June 18, 2014: Join our Star Trek TOS re-watch!

Ah, those were the days!

Full disclosure: I haven’t watched a full episode of Star Trek TOS since I was a kid. And, sure, we’ve come a long way since then and a lot of this old series will, no doubt, feel charmingly outdated by today’s standards but, damn, if I don’t feel a shiver of excitement every time I catch a scene of the original crew in their vibrant uniforms or a shot of the Enterprise in orbit or that stirring theme and jazzy dramatic underscore.  I am SO looking forward to this!

Yes, let’s make it official.  We are gonna have us an old-fashioned Star Trek: The Original Series re-watch!

Yes, we’ll be re-screening all 79 episodes of Gene Roddenberry’s SF classic from “The Man Trap” through to “Turnabout Intruder” in glorious technicolor.

Now I realize that everybody’s schedules are different and the prospect of watching an single a day may prove tricky for some, so I’m going to suggest the following viewing plan: we’ll watch the show in weekly 5-episode instalments.  So, over the course of those seven days, you can watch those five episodes at your convenience.  You can watch one a day or all five in one sitting.  Whatever works best for you.  And then, next Wednesday (June 25th), we’ll reconvene, here on this blog, and discuss.

The five episodes we’ll be watching this week will be:

1. The Man Trap (Stardate: 1513.1, Original Air Date: September 8, 1966)

Dr. Leonard “Bones” McCoy meets a former girlfriend when the Enterprise brings supplies to a remote archaeological survey group.  Still attractive to McCoy, the woman’s current appearance holds a dark and deadly secret.

2. Charlie X (Stardate: 1533.6, Original Air Date: September 15, 1966)

Raised as a child by non corporeal beings, 17 year old Charlie Evans is picked up and transferred to the Enterprise.  On board the ship, the teenager proves dangerously unable to wield his enormous psionic powers with maturity.

3. Where No Man Has Gone Before (Stardate: 1312.4, Original Air Date: September 22, 1966)

When the Enterprise encounters a force field at the edge of the galaxy, one of the crew member’s psionic abilities are accelerated to godlike proportions, causing him to become a powerful, murderous being.

4. The Naked Time (Stardate: 1704.2, Original Air Date: September 29, 1966)

An alien virus strips the Enterprise crew of their inhibitions, causing chaos as each crew member is overcome by hidden emotions.  Meanwhile, the Enterprise is being pulled inexorably into a nearby planet’s gravity well.

5. The Enemy Within (Stardate: 1672.1, Original Air Date: October 6, 1966)

Split by a transporter malfunction into two beings with very different personalities, the resulting twin Captain Kirk proves that neither a purely evil or purely good Captain can survive without the missing half.

So, what do you say?  Are you in?  Know any fans of the original series who would like to watch along?  Let ‘em know!  Spread the word!  And we’ll see you next Wednesday!!!

No.  Wait.  I’ve still go a blog to update.

See you tomorrow.

Tagged: Star Trek, Star Trek TOS, Star Trek: The Original Series