I know you guys are coming up on the end of the original ST. More likely you will be taking a small break from St to review other stuff. Can I suggest a Underrated but amazing SciFi series from England. It has been on and off for about 15-20+ years. Its a Scifi Sitcom called Red Dwarf. Yes, a Scifi comedy! Now there are only about 6-8 episodes a season and it takes the 3rd season for the series to run on all cylinders. Yet the 1st 2 season are worth a watch and have some story lore that returns later on. Not many in the US are aware of this cult classic show, but is it well loved in Europe. There is even a online TV network called Dave that was named after the lead character.
This episode tackles what we now call Environmental Racism, also known as Ecological Apartheid. The international movement to study and mitigate this type of disproportionate collateral damage from industrialization kicked into high gear in the 70s. Lower class people are subject to worse conditions, creating demonstrably worse outcomes, which then feeds the bigotry of the upper class. Studies in the late 60’s began to reveal the kinds of intellectual damage suffered by children, exposed to higher levels of lead in cheap paint, used in low-income housing, causing lower testing scores and behavioral issues. For the sake of the sci fi story, the gas might as well stand in for black lung, fast food, hazardous waste dumping, factory pollution, or any number of conditions endured disproportionately by the working class. Nobody rich lives near a coal mine or a factory. Spock makes it clear that these people are all the same species, therefore, all in possession of equal potential, which makes McCoy’s reading of the Troglytes and their 20% intellectual deficit a medical mystery, which they solve. Vanna’s work, ostensibly cooking and cleaning, in Stratos, gives her time enough away from the mines to where she’s able to beat some of the effects of the gas and emerge as a leader. Zenite is about to get more expensive on Ardana. Great episode.
funny how such a Sci-fi show than ran only 3 season made William Shatner the most recognized actor of all time even to this day. How many actors can say the went to outer space for real based on an appearance on a show in the 60,s. The impact this show has had on generations of viewers never fails to amaze me.
Captain Kirk: "You guys should really wear these masks, they can help you." High Advisor Plasus: "No, F-off, we don't need your stupid masks." Where have I heard that conversation before?
Good comments on the episode. The commercials were part of the pacing, because the story breaks were always designed with the idea of making sure the audience didn't flip to another channel during the commercials, like little cliffhangers. I had a friend who wrote over 200 episodes of TV and he said that pacing was instinctual to him at that point, and if he wrote a movie script he had to remind himself not to pace it that way. So, it does feel awkward now. However, I do think the biggest problem with the pacing, for modern viewers, is that every episode had to be exactly the same length. So, sometimes you had too much story and had to hurry, and other times you had too little and had to pad. For contrast, I just did a quick search and it looks like the episodes of The Sandman series vary from 37 minutes to 64 minutes. You couldn't do that in 1969.
This is another episode that my dad and I quote to each other all the time. "Dig! I said DIG!!!" and "Are you skilled with mortae as you are with a phaser? Both will kill!". And we also recreate that weird fight move where Kirk breaks the old guys hold on him and double karate chops him in the neck. 😆
Jeff Corey, who played the High Advisor, was blacklisted in thev1950s and started teaching acting out of his garage and became one of the most popular acting teachers in Hollywood. His students included Jack Nicholson, Martin Landau, and (I think) Leonard Nimoy
Jeff Corey was immortalized in plastic when made into a Kenner action figure, Sheriff Bledsoe, from "Butch and Sundance: The Early Days." He was also Greg Sestero's acting coach, forever known as "Mark" from Tommy Wiseau's cult classic "The Room."
The Troglyte who commits suicide by jumping from Stratos was played by Garth Pillsbury who had previously appeared in Star Trek's "Mirror, Mirror" as the crewman who saved Kirk from Chekov's assassination attempt. Mr. Pillsbury was the first person who appeared in the original series that I ever met at a convention (in Chicago in 2011).
The high altitude shot of the planet's surface was an actual photograph taken from space of a river in the Middle East. Mike Okuda, who worked on the remastered episodes, said "The image of the planetscape is based on the same photograph used by Cinema Research Corp in creating the episode's original visual effects in 1969. That photograph was taken by astronauts on the Gemini IV orbital mission in 1965 and shows the Hadramawt Plateau dry river basin in Yemen. For the remastered effect, Dwayne A. Day of the National Research Council and John Hargenreder of the NASA History Office combed through NASA archives at NASA Headquarters in Washington D.C. to find the original photograph for the remastered visual effects team. (The distant mountains on the horizon are based on a different photo, taken by astronauts on the International Space Station.)"
Astronaut Ed White, who later died in the 1967 Apollo 1 fire, made the first spacewalk by an American on the Gemini IV mission. His crewmate on Gemini was Jim McDivitt, who passed away six months ago at age 93.
Jeff Corey (Plasus) was Leonard Nimoy's acting teacher back in the 1950s. When corey was blacklisted for supposed Communist Party associations, Nimoy took over his acting classes to help keep his studio going.
Ironic that Jeff Corey played the bad guy in the 1951 film, "Superman and the Mole Men", where he tried to kill the mole men. He seems to struggle with creatures that spend the majority of their time underground.
Having commercial breaks for quickly making a sandwich or dashing to the bathroom or just pondering what you saw & maybe talking about it with your friend or family during that break....is indeed a positive factor.
The comment about commercials was very insightful. Also, you are right about the music. I have always felt the movies would satisfy much more of that nostalgia feel if they incorporated music from the original series.
This is a good episode. Really tackles some tough topics. I love how some metaphors are more obvious but others are more subtle. I haven't watched your entire discussion yet, but the gas inside the mines is meant to symbolize poor living conditions that leads to lower intelligence, addressing the arguments of 'inherited stupidity'. It will be sad when you finally finish TOS but I'm excited to get into what follows.
I like Droxine and all, but she's SO going to 'go to the mines', break a nail, go 'ewww' and run back to her sky mansion. I'm sure she means well, but I have trouble seeing someone that pampered and sheltered doing well 'roughing it'. Still, she might very well be a very important catalyst for change on the planet. This is one of those episodes that kind of makes me want to see more of the story, with Droxine, Plasus and Vanna at the center of it.
Great reaction, Alex and Josh. This is one of my favourite episodes of the third season and Star Trek the original series over all, there is another good episode on the way too, I'm sure glad that there were great episodes towards the end of the series.
I can't wait till we pass The Motion Picture.. That was the worst of all the movies. But better then Discovery ! lol I would love to see their reactions on DS9 ! BUT we are far far in the future from that one yet.
@@mab-qe5wh - It admittedly pales in comparison with most of the 5 films that followed it. But in 1979, it was a glorious oasis after 10 long years in the desert for many Star Trek fans (many of them didn't count The Animated Series because of the corners that were cut by Filmation.) Another point: Robert Wise got so many notes from Paramount that it is hardly fair to call it his film. Also, have you seen the Director's Cut? It does improve the film greatly.
This is a great episode. I discussed it extensively on my channel in reference to people mistakenly insisting that the Federation is always a squeaky clean utopia that can do no wrong, no corruption, no poverty, etc. - to which I say, “Have you ever actually watched Star Trek??” Yes, that is the basic propaganda of the Federation, particularly in early TNG. But the Federation has ALWAYS been full of corruption and injustice, which the Enterprise/DS9/Voyager crew is at the rescue to address. Here’s a perfect example: THIS PLANET is a Federation member!! And the Federation has been more than happy to look the other way, because they need what’s being mined. Just let that sink in. This is also a great example of how Star Trek USED to tackle controversial topics, examining both sides - rather than wagging its finger at one without any sense of nuance.
Just wanted to say this was literally related - almost certainly - to black lung in coal miners, as you were thinking it was. That was an issue being discussed at the time, with a federal law being passed in 1969 (in the Federal Coal Mine Health and Safety Act of 1969, the US Congress set up standards to reduce dust and created the Black Lung Disability Trust).
Great story, BUT there's a huge GOOF: Spock almost drove himself crazy in "Amok Time" with his best friend Kirk tying himself in knots about Vulcan sex customs but is completely open about it with a perfect strange woman.
@@russellharrell2747 I can accept this. I think it might also point to how ‘attracted’ Spock was to her intellect. I think he sees beneath her outer beauty, to the heart beneath, like finding a stunningly beautiful flower that somehow is also crucial to a planet’s survival.
He was in the actual throes of it at the time. McCoy described it as if huge amounts of adrenaline was constantly being pumped into his system. It's amazing he could keep it together as well as he did. Here, he is basically himself, and is quite capable of speaking on any subject with scientific detachment.
Another of the Third Season Episodes I liked, a lot. There were a couple episodes with moments my dad laughed out loud at the first time he saw them. One was when in "By Any Other Name" Scotty was trying to drink one of the Kelvins under the table. They get drunk. He gets asked by the Kelvin "What is it?" Scotty looks at the liquor in a quizzical fashion and finally decides "It's Green." The second time was in this episode where they open a scene between Spock and Droxine after they had obviously been hitting it off. Vulcans were said to be almost as intellectually advanced as Stratos City dwellers. Droxine asks plaintively "You only take a mate once every seven years?" Yup Comedy gold or so it seemed to my 10 year old self. Good old zenite or xenite. Nice costume Droxine. Nice Twist. And Queen to Queens Bishop Two. Nice Call Back. Hmm I don't think Droxine will do well in the mines.
the image of the cloud city looks so much better on the version with the new special effects. Also the cloud city reminds me of Empire strikes back cloud city.
Yep, Bespin. I think Alex or Josh mentioned it a couple of times during the reaction? Like they said, I have to imagine it was an influence on SW, too, but I think the notion of a city in the clouds had existed quite a bit prior. One of the stories from Gulliver's Travels (which was... 1726, I think) mentions a flying island which, according to wikipedia (which I looked up as I was typing this out), "...population consists mainly of an educated elite, who are fond of mathematics, astronomy, music and technology, but fail to make practical use of their knowledge. Servants make up the rest of the population." Much like in this episode (so I assume it was the inspiration behind this story).
Jeff Corey, who played Plassus (sp?), was also on a couple of "Little House on the Prairie" episodes, and an episode of "Charmed", alongside a DS9 actor, J.G. Hertzler, who played General Martok on DS9
Kudos to Josh -- perhaps -- for what sounded like an Annie Hall joke. "I have Starfleet right here!" reminded me of the scene in Annie Hall where Woody is suddenly able to bring Marshall McLuhan into an argument. Shortly after the show went off the air, when syndication and the fan conventions were underway, Nimoy came to my city of Pittsburgh for an off-the-cuff talk about Trek. He spontaneously spun an imaginary episode based on a topic, like people needing to take meds to keep their minds clear. So he told a story about a planet with a ruler failing to take his meds, and I have to wonder if he had this particular episode in mind. There's a blooper of this where Spock quietly anchors his little finger in Droxine's exposed navel, and the poor actress has to soldier through the scene with a straight face. Josh is right -- the problem isn't message, it's making sure to tell a good story, message or not, and on that score, I found this adequate. (Josh is on fire this time -- the metaphor of needing to wear masks is ... wow, just wow. The enduring and always relevant wisdom of Star Trek!) Coming right up: if you thought the giant disembodied hand of the god Apollo holding the Enterprise in place was a wild way to begin an episode, you ain't seen nothing yet. Many thanks, TA. Steady as she goes, warp factor two.
It's funny the cloud dwellers provided coveralls and eye protection to the Troglytes, but not lung protection. Cool glasses though. Getting closer to "All Our Yesterdays", it's one of my favorite episodes, hope you enjoy it as well.
Ooh, I liked Alex's observation regarding the pacing w/ and w/o commercials. Just something else to think about that I'd never considered, either (though I have watched it w/ and w/o).
The Original script for this episode was supposed to be a more direct allegory for the Civil Rights movement, with the "Stupidity Gas" not being in it. "Lorerunner" goes into depth on the production issues with this episode on his podcast. This Episode was originally going to have a more Somber ending as well, with Kirk not solving this world's issues only at the end Forcing Both sides to mearly begin negotiations & dialog
Was the Prime Directive for non interference in place for the original series? Seems like Kirk and company were almost always changing or altering the course of civilizations. In contrast, just casually thinking of Next Generation, it seems like there were plenty of times in which the Enterprise would just leave people and civilizations to figure out and resolve their own problems.
@@dongilleo9743 Yes, it was. Recall The Apple, Return of the Archons, A Private Little War, etc., where interference and alteration were discussed in that context.
The episode was based on a story outline cowritten by David Gerrold, who wrote The Trouble with Tribbles. And yes, his story was more serious and made a much stronger statement about class conflict, racism, etc. Gerrold hated was was done to his ideas, angrily characterizing the episode's end solution to the problem as something like "Now the slaves just have to wear these filters and they can be perfectly happy going back to work in the cotton fields."
@@dongilleo9743 The Prime Directive was intended mostly for relatively primitive cultures, not peer cultures. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prime_Directive?wprov=sfti1
TOS is obviously a classic and always fun to rewatch but I am so excited to get to move onto the next iterations of the franchise with the TA. I wonder if you'll resume having an intro with some opening thoughts and expectations once we're into some new territory...
Josh, you hit it right on the nose with how the message is displayed lazily in a lot of things today vs how it can be more sublet in good storytelling! I’m glad that you recognize that as I do like it in a way to where it makes me actually happy think about it.. which old Trek does a fantastic job at!
With episode streaming these days, you're watching TV shows in a movie style. No breaks. We had at least 4 breaks through the whole hour...maybe a fifth if you count between shows.
I can’t help but inwardly chuckle when you comment about the slow pacing of an episode. Wait until you get to the later series. Between the technobabble and somewhat more cerebral approach, the original series pacing will seem like “the wink of an eye“. 😅 Jeff Corey was also an acting teacher. One of his students was Leonard Nimoy.
Being slow-paced and well-paced don’t have to be mutually exclusive. Slow-paced things can still be well done, and fast-paced things can be done poorly.
Yes, these shows had to be specifically designed around the commercials. David Gerrold ("The Trouble with Tribbles") described it as "fifteen minutes and bang! a climax" repeated until the end. Each show had a teaser followed by the intro, four story segments (usually fourteen minutes each) and a tag at the end (that little bit that you missed this time). All this accommodated four sets of commercials, and the show had to be written around them, part of that dragginess you've been noticing is the necessity of having a fill-in-the-audience moment after each set of commercials, in case people had just tuned in and had no idea what was going on. Seeing it all without the breaks does change the flow of the show, alright, and if you haven't seen them in the original format, I'm sure it seems weird in its pacing, especially compared to the relentless yaya that people get nowadays.
Shatner's eyes at 11:10. He seems literally more menacing than his mirror counterpart or his evil half when his personality was split. Even bold and aggressive Vanna seems fearful when Kirk starts losing it.
I was surprised that you didn't mention that the blonde went for Spock instead since you usually do when they go for Kirk, but in this case Kirk was attracted to the feisty redhead
I love the episode. Got a bit tired of the "entire planet is dying and needs a rare medicine" trope. Thanks so much for reminding me that Kirk was out of his element a bit. He really cant come in and start making demands like he did. He needed to be more diplomatic to get what he wanted. I liked the Vanna character. She was clearly very smart and was able to manipulate everyone as a leader for her people.
Star Trek, the Original Series, typically excels in showing BOTH SIDES in a sympathetic manner, unlike a lot of modern series, which basically says, "Believe this by the end of the episode, or you're a bigot."
I like this episode alot. Probably in my top 10 TOS episode. Droxine is a work of art, truly. And Spock getting the girls attention is class all the way. The story did what it does best for sci fi and connecting it to current issues of the day. A nice tight episode. The masks were goofy. Reminds me a bit of "The Jerk" and a contraption that the Steve Martin character came up with. Great discussions in the episode and action as well. Really worth rewatching. IMO, commercial breaks really do work better for the story and pacing. Watching it without taking a break and having your mind distracted from the episode, may make it feel off.
I liked this episode a lot too. Granted the masks were stupid looking and I know they were on a pretty tight budget but it would not have been expensive to come up with something a little more realistic. I thought Droxine's dress was one of the most beautiful costumes on the whole series and the actress looked so delicate and beautiful in it.
It seems like Spock is way out of character here, flirting openly with Droxine and discussing pon farr with her. The class struggle theme is fine - heavy handed, but fine. Spock's little monologue about the situation pretty much sums up everything. Actually as message episodes goes this one is pretty good.
I was a little freaked out that Spock would discuss pon farr with a woman he just met when it was made clear that it's an extremely personal thing to Vulcans in Amok Time. Other than that, I like this one too.
One of my pet peeves with any series; that they'll establish a hardcore idea or principle for some character, belief, or circumstance, and then completely violate it or throw it out the window for no good reason except for the sake of a different episode storyline.
There's a lot of ways to look at that. It could be a matter of growth for Spock. It could be because she obviously already knew things about it. It could be because they were talking about it in the abstract rather than talking about him specifically being in pon far at the time, etc.
This episode lands dead center in an average of the internet episode rankings I found online, and I think it deserves better than that. I wouldn't put it on my shortlist of very favorite TOS episodes, because I don't think there's any particular element to it that's clearly exceptional, but I do quite like it and would rank it fairly highly.
I have been waiting for you two to get to this one. Nice that you have appreciation for Droxine. They did a good job with Stratos (the city in the clouds) but you two will like seeing what they did with it in the enhanced effects version.
William Ware Theiss outdid himself with Droxine's gown. I'm sure they had to keep the top anchored with body tape in the front, given the long drape in the back, but it really is a stunning costume.
The Cloud Minders was one of my favs. One more fun episode The Vicious Circle. One more Spock centric episode and a weird but oddly current episode. Yes Cloud City was inspired by this episode and the hawkmen city from Flash Gordon.
Bespin was not inspired by this episode, but clearly by the city of the Hawkmen in Flash Gordon, from which so very many of the people, places, and situations (not to mention the opening crawl) of Star Wars derive. The movie of which this episode reminds me is Metropolis, with its upper world of the privileged and its lower, hellish world of the workers.
This plot is somewhat reminiscent of one of the earliest Superman stories from the late 1930s, where Superman poses as a miner who was killed by lack of safety precautions and then punishes his bosses by (temporarily) trapping them down the mine. As someone from a mining area, both certainly have resonance for me.
Speaking of pacing, it would be interesting to see if you'd react differently to the syndicated cuts of the show, as when I saw them they were cut to the standard 42 minutes that TV had settled on as the actual time in an hour show instead of the original 50 minutes that they were when originally aired. I even wonder if the syndicated cuts still exist out there on the vast internet seas.
Bringing modern problems into sci-fi was what Star Trek was known for and it is why people like it. It is why Roddenberry created this show in the first place. I think I read somewhere that Jeff Corey, the man who was the leader of the planet was Nimoy's acting coach too, interesting tidbit.
Story was by David Gerrold, but he was very upset about them introducing the concept of masks and zenite gas as his story was more a direct story about the conflict between the haves and have-nots and felt the business of the gas and masks cheapened it "Here, give them these masks and it will sort it all out." Still, a great episode. The view of the surface from the city overhead is actually a (I believe) a satellite photo of an area of Earth. The remastered version got access to the same photo for effects use.
I liked this episode but I do remember thinking they should have come up with a better looking mask. Droxine's dress I thought was one of the most fabulous costumes. I was surprised it was so low it revealed her bellybutton which I thought in earlier episodes was supposed to be covered. I thought the set for the city interior was very well done too. Sometimes I see decor used in an episode being used again in another but this looked very unique. I enjoyed your reaction and commentary on this episode.
Not trying to say I don't dislike the TOS reactions because I do but man, I can't wait to see your reactions to both the movies and especially The Next Generation. Just remember not to watch any of the Trek movies past Undiscovered Country before you've finished TNG. Great work as always, guys.
Star Trek - proudly woke since TOS! I always liked the messaging in this episode, AND the way it was woven into a compelling story. I have read all the preceding comments and I agree that bashing the audience and forcing it into a binary view is not good, but that is not what "woke" is at its core. Luminiferous probably said it best, although there are others with similar contributions. I was unaware of the David Gerrold backstory on the rewrite. The original version may have made a better story, but what we got was pretty good too. I remember the 60s and 70s. Too bad we weren't able to build the world some envisioned.
I really like the duel set up where the antagonist keeps both the weapons - hilarious. 'Classic' media lets you find the message yourself, and you can find it or not. Modern media shoves 'the message' down your throat, and if you are very lucky you may get a tiny bit of entertainment (I'm looking at you Amazon & Disney). I think that's why I tend to like older stuff a good bit better, and probably why the streaming people keep on losing audience numbers.
Good season three episode. The Enterprise has an advanced GPS system that can pin point exact coordinates to beam someone to and from exact locations. That's also to be sure that one doesn't get transported into solid objects or out into space as in the episode "And The Children Shall Lead". The third season episodes seemed to be a little more socially/culturally oriented. Nice reaction.
Well, what do you want? Someone was trying to _kill_ him! 😲 It just goes to show how you never know what set of skills you will need as a Starfleet officer! Even if you are on a Federation planet, on a diplomatic mission, bunked out in the capital building!
Good analysis and a fun, clever episode that is sometimes under-rated. By the way, I hope you take a look at a few episodes of the animated series - it really is the missing "fourth season" of Classic Star Trek; in fact, some of the writers who worked on Cloud Minders also wrote a couple of episodes of the animated series.
I've been meaning to mention that point about commercials. When watching TOS and TNG, I found that it's often better to take a break every time they... break. It feels more natural that way, if you can bring yourself to do it. Perhaps set a timer so you have exactly X minutes to do whatever, but have to start again as soon as the timer goes off. During the breaks you could talk about what you'd just seen - as we did when we watched the series originally. Seeing as you still have about 4 seasons of TNG ahead of you, maybe try that once or twice and see what happens. Note however that DS9 works much better without the breaks, at least in my opinion.
I consider this episode to be very good. I have enjoyed watching it multiple times through the years. I never found Star Trek TOS, including this episode, to be subtle in its messaging, at least not in the sense of one definition of subtle being understated and difficult to perceive. However, since TOS tended to explore multiple viewpoints on issues showing that both sides had some valid points, and at the same time, had some problems, and sometimes also showing that there may be an enlightened third viewpoint that both sides had not considered, then the messaging in TOS could be considered subtle in the sense of another definition of subtle being complex and clever so as to require mental acuteness or discernment. It is in this sense that I would say the messaging in this episode is subtle, although it was not understated nor difficult to perceive. Also, I think that a big problem with the messaging in today's "woke" entertainment is that the message is presented in an over simplified manner with only one totally right viewpoint on an issue and all other viewpoints are presented as being totally wrong, and those that have the approved viewpoint are presented as being totally good, and those that have any other viewpoint are presented as being totally evil. Thus, the messaging today is not subtle in either sense of the word.
David Gerrold originally wrote this, & says that his story was butchered by the people who re-wrote it. They, he says, tamed it too much - toned it way down. I think it's still effective, but wish it was as powerful as it was supposed to be. It should be about equality, not just keeping the working class happy while they work.
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I know you guys are coming up on the end of the original ST. More likely you will be taking a small break from St to review other stuff. Can I suggest a Underrated but amazing SciFi series from England. It has been on and off for about 15-20+ years. Its a Scifi Sitcom called Red Dwarf. Yes, a Scifi comedy! Now there are only about 6-8 episodes a season and it takes the 3rd season for the series to run on all cylinders. Yet the 1st 2 season are worth a watch and have some story lore that returns later on. Not many in the US are aware of this cult classic show, but is it well loved in Europe. There is even a online TV network called Dave that was named after the lead character.
@@0PsychosisMedia0 Ooh, Red Dwarf! Yeah, it's not as big in the US, but it does have a small(?) cult following who do know and appreciate it.
We used to call putting the message over the story as having a "heavy handed message".
This episode tackles what we now call Environmental Racism, also known as Ecological Apartheid. The international movement to study and mitigate this type of disproportionate collateral damage from industrialization kicked into high gear in the 70s.
Lower class people are subject to worse conditions, creating demonstrably worse outcomes, which then feeds the bigotry of the upper class. Studies in the late 60’s began to reveal the kinds of intellectual damage suffered by children, exposed to higher levels of lead in cheap paint, used in low-income housing, causing lower testing scores and behavioral issues. For the sake of the sci fi story, the gas might as well stand in for black lung, fast food, hazardous waste dumping, factory pollution, or any number of conditions endured disproportionately by the working class. Nobody rich lives near a coal mine or a factory.
Spock makes it clear that these people are all the same species, therefore, all in possession of equal potential, which makes McCoy’s reading of the Troglytes and their 20% intellectual deficit a medical mystery, which they solve. Vanna’s work, ostensibly cooking and cleaning, in Stratos, gives her time enough away from the mines to where she’s able to beat some of the effects of the gas and emerge as a leader. Zenite is about to get more expensive on Ardana. Great episode.
funny how such a Sci-fi show than ran only 3 season made William Shatner the most recognized actor of all time even to this day. How many actors can say the went to outer space for real based on an appearance on a show in the 60,s. The impact this show has had on generations of viewers never fails to amaze me.
I loved Alex's response to Vanna calling up to the Enterprise for help and he was like, "Queen to Queen's bishop three." 😆
Queen to queen's LEVEL 3
@@ammaleslie509 Oh, if you're talking about the actual quote from the episode you're right, but I was quoting the phrase Alex used.
"Is your planet like this one?"
Spock, "No, our planet is quite different. We just use the same set."
Both cloud cities were inspired by Flash Gordon.
Even before Flash Gordon, "Gulliver's Travels" had Laputa.
Captain Kirk: "You guys should really wear these masks, they can help you." High Advisor Plasus: "No, F-off, we don't need your stupid masks." Where have I heard that conversation before?
This one of those timeless episodes. The story can be seen from several angles. It even applies to today.
Good comments on the episode.
The commercials were part of the pacing, because the story breaks were always designed with the idea of making sure the audience didn't flip to another channel during the commercials, like little cliffhangers. I had a friend who wrote over 200 episodes of TV and he said that pacing was instinctual to him at that point, and if he wrote a movie script he had to remind himself not to pace it that way. So, it does feel awkward now.
However, I do think the biggest problem with the pacing, for modern viewers, is that every episode had to be exactly the same length. So, sometimes you had too much story and had to hurry, and other times you had too little and had to pad. For contrast, I just did a quick search and it looks like the episodes of The Sandman series vary from 37 minutes to 64 minutes. You couldn't do that in 1969.
Not to mention 24 episodes a season, nowadays its about 12 episodes a season.
This is another episode that my dad and I quote to each other all the time. "Dig! I said DIG!!!" and "Are you skilled with mortae as you are with a phaser? Both will kill!". And we also recreate that weird fight move where Kirk breaks the old guys hold on him and double karate chops him in the neck. 😆
You have a great dad X)
Kirk fu is always awesome 😁👍
Jeff Corey, who played the High Advisor, was blacklisted in thev1950s and started teaching acting out of his garage and became one of the most popular acting teachers in Hollywood. His students included Jack Nicholson, Martin Landau, and (I think) Leonard Nimoy
He was indeed Leonard Nimoy's acting coach.
Tom Chaney
@@Mwoods2272 Yeah! Great role! He was also in the pilot for George Reeves Superman. The guy can do anything
Jeff Corey was immortalized in plastic when made into a Kenner action figure, Sheriff Bledsoe, from "Butch and Sundance: The Early Days." He was also Greg Sestero's acting coach, forever known as "Mark" from Tommy Wiseau's cult classic "The Room."
The Troglyte who commits suicide by jumping from Stratos was played by Garth Pillsbury who had previously appeared in Star Trek's "Mirror, Mirror" as the crewman who saved Kirk from Chekov's assassination attempt. Mr. Pillsbury was the first person who appeared in the original series that I ever met at a convention (in Chicago in 2011).
The high altitude shot of the planet's surface was an actual photograph taken from space of a river in the Middle East.
Mike Okuda, who worked on the remastered episodes, said "The image of the planetscape is based on the same photograph used by Cinema Research Corp in creating the episode's original visual effects in 1969. That photograph was taken by astronauts on the Gemini IV orbital mission in 1965 and shows the Hadramawt Plateau dry river basin in Yemen. For the remastered effect, Dwayne A. Day of the National Research Council and John Hargenreder of the NASA History Office combed through NASA archives at NASA Headquarters in Washington D.C. to find the original photograph for the remastered visual effects team. (The distant mountains on the horizon are based on a different photo, taken by astronauts on the International Space Station.)"
Astronaut Ed White, who later died in the 1967 Apollo 1 fire, made the first spacewalk by an American on the Gemini IV mission. His crewmate on Gemini was Jim McDivitt, who passed away six months ago at age 93.
Sadly, next episode, "The Savage Curtain" is Nichelle Nichols' final appearance in TOS.
Really? Never noticed that, thx
@@harrybroos5691 She had a singing engagement the week of "Turnabout Intruder." "All Our Yesterdays," of course, features only the Big Three.
Lead poisoning from paint was a similar scenario in the 60’s affecting inner city youth in particular
A much more widespread issue than Black Lung. Not to take anything away from that, some of my family were coal miners.
Jeff Corey (Plasus) was Leonard Nimoy's acting teacher back in the 1950s. When corey was blacklisted for supposed Communist Party associations, Nimoy took over his acting classes to help keep his studio going.
Good insight about the pacing being different with commercials. Shows were written with commercial breaks in mind.
This has always been a favorite. Season 3 does have some bangers.
Ironic that Jeff Corey played the bad guy in the 1951 film, "Superman and the Mole Men", where he tried to kill the mole men. He seems to struggle with creatures that spend the majority of their time underground.
Having commercial breaks for quickly making a sandwich or dashing to the bathroom or just pondering what you saw & maybe talking about it with your friend or family during that break....is indeed a positive factor.
The comment about commercials was very insightful.
Also, you are right about the music. I have always felt the movies would satisfy much more of that nostalgia feel if they incorporated music from the original series.
Right, the commercial breaks gave you a few minutes to digest what just happened before jumping into the next scene.
The only music clues we got in the films was the Star Trek trumpet fanfare. The rest of the fantastic music library they had built was ignored.
This is a good episode. Really tackles some tough topics. I love how some metaphors are more obvious but others are more subtle. I haven't watched your entire discussion yet, but the gas inside the mines is meant to symbolize poor living conditions that leads to lower intelligence, addressing the arguments of 'inherited stupidity'.
It will be sad when you finally finish TOS but I'm excited to get into what follows.
I like Droxine and all, but she's SO going to 'go to the mines', break a nail, go 'ewww' and run back to her sky mansion. I'm sure she means well, but I have trouble seeing someone that pampered and sheltered doing well 'roughing it'. Still, she might very well be a very important catalyst for change on the planet. This is one of those episodes that kind of makes me want to see more of the story, with Droxine, Plasus and Vanna at the center of it.
WWedo.know one thing: Vanna went on to turn letters for a long-lasting game show!
Great reaction, Alex and Josh. This is one of my favourite episodes of the third season and Star Trek the original series over all, there is another good episode on the way too, I'm sure glad that there were great episodes towards the end of the series.
I always liked Spock's inner dialog in this episode.
Great watch! When you get to Star Trek: The Motion Picture, please choose The Director's Cut!
Specifically, the 2022 version of the director's cut.
I can't wait till we pass The Motion Picture.. That was the worst of all the movies. But better then Discovery ! lol I would love to see their reactions on DS9 ! BUT we are far far in the future from that one yet.
@@mab-qe5wh - It admittedly pales in comparison with most of the 5 films that followed it. But in 1979, it was a glorious oasis after 10 long years in the desert for many Star Trek fans (many of them didn't count The Animated Series because of the corners that were cut by Filmation.) Another point: Robert Wise got so many notes from Paramount that it is hardly fair to call it his film.
Also, have you seen the Director's Cut? It does improve the film greatly.
@@blanetalk agreed! When The Motion Picture came out I thought I was in heaven. Finally some new Star Trek!
This is a great episode. I discussed it extensively on my channel in reference to people mistakenly insisting that the Federation is always a squeaky clean utopia that can do no wrong, no corruption, no poverty, etc. - to which I say, “Have you ever actually watched Star Trek??” Yes, that is the basic propaganda of the Federation, particularly in early TNG. But the Federation has ALWAYS been full of corruption and injustice, which the Enterprise/DS9/Voyager crew is at the rescue to address. Here’s a perfect example: THIS PLANET is a Federation member!! And the Federation has been more than happy to look the other way, because they need what’s being mined. Just let that sink in.
This is also a great example of how Star Trek USED to tackle controversial topics, examining both sides - rather than wagging its finger at one without any sense of nuance.
Just wanted to say this was literally related - almost certainly - to black lung in coal miners, as you were thinking it was. That was an issue being discussed at the time, with a federal law being passed in 1969 (in the Federal Coal Mine Health and Safety Act of 1969, the US Congress set up standards to reduce dust and created the Black Lung Disability Trust).
I love that you call her Dioxide!!
Great story, BUT there's a huge GOOF: Spock almost drove himself crazy in "Amok Time" with his best friend Kirk tying himself in knots about Vulcan sex customs but is completely open about it with a perfect strange woman.
It’s character growth! Spock breaking out of that strict Vulcan cultural taboo.
@@russellharrell2747 I can accept this. I think it might also point to how ‘attracted’ Spock was to her intellect. I think he sees beneath her outer beauty, to the heart beneath, like finding a stunningly beautiful flower that somehow is also crucial to a planet’s survival.
He was in the actual throes of it at the time. McCoy described it as if huge amounts of adrenaline was constantly being pumped into his system. It's amazing he could keep it together as well as he did.
Here, he is basically himself, and is quite capable of speaking on any subject with scientific detachment.
@3:20 the fact that my brother had the same reaction when I showed him this episode a couple of days ago...😂
Another of the Third Season Episodes I liked, a lot. There were a couple episodes with moments my dad laughed out loud at the first time he saw them. One was when in "By Any Other Name" Scotty was trying to drink one of the Kelvins under the table. They get drunk. He gets asked by the Kelvin "What is it?" Scotty looks at the liquor in a quizzical fashion and finally decides "It's Green."
The second time was in this episode where they open a scene between Spock and Droxine after they had obviously been hitting it off. Vulcans were said to be almost as intellectually advanced as Stratos City dwellers. Droxine asks plaintively "You only take a mate once every seven years?"
Yup Comedy gold or so it seemed to my 10 year old self.
Good old zenite or xenite. Nice costume Droxine.
Nice Twist.
And Queen to Queens Bishop Two. Nice Call Back.
Hmm I don't think Droxine will do well in the mines.
the image of the cloud city looks so much better on the version with the new special effects. Also the cloud city reminds me of Empire strikes back cloud city.
Yep, Bespin. I think Alex or Josh mentioned it a couple of times during the reaction? Like they said, I have to imagine it was an influence on SW, too, but I think the notion of a city in the clouds had existed quite a bit prior.
One of the stories from Gulliver's Travels (which was... 1726, I think) mentions a flying island which, according to wikipedia (which I looked up as I was typing this out), "...population consists mainly of an educated elite, who are fond of mathematics, astronomy, music and technology, but fail to make practical use of their knowledge. Servants make up the rest of the population." Much like in this episode (so I assume it was the inspiration behind this story).
Yeah it looks a little like the giants castle from Jack in the Beanstalk.
@@docsavage8640 Yes, Lucas was inspired by Prince Barin's sky palace from the comic strip and also shown in the Buster Crabbe 1930's serials.
Blasphemer!!!😁 Star Trek came first.
Jeff Corey, who played Plassus (sp?), was also on a couple of "Little House on the Prairie" episodes, and an episode of "Charmed", alongside a DS9 actor, J.G. Hertzler, who played General Martok on DS9
He was also one of the mutant humans in the first sequel to Planet of the Apes: Beneath the Planet of the Apes.
And he was Nimoy's acting coach.
This is one of my favorite TOS episodes.
Kudos to Josh -- perhaps -- for what sounded like an Annie Hall joke. "I have Starfleet right here!" reminded me of the scene in Annie Hall where Woody is suddenly able to bring Marshall McLuhan into an argument. Shortly after the show went off the air, when syndication and the fan conventions were underway, Nimoy came to my city of Pittsburgh for an off-the-cuff talk about Trek. He spontaneously spun an imaginary episode based on a topic, like people needing to take meds to keep their minds clear. So he told a story about a planet with a ruler failing to take his meds, and I have to wonder if he had this particular episode in mind. There's a blooper of this where Spock quietly anchors his little finger in Droxine's exposed navel, and the poor actress has to soldier through the scene with a straight face. Josh is right -- the problem isn't message, it's making sure to tell a good story, message or not, and on that score, I found this adequate. (Josh is on fire this time -- the metaphor of needing to wear masks is ... wow, just wow. The enduring and always relevant wisdom of Star Trek!) Coming right up: if you thought the giant disembodied hand of the god Apollo holding the Enterprise in place was a wild way to begin an episode, you ain't seen nothing yet. Many thanks, TA. Steady as she goes, warp factor two.
I can tell you have become Star Trek fans when you hope for one more scene at the end of the episode when the Enterprise goes off into the distance.
It's been a while since I saw this episode, and I totally forgot about the mask thing. The past 2-3 years gives this episode a whole new meaning.
That guy who jumped, he had a long time to regret that move. Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!
One of S3's best because it most mirrors the S2 formula that works well.
Dioxide's dress was a work of art. Loved the chess countersign joke you made. Makes you wonder how Kirk left his communicator on "unlock."
It's funny the cloud dwellers provided coveralls and eye protection to the Troglytes, but not lung protection.
Cool glasses though.
Getting closer to "All Our Yesterdays", it's one of my favorite episodes, hope you enjoy it as well.
Ooh, I liked Alex's observation regarding the pacing w/ and w/o commercials. Just something else to think about that I'd never considered, either (though I have watched it w/ and w/o).
The Original script for this episode was supposed to be a more direct allegory for the Civil Rights movement, with the "Stupidity Gas" not being in it. "Lorerunner" goes into depth on the production issues with this episode on his podcast. This Episode was originally going to have a more Somber ending as well, with Kirk not solving this world's issues only at the end Forcing Both sides to mearly begin negotiations & dialog
Was the Prime Directive for non interference in place for the original series? Seems like Kirk and company were almost always changing or altering the course of civilizations.
In contrast, just casually thinking of Next Generation, it seems like there were plenty of times in which the Enterprise would just leave people and civilizations to figure out and resolve their own problems.
@@dongilleo9743 Yes, it was. Recall The Apple, Return of the Archons, A Private Little War, etc., where interference and alteration were discussed in that context.
The episode was based on a story outline cowritten by David Gerrold, who wrote The Trouble with Tribbles. And yes, his story was more serious and made a much stronger statement about class conflict, racism, etc. Gerrold hated was was done to his ideas, angrily characterizing the episode's end solution to the problem as something like "Now the slaves just have to wear these filters and they can be perfectly happy going back to work in the cotton fields."
@@dongilleo9743 The Prime Directive was intended mostly for relatively primitive cultures, not peer cultures. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prime_Directive?wprov=sfti1
TOS is obviously a classic and always fun to rewatch but I am so excited to get to move onto the next iterations of the franchise with the TA. I wonder if you'll resume having an intro with some opening thoughts and expectations once we're into some new territory...
This episode is the sort of content Gene Roddenberry wished to create.
Josh, you hit it right on the nose with how the message is displayed lazily in a lot of things today vs how it can be more sublet in good storytelling! I’m glad that you recognize that as I do like it in a way to where it makes me actually happy think about it.. which old Trek does a fantastic job at!
I think Alex neatly sunmed up Gene Roddenberry's intent with STAR TREK
With episode streaming these days, you're watching TV shows in a movie style. No breaks. We had at least 4 breaks through the whole hour...maybe a fifth if you count between shows.
I can’t help but inwardly chuckle when you comment about the slow pacing of an episode. Wait until you get to the later series. Between the technobabble and somewhat more cerebral approach, the original series pacing will seem like “the wink of an eye“. 😅
Jeff Corey was also an acting teacher. One of his students was Leonard Nimoy.
Being slow-paced and well-paced don’t have to be mutually exclusive. Slow-paced things can still be well done, and fast-paced things can be done poorly.
Run that through your Heisenberg Compensator to fix the pacing and structure.
I don't know what it is. But this episode really sticks out. It feels.. different.
Yes, these shows had to be specifically designed around the commercials. David Gerrold ("The Trouble with Tribbles") described it as "fifteen minutes and bang! a climax" repeated until the end. Each show had a teaser followed by the intro, four story segments (usually fourteen minutes each) and a tag at the end (that little bit that you missed this time). All this accommodated four sets of commercials, and the show had to be written around them, part of that dragginess you've been noticing is the necessity of having a fill-in-the-audience moment after each set of commercials, in case people had just tuned in and had no idea what was going on. Seeing it all without the breaks does change the flow of the show, alright, and if you haven't seen them in the original format, I'm sure it seems weird in its pacing, especially compared to the relentless yaya that people get nowadays.
Shatner's eyes at 11:10. He seems literally more menacing than his mirror counterpart or his evil half when his personality was split. Even bold and aggressive Vanna seems fearful when Kirk starts losing it.
I was surprised that you didn't mention that the blonde went for Spock instead since you usually do when they go for Kirk, but in this case Kirk was attracted to the feisty redhead
I love the episode. Got a bit tired of the "entire planet is dying and needs a rare medicine" trope. Thanks so much for reminding me that Kirk was out of his element a bit. He really cant come in and start making demands like he did. He needed to be more diplomatic to get what he wanted. I liked the Vanna character. She was clearly very smart and was able to manipulate everyone as a leader for her people.
Star Trek, the Original Series, typically excels in showing BOTH SIDES in a sympathetic manner, unlike a lot of modern series, which basically says, "Believe this by the end of the episode, or you're a bigot."
I like this episode alot. Probably in my top 10 TOS episode. Droxine is a work of art, truly. And Spock getting the girls attention is class all the way. The story did what it does best for sci fi and connecting it to current issues of the day. A nice tight episode. The masks were goofy. Reminds me a bit of "The Jerk" and a contraption that the Steve Martin character came up with. Great discussions in the episode and action as well. Really worth rewatching.
IMO, commercial breaks really do work better for the story and pacing. Watching it without taking a break and having your mind distracted from the episode, may make it feel off.
The optigrab.
I liked this episode a lot too. Granted the masks were stupid looking and I know they were on a pretty tight budget but it would not have been expensive to come up with something a little more realistic. I thought Droxine's dress was one of the most beautiful costumes on the whole series and the actress looked so delicate and beautiful in it.
We used to call putting the message over the story as having a "heavy handed message".
It seems like Spock is way out of character here, flirting openly with Droxine and discussing pon farr with her. The class struggle theme is fine - heavy handed, but fine. Spock's little monologue about the situation pretty much sums up everything. Actually as message episodes goes this one is pretty good.
I was a little freaked out that Spock would discuss pon farr with a woman he just met when it was made clear that it's an extremely personal thing to Vulcans in Amok Time. Other than that, I like this one too.
It shows the loss of quality towards the end. Kirk had to drag that info out of Spock with wild horses.
One of my pet peeves with any series; that they'll establish a hardcore idea or principle for some character, belief, or circumstance, and then completely violate it or throw it out the window for no good reason except for the sake of a different episode storyline.
Maybe Spock wasn't worried about getting too personal with a woman he was about to undress.
@@racookster Yeah, he was coyly playing hard to get. "It is impossible for me to be intimate with a woman. But..."
Spock is a smooth operator. 🖖😄
There's a lot of ways to look at that. It could be a matter of growth for Spock. It could be because she obviously already knew things about it. It could be because they were talking about it in the abstract rather than talking about him specifically being in pon far at the time, etc.
This episode lands dead center in an average of the internet episode rankings I found online, and I think it deserves better than that. I wouldn't put it on my shortlist of very favorite TOS episodes, because I don't think there's any particular element to it that's clearly exceptional, but I do quite like it and would rank it fairly highly.
"Enterprise, beam us up immediately!!"
"Acknowledged. What ... is the airspeed velocity of an unladen swallow?"
I keep hearing Alan Richman saying, "Miners, not minors!"
It's no surprise that Droxine found Spock attractive. Women at that time found Leonard Nimoy's portrayal quite sexy at the time.
I love how Spock just yeets people out of the shot in that opening fight.
I have been waiting for you two to get to this one.
Nice that you have appreciation for Droxine.
They did a good job with Stratos (the city in the clouds) but you two will like seeing what they did with it in the enhanced effects version.
I like the double-meaning of Stratos. It's up in the clouds but it's also stratified. It's 1960s Birmingham & apartheid-era Johannesburg.
Wow, I never thought of that!
William Ware Theiss outdid himself with Droxine's gown. I'm sure they had to keep the top anchored with body tape in the front, given the long drape in the back, but it really is a stunning costume.
Great comment about the commercials. I've always felt that TOS works and flows much better when interrupted with commercial breaks.
Queen to Queens level 3? After only one watch? Impressive
Next he'll do Salieri's Mozart March.
@Mike Jankowski Excellent reference and a Excellent movie. F Murray Abraham performance has to be in the top 10 in ALL of movie history
"Put her in the Hell's Gate"....I love all your wrestling references.
The Cloud Minders was one of my favs. One more fun episode The Vicious Circle. One more Spock centric episode and a weird but oddly current episode.
Yes Cloud City was inspired by this episode and the hawkmen city from Flash Gordon.
Bespin was not inspired by this episode, but clearly by the city of the Hawkmen in Flash Gordon, from which so very many of the people, places, and situations (not to mention the opening crawl) of Star Wars derive. The movie of which this episode reminds me is Metropolis, with its upper world of the privileged and its lower, hellish world of the workers.
This plot is somewhat reminiscent of one of the earliest Superman stories from the late 1930s, where Superman poses as a miner who was killed by lack of safety precautions and then punishes his bosses by (temporarily) trapping them down the mine. As someone from a mining area, both certainly have resonance for me.
Droxine in prescription strength when you need to stay up for hours.
One of my favorite episodes
Trivia, Plasus was Leonard Nimoy's former acting teacher. Great reaction!
Speaking of pacing, it would be interesting to see if you'd react differently to the syndicated cuts of the show, as when I saw them they were cut to the standard 42 minutes that TV had settled on as the actual time in an hour show instead of the original 50 minutes that they were when originally aired.
I even wonder if the syndicated cuts still exist out there on the vast internet seas.
Bringing modern problems into sci-fi was what Star Trek was known for and it is why people like it. It is why Roddenberry created this show in the first place. I think I read somewhere that Jeff Corey, the man who was the leader of the planet was Nimoy's acting coach too, interesting tidbit.
Kirkman feeling the Bern !
Story was by David Gerrold, but he was very upset about them introducing the concept of masks and zenite gas as his story was more a direct story about the conflict between the haves and have-nots and felt the business of the gas and masks cheapened it "Here, give them these masks and it will sort it all out." Still, a great episode. The view of the surface from the city overhead is actually a (I believe) a satellite photo of an area of Earth. The remastered version got access to the same photo for effects use.
I liked this episode but I do remember thinking they should have come up with a better looking mask. Droxine's dress I thought was one of the most fabulous costumes. I was surprised it was so low it revealed her bellybutton which I thought in earlier episodes was supposed to be covered. I thought the set for the city interior was very well done too. Sometimes I see decor used in an episode being used again in another but this looked very unique. I enjoyed your reaction and commentary on this episode.
The pacing is great.
Not trying to say I don't dislike the TOS reactions because I do but man, I can't wait to see your reactions to both the movies and especially The Next Generation. Just remember not to watch any of the Trek movies past Undiscovered Country before you've finished TNG. Great work as always, guys.
In 1960's America the lasso was the most unstoppable weapon... next to the loose fitted net.
And all the good guys knew how to shoot the bad guys' guns right out of their hands. It is a lost art, today.
@@zoppie How about a round of applause for the Waco Kid?
Star Trek - proudly woke since TOS! I always liked the messaging in this episode, AND the way it was woven into a compelling story. I have read all the preceding comments and I agree that bashing the audience and forcing it into a binary view is not good, but that is not what "woke" is at its core. Luminiferous probably said it best, although there are others with similar contributions.
I was unaware of the David Gerrold backstory on the rewrite. The original version may have made a better story, but what we got was pretty good too.
I remember the 60s and 70s. Too bad we weren't able to build the world some envisioned.
Spock was the man in this episode. The lithe beautiful blond went for Spock. It shows she can see other kinds of beauty.
6:06 Spock was about to score with that babe and Kirk had to bust in and wrap up the whole scene.
It makes his "Am I intruding?" that much funnier.
I really like the duel set up where the antagonist keeps both the weapons - hilarious. 'Classic' media lets you find the message yourself, and you can find it or not. Modern media shoves 'the message' down your throat, and if you are very lucky you may get a tiny bit of entertainment (I'm looking at you Amazon & Disney). I think that's why I tend to like older stuff a good bit better, and probably why the streaming people keep on losing audience numbers.
Good season three episode. The Enterprise has an advanced GPS system that can pin point exact coordinates to beam someone to and from exact locations. That's also to be sure that one doesn't get transported into solid objects or out into space as in the episode "And The Children Shall Lead". The third season episodes seemed to be a little more socially/culturally oriented. Nice reaction.
"I don't think the society is asking anything of the Enterprise crew."
Except hostages.
6:08 Kirk’s a real Spockblocker.
Well, what do you want? Someone was trying to _kill_ him! 😲
It just goes to show how you never know what set of skills you will need as a Starfleet officer!
Even if you are on a Federation planet, on a diplomatic mission, bunked out in the capital building!
BTW, nice turn of a phrase. 👍
This overall l would say was a descent entry for the third season. It reminded me of another sci-fi classic l love. Metropolis!
Spock recognized that Droxine was a genuinely refined young lady who once she understood would be part of the solution.
Commercials! Excellent point!
Good analysis and a fun, clever episode that is sometimes under-rated. By the way, I hope you take a look at a few episodes of the animated series - it really is the missing "fourth season" of Classic Star Trek; in fact, some of the writers who worked on Cloud Minders also wrote a couple of episodes of the animated series.
They are planning to watch all of TAS.
Droxine. It kind of does sound chemical; even Spock might've been intoxicated by her presence.
This episode is a modern take on the movie “Metropolis”
I've been meaning to mention that point about commercials. When watching TOS and TNG, I found that it's often better to take a break every time they... break. It feels more natural that way, if you can bring yourself to do it. Perhaps set a timer so you have exactly X minutes to do whatever, but have to start again as soon as the timer goes off. During the breaks you could talk about what you'd just seen - as we did when we watched the series originally. Seeing as you still have about 4 seasons of TNG ahead of you, maybe try that once or twice and see what happens.
Note however that DS9 works much better without the breaks, at least in my opinion.
I consider this episode to be very good. I have enjoyed watching it multiple times through the years.
I never found Star Trek TOS, including this episode, to be subtle in its messaging, at least not in the sense of one definition of subtle being understated and difficult to perceive.
However, since TOS tended to explore multiple viewpoints on issues showing that both sides had some valid points, and at the same time, had some problems, and sometimes also showing that there may be an enlightened third viewpoint that both sides had not considered, then the messaging in TOS could be considered subtle in the sense of another definition of subtle being complex and clever so as to require mental acuteness or discernment. It is in this sense that I would say the messaging in this episode is subtle, although it was not understated nor difficult to perceive.
Also, I think that a big problem with the messaging in today's "woke" entertainment is that the message is presented in an over simplified manner with only one totally right viewpoint on an issue and all other viewpoints are presented as being totally wrong, and those that have the approved viewpoint are presented as being totally good, and those that have any other viewpoint are presented as being totally evil. Thus, the messaging today is not subtle in either sense of the word.
David Gerrold originally wrote this, & says that his story was butchered by the people who re-wrote it. They, he says, tamed it too much - toned it way down. I think it's still effective, but wish it was as powerful as it was supposed to be. It should be about equality, not just keeping the working class happy while they work.
"I happen to have Starfleet right here"
"Yeah, it's fine"
A reference to the Marshall McCluhan scene in "Annie Hall"?