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Star Trek - The Original Series, Vol. 9, Episodes 17 & 18: Shore Leave/ The Squire of GothosRating:
Release Date: 21 March, 2000 Retail Price: $19.99 Sorry, this product is not currently available. Cast: |
Star Trek - The Original Series, Vol. 9, Episodes 17 & 18: Shore Leave/ The Squire of Gothos Reviews
Fun For Everyone In The 23rd Century!
Star Trek: The Original Series Volume 9 - Well, if you have read my past reviews (now over 200) you'll know I am a big, big fan of Star Trek and all its forms. This is another volume in the DVD series of original episodes. This one has two of my all time favorites.
Shore Leave: Is the story of an uncharted planet being explored for possible Shore Leave prospects. It is a special planet where all you have to do is imagine anything and this place whips it up and makes it come alive. Whether it was deadly or benevolent anything and everything is possible. Some great performances by William Shatner (Showtime, Miss Congeniality) and the Late Deforest Kelly (Waco, When Love Has Gone). Also a keen guest star shinning moment by Bruce Mars (Voyage To The Bottom Of The Sea, Mission Impossible) as Finnegan James T. Kirk old academy nemesis. It was written by Theodore Sturgeon ( Invaders, Land Of The Lost, The Twilight Zone) and directed by Robert Sparr (Batman, The Wild Wild West).
The Squire Of Gothos is a fun frolic of a kid being a spoiled brat. This is a role cleverly being played by William Campbell (Love Me Tender, Back Lash) (who also played the Klingon Commander in my all time favorite Original episode of The Trouble With Tribbles') who performance is brash, bold, theatrical and very over the top. This is where the "Q" Continuum must have patterned themselves after. He is funny and in the end a great big spoiled brat.
There are even shinning moments for dialogue and cleverness for Leonard Nimoy (Atlantis: The Lost Empire, Brave New World ) and George Takei (Mulan, Kissingger and Nixon ) as Spock and Sulu trying to match wits with the obnoxious Trelane! It turns out he is just a bad boy that just got carried away and in the end his parents remind him of what he is doing. Written by Paul Schnieder (Ben Casey, Eight Is Enough) and direct by Doug McDougall (Mission Impossible, Mannix) - this story is definitely clever and funny at times too!
This is a good volume to have in the original Star Trek series.
Two great episodes of classic Trek
With each successive DVD release, I rediscover just why I LOVE classic Trek so much. The thing about classic Star Trek is that it's got so much going for it that when it's good, it's really good. And that's the case with the two episodes featured on this DVD.
The first episode in this volume is by sci-fi master Theodore Sturgeon (who also gave us the second season "Amok Time"), "Shore Leave." The crew beams down for what appears to be a simple vacation, but this being Trek, things aren't always what they seem. It appears the crews dreams and fantasies are coming to life--often with deadly and dangerous results. It's certainly an interesting look at the characters and showcases the actors and actresses talent. And it's also one of those fun episodes to watch in great detail on repeat viewing to notice the flubs such as the sequence with the tiger and the fact that Kirk runs past the same set of trees several times in a chase sequence. Add to it that it features a lot of memorable musical cues by Alexander Courage and you've got a very enjoyable episode of Trek.
Following it is "The Squire of Gothos" which was intriguing for 20-some odd years before Q came along to give even more meaning to the stories. (If you haven't read Peter David's superlative Q-Squared, what are you waiting for? ). Kirk is once again called upon to defeat a god-like being and the journey there is entertaining and great to watch. The episode is still filled with tension and drama after all these years and seeing it more times than I can count.
These episodes show off all the strengths that classic Trek has to offer and a perfect addition to any collection.
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