Aquaman - The Satanic Saturnians / The Brain, the Brave and the Bold /  by Mark

More title alliteration!

Oscar Bensol brings us "The Satanic Saturnians". 

Strange rising tides bring in our heroes to investigate, and they find melting icebergs. So, they are off to the North Pole. A spaceship that looks like Saturn is there--and what do you know, there are Saturnians on it! They are behind the melting, using a heat ring. Our heroes are on the case, calling in killer sharks to cut the cables for the ring. Tusky, always the idiot, bites the cable and gets pulled up. Minisubs are sent out to fight our heroes. Tusky jumps into one of the subs. A sub sends out "a sleeve of hard light" (?) to trap Aquaman. He tries to call for help, but the hard light stops it. Tusky, on the sub, manages to releases Aquaman and crashes into other subs. The normal fish troops are called in. Aquaman grabs a sub, and finds Tusky in it. They go off to the main ship, and the fish army pushes it around. The aliens decide to blast off.

Some things to look for:

  • Aquaman's nickname for Aqualad count: Tadpole (26)
  • Aqualad catchphrase attempts: Suffering Starfish, Leaping Lampreys, Jiggling Jellyfish
  • Is this a precursor of global warming?  I knew it wasn't caused by natural events...
  • The Saturnians look like a fish and a bat mated.
  • A strange quote from the Saturnian: "Back to Saturn before they put rings in our noses!"  Was that standard procedure for aliens?

 

Dennis Marks writes "The Brain, The Brave and the Bold", which is a reference to a DC comic title that Aquaman was in quite a few times.

A sub reaches Atlantis. It's the Brain--another Aquavillain. He uses a sonic brain wave to attack! Our heroes come in, and missiles are send their way. Aquaman deflects them with his fists (?), and calls in his fish army to help out. The sonic brain wave is used, and the fish army deserts him--Aquamans' telepathy does no good. Now, Brain's goons attack. One of them fells Aquaman, and the others capture Aqualad. He's given a special mental treatment to turn Aqualad against Aquaman. Since the ray is turned off, Aquaman called the fish army back in--Aqualad disperses them with his new super-strength. Our heroes have a fight, and Tusky knocks Aqualad out. Like in all fiction, a blow to the head fixes everything. Our heroes and the fish army attack, while the Brain's ship readies their attack on Atlantis. The ray is destroyed, and the ship blows up.

Some things to look for:

  • Aquaman's nickname for Aqualad count: Tadpole (27), Minnow (4)
  • Aqualad catchphrase attempts: Leaping Lampreys
  • In the comics, a very different Brain was a Doom Patrol villain
  • Aquaman is not nearly as powerful without the fish army to back him up

Remember, you can play along by watching the show on iTunes, Amazon Instant Video, or VUDU. You can also buy the DVD on Amazon.

 

Aquaman - The Onslaught of the Octomen / Treacherous is the Torpedoman /  by Mark

It's title alliteration!

Oscar Bensol brings us "The Onslaught of the Octomen".

Aqualad finds a secret city, and he and Tusky are grabbed. The Octo-King is using him to lure the Sea King and learn the secret of telepathy. Aqualad calls for help, and Aquaman leads his seahorses in. Aquaman is grabbed, and calls in fish to help him out. He reaches Aqualad, but the octo-guards recapture them. The Octo-king orders the Sea King to tell him the secret of telepathy, and he responds with an example--in comes the fish army. The Octo-King calls in a "Force Monster" (some energy-based creature), and threatens Aquaman with it.  the fish army are thrown into harms way, and the generator is turned all the way up, exploding the monster and the city.

Some things to look for:

  • Aquaman's nickname for Aqualad count: Tadpole (23)
  • Aqualad catchphrase attempts: Bouncing Butterfish
  • Why does Aquaman not RIDE the seahorse?
  • I think Haney was watching Forbidden Planet when he was writing this episode

 

Bob Haney writes "Treacherous is the Torpedoman".

Tusky is playing--he's found an old sunken ship. Hiding on it is Torpedoman, an armored bad guy with an echo effect. He attacks, launching himself at them. Aquaman lassos him, then calls in barracudas and paddlefish. Torpedoman transforms into an anchor, then attacks again. The villain activates an electric grid to trap them, but Torpedoman runs into it. Aquaman calls in fish to absorb the electricity, then Torpedoman traps them in a normal net, and starts pushing the ship off a ledge. Aquaman calls in a giant octopus to pull off the metal net. Torpedoman goes down with the ship. 

Some things to look for:

  • Aquaman's nickname for Aqualad count: Tadpole (25)
  • Aqualad catchphrase attempts: Jumping Jackfish, Suffering Sunfish, Wailing Wolfish, Jumping Jellyfish 
  • What happens to the guy inside the armor when he transforms? That must hurt.
  • Why doesn't the electric grid electrocute everyone in the area? They are underwater, after all.

Remember, you can play along by watching the show on iTunes, Amazon Instant Video, or VUDU. You can also buy the DVD on Amazon.

Aquaman - Vassa, Queen of the Mermen / The Microscopic Monsters /  by Mark

Oscar Bensol brings us "Vassa, Queen of the Mermen".

A group of whale-like ships approach Atlantis, commanded by the titular queen. They attempt to capture Mera, who calls for help, and in come our heroes. Tusky gets in the way, and is hit by a beam. Mera is captured as well. Aquaman tries to hold a whaleships's "mouth" open, and needs help from sharks. He disables one of the ships, and a hammerhead shark breaks it open to release Mera. Meanwhile, the other ships are upon Atlantis. Mera wants to help Aquaman, but she's a girl, so no. Rays start cracking the done. A fish army is called in to repel them. Electric eels shock a ship, and a real whale takes it out. The final ship goes to ram the dome, so Aquaman grabs it with an anchor and chain. The Sea King grabs Vassa, then releases her. Tusky, still ready to fight, grabs a real whale with bad results.

Some things to look for:

  • Aquaman's nickname for Aqualad count: Tadpole (20)
  • Aqualad catchphrase attempts: Holy Halibut 
  • Diana Maddox does double duty as Mera and Vassa
  • That communicator ring Mera is wearing must be very inconvenient, with little antenna sticking out
  • There's a lot of severe closeups in this episode
  • Is Vassa German?
  • Why does Aquaman let Vassa go? Doesn't Atlantis have some sort of jail?

 

George Kashdan writes "The Microscopic Monsters".

Aquaman is fooling with a gun that grows microscopic creatures by 10 times. However, Black Manta is in the area, watching the test. The gun does too good a job, and makes plankton grow to huge size. Aquaman goes to stop them, and Manta grabs the gun and Aqualad. Aquaman follows, calling in the fish army, including a giant lobster (?) and a giant fish. Manta tells the Sea King to let him go, or Aqualad is fish food. Electric torpedo rays (yes, that's a real fish) zap Manta's ship and break him out. Manta threatens to grow all the plankton, but Imp knocks the gun out of his hands, setting it off. The battle is on! The manta ray's venom shrinks the plankton back to normal. Tusky berates Imp for jumping in without thinking--that's his job!

Some things to look for:

  • Aquaman's nickname for Aqualad count: Tadpole (22)
  • Aqualad catchphrase attempts: Pounding Pigfish, Blasting Blowfish. Aquaman counters with "Great Waves!"
  • When did Aquaman become an inventor?
  • More manta-men, wearing blankets on their heads.
  • Were these giant creatures created by the ray, or were they just hanging out?
  • Think how hard it must have been for Aquaman writers to come up with real fish species, before the Internet and Wikipedia...
  • The manta's "venom" looks a lot like electricity

Remember, you can play along by watching the show on iTunes, Amazon Instant Video, or VUDU. You can also buy the DVD on Amazon.

Aquaman - The Ice Dragon / The Deadly Drillers /  by Mark

Bob Haney returns with "The Ice Dragon".

A giant squid and a huge dragon-beast are fighting (as often happens). Our heroes check it out. The dragon freezes the squid with its breath (hence the title). Our heroes start a fight, and Aquaman is frozen as well. The others break him out, and swordfish are called in. The dragon forms a wall of ice to stop them. They all surface, and the dragon turns the water into ice. All the good guys get frozen, and a swordfish and hammerhead shark is called in cut them out. More fighting with the dragon, and Sea King knocks out his foe. Whales are called in to drag the dragon into an underwater cave. The revived dragon is tricked into freezing itself, and whales drag it to arctic waters.  Finally, they break out Tusky.

Some things to look for:

  • Aquaman's nickname for Aqualad count: Tadpole (18), Minnow (2)
  • Aqualad catchphrase attempts: Rabid Frostfish (that's what I make out), Suffering Seasnakes,
  • After Aquaman is frozen, we clearly see his head move
  • The frozen ice comes in convenient cylinder shapes
  • Our heroes aren't as graceful when walking

 

Dennis Marks returns for "The Deadly Drillers".

An underwater earthquake brings in Aqualad to investigate. It's not natural--it's Mole Men! Aqualad gets caught in a fissure, and the Sea King rescues him with a school of blowfish. The Mole Men's ships are found, and Aquaman uses a killer shark to take it out. Aqualad is ordered to warn Atlantis. Aquaman is shocked by a ship and captured. Abnamar, King of the Mole Men, cackles from a TV screen on the ship. Aquaman escapes through a torpedo tube and calls in the fish troops, who take out most of the ships.  The rest are recalled, and Aquaman calls off his finny army.

Some things to look for:

  • Aquaman's nickname for Aqualad count: Tadpole (19)
  • Aqualad catchphrase attempts: Suffering Sailfish, Jumping Jellyfish. Aquaman counters with Great Guppies.
  • The Mole Men have nice yellow and red uniforms

Remember, you can play along by watching the show on iTunes, Amazon Instant Video, or VUDU. You can also buy the DVD on Amazon.

Aquaman - The Volcanic Monster / The Crimson Monster from the Pink Pool /  by Mark

Richard Sandler wrote "The Volcanic Monster".  Unless he also did photography in 1980's New York (I think it's a different guy), this was his only foray into the arts.

We begin in the Aquacave. A dead volcano has restarted, and they go to--well, they go. A monster comes out of the volcano (hence the title) and throws fireballs. Tusky is trapped in some rocks, and Aquaman gets him free. He starts throwing hard water balls to stop the fireballs (makes sense).  Aquaman and Tusky are sucked toward the volcano. Aquaman calls in the sea horses to drag them out. Then, he brings in the dolphins to counter the whirlpool created by the volcano. One of the dolphins are hurt, and he and Tusky are trapped by the monster. More hard water balls distract him, then Aquaman calls in the fish troops to fight his battles for him (boiled fish, anyone?). Whales then knock boulders onto it to bury it. Tusky is, of course, in the middle of it and Aquaman has to save him. 

Some things to look for:

  • Aquaman's nickname for Aqualad count: Tadpole (15)
  • Aqualad catchphrase attempts: Jumping Jellyfish 
  • I've been meaning to ask--how does all the electronic equipment in the Aquacave work underwater?
  • There's a jumpcut early in the episode--a few frames are replayed
  • How does Aqualad (or anyone else for that matter) pant and struggle for breath underwater?
  • I love how the sea horses whinny
  • Sad or embarrassed Tusky reminds me of Jack Benny with his hand on his chin

 

Oscar Bensol returns for the rather suggestive title of "The Crimson Monster From the Pink Pool". 

We're back with Tusky, who finds the aforementioned pink pool, which is poisonous. Then, the crimson monster comes out of the pool (kinds of writes itself, doesn't it?). It can dissolve rocks with a powerful acid. Tusky goes for help, and our heroes race into action. The one eyed monster is causing havoc by dissolving and throwing things, and is on it's way to Atlantis. Aquaman charges in and tries to ride it--no good. Tusky and the gang continue the fight. Aquaman throws a clamshell onto the monster to block the acid. More hard water  balls follow, and octopi are called in to help. The octopus ink neutralizes the acid and turns our pink monster blue. Fish troops are called in, and Aqualad lassos him with a whale, so they tow him back to the pool, which is then neutralized as well.

Some things to look for:

  • Aquaman's nickname for Aqualad count: Tadpole (17)
  • Aqualad catchphrase attempts: Holy Halibut, Soaring Sailfish 
  • The opening music sting seems slowed down--maybe the animation didn't match?
  • The octopus ink also turns Aquaman's hair black for a few frames

Remember, you can play along by watching the show on iTunes, Amazon Instant Video, or VUDU. You can also buy the DVD on Amazon.

Aquaman - The Sea Raiders / War of the Water Worlds /  by Mark

Oscar Bensol, the writer of "The Sea Raiders", would go on to write four more Aquaman episodes. He wrote many of the Adventures of Superman episodes.

A strange alien ship (a lot of episodes start this way, huh?) lands on the ocean. They are collecting specimens for their personal collection--I hope they are bagging and boarding them. Actually, they suck them up through a tube and dehydrate them. Somehow, this shrinks them instead of making fish jerky. Of course, Aquaman and Co. come to see what's happening. Tusky gets sucked in, shrunk, and dropped into a box. The aliens then dehydrate a Venusian Sea Serpent to play with our heroes, and we get our first display (in an episode) of Aquaman throwing "hard water" balls at it. He then spins to throw more water at it (not sure how effective this is, since they are underwater already). He then calls in the fish army to finish it off. The aliens decide it's time to blast off, so they have to save Tusky. They tie down the ship and pull it in the ocean. The aliens agree to let the earth fish (and Tusky) go, while taking the sea serpent.

Some things to look for:

  • Aquaman's nickname for Aqualad count: Tadpole (8)
  • Aqualad catchphrase attempts: Jumping Jellyfish, Mumbling Mantis. We also get "Great Gastropods" from Aquaman.
  • What's with the generic music sting at the beginning of the episode?
  • A great Aqualad line: "Who? What? Why?". He'll make a fine news reporter some day.
  • Shrinking effects on cartoon accompanied by a slide whistle--check
  • Aliens, as always, use English on their ship displays--as in the "Eject" button

 

Next, Bob Haney brings us "War of the Water Worlds".  If I remember correctly, this is based on an issue of the comic book. There was also a (lousy) video game based on it.

Mera makes her second appearance. She finds a flower which grabs and pulls her into shimmering sand. Tusky goes to get help. Our heroes jump into the sand, and find another water world under theirs. They move toward a palace, but get grabbed by more living flowers. He calls in some help (some of his world's fish already wandered through the sand), and some Thresher Sharks cut them down. Their sea horse steeds decide to follow them into the other world.

Our heroes find Mera in a cave under a weird ray, as well as Slanth, the ruler there. He controls the plant life, and orders more vines to trap them. Slanth drops Aqualad under the ray as well--it turns people into plants (and then under his control). Aquaman is thrown into a pit, while Tusky manages to escape. Aquaman fights a hydra-like plant, and calls on manta to beat it up. He can't lift the grating in the pit, which is why the sea horses came in earlier--they pull it off. Tusky is watching Mera and Aqualad under the ray (why isn't he being affected?) when Aquaman appears and orders them back to the other world to get help. His fish subjects show up and give him a hand. He manages to get back to the other world himself, and drops a giant toothy(?) clam onto the sand to block others. 

Some things to look for:

  • Aquaman's nickname for Aqualad count: Tadpole (11)
  • Aqualad catchphrase attempts: Mumbling Mantis, Holy Haddock, Hopping Toadfish, Leaping Lionfish
  • The other world's sea is red--is this foreshadowing of the Crisis on Infinite Earths?
  • Apparently the plant ray must take a lot of time to work--Mera was under it quite a while, but a "good rest" resolves that

Remember, you can play along by watching the show on iTunes, Amazon Instant Video, or VUDU. You can also buy the DVD on Amazon.

Aquaman - The Return of Nepto / The Fiery Invaders /  by Mark

Bob Haney is back as the writer of The Return of Nepto.

A violent storm is felt under the sea, throwing flaming rocks at our heroes. They duck into a cave, where they find sleeping giants dressed like Norsemen. Of course, the storm wakes them up, and their leader Nepto declares himself King of the Seas. Aqualad mentions that title is already taken. Nepto turns out to be a tyrant that attacked Atlantis long ago before being buried in a seaquake--well, he's back. The battle begins, and it's clear Nepto's henchmen are no match for our heroes. However, the giant tyrant has a trident that zaps them back into the cave, where he traps them with boulders. Meanwhile, Nepto attacks Atlantis, whose citizens as usual complain about Aquaman not saving them. He's busy calling in an octopus to free them (could this be Topo from the comics)? They are back in action, with an army of fish to help out. Electric eels, one of Aquaman's favorite species to call in, repel the zap of Nepto's trident. The fish army keeps the henchmen busy, but the giant tyant warns Aquaman to step down or he will take out Atlantis' dome. The Sea King agrees, but then ties up the giants while Tusky nabs the trident. Aqualad prances around with the trident, and Aquaman takes him down a peg.

Some things to look for:

  • Aquaman's nickname for Aqualad count: Tadpole (4)
  • Aqualad catchphrase attempts: Suffering Sawfish, Wailing Wallfish
  • Nepto and the giants change size throughout the episode--this happens a lot in poor animation

 

Dennis Marks, the writer of The Fiery Invaders, was involved in various animated project, and at one point did the voice of Green Goblin for the 80's Spider-Man series. 

An alien ship attacks Earth's oceans, setting them on fire (?!?).  Aqualad discovers this and calls Aquaman in the Aquacave. (That enough Aquas for you?). He blows off Storm, saying that he can swim faster--so why does he ride a seahorse in the first place? Meanwhile, Aqualad gets knocked out and is about to be boiled when the Sea King saves him. Aquaman calls on narwhals to dig holes in the ocean floor--now sure what good that does. Whales come in to splash water on the fire, and somehow that extinguishes it. More alien ships attack, and jellyfish are deployed to absorb the fire chemical (which I assume kills them?). Whales are redeployed and everyone splashing in the water takes out the ship. The mothership goes underwater and attacks Atlantis (of course). Dolphins stop the alien torpedoes, and the aliens shoot fireballs at our heroes--they form a vortex to stop them. Whales push the ship out of the water and into space (!?!?!?!?). 

Some things to look for:

  • Aquaman's nickname for Aqualad count: Tadpole (6), Minnow
  • Aqualad catchphrase attempts: Suffering Sailfish, Holy Haddock
  • The aliens are your standard big-headed green creatures
  • The alien's fire chemical sounds like fireworks going off
  • None of Aquaman's counterattacks make any sense

Remember, you can play along by watching the show on iTunes, Amazon Instant Video, or VUDU. You can also buy the DVD on Amazon.

Aquaman - Menace of the Black Manta / The Rampaging Reptile Men /  by Mark

The Aquaman animated series begins with the classic Aquavillain Black Manta, a guy with a oval-shaped opaque helmet whose "eyes" blink when he talks. In the comics, he is Aquaman's brother--here, he's just a bad buy. Bob Haney, a classic DC writer, bring us this story.

The whole Aquafamily are out on their seahorses when a whale starts running berzerk due to Manta's electronic wizardry. Aquaman's famed fish telepathy doesn't work against it, so they all scatter. Mera is dropped into a giant clam to keep her safe (?!?), and they fight the whale. The Sea King sees matching antenna on Manta's ship and the while, so he calls in a hammerhead shark to take it out. Manta's henchmen attack but are easily taken out, so Manta makes sea urchins ensnare our heroes. Aquaman calls on a jellyfish to poison them (nice--killing one sea creature with another). Manta creates a coral net to trap ships for plunder, but Aquaman calls on Sawfish to take it out, and then trap the Mantamen in it. Manta attacks them directly, but his ship is destroyed in a blind canyon, so it's hand-to-hand combat. Manta falls into a trench to fight another day. Mera is saved from the giant clam, who harangues the Sea King as we fade out.

Some things to look for:

  • Aquaman's nickname for Aqualad count: Tadpole (2), Squirt
  • Aqualad catchphrase attempts: Holy Hurricanes, Mumbling Morays, Bumbling Blowfish
  • When viewed from the back, Manta's henchmen look like they have blankets on the their head
  • Of course, Mera rides a pink seahorse with long eyelashes
  • Mera at one point loses her nose--sloppy work, Filmation!
  • Quote: "The fish are trying to tell me something!"

 

Our second story gives us a little more info on Atlantis--in this continuity, they are air breathers who depend on a pressurized dome (so why stay under the sea?). This brings up a bigger question--how did the Aquafamily gain the ability to breathe underwater?  George Kashdan, another DC writer, brings us this story.

Aqualad comes upon the eponymous Reptile Men attacking the hydropower plant, but is discovered and taken prisoner. Tusky goes to warn Aquaman, who is in the fabulous Aquacave. Meanwhile, the Reptile Men damage the plant, and set a trap for the Sea King. They blow a hole in the plant's wall, forcing our heroes to save it--a giant sea turtle is called in to seal the hole. Aquaman finds a tunnel in the ocean's floor, which leads to an underground city of Reptile Men. Aquaman is trapped in a net and tied to a stake to die from lack of water (he must access water once an hour--or every 24 hours, depending on the story--or he dies). He telepathically sends Storm to find Aqualad, who returns and saves him. Aquaman calls in some random fish and an octopus to help them retreat, and whales knock boulders into the tunnel to seal them in.

Some things to look for:

  • Aquaman's nickname for Aqualad count: Tadpole (3), Squirt (2)
  • Aqualad catchphrase attempts: Suffering Catfish
  • We hear a second Aquaman theme, also used in the end credits, which sounds like it's time for the Sport Report
  • The Aquacave is clearly a ripoff of the Batcave. Keep in mind this series exists because of the success of the Adam West TV series. In the comics, the Aquacave is just a place for them to hang out.

Remember, you can play along by watching the show on iTunes, Amazon Instant Video, or VUDU. You can also buy the DVD on Amazon.

Aquaman - Introduction /  by Mark

BAA-baa-baa-bah-BAAAA-B-Dah (wint)! 

Recognize it?  Well, try the link at the bottom while you read this:

AQUAMAN! Swift and powerful monarch of the oceans! With ability to summon and command all creatures of the deep! AQUAMAN, who with his teenage ally Aqualad, guards and defends all that lives in the seas against the forces of evil!

AQUAMAN--King of the Seven Seas!

Based on the success of The New Adventures of Superman (Filmation's first animated series), Aquaman was selected as the "co-star" of The Superman/Aquaman Hour of Adventure. Coming along for the ride were the Flash, Green Lantern, Hawkman, the Atom, the Justice League of America, and the Teen Titans, all of whom got a chance in the spotlight.

The series follows the Sea King, his sidekick Aqualad, and his wife Mera (who you only see when there's a need for a damsel in distress). They ride seahorses Storm and Imp, while classic Silver Age octopus mascot Topo is replaced by Tusky, their pet walrus. Aquaman's main bit is his telepathy with fish, allowing him to order sea creatures around and do his bidding. He could also throw balls of "hard water" at bad guys (this was Mera's power in the comic). Aqualad's job was to show surprise and get hit over the head a lot. 

As you might guess, the stories are very simplistic, although DC Comics writers Bob Haney and George Kashdan were involved.

Fitting with Filmation's low budget, the voice cast was small.

Aquaman got a total of 36 episodes, which I will be covering two at a time (they are only six minutes a piece, after all), beginning in my next entry. This show is NOT available on Netflix (I'm watching a DVD my wife gave me for Christmas), but is available online via iTunes, Amazon Instant Video, or VUDU if you would like to play along.  You can also buy the DVD on Amazon.

Aquaman Sting

Star Trek: TAS--Wrapup /  by Mark

We've reached the end of the Star Trek animated series. It was slightly different than I remembered--while some of it was pretty goofy, there are some good scripts here. Some major sci-fi writers as well as writers of other Trek media were involved. Of course, the low cost animation tends to drag down things overall. Despite this, the show won an Emmy and a Peabody. 

While the series was not considered to be in the official canon, it's clear this policy was broken multiple times--Spock's young life, Robert April as the first captain, etc.

If you thought my knowledge of Trek was all-encompassing, you're wrong. I relied on several online resources:

Next week, we will start on the Aquaman animated series--another Filmation production.

Thanks for reading!

Star Trek: TAS--The Counterclock Incident /  by Mark

We've reached the final episode of the Star Trek animated series.  This episode (the title of which sounds like a Man from U.N.C.L.E. episode) was written by Fred Bronson (aka John Culver), who happened to be the publicist for the series. He went on to be involved in both "The Questor Tapes" (another Roddenberry project) and TNG.

Kirk and Co. are ferrying a distinguished passenger to an event in his honor--Robert April, the first captain of the Enterprise. He's reached mandatory retirement age (of 75?? In the 23rd century??).  His wife Sarah was the first medical officer. She's wearing a flower that has a very short lifespan (just a few hours), and she notices it is dying. 

Spock reports they are about to pass the Beta Niobe supernova. Sensors report an unidentified object about to strike the ship at Warp 36. Evasive maneuvers take them out of danger. The other ship is on course to hit the nova instead, and attempts to communicate with the Enterprise, but it's just gibberish to them. They figure out the gibberish is just backwards talk, and attempt to reply, but no luck. The tractor beam the Enterprise has thrown on the other ship is pulling the ship at incredible speed, so they try to release it--it's stuck! They go into the nova, and somehow survive.

Everything is opposite--space is white with black stars, the ship is going backwards, as are the controls. Dr. April notes that the flower has come back to life. Spock confirms that time is now reversed--they are getting younger. The other ship's captain notes that nova caused a gateway between the universes. They go to planet Arret (Terra backwards) and meet the other captain's son (really his father). They check the maps to find another place  where novas coexist--there are none. So they have to make one! They also need the other ship, which has enough speed to survive. 

There's another problem--Kirk and Co. are getting too young to run the ship, as well as losing their knowledge. So, it looks like April needs to take over. They make it through, but now most of the crew are babies. April notes they can go through the transporter, which has a record of their original forms. Dr. April says they could skip this and just stay young, but now Captain April says they've lived good lives. The Federationreconsiders the mandatory age policy. 

Some things to look for:

  • Kirk is back in a closet, based on his echoey voice at the start of the episode
  • Here's another case where where TAS, while not technically in canon, established Robert April as the first Enterprise captain.  Roddenberry used the name in the first TOS pilot drafts.
  • I love how Sulu is just hitting buttons to hit the brakes, and how Kirk thinks if he hits the button, it will work
  • The Enterprise going into the nova looks like they put the cel on a Spin-Art machine
  • When I see the Enterprise going backwards, all I can think is the "beep-beep" sounds when you back up
  • As the Enterprise crew gets younger, their uniforms shrink with them?
  • Using the transporter to reverse their ages is a slippery slope--you could just keep getting your 18-year old body back using a backup disk.

Remember, you can play along by watching the show on Netflix!

Star Trek: TAS--How Sharper Than a Serpent's Tooth /  by Mark

Quite the dramatic title, huh? This episode won the 1974-75 Emmy for Outstanding Entertainment Children's Series (Daytime). The co-writers, Russell Bates and David Wise won a Peabody for Best Writing in an Animated Series.  

Now that I've raised your expectations, let's move on.

The Enterprise is investigating an ancient space probe that visited Earth and then blew up. Another ship arrives--it appears to be built out of crystals. The Enterprise is stopped by a force field, and the other ship begins a strong probe, and phasers are useless. The other ship protects a giant bird, and special guest Lt. Walking Bear recognizes it as Kukulkan, a Mayan god. Kirk, McCoy, Scotty, and Walking Bear are all transported to the bird ship. Kukulkan shows them a huge ancient city.

Kirk walks up an ancient pyramid while the rest look around. There are four statues that they figure out must be moved to reflect the sun to the pyramid, and it results in a signaling device. Kukulkan appears as a bird, and dares them to attack him. Kirk says they have no reason to do so. The god says they have forgotten him, and the environment changes around them to a kind of zoo. Each alien thinks it's in their own world, but are really in glass cages. Kirk pulls the "no has the right to capture other creatures" bit. The god only wants peace--his peace--and total control. 

Meanwhile, Spock realizes they can break the force field by pressing in two directions with the tractor beam and warp power, and does so. Kukulkan attacks the ship, and Kirk realizes they need to distract him. They release a Capellan Powercat--an animal with a huge electrical charge--who breaks out many others. The cat goes to attack Kukulkan, and Kirk uses McCoy's hypo to stop it. We get a big speech about how the Federation is striving to be more peaceful, and how they can't be children of Kukulkan now. The crew is returned, and the bird ship leaves.

Some things to look for:

  • I love how characters on the show run toward the camera--it's like they are linebackers
  • At one point, Uhura asks if they should be looking for the missing crew--Spock tells her to keep to her job.  It seems like Uhura should reply to this, but doesn't.  Possibly a cut scene?
  • We get several pronunciations of Kukulkan throughout the episode
  • In the zoo, there's a three googly-eyed alien that is particularly goofy
  • This episode gives Kirk a lot of chances to pontificate

Remember, you can play along by watching the show on Netflix!

Star Trek: TAS--Albatross /  by Mark

Kirk and Co. are dropping off medical supplies to the distant planet of Dramia. They are surprised by the locals who arrest McCoy for mass murder! He was there 19 years earlier on a mission, and a plague resulted. Kirk does some investigation on the planet, but they have no luck--Spock reports historical info is spotty, and just goes into astronomical info. Suddenly, the Enterprise is off to another planet to do more investigation. The Dramians give the Enterprise chase, and Kirk tricks them by leaving the hangar bay open and getting them to land inside. They impound the smaller ship.

They beam down to the other planet with their "stowaway", where the plague first hit. They find a survivor, who tells them about the event--peolpe changing colors, and finally turning red before dying.  He remembers that McCoy saved him at the time. They take him back to the original planet, passing through an aurora on the way, and the survivor as well as Kirk and the rest of the crew change colors and become deathly ill. Spock, of course, is immune and takes over command. 

Kirk insists they have to save McCoy, and so Spock contacts the planet and asks them to release Bones--no dice.  Spock goes down and breaks out McCoy with the ol' nerve pinch--McCoy protests, but relents when he hears about the plague on the ship. Spock and McCoy work to together to come up with a solution--Kirk notes that the aurora keeps changing color along with them. The aurora caused the plague! McCoy remembers an aurora from 19 years earlier (?!?). Spock notes that the survivor from the first plague must have antibodies that protected him, and which end up saving the crew. The aliens relent, and even honor him for his work. A spat between Spock and McCoy with wacky music plays us out.

Some things to look for:

  • The whole episode seems rushed, with lots of plot holes. For example, McCoy is saved from a murder conviction because he solves the second plague--but Spock was the one that figured it out.
  • The alien's voices seem rather strange--like they just pulled some guys off the street and gave them a few bucks
  • Some of Kirk's voice work sounds like it was done in a closet
  • The whole "ship in the shuttlebay" sequence is disjointed---not the best writing
  • There's a reference to "General Order 6", which sets a ship on self-destruct if a plague finishes off the entire crew. This is one of the items that doesn't match canon, as it is contradicted in both TOS ("The Omega Glory" and "The Tholian Web") and TNG ("Unnatural Selection").
  • No make-up needed for character to change colors--just a different color of paint on the cel
  • Even Uhura changes color, with no indication she wasn't a different color to begin with
  • All these color changes made them forget McCoy wears blue at the end of the episode

Remember, you can play along by watching the show on Netflix!

Star Trek: TAS--The Practical Joker /  by Mark

The Enterprise is on an asteroid mapping mission when they run into three Romulan ships. Kirk demands the Romulans cease fire, but they reply that the Enterprise is in their territory. The Enterprise is outgunned, but s strange energy field gives Kirk a place to hide the ship. They make it through the field, and then stop for repairs.

The senior officers are then in the mess hall, and find their glasses have become dribble glasses. Then, their silverware becomes rubber. More incidents occur--Spock gets the "black eye from the viewer" bit, Scotty gets a pie in the face, and Kirk gets "Kirk is a Jerk" on the back of his uniform. They hear a laugh--from the ship's computer? Then a fog appears, and the ship's floor turns into ice. More laughing from the computer, and Spock figures it out--the computer is causing all of this.  Kirk calls for a general alert and review of ship's systems.

Just as he does this, McCoy, Sulu, and Uhura go into the "Rec Room"--which is clearly a holodeck. Sulu brings up a beach, but McCoy calls for a walk in the woods. More laughing--they're in trouble!  A trap is laid for them, and they fall for it. Spock tries to use the computer to find them, but it's no good. Kirk orders Scotty to shut it down. The Rec Room turns into a snowstorm. Scotty tries to stop the computer, and it responds by reversing gravity. Scotty leaves the computer room, and the gravity is back to normal. Spock determines that the energy cloud affected the ship's computer.

Uhura suggests they find a wall of the Rec Room, so they can get to the exit. Kirk tries to order a team to cut the door open, but the computer floods the ship with laughing gas. Spock switches over to the emergency air supply, but then collapses (apparently, laughing gas knocks out Vulcans). Energy-based weapons are knocked out, so Scotty and his team are using crowbars on the Rec Room doors. Meanwhile, the snowstorm has turned into a maze. The crowbars finally work, and the team gets out of the Rec Room. The ship goes on a new course back to the Neutral Zone--they have no control over it. The ship throws a huge balloon out of the shuttle bay--a huge version of the Enterprise, which the Romulans attack. They are ashamed and angry. Kirk pulls the "Brer Rabbit and the Briar Patch" trick on the computer, getting it to send the Enterprise back into the energy field and fixing the computer. The Romulans aren't so lucky, and we get the standard Filmation wacky music to play us off.

Some things to look for:

  • This is the first appearance by what would later be called the Holodeck on TNG. In fact, the story here is quite similar to the TNG episode "Emergence", which involves a malfunctioning ships' computer.
  • The voices of the Romulans are Filmation co-founders Lou Scheimer and Norm Prescott. Scheimer portrayed a number of Filmation characters including Bat-Mite on the Batman series and Orko on He-Man, but Prescott rarely did so.
  • Why does the Enterprise stop for repairs?  Couldn't the Romulans just go around the energy field? It couldn't be that big.
  • Apparently the ship's food synthesizers can create lots of fresh fruit, if the senior officer's table is any indication
  • Speaking of that, do senior officers drink from glasses or large vases?
  • Uhura turns into Chapel at the start of the rec room sequence--oh, Uhura's back again
  • How exactly did the ship's computer create a huge Enterprise balloon? Even using the ship's synthesizers, it wouldn't have enough raw material.

Remember, you can play along by watching the show on Netflix!

Star Trek: TAS--BEM /  by Mark

David Gerrold is back as the writer of this episode called "BEM" (Bug Eyed Monster).

An independent observer from a planet considering Federation membership has joined the Enterprise--Ari Bem-Bem. They are orbiting a planet with aborigine lifeforms which are being investigated. Bem decides to join the landing party, although he has spent no time outside his quarters until now. Kirk reluctantly lets him come along. They beam down--Kirk and Spock fall into a lake.  Bem offers assistance--he jumps in the water, and his lower torso disconnects from the upper half (he's basically a humanoid otherwise) underwater to grab their communicators secretly. Uhura checks in--there's an anomaly on the planet which seems like a sensor field. Kirk tells her to keep an eye on it.

Bem senses some lifeforms, and runs off to see them. Since the mission is to just drop off communication beacons and leave, this is a problem. Bem runs into a thicket, where he shouldn't make much progress--but he breaks up into multiple separate parts and slips through easily. He is then captured by a group of reptile humanoids.  Meanwhile, Arex reports that the sensor field is now expanding quickly. Uhura notices that Kirk's communicator isn't responding, so Uhura orders the rest of the landing party to beam up. Scotty argues with her, but she's just following Kirk's orders.

Kirk realizes that the communicator on his belt is a forgery--Bem switched them, along with their phasers. They have to follow the aborigines without their equipment. Kirk and Spock attempt a rescue that night, but find out that Bem wanted to be captured, so he could "observe". The aborigines capture them and put them in cages. Bem berates Kirk, and Kirk replies that he caused the whole thing by disobeying orders. Bem shows that he has their equipment--he through they were too dependent on it. Kirk orders Bem to give them back, so we see the torso split again. This was just Bem's test--Kirk tells him that he is under arrest. The sensor field now blocks all signals to the Enterprise, so they try to phaser their way out of the aborigine village. An unseen entity stops them from doing so--it's the "god" of the planet. It nullifies their phasers and they are recaptured.

Scotty gets ready to send down a security party. Meanwhile, Bem declares Kirk "unintelligent", slips out of his cage, and leaves. Spock suggests they contact the planet's "god", and they tie their communicators together to do it. Kirk apologizes and promises to leave--but they still need to get Bem back. The "god" says they can leave--now. Kirk calls the ship, and says to stand by. He calls for a security squad to come and find Bem. They do so, and Bem is "shamed" by what he has done. The "god" reappears, and Kirk explains he had to get Bem to protect the planet.  Bem says he must "disassemble" based on what he has done, but the "god" talks him out of it.  Kirk declares the planet to be quarantined.

Some things to look for:

  • The shots where Bem breaks up into separate parts is bizarre. Gerrold must have been smoking something to come up with this.
  • There's a long establishing shot of the Enterprise during the discussion of the sensor field.  Possibly an act break, but it seems strange.
  • Kirk to Bem: "Shut up, we're rescuing you"
  • There's some great dialogue between Kirk and Spock throughout the episode--Gerrold does a great job here
  • This episode includes the first reference to Kirk's middle name--Tiberius
  • Scotty's hair goes almost blond in one shot
  • The lights for the alien "god" are quite reminiscent of those from the TOS episode "Metamorphosis"

Remember, you can play along by watching the show on Netflix!

Star Trek: TAS--Pirates of Orion /  by Mark

We're now in the very short second season of ST:TAS (just six episodes). This episode was written by Howard Weinstein who later wrote ST comics at DC and was later involved in ST: The Voyage Home.

There's an outbreak of choriocytosis on the Enterprise--not an issue for most of the crew, except for Spock. McCoy discovers it will kill him in days. Of course, there's a cure, so they're off to Beta Canopus to get it. They need to do a handoff from another ship to get it to Spock in time. We get an actual character moment as Kirk and McCoy talk about possibly losing Spock.

The SS Huron, a freighter, is on its way to meet the Enterprise with the cure. A strange ship attacks them! They call for help, and the Enterprise finds the Huron damaged with minimal life support. Meanwhile, Spock is close to death. Kirk, Scotty, Chapel, Arex, and Uhura beam over to the Huron to find the crew knocked out and the hold empty. They search for evidence of the attacker--the sensor tapes from the Huron show they can track their ship from its radioactivity. The trail ends in an asteroid belt, which explode upon impact. They find the strange ship--it's Orion pirates! Kirk demands they turn over the their cargo, and the Orions refuse. Kirk offers to let the whole thing slide if they give him the drugs, and they agree--if they do it face-to-face on an asteroid. Kirk agrees. The Orions are desperate to keep their neutrality, so they plan to blow up themselves and the Enterprise with the unstable asteroid. Kirk beams down with the Orion, who tells Kirk about his plan, so there's a scuffle. Scotty beams up both of them just in time. The Orion captain tries to commit suicide, but is stopped, and orders his ship to surrender--since the neutrality is over with anyway.  McCoy gives Spock the drug, and they trade barbs to play us out. 

Some things to look for:

  • When Spock collapses on the ship, Kirk calls for sickbay--although McCoy is standing next to him
  • The appearance of the SS Huron is the first time was see a current Federation ship of a different class than the Enterprise.  This doesn't happen again until the USS Reliant appears in Wrath of Khan.
  • Speaking of the Huron, you'll see "USS Huron" on the ship's hull, although it's referenced multiple times as "SS Huron".  The ship seems awfully ungainly--it guess being streamlined doesn't matter in space.
  • Again, McCoy seems to be bi-locating--he calls the bridge on the intercom but is standing next to Kirk on the bridge a moment later
  • "Evasive maneuvers" for the Orion looks like weaving from side to side--probably not effective in space
  • TAS must not have a pronunciation key in the script--everyone says "Oh-REE-on" instead of "Oh-Ri-On"
  • Did the Orions steal their uniforms and ship from Flash Gordon?
  • Kirk references the "Babel Conference", where Orion pirates were referenced but never seen in TOS episode "Journey to Babel"
  • The Orion second officer sounds like Arnold Stang for a moment
  • More bi-locating from McCoy--the last scene is in sickbay, then on the bridge, then back to sickbay

Remember, you can play along by watching the show on Netflix!

Star Trek: TAS--The Time Trap /  by Mark

This episode has a number of tie-ins to other Trek media:

  • The plotline is "borrowed" from an issue of the Gold Key Star Trek comic book, written by Len Wein, who went onto to create Swamp Thing at DC and Wolverine at Marvel
  • Klingon Commander Kor was introduced in TOS episode "Errand of Mercy", and later seen in three DS9 episodes
  •  A Gorn is also featured, as seen in TOS episode "Arena" and referenced on the Enterprise series.
  • A sequel to this episode was the basis of the ST novel "Into the Void".

We start with more space "explosions" to indicate the entrance to the "Delta Triangle", a mysterious area where ships disappear. Of course, the finest ship in the fleet is sent to investigate. The Klingon ship Klothos is seen, followed by a quick battle. The Klothos disappears, then three ships show up--it's a trap. The Klingons demand their surrender. Kirk orders the ship to the same point the other Klingon ship disappeared. The instruments go haywire, the Enterprise disappears as well, and the ship's crew collapses. 

They find themselves in a vast graveyard of old ships--the missing ships from the Delta Triangle. The Klothos is in that mix--and attacks the Enterprise. None of the weapons work on either side. Kirk is suddenly beamed away. Kor and Kirk find themselves in front of a council composed of many races. They used psionics to stop the battle, and tell Kirk and Kor they are responsible to keep the peace on their ships. Any act of violence results in the freezing of their ship for a century, which seems like a long time--except no one ages here.

They return to their ships, where Scotty tells him if they want to escape, they need to do it fast--the dilithium is deteriorating quickly. The Klingons are working on the issue as well, and try to escape with no luck. Spock has an idea--fuse the ships together and use their combined power to get out. Kor agrees--of course, he has his own plans to destroy the Enterprise after they get out. Spock seems awfully chummy with the Klingons, wrapping his arms over their shoulders, and Kirk asks him about it. He explains that touching them allowed him to learn their plans with his Vulcan mind powers(?!?). There's a reception on the Enterprise with the Council. There's a scuffle between McCoy and a Klingon which gives them a chance to leave a device on the Enterprise to destroy it. The Council grabs Kirk, McCoy, and the Klingons to pass judgment--freeze the Klothos. Kirk begs for them to delay the judgment so they can attempt to escape first. As they make their move, the Council telepath realizes the Klingon plan, and warn the Enterprise in time for them to eject it. Both ships reappear in normal space.

Some things to look for:

  • TAS "explosions" look a lot like fireworks going off
  • Could the Delta Triangle be related to the Delta Quadrant? Nah.
  • Takei gets a chance to do more voices--in this case, a rather British Klingon
  • The shots of the ship's graveyard would have been impossible to do in live action until CGI arrived
  • Not sure if it was planned, or the music queue was too long, but the slow zoom on Spock after Kirk is beamed away is strange
  • We see all the usual ST aliens on the council--Romulan, Klingon, Vulcan, Orion, Tellerite, Andorian, Gorn, plus a few invented for TAS
  • The Klingons appear to have adopted 70's afros
  • The device which would have destroyed the Enterprise looks like a vitamin
  • There's a USS Bonaventure--the first ship with warp drive--in the ship graveyard. One of their crew is on the council, although she has no lines. Seems like a wasted opportunity to explore that idea.
  • This is the last time we see the swarthy Klingons of TOS--the next time we see them in ST:TMP, the bumpy heads are introduced

Remember, you can play along by watching the show on Netflix!

Star Trek: TAS--The Jihad /  by Mark

The writer of this episode, Stephen Kandel, is "Mr. Mudd"--he wrote both original series Harry Mudd episodes, as well as the Mudd episode from earlier in this series.

A long time spacefaring race has called for specialists to avert a crisis--including Kirk and Spock. There's also representatives of hawk, frog, and slug races, as well as an amazon woman. The hawk explains that they were a warlike race until a religious figure saved them. Now, an artifact from that leader has been stolen, and the hawk race is prepping for holy war--against the whole galaxy. So, the team need to find the artifact on a "mad planet" with bizarre weather and tectonics.

The amazon is an expert tracker, so they move off in a weird space car. The amazon hits on Kirk (of course), but then there's a lava flow to worry about. We get a shot of the Enterprise for no reason, and then back to the action. They hotwire the car to get around the lava. Spock falls out of the car, but Kirk saves him--so Spock berates him for doing so. Now, it's snowing, and the car is shot. The slug falls in a crevasse, but they save him. 

The hawk feels the presence of the artifact. They find a temple, and the slug picks the lock. Batlike creatures attack--they are robots, and grab the hawk. They get inside the temple but are trapped. Kirk realizes one of them must be a traitor. (huh?)  They scale the walls to get to the artifact--the frog stays behind. They are attacked again, this time by the hawk--he's the traitor. He gives the "yeah, I did it--and I'd do it again" speech. Gravity is turned off so they can fight him. Kirk and Spock fight the hawk hand to hand, and then retrieve the artifact.  

Some things to look for:

  • This seems like a slightly rewritten Herculoids episode--it makes little sense, and has lots of goofy aliens. It's like a fever dream.
  • Lots of goofy ships are seen at the start of this episode
  • The "long time spacefaring race" look like Kzinti with white hair
  • Kirk: "We're tired, sore, hurt, and angry--but we're also just about there." Why angry?
  • We’ve seen the same batlike creatures on several episodes--it's the same footage each time.
  • When it's suggested that Kirk use his phaser against the hawk, he mentions the phaser banks in the temple--whaaa??  I believe Kirk is reading from a different script.

Remember, you can play along by watching the show on Netflix!

Star Trek: TAS--Eye of the Beholder /  by Mark

Another episode written by an original series writer, David P. Harmon (The Deadly Years, A Piece of the Action).

The Enterprise is searching for a lost science team from a deserted ship. Kirk decides to beam down to the planet (of course). They find a weird sea creature, but scare it off with their phasers. Another monster attacks, but this time, the phasers do no good at first. They run, then the monster falls--on McCoy. So, they dig him out.

There are multiple ecosystems--Spock realizes they are artificial. More creatures attack from the sky, but they bounce off an invisible forcefield. Kirk and Co. are grabbed by huge snail-like creatures and taken to a city. They are thrown in a prison cell. Spock realizes the snails are telepathic, but think too fast for him to comprehend. Snails grab them and move them to a new ecosystem--they realize they are in a "zoo". They find the lost science team, and we get more exposition.

Kirk has Spock try to communicate with the snails via telepathy--the snails laugh at them. One of the science team is very sick, but McCoy has no medical tools to help her. They make plans to escape the next time the snails drop off food. Spock realizes if they think about the medical kit, the snails will give it to them--and they do. Spock states that the snails are hyperintelligent, and have the crew stuck in a zoo--probably for life.

Blah-blah-blah--more exposition. They decide to think about one of them being sick, and that a communicator can help them. A snail kid picks up their thoughts and gives it to them--but then takes it back when Kirk tries to call Scotty. The snail kid is accidentally beamed up.  Now the snails are mad, and invade Kirk's mind. He has to fight it or go mad. Meanwhile, the snail kid has made it to the bridge and sends the ship away from the planet (joyriding?). The mental attacks stop, and then the snails gang up on him, so the crew does likewise to protect Kirk. Scotty and the snail kid materializes. He explains he convinced the snail to beam them down. Spock manages to read the snail's minds. The snail kid has convinced the others that the humans are no threat, but should be allowed to leave and evolve. 

Some things to look for:

  • Kirk: "A captain of a ship, no matter his rank, must follow the book."  Hey Kettle, the Pot called--you're black.
  • This is another episode with a lot of exposition. Watch for long still shots with characters talking.
  • One of the science team is clearly Chapel with brunette hair
  • When Kirk's mind is invaded, he looks like he's got an Excedrin headache
  • Even in voice only form, Kirk does some powerful overacting
  • How did Scotty communicate with the snail kid and convince him to beam them down in a matter of minutes?  The science team had been on the planet for weeks with no success! Scotty is apparently a good father figure.

Remember, you can play along by watching the show on Netflix!

Star Trek: TAS--The Slaver Weapon /  by Mark

A Larry Niven short story was adapted for this episode, "The Slaver Weapon". Maybe a bit too dense source material for a cartoon...

An ancient artifact is being shuttled by Spock, Sulu, and Uhura. The artifact is a "stasis box", where time stands still inside. A "Slaver" race built them, who commanded the galaxy a billion years ago--they were taken out in a war that ended all intelligent life at the time. The box begins to glow--it indicates another box is in the area. They stop at an icy planet to investigate.

Suddenly, Kzinti attack and capture them! They wake up as prisoner on the Kzinti ship. More exposition follows from Spock--he mentions the Kzinti are meat eaters. They also have a telepath, and so they take precautions. They confront their captors, and Sulu mentions the Federation beat them in four wars--but now they have the magic box, which may have a weapon inside to turn the tide. They open the box, and find a weird appliance.

The Federation crew are taken to the icy surface so the weapon can be tested. They fire the weapon--every time a button is pressed, the weapon changes shape, but no setting seems deadly or even dangerous. One setting shoots fire at the holder. Uhura attempts to escape in the confusion--they underestimate her since Kzinti women are less intelligent. Another weapon setting kills the power, including their prison, so Spock and Co. make a break for it. Uhura is hit, but Spock grabs the weapon. The Kzinti captain wants revenge against the plant eater.

Sulu thinks the weapon is for a Slaver spy. The Kzinti make an ultimatum--Uhura's life for the weapon. Sulu tries another setting, and finds a major weapon--they get blown around by the resulting explosion and get captured--again. Another weapon setting in the Kzinti's hands--it starts beeping, and scares them. It's a small computer! It asks for codewords, which they don't have. It does provide info on how to change it back to the dangerous weapon, but the resulting effect is that it destroys the Kzinti--and itself.

Some things to look for:

  • There's a long pause at the start of this episode--maybe they ran short?
  • Yet another shuttlecraft design, this time the Copernicus
  • We meet the Kzinti, a catlike race. Is M'ress a relative? They seem like a major enemy in this series, although they aren't mentioned in other series. As noted above, Larry Niven created them outside of the Trekverse.
  • There's a lot of exposition here--I doubt kids watching Saturday morning cartoons and hopped up on sugar cereals paid attention
  • I love the Kzinti telepath--he looks and acts very depressed
  • Uhura does well running in heels on the icy surface
  • The dangerous weapon setting apparently sets off a nuclear explosion where you point it--good thing Sulu shot into the far distance

Remember, you can play along by watching the show on Netflix!