Friday's Child

Season 2, episode 11. The Enterprise heads to Capella IV.The Capellans are a warrior tribe and McCoy has spent a few months with them at one time. Kirk, Spock, McCoy and a crew member beam down and the crew member ends up dead. The trio are met not only by the Capellans but also Klingons. Both the Federation and Klingons are wanting mining rights on Capella IV. The Capellans have taken the trio's weapons and communicators so they cannot contact the ship. The Capellans are split are who should get the mining rights: Federation or Klingons? A battle happens and the trio ends up running off with a dead leader's pregnant wife, that does not want her child. The Enterprise is under the command of Scotty and they end up with a Federation ship distress call - they are under attack by a Klingon ship.

Suspense is built between Capellans, Klingons and The Federation pretty well here. We all know that Kirk and crew will smooth things over and get out safely but there is still plenty of suspense.

7/10

Found it hard to take this episode seriously looking at those ludicrous outfits!!! Warriors with lavender and neon orange fake-fur accessories??? What moron designed those costumes???? Almost ruined the whole episode for me!! More suitable for Laugh-In!!! Update: once I got over the costumes, I find this episode very entertaining and deserving of an 8 rating.

Interesting primarily for its guest appearances, Friday's Child is one of Joe Pevney and D. C. Fontana's more mediocre efforts. Among the guests is great musical and stage actress Julie Newmar, who is mainly known to TV audiences for having played Catwoman in the classic Batman TV show. Casting called for a number of very tall and beefy people, so many of the guest stars are over 6' and recognizable by sight if not by name.

The trinity (Kirk, Spock, McCoy + a soon-to-die redshirt) have beamed down to a planet inhabited by a very hierarchal, male-dominated culture whose rank system revolves around violence. Upon arrival, they find that a Klingon (only one?) has arrived before them. The Klingon has been propagandizing against the federation since his arrival, and has jeopardized the Enterprise's mission to obtain mineral rights. The redshirt makes matters worse by threatening the Klingon at first sight.

Although McCoy once lived on this planet and briefs the crew on some ethnographic details ahead of time, these preparations were not nearly enough, as the away team creates one blunder after another. Fontana did a nice job of thinking out the alien culture's intricacies, but unfortunately, the episode devolves into a somewhat unoriginal action adventure about mid-way through.

Cinematography and effects are very average for TOS, writing is OK, directing is well below Pevney's usual mark, and acting is fairly good. Look for a lot of amusing but hokey banter with Spock in this one, and a solid and interesting performance by Ms. Newmar.

When Captain James T. Kirk got this assignment to negotiate a treaty with a planet that is a primitive hunter and gatherer culture he's got every right to think this one a slam dunk. As a junior officer William Shatner spent some time on the planet and got to know the leader real well.

So Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, and DeForest Kelley are a diplomatic delegation and there's a Klingon played by Tige Andrews there and they are negotiating for mining rights. But when the leader that Kirk knew is murdered then the Star Trek diplomats are forced to flee without their weapons. They also flee with statuesque Julie Newmar, widow of the late leader and very pregnant. Good thing Dr. McCoy is along in case they need an obstetrician.

Newmar is great as the Zena the warrior princess character who sometimes is more trouble than she's worth. But as she's carrying the heir to the leadership everyone wants their hands on her.

Must also praise Tige Andrews who unlike Michael Dorn in The Next Generation is one Klingon with damn little honor. Andrews, the future Captain Greer of Mod Squad is hardly recognizable under that makeup.

Give this one a look.

"Friday's Child" (Dec. 1, 1967) Old TV Guide synopsis: 'Kirk jeopardizes the lives of his own men when he intervenes in a society where life is valued below combat and personal integrity.' Outdoor episodes were more expensive than 'bottle' entries confined to the Enterprise, but this is a McCoy storyline where his previous experiences on Capella IV bode well for a Federation treaty for mineral rights. Unfortunately, the 'peaceful' natives have aligned themselves with Kras (Tige Andrews), a Klingon representative, while the presence of a very pregnant Eleen (Julie Newmar) means an heir to elderly leader Akaar (Ben Gage). Kirk and Spock attempt to defend the narrow entrance to their canyon as the doctor tends to his newborn patient, which the mother initially rejects. Aboard the Enterprise, Scott answers a distress call from a freighter that turns out to be a Klingon decoy, though no on screen battle takes place. Julie Newmar takes time off from her slinky Catwoman outfit for a very different role, her exchanges with McCoy over 'his child' (Leonard James Akkar) leading to some amusement from both Kirk and Spock.