Customer Reviews

Star Trek - The Original Series, Vol. 11, Episodes 21 & 22: Tomorrow is Yesterday/ The Return of the Archons

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Aside from the episodes in these DVD's, I look for clarity and things that you can't see on TV. In the return of the archons, the scene where kirk and company is chased by a mob with sticks, the clarity is amazing. I believe that most outdoor scenes on these DVD's are super clear. Tommorow is yesterday has some super clear scenes as well, such as the closeup on the fighter pilot that is chasing the enterprise. You can see all the details of his helmet and straps. Make sure if you get a chance to watch one of these DVD's on a home computer with a 17 inch or larger screen. It will be MUCH better than what can be seen on a TV unless it is a HDTV set. The reason is that a computer DVD drive uses what is called progressive scan, versus interlaced which is used on most DVD Tv players. You can get progressive players for Tv's but they only work well with digital and HDTV Tv's.

Tomorrow is Yesterday is the first Star Trek episode focusing on time travel and all the paradoxes that entails. (The Naked Time had a brief time travel sequence, but it was not integral to the plot.) Guest star Roger Perry is perfectly cast as John Christopher--a 1969 fish out of water brought onboard the Enterprise. (In many ways, he is a 20th Century version of James T. Kirk) One prophetic moment is when Uhura tunes into a radio news summary which reports on the first manned moon shot "scheduled for next Wednesday." The first moon launch did indeed take place on a Wednesday! The use of stock footage in this episode is very clever and it is well integrated. The effects shots of the Enterprise could have been better, but for 1960s television they hold up fairly well.

The Return of the Archons bears the stamp of Gene Roddenberry. Many of Roddenberry's best stories focused on mind control and thinly disguised theocratic societies. In this case, "God" is a computer (as in the later episode, The Apple) and Kirk "kills" God with a dose of overpowering logic. Both the original series and the Next Generation dealt with this issue, but this was the first and most successfull attempt.

Paramount has once again done a fine job of remastering both sound and picture. Even the stock footage of Air Force jets from the 1960s story line has been cleaned up.

You must always remember when watching these DVD's that it was this series that started it all. Sure, modern-day Star Trek fans will see "flaws" in logic here with both of these episodes, but considering that these episodes were the ones which our knowledge was built, it's a hoot to watch. In Tomorrow is Yesterday, Timeline polution and time travel paradoxes are present. It is great to see how the episdoe starts after the initial incident which we do not see. In this episode, I saw a lot of pavemnt to the fourth Star Trek Film, the Voyage Home. Same issues in both, sorta same solutions. The transport at the end frankly does not "compute" with me, since even transporting at a certain time does not replace memory...I think it's a plot hole. I also wonder why they simply did not just wipe the memory away yet; perhaps it hasn't been invented until TNG...Also, watch out for the port nascele as the Enterprise is leaving Earth's orbit. It disappears in the back for a moment, then fades back in. Yikes! The second episode, The Return of the Archons, is amusing and fun to watch. Watch for Sulu's initial reactions right before beam up...It's hysterical. Again, I'm wondering why they simply do not do more analysis on Sulu before beaming down...Find O'Neil and beam him up. Clear violations of the Prime Directive, but Kirk was right...The last scene with Landrau being destroyed was hokey...anway, still enjoyable. Overall, the quality of the sound and visual was outstanding...I must have for all TOS and Trek fans!

Volume 11 of Star Trek contains two classic sci-fi episodes that have both well developed and entertaining plots. This pair of episodes truly bring out the greatness of the Star Trek Original Series. Whether it's quirky comical moments in TOMORROW IS YESTERDAY or all out bizarre humanoid behaviour in RETURN OF THE ARCHONS, Volume 11 is sci-fi at it's best.

The first episode here TOMORROW IS YESTERDAY is a personal favourite of mine. This was one of the first Trek episodes to deal with time travel. The Enterprise goes into a black hole that takes them back to the late 1960's. There the crew confronts a US Fighter Pilot and is forced to beam the man aboard after his jet is destroyed by the ship's tractor beam. The pilot's name is Cpt. Christopher (played by Roger Perry) and Kirk realizes that he cannot return the young Captain to Earth because it may alter the course of time with his knowing of the Enterprise however Cpt.Christopher refuses to stay and tries to escape this leads to more problems on the Enterprise. The whole time travel plot was fairly good and the man on the moon thing was quite accurate to the timew period: the late 1960's. Comical moments include Kirk run in with the flirtatious computer as well as the Sgt.'s tour aboard the Enterprise(you'll know what i mean if you have seen the episode). This truly is a classic!

The other episode here is THE RETURN OF THE ARCHONS. Kirk and the crew visit a planet ruled by Landru a so called god who controls the minds of his people and punishs those who are not of the body. The episode has a bizarre yet interesting and enterating plot about mind controlling. It is so strange when Landru reveals what he actually is but not suprising when you see the way his minions act under his control. Another classic Trek episode
but I prefer TOMMOROW IS YESTERDAY over this just slightly more.

Overall Volume 11 is a must. Both Trek episodes have great science fiction elements that make these episodes special. Truly some of the greater Trek adventures. Highly recommended!

Tomorrow Is Yesterday is one of the best time-travel episodes in all of Trek. It follows all the warnings and some of the potential benfits any time travel story has to reckonize. Too bad they didn't make it the second half of a two-parter along with The Naked Now. I have to give credit where it's due. Leonard Nimoy made this point back on the Sci-Fi Channels Star Trek: Special Edition (back in '99 I think). Anyway, I never forgot the connection of two great stories.

Maybe Return Of The Archons isn't near the top of anybody else's list but I think it's underrated. The story takes on a great number of ideas, from "arrested society" to "technological domination". Despite its flaws it tells a good story. My favorite gaff is the feeling of discontinuity, or was it bad editing?

I always saw this episode as a 'Spock like computer' forcing its' logic on the 'emotional inhabitants' who probably would have destroyed themselves otherwise. This to me explains the 6:00 pm mayhem of the people and shows one of the flaws in machines ruling mankind (machines expecting humans to behave like machines). Remember this the next time you find yourself at a drive-thru ATM. Who's the boss?

Well I just finish viewing the Tomorrow is yesterday episode... I remember when i saw it for the first time in the early 80's, and it "stunted me". To me this is the most interesting episode because it add humor to our perpective about the unknown! The theorie of meeting our grand grand grand generation is a fantastic recepie for a show. This is the only original series DVD of Star trek that I bought and I was waiting for it! it does have a similar taste of Voyage home!

On the strength of the first ep, I'm giving this one 3 stars. In this the first full ep with a time travel theme, we have an amusing story of the Enterprise getting inadvertantly thrown back into time to arrive at Earth in the 1960s. The acting by the guest stars is quite good and overall, the storyline is quite absorbing with a number of humorous bits thrown in.

The theme of the second ep though seems to be a recurring one which keeps cropping up in many guises such as in "What are Little Girls Made of" and in "The Apple" later where we get machines running the lives of people although with good intentions. I just didn't seem to be as insightful and original an ep to me and so it just rates as average.

Overall, I'd say this is a good volume to borrow but is not really one you'd go all out to keep. If you are picking and choosing your volumes to collect, you'd probably not miss this one not being in your collection.

Although Tomorrow is Yesterday is an okay episode, it is not one to rave about.It is certainly not one of the original series' best. However, Return of the Archons is one of the best and one of my favourites.Kirk, Spock and McCoy investigate a planet where the inhabitants appear to be in a drug-induced state then rapidly change from walking peacefully and amiably along the streets into violent and looting maniacs that seem to lose all inhibitions. A mob attacks Kirk and crew and they are forced to defend themselves with their phasers. It seems the planet is run by a man named Landru, who advocates peace and tranquility to the extent that you get "absorbed".A kind of brainwash conditioning into thinking only of harmony and serenity.Later it is discovered that Landru is a computor projection;the edict of Landru who died 5,000 years ago has been continued by a computer I just read a review saying the solution to the Landru mystery won't surprise anyone, it sure surprised me. I didn't see that one coming.

The two episodes on this DVD are very good. The standout is Return of the Archons. While it may look cheesy and cheap, it has a very good story. Also, the humor in this episode and Tomorrow is Yesterday are among the best moments in the entire series. This is a must have CD.

REVIEWED ITEM: Star Trek ® Original Series DVD Volume : Tomorrow is Yesterday © / The Return of the Archons ©

TOMORROW IS YESTERDAY © PRELIMINARY BRIEFS:

Moral, Ethical, and/or Philosophical Subject(s) Driven Into The Ground: the consequences of messin' 'round with the space-time continuum

Historical Milestone: Star Trek's first full-fledged time-travel episode

Notable Gaffe / Special De-fect: Be on the lookout for a scene where Spock's poppin' a communications earpiece into his noggin with his back facing the camera. If you take a good look at his ears, you can see the lack of craftsmanship in the particular pair he was wearing that day! It was definitely an off-day for the makeup department'

Expendable Enterprise Crewmember ('Red Shirt') Confirmed Casualty List: 1 Incapacitated

REVIEW/COMMENTARY: Ah, nothin' like a good time-travel eppie of Star Trek that tries to clear things up about the whole space-time thingy yet leaves you even more confused than ever before! For example, if the abducted Air Force pilot's progeny is going to make so significant a contribution to Earth's future that if he hadn't existed the Federation may not have ever existed, it would... umm... well, see what I mean? It's high time for me to dispense with the temporal mechanics and head into the fun parts of this eppie...

In one of the most unbelievably silly fights ever filmed for network TV, Kirk manages to fend off three US Air Force officers in a scene more reminiscent of the Keystone Kops than Bruce Lee! Putting into consideration the high-quality (*snicker*) choreography of Kirk's previous Star Trek fisticuffs, it's not like it was any big surprise. Speaking of choreograohy, Tomorrow is Yesterday© is also one of the series' best showcases of the bridge crew's amazing ability to lean in unison with the lurching ship! Heck, if synchronized leaning were an Olympic sport, all the US would do is send out the original Trek cast to compete! They'd win the gold by an even greater margin than the first couple of US Olympic Basketball Dream Teams did!

THE RETURN OF THE ARCHONS © PRELIMINARY BRIEFS:

Moral, Ethical, and/or Philosophical Subject(s) Driven Into The Ground: The downside of cultural stagnation leading to a soulless society and other excuses for Kirk to ignore Starfleet's Prime Directive

Historical Milestone: Star Trek's first significant 'Kirk-versus-machine' episode

Expendable Enterprise Crewmember ('Red Shirt') Confirmed Casualty List: 2 'absorbed', subsequently recovered

REVIEW/COMMENTARY: Seen by many as Gene Roddenberry's commentary about the dangers of conformity in a society, 'Archons' is notable for being the first time Kirk saves the day by talking a computer to 'death'. In this instance, the computer is Landru, a machine that rules and guides a society of seemingly content and happy, yet soulless beings. One particular moment in this episode that really strikes me is the Festival, where the planet's citizenry go berserk and start a riot, complete with people wiggin' out, beatin' up on each other, and storefront windows gettin' smashed! It was likely a disquieting scene to behold for this episode's first viewing audience, what with the Watts riots having occurred a mere two years prior.

Keeping with classic Star Trek's tradition of Kirk interpreting the Prime Directive in a way that suits his own beliefs, Jimbo convinces Landru that it is performing an evil deed by allowing the society that it leads to stagnate. And as one might expect, the master computer eventually self-destructs in a cloud of smoke after the good captain's little soliloquy about how a society needs challenges to overcome and other pro-organic-being rhetoric overloads the machine's logic circuits. Now if I only I could do to the computers of people who keep spamming my e-mail inbox what Jimmers did to Landru, I'd have one less frustration in the world to deal with...

...'Late