February 2nd, 1967, "Court Martial"
The Fiver (by IJG GAF)
Memory Alpha
Transcript
The episode:
* Okay, let's get this out of the way right at the beginning: The whole "sensor pod" concept and a specific button for it on the captain's chair are stupid plot devices. An equivalent situation could've been achieved by turning off a nacelle, sticking Finney in there for routine repairs, and having the Klingons show up requiring warp speed NOW. Did Finney get out of the nacelle before it was reactivated? Then the control on Kirk's chair could be related to activating the warp drive, definitely more plausible.
* Ah, "Vulcanian". Early Installment Weirdness, moving on...
* Is Cogley here the first example of someone in Star Trek preferring physical books? Makes one wonder if Kirk got into the hobby because of him.
* Spock still a Lt. Commander? Once again, a series based on a military structure should have this stuff in the series bible so people don't make these mistakes!
* I find it odd that Kirk would imply that another captain would come to replace him and play chess with Spock. I'd imagine that Spock himself would be offered the job, wouldn't you?
* So a grunt barely considered qualified to man the sensor pod can hack the computer enough so it takes days for Spock to notice? Putting aside implausibility, Section 31 should hire this guy!
* Yeah, two on-duty officers kissing each other on the bridge? There must be a regulation against that. Too bad Kirk didn't have a ready room.
The fiver:
Good stuff, lots of jokes to make me smile, but nothing jumps out as exceptional. At least not without copypasting huge scenes.
Memory Alpha:
* In his adaptation James Blish tried to technobabble an explanation for the pod by saying that it has a thin hull for better sensor readings, a hull that's too thin to protect the observer in extreme conditions. I still say it's hooey. Where is this supposed pod on the exterior of the ship? All I can think of is the bottom of the saucer where the captain's yacht would be on the E-D, but the comics state that
the capsule goes there.
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