Episode Title: One of Our Planets Is Missing
Air Date: 9/22/1973
Written by Marc
Daniels
Directed by Hal
Sutherland
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”, Lieutenant Arex, and Governor Robert Wesley George Takei as Lieutenant
Hikaru Sulu Nichelle
Nichols as Lieutenant Nyota Uhura
Majel Barrett as Planet eating space cloud
Ships: USS
Enterprise NCC-1701
Planets: Mantilles and Alondra
My Spoiler filled summary and review: The Enterprise is sent to one of the Federation’s farthest star systems to investigate a strange space cloud that has entered the galaxy. Kirk has a history of fighting giant space clouds. One thing is for certain he doesn’t like giant space clouds so that is why he was chosen for this special mission. It looks like their worst fears are confirmed when the space cloud starts to take a part the planet Alondra, thankfully it is uninhabited. Only the planet Mantilles has a population in this system.
 |
| Looking at the planetary system |
However, Mantilles is where the giant space cloud turns to go. Seeing the way the cloud is currently
destroying Alondra, doom is going to be forced upon the over 150 million
inhabitants of Mantilles. Kirk and McCoy
quickly brainstorm about telling the planet.
They are afraid of starting a planet-wide panic, but at the same time if
they fail to stop this thing the planet’s government can use the time they do
have to save some of people. Kirk
decides to warn them, a decision made easier by the fact that the governor of
the colony is retired Starfleet Commodore Bob Wesley. A good friend of Kirk who he trusts.
Captured
The Enterprise enters the deadly cloud. The shields give them some protection against the cloud’s natural defense system, a system that reminds Dr. McCoy of villi in the human small intestine. The ship’s phasers are just absorbed by the cloud, but they are able to fight off the attack with some anti-matter charges. Being in the cloud also gives them some important new information. The cloud isn’t just some freak of nature but a living space organism. The reason the ship is being attacked is they are is they are in the creature’s digestive tract. They will be destroyed unless they can find their way out through the creature’s anus. (I am not kidding this is exactly what they are doing.) While trying to find the anus so they can dislodge with the other space poop, they come across something more interesting. They find some electrical signals that could indicate the creature’s brain. Since they need to stop the creature from reaching Mantilles, they opt to go in that direction.
However, if they are going to go anywhere, they are going to need power
and the consistent ponding on the ship’s shield and the need for antimatter
bursts is draining the Enterprise fast. There is however a solution
since the villi-like things are made of antimatter Scotty does a trick with the
transporters to mine some of the villi-like thing and cut it up for use in
their own anti-matter engines giving the ship the boost of power it needs to complete
the mission. 
under attack
It is at this point that they are able to discover some good news and bad
news. It is possible for them to destroy
the cloud creature before it consumes the colony. The bad news is that since the space cloud is
alive it may be sentient and they would be killing it, and the power to destroy
the cloud would require the Enterprise to self-destruct, killing all of
them. Although the Starfleet officers
and crew are taught that they may have to sacrifice their lives in a greater
cause it is never fun to hear “now is the time.”
Getting too close for comfort
As they enter the brain Kirk remembers Spock’s telepathic powers and
tries to see if he can communicate with the creature. Spock reminds the Captain that he needs to
touch something to make a mental connection.
Kirk then tells Spock about the power of plot armor and how he has used
the power of plot armor in the past to make touchless telepathic contact and in some cases mind control in stories where it was required. Scotty has already used the power of plot
armor to beam something through the shields so Spock should be able to use it
to contact the creature. Realizing the
Captain is correct, Spock asks Uhura if she would be able to use the universal
translator to provide the plot armor with ammunition that allows the fans to
come up with explanations to why this should be able to work. Spock then communicates with the cloud and
informs the cloud that ship and planet are filled with living beings that don’t
want to be eaten. With the that the big
cloud agrees to regurgitate the Enterprise and leave the galaxy. 
We have power now!
Additional thoughts: This great episode although it does feel
like a hybrid. If the episodes “The Immunity Syndrome” and “The Devil in the Dark” had a child together it would be
this episode. Like the former a giant
planet destroying threat is on the loose and the Enterprise is the only
thing that can stop it so long as it’s not consumed by it first. Like the later they learn that the “monster”
isn’t a monster at all but just another living thing trying to survive and they
come with a peaceful solution.
I do have a slight issue with the solution however. This planet eating cloud must have entered
our galaxy because it was looking for food.
If it was able to sustain itself where it was then it would have stayed
there. I am assuming that like us it
needs to consume to survive. Spock
communicates with the creature to let it know that what it planned to eat was
alive and has feelings but he offered no solution to the space cloud except “go
home.” He didn’t say only eat planets
that do not have sentient life on them or anything that the creature might have
found useful. I would have like to see
them work something out with the creature like they were able to do with the
Horta. After all, after the cloud starts
to starve isn’t it likely that if might come back when it realizes it can’t be
a vegetarian? I think there could have
been a more “Star Trek” way to end it.
Again, who would really want to live in United Federation of Planets in
the 23rd century? There are
so many threats! You have the Klingons
and Romulans always looking to start a war with you. You have the loose-celled alien consuming the
population of various planets, planet killer devices, old human space junk coming back more dangerous than before, giant single-celled organisms dropping
down on you and of course killer space clouds both this one and the last
one. It’s such a dangerous galaxy to
live in. It would be like the US lost
entire states a couple of times in a decade.
Once again Spock’s ever present super powers were once again on
display. He is one with powers and
abilities far beyond your average Vulcans.
I wonder if Kirk and crew get disappointed when they encounter other
Vulcans. For none have the amazing range
of abilities that our Mr. Spock possess. 
Better than most Vulcans
It was nice to see old Bob Wesley.
Why the sudden change of careers?
Did he suffer a mid-life crisis?
Was he passed over for promotion to rear admiral and thought now was
time for a change? Did nearly losing his ship and squadron to a giant supercomputer shake up his confidence so he opted
for a nice quite life in civil administration?
If the last one was true, wasn’t he in for a surprise? It is too bad both he and Commodore Stone
were my favorite flag officers from classic Star Trek!
FINAL GRADE 4 of 5
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