THE PLOT
The Enterprise is assigned to a peace mission in a turbulent star system whose two inhabited worlds, Elas and Troyius, have been at war for generations. With their technology having now reached the point where they can surely destroy each other, the two planets have reached an agreement to take a step toward peace, by uniting the leader of Troyius and Elaan (France Nuyen), the Dohlman of Elas, in marriage.
Unfortunately, a marriage agreement doesn't in itself erase generations of hatred. The warrior-like Dolman refuses to accept instruction in Troyian customs from the Troyian ambassador, leaving Kirk to take on her instruction in his own, unique style. Kirk appears to be making headway... until Elaan's tears touch Kirk's skin, creating a biochemical bond that forces Kirk to fall in love with her!
CHARACTERS
Capt. Kirk: Kirk's sense of duty is key to his actions throughout this episode. In the early part of the show, he is determined to see to it that Elaan learns some form of civilized behavior by the time they reach Troyius. He quickly sizes her up and determines that diplomacy is the exact wrong approach. His instinctive, Taming of the Shrew-like approach has some positive results. After he becomes infected with Elaan's tears, he is shaken from his course. But a crisis involving the Klingons arrives just in time to help him focus on his duty once more... meaning that the Klingons ironically do him a considerable favor.
Spock: Leonard Nimoy gets to show his facility for demonstrating both annoyance and amusement at Elaan's behavior, all while remaining externally impassive. We are also reminded how seamlessly Spock acts as Kirk's support, smoothly catching his lapses after the "infection" without drawing the bridge crew's attention to them. Spock is still mindful of what he said way back in The Enemy Within, that the captain must be perceived as invincible, and he does all he can to maintain that illusion.
Hot Alien Space Babe of the Week: "Captain, that ancient Earth custom called spanking. What is it?" I wonder how many innocent kids were confused when their moms and dads started snickering at this point...
France Nuyen is Elaan, the arrogant, impatient, violent Dohlman who is anything but pleased to be offered up "as a bribe" to obtain peace. With an outfit that's a cross between Cleopatra and She-Ra, it's initially difficult-to-impossible to take Elaan seriously. However, Nuyen does a good job with what she's given, particularly when Elaan's temperament becomes a bit less over-the-top in the second half, and ends up creating a halfway believable character out of a Shakespearian plot trope.
Villain of the Week: The Klingons rear their heads again. This is a fairly effective use of the Klingons as a plot device. We don't have to contend with some sneering, over-the-top "Klingon warrior" fencing with Kirk. For most of the episode, all we have is their ship, following the Enterprise silently, its exact intentions unclear. Even when the Klingon captain does communicate with Kirk, it's simply a flat demand for an unconditional surrender, followed by repeated attacks when Kirk refuses.
ZAP THE REDSHIRT!
Redshirt count: One. As the villainous Kryton (no relation to Farscape's Crichton) does some unauthorized tinkering in Engineering, the single redshirt actually in Engineering decides that, rather than calling for help, he'll yell "Hey!" at the saboteur. Sure enough, he gets his neck snapped for his trouble. Kirk really should be doing something about internal ship's security by this point...
THOUGHTS
When France Nuyen beamed aboard with a Cleopatra hairdo in She-Ra's bikini and adult diapers, I felt my heart sink to my stomach, with the certainty that this really was going to be a crappy episode. Kirk being a poor man's Petruchio in a thinly-veiled remake of Taming of the Shrew did not raise my hopes. Then, after the groundwork is laid for the effects of Elasian women's tears, Elaan's tears touch Kirk's hand... and the episode becomes halfway interesting.
Though not in any way subdued or subtle, Shatner's performance is always interesting when Kirk is torn between an "obsession of the week" and his duty to his ship. Also, as the Klingon subplot gains momentum, the episode builds up a bit of tension. By the time Kirk is using every tactic at his disposal - bluffs, shifting of the ship's position to take more hammering than the ship should be able to, stalling for time, and taking a gamble - this has actually become a fairly good character piece for the captain. The theme of people in positions of responsibility having to prioritize their duty over their own personal wishes is reasonably effective.
So... despite an extremely unpromising start, Elaan of Troyius ends up becoming an entertaining piece. There have been better episodes, certainly, but there have been far worse as well.
Rating: 6/10.
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