THE CREW OF THE ENTERPRISE IS FEELING BLUE!

 

Episode Title:  Albatross

Air Date: 9/28/1974

Written by Dario Finelli

Directed by Bill Reed

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”, Dramian Supreme Prefect, Kol-Tai                          George Takei as Lieutenant Hikaru Sulu                     Nichelle Nichols as Lieutenant Nyota Uhura          Majel Barrett as Nurse Christine Chapel        Lou Scheimer as Commander Demos

Ships: USS Enterprise NCC-1701, and unnamed Dramian ship

Planets: Dramia and Dramia 2

My Spoiler filled summary and review: The Enterprise has just completed a delivery of much needed medical supplies to the planet Dramia.  A landing party of Kirk, Spock, and McCoy meet with the Dramian Supreme Prefect.  The Prefect thanks the officers kindly for the delivery.  Then he promptly informs the gentlemen that Dr. McCoy is under arrest.  It turns out that eighteen years ago McCoy was on Dramia 2, their well named colony world, doing medical work.  His work involved a mass inoculation program for a Saurian virus that had earlier threatened the colony.  Shortly after his departure they planet was struck with plague.  This forced the Dramians to quarantine that world.  They blame McCoy for starting epidemic. 

Kirk is concerned because the Dramians aren’t known for having the best justice system in the Federation.  Kirk decides to conduct his own investigation.  He returns his party, except McCoy, back to the ship and heads directly to Dramia 2.  Commander Demos of Dramian security follows the Enterprise hoping to stop its investigation.  They clearly notice the little ship chasing them so Kirk decides to trap the Commander.  He orders the shuttle bay doors open.  It is Kirk’s hope that the Commander is fool who will think so lowly of Starfleet officers that flying through space while forgetting to close the shuttle bay doors is something that happens often.  It turns out the Commander is that stupid and he flies right in and parks his little ship.  He then hops out hoping to get with his sabotage but is promptly arrested by Kirk and Spock as a stowaway.  While this is going on they pass through what appears to be a space aurora.  It is radiation but appears harmless. 

"Pleased to meet you, its an honor, and you're under arrest!"

Before they beam down to Dramia 2 Spock explains what the records show of the plague.  The cause of it is unknown.  However, the effects are clear: pigmentation changes in skin of victim, debilitation, and death. The pigmentation changes came in a distinct pattern of the victim first turning blue, then green, and finally red.  Blue meant the sickness weakened the patient.  Green meant going terminal and red was the mark of death.  Some species, such as Vulcans are naturally immune.

Not a good time to be a McCoy

After being down to Dramia 2, they are quickly attacked by a local who just as quickly retreats. Demos warns them that the locals don’t like outsiders. Spock objects pointing out that Demos himself is not an outsider.  To which Demos replies that after the plague outbreak and the quarantine of the planet, everyone infected with the plague died.  Dramians who are still here, like the one who just attacked them, are the families of the lost who came here after it was over.  They have been cut off ever since.  Despite Demos’s claim they do find a survivor named Kol-Tai.  This Dramian tells the landing party that he was treated by Dr. McCoy who he credits with his survival.  He makes it clear that McCoy had nothing to do with the plague that stuck the rest of the planet.  Realizing they can now save the Doctor, the landing party returns to the ship with Kol-Tai and the Enterprise warps out with the intention of returning to Dramia.

Dramia 2 has had better days

As the Enterprise speeds back to Dramia they pass through the aurora again.  This time however harm does come. Kol-Tai is suddenly blue with plague.  If potentially losing McCoy’s only witness was bad enough, it looks like they may lose the whole crew as everyone starts feeling blue and looking it too.  The only healthy person is Spock.  When they get back to Dramia they contact the Supreme Prefect, however seeing the crew infected with the same plague that wiped out their colony he shuts down and discussion.  This is understandable but not good for the crew of the Enterprise.  

They have found Kol-Tai

They need McCoy.  So as always when the chips are down and the rules say they must die, they break the rules.  Spock beams down to the planet and breaks McCoy out of prison.  At first McCoy refuses but when he realizes all his friends are going to die, he understands it is the greater moral duty to break out of prison than remain in.  McCoy, being GOAT of all medical doctors, quickly cures everyone just as they had started to turn green.

This is bad!

At the end of the episode the Dramians who were going to condemn the Doctor were now singing his praises.  Given the circumstances they decided to overlook exactly how it was that the good Doctor got out of prison to save the day to begin with.  McCoy went from being public enemy number one to the greatest hero of the planet in a single half hour episode.  That is just a typical day for the crew of the Enterprise.

Poor Captain Kirk 

Additional thoughts: So, I always thought I had a strong idea of McCoy’s biography in my mind, but exactly what was he doing eighteen years ago?  I thought he had only been in Starfleet for the past ten years or so right after his marriage broke up.  Was he a part of some Federation civilian relief agency?  That would make sense but always thought he spent most his pre-Starfleet days on Earth.

Poor Lt. Uhura

My only serious complaint about this episode is how reckless the crew is at times.  Shouldn’t the landing party have taken some precaution when beaming down to a planet whose population was wiped out with plague?  Like environmental suits or at least one of those force field belts.  Now granted it worked out, I don’t think they could have justified busting McCoy out of jail if only Kol-Tai was sick.  Nevertheless, Spock took a hell of a risk beaming down to the Dramia to get the Doctor.  Despite being immune, how does he know that he won’t accidently spread the illness to the population of Dramia?  Again, a force field belt would have helped.  Maybe he was just so confident in McCoy’s abilities to cure the disease that he didn’t find any logic for taking precautions in having the disease spread?  It almost reminds me of Dr. McCoy’s actions with Captain Kirk in “The Corbomite Maneuver.”  I also wonder how they knew how this disease functioned since there no survivors in all.  Who recorded the sick stages and how did they know Vulcans were immune? 

McCoy saving everyone just in time.

Over all I thought this was a great episode.  It contains a lot of elements that we like in a Star Trek adventure.  We meet a new and interesting alien species. We have a threat that needs to be dealt with right away in this case a medical one. We have some rule breaking and a space chase.  Kirk breaks the rules, Spock knocks someone out with a nerve pinch, and McCoy cures a great disease.   Then the aliens and authorities have to apologize for being wrong.  

FINAL GRADE 5 of 5