80. Turnabout IntruderFORMULA: What Are Little Girls Made Of? + Return to Tomorrow + The Enemy Within
WHY WE LIKE IT: William Shatner and Sandra Smith give what might be called bravura performances.
WHY WE DON'T: Star Trek at its most sexist, and a terrible end to the series.
REVIEW: Though Turnabout Intruder is often attacked for being outrageously sexist in its statement that women can't be starship captains, I'm among those that prefer to read Janice Lester's words another way. What she actually tells Kirk is that (paraphrase here) there was no room for women in his world of starship captains. Seeing as she was bitter, their relationship ended because he took off to the stars. I don't read that at all as if women couldn't accede to the position (2 captains couldn't have been together on the same ship), but rather that his position doesn't really allow him to carry on a serious relationship with a woman. All that doesn't dispell the fact that Lester is a madwoman who hates her own gender and is both hysterical and psychotic. If the episode is sexist, it's because it paints a really unflattering picture of a woman. If I seem to be making excuses for the episode, it's because this "controversial" element is more or less a non-issue for me. There are so many more reasons to dislike Turnabout Intruder! To me, the third season ends like it started. Spock's Brain, an episode in a key schedule slot, turned a main character into a zombie, torpedoing the episode from the get-go. We tune in for these guys, show them at their best. Turnabout Intruder might have been less of a turkey if it had occured mid-season, but as a series finale, it's a disaster. This time, it's Kirk that's not himself. Not the farewell I would have liked for the captain of the Enterprise. The whole mind-swapping plot is on autopilot anyway, with Kirk totally unable to come up with something not on the record to convince his officers he's the real deal, and security backing the faux-captain even after an execution has been ordered like they were extras from the Mirror Universe. And what of McCoy's totally useless psych test? Overall, a pretty silly dilemma. And yet, I do give props to the actors. William Shatner gives his performance a jaunty feminine quality and also sells Lester's pettiness and relish in the trappings of power. The descent into madness gets way over-the-top, at least delivering some campiness. As for Sandra Smith, she never manages Kirk's accent, but she does have some of his delivery and mannerisms. Kirk's strength and confidence show through. The other characters get some good scenes too, in particular Scotty's incitement to mutiny. An oddity for a finale episode is Nurse Chapel's new brunette look. Looks like she knew they were on their way off the air and decided to change her hair for another job. Jarring.
LESSON: James T. Kirk really DOESN'T have any standards when it comes to women. If Janice Lester doesn't seem his type, it must be because he HAS no type.
REWATCHABILITY - Low: The series ends, not with a bang, but a whine. Though I don't think it's as bad as its reputation makes it out to be (mostly thanks to the acting), they missed the boat on ending the series with dignity. Good thing it wasn't really the end...
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