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The Enterprise Incident - episode #59

 
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Bogmeister
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PostPosted: Tue Jun 11, 2019 1:08 pm    Post subject: The Enterprise Incident - episode #59 Reply with quote

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____ Star Trek TOS The Enterprise Incident Trailer


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It's Mission: Impossible, Trek-style. It's subterfuge, espionage, and galactic mind games of cosmic proportions.

These games worked well on me as a kid. As the episode begins, we hear a voice-over from McCoy stating that Kirk has been behaving oddly lately, possibly due to continual stress of command.

When I first watched this first act, I was convinced that Kirk had lost it; all those encounters with everything from Gorns to Doomsday Machines had obviously caused some kind of post-traumatic stress syndrome in the formerly-invincible captain. It was a great set-up, both on the audience and the Romulans.

They're cool here, as to be expected following their smashing debut in Balance of Terror, but when up against both Kirk & Spock in full 'special mission' mode, they have no chance. Afte all, these two have altered the cultures of entire planets.



This episode also provides an interesting view of the sixties. Back then, there were no females of command rank on our side, the Federation. They mostly filled the roles of yeomans, nurses, communications, and perhaps a prosecutor.

There was a female 2nd-in-command in the pilot, The Cage, but this character had not been allowed to continue.

So, it seems like Roddenberry & his writers sneaked in this female commander on the Romulan side; this was allowed, since she worked for the enemy. Let the enemy indulge in these strange promotions. Well, it did work against the Romulans, didn't it?

It was strange to see Spock in the role of seducer, the part usually allocated to Kirk. Things were topsy-turvy all around in this one.




This was a fine thriller, with unexpected twists in every act, such as the Vulcan death grip. It delivered on the suspense all the way through to the conclusion.

It also allowed Shatner to apply one of those totally bonkers, wild-eyed performances, as was the case in a few episodes. These are the ones that fans tend to make fun of, but we do remember them well, and there was a method to the madness in this case.

BoG's Score: 8 out of 10



Extra Trek Trivia: Romulans have the same origins as the Vulcans. The story goes, a sect of Vulcans broke off from the main body a couple of thousand years ago, refusing to follow the way of logic. They settled on a couple of planets named Romulus & Remus, beginning the Romulan Star Empire. Being out of touch, they were unfamiliar with the famous 'Vulcan Death Grip' — depicted here:


__________________Star Trek - Kirk Is Dead!


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BoG
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Bud Brewster
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PostPosted: Tue Jun 11, 2019 2:00 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

________________________________

This is certainly one of Bogmeister's best reviews of a Star Trek episode — which is not surprising since it's an exceptional story.

One of the amusing things about this episode is the way we see Spock claiming (yet again) that Vulcans cannot lie . . . right in the middle of telling one lie after another as part of the ruse he and Kirk pull on the Romulans.

Funny. Laughing

And this trivia item brings to mind something interesting as well.


Bogmeister wrote:
Extra Trek Trivia: Romulans have the same origins as the Vulcans. . . . a sect of Vulcans broke off from the main body a couple of thousand years ago . . . Being out of touch, they were unfamiliar with the famous 'Vulcan Death Grip'.

Consider this remark in relation to the Enterprise episodes which presented stories about how the Vulcan mind meld was taboo according to strict Vulcan traditionalists, because they considered the sharing or someone's thoughts to be both too personal and potentially emotional.

Granted we're not really sure how much of Enterprise we can consider strictly canon, but as far as I know there's no evidence that the Vulcan mind meld was NOT controversial back in the time of the NX-01.

But if the Romulans have been separated from their Vulcan "brothers" for thousands of years, they probably have little-or-no knowledge of the mind meld — and since they've never pursued the strict mental disciplines of the Vulcan philosophy, it's unlikely they would be even able to perform it themselves.

Having said all that, I agreed with Bogmeister's idea that the Romulans were fooled by the bogus "Vulcan death grip" because of their general unfamiliarity with Vulcan culture.

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johnnybear
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PostPosted: Sat Jun 15, 2019 8:40 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

It's really weird when you think about it, the Romulans were only in two episodes of the original series! All right so they appeared in The Deadly Years as well but we never saw their faces in that one did we!
JB
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Pow
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PostPosted: Wed Jul 03, 2019 12:22 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Trivia for "The Enterprise Incident" } Writer D.C. Fontana's story outline was entitled "Ears." Groan.

D.C. based her script upon the real life Pueblo incident.
A TV movie about the Pueblo being captured by the N.Koreans was made with Hal Holbrook as the captain.

In Fontana's original story the Enterprise is taken to a Romulan outpost after being captured by Romulan ships.

The commander of the outpost is male & orders Kirk 7 Spock to be interrogated and tortured.

Kirk & Spock both take suicide pills which are really made up of the drug Dr. McCoy gave to Kirk on Vulcan in "Amok Time."

McCoy pronounces them both deceased & is allowed to return the bodies to the Enterprise where we learn this is all a ploy in order to ascertain if the Romulan Star Empire has new & more sophisticated cloaking machine.

McCoy & Kirk are made to appear as Romulans.

Sarek, Mr.Spock's father, had been on the Enterprise as part of this covert operation and now is negotiating with the Romulan commander but is really stalling for time to complete the secret op.

Kirk & McCoy are able to steal the cloaking mechanism & get back to the Enterprise.

The script underwent rewrites in order to involve Mr. Spock more prominently in the plot. It dropped Dr. McCoy being disguised as a Romulan in order to save on the budget.

Leonard Nimoy & D.C. Fontana both felt that Mr. Spock's attempts to seduce the female Romulan starship captain was unrealistic. The Romulan captain would have not trusted Spock for one minute and never have been so gullible.

The opening of the episode shows Klingon starships instead of the Romulan vessels as we had seen in other episodes.
The dialogue tells us that the Romulans & Klingons now have an alliance and the Romulans are using Klingon ships.

I read that the model for the Romulan star ship model had been lost or damaged and that forced the production to utilize the Klingon model instead.

I always wondered if the Romulans were supposed to be as physically powerful as their Vulcan brethren? The way Kirk easily dispatched the Romulan soldier guarding the cloaking device indicates a no.

Writer David Gerrold disliked this episode as he thought that after many episodes establishing the Federation of Planets as an honorable organization, this proved that they were ruthless & deceitful.

One of the better third season episodes in a generally inferior season for the series.

I can agree with some of the criticisms of it and still find it entertaining.

And hey, isn't that cloaking device part of the nifty looking Nomad probe from "the Changeling' 'with a makeover?
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Krel
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PostPosted: Wed Jul 03, 2019 2:41 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Pow wrote:



The opening of the episode shows Klingon starships instead of the Romulan vessels as we had seen in other episodes.
The dialogue tells us that the Romulans & Klingons now have an alliance and the Romulans are using Klingon ships.

I read that the model for the Romulan star ship model had been lost or damaged and that forced the production to utilize the Klingon model instead.




The use of the Klingon Cruiser, like the use of the Klingon phasers for the Romulans was a cost cutting measure. Having the Romulans use the more advanced Klingon equipment also made them more of a threat to the Federation.

It also touched on how the Soviets were supplying other countries with militarily aid.

Pow, the story I read it that the Romulan Bird of Prey went AWOL.

David.
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johnnybear
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PostPosted: Sat Jul 06, 2019 8:21 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Pow wrote:

And hey, isn't that cloaking device part of the nifty looking Nomad probe from "the Changeling' 'with a makeover?


Maybe Tan-Ru The Other was a Romulan designed probe?
JB
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