Ahhh, I've just gotten off watching a fair chunk of Australia's TV1 "Star Trek Marathon" - 56+ hours... Seasons 1 and 2.
They had a Season 1 only marathon last year. Then I got to basically see most of the first season, now I've been able to see a lot of the second season (but not as much as I'd have liked) but I did get to see a fair few episodes I hadn't seen before. I also managed to catch Season 1 episodes again, they just get better with each viewing.
Even though everyone says this ad nauseum, the Kirk, Spock, McCoy interplay is totally fantastic. The Spock/McCoy antagonism is SO good. Season 2 brings this even further to the fore. I was just watching Bread and Circuses before. The scene after the 'Arena' match was very very good, where McCoy tries to thank Spock, and Spock goes on about logical methods, and then McCoy confronts Spock about why he REALLY carries on the way he does and does he actually care what happens? And Spock remarkably comes back - not overtly emotional, but so subtley, and they both understand what each other is thinking, whether their captain is OK. LOL! Then we pan to Kirk who is getting it on with a blonde 'slave' and he gets fed - and most definately gets some seximus ;o) One of the most overt sexual 'he just did it with the blonde chick' references in Trek!?! LOL!
I have so many things going through my mind at the moment... I taped a whole overnight chunk last night, so I'll over the next few days sit down and watch some more! I really felt like writing half of what I saw down, you have these comments you want to 'let out' on the forum here, be it about starships or nitpicking - (like every good Trek fan) but then along comes the next episode! So I hope I can gather my thoughts and remember what I wanted to get on here and say.
Just a few things about the last few episodes that have been on - the last was Assignment: Earth... I can see, of course how this was a 'pilot' for a TV show that was never made, but did anyone think that the whole Gary Seven thing would make a good TV show!?! I wonder who the aliens were who trained Gary Seven!?! I loved what's her name - the girl Roberta! Ditzy but cute! ;o) Isis was soooo cute - and he was so affectionate to it... (who knows where that might have gone in future episodes!?! ;o) )
The 'count down' voice at the launch pad - was that DeForest Kelly's voice? I also noticed that Gary Seven's computer was the exact same prop they used for the M5 computer! LOL! I wonder if that was budgetary or intended!?! They seemed to (whoever beamed Gary Seven) have a sort of Iconian-type transport system. Like Homer at that science museum I'm a bit hyper stimulated at the moment, so I want to type so much. It IS 4am so I guess I better get to bed soon. Also in Assignment: Earth, the music was nearly a COMPLETE rehash of "The Trouble With Tribbles"!!
Merchant Marines, two mentions of them within the space of a few episodes - in Bread and Circuses - Merrick had joined them after ?failing? 5th year Academy (Which I reckon is the year where you can increase your rank and is a special extra year that Kirk and Saavik probably both did - maybe that is the only year you can do the Kobayashi Maru scenario, seeing as Spock never did it.) I can't think of the earlier mention of the Merchant Marines, anyone else remember!?! It might have been in That Which Survives or The Ultimate Computer!?! Bugger. Can't... think...
I could never appreciate/visualise all the TOS starships - now I have a better understanding - after having episode after episode of no starships, BANG we get the "Constellation" in "The Doomsday Machine". the "Intrepid" in "Obsession" (was that the ep name?), The "Exeter" in That Which Survives - oooh that Ronald Tracey was a nasty piece of work! And the Excalibur, Hood, Potempkin and (mind blank) in The Ultimate computer - oh and the SS Beagle.
I'm still not sure of that "Notify the Discovery" in "The Squire of Gothos" - I was always think it was 'discovery' but when I heard it the other night I thought "Discovery" as a ship.
What was the space station in The Ultimate Computer?
Lots of other things... but brain... needs... sleep... soon.
Andrew
P.S. One thing I really took notice of watching all these episodes, was Uhura, YEAH! she was finally given a little more to do here and there - but what little she WAS given I think Nichelle Nichols did a FANTASTIC JOB with. Uhura really was an important person on that ship - I'm sick of everyone going "oh she was just a glorified secretary" - she WAS NOT! Loved her at the end of "Bread and Circuses". She was also great in "Mirror, Mirror". I'm trying to think of an episode where one female crewmember REALLY kicked arse - she was in Red - with blonde hair (a specialist of some sort) anyway they were in a fight and she had a few punches and a few really well place side kicks!!) What WAS that episode - they all become a blur!
Andrew
P.P.S. Just HOW MANY times did Kirk 'get it on' with a girl!?! LOL!
Andrew
Posted by Sol System (Member # 30) on :
That's...certainly a lot of ground to cover. Posted by TSN (Member # 31) on :
"Ahhh, I've just gotten off watching a fair chunk of Australia's TV1 'Star Trek Marathon'...
Wow. It's a good show, but I don't know if it's that good... :-)
Posted by Vogon Poet (Member # 393) on :
Yes, all this other stuff about how good it was should be ignored because TOS had silly old-fashioned uniforms and totally useless special effects. Completely unforgivable.
Posted by Sol System (Member # 30) on :
Er...huh?
Posted by Proteus (Member # 212) on :
bah... i wouldnt get mad if they dropped TOS from the series. the original six movies were great work though.. well.. with the exception of 1.
Posted by Malnurtured Snay (Member # 411) on :
And you wonder why no one likes you.
I say, drop Voyager.
Posted by Ultra Magnus (Member # 239) on :
That's his favorite, though.
Posted by Malnurtured Snay (Member # 411) on :
No wonder no one likes him.
Posted by AndrewR (Member # 44) on :
LOL! TSN... it WAS 4 am in the morning... OK thay STILL didn't sound too good ;o)
I have to add, I loved the episode "The Apple". Yeah the storyline was COMPLETE crap, but all the little things made it one hilarious episode. That Arkuta guy crying when Kirk hit him!
I soooooo want to know the end of this sentence
"Spock do you know how much Starfleet has invested in you!?!" "Yes, 210 thousand four hundred and fifty--"
LOL!
And I loved the line by Spock - in I don't know which episode reguards McCoy and saying something about his Surgeon skills as being more akin to "trial and error" when you think Spock is always being picked on he always got a few back in! LOL! "You GREEN BLOODED HOBGOBLIN!" LOL!
Posted by AndrewR (Member # 44) on :
Was James Doohan the voice of the M5!?!
Could the Exeter have been salvaged?? Maybe opened to space and then repressurised? Oh, and did Sulu and the two security officers stay on the planet long enough to become immune to the infection on the planet!?!
Also, in Assignment: Earth, Kirk mentioned in his log that they were using their 'deflectors' to obscure Earth sensors of the day... how did they beam through then without being detected?
Oh and apart from being quite clever in inventing Duotronics etc. WTF did Daystrom get an institute named after him!?! WACKO! ;o)
Posted by Masao (Member # 232) on :
I soooooo want to know the end of this sentence
"Spock do you know how much Starfleet has invested in you!?!" "Yes, 210 thousand four hundred and fifty--"
"Credits" probably. Credits are used in "Tribbles" of K-7, so they're likely used throughout the Federation.
Posted by Timo (Member # 245) on :
...Although "futile attempts to learn to pronounce my first name so that they could go through with the graduation ceremony" is possible as well.
Timo Saloniemi
Posted by Shik (Member # 343) on :
"Lyle" isn't that hard to say. Or "Harold."
Posted by Vogon Poet (Member # 393) on :
"Hi! Pleased to meetcha! Lyle Spock, of the Pennsylvania Spocks!"
Posted by AndrewR (Member # 44) on :
LOL! Spock isn't Amish, is he? ;o)
Will anyone answer any of my feverish questions!?! ;o)
Another question, I noticed in some episodes Sulu or Chekov or Uhura are missing - and at critical times... (not talking about real life here) but, why wouldn't they be on the Bridge then?? I doubt that they just sleep through some of the really important emergencies... that require their expertise?
Posted by Shik (Member # 343) on :
Maybe they weren't heads of their departments at the time. Maybe the reason they all became so close is because Kirk liked working the night shift & they had that duty assignment. For all we know, there were more senior officers for helm, nav, & comm. I mean, we saw the chief of security ONCE in 3 years, & he turned out to be a LCDR.
Posted by TSN (Member # 31) on :
I would point out that it's Spock's family name that's unpronouceable. Whether or not it's his "first" name, who knows?
Posted by Proteus (Member # 212) on :
quote:Originally posted by Malnurtured Snay: And you wonder why no one likes you.
I say, drop Voyager.
Um.. you dont like me. Voygon Poet sorta doesnt like me.... thats all im aware of.
I say TNG was the best.
Posted by PsyLiam (Member # 73) on :
The Senior Staff missing could be due to the person being on leave, or temporary assignment, or even Kirk wanting some of the B-list crew members some experience. If he uses the same people all the time, no-one else will ever learn. That's why the landing party is always completely different. All the time.
Posted by Balaam Xumucane (Member # 419) on :
Yeah, if a red-shirt can make it through a couple episodes they get a medal or something don't they? They'd certainly deserve one.
Incidentally, to attempt to ignore one Trek series to focus on another which might be more internally consistent reeks of fundamentalism and literalism. It's ignorant, intolerant and stupid. If you insist on continuing to do so, Proteus, you can add me to your list.
Posted by CaptainMike (Member # 709) on :
I just read on the devil's TrekBBS that Pocket is planning a TOS relaunch that will have multibook series that reveal details of circumstances surrounding each episode, backup characters, etc.. Errand of Vengeance, the second story arc, will have details about the Klingon conflicts the took place before and during Errand of Mercy.. cool, huh?
Posted by Omega (Member # 91) on :
If executed well, yes. PB seems to be doing a decent job lately, with NF and DS9 relaunch. Depends on the writers, as always.
Posted by First of Two (Member # 16) on :
DS9 relaunch has had near-universal acclaim.
NF.. people either love or hate Peter David. There seems to be no middle ground.
SCE, now that it's coming out in paperback, is enjoyable, even if the stories are short.
Other really notable PB books lately were: Diplomatic Implausibility -- Keith R.A. DeCandido Immortal Coil -- Jeffrey Lang
Posted by AndrewR (Member # 44) on :
That DS9 Avatar or what ever - is it worth getting? It sounds a little... bleh.
Posted by Chris StarShade (Member # 786) on :
Did someone say its a bad thing to denounce inconsistency?
I say it is a bad thing to be inconsistent! Despite this, they seem to be getting in gear... to a point.
The new series is the most darned inconsistent they've ever had though... (inconsistent with the future series's that is...)
Anyone else here hate time travel as much as I do?
Posted by PsyLiam (Member # 73) on :
Whereas no-one had to jump through any hoops to try and explain the backstory in TOS, did they?
Posted by Treknophyle (Member # 509) on :
Ahem... getting back to the theme of this post...
I recently watched a few episodes of TOS as well. All I could say was "wow".
I think what sets it apart (and in front) of other sf series - both contemporary and present (and I am including other Trek series) is two-fold. First is the sense of wonder. No other show has captured it - few try. The other is the sense of family. Mind you, I was watching TOS when I was 6 - back in 1969...
Posted by Wraith (Member # 779) on :
I've always liked TOS; it's what got me into Trek in the first place. I like the feeling og being out there, exploring; I don't think any of the other series (although I like them all) has really captured that.
Posted by Masao (Member # 232) on :
What I like most about Star Trek (the one and only) is the absence of B stories. Every scene was important and moved the story forward. I get the sense that some later series didn't have enough faith in their stories to sustain an episode for 45 minutes. I'm not talking about B-stories meant to support an underlying arc, but B stories that cut away from the main story so that Data could groom his cat, or something.
Posted by Sol System (Member # 30) on :
But surely that's a sign of TOS' (and I use the term without the negative connotation) primitiveness, as few (if any) shows of the era "wasted" time on smaller moments outside the main thrust of the plot.
Posted by Kosh (Member # 167) on :
quote: Also, in Assignment: Earth, Kirk mentioned in his log that they were using their 'deflectors' to obscure Earth sensors of the day... how did they beam through then without being detected?
Oh and apart from being quite clever in inventing Duotronics etc. WTF did Daystrom get an institute named after him!?! WACKO! ;o)
There are deflector shieds, and deflectors for navigation. I think they can beam through the Navigation deflectors, and they would be enough to foil any late 60's sensor equipment.
Duotronics were a big thing in TOS. From the looks of Enterprise, they don't mean so much, since Daystrom hasn't been born yet, and the ship seems to be doing fine without him.
quote: Another question, I noticed in some episodes Sulu or Chekov or Uhura are missing - and at critical times... (not talking about real life here) but, why wouldn't they be on the Bridge then?? I doubt that they just sleep through some of the really important emergencies... that require their expertise?
Chekov wasn't in the show at all till season 2. Takei took some time off to work in a WWiII movie with John Wayne. Uhura was underused.
Posted by Balaam Xumucane (Member # 419) on :
I applogize for the the above form, I just miss UM Posted by AndrewR (Member # 44) on :
quote:Uhura was underused.
That's SO true. In the last marathon (oh and by the way since I first posted that original post TV1 had for at least 2 weeks, been showing a Triple Trek each night from about 10:30 - yep it meant late nights - but again it was FANTASTIC! I really have fallen in LOVE with TOS (TV) - I've always loved TOS (movies))... in the last marathon and in the triple trek treats I had been keeping focus on Uhura - and I really loved when she got even one line. If it was one line it was truly worth it. More Uhura would have been nice, agreed.
Even when Uhura had NO lines, what she did on the bridge was fantastic - her expressions, her ACTING even as a 'sort-of' extra in some places was GREAT. I love where she turns around to look at whats-her-name who is speaking to Kirk in Mirror, Mirror. (Which was used - quite poigniantly in Trials and Tribblations.)
I can't imagine what it must have been like for young African-American girls AND boys - or any coloured person seeing Uhura on that bridge. I get so inspired - and I didn't even LIVE at that time - I can only imagine. (yes I know I started the paragraph saying I can't imagine)
Uhura inspires me... NOW! A white Australian living 35 years after these episodes.
I think TOS was special - or truely AMAZING (and a lot of people have to do what I did and sit through a whole lot of episodes back to back - where you eventually let your eye-for-effects and cheesy sets drop by the way-side and you can focus on the characters and stories) is that Star Trek had HEART. There was some SPARK there.
The character interaction was truely classic television.
I hate how on Enterprise - they are SO trying to make Archer, Trip, T'Pol their own Kirk, McCoy and Spock... at least in the first 6 episodes... I think Breaking the Ice may have changed that a little - I guess time will tell. I really noticed it after watching so much TOS recently - especially in the first six Enterprise episodes (we only saw Breaking the Ice here last night) - there was this continual Trip/T'Pol antagonism Trip going of his nut at her Vulcan ways, T'Pol cutting back with some ?snide? remark - Archer standing in the middle smiling and just trying not to get in their way. UGH - please I hope this changes - because we HAVE TOS, we don't need a poor copy of it.
At least TNG wasn't a carbon copy of TOS... I think they came close having Pulaski in there for a bit - with the whole Grouch/Android thing - but luckily even by the end of the season I think - that had dissipated.
Long Live Star Trek!
As Uhura would say... "All my hopes..."
Andrew
Posted by Sol System (Member # 30) on :
Hmm...The Naked Time...The Naked Now...
Posted by Kosh (Member # 167) on :
quote: Hmm...The Naked Time...The Naked Now...
I believe I remember hearing somewhere that GR asked the writer of "The Naked Time" to do a script for TNG, where the crew would have to refer to records of James T. Kirk's Enterprise.
Posted by CaptainMike (Member # 709) on :
um.. yeah, he did. In fact, it was the same story retooled for the different characters. 'John D.F. Black' even received the actual writing credit for the TNG script
Posted by PsyLiam (Member # 73) on :
Regarding the deflectors thing, I assumed that they just flipped them on and off really quickly, or perhaps beamed through the shields when they rephased/cycled/techified, as O'Brien did in the "Wounded". Even if they turned them off for 5 seconds, it would probably just register as a quick blip on any Earth sensors.
Posted by Peregrinus (Member # 504) on :
Also, back in the day, shields weren't some integral bubble. They had four quadrants, any one (or more) of which could be raised and lowered independently of the others. In later movies and series, you have references still to the different shield quadrants losing power, or being compromised, but the ability to selectively activate and deactivate them seems to have gotten almost no support (except possibly "Relics" on TNG...). At least there hasn't been much to disprove the concept either.
--Jonah
[ April 22, 2002, 13:39: Message edited by: Peregrinus ]
Posted by PsyLiam (Member # 73) on :
Although surely the same sheild part that would have to be lowered to allow transport would be the same quadrant blocking Earth sensors?
Posted by Peregrinus (Member # 504) on :
Thanks, Psy. That was the part I forgot. GR, in creating the tech for the show, indicated the 'deflectors' were the navigational beams that keep debris from hitting the ship, while 'shields' were essentially an extra layer of the hull made out of energy to protect the ship from offensive fire. The two terms tend to get intermangled (no, that's not a typo) in later works, but as far as I can tell...
�Deflectors have two elements -- the active beams that sweep debris out of the ship's path, and nested bubble "shields" that take care of microscopic fluff (...and also dissipate lasers from planetary defense vessels...). The bubble deflector shields are fairly low-powered and constantly surround the ship -- weapons, transporters, and sensors have no trouble getting through them.
�Shields are the conformal energy barriers we see diagrams of on bridge displays in Star Trek II, III, V, and VI. These are much more dependent on the shield grids, and at least in movie times were organized into quadrants of coverage... plus probably wndows for sensors, weapons, and transporters to pass out form the ship.
Either could probably be tweaked to prevent detection by EM sensors like mid-20th-century Earth had, but I'm not sure which one the episode in question intended it to be. If it was the deflector bubble, then they could transport through without problem... and if it was the shields, the transporter window idea might work -- but I can't remember where that was first put forth, or how valid it might be...
--Jonah
[ April 23, 2002, 21:11: Message edited by: Peregrinus ]
Posted by PsyLiam (Member # 73) on :
I think the two terms mutated into "Navigational shields" and "deflector shields".
Posted by Masao (Member # 232) on :
WARNING: By clicking on this link, you declare that you are at least 18 years old and are prepared to view adult material (nonsexually explicit human nudity) that some might find objectionable.
Uh-huhhhh... And, um... Why did you post that?
Posted by Masao (Member # 232) on :
Because AndrewR expressed his admiration for Uhura. Sorry
Posted by darkwing_duck1 (Member # 790) on :
Just as an aside: the movie Takei took time off from Trek to make was not a WW II movie, it was "The Green Berets" (great movie, BTW). Takei was scheduled to be in "Gamesters of Triskellion", but the shooting on TGB ran long, and the part was rewritten at the last minute for Koenig.
Posted by MrNeutron (Member # 524) on :
quote:Originally posted by darkwing_duck1: Just as an aside: the movie Takei took time off from Trek to make was not a WW II movie, it was "The Green Berets" (great movie, BTW).
Ah, yes...the WWII style rah rah film about Vietnam wherein the the sun sets in the east!
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