Wink of an Eye

We're back to space invaders in this one, similar to "By Any Other Name" in the previous season. These aliens hail from a planet where volcanic upheavals and radiation have accelerated them - make that 'hyper-accelerated' - to the point where they move too quickly for normal humans to see them. It's almost like they're stuck in another dimension (another level) and the concept is similar to the "Flash" comic book character, who moves so quickly at times that everything else appears to be frozen still. There are obvious discrepancies in the way the concept is presented here: though all Scalosians supposedly move at a pace of 100 times that of normal, they go through the same amount of experience in this episode as the normal-moving crew; the crew get just as much done as the invaders during the course of the episode. For example, the Scalosians should have completed their invasion plan in the time it took for Spock to head down to McCoy's medical lab in mid-episode. Right after Kirk is accelerated on the bridge, he heads for the turbolift, but that mode of transport would now take him an eternity; though it isn't mentioned, he must have used the stairs, er, ladders. This seems to be some careless scriptwriting. However, maybe the Scalosians were using the turbolifts in ignorance and this slowed them down enough for the discrepancies to make sense.

Despite a surprisingly slow pace in spots even though this is such an, uh, accelerated episode (we see video tapes of the Scalosians over & over), this comes off as fairly entertaining due to Kirk's odd conflicting attraction with the leader of the invaders, princess Deela, played by actress Kathie Browne like some naughty valley girl from outer space. It's amusing to see Kirk allow himself a very brief lecherous smirk when he first sees her, even as he knows he's in the middle of a hostile invasion. Here's where Kirk's rep as the super-stud of Trek space may have gained the most traction, ahem. There's even a scene of him putting his boots back on after he and the foxy invader have obviously done the nasty deed (since this is the sixties, all other TV episodes on this show never went beyond subtle suggestion, say, a veiled wink or two; by contrast, this scene was very direct). He and Deela obviously felt a genuine sexual heat, much more apparent and honest than the usual family-oriented titillation. In fact, the entire plot of the episode revolves around the theme of survival based on necessary procreation - mating for the sake of a species, but also seeking as much enjoyment as possible in the act. This is almost an episode for grown-ups only. Almost. But, the outfits on the male Scalosians were a bit too kinky for my tastes.

This was an entertaining episode, well played out by a great cast. Kathy Brown was great, and Kirk could easily fall for her. The idea, though, was first used in the H. G. Wells short story, "The New Accelerator," published in 1901 in the Strand magazine. Well's story was later adapted into the 1966 Wild Wild West episode, "Night of the Burning Diamond" written by Ken Kolb, two years before the Star Trek episode. I liked all of them. Dr. McCoy and Spock came up with the ideal solution to Kirk's disappearance and how to bring him back. The ending was bittersweet, as were so many episodes in which Kirk fell for a woman (or android).

Living life in the super-fast lane, a rapid accelerating speedy domain, express and fleet, they've very quick feet, flying along like a swift bullet train.

A fast forward race of aliens in a hurry have designs on the crew of the Enterprise.

This is a case of clashing cultures caught in conflicting time accelerations. After a visit to a barren planet, people begin to disappear on board the enterprise. Kirk and one of the unfortunate red shirted crewman have been moved to a ship where time is passing at an alarming rate. This is with coffee that's not on Starbuck's menu. A small group of aliens wearing shiny Mylar suits (well, I take that back. The women wear almost nothing) are on the brink of extinction and must bring people from a different time designation to mate with. Kirk, of course, gets the queen of the whole bunch. She likes him because he is a "pretty" one. She is quite sexy and doe eyed. Because they don't fear Kirk, he is allowed access to the ship. This is a mistake because he is nothing but trouble. There is also jealousy at work on the ship. Kirk's mission is to get a message to the crew who are moving at an indecipherably slow speed. This is a good concept. It comes up short but is engaging enough to keep one's attention.

Star Trek always had what I called the "Macy's Parade" approach to working within a budget--especially in season three. Matte paintings, props,sets, visual effects shots, all were fair game for the producers to utilize, repaint and reconfigure to save money. They must have thought viewers had short memories. Not "Trek" fans. With that said, this episode did a great job of pulling off a lot with the barest of essentials. The Enterprise's landing party transports down to the planet's surface to find a deserted city. This is odd because they were recently sent a distress signal by the inhabitants of this world. A crew member, planet-side, stupidly, takes a drink from a cascading water fountain and disappears. Kirk and the others hear (but don't see) buzzing insects. They are, needless to say, a little perplexed by this turn of events. They scurry back to the ship. On the bridge, Kirk drinks a cup of coffee and he too disappears. The Scalosians, you see, have been able to accelerate themselves into a state of hyper-space. Their motives are not good--it's a trap. I wonder if one of the ideas for this wacky story, may have sprung from a movie titled "The Time Travelers," and it's low-budget remake, "Journey to the Center of Time." Something to keep in mind when you watch this episode, one of the best from Star Trek's final season. Space trivia alert: Kathie Browne, Kirk's love interest in this story and female leader of the Scalosians, was married to the "Night Stalker" himself, Darren McGavin. Sadly, Ms.Browne and her husband passed away in the last few years. But their cult status as icons of 60's television remains intact.