THE PLOT
A bizarre distress signal leads the Enterprise to a planet whose atmosphere was torn away half a million years ago, but which is still inhabited by a superior alien intelligence. That intelligence calls Kirk, Spock, McCoy, and a young doctor (guest star Diana Muldaur) down to a chamber beneath the surface, where they discover three of the alien minds encased in great orbs: Sargon, the leader; Thalassa, his wife; and Henoch, the leader of the opposition on the planet.
The aliens have a very simple proposal. Let them "borrow" the bodies of Kirk, Spock, and the young doctor for a short time, while they build robot bodies for themselves. But the temptation of keeping real, living bodies begins to work on them. Henoch is particularly unwilling to release his control over Spock's body, plotting to kill Kirk - and his old enemy, Sargon, with him!
CHARACTERS
Capt. Ham: Shatner indulges a bit too freely in his hammier tendencies when Sargon first takes over his body, literally hugging himself while making orgasmic facial expressions. He also, for the first time that I have noticed in fifty episodes of this series, finally starts. Delivering. Lines. LIKE THIS! This is the episode with Kirk's "risk is our business" monologue."It's a splendid speech, but Shatner starts to pause and overemphasize words while delivering it, perhaps a bit too aware of the meat he's been given to chew on.
Dr. McCoy: With Kirk and Spock taken over for the bulk of the episode, McCoy gets an unusual amount of focus here. We see his pragmatism early on. Alone of the main crew, he recognizes the level of risk involved in Sargon's proposal and urges caution even as Kirk seems determined to leap in head-first. Later in the episode, as the aliens seem intent on taking what they want, his role as moral center of the show makes itself clearer than ever. With the opportunity to save Kirk's life at the cost of a woman who is a virtual stranger, McCoy flatly refuses. "I don't peddle flesh," he says disgustedly. He also refuses to give in when given a very unpleasant first-hand demonstration of the aliens' abilities. It is an excellent episode for McCoy throughout, with a typically strong performance by DeForest Kelly.
Hot Space Babe of the Week: Diana Muldaur - later (briefly) a regular on Star Trek: The Next Generation - does double-duty as the eager young Dr. Mulhall and as Sargon's wife, Thalassa. It is the second role that gives her the strongest material. We see her passion for her principled husband conflicting with her strong desire to remain in a body that can feel. Her confrontation with McCoy is probably the strongest moment of the episode. Muldaur is well up to the task of playing the conflicted Thalessa, and deftly (and, in contrast to Shatner, moderately subtly) differentiates Thalessa from Mulhall in the way she carries herself physically.
Villain of the Week: Leonard Nimoy gets to cut loose and have fun once the villainous Henoch takes over Spock's body. Nimoy not only gets to grin and flirt with female co-stars, he also gets to be outright lustful, venal, and sinister. The scene in which he calmly explains why he must kill Kirk and Sargon, all with a broad grin on his face, defines the joy with which Nimoy plays this part. For all that Nimoy has mastered Spock, it must be acknowledged that the Vulcan can be a confining role. This episode sets him free, allowing him to play character shades that even "drugged-up Spock" did not allow. Predictably, Nimoy steals every scene he's in.
THOUGHTS
It is a good thing the acting is so strong in this episode, as there are moments when the dialogue - particularly between Sargon and Thalessa - threatens to induce eye-rolling. For all of that, the episode is typically well put-together. Of course we know that Kirk and Spock will regain their bodies by the end. Still, the episode does a good job of raising tension, because a mere ten minutes from the end, it is impossible to see exactly how these ends will be achieved.
For all of the joy of watching Leonard Nimoy play the baddie, I nevertheless preferred the first half. The exploration of the unknown was part of Trek's remit, as the opening voice-over tells us in every episode. It is particularly intriguing when the crew find themselves in a completely unfamiliar environment, exploring a situation which they can't quite comprehend, and making discoveries that they aren't entirely sure of. The debate over whether or not to allow Sargon to proceed with his plan is an interesting scene. Both McCoy, the voice of caution, and Kirk, the voice of action, raise valid points. And even if I did think Shatner delved a bit into the ham in his delivery of the "risk is our business speech," it must be said that this is a wonderful monologue.
A bizarre distress signal leads the Enterprise to a planet whose atmosphere was torn away half a million years ago, but which is still inhabited by a superior alien intelligence. That intelligence calls Kirk, Spock, McCoy, and a young doctor (guest star Diana Muldaur) down to a chamber beneath the surface, where they discover three of the alien minds encased in great orbs: Sargon, the leader; Thalassa, his wife; and Henoch, the leader of the opposition on the planet.
The aliens have a very simple proposal. Let them "borrow" the bodies of Kirk, Spock, and the young doctor for a short time, while they build robot bodies for themselves. But the temptation of keeping real, living bodies begins to work on them. Henoch is particularly unwilling to release his control over Spock's body, plotting to kill Kirk - and his old enemy, Sargon, with him!
CHARACTERS
Capt. Ham: Shatner indulges a bit too freely in his hammier tendencies when Sargon first takes over his body, literally hugging himself while making orgasmic facial expressions. He also, for the first time that I have noticed in fifty episodes of this series, finally starts. Delivering. Lines. LIKE THIS! This is the episode with Kirk's "risk is our business" monologue."It's a splendid speech, but Shatner starts to pause and overemphasize words while delivering it, perhaps a bit too aware of the meat he's been given to chew on.
Dr. McCoy: With Kirk and Spock taken over for the bulk of the episode, McCoy gets an unusual amount of focus here. We see his pragmatism early on. Alone of the main crew, he recognizes the level of risk involved in Sargon's proposal and urges caution even as Kirk seems determined to leap in head-first. Later in the episode, as the aliens seem intent on taking what they want, his role as moral center of the show makes itself clearer than ever. With the opportunity to save Kirk's life at the cost of a woman who is a virtual stranger, McCoy flatly refuses. "I don't peddle flesh," he says disgustedly. He also refuses to give in when given a very unpleasant first-hand demonstration of the aliens' abilities. It is an excellent episode for McCoy throughout, with a typically strong performance by DeForest Kelly.
Hot Space Babe of the Week: Diana Muldaur - later (briefly) a regular on Star Trek: The Next Generation - does double-duty as the eager young Dr. Mulhall and as Sargon's wife, Thalassa. It is the second role that gives her the strongest material. We see her passion for her principled husband conflicting with her strong desire to remain in a body that can feel. Her confrontation with McCoy is probably the strongest moment of the episode. Muldaur is well up to the task of playing the conflicted Thalessa, and deftly (and, in contrast to Shatner, moderately subtly) differentiates Thalessa from Mulhall in the way she carries herself physically.
Villain of the Week: Leonard Nimoy gets to cut loose and have fun once the villainous Henoch takes over Spock's body. Nimoy not only gets to grin and flirt with female co-stars, he also gets to be outright lustful, venal, and sinister. The scene in which he calmly explains why he must kill Kirk and Sargon, all with a broad grin on his face, defines the joy with which Nimoy plays this part. For all that Nimoy has mastered Spock, it must be acknowledged that the Vulcan can be a confining role. This episode sets him free, allowing him to play character shades that even "drugged-up Spock" did not allow. Predictably, Nimoy steals every scene he's in.
THOUGHTS
It is a good thing the acting is so strong in this episode, as there are moments when the dialogue - particularly between Sargon and Thalessa - threatens to induce eye-rolling. For all of that, the episode is typically well put-together. Of course we know that Kirk and Spock will regain their bodies by the end. Still, the episode does a good job of raising tension, because a mere ten minutes from the end, it is impossible to see exactly how these ends will be achieved.
For all of the joy of watching Leonard Nimoy play the baddie, I nevertheless preferred the first half. The exploration of the unknown was part of Trek's remit, as the opening voice-over tells us in every episode. It is particularly intriguing when the crew find themselves in a completely unfamiliar environment, exploring a situation which they can't quite comprehend, and making discoveries that they aren't entirely sure of. The debate over whether or not to allow Sargon to proceed with his plan is an interesting scene. Both McCoy, the voice of caution, and Kirk, the voice of action, raise valid points. And even if I did think Shatner delved a bit into the ham in his delivery of the "risk is our business speech," it must be said that this is a wonderful monologue.
I will say, of Sargon's plan... Give your enemy by far the strongest of the three bodies? Nope, I don't see anything that can possibly go wrong with that idea, nosirree...
Rating: 7/10
Previous Episode: By Any Other Name
Next Episode: Patterns of Force
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I like this episode very much, though I do wonder why Sargon and company didn't simply build android bodies (instead of consciousness receptacles and an underground chamber) when the shit hit the fan half a million years ago...
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