A Private Little War // Star Trek: The Original Series Reaction // Season 2
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- Опубликовано: 1 окт 2024
- Thanks for watching Star Trek: The Original Series Season 2 "A Private Little War" with me!
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How do you feel about this episode?
Are you a Kahn-ut-tu woman?
This wasn't my favorite episode, only because of the goofy wigs. It's as important today as it was back then. Back then it was about Vietnam. Today it's about Ukraine and Israel. Your commentary is getting a lot better from when you started. You're developing a very smooth, thoughtful, rhythm with your own sense of humor.
I really liked this episode when I initially saw it as a kid and even now. You'll notice as you go through the entire series, a few parallels to actual events in history. I don't want to give too much away since you're still going through the season, but excellent reaction as always. Other ST TOS vloggers who've reviewed this episode have stated the same thing: that they didn't trust Nona largely due to her selfish personal motives. Thanks again for another enjoyable reaction episode. Looking forward to next week's review. Have a great week.
I haven't seen this episode since I was a child. I had forgotten most of it. I will say if they wanted to make an adult video version of Star Trek, this would be a good episode to use. (Kirk) "I had a strange dream." ... "That you were being violated." Laughed out loud on that comment.
As for how I feel about this episode. I don't think I would watch it again. That ending was strange. The Klingons would just give their side better weapons and still gain an advantage.
Nona wanted the weapons as a means to rise to power over all.
It didn't mean anything to her if Tyree's people or the villagers were the allies to make it happen as long as she was on the side that would win the fight and be in charge.
I like the exchange between Kirk and McCoy about the "brush wars on the asian continent" because it aired as Vietnam was happening.
Being of that generation and having been in the military I am aware of how awful it would be to allow the communist side (Klingons represent the Soviet Union and the Romulans represent communist China in the Original Series) to win.
If you aren't willing to go all the way and annihilate the enemy & they won't go away (just like the Soviets wouldn't concede they were wrong of their own free will, it took economic collapse to end them but now, Russia is trying to restore the "empire" it once had) you have to settle for the balance-of-power doctrine.
You were right, there was not resolution, nor is there in principle. This was a story about a proxy war. They're not good. They're tragic. The debate between Kirk and McCoy was the centerpiece of this screenplay. It posed the questions. It was hoped that it would provoke the viewers to think about the problem.
Yes, the Klingon's were in violation. They were betting on The Federation being reluctant to respond for fear of open war (on a much larger scale than this tiny planet). That's how proxy wars work. Do we stand by? Do we intervene and risk escalation? What are *our* interests? If we do nothing, will we encourage bolder violations? And any time "balance of power" is mentioned, these are some of the dynamics we're dealing with.
Nona was on neither side; she was on Nona's side. She was not loyal, she wanted to dominate. Political ambition is depicted here as dark magic.
This episode was a direct protest of the ethics of the Viet Nam was 2hich was going on at the time.
I do believe that Nona had long been extremely loyal to Tyree (hence his wife) until the events of this episode "you have the wrong friends and I have the wrong husband!" It is not bloodlust or a taste for killing he acquires at the end, but the tragic loss of the one thing he most loved, his wife, which motivated him to avenge her, and provide him with the motivation unfortunate but needed to lead his tribe the hill people into the skills of war and combat against the villagers. The happy innocence of never killing is replaced with the necessity to kill or be killed.
Unfortunately yes. I think you're right.
This was Roddenberry’s way of seriously documenting current events using Sci Fi. Absolutely NO ONE else on TV was doing this at the time. This episode, unfortunately, represented exactly what was going on at the time. It was not a simple solution. The bush wars Kirk spoke of was Viet Nam. If you had mixed feelings, that is a good thing.
The Beauty of Star Trek, it makes you think.
I'm of the belief that a great story should leave me feeling mentally and emotionally roughed up.
Anything less is not worth my attention.
I absolutely agree, 100+ percent!
Actually, the script writers confused the continent - I think the original writers were referring to the Rhodesian Bush War, which was more applicable to this plot than the Vietnam War - although the general point was about where it's appropriate to intervene.
I don't really agree that "no one" else was doing political allegory on TV at this time. Social commentary was all over the television in the 60's, especially in Westerns like _Bonanza._
@@ariochiv Yeah, there's a great stolen valor episode of The Rifleman.
Dr McCoy missed his chance to slap the hell out of Spock. I know he's been wanting to do that for a long time!🤣
"Vulcans do not approve of violence."
Haha true!
OMGosh! That didn’t occur to me but yes, you are right. Bones could have legitimately justified his reasons for slapping and thereby saving Spock as ‘medicinal’ and necessary. Sure, from that point forward Spock would ‘outgun’ McCoy on intellectual basis, as he usually managed to do, but Bones would always know that he had beat the tar out of Spock and no one could ever take that away from him! Good insight, ju6340!
I hadn't thought of that. Lol.
Very good one. All this time I had never once imagined this. Until now. Excellent!
the reaSON George Takei (sulu) hasn't been in recent episodes, is because he's was doing The Green Berets with John Wayne.
Ironic!!
And, as an American-Japanese who was to be in Vietnam, in that film, he did not reportedly like the experience, or get along with John Wayne. It was a job. George T' has outlived Wayne, and can still tell his tale.
From what I understan, John Wayne was like that his co-stars either really liked him or couldn't stand him, there didn't seem to be much middle ground.
Takei is a whiny self-aggrandizing little b*tch so I'd take anything he says with a huge grain of salt
@@jonathanmurphy3141Wayne cast him in the movie because he admired his acting ability, and told him so.
"I feel bad about that. I feel dirty."
You got the point.
The episode is an allegory for the proxy wars between the US and the USSR, and it has no resolution because the point is that our proxy wars had no solution.
U.S. and China
@@TheNoiseySpectator Not in the 1960s.
The Korean War never even ended. It is at a truce, not a war-ending peace treaty.
SuStel..qavan! SuSvaj jIH
@@EricZay-sd6fs yIntaH SuS tuq!
I had a close friend at an old job of mine, he's passed now, but he was a member of MACV-SOG in the early 1960s, just a few years before this episode aired. (To any Millennials who may be reading this, MACV-SOG stands for "Military Advisory Command Vietnam-Studies and Observations Group." But I digress...) Anyway, when his commanders were trying to persuade him to volunteer to go to Vietnam, they described it as "a private little war," like it was the military equivalent of a cozy cabin on a lake or something. More like a fun little camping or hunting trip than a military mission. He said, of course, it was anything but. Regardless, that's where the title of the episode comes from, as that expression was widely used at the time.
A proud tradition that continues to this day.
Are you sure the title doesn't refer to the conflict Kirk is experiencing between wanting to keep the Villagers peaceful and having them become militaristic and violent?
@@TheNoiseySpectator I'm quite sure. The whole episode is an allegory for the Vietnam War. I've been watching Star Trek since I was a kid in the 80s, and this is the first time I've heard your theory. You might be right, but I strongly doubt it.
Fascinating!
Although I did not know of the source for the phrase "a private little war" before, having been around in the time that the war was raging (and this episode was made), it rings true; I believe it.
The wife was an opportunist looking for the highest bidder. There are plenty of people like that in any war.
Or was she a patriot, wanting the best for her people in weapons technology in defending themselves, and trying to obtain it?
To be fair, she does seem power-hungry.
This episode aired in the heart of the darkest days of the Vietnam war. The us was at a point at which it felt it couldn’t win, no way to end it but also didn’t feel like we could just leave. The episode ends in that dark manner with no clear solution because that was what the American audience was facing in reality.
That may well be the best thing about science fiction, it allows us to examine difficult issues in a fictional setting.
Bunny, note that Kirk cited "the twentieth century brush warS." He was referring to both the Korean War and the Vietnam War. (And what you learned about the Vietnam War largely applied to the Korean War as well.)
Oh yes. The KOREAN war as well. 💡
I'm glad someone else remembered that, too.
I will look into it, thanks 😊
It's kind of interesting, people watching this episode when it first came out would think 'Hey, he's talking about what's going on today', while people watching the episode now will think 'yeah, I heard about that in history too'.
Rough episode Spock shot, Kirk bitten, poisoned, and drugged, McCoy shot. The boys were taking it on the chin
"We're very tired, Mr. Spock. Beam us up home."
Spock was shot. Yes. But he was also slapped by Nurse Chapel and Dr. M'Benga. Lol. -OG
@@suprolivernot to mention the fights Kirk was in, but he seemed to hold his own.
TRIVIA! Stuntman and actor Janos Prohaska played the Mugato as well as the Horta in "Devil In The Dark". He also created the costumes for the creatures. He played many animals and monsters in TV shows such as "The Outer Limits", "Lost in Space" and "Gilligan's Island".
Wasn't he also the Thetan in the Outer Limits episode "Architects of Fear"?
@@harryrabbit2870 ….I think so. He apparently had such a heavy Hungarian accent that he never got any speaking roles.
MORE TRIVIA! The Horta costume was created before the episode. "The Devil in the Dark" was written in order to feature it.
According to memory-alpha fandom site, the story writer Don Ingalls (a friend of Roddenberry since they met as fellow officers in the LAPD) original script contained many more overt Vietnam analogies than what finally appeared.
Roddenberry rewrote the script to make the episode more subtle in it's direct Vietnam war similarities while still trying to convey the message.
One of Star Trek's endearing legacies is it's ability to not be afraid to take on challenging stories that effect us all. Sometimes even challenging the censors of the time. Being science fiction helps the series camouflage plotlines that normally wouldn't make it on TV. Especially for the time.
DeForest Kelley was from Georgia, and had a natural Southern accent, which he would exaggerate from time to time.
People's accents tend to come out more strongly when they express big emotions.
@@shallowgal462 Or when they're high on happy spores, like in "This Side of Paradise" lol
@@steelers6titles That's a pretty big emotion.
Nancy Kovack was a hot presence in movies and TV.
Oh hell yeah, she made a truly bewitching Lady Macbeth in this one.
Hot indeed.
This episode is about proxy wars. Very similar to what happened in Vietnam and the middle east. Russia gave their side weapons, we gave similar weapons to our side. Hence, the cold war.
Don't EVER worry about the Enterprise when Scotty's in charge.
Scotty’s the man!
Hi Bunny. I first saw this episode as a kid. The power of it hit me even then. Here we see how easy it is to corrupt the good. We see how power corrupts and how a single bad actor (The Klingon) can corrupt a whole group of people. We see those who are dedicated to peace can be driven to kill in Tyree, and how his wife (while correct in her frustration of how her people are getting murdered) was ultimately able to abandon her good man for the lure of a more powerful and "better" man. And finally, even our heroes cannot fix the corruption in the end. All they can do is help to mitigate it. Many powerful, and very real-world lessons, even for today.
"Serpents for the Garden of Eden", a superb summary of Kirk's dilemma........ No winners, only losers..... If you think of the leaders "wife" as a metaphor for casualties of war then the episode makes sense in the context of conflicts. It's always the innocents who suffer.
“I’ll make a Klingon out of you yet Apella.”
I would not think of Nona in that way. She was an opportunist ready to leverage the conflict to her advantage. The real casualty of the war was Tyree's dedication to his peaceful principles. Otherwise, I agree with you. The "serpents" metaphor being one of the strongest ever in Trek.
People mock this one for the weird gorilla thing, but this episode is chock full of drama, tension, jealousy, rage and a truly heartbreaking ending.
This is what great science fiction looks like.
Indeed, it is a Great drama.
Notice I wrote "Great" and not just "great" .
@@TheNoiseySpectator Notice taken, a good story should make you feel and think hard about what you believed up to then.
The “weird gorilla thing” was definitely a highlight
Mugatus travel at night, also.....
@@bunnytailsREACTSBunny describing the mugatu "kind of cute" 😂
I was impressed by Booker Bradshaw, who played Dr. M'Benga. His performance was so smooth, he could have easily become a full-time member of the cast.
The young Bradshaw quit working at his father's insurance company and went to Harvard (English, acting, three languages).
He was a 3-time winner on the popular "The Original Amateur Hour".
Graduated from Harvard in 1962 then got a full scholarship to the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London.
International manager for Motown Records. Managed the European tours of The Supremes and The Temptations.
He acted in Star Trek, The Mod Squad, Bracken's World, and The F.B.I. TV series.
He wrote material for TV shows such as Planet of the Apes, Get Christie Love! and Columbo.
The man could do it all! 👍👍
I forget Mbenga was on the Enterprise now.
Definitely a powerful, and challenging episode. And surprisingly even-handed, since it's Kirk, our hero, who is essentially taking the "pro-war" position, while McCoy argues for peace. I suspect the reason they took Spock out of the action early on is so that he couldn't settle the debate with his flawless logic -- leaving it up to the viewer to decide whether Kirk was taking the right course of action.
I think this is also why the writer has Kirk is “compromised” by Nona. The protagonists had to be diminished to make the kind of decisions that permit allegory
Episode was produced during the Vietnam conflict.
NBC News had the monopoly on war commentary at NBC, however Trek's writers found a workaround through science fiction.
The entire series was produced during the Vietnam conflict. Active US participation in Vietnam began in 1965, after years of "advisers".
@@MGower4465 Well, right, but this episode was at least partially based on the conflict, although direct references aren't there.
There was a kind of unwritten rule on American TV at the time not to mention the Vietnam conflict on scripted shows, or at least to go easy if it was mentioned, in order to avoid any hint of political controversy. There was a Twilight Zone episode where the main character, played by Jack Klugman, is driven into guilt-ridden visions after learning his son has just been killed fighting in Vietnam, but that was a rare exception. Gomer Pyle, USMC, on the other hand, spent fully seven seasons depicting the title character's goofy misadventures as a US Marine, and Gomer Pyle was never deployed overseas for combat duty, nor was the war itself ever mentioned. This, during the height of the real-world fighting, with casualty numbers being reported on the news every night. In fact, Gomer and his cohorts never once even said the *word* Vietnam.
@@MGower4465Exactly , singling out one episode is “illogical”, but evidently this is a reference episode.
You'll get a billion comments to this effect. This was commentary on 1960's political views to proxy wars during the Cold War in places like Vietnam. Both Side fought each other through proxies. This episode came down on the idea they were necessary pressure relief valves against a much more devastating direct war between super powers, US & the Soviet Union.
Well summarized. The episode seems out of place and unsatisfying because it doesn't quite line up with Roddenberry's sometimes overly optimistic view of the future. Human nature and the way of things will follow us out into space if we go there.
@@tyharris9994 it may be a bit out of line with Rodenberry's futurism, but the show distinctly took on the role of Cold War geopolitics.
Probably because the network and studio stepped in and diluted Rodenberry's control. But, tbh, pure Rodenberry Star Trek wouldn't be as liked as the TOS is. He never hit the formula again for a reason. His notoriety gave him leverage to have full control.
Ben Stiller is a massive Star Trek fan, Mugatu in Zoolander is named for the creature in this episode.
Thank you so much for your epilogue about the Vietnam war. I know you don’t want to get too political, but media is created in the context of it’s time, and much is Star Trek was about reflecting the world events of it’s time. You are handling this subject matter with respect, compassion and insight. So grateful for you!!
❤️
Yes, I totally agree. I love your insights!
This isn't one of my favorite episodes, but I appreciate that TOS is grittier than TNG, where poverty and racism and disease, etc, has been cured or fixed for the most part. This reflects the human condition better than that sanitized future that doesn't reflect reality.
Great point.
Although I love TNG, I totally agree. That's also why I also love DS9. It's my second favorite Trek series after the original.
The last scene where Kirk stops Tyree from continuing to pound the dead Hill person and they exchange a long stare of despair and pain is so moving and great cinematography.
Interesting bit of trivia... Nancy Kovak (Nona), quit acting and is married in real life, to Zubin Mehta, the World Famous Conductor.
And, of course, always great to see another episode shot in my backyard, aka Vasquez Rocks, Agua Dulce, California. It never ceases to amaze me how they're always able to make it look like some far-off distant planet on the ass-end of the universe when they're never out of sight of the Antelope Valley Freeway...
I'll be visiting there on my next trip to California. It seems like a magical place.
Actually the majority was filmed on the Bell Ranch located in the Santa Susana Mountains between Chatsworth and Simi Valley. Additional filming was done at the Paramount Pictures' "B Tank" where the village set stood.
@@alanflor703 It's cool. It's a great place for a day hike. If you show up around dawn or dusk ("magic hour"), or on an overcast day, you'll probably see pretty girls doing modeling shoots there. But prepare to be underwhelmed. Movies and TV shows make it look a lot more... epic... than it is in real life. It's cool, but it can't compare to a place like Yosemite or Kings Canyon or Death Valley.
@@roberttoews2775 Well, I used to live in Chatsworth, and I'm very familiar with the Stoney Point and Santa Susana Pass areas too. It's all the same climate.
@@benjauron5873 Yeah, I get that it's basically an outcrop of rock, but there is soooo much movie history there.
What an interesting reaction. Bunny did not like the ending of the episode, without realizing that it was a metaphor for the ongoing war in Indochina. Which means the episode did exactly what it set out to do.
The truthful episode is often not the beautiful episode.
Excellent observation and commentary.
@@cashflowhustles 👍
‘Proxy Wars’ (which is what I think this episode is about) between the USA and Soviets and/or China during the Cold War cost many millions of lives world wide from Asia to Africa to South America in the 1960’s & 70’s.
It's not a feelngood episode. It's an allegory for the Vietnam War
The brush wars he spoke about was us, and the Russians were arming Asian countries in a proxy war.
SPOT ON! Another 60s allegory episode providing commentary on 60s Cold War issues.
It is not always true, but as a first approximation, the Federation allegorically represented the US (or the First World West in general), while the Klingons represented the Soviets. Roddenberry was not totally anti-Russian, however, as he did have Chekov stationed on the Enterprise with lots of fairly light-hearted Russian jokes. Even so, whenever the Klingons appear in Star Trek TOS, it is not wrong to first think they represent Roddenberry's idea of the Soviets.
The war went on for about 7 more year
Your observations on Vietnam at the end were spot on. At the time this aired, the War had been ever-expanding for years with no end in sight. I didn't turn 18 until after that war was over, but my mom was terrified of me getting drafted and being sent overseas to die. (She lived through WWII as a little girl and saw a lot of that.)
When this first aired, the anti-war protests were starting to get pretty big. The two big arguments were "Lose if we gave to, but bring the boys home so no more die" and "What are we doing there? If we are going to send our boys, just go in big and win this thing now!"
Nobody liked the "keep it balanced and stalemated so nobody wins and nobody loses and it goes on forever."
I feel this episode was an attempt to justify that strategy, and Nona's death was a warning that if you try to upset the balance, people will needlessly die.
I always saw this as a "the US government knows what it is doing" propaganda or justification episode. I did not believe that message then, and am even more convinced now of the futility and waste of that war.
Your confusion, frustration, sadness and anger perfectly reflects common emotions ftom nearly 60 years ago. So I guess the episode does serve that purpose well, even if that was not its original intent.
Yes, but for me A Taste of Armageddon will always be the more accurate Vietnam episode.
I never saw it as justification or propaganda. I saw it more as, "This seems like our only viable option right now, and it still REALLY SUCKS. This whole situation is terrible." So a mild justification, I guess, but certainly not an enthusiastic one.
I think the confusion, frustration, sadness, and anger that Bunny felt at the end of the episode is exactly the feeling they were trying to evoke. And assuming it was, then that doesn't seem like propaganda to me. It seems more like trying to agitate for change without taking a political stance by advocating for a *_particular_* change (i.e., someone's proposed plan).
Thing is, in 1967, they didn't have *any* of our perspective. It's very easy from our remote perspective to see where they went wrong and misunderstood the situation. But since the real world was lost in madness and nobody knew the way out, they did the best they could. But they also likely wanted to avoid undue attention from the FBI by being too seditious. Hoover was still alive at the time and he was not an enemy you wanted to have.
Very well said. Thanks for the comment!
You're 38?!!! You look 19?!!! Are you a vampire or just on a plant based diet? Whatever it is, keep it going!
Maybe a vampire, cause definitely not plant based
7:30, Dr. M'Benga is a character on the Star Trek prequel show Strange New Worlds. He has quite an interesting background beyond just medicine. Won't say more.
Spock gets shot in the back in this episode and gets stung in the back by the flying omelettes in Operation-Annihilate.
Don't forget the lightning bolt in the back, as well!
The scars on his back tell a lot of stories.
The Klingons gave weapons to the North Vietnamese, so the Federation had to arm the South Vietnamese. The Organian Peace Treaty technically wasn't violated, because the Federation and the Klingons weren't fighting.
The episode wasn't resolved because when the show was broadcast, we seemed mired in a war with no resolution.
The Organian Peace Treaty was essentially the doctrine of Mutually Assured Destruction, under which if one side launched nukes, the other side would launch all of their nukes.
The "other guy slapping Spock" is Dr. M'Benga. If I recall, he was to have recently completed his medical residency on Vulcans, treating Vulcans and humans. Now on a tour aboard ship, he's gaining experience as a Starfleet doctor. Naturally, he is assigned to a ship with a Vulcan on it.
Don't want to add a spoiler, but you are incorrect about Dr. M'Benga. He's been a doctor for years by the time of this episode. That's all I am going to say.
This episode was pretty much a social commentary on the Vietnam War and indirectly the ugliness of conflicts and how it affects people in general. It ended abruptly because - like real life conflict - there is no good solution or happy ending.
Nona was pretty much only out for Nona. She wanted to switch sides because she felt that side would be the winning side. Then those men turned on her and we got a little PG rated view of abuse that goes hand in hand with war (more social commentary).
In the 60's, when Science Fiction & Fantasy Authors felt strongly on a subject that goes against government propaganda, they always had an outlet. They could write something to express their personal views in a parallel world. If there was any "mainstream public objection" over what they wrote, the author could always claim "Hey, it's just a Science Fiction / Fantasy story". Times are changing and it has become more difficult for sci fi / fantasy authors to make their viewpoints against the propaganda.
You felt dirty about the ending... That just means that you understood the episode perfectly.
When I was a little kid....60 now...this was the "wiggling turd" episode....when Nona pulls that root out.....🤣..............Peace!
Haha!
“Tomorrow… in the palm of her hand.” That has always gotten to me even as a kid. The scene where Nona was almost raped and then killed was so disturbing and sad. Even though she was betraying the Hill People, she didn’t deserve that. She stole the phaser, but she had no idea how to use it.
The ending dialogue is the best part of the episode with McCoy and Spock banter.
I would have loved to see more of Nurse Chapel and Spock in this episode.
That’d have been lovely!
Finally reached the Vietnam themed episode. I like the doctor on the Enterprise during this episode.
Your end comments were very insightful; good on you for your curiosity. Great reaction Bunny!
Thank you!
Graduated HS 20 years ago? I flatly refuse to believe you are anywhere near your late 30's. Or 30's at all.
Class of ‘04 😊
The ambiguous ending was purposeful. It made the audience question the wisdom of proxy war, which at the time was Vietnam and the Cold War with the USSR. Today, it’s Ukraine Taiwan, Israel; the list goes on. Your discomfort is on purpose.
Gene Roddenberry was good at using current world affairs to create storylines for star trek. A perfect example of 1960s world events the U.S. pushback against communism by arming and assisting other country's to try to maintain a balance of power. I've always enjoyed this episode. Tyree's wife although wicked she is super Hot! So glad to see that blue trek uniform again WOW!!
Hi, Bunny. 👋 I really love your post-reaction wrap-up here. In particular I love the way you went and refreshed your memory regarding the war in Vietnam. It really touched my heart to hear about your emotional reaction to the video you watched about the war. You are such a lovely, kind, warm-hearted, caring woman, Bunny; and I think you really got the point about the message Roddenberry was trying to send with this episode! Lots of love to you from me, your biggest fan!!! ❤️✌️❤️
In 1967, this was an obvious parallel to the US/China involvement in the Vietnam War. I mean, it was pretty blatantly obvious. Gene Roddenberry had been a bombardier during WWII, and after that he had more left-wing views. He expressed those views through his Star Trek episodes. He had a lot of sexist views, but was pretty open in other areas. This was one of those episodes.
Wait! You graduated HS 20 years ago? You're 38?? Damn. You look like 21. What's your secret?
2:21 That was McCoy for "If you would stop bothering me, I have a better chance of success."
Actually, if you want to see something like a conclusion to that episode or onflict you have to watch Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country, where Roddenbeerry takes the cold war allegory to the next step. 😀
I think Nona was just on Nona's side. She got fed up with Tyree's refusal to fight so she went over to the side she thought would win.
I think you made a good analysis of what people went through during the Vietnam war. People had very strong opinions on both sides, as we saw in this episode.
You probably didn't notice, unless you read the credits really closely, that the Mugato was listed as Gumato in the closing credits. This is poked fun at in an episode of Lower Decks. I've heard that DeForest Kelley kept misprnouncing Gumato as Mugato, so they just changed it, but the credits still show the original word.
Nona was a Delilah. She lusted for power, so she seduced and manipulated men in power. She had knowledge of aphrodisiacs and other medicines. She was cunning and devious. A great villain!
Ohh! I love that story about the Mugato, thanks
I always saw this episode as your classic 20th-century commentary on the insanity of conflict: we know how to make it worse, but not how to make it better, and any progress only makes you feel worse. In 1967, the showrunners had no idea how to fix Vietnam, but they knew how it was going to get worse, but that was the only way in any direction that anybody could see. They weren't condoning it, they were merely illustrating it. The abrupt ending and lack of resolution prevents any maudlin or romantic comfort we might get from another episode.
Such a sad episode. One of the few without a happy resolution, but considering the subject, appropriate. War never ends well.
Ah, the not very well-thought out Vietnam allegory. It's totally half baked, since last time I checked, Vietnam wasn't a sunshine and lolipop paradise before the commies showed up. If you want to get mad, check out that recent doc where the first episode basically was like Vietnam saying to post-war USA, "Hey, get the French out of here and we can all be best buds" but they couldn't get the time of day. And then French wanted all their stuff back post WW2 and Vietnam wasn't having any of that so they kicked them out and b/c the US wasn't cool with them, they turned to the Soviets b/c what else were they supposed to do. The point of the wild oversimplication being that this is a very dumb episode.
you can draw a parallel from this episode with how the US is providing arms to Ukraine to fight Russia... is it the right thing to do? I think diplomacy is better... but the Klingons do not want diplomacy... The North Vietnamese were being provided arms by other nations as well, hence the title.. private little war.
Do they ever say why the Klingons were arming the villagers with flintlocks? Usually, the Klingons get involved in a planet's economics or politics if valuable resources are available or the planet is strategically located. I don't recall anything like that this time, but I haven't rewatched the episode in about a year.
This may seem a bit trite given the larger meaning of the episode, I have always liked the mugatu (the big white creature that bit Kirk). Who dreams up this stuff? I remember trying to draw pictures of it way back in 3rd grade!
He's five foot two, and he's six feet four,
He fights with missiles and with spears.
He's all of 31, and he's only 17,
He's been a soldier for a thousand years.
He's a Catholic, a Hindu, an Atheist, a Jain,
A Buddhist, and a Baptist, and a Jew.
And he knows he shouldn't kill,
And he knows he always will:
Kill you for me, my friend, and me for you.
And he's fighting for Canada,
He's fighting for France,
He's fighting for the U.S.A.
And he's fighting for the Russians,
And he's fighting for Japan,
And he thinks we'll put an end to war this way.
And he's fighting for Democracy,
He's fighting for the Reds,
He says it's for the peace of all.
He's the one who must decide
Who's to live and who's to die,
And he never sees the writing on the wall.
But without him how would Hitler have condemned them at Dachau?
Without him Caesar would have stood alone.
He's the one who gives his body as a weapon of the war,
And without him all this killing can't go on.
He's the Universal Soldier and he really is to blame,
His orders come from far away no more.
They come from here and there and you and me,
And brothers, can't you see?
This is not the way we put an end to war.
["The Universal Soldier", Buffy Sainte-Marie, 1964]
Vietnam War was very similar to the Korean War but unfortunately we "lost" the Vietnam war because of political pressure and the Vietnamese have to live under communism while South Korea is in the top 10 countries economically and getting stronger.
Fun Fact: The low budget wouldn't allow a real mugatu, so they had to use an actor in a mugatu suit.
Yes, real mugatu wranglers are union, and they charge a stiff fee. Plus, you have to pay special mugatu insurance, and there's mugatu poop all over the set, that mugatu smell gets in your clothes and your hair, and it's just a huge hassle. Much more practical to put a guy in a suit.
I think not feeling good about the conclusion of this episode is the point. It wasn't a good or satisfying solution, but it was the best solution available to them. They can't erase the knowledge of the villagers about firearms. They can't stay on the planet for all time to prevent them from developing the technology to make those firearms themselves. They can't even prevent the Klingons from arming their side.
That's the dirty and unconvenient truth even about the world today. Pacifism is unsustainable if only one side adheres to it. Si vis pacem para bellum.
It's cool how Star Trek encapsulates the Cold War between the U.S. and the Soviet Union with the long running Federation vs Klingons story line. Yeah this was not a super happy episode. Just ends with death and the formerly peaceful society getting mired in bloody war and revenge.
I grew up watching actress Nancy Kovack in almost everything. From TV series like Batman, in a film with Elvis, and as Medea in Ray Harryhausen’s Jason and the Argonauts. Bunnytails, I usually look forward when I see you have a new episode of Star Trek to react to. But when I saw ‘Nona’ next to your face in the thumbnail, I felt very very upset. It’s been over 40 years since I’ve seen this episode, yet her ‘smug’ arrogant face brought it all back in an instant. After all these years I am still angry at Nona.
For what it's worth, she also played a very historically inaccurate Annie Oakley in The Outlaws Is Coming, the last Three Stooges movie, along with Adam West.
So, Kovack made you feel disgust for her character?
Well, GOOD! That shows she was a great actress who could make her characters hateful. Anybody can make their characters loveable.
But, if it makes you feel any better, think about this;
Maybe she was not going to _join_ Tyree. Maybe she was going to say "Come here, I have something to show you..." And then _disintegrate him!_ 😈
Fighting her way out of their territory and back home would have been no problem.
@@TheNoiseySpectator That’s why I referred to Nona and not Nancy Kovack. Even though Jason and The Argonauts ended on a high note, I was haunted with her portrayal of Medea because I knew Medea’s full story even at a very young age. Nancy Kovack was always in my imagination whenever I came across a reference to Medea. Nancy Kovack left a lasting impression with different roles on a particular teenager.
There was an Argonauts TV miniseries in the 90s featuring another Trek actress, Jolene Blaylock, as Medea.
Nancy Kovack. A very beautiful lady. She has quite an acting resume. As I write this she is still with us at 89 years old.!
Always liked this episode. Sometimes no matter how hard you try, the only solution is the winner.
As we say in Texas; y'all be safe.
There are other episodes that end abruptly, as this one did. City on the Edge of Forever, for one.
So no watch "Apocalypse Now" to get a none cuts cartoon depiction of the Vietnam War.
Re: Stick Figure funny YT videos.
Many youtubers make videos with stick figures and animations and jokes. It is a great method of getting a quick overview of a subject.
The channel CGP GRAY is a treasure trove of these, as he has been on YT for over a decade. I recommend his RULES FOR RULERS, and THIS VIDEO WILL MAKE YOU ANGRY.
(I’ve heard rumor that he copy claims reactions , so this is a personal recommendation and not a request)
Than you, I think I have seen one or two of his videos before
This episode is an example to show the devastating effects of Proxy war.
Spock to Nurse Chappel...."slap me!"
Nurse Chappel...."Huh?"
Spock to Nurse Chappel...."Choke me!"
Nurse Chappel..."Oh!"
LOL!
Haha!! 🤣 🤣
This is an episode I usually skip! But I liked your reaction.
For us older folks it is a very obvious VietNam reference.
The US was arming South Vietnam and the USSR was arming North Vietnam. It was a very intense proxy war, and the less technologically advanced people in the actual country of Vietnam were caught in the middle.
I’m glad you liked it 😊
It'll be hard not to make at least a few angry on this one, Bunny, but here goes. As others have pointed out, the episode was a commentary on the Vietnam War and to some degree, the Korean War as well perhaps. I believe Leonard Nimoy served a stretch in the military around the time of the Korean War. Anyway, as I see it, its purpose was to make people think about the war, however they felt, and by using science fiction, they got around the network censors to do it.👍
The best the Federation could do was make the situation on that world even, since the Klingons had broken the Organian Peace Treaty. And presumably each side would continue to do so indefinitely as more powerful weapons were introduced.
Science fiction itself was divided over Vietnam; see the June, 1968 GALAXY magazine where pro Vietnam War, and anti Vietnam War ads were published concerning the conflict.
As for Nona, I saw her as a power hungry woman willing to do whatever she had to, to acheive her own ends. Which ultimately resulted in her own death, and brought lasting hate into Tyree's heart. Nancy Kovack was one of the most sensual women in 1960s films, and television, a perfect choice to play Nona.
The abrupt ending was, I think, a way to drive home
the futility of the situation, and Kirk's inability to save his "garden of Eden." One of the few times Kirk uktimately failed also.
I had several relations who served in Vietnam mow deceased; one of my older brothers was turned down due to health issues to serve there. My Dad was a Medic in WW 2, his brothers fought in Europe then while,other ancestors served literally back to the founding of the USA.
So, om going to naturally be sympathetic to the military generally, though war should be avoided if at all possible of course. I believe DeForrest Kelly was a WW 2 veteran as well as James Doohan.
I do recall the withdrawal from Vietnam, and the humiliating fall of Saigon. I blame weak politicians in the US as much as anything else for this eventual outcome. No doubt many would disagree there.
Don't get too upset with me, Bunny, but no, I'm not terribly impressed with the American educational system since roughly the start of the 1990s onward. I know I'm mich older compared to your generation -- but I base this view also on the youngsters I've talked to. How little they seem to know of American history compared to people around my age. Appalling.
Anyway, there it is. A dark episode, and my thoughts on it. Agree or not, always enjoy these reactions to TOS of Trek from you.😊
Since I’m not a part of the educational system, it bothers me not. 👍
The episode is incomplete. There are many minutes that will answer most of your questions. Your frustration is contagious and you don't know there is much more to this episode to be seen. So I am a 67 year old man who at 9 yrs old saw the Enterprise zoom across our TV screen and I became a Star Trek fan and buff until now.
Can't say as a kid, the concept and reality of proxy wars were learned or remembered from this episode, but I can say I do remember the scene where Tyree recalls ... The Night of Madness! (whatever that meant?) ... Could there somehow be a tie-in to proxy wars? Hmm? ... Another great reaction bunnytails. :)
Thank you ❤️
_A Private Little War_ was made in 1968, when the Vietnam war was becoming increasingly unpopular. It seemed not only unjustified, but never-ending. The idea of "victory" impossible; all that could be hoped for in terms of military strategy was a war that would go on year after year, never ending until the other side's resources were exhausted.
Kirk's dilemma was that his ship and the Federation could not hope to defeat the Klingons, nor stop the Klingons from interfering with the natural development of this planet. The only solution he felt he could offer was to give one side whatever the Klingons were giving the other side. It isn't a satisfying ending, but that's the entire point. War has no satisfying ending. The only satisfaction regarding war is its ending.
Direct TV shows at the time about the Vietnam war would not be allowed to air. Star Trek instead cloaked the topic in allegory.
The feeling you got is exactly how you’re supposed to feel to this episode. This is Star Trek’s take on mutually assured destruction, which the US and the Soviet Union were involved in at the time. Like you said in your post reaction addition to the video, there are direct parallels to the Vietnam war with two superpowers arming each side with better weapons, but also a bigger picture of escalation leading to escalation, and where does it end? Both the US and Soviet Union (now Russia) have enough weapons powerful enough to destroy the whole world multiple times over. Theirs nothing to feel good about that. The only thing that’s kept either side from doing anything is knowing they’d never survive a counter attack. At the same time, when Kirk asks McCoy, do you have a better alternative? …there is so simple alternative. It’s definitely a more heavy episode than just a woman with horny weeds and a poison horny gorilla.
Have you considered a reaction to a Vietnam War movie? "Platoon" is very good. That might give you some additional feelings about that part of history, which this episode was about. It was an analogy for the Vietnam proxy war with the US/Federation backing one side and Klingons/Russia backing the other. I think its also a commentary on the Cold War arms race and how better weapons don't necessarily stop conflict but might also be necessary to protect your society. Essentially there are no easy answers for achieving peace, which I think is the point of the episode.
I will add Platoon to my list, if it’s not already!
You've been doing pretty well on your reactions and reviews of Star Trek. You want to have another take? I give you the Target Audience channel with Josh and Alex. They've been doing reactions and reviews on Star Trek for a while now. I mean all including the animated, the movies, all. They are now on Season 3 and plan on doing the rest of all ST. Yep, it will take them to the end of time and they do know it. Another channel is Jen Murray but she rushed the original show but has been doing TNG in order. 2 channels I do recommend.
Back to the Target Audience, Josh and Alex's take on A Private Little War was bonkers. their best episode. You should try it. I think you would get a blast watching their take.
Thank you.....and have fun!!
People have been recommending Josh and Alex’s channel to be since the beginning, and I recently started to go through their videos. Enough time has passed that I am really wanting to revisit those season 1 episodes. I’ll keep an eye out for this ep when I get there 😁
Having a weird sexual vibe is kind of Star Trek's bread & butter. And rarely will it be like something you would see on another show. Gene, and his wife Majel, were both extremely sex positive people. Calling them swingers in an open marriage would not be unfair. Trek history is replete with stories of Gene wanting to do some wild sexual things on the shows and people having to bring him back down to network television reality. If you end up watching Next Generation you'll notice this as well. And it never entirely goes away but it does become less, I dunno, oddly unique after Gene's passing.
I’ll definitely be watching TNG
08:32 "She's climaxing-she's done." 🤣🤣🤣
Watching this as a teenage male, I was more concentrated on the very hot Nona (blonde Nancy Kovack). She has the body type I look for in a woman, curvy with long black hair and smokey eyes. The main story is about Vietnam and could be applied to today to arming of Ukraine in a proxy war.
Arming of Ukraine and funding it with billions of dollars a month,plus the US taking in hundreds of thousands of their refugees also.Last year 500,000 Ukraine refugees were settled into Houston,Tx.
This was the second Vietnam inspired episode, the first being, "A Taste of Armageddon". That was the episode where two waring planets were fighting a war with computers and victims of an attack had to die in a disintegration chamber. Our culture stayed the same but our sons and daughters disappeared in a war on the other side of the world. It was brought to Gene Rodenberry's attention, in that episode Kirk ended the war. In "A Private Little War" Kirk made sure both sides were armed equally.. Gene said, "I'm a true Jeffersonian. Give the people both sides of an argument and they will pick what's right."
This was nearly 50 years of your country's history . It was called The Cold War .
Russia and America pointing nukes at each other , and playing games like these in / with other countries .
It happened in South America. It happened in the middle east . It happened in Asia .
The places who you sold / gave weapons to were under your "sphere of influence" .
Trade was secondary, but most of it was sold to the American citizens as "trade" .
Same story more or less went with the Russians .
They were trying to export Communism . America was trying to export Democracy .
While both were trying to subvert each other, and each other's agenda .
Didn't they teach any of these things to you in history class ??
Hehehe 🤭
A strange episode, but the chick was hot, is about all I can say.
Indeed she is!
This is an allegory for the cold war. In TOS the Klingons are the Soviet Union. Things make a lot more sense if you look at it this way. The US and the Soviets would arm smaller countries and they would fight proxy wars.
Nothing ever beats McCoy's face at that hand slash! Lol!
"...catnip?" 😄
We have just witness what CPR for vulcans is like and it seems like slaping him like's no tomorrow.
Hahah!
The cold war between the USA and the USSR was leading to an arms race while this very scenario was being played out in Vietnam when this episode first aired. It doesn't seem like a satisfying resolution to the episode because it was a bad strategy, just like the corresponding strategy in Vietnam. If you feel bothered by a strategy supporting an arms race, you are having an appropriate reaction.
(Edit: looks like you addressed this at the end.)
This episode was an allegory of Vietnam.
Sometimes there is no happy little resolution.
That’s what makes it interesting!
Vietnam was a horror show. Bunny, save your nightmares for something else. Ever since that time I have been totally against war. May we never go through that again. -
❤️
I'm a big big star trek fan, but this was not one of my favorite episodes. I didn't have a good feeling after watching it, even when I first watched it as a child, years ago
It’s quite uncomfortable!
This episode is so close to being a great metaphor for the Vietnam war and the dangers of escalation. But in spite of how hot, actor Nancy Kovack looks, her character Nona is a ridiculous over sexualized caricature. She definitely owes her existence to a Gene Roddenberry rewrite, where once again, he subjects the audience to his horny sensibilities. The writer of this episode is listed as Jud Crucis, but his real name was Don Ingalls. He was so turned off by Roddenberry's changes, that he didn't want his real name attached to this. So, he came up with Jud Crucis, as a play on "Jesus Crucified".
Bless Gene Roddenberry
@@jimdetry9420 And bless Gene L. Coon and D. C. Fontana. Without them, TOS wouldn't be half as well remembered. Also, bless David Gerrold, the real creator of The Next Generation.
The actress who played Nona is still alive.
thank you for the WHOA reaction to the Mugato...priceless
yeah, this episode defines the Prime Directive