America winner Lee Meriwether in "That Which Survives."

Thanks for the titles. Didn't realize that was Lee Meriwether.

 

[audreyh1]

So can anyone tell me which movie or episode involved the genesis probe?

 

[scrabbler1]

So can anyone tell me which movie or episode involved the genesis probe?

The Genesis probe was a key part of the second and third ST movies, "The Wrath of Khan" and "The Search for Spock." In Wrath, Khan stole the Genesis probe. In Search, Spock came back to life before being rescued, and the planet the probe was used on became unstable.

 

[timo2]

My issue with the start trek producers is the uneven way they show Klingon physiology. The 'Trials and Tribble-ations' episode of deep space nine, which had Worf time travel to the 'trouble with tribbles' to meet the original body shape of the Klingons explained the difference. But then in the 'Star Trek Enterprise' prequel series they showed the bulked up Klingons in a time they should have been the original body shape. Similarly 'Star Trek Discovery' prequel series apparently has different Klingons than the original also.

 

[Koogie]

My issue with the start trek producers is the uneven way they show Klingon physiology. The 'Trials and Tribble-ations' episode of deep space nine, which had Worf time travel to the 'trouble with tribbles' to meet the original body shape of the Klingons explained the difference. But then in the 'Star Trek Enterprise' prequel series they showed the bulked up Klingons in a time they should have been the original body shape. Similarly 'Star Trek Discovery' prequel series apparently has different Klingons than the original also.

I believe most people are speculating that Discovery takes place in the alternate universe timeline, same as the execrable Abrams movies.

It has a name but I can't be bothered to look it up because in my opinion, ST Disco just plain sucks.

 

[audreyh1]

The Genesis probe was a key part of the second and third ST movies, "The Wrath of Khan" and "The Search for Spock." In Wrath, Khan stole the Genesis probe. In Search, Spock came back to life before being rescued, and the planet the probe was used on became unstable.

Thanks much!

 

[easysurfer]

So can anyone tell me which movie or episode involved the genesis probe?

You probably already know too that the beginning plot of "The Wrath of Khan" was from the "Space Seed" episode.

 

[audreyh1]

You probably already know too that the beginning plot of "The Wrath of Khan" was from the "Space Seed" episode.

Yes. I loved the Space Seed episode - thought it was brilliant. Then was overjoyed with the Wrath of Kahn sequel and the terrific return of Ricardo Montalban.

I guess I remembered the genesis probe because it was in that movie.

Kirstie Alley was in it too.

 

[easysurfer]

Yes. I loved the Space Seed episode - thought it was brilliant. Then was overjoyed with the Wrath of Kahn sequel and the terrific return of Ricardo Montalban.

I guess I remembered the genesis probe because it was in that movie.

Kirstie Alley was in it too.

Kristie Alley was great in that movie.

I like the part where Chekov finds out where they are at. Botany Bay and knows trouble is brewing...

 

[6miths]

The Assignment Earth episode which ended the second season guest starred Teri Garr and Robert Lansing (as Gary Seven) and was meant to be the lead in to a spinoff series which never got picked up by the network.

 

[audreyh1]

The earwig thing was really gross though!!!

 

[easysurfer]

The earwig thing was really gross though!!!

I'd spill the beans on anything if someone did that to me .

 

[scrabbler1]

The earwig thing was really gross though!!!

I have to turn away or change the channel during the scene where the thing goes into the ear and later on, when it comes out, BLECH!

 

[DrRoy]

"it's...umm...it's green"

both TOS & TNG

The original is from TOS "By Any Other Name."