Balance of Terror

Despite all the hoopla about THE TROUBLE WITH TRIBBLES episode, THE BALANCE OF TERROR might just be the best episode of the series. And, while I have always loved A PIECE OF THE ACTION because it is so much fun, I really do have to cast my vote as this Romulan episode as being the very best.

The episode interestingly enough, is really like a WWII submarine movie in that it bounces back and forth between the cloaked Romulan ship and the Enterprise as it seeks to destroy the Romulans before they sneak back across the Neutral Zone after a raid on Federation outposts. In so many ways, the show is much like the film THE ENEMY BELOW--where the American Captain (Robert Mitchum) and the German Captain (Curt Jurgens) are shown in counter-point as they both try to outwit the other--and in the process develop a grudging respect for their foe.

Interestingly enough, the episode is confined to the Enterprise--and this is amazing because an episode on board ship could easily have been static and dull. But, because the writing was so fantastic and the main characters written and acted so well (Shatner and Mark Leonard as the Romulan leader). Overall it's very tense and exciting. Oddly, for the die-hard Trekkers out there, they'll recognize Leonard as the same actor who later played Spock's father.

The bottom line is this is simply a great and extremely engaging episode that will keep you on the edge of your seat.

Undoubtedly one of the best episodes ever, Balance of Terror is 45 minutes of well executed suspense, with intelligent real-world parallels (the title refers to a situation very similar to what was going on between the US and the Soviet Union during the Cold War), spot-on characterizations and the introduction of Star Trek's second most important hostile alien race after the Klingons: the Romulans.

After receiving a distress call from a Federation outpost, the Enterprise is dangerously close to the Neutral Zone which, if crossed, would lead to open conflict with the Romulans, although no one has ever actually seen them in the flesh. Soon enough, a Romulan vessel appears, carrying a new weapon and a cloaking device which makes it nearly impossible to defeat. Facing the threat of imminent annihilation, Kirk must engage in a battle of wits with the Romulan Commander (Mark Lenard) to ensure the survival of his crew. Unfortunately, the task is made more difficult when one of the men accuses Spock of being in league with the enemy, due to the physical resemblance between Romulans and Vulcans, two races that are, in fact, distantly related (a fact that is quite ironic with hindsight, given Lenard went on to play Spock's father Sarek starting with Season 2).

Always very critical when it came to the subject of war, Star Trek enjoys one of its finest hours with its most gripping and tense take on the topic. Although the Romulans aren't actually based on the Soviets (the name is actually taken from Romulus, the founder of Rome), the scenario is quite obviously inspired by the very vivid fear American and Russian citizens had at the time that either nation might be able to destroy the other with nuclear weapons (that fear gave birth to the titular concept of "balance of terror"). But even without the subtext, this remains an essential episode, due for the most part to the intellectual battle between the two adversaries, which translates into a thesping duel between Shatner and Lenard. No need to say who wins...

At face value, 'Balance of Terror' is as straightforward as they come; this is a classic submarine movie, complete with cat-n-mouse and silent running. Enterprise faces off with a Romulan warbird on the edge of the Neutral Zone; it's uncomplicated, but makes for some tense television.

But then there's the sympathetic opponent, less a villain and more a like-minded captain on the opposite team from Kirk (Mark Lenard plays this well, and I can see why they brought him back to play Spock's father; the two don't seem all that far apart). These are two evenly-matched adversaries sizing each other up. This episode focuses on the profound responsibility of being a starship captain, the immense weight of some of these tactical decisions; and it's a great example of the Kirk/Spock/McCoy dynamic as they hash this thing out from all angles.

In the end, it's just a riveting episode from start to finish; the grudges run deep, the conflict's great, and it's one of the more accessible episodes I've seen.

9/10

Things start out on a happy note in this Star Trek episode. A couple of young of the younger members of the Enterprise crew are getting married and William Shatner notes he has the happy duty afforded ship's captains from earth of performing marriages. But a red alert brings everyone to battle stations as a Romulan war bird with functioning cloaking device starts destroying Federation outposts on asteroids near the neutral zone.

We never know what the intention is, to provoke a shooting war or just test the earth alertness. But the Enterprise is the ship on the scene and Shatner enters a battle of wits with a very shrewd Romulan commander Mark Lenard.

Watching these two circle around and try and guess the other's intentions shows us a pair of evenly matched adversaries. Lenard too as does Shatner in every episode shows the strain of command. Both know they're not facing fools. The respect for each other as a representative of a different culture also grows.

In another century Humans and Romulans would still be at each other's throats in Star Trek Next Genertion and Deep Space Nine.

When the phasers and disrupters start firing the tension never lets up.

I hadn't seen this episode in a long time. Watched it again after the S1 finale of Strange New Worlds.

This is of course a really great episode in its own right but is even better when watched along side the SNW finale.

If you haven't arched any SNW and you like this episode you really should check the finale out. Its excellent Trek.