AS FAST AS THE FLASH!

Episode Title:  Wink of an Eye

Air Date: 11/29/1968

Written by Arthur Heinemann and Gene L. Coon

Directed by Jud Taylor

Cast: William Shatner as Captain James T. Kirk    Leonard Nimoy as Commander Spock             DeForest Kelley as Dr. Leonard H. McCoy AKA “Bones”              James Doohan  as Lieutenant Commander Montgomery Scott AKA “Scotty”        George Takei  as Lieutenant  Hikaru Sulu              Nichelle Nichols as Lieutenant Nyota Uhura          Bill Blackburn as Lieutenant Hadley     Roger Holloway as Lieutenant Lemli   David L. Ross as Lieutenant Johnson         Walter Koenig as Ensign Pavel Chekov                 Majel Barrett as Nurse Christine Chapel      Geoffrey Binney as     Crewman Compton              Jeannie Malone as unnamed Yeoman          Dick Geary as unnamed Security Guard         Eddie Hice as unnamed Security Guard        Dick Geary as unnamed Security Guard/ Scalosian          Jay D. Jones as unnamed Engineer            Kathie Browne as Deela      Jason Evers as Rael          Erik Holland as Ekor          

Ships: USS Enterprise NCC-1701

Planets:  Scalos

My Spoiler filled summary and review: The episode begins with Scotty, not Kirk, making the opening entry into the ship’s log.  We are told that the Enterprise received a distress call from the planet Scalos.  The ship has arrived and a landing party is sent down but there doesn’t seem to be anybody on the entire planet.  In fact, the tricorders and ship’s sensors seem to indicate that there are no life signs on the planet at all.  However, Kirk notices annoying buzzing noise that insects typically make.  Some of the structures seem recently occupied while others haven’t been in centuries.  As they are getting ready to go Crewman Compton disappears in front of McCoy’s eyes.

Well that is the fastest red-shirt to get lost on a landing party!

The remaining landing party returns to the Enterprise and that is when a number of malfunctions on the ship seem to crop up all at once.  The ship’s medical supplies have been tampered with, and a strange device was found connected to the Enterprise’s environmental controls.  The device is protected by a force field that selectively allowed Kirk and Spock to view the device but no one else.  Kirk keeps hearing that strange insect sound.

Only Kirk and Spock are allowed to pass!

Spock feeds the information to the ship’s computer and it comes the conclusion that the ship has been invaded, there is nothing they can to stop this adversary, and they need to negotiate a surrender. Kirk isn’t willing to do that instead he just thinks they should wait for their opponents to make the next move and hope they make a mistake that the crew can take advantage of.

Their next move comes sooner than expected.  At that moment a yeoman was handing out coffee to the bridge crew something happens to Kirk’s cup.  As he drinks, he begins to notice that everyone is slowing down around him to the point everyone seems frozen.  Kirk then comes face to face with Deela, the Queen of the Scalosians.  She informs him that he has been pulled into flash time (Okay, she doesn’t use that word.  She uses the word “accelerated.” However, we all know what is going on and Kirk is clearly in Flash time.)  Kirk tries to stun her with a phaser to which she just steps out of the way. 

Like the very first Star Trek adventure Deela explains that her motive is reproductive.  Scalosians are dying out due to industrial damage to their planet.  The men all became sterile so now they have to reproduce with any passing aliens.  So how aliens match with Scalosian women better than their own men is never really explained but okay.  Deela wants Kirk to be her baby daddy.  They have been doing this for generations to the point they can even predict what will happen to the men who they turn.  First, they resist, then they accept, then they mate, and then they die because someone scratches them. 

Kirk not happy to have been changed.

Kirk learns about this die-by-scratching when he runs into Crewman Compton whose earlier disappearance was also caused by acceleration to flash time.  Compton is now all about helping the Scalosians.  However, when Kirk is confronted by the one who is a total jerk, a man named Rael, and is attacked, Compton comes to his defense.  Compton is scratched in the fight.  He quickly ages and dies. Kirk is then warned that unless he wants to be prematurely age again and be killed, he better toe the line as they ask him to.

Scalosians happy to be invincible 

Kirk however continues to try to contact his crew.  The Scalosians don’t even try to stop him.  Deela finds his attempts amusing particularly when he tries to record himself for his crew.  It appears as if Kirk has lost and he gives in to Deela, to the continued annoyance of Rael.  However, Deela underestimates our Mr. Spock.  In trying to determine the origin of the buzzing insect like sound, he discovers that it is sound sped up.  Then when McCoy finds a tape in the computer that wasn’t supposed to be there full of buzzing, he sends to Spock.  Spock is able to come up with a way to slow it down so they get Kirk’s entire message. 

Now that they know what they are looking for McCoy can isolate the compound in Kirk’s left-over cold coffee and both duplicate and come up with an antidote.  Spock takes the compound in order to join Kirk in flash time. 

He places a lot of trust in Dr. McCoy

Except for a moment when Rael nearly destroys Kirk, Kirk seems to be doing good with the Scalosians.  He even goes to bed with Deela.  Unfortunately for Deela, Kirk who was only sleeping with her to get her weapon finds Spock and together they destroy the machine. 

Deela is disappointed but understands.  Kirk explains that the Federation is willing to help if they would let them.  Despite the fact that Dr. McCoy was able to come up with a human antidote in the span of minutes, still doesn’t seem to fill her with any hope.  The Scalosians accept their fate and head back to their planet.  Kirk takes McCoy’s cure but Spock holds off so he can fix the starship in record time.  When complete he returns to his normal speed  They leave as Kirk looks at the image of Deela and her people one last time.

Additional thoughts: Okay I think anyone who watches the Flash can really enjoy this episode, as Kirk spends most of it in flash time.  I wish they had only used the speed to more practical affects, such as vibrating or creating a speed vortex.  The one thing I wondered through the episode is how they move from deck to deck.  Whenever we see them, the doors are always open.  However, since this is not always the case are they just plot lucky?  If the transporter was a slow process imagine a turbolift ride.  Speaking of the transporters, how did they work on them anyway, shouldn’t they have detected extra patterns in the buffer?

                How come no one noticed a phaser blast randomly going off on the bridge right after Kirk disappeared.  Wouldn’t even the stun setting have damaged the wall?  That seems to be a pretty big plot hole.  Maybe the Scalosians cleaned up the damage before anyone noticed anything.

So here the door is open for Scotty!

Of course, the real interesting revel in this episode is they allow drinks on the bridge.  Not just the Captain, but anyone.  Coffees for everyone.  You would think considering how often the ship shakes the seems to be a heck of a risk.  What if it spills on something? Since the ship has never heard of surge protectors having coffee flying around really can’t be that good.  So why does Captain Kirk allow it?

Not the case here!

I would have hated to be in Kirk’s position.  To have to go all that time and make sure you are never even scratched.  I would find that impossible as I am too much of a klutz.  Deela did say they don’t live very long.  Although I am still at loss to explain why alien would somehow be able to reproduce with the Scalosians better with their own.  Over time would they even be the Scalosians anymore?  Also, could it be possible that Deela may have been pregnant and not have told Kirk? Kirk may have a speedster son or daughter.

Oh and happy Star Trek Day! 55 years!

FINAL GRADE 4 of 5