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[Bud Brewster]

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The episode is tough to take seriously. I mean, 24th century hippies?

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The Way to Eden - episode #75

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_____________The Way to Eden Preview Trailer


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Well, the summary above gives no indication as to the loopy direction in which this episode proceeds, so I'll try to give a more detailed account.

This episode has become known as the one with the 'Space Hippies' and how they rename Kirk 'Herbert' — we'll get to that later.

As said earlier, Kirk beams aboard a group of radicals from a fleeing ship. Barely dressed, they have rejected the sterile trappings of future civilization, seeking the mythical planet of Eden. (Now that I think about it, they would have done well to find Apollo's planet, from the Who Mourns For Adonais? episode. That locale would have suited them much better than the one which they end up on here).

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This also recalls The Apple and the planet on that one may have also suited these reprobates.

One of these hippies is Chekov's ex-girlfriend, from his academy days — it's amusing when Kirk learns of this. In fact, Shatner is amusing in most of his scenes here.

Though I cannot, in good conscience, score this episode higher, due to the ridiculous tone during most of the story, it does have its charms in places. Unless you're very, uh, stiff, this one will elicit some laughs from you. Unintentional ones, of course.

________ The Way to Eden - Main Jam in Lounge


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Like several other 3rd season escapades, this attempts to capture the mood and spirit of the '60s relevant topics, and as a result it has become one of the more dated episodes.

Most viewers probably can't help but feel that they've been transported back to the sixties while watching this one — not to the 23rd century as intended. Even so, it comes off as a broad parody of the sixties.

The interstellar hipsters use future slang in their phrases, such as, "You reach, brother?" and also call Kirk "Herbert" — a derogatory term — when he starts speaking of rules and regulations. It comes across as quite silly now; but, it probably also sounded silly 35 - 40 years ago and viewers were probably also laughing at these scenes.

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The episode tries to come up with insightful explanations for the antics of these flower children of outer space. Spock, of all people (er, Vulcans), relates best to these troublemakers because he understands about being alienated from your own society.

However, this episode may have knocked Spock down a peg or two in the eyes of some fans. When he joined the band of free-spirited kids in a jam session of sorts, I almost expected him to place beads on his head in the next scene and then join these punks in their wilderness Shangri-La. Vulcans are regarded as pacifists generally, after all, but, thankfully, that didn't happen. In fact, the best scene is when Spock gets a cold splash of reality and tells Kirk that the leader of this band, a former scientific researcher, is insane (Dr. Sevrin, played by Skip Homeier).

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It's also kind of interesting that the motivations of a couple of these radicals are revealed to slightly veer away from the main group, showing that everyone, as usual, has their own agenda. That's another cold splash of reality.

But many scenes are cringe-worthy indeed, perhaps the most embarrassing to watch of the entire series. Most of the singing (including by cast-against-type Charles Napier as Adam, who, in line with the sideways direction here, gives the best guest performance) and all the shouting by the group of nutcases falls into this category.

'Act your age!' I always think when watching these scenes, and 'shaddap!'.

The climax does have a dark ironic tone, as well it should, as we tend to forget that the final sequence actually takes place on a planet somewhere in the Romulan Zone! It also attacks the entire concept of the biblical Eden, but this subversive message is lost amid all the attacks on the authority of the "Great White Captain upstairs." I guess it's fortunate there were no bongs in this one.

BoG's Score: 4.5 out of 10



Extra Trek Trivia:

~ The term 'Herbert' refers to a minor official who was well known for his limited pattern of thought.

~ In an early version of this story, one of the hippies was McCoy's daughter, Joanna McCoy.'

~ The writer of this one, D.C.Fontana, changed her credit to a pseudonym after becoming dissatisfied with the changes to her story. I don't blame her.


BoG
Galaxy Overlord Galactus
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)