The Way to Eden

In the year after Woodstock it seemed rather obvious that Gene Roddenberry was using this episode to tap into the Hippie movement which was sweeping the country after the seminal event of Woodstock. Whatever his motivation, Star Trek prime created a nice story about some young people who are looking to tune in, turn on, and drop out.

They're led by a scientist played by Skip Homeier who has done just that. He also has contracted some kind of biological contagion and as Leonard Nimoy observes, he's quite mad. But Nimoy also kind of connects with Homeier's followers.

Not that they don't have a goal in mind, it's to reach a mythical planet called Eden which is not unlike the Garden Of Eden featured in our Abrahamic monotheist religions.

The rub here is that they reach Eden, but the Creator/Deity has put something in the life on Eden that will truly take care of the infestation of civilization as Homeier and several followers find out to their regret.

An interesting and timely episode taking advantage of a trend in our culture.

Hijacked by a pair of cauliflower ears, the Enterprise is taken by a group who have no fears, by singers and dancers, hippy-like prancers, to a planet called Eden but no paradise appears.

It's a tough swallow, especially at the end, and flower power doesn't save the day.

I've been struggling to make up my mind: is The Way To Eden the worst Star Trek episode of them all or the greatest piece of camp sci-fi TV ever? Actually, it's both!

Six occupants of a stolen spacecruiser are beamed aboard the Enterprise, and Kirk and his crew are in for a surprise: the new arrivals are members of Dr. Sevrin's hippie cult, who are in search of the legendary planet Eden. During their stay on the ship, they attempt to recruit new followers, stage a sit-down protest at their treatment by 'Herbert' Captain Kirk, and put on impromptu musical performances. Spock, who is intrigued by their counter culture, partakes in a jam session with his harp.

However, when Kirk refuses to go in search of Eden, Sevrin (Skip Homeier) and his hippies stage a coup and take the Enterprise into Romulan territory...

Ridiculous space-hippie lingo, awful flower power pop songs (written and performed by Charles Napier), and silly costumes make The Way To Eden very difficult to forget, try as you might. Those in the mood for something incredibly silly will find much to enjoy here, but anyone expecting a thought provoking piece of intelligent sci-fi will be sorely disappointed.

5.5/10, rounded up to 6 for lovely Mary Linda Rapelye as Chekov's old flame Irina, once a member of Starfleet Academy, now a hippie babe.

The fact that the same plotline was recycled somewhat for Star Trek V should clue you in. The third season threw up some stinkers, and some that transcended the cuts to the budget, but there is no hiding the dated hippy star children plotline. It just shows how great an actor Shatner is, that playing the 'square' he doesn't come off pompous or over bearing. And to think a few seconds too late at the beginning and they would have all died when the ship explodes. Although it would be nice to think Adam is a descendant of Tucker McElroy from the Good Ol' Boys in The Blues Brothers.

A previous reviewer wrote that Roddenberry was influenced by Woodstock for this episode; however, this couldn't possibly be the case.

This episode originally aired on February 21, 1969; Woodstock took place between August 15 and 18 in 1969.

Otherwise, this is not one of the best episodes of the series (much of Season 3 wasn't good due to a number of reasons, not the least of which was network interference and the downgraded role Roddenberry was allowed to have).