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Topic:
To Boldly Go Where Many Geeks Have Gone Before: A Journey Through Star Trek (TNG Episodes 322-325)
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Zaz
Title: Manager, The Ampitheatre
Registered:
Oct '98
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Date Posted:
11/21/06 11:57am
Subject:
RE: To Boldly Go Where Many Geeks Have Gone Before: A Journey Through Star Trek (now on TOS Season 1
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They're hokey, yes, but there's a solid core of entertainment in a lot of them.
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General Kenobi
Title: Comms Admin
SW & Film Music
Classic Trilogy
Registered:
Dec '98
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Date Posted:
11/21/06 12:03pm
Subject:
RE: To Boldly Go Where Many Geeks Have Gone Before: A Journey Through Star Trek (now on TOS Season 1
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I was quite impressed by the new CGI in Space Seed.
I was even able to stay awake for the entire episode!
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The2ndQuest
Title: :
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Date Posted:
1/7/07 11:39pm
Subject:
RE: To Boldly Go Where Many Geeks Have Gone Before: A Journey Through Star Trek (now on TOS Season 2
- Date Edited:
1/7/07 11:43pm (2 edits total)
Edited By:
The2ndQuest
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Alrighty, time to continue- however, I haven't yet watched 2nd and 3rd episodes from the order I've been referencing, but I have caught two other early Season 2 episodes from the remastered airings on TV, so for a brief break from my pattern, I'm going to review the three Season 2 episodes I've watched to keep this thread rolling, and will fill in the blanks as I proceed.
201- Amok Time:
-Premise: Spock starts behaving strange as a Vulcan mating ritual approaches.
-T2Q Comments: This episode actually surprised me quite a bit- no 60's cheesiness (except, perhaps ever so slightly with the Chapel scenes, and the definitively-60's quick editing and camera angles of one sequence during the marriage ritual) and actually a pretty decent script and surprisingly decent acting from the main 3 characters, which is probably what makes this episode work so well- it focuses (and properly portrays) the Kirk/Spock/McCoy friendship very well. It's almost a pitty the various Vulcan weirdness had to happen at all since it's just an excuse for a Kirk/Spock fight.
Still, since a lot of the Vulcan weirdness pops up in other Trek shows (most notably Star Trek 3 and the Vulcan 2-parter in Enterprise's 4th season, particularly the latter since T'Pau is also in that episode), and the overall quality of the execution for the material, I'll list this one as a Definite Essential.
204- Mirror Mirror:
-Premise: A freak transporter occurance sends Kirk and others are sent to an alternate universe where Earth has become an imperialistic power.
-T2Q Comments: Alternate universe, evil-goatee, scarred-face fun. Don't really have to go into much detail, as I'm a sucker for AU stories, and this one's pretty decent. Mirror Sulu is better than Real Sulu though 
Given the number of Mirror related episodes in the franchise, this one's also a Definite Essential.
207- Catspaw:
-Premise: Kirk and co are trapped in a Halloween-esque castle by a powerful entity
-T2Q Comments: Just the fact that they did a Halloween episode is amusing enough to recommend this, hehe.
Main flaws are the attempts at humor surrounding the cat and associated music, the cat turning into a woman and back (the cat is the most ruthless and most terrifying of animals? uh, sure lady, whatever you say...), not to mention Chechov's hair- wow, nice wig. The seduction scene is also a big "doh!".
However, the real dissapointment of the whole episode is that the DeSalle/Chechov "breaking-free" subplot aboard the Enterprisee is quite interesting and involving, but goes nowhere, which is a real shame as it could have made for a great payoff. I hope the DeSalle character shows up again.
Though I'm probably being to lenient on it just because it's a Halloween episode, I'm gonna list this one as a "Good Episode, But Not Necessarily Essential".
Up next, : 202: Who Mourns for Adonais?, 203: The Changeling & 205: The Apple.
Alternate Universe Log:
-TOS: The Alternative Factor (Anti-Matter Universe)
-TOS: Mirror, Mirror (Mirror Universe)
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Zaz
Title: Manager, The Ampitheatre
Registered:
Oct '98
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Date Posted:
1/8/07 6:31am
Subject:
RE: To Boldly Go Where Many Geeks Have Gone Before: A Journey Through Star Trek (now on TOS Season 2
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The first two are definitely "Essential", and the last one I love because it's a perfect example of 60 TV cheesiness squared.
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The2ndQuest
Title: :
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Jan '00
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Date Posted:
1/8/07 10:02am
Subject:
RE: To Boldly Go Where Many Geeks Have Gone Before: A Journey Through Star Trek (now on TOS Season 2
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Also, figured I'd toss in the links to the remastered footage for both Mirror Mirror & Catspaw:
  
Mirror Mirror Remastered Video
 
Catspaw Remastered Video
And, also, the videos for the remastered footage for The Menagerie part 1 (love what they did to that zoom-onto-the-bridge shot) and The Menagerie part 2.
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Currently Reading: Death Star
K'Kruhk, 140 ABY: "Why haven't I come forth earlier to share my Jedi knowledge with Skywalker?
Well, it's kinda a long story, see, I had this freaking sweet hat..."
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Ive_Got_Two_Legs
Registered:
Jul '05
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Date Posted:
1/8/07 1:14pm
Subject:
RE: To Boldly Go Where Many Geeks Have Gone Before: A Journey Through Star Trek (now on TOS Season 2
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They've been doing CGI restorations on some of the DVD releases of old Doctor Who serials. I wasn't too impressed with the one I saw (Ark in Space, I believe).
Incidentally, starting tonight I guess SciFi's going to be showing Enterprise on Mondays.
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DarthArsenal6
Registered:
Oct '01
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Date Posted:
1/8/07 3:02pm
Subject:
RE: To Boldly Go Where Many Geeks Have Gone Before: A Journey Through Star Trek (now on TOS Season 2
- Date Edited:
1/8/07 3:16pm (1 edits total)
Edited By:
DarthArsenal6
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Palpateen posted:
I think it's surprising Paramount took so long to update the original series.
Lucas was fixing up the original SW in the mid 90s.
I'm Glad you brought this up Palpateen.
Paramount doesn,'t give two monkeys about Trek ,even though it could make millions !
Paramount, fixing tek now, shows prove of their stupidity and araogance simply because is just Star trek is Sci-fi show.
Its the same reason why Paramount left Star Trek to die after Enterprise.
Only now did they figure out how much potenital STar trek had ?  Pathetic !
ALso I read about the Klingons that killed 200 Orginals
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"You mean you'll put down your rock, and I'll put down my sword and we'll try and kill each other like civilized people?"
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The2ndQuest
Title: :
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Registered:
Jan '00
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Date Posted:
1/9/07 8:49pm
Subject:
RE: To Boldly Go Where Many Geeks Have Gone Before: A Journey Through Star Trek (now on TOS Season 2
- Date Edited:
1/10/07 4:46pm (4 edits total)
Edited By:
The2ndQuest
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202- Who Mourns For Adonias?:
-Premise: The crew are taken by a being claiming to be the greek god Apollo, who demands they worship him
-T2Q Comments: I like the Chekov humor ("I am Apollo!" "and I am Czar of all the Russians."). Though somewhat interesting in premise, the overall episode just feels like a rehash (albeit more tolerable than the material it is rehashing); from the powerful being having a power source destroyed to the female ancint history specialist falling in love with her subject (and as soon as we see she's on the away team, it's instantly and painfully telegraphed that that was exactly what was gonna happen- and, btw, why would she ask why she was with the away team AFTER she beamed down with them? Probably shoulda asked before they scrambled your molecules, eh?). The giant hand thing reaching out and grabbing the Enterprise, though a little cheesy, is a tad creepy of a visual though.
Bottomline? If you want aliens posing as mythological gods, stick to Stargate as this episode is ok, but definitely not essential.
203- The Changeling:
-Premise: A strange probe that wipes out an entire civilization is brought aboard the ship and mistakens Kirk for it's creator
-T2Q Comments: Kirk: 3, Computers: 0 (though, to be fair, this is definitely the best of the "Kirk talks a computer to death" episodes so far). This episode also had to be the basis for Star Trek: The Motion picture, what with the "earth probe being combined with an alien probe to become something new" angle.
Also, after Nomad has killed several Red Shirts who have fired upon him with no effect, you would think the other Red Shirts would, oh, I don;t now, stop shooting at the killer invincible probe or something so it wouldn't be provoked into disintegrating them.
And, the Uhura memory wipe thing is just...no. Rededucated to college level within a few hours? Somehow defaultly spoke swahili? Bluey?
A refernece to something past the Warp 10 barrier is irksome, though it's early for the franchise so i guess it's forgiveable (hell, I still remember a TNG trading card or some kind of spinoff book mentioning Romulan ships going at Warp 12...).
There's a particularly perplexing logic error within the script itself early on when Spock says the attacks by the Nomad on the Enterprise's shields is equal to 90 photon torpedoes, and the Enterprise is able to take several such attacks before losing shields (I guess they just don't make them like they used, eh?), then fires 1 torpedo at the Nomad with no effect on it, to which Kirk wonders in amazement how anything coukd absorb that much power... uh, apparently your ship did a bang up job on the magnitude of 360 times more. 
There's a small Enterprise connection apparently in that the Malurian civilization destroyed in this episode was mentioned or appeared in an Enterprise episode.
Still, it's a fairly well done episode depsite those problems and the dumb Uhura plot. I classify it as a "Good Episode, But Not Necessarily Essential".
205- The Apple:
-Premise: An away team is stuck on a paradise world with deadly plants, exploding rocks and anangry machine god named Vaal, which treatens the Enterprise in orbit.
-T2Q Comments: Holy crap, talk about a "been there, done that" episode. We've got the plants that spurt attacking spores at people (which have a tendancy to appear and dissapear in the shot as needed ), a morality theme about a civilization stagnating (for, what? the 3rd time?) and a powerful being trapping an away team whose powersource must be destroyed (done at least 3 or 4 times now) by the Enterprise's phasers (which was just done TWO EPISODES AGO). Another episode that makes you wonder about the lack of shuttlecraft use (especially here in the 2nd season after it's been established that they're there and can land on planets).
Interesting to note a reference to the possibility of a suacer separation in this episode, even if it doesn't happen.
At one point the crew wonder how the locals, who have no knowledge of love or reproduction, would manage if the need for "replacements" arose after an accidental death. SPock suggests they would recieve instructions from Vaal. To which Bones replies, "From a machine? I'd like to see that". Obviously things about the internet must have changed radically in the next couple hundred years
However, points for having the Yeoman kick some ass and not be yet another 60's doe-eyed love bimbo (ok, well, she still is making out with Chekov, but, hey, he's a Psi-Cop, it's not like she has much choice in the matter...  ).
I rate this one as an "OK Episode, But Not Necessarily Essential"
Up next, : 206: The Doomsday Machine, 208: I, Mudd (I make no guarentees I'll be be able to watch the whole episode) & 209: Metamorphosis.
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Currently Reading: Death Star
K'Kruhk, 140 ABY: "Why haven't I come forth earlier to share my Jedi knowledge with Skywalker?
Well, it's kinda a long story, see, I had this freaking sweet hat..."
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Zaz
Title: Manager, The Ampitheatre
Registered:
Oct '98
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Date Posted:
1/10/07 8:04am
Subject:
RE: To Boldly Go Where Many Geeks Have Gone Before: A Journey Through Star Trek (now on TOS Season 2
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Warning: Applying logic to ST:OS will make you seriously crazy. Just sayin'.
Seen the "Adonis" eppy many times--the Nomad one, too. Both pretty essential I think.
The third one, not.
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The2ndQuest
Title: :
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Registered:
Jan '00
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Date Posted:
1/11/07 2:42pm
Subject:
RE: To Boldly Go Where Many Geeks Have Gone Before: A Journey Through Star Trek (now on TOS Season 2
- Date Edited:
1/11/07 2:54pm (2 edits total)
Edited By:
The2ndQuest
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Gonna make a special single update today because of the episode in question:
206- The Doomsday Machine:
-Premise: The Enterprise discovers the wreck of another starship left in the wake of a massive planet killer weapon.
-T2Q Comments: Ok, wow. I never saw this one before (though I had heard of it). This surprised the heck out of me- with exception to Decker's acting (which ranges from pretty good to over-the-top-funny-faces-awfulness), there's really nothing that flawed about this episode. It's easily the only TOS episode I've watched so far that is practically on the same level of quality and watchability as the modern Trek shows and films.
It's something almost anyone could watch without requiring either a dose of nostalgia or "taking the time it was made" considerations and excuses into account (well, outside the FX, perhaps, but thats a minor detail)- something I really didn't think any TOS episode was capable of (sure, some came close, but were always hindered by some dose of 60's syndrome cheesiness, from either a minor overall tone or moment, or whole scenes that just make you want to scream in agony).
I really can't wait to see the remastered version of this episode when it airs in February. They sure as hell better not be oo slavishly loyal to the original FX shots, as there's potential for some incredible shots here. I don't want to just see scale corrections and missing ships added.
Bottomline- not just "Definitey Essential", but being easily the best episode of the series, it's absolutely essential.
Interesting note that Decker's son appears in Star Trek 1 (though this doesn't effect TDM's classification for how essential it is as, spoiler alert!, Star Trek: The Motionless Picture will not be getting an "essential" ranking by me ).
The books have done a few attempts at elaborating on the Doomsday machines as well- some seem to establish them as a weapon created by an ancient race (designated by the Borg as Species 4672), possibly The Preservers (mentioned in a season 3 episode), to use against the Borg (to destroy worlds assimilated by the Borg). There is speculation that the galactic barrier surrounding the galaxy was created (also possibly by The Preservers) to keep these Planet Killers out- though at least one or two slipped in, it seems. In a comic, Voyager had to deal with one of them, though their attempts to recreate Kirk's stunt failed, they eventually defeated it using a nanoprobe virus.
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Currently Reading: Death Star
K'Kruhk, 140 ABY: "Why haven't I come forth earlier to share my Jedi knowledge with Skywalker?
Well, it's kinda a long story, see, I had this freaking sweet hat..."
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DarthArsenal6
Registered:
Oct '01
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Date Posted:
1/11/07 3:06pm
Subject:
RE: To Boldly Go Where Many Geeks Have Gone Before: A Journey Through Star Trek (now on TOS Season 2
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The2ndQuest posted:
Interesting note that Decker's son appears in Star Trek 1 (though this doesn't effect TDM's classification for how essential it is as, spoiler alert!, Star Trek: The Motionless Picture will not be getting an "essential" ranking by me ).
Really ?
Then I think you mised the entire plot of the film
One of the most underated films ever.
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DA6 calender goes from March 31st to April 2nd, no one fools DarthArsenal6.
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The2ndQuest
Title: :
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Registered:
Jan '00
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Date Posted:
1/11/07 3:12pm
Subject:
RE: To Boldly Go Where Many Geeks Have Gone Before: A Journey Through Star Trek (now on TOS Season 2
- Date Edited:
1/11/07 3:35pm (1 edits total)
Edited By:
The2ndQuest
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Well, maybe it if didn't put me to sleep, I'd have paid better attention
I will, however, re-endure it one more time for this thread, after I finish TOS.
It just seems like The Changeling would be a preferable alternative to the same story.
However, the lovely "inspection of the refitted ship", if cut off from the rest of the film into it's own little short, would be a fine addition to my list
EDIT- in fact... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x_2bRVrMOZM 
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Currently Reading: Death Star
K'Kruhk, 140 ABY: "Why haven't I come forth earlier to share my Jedi knowledge with Skywalker?
Well, it's kinda a long story, see, I had this freaking sweet hat..."
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Zaz
Title: Manager, The Ampitheatre
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Oct '98
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Date Posted:
1/17/07 9:52pm
Subject:
RE: To Boldly Go Where Many Geeks Have Gone Before: A Journey Through Star Trek (now on TOS Season 2
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Yup, that's great...
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Darth-Stryphe
Title: Saga Manager
Registered:
Apr '01
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Date Posted:
1/18/07 10:53am
Subject:
RE: To Boldly Go Where Many Geeks Have Gone Before: A Journey Through Star Trek (now on TOS Season 2
- Date Edited:
1/18/07 10:54am (1 edits total)
Edited By:
Darth-Stryphe
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A refernece to something past the Warp 10 barrier is irksome, though it's early for the franchise so i guess it's forgiveable (hell, I still remember a TNG trading card or some kind of spinoff book mentioning Romulan ships going at Warp 12...)
Ah, if you're referring to the Voyager episode that says warp 10 is essentially infinite speed, it is Voyager that is in err. OS, the movies and TNG refer to ships capable of passing the warp 9.whatever limitations. Warp 12 is mentioned more than once. I think warp 13 is the fastest any ST ship traveled.
Warning: Applying logic to ST:OS will make you seriously crazy. Just sayin'.
Logic works in any ST series?
Seen the "Adonis" eppy many times--the Nomad one, too. Both pretty essential I think.
Essential, how so? I mean, I like them all right, but how do they warrant being a necessary addition?
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The2ndQuest
Title: :
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Registered:
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Date Posted:
1/22/07 11:20pm
Subject:
RE: To Boldly Go Where Many Geeks Have Gone Before: A Journey Through Star Trek (now on TOS Season 2
- Date Edited:
1/22/07 11:26pm (1 edits total)
Edited By:
The2ndQuest
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This weeks's remastered ep was Where No Man Has Gone Before. And while the episode is still iffy as a whole, they did a great job with the new FX (love the shot of the saucer section breaking through the clouds- wish it went on longer instead of breaking to the wider shot)- it's a shame that an episode like this gets these gorgeous, better flowing shots, while Balance of Terror was stucl with overly faithful and dull recreations.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yyqo7cOmXww
  
  
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Currently Reading: Death Star
K'Kruhk, 140 ABY: "Why haven't I come forth earlier to share my Jedi knowledge with Skywalker?
Well, it's kinda a long story, see, I had this freaking sweet hat..."
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