Customer Reviews

Star Trek 5

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

First published in 1972, these short stories are Blish's adaptations of the screenplays of various episodes from the original series. The episodes aren't sorted into books according to either chronological order or identity of screenwriter.

"Whom Gods Destroy" (episode 71, season 3, screenplay Lee Erwin and Jerry Sohl) (The remainder of the title quote is 'they first drive mad'; the setting is Elba II, a planet with a poisonous atmosphere used to isolate the criminally insane in an escape-proof setting.) I tend to bracket this with "Dagger of the Mind" from season 1. ENTERPRISE has come to Elba II because the newest inmate, Garth of Izar, was a respected starship captain until he was driven mad by injuries sustained in the line of duty. The problem is, the inmates have taken over the asylum, and Garth is a formidable opponent, insane or no.

"The Tholian Web" (episode 64, season 3, screenplay Judy Burns and Chet Richards) Sent by Starfleet to locate the lost DEFIANT, the ENTERPRISE finds it drifting near a 'fracture' in space that affects the minds of any near it, apparently the cause of the death of DEFIANT's crew. Kirk, separated from the rest of the away team, appears to have been lost - and when a Tholian vessel appears and demands that ENTERPRISE leave the area, Spock and McCoy must open Kirk's final sealed orders and presume his death.

"Let That Be Your Last Battlefield" (episode 70, season 3, screenplay Oliver Crawford from a story by Gene L. Coon (as Lee Cronin)) Two aliens from the hitherto unknown planet Cheron board the ENTERPRISE - Lokai, a member of an oppressed minority on that planet, and Bele, the law enforcement officer who has been pursuing him for 50000 years on charges of terrorism. (Interesting if unsubtle point: the two races look exactly the same, half black/half white, except that one is white/black and the other black/white; only the placement of the colours distinguishes them.) As Lokai demands asylum and Bele extradition, Kirk defers the issue to Starfleet Command - and in frustration, Bele uses his ESP to seize control of the ship and force a return to Cheron.

"This Side of Paradise" (episode 25, season 1, screenplay Nathan Butler and Dorothy C. Fontana). The first of several episodes over the years to explore the notion of a 'paradise' planet: in this case, Omicron Ceti III, where the colonists have survived lethal doses of radiation only through accidental exposure to plant spores that act as natural tranquilizers. The colonists are happy - but insist on exposing the ENTERPRISE crew to the effect. (This story works best if you've previously read/seen "The Enemy Within" - certain aspects of Kirk's character showcased in that episode are critical to coping with the lotus-eater syndrome herein.)

"Turnabout Intruder" (last episode of season 3, screenplay Gene Roddenberry and Arthur H. Singer) Janice Lester, an old acquaintance of Kirk's embittered since he attained command when she did not, uses an alien device to force an exchange of bodies with him. Blish's adaptation, like the original episode, concentrates more on Lister in Kirk's body than the real Kirk, confined to the brig for trying to incite mutiny. Lester, however, isn't good at passing herself off as the real Kirk, and overlooked some crucial details about the intended purpose of the device.

"Requiem for Methuselah" (episode 76, season 3, screenplay Jerome Bixby) Flint, a very wealthy recluse living alone with an unusually beautiful and self-possessed young woman in palatial surroundings, permits the ENTERPRISE to collect some vital minerals needed to treat an outbreak of Rigellian fever among the crew. But as delays interfere with McCoy's treatment, Spock and Kirk have time to notice just how unusual Flint's palace - and his ward Rayna - really are. [This episode was later used by another author, along with "Miri", to create CRY OF THE ONLIES, which tied up some loose ends.]

"The Way to Eden" (episode 75, season 3, screenplay Arthur Heinemann and Michael Richards) A back-to-nature cult (resembling contemporary hippies) has stolen a starship (bad) and are headed for the Romulan Neutral Zone (worse) in the belief that Eden is a planet to be found in that area. ENTERPRISE must prevent them from causing an international incident. On the other hand, their leader has a reputation as a brilliant scientist, and one of the youngsters is the son of an ambassador figuring prominently in very delicate negotiations...

James Blish was a very talented science fiction writer, his adaptations of the original Star Trek episodes not only made some of the weak ones sound interesting, but he also nurtured the phenomenon. When the original series was cancelled, there was little reason to believe that there would be anything new in that genre. Blish's work kept the thoughts of Star Trek alive until the syndication of the episodes generated such enormous excitement.
The episodes adapted in this book are:

*) Whom Gods Destroy
*) The Tholian Web
*) Let That Be Your Last Battlefield
*) This Side of Paradise
*) Turnabout Intruder
*) Requiem for Methuselah
*) The Way to Eden

Other than "This Side of Paradise", none of these episodes places very high on my ranking of the episodes of the original series. While Blish does a great job in transferring the story to print, he simply cannot capture the good moments of these weak episodes. For example, I consider the high point of "Turnabout Intruder" to be the scene where Kirk/Lester is filing his nails. Shatner demonstrated that he is indeed a quality character actor in that scene, appearing so feminine in the proper way.
"Let That Be Your Last Battlefield" and "The Way to Eden" are episodes where a good idea of social commentary is played out so awkwardly that the message is overwhelmed by the basic absurdity of the action. "Whom Gods Destroy" is just plain pointless, the inmates taking over the asylum in this manner makes it one of the few episodes that I have a hard time watching. Blish tries, but it is hard to make such bad original material energetic and exciting.

James Blish was a very talented science fiction writer, his adaptations of the original Star Trek episodes not only made some of the weak ones sound interesting, but he also nurtured the phenomenon. When the original series was cancelled, there was little reason to believe that there would be anything new in that genre. Blish's work kept the thoughts of Star Trek alive until the syndication of the episodes generated such enormous excitement.
The episodes adapted in this book are:

*) Whom Gods Destroy
*) The Tholian Web
*) Let That Be Your Last Battlefield
*) This Side of Paradise
*) Turnabout Intruder
*) Requiem for Methuselah
*) The Way to Eden

Other than "This Side of Paradise", none of these episodes places very high on my ranking of the episodes of the original series. While Blish does a great job in transferring the story to print, he simply cannot capture the good moments of these weak episodes. For example, I consider the high point of "Turnabout Intruder" to be the scene where Kirk/Lester is filing his nails. Shatner demonstrated that he is indeed a quality character actor in that scene, appearing so feminine in the proper way.
"Let That Be Your Last Battlefield" and "The Way to Eden" are episodes where a good idea of social commentary is played out so awkwardly that the message is overwhelmed by the basic absurdity of the action. "Whom Gods Destroy" is just plain pointless, the inmates taking over the asylum in this manner makes it one of the few episodes that I have a hard time watching. Blish tries, but it is hard to make such bad original material energetic and exciting.

When they are compared to the Star Trek novels that appeared later, these adaptations of the episodes of the original series by James Blish appear weak but they are still a vital component of the evolving Star Trek phenomenon. The series of books containing Blish's abbreviated adaptations of the episodes of the original series appeared shortly after the series was cancelled and helped keep the movement alive. The copy that I read for this review was originally published in April of 1969 and was already in the eighth printing by March of 1972. That clearly demonstrates that it was a significant part of the Star Trek legacy.
In this book, Blish wrote adaptations of the following seven episodes:

*) The Trouble With Tribbles
*) The Last Gunfight
*) The Doomsday Machine
*) Assignment: Earth
*) Mirror, Mirror
*) Friday's Child
*) Amok Time

While Blish generally keeps to the storyline of the episode, there are some significant deviations. When I read this book shortly after it first appeared, that fact disappointed me and it still does. However, I understand the sense of that approach, for these books were designed to expose Star Trek to people who didn't follow the original series with the passion that I did. Kathy, my beloved fiancé, is always amused when we watch episodes of the original series and I start spouting the dialog word-for-word a few seconds before it actually occurs.
As an original Trekkie, the lack of precisely following the original storyline still bothers me. However, the logical part of me understands the reasons for it, so I still give the book five stars.

Blish is to be commended as being one of the people that kept the Star Trek fires burning after the original series was cancelled. He wrote a series of adaptations of the episodes of the original series that were collected into several books. He also did not exactly follow either the dialog or plot lines of the series, something which may offend purists of the genre. However, since one intended consequence of the books was to introduce Star Trek to new people, that criticism is not necessarily well founded.

This book contains adaptations of the following episodes:

*) All our yesterdays

*) The devil in the dark

*) Journey to Babel

*) The menagerie

*) The Enterprise incident

*) A piece of the action

In just a few pages, Blish manages to capture the spirit of Star Trek and the message of the episode. That can be a difficult thing to do in print, as so much of the magic of Star Trek was visual. In my recent rereading of this book, I was once again pleased with the stories, even though I am an original Trekkie and can repeat the dialog of nearly every episode word for word.