NSF Re-Run TOS: The Man Trap

[TetsuoShima]

We've had some confusion about the next ep to 'feature'. :D

We can pick 2 orders, either the production order, or the airdate order, since the original announcement said we'd be running them by startrek.com order, that means we'll be using the airdate order. Just in case some of you are wondering why we're featuring this ep next. :)

 

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This weeks episode: The Man Trap

Wednesday May 30th

 

[spoiler=Short Plot]The U.S.S. Enterprise arrives at planet M-113 to deliver supplies to Dr. Robert Crater and his wife, Nancy, whom Doctor Leonard McCoy was once romantically involved with. M-113 is home to the Craters for five years, where they conducted an archeological survey of the planet's ruins. They are the only known inhabitants of the planet.

 

Crater tells Kirk that the only thing they need are salt tablets. Otherwise, they want to be left alone...

 

 

 

Trivia:

 

- The Salt Creature is one of two alien races the crew encounters that is the last of its kind.

- NBC originally planned to begin Star Trek, which it scheduled to air on Thursdays at 8pm EST, on September 15, 1966 with the pilot episode "Where No Man Has Gone Before". Sometime before the beginning of the 1966 Fall season, the network decided to air a special preview of the series a week early. It is believed that "The Man Trap" was chosen to air first because it offered the best glimpse into several of the main characters (e.g., McCoy's past, Spock's home planet, Sulu's interest in botany) of any of the episodes filmed at that time.

- Alexander Courage composed the bizarre and spooky musical score during this episode that would be extensively re-utilized in other first season episodes for many memorable moments.

[Hilander72]

We've had some confusion about the next ep to 'feature'. :D

We can pick 2 orders, either the production order, or the airdate order, since the original announcement said we'd be running them by startrek.com order, that means we'll be using the airdate order. Just in case some of you are wondering why we're featuring this ep next. :)

 

It seems that the StarTrek.com is the "3rd order"... ::) (1st "The Cage" then by airdate order")

 

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I know I'm a bit late, but being the only one watching these apparently... ;)

 

This episode was a good one and most of the familiar faces where there.

Only one thing bother me and that is how could a creature that needs "salt" to survive have evolved in the first place?

 

Some screenshots.

 

Captain Kirk & Dr McCoy:

 

Sulu as a physicist/botanist :

 

Spock & Uhura:

 

The Classic Logo:

 

Not to mention the Creature:

[Amnot Borg]

I admit to not re-watching them yet. Most are still buried in my memories just waiting for me to dig them up.

 

The salt vampire. How did it evolve? hmmm, more importantly, why did it need 4 fangs in a suction cup mouth? it's more like a lamprey than a creature that needed crystalline salt for food. and the ability to influence minds? why did it need that if it evolved on the planet and was the sentient species?

 

I still want a TOS uniform shirt. one day...one day.... hehe

[NiteShdw]

I'm re-watching these, so you're not the only one!

[TetsuoShima]

Yep, me too, be it with a little delay.

 

A random collection of thoughts:

 

Some things I noticed when watching it, was the stress that was put on Spocks 'unemotionalness' in the beginning of the ep, I'd figure it'd be common knowledge and accepted that Vulcans don't do that stuff. So it could be one of 2 reasons, either it's 'show based' making sure the people know Vulcans behave like that, the show was new and all, or based on the fact that Spock was half human.

 

Also, the lack of interest from Bones for the crewmans death was striking, he was pondering on how he imagined his old love looked like instead of trying everything to find out what happened to the dead crewman. That changed a bit further in the ep, but it's still not common for starfleet doctors to behave like that. Of course, it was only the beginning of the series, so they were still looking for the correct balance of things. :)

 

The voices from Kirk and McCoy calling out into the 'wild' were also very poorly done, they really sounded like voices in a closed space (studio?), not at all in open space like they should have been. Budget constraints?

 

Another thing I wondered about was, how the morphing of the creature occured, since if it's only a visual/sensual shift, it should have been detected on the transporter use...

I've wondered about that too in other Star Trek eps btw, for example the founders, how that could be physically possible with the mass and energy constraints.

 

Yeoman Rand is sexy as allways in this ep, man does she have a nice pair of legs. ;D

 

Also, for an intelligent lifeform, it wasn't very intelligent... but hey where are most stories without some form of stupidity in them, right. Not just the creature btw, Spock is behaving quite foolishly by the end of the episode too. :D

 

All in all a fair episode, not one of my favourites, but acceptable.

[TFMF]

I quite liked this episode. A nice idea to have a changeling-type alien that needs salt. It was also cool that they gave Doctor McCoy some depth so early on in the show.

 

I wonder how quickly the Voyager crew would have caught on to the imposter about the ship... ::)