52. By Any Other Name
FORMULA: Return to Tomorrow + Where No Man Has Gone Before + The Gamesters of Triskelion/Catspaw
WHY WE LIKE IT: Scotty drinks a Kelvan under the table and a lot of fun "stimulation" besides.
WHY WE DON'T: On closer inspection, there's a lot of padding and some wide plot holes.
REVIEW: Yes, there are some major plot holes in By Any Other Name, most central among which is that the Kelvans somehow think of Captain Kirk as "essential personnel". There's also the fact the the Great Barrier (which is physically ludicrous to start with) doesn't give anyone ESP powers this time, and that Hanar allows an enemy doctor to give him mystery shots. The timeline is also fuzzy, with the drinking binge taking as long as Hanar's "3 shots a day" regimen". More distressing to me is that while our heroes are on the ball and that their plans consistenly succeed, they quite often don't amount to anything. The dead ends do start to accumulate: Spock gets himself to sickbay to work on the power source problem, but it turns out it's impregnable; Scotty steals a belt zapper, but passes out before getting it to the others. Only a couple of examples, but they take up a sizeable piece of the episode. Sometimes it feels like padding, and sometimes like they're showing us just how powerful the Kelvans are.
Be that as it may, the episode creates a number of great moments and images that dispell any of my objections to it. Rojan and his people are more antagonists than villains, and certainly not cruel, even if they are tyrannical. Having gone from their Lovecraftian forms to human ones is their ultimate downfall, having taken on all our weaknesses. Each temptation offered by the crew creates some interesting scenes, from the classic Scotty drinking binge ("It's green."), to Kirk's seduction of Kelinda with his appologies, to Spock playing the voice of Rojan's jealousy. Everything really centers on that love triangle, which makes Rojan finally realize that he can't go home again. I love the exchange: "You would really welcome invaders?" "No, but we would welcome friends." I don't know if it's just the energy of the acting or some subtle make-up, but Rojan starts out a pasty white, and takes on full human colors by the end.
There's a lot of other things to like, including a small bit of continuity when Kirk mentions Eminiar 7 to put Spock's mind probe into context. You don't see a lot of that in the Original Series. There's the shocking crushing of a dehydrated woman into powder, and Kirk coming up on a corridor full of those "containers". The Enterprise flying through the intergalactic void towards Andromeda is also a beautiful and memorable image.
LESSON: If you're trying to get somebody drunk, always try to keep yourself sober.
REWATCHABILITY - High: Strikes a good balance between suspense and humor, with some sympathetic opponents you can embrace at the end. Thoroughly likeable despite its flaws.
FORMULA: Return to Tomorrow + Where No Man Has Gone Before + The Gamesters of Triskelion/Catspaw
WHY WE LIKE IT: Scotty drinks a Kelvan under the table and a lot of fun "stimulation" besides.WHY WE DON'T: On closer inspection, there's a lot of padding and some wide plot holes.
REVIEW: Yes, there are some major plot holes in By Any Other Name, most central among which is that the Kelvans somehow think of Captain Kirk as "essential personnel". There's also the fact the the Great Barrier (which is physically ludicrous to start with) doesn't give anyone ESP powers this time, and that Hanar allows an enemy doctor to give him mystery shots. The timeline is also fuzzy, with the drinking binge taking as long as Hanar's "3 shots a day" regimen". More distressing to me is that while our heroes are on the ball and that their plans consistenly succeed, they quite often don't amount to anything. The dead ends do start to accumulate: Spock gets himself to sickbay to work on the power source problem, but it turns out it's impregnable; Scotty steals a belt zapper, but passes out before getting it to the others. Only a couple of examples, but they take up a sizeable piece of the episode. Sometimes it feels like padding, and sometimes like they're showing us just how powerful the Kelvans are.
Be that as it may, the episode creates a number of great moments and images that dispell any of my objections to it. Rojan and his people are more antagonists than villains, and certainly not cruel, even if they are tyrannical. Having gone from their Lovecraftian forms to human ones is their ultimate downfall, having taken on all our weaknesses. Each temptation offered by the crew creates some interesting scenes, from the classic Scotty drinking binge ("It's green."), to Kirk's seduction of Kelinda with his appologies, to Spock playing the voice of Rojan's jealousy. Everything really centers on that love triangle, which makes Rojan finally realize that he can't go home again. I love the exchange: "You would really welcome invaders?" "No, but we would welcome friends." I don't know if it's just the energy of the acting or some subtle make-up, but Rojan starts out a pasty white, and takes on full human colors by the end.
There's a lot of other things to like, including a small bit of continuity when Kirk mentions Eminiar 7 to put Spock's mind probe into context. You don't see a lot of that in the Original Series. There's the shocking crushing of a dehydrated woman into powder, and Kirk coming up on a corridor full of those "containers". The Enterprise flying through the intergalactic void towards Andromeda is also a beautiful and memorable image.
LESSON: If you're trying to get somebody drunk, always try to keep yourself sober.
REWATCHABILITY - High: Strikes a good balance between suspense and humor, with some sympathetic opponents you can embrace at the end. Thoroughly likeable despite its flaws.
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