The Corbomite Maneuver

This episode may make some Trekkers' Top 20 lists, but likely not many Top Tens. Yet quietly and without fuss this "bottle show" episode remains perfectly indicative of TOS's purpose, spirit and delivery.

Think Murray Leinster's classic sci-fi short story "First Contact" with an additional plot twist, possibly two. A scriptwriter or editor who may have had Uhura say the same line a tad too often and missed "adrenaline gland" but had to have served in the Navy, knew the true meaning of "countermand," and wasn't afraid to ask, "What are you going to do with that six percent when they give it to you, Jim?"

Add Joseph Sargent's direction, Fred Steiner's music, Gerald Perry Finnerman and his color gels, Anthony Call's laser-accurate performance complemented by that of the core ensemble, Clint Howard's eyebrows and dubbing, and Ted Cassidy's voice of authority as only he could deliver. Splendid sound effects and their editing, which offset the visual effects, though the physically infeasible appearance of the alien mother ship got the point across very nicely. And an ending that made me smile as a youngster, and does so today.

And Now I Digress, Somewhat: I often feel compelled to explain to today's "post-next generation" sated with digital effects and compulsory cheesecake just how TOS had its impact, my having watched its world premiere and nearly every episode at first broadcast. And I'm saddened to see TOS and its actors parodied today, much less by the actors themselves.

Friends, when TOS premiered "In Living Color!" its only competition was Irwin Allen's "running and jumping shows," which had as much science as a peanut butter sandwich left out in the double sun too long. The Outer Limits (in black-and-white!) had run its course after only two seasons, and not even the revered Rod Serling would attempt the genre on the 'tube with recurring characters.

We readers of Asimov, Bradbury, Clarke, Heinlein, Sturgeon and the other masters of the genre (okay, Harlan Ellison, we know you must scream, so you can count yourself) climbed down our trees and praised The Great Bird of the Galaxy for making the 'tube finally listen and display something hopeful to talk about before we finally caught up with our own imaginations on the moon.

The actors had chops, if the scripts couldn't make you feel they could make you THINK, the characters grew to make you care, and not one scantily-clad beauty was the token she first seemed if you were young enough to be allowed to watch. Wondrous times indeed.

So start with this episode, or return to it as you would an old friend, and from there go back and forth to your heart's content. Long live Balok, and pass the tranya!

Not so much a Cold War analogy as some Star Trek episodes tended to be, this particular installment of the classic 1960's Star Trek franchise dramatizes the push and pull, the ebb and flow, of two nations coming into conflict with one another, and how the game of denial, deception, and bluff (usually in the form of classic saber rattling) can remand relations to square one.

This is the genius of Star Trek. The ability to codify everyday experiences into a dramatized setting for comment. When I first viewed it I understood the underlying message, but not the entire theme and ramifications thereof. It would take another thirty years for me to go "Ah-HA! I get it now..." Oh sure, I understood the whole misunderstanding and suspicion thing, but I figured it was story filler. As it turns out, this episode, like nearly all Trek episodes, cleverly illustrates the extension of male oriented interpersonal relations manifested on a national level. A little counter to this high minded philosophizing is the introduction of a character on the bridge who represents the fear and loathing of the common man, and the innate reptile (or inner child) as he follows orders (or his inability thereof). And therein lies a whole other level of meaning above and beyond geo-politics.

Production Values; the SFX for 1960s television are what they are; i.e. not always convincing, but able to get their point across. Ditto with one artificial "alien", though this is countered by some optical effects and the overall thesping by the cast (including the voice actor for the off-screen dialog). I've not seen the remastered episodes, but, of all the classic Trek that have had their SFX and other production values tweaked for modern visual sensibilities, I'm very interested in seeing this one.

Enjoy.

Others have already praised this episode for its unique camera angles, and other technical aspects. But there are also script elements that elevate this episode above others in the series. As the episode opens, we hear "Dave Bailey" carping about how bored and fatigued he is after three long days of "star charting". This brilliant line shows us that between "adventures", the Enterprise and its crew are actually doing something productive! Another element is the phaser drills that Kirk has the crew run. Once again, they are keeping busy. Also notice the constant background chatter over the intercom system (a feature that would slowly disappear as the seasons progressed). With this episode, one gets the feeling that this is a "working" vessel and crew (as opposed to nothing but plywood sets) - aspects that would be completely lost by the third season.

Like many other Star Trek episodes, The Corbomite Maneuver is a good exploration of an essential 20th century theme such as the futility of war, with the addition of a riveting portrait of what makes a commander worthy of the title, as seen in the episode's depiction of Captain Kirk's skills.

Once again, danger lies ahead as the Enterprise continues on its five-year mission. This time it's more serious than usual, since the mysterious alien attacker claims to be able to destroy the ship with no risk of anything stopping him, and therefore grants the crew ten minutes to pray or something to that effect. Of course, he hasn't considered Kirk who, being the stubborn son of a gun he's always been (when Spock points out the two always argue about decisions Kirk won't take back, the latter explains that arguing makes him feel good), threatens the alien by saying he has a device that will annihilate both the Enterprise and its attacker, and he's not afraid to use it. Obviously it's a bluff, but it may come with a price, as Kirk and his opponent engage in a dangerous battle of wits to determine who's more willing to go through with their alleged threats.

Whereas most Trek episodes have pretty predictable outcomes, mostly because of the formulaic structure of the scripts, The Corbomite Maneuver is commendable for offering a very neat and intelligent twist that sits well with the episode's overall critique of the political climate of the Cold War (yes, subtlety has never been one of the show's strengths, but NBC didn't care since it was sci-fi). The acting is as inspiring as ever (even William Shatner's much mocked speech patterns come off as more serious than usual), especially Clint Howard's (that's Ron's brother) cameo at the end. Fun, tense and clever.

'The Corbomite Maneuver' has the good stuff - drama, suspense - but it's mostly about attitude. When you're out there in deep space, dogged by (essentially) an intergalactic bully, do you fall to pieces like crewman Bailey (placeholder until a new navigator comes along) or do you hold steady in the captain's chair and outwit the pother guy with an epic bluff? In the end, it all turns out to be creepy Clint Howard behind all of this, and all he really wanted was a friend. But it's the poker-inspired standoff between himself and Kirk that really makes this one cool. You can see the seeds of the Kobayashi Maru being sown here with Kirk's creative solution to the problem, and it makes for some solid tension.

7/10