Perhaps we should be happy that CBS thinks segregation is such a long-gone relic, it can be harmlessly revived as a stunt for a fading game show.

And make no mistake: Introducing four ethnic-centered teams on Thursday's Survivor premiere was a publicity stunt of the rankest and most obvious kind. This divisive trick has nothing to do with Jeff Probst's opening promise of a "social experiment" and all to do with diminished ratings and buzz.

Exactly what kind of experiment could this be? The four groups — labeled by the show as African-American, Asian-American, Caucasian and Latino — weren't just sent to different teams, they were sent to different islands. Outside of the brief challenge (a race the Asian-Americans won and the African-Americans lost), the teams didn't even interact.

What are we supposed to learn from that: What life would be like if we returned to the days when CBS had a hit with Amos & Andy? No thanks.

Worse yet, the show actually invited us to judge these players on an ethnic basis. When Cecilia said she wants to prove that Latinos both "work hard" and "play hard," or Stephannie said the African-Americans "all feel the pressure to represent," they took on far too much pressure and gave themselves far too much importance. Heaven forbid we should look at the way a person behaves on a reality show and assume we're learning something about an entire race.

Yet the ridiculous and oddly comforting thing about the premiere is that for the most part, if you closed your eyes and ignored the random references to ethnicity, you would never have known there was anything special about this Survivor. There were the same instant friendships and enmities; the same complaints about players who are odd or lazy or overly familiar; the same tired discussions of strategy. And when it came to voting someone out, it once again boiled down to women vs. men.

Unfortunately, that can't salvage a trick that is offensive on its face. Survior has embraced the very essence of discrimination: treating people not as individuals but as members of a ethnically defined group. And the fact that Survivor finally, for the first time, has enough members of those groups to make discrimination viable is hardly a defense.

Of course, the twist won't be with us for long. Sooner rather than later, the tribes will merge and the ethnic opening will be forgotten. Which will allow many of us to forget about Survivor entirely.

And that will be a happy day.

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Thursday, September 14, 2006
The Princess Leia costume

TV's Kirsten Bell in the Princess Leia costume from Return of the Jedi. All I can say is--this alone will make Fanboys worth the price of admission....

If you are like me and have fond memories of the Princess Liea metal bikini, you can waste hours of your life here.

posted by Michael Hickerson at 9/14/2006 08:40:00 AM | |
Wednesday, September 13, 2006
How long do you think it will be?
Remember a few months ago when Tom Cruise and the rest of the Scientology community got a bee in their bonnet about that South Park episode that dared to satirize their "religion"?

Well, brace yourselves because I'll bet F/X's Nip/Tuck will be the next show to come under fire. Last night's episode introduced a plotline in which Kimber introduces Matt to the world of Scientology. And this being Nip/Tuck, it's probably only a matter of time until things there go horribly, horribly wrong....

Of course, I wonder if Tom Cruise will lead a charge against Nip/Tuck? Of course, he does't have a movie coming out right now so I guess he can't use his huge star power to threaten to have ads pulled from the show....

posted by Michael Hickerson at 9/13/2006 07:32:00 AM | |

Wycheck is so out of touch
On this morning's broadcast on 104.5 the Zone, Titan's color analyst and sports broadcaster Frank Wycheck stated that Tony Joiner's comments about feasting on the Vols were "no big deal."

Yeah, see this is why I am constantly flipping away from 104.5 in the morning.

Frank has no clue. He doesn't get that any trash talking by either side is a huge deal because this is a huge game this weekend. But then again, Frank shows nothing but contempt for UT every chance he gets, so for him to downplay the importance of this game is not unexpected. But you'd think maybe, just maybe he could pretend like he cares about something other than ACC sports, Philly teams and how crappy the Titans are going to be this year....

posted by Michael Hickerson at 9/13/2006 07:29:00 AM | |
Tuesday, September 12, 2006
The trash talking begins
So Florida's defense is proud they shut down two cream-puff teams to open the season and now their players have run to the Florida media to trumpet how great they are.

Hear the wit and wisdom of safety Tony Joiner.

"That really is where we want to get," Joiner said. "We really want to get into somebody else and take their cheese. Make a sandwich in the kitchen. Ham and cheese with a little turkey, mustard and mayonnaise."

In otherwords, Florida's defense plans to make itself at home in the hostile surroundings in Knoxville this weekend as they take on the Tennessee Volunteers.

Joiner, selected as Florida's MVP on defense by the Gators coaches for the second consecutive week, proclaimed Florida was the best defensive unit in the nation Monday.

"We feel we really do have the best defense in the nation," Joiner said after Saturday's 42-0 win against Central Florida,. "That's how we feel, that's how we are going to play and that's what we're going to look forward to doing week in and week out, shut a team out."

Ah, trash talking by Florida. Bring it on, because come Saturday you're going to see what it's like to play a real team and not some second rate cream-puff you brought into pad your stats.

And if you want to see a real defense, just look on the other side of the ball at the team clad in orange...

GO BIG ORANGE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

posted by Michael Hickerson at 9/12/2006 04:19:00 PM | |

Florida favored by 3 and a half
I've often wondered just how the odds makers sit down and figure out the points spread for a football game. I'm sure a large part of the equation is desinged to be a way to allow them to make money, but beyond that just how do they figure these things out? I know there must be some reasoning to it, but it always baffles me.

This is one reason I don't gamble on sports. Honestly, I think rolling down the window and tossing cash out as I drove down I-24 would be just as useful and probably accomplish about the same thing. The only difference is the rolling down the window thing would have the pain of losing the money over faster and no guys named Guido would come break my kneecaps if I didn't pay up.

I was looking at the odds for this weekend and I see the Vols are underdogs by close to four points. (It's currently three and a half, but this could change by week's end). Interesting in that UT has played one quality opponent and one opponent that I think is better than we gave them credit for while Florida has played...well, two creampuffs. Florida has run up points and yards against two lower-tier teams while the Vols, at least, have played a team that was in the top ten at the time. But yet, we're underdogs on our home turf. I find it interesting to think about as we lead up to the game and I wonder if the game were later in the year when we knew a bit more about both teams based on playing in the SEC (best conference in the land) if the odds might not be a bit different.

All I know is, I think the underdog role suits UT. It's not quite as severe as it was in 2001 when no one gave us a chance to go Gainesville and win, but the coaching staff can use this as a motivating factor to get the team up for the game. Hopefully the defense that played Cal will show up to take on Florida as well as the running game from that game. I'll take the passing game from Air Force against Florida. If all that happens, it could be another great win for the Vols and the continued reclaiming of the home field advantage of Rocky Top.

posted by Michael Hickerson at 9/12/2006 02:20:00 PM | |
Monday, September 11, 2006
Just talk about the game already!
Tom Cruise is in attendance at tonight's Washington vs Minnesota game, currently showing on ESPN. I know this because ESPN in their typical fashion had to devote time to discussing this with Jamie Foxx in the booth.

They did this while the Redskins were doing simple things like driving the field and scoring a touchdown. It sort of went like this:

Mike Tirrico: So, Jamie, you starred with Tom Cruise in a movie once. What's he like?

Jamie: Oh, Tom is...

Tirrico: Sorry to interrupt. It appears Clinton Portis has a touchdown. Now back to discussing Tom Cruise.

Dear heavens, must Tom Cruise be everywhere these days? Can't I tune into an NFL football game and not hear about Mr. Scientology?!? Could we maybe discuss the game that is unfolding on our screens instead of Tom and Katie?!?

Ugh.....

posted by Michael Hickerson at 9/11/2006 07:50:00 PM | |

9/11 - My Memories of the Day
I'm sure my story of September 11th is similiar to a lot of people out there. I woke up early that Tuesday morning to go to my weekly men's prayer breakfast. It was a smaller group that morning and after we'd discussed our study for the week and prayed, I headed out to Oak Ridge to work. I got in a bit early and as I was listening to the radio, I heard a report of a plane crashing into a building.

Oh great, I thought, remembering a plane crashing into a building in Florida a few weeks before, another idiot who can't pilot a plane. I sighed heavily and headed into work. I'd arrived earlier than usual and was kind of looking forward to the quiet of the morning to catch up on some things, answer a few e-mails and, in general, ease into the day.

I went in, fired up the Internet and started into my daily task. About five minutes later, my co-worker Steve came in and said, "Hey did you hear plane crashed into the World Trade Center?"

"I heard a plane crashed but details were sketchy when I was getting out of my car," I said.

"This could be a big deal," he said.

Now, I'll admit I took this with a grain of salt. To Steve everything was a potential big deal. I decided to see what was going on and tried to fire up a news service site. It was slow. I tried another--same effect. I wondered if our network was down but found Google's main page with no problem. I decided to head to the breakroom where we had satellite TV to see what was going on.

I walked in to find several other co-workers gathered around the set.

"What's going on?" I asked, seeing the image of smoke coming out of the first tower for the first time.

"A plane hit the World Trade Center," someone said.

I stood there, watching the image, reading the crawl and hearing the announcers, hoping someone would make sense of all this. Then, the second plane hit.

I felt weak in the knees and stunned. What the hell is going on here? I wondered to myself. As the second plane hit, there was a collective gasp in the room and a few explatives were let loose.

I stood there, watching in numb horror. And it got worse. My father worked at the Pentagon at the time and reports came in of something going on at the Pentagon. I heard the phrase "fire fights" used and had this image of a running battle taking place in the corridors of the Pentagon. Now, my dad's job didn't require him to be at the Pentagon every day--sometimes they had off-site training or seminars. I desparately tried to recall if my dad was off-site that day. Some part of me kept saying, "Of course he is....don't panic."

Panic won. As I stood there, fear gripped me. I decided I'd calmly walk to my office, shut the door and try to call him. Once he picked up his cell phone at some off-site location, I'd be OK...it'd all be OK.

I took two calm steps out of the room and then ran down the hall to my office. I'm pretty sure had the NFL been timing me that day, I'd have been highly drafted for my time for my time running the four-forty. I sat in my chair, drew in a deep breath and dialed the number.

It rang.

It rang again.

A third time.

Dammit, I willed him, pick up the damn phone. Fourth ring and voice mail.

I left a message, trying to sound calm. "Hey Dad, just seeing if you're OK. Call me as soon as you get this, please."

I hung up, panic threatening to consume me. I took a deep breath and decided to call my mom. She was in Nashville at the time since my sister was recovering from an illness and she was helping her out. Mom would know where he was and tell me he was off-site that day. I called my sister's house, wondering if I'd wake anyone up.

My mom answered and right away I knew my answer. Yes, my dad was in the Pentagon and no, we hadn't heard from him. I promised to call as soon as I heard and vice versa. I then went down to watch more coverage from the news, since work was the last thing on my mind at this point.

The room was fuller now of people, watching the story unfold. What I recall was the sense of panic in the news reports of those first few hours--I recall there were rumors of a plane flying up the Potomac River that might have to be shot down and various other attacks. I watched as air traffic was shut down and we slowly began to make sense of what was going on. It seemed like one of those bad action movies gone horribly wrong and I kept thinking, "This can't he happening. Not to America. This happens other places in the world but not here."

As the media began to talk about other possible targets, I realized I worked fairly close to the Oak Ridge nuclear plant. As did everyone else I worked with. After an hour or so, the decision was made that we could go home if we wanted to since it didn't seem like anyone would get any work done that day. Also, there was the fear the plant might be attacked. I decided to go home and wait for news from my dad. I was in a panic though trying not to let it show....I don't think I was very successful.

I was driving home when I got a call on my cell phone. It was from my sister's house. Oh no, I thought..it's bad news. I pulled over into the Walgreens on Middlebrook Pike and shakily answered the phone. The good news was my father was alive and was out of the Pentagon. He'd had to have someone from his office call to tell us he was alive and well but he couldn't get to or use a phone since the circuits were jammed. And he'd left his cell phone at home that day and that is why it would do no good to call him on it.

I cried in the Walgreens parking lot--tears of relief and joy that my dad was alive and tears of anger at what was happening.

My father was one of the last out and the first back in the Pentagon on September 11th. He helped get the communications systems back up so the various parties could talk about what was going on and how to begin to respond to this madness.

During my drive home, I was listening to NewsTalk 99 and I remember hearing Hallorin Hill talk about the towers collapsing. The horror in his voice came through the air waves.

I got home and watched the same footage over and over again. Eventually, I got so worn out of dealing with it, I went to the Y and worked out watching the same footage on TV screens there. I had a respite while I swam and then I went home to see it again and again. As I drove around, I remember thinking I'd better fill up my car right then before gas prices rose to three dollars a gallon or more. And I recall the sports talk shows not even discussing sports that day, but the horror that we'd expereinced. This was a big deal since it was UT vs Florida week. When I'd woke up that morning, my biggest worry was could we go to Gainseville and beat the Gators. Suddenly that seemed less important to me..in fact, it seemed rather trivial.

I did speak to my dad on the phone later that evening. It was good to hear his voice, though he sounded exhausted.

And as I spoke, I realized I was blessed. I'd spent two or three hours in panicked worry for my dad, wondering if he was alive. I know there were families that day who spent days, weeks or even months waiting, hoping for a call with good news that never came. Even scarier was the thought that there were families with family members or friends on those planes who knew right away their loved ones weren't come home.

In the days and weeks to come, I saw out nation rally together in a way I haven't often seen. 9/11 wasn't an event to use as political leverage becuase it happened to us all. Sadly, it seems as if politicans have slowly turned it from a moment of unity in our nation to a way to get votes or promote an agenda.

But I'll never forget that day. And I hope and pray that our nation never has to experience anything like that ever again.

posted by Michael Hickerson at 9/11/2006 07:22:00 AM | |

The 2,996 Project: Rodney Dickens
Five years ago today, 2,996 people woke up and began what probably started out as a just an average, ordinary day. Little did any of those people know (or any of the rest of us for that matter) know that before the day was over, the world would be shattered and changed in ways that we are still coming to grips with now.

2,996 people died as a result of the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001.

Today, I want to honor the memory of one of those victims, Rodney Dickens.

Rodney was 11 years old and an honor student. He'd won a competition and was travelling to attend a national marine sanctuary program.

I can imagine that being 11, Rodney was probably pretty excited about travelling on a plane. And probably a little nervous as well since from what I can gather, he was travelling alone that day. I imagine he probably didn't sleep much the night before, being excited about the plane ride, the adventure he was going on and the thrill of winning this compeition. I feel certain his mother, LaShawn, accompanied him to the gate and saw him off on the plane. I wonder if his two brothers and two sisters were with him as well or if they were in school that morning.

But the point of this project is to celebrate the life of Rodney Dickens. Rodney sounds a lot like your typical 11-year old kid. He liked Pokemon, computer game and playing with his siblings.

Over at legacy.com, there are many pages of tributes to Rodney and the many other victims of 9/11. One that jumped out at me in reading the many posts was this one from Chief Warrant Office Rob Wallace.

Dear Dickens Family, My name is Chief Warrant Officer Rob Wallace, you may remember me as Staff Sergeant Wallace, US Marines Corps. I was the escort for your family at the memorial service in DC. I want you to know that I think of you all often as well as Rodney. I have told my kids of what I can remeber about that day and also told them about Rodney. Although I did not get a chance to meet him, I got to know him through you all and that had profound impact on my life as a father. You were all such wonderful people. We have your entire family in our prayers often. I would love to keep in touch if possible. All my love, Rob Wallace.

In honor of all the victims of 9/11 a quilt has been created. The quilt will be exhibited in Staten Island, NY Sept. 9-11 and in Radnor, PA Sept. 15-17. I recommend you surf over and look at it, not only the part that focus on Rodney, but also that of all of the victims.

Today as we all remember the horrible events of 9/11, I ask that you take a moment to think about Rodney Dickens. To Rodney's family and friends, I offer my profound condolences on your loss and my thoughts and prayers will be with you today. I cannot imagine the loss you must have felt that day and still continue to feel. I hope that this blog post offers some comfort to you and a promise that Rodney will never be forgotten.

posted by Michael Hickerson at 9/11/2006 12:01:00 AM | |
Sunday, September 10, 2006
UT 31, Air Force 30
Thanks to a buddy at church, I was able to take in the UT vs Air Force game yesterday.

It was a good game. And what you have to remember here is that in my world a good game means any one where UT wins. It did look kind of dicey there for a while, esp. in the later stages of the second half. I can't believe we had to stop Air Force on a two-point conversion and then recover the on-side kick in order to win the game. But a win is a win is a win, I say.

And I doubt we'll face an option attack like Air Force employed from any other team this year.

Now, I can turn my attention and hatred to the most hated of all rivals for UT (well, outside of Bama and Georgia), the University of Florida. I am hopeful that the way the defense played this week will be a motivating factor for the Vols as we prepared to welcome the Gators to Knoxville this week. Hopefully Neyland Stadium will be rocking and the team that played Cal last week will show up and just throttle Florida. And if we get up 35-0, that Phil just keeps the pedal to the metal and hammer them and hammer them hard.

Above is a picture of me and Barry from Inn of the Last Home in our seats at Neyland Stadium. It's been a while since we took in a UT game together. We took in a Titans pre-season game last year, but it was no where near as entertaining as this game. Plus we were two rows up from the dance team and cheerleaders. So there was that visual distraction for me in between plays. Barry claims one of the cheerleaders was checking me out...though I'm didn't see it.

Driving over from Nashville yesterday, it was great to see all the cars on the road with UT swag. And then to be on campus for game day was just so much fun. Walking around, taking in the sights and sounds.

About the only negative of the experience was being right behind this couple who definitely needed to consider leaving the game and getting their own room. Now, I've been to games with dates before and while I can see kissing for a touchdown or a big play, I'm not sure kissing every time the refs set the ball is entirely needed. And that was really the more PG parts of these two who were massaging each other, grinding up against each other, etc. I was really hopeful when the Vols were driving for a late touchdown with Ainge was intercepted that we'd score so these two could go find a room in which to...er...score.

But anyway, great game and now it's time to think about the evil empire from Gainesville.

posted by Michael Hickerson at 9/10/2006 06:09:00 PM | |
Saturday, September 09, 2006
UT vs Air Force
Heading out to take in the UT vs Air Force game this evening. I'm pretty stoked about the Vols after last week's romp over Cal. I'm hopeful we can duplicate the effort and intensity this week.

My score prediction: UT 41, Air Force 14

GO BIG ORANGE!!!!!!!!!!!

posted by Michael Hickerson at 9/09/2006 09:26:00 AM | |
Friday, September 08, 2006
Star Trek's Top Ten #1: Amok Time
So, here it is. Forty years ago today, the very first episode of Star Trek aired on NBC. "The Man Trap" kicked off what would become a huge franchise and, arguably, one of the great American myths. For the past eleven days, I've counted down my favorite episodes of the orignal series. And now, at long last, we reach the top slot on my list with my all-time favorite episode, "Amok Time."

Penned by celebrated sci-fi author Theordore Sturgeon, "Amok Time" kicked off the second season of Star Trek in a big way with a visit to Spock's home world of Vulcan.

The story can be quickly summed up as "Spock goes into heat and must return to Vulcan to mate or die" but that is doing this classic episode a huge disservice. The story comes well into the Gene Coon era of Star Trek (Coon was a producer who helped shape Star Trek) and it shows all the trademarks of the era--solid story, humor, and strong, dynamic character work. The entire original series cast in on hand for this one, though the focus is clearly on the Kirk/Spock/McCoy dynamic.

Spock is behaving strangely, demanding shore leave immediately on Vulcan. The Enterprise is on her way to Altair for a presidential inaguration ceremony but will have time to swing by Vulcan to drop Spock off. But then the ceremony is moved up two days and Kirk is unable to grant Spock's request. At which point Spock supercedes Kirk's orders and orders the ship to Vulcan.

Kirk finds out and is not pleased, leading to one heck of scene on the bridge. Kirk comes out of the turbolift and orders Spock to come with him. The two men talk in the turbolift, at which point Kirk orders Spock to sickbay to be checked out by McCoy. McCoy runs his tests and reports that Spock must get to Vulcan in the next several days or else he'll die.

Kirk goes to ask Spock about it and off the record learns that Spock is experiencing the pon-farr--a Vulcan mating drive. He must return to Vulcan to mate with his bethrothed or else die. Kirk takes this under consideration and speaks to McCoy about it. Kirk analyzes the Altair situation, deciding the Enterprise is one of four ships that will be there--nice but not necessary. He decides his friendship with Spock is worth throwing away his career for and orders the ship to Vulcan.

This leads to one of the great, defining scenes for the big three in the turbo lift, riding up to the bridge upon arrival at Vulcan. Spock realizes McCoy has figured out what is going on and thanks him. He then says that there is a brief ceremony on the surface and says he may be accompanied by his closest friends as is his right. He asks both Kirk and McCoy to go, to which McCoy responds, "I would be honored sir."

The trio beams down and meets the wedding party. It's headed by T'Pau, the only person to ever turn down a seat on the Federation Council. We meet Spock's bethrothed T'Pring and Spock begins the ritual, going deep into the blood heat. Hanging around in the background is another Vulcan named Stonn. More on him later. T'Pring halts the ceremony at one point, invoking the kunit-kalife, which is where she chooses a champion to fight to the death with Spock. The winner gets T'Pring.

T'Pring chooses Kirk, who agrees thinking he just needs to knock out Spock or get knocked out. He also doesn't want to look weak in front of T'Pau of Vulcan. He agrees, not knowing the fight is to the death until it's too late to back out. The two friends begin the fight with McCoy looking on. After the first round, Kirk is winded due to the thinner air on Vulcan. McCoy offers a triox compound to help Kirk breath and injects Kirk with it. He and Kirk discuss the fact that he's going to have to kill Spock or else be killed.

The fight resumes and Spock kills Kirk in the battle. McCoy confirms this and tells Spock he's in command. The two beam up to the ship. Spock finds that having killed Kirk, the blood fever has passed. He also figures out T'Pring doesn't want him, but Stonn. Spock is becoming a legend on Vulcan and T'Pring doesn't wish to be married to a legend. Her logic was if Spock won, she gets his title and estate while he's off in Starfleet and she still has Stonn. If Kirk wins, he will release her and she can have Stonn. Spock releases her from the obligation and tells Stonn "You may find, in time, that having is not so pleasing a thing as wanting. It is not logical, but it is most often true."

Spock returns to the ship, prepared to surrender himself to the authorites only to have Kirk emerge from sickbay. Spock's emotions overcome him and he smiles at the sight of Kirk alive. Seems McCoy slipped Kirk a mickey to knock him out and prevent Spock from killing him. Then Enterprise then gets a message that T'Pau pulled some strings and they won't get in trouble for diverting to Vulcan.

The ship then heads out for its next mission....

As an episode, "Amok Time" has it all when it comes to Star Trek. You've got a solid story, great character work, good acting and some great action. The fight scenes between Kirk and Spock are superbly done and accompanied by the famous "Star Trek fight music." The score was written specifically for this episode, though it's used many times over in the upcoming episodes. It works best here and is memorable.

The peformaces by regular and guest cast alike are univerally superb, though the highlight is Leonard Nimoy as Spock. The struggle we see with our usually stoic Spock is shown to us in body language a lot. We see Spock's arm quiver nervously and there are times when Spock succumbs to emotions of anger and rage, which we see played out on screen. Nimoy goes from rage and upset to being the stoic Spock on a dime.

It's also an episode that epitomizes what the big three were all about. The friendship and loyalty between Kirk, Spock and McCoy is great--from the scene in the turbolift to the scenes on Vulcan. McCoy serves as a great sounding board and friend for both Kirk and Spock in this episode. He's the one who spurs Kirk onto action early in the episode, noting that Spock is acting strangely.

It's the perfect balance of all the elements of Star Trek in one episode. And there's not one plot thread left as a loose end when it's all wrapped up.

Now, it does feature another left-in blooper from the filming, though it's not as obvious as the one used in "Space Seed." It's easier to spot if you know where to look for it. In the third act, as Kirk speaks to T'Pau about the pon farr, Spock is in the background of the shot. Not knowing it was a wide shot and needing to be in character, you can see Nimoy leaning against the set. He then realizes the cameras are rolling and snaps back into character. Again, not as obvious as the "Space Seed" thing but it's still there and something to watch for on the 700th viewing of the episode.

And so, there you have it--my top ten of classic Star Trek. I hope you enjoyed it and I thank all of you for your indulgance in reading my ranting about one of my favorite shows.

Happy 40th anniversary to Star Trek.

Labels: Star Trek

posted by Michael Hickerson at 9/08/2006 10:55:00 AM | |
Thursday, September 07, 2006
House for sale (aka helping a fellow blogger)
KatieAllison has a house for sale over in Knoxville.

Katie just got married and is motivated to sell. She asked fellow bloggers to help publicize the house being on the market and I'm only too happy to help.

Also, congrats to Katie and her new husband. I hope and pray for many years of happiness together for y'all.

posted by Michael Hickerson at 9/07/2006 12:07:00 PM | |

Star Trek's Top Ten #2: City on the Edge of Forever
"City on the Edge of Forever" is widely regarded as not only the best episode of the original series but as the single best episode of any of the five Star Trek shows.

Interestingly enough "City on the Edge of Forever" is one of those stories that not only deserves every accolate its has received over the years but it actually lives up to and exceeds them. This is one of those rare episodes of television that transcends the genre.

"City on the Edge of Forever" has one of the most colorful histories of any episode of Star Trek as well. The original story was written by respected science-fiction author, Harlan Ellison. (Classic Trek had lots of "big name" sci-fi writers pen episodes for the show.) Ellison's original script (which you can purchase and read for yourself) involved a drug dealer on the Enterprise who goes back in time though the Guardian of Forever. Kirk and Spock follow him back when the drug dealer changes history to put the timeline back on course.

Over the years, a lot of stories have cropped up about the original premise for the show. One rumor had it that Scotty was the drug dealer in question (he was not...the script had it being a not before seen red-shirt character). A lot of these rumors were allegedly propogated by Gene Roddenberry at fan conventions, according to Ellison. As I've said, the original story is available for you to purchase and read, including a 50 or so page forward by Ellison that I can sum up for you like this. "Gene Roddenberry is a bastard and I hate him for changing my script, which you can soon read after I'm done with all my ranting."

The script itself is a bit bleaker and darker than what Star Trek normally is and reading it, I can see why changes were made. Of course, there are also stories (verified by other Trek sources on the set) that Ellison took so long to write the script that it almost never got made.

To me, the funny thing is that a lot of the kiss and tell Star Trek books from ten years ago all had an entire chapter devoted to this episode. That should tell you something about how big it is in the Trek canon.

The funny thing to me about Ellison's book is after 50 pages of "Gene Roddenberry is a bastard" we get an essay from script editor and writer D.C. Fontana who admits she did much of the re-write of the script herself under Roddenberry's supervision. So it wasn't Gene who "butchered" Harlan's script it was Fontana, who in between ranting about how much he hates Roddenberry, Ellison has high praise for.

The thing is despite the massive re-writes by Roddenberry, Fontana and I'm going to assume producer Gene Coon done to this script, Ellison still gets sole writing credit on it.

That said, the changes actually make the script better and make for a better, overall episode of Star Trek. Instead of a drug dealer on the ship, we have McCoy accidentally injected with an overdose of cordazine. He becomes manic, thinking everyone is out to get him. The Enterprise is orbiting a world where waves of time distortion are eminating, looking into this. McCoy beams down and the landing party follows him.

On the planet, the landing party discovers an arch that is the Guardian of Forever. It's a portal to the past. As Spock is studying it, McCoy jumps through it and vanishes into history. The timeline then alters and the Enterprise is gone. Kirk and Spock must now go back and repair what McCoy has done. If they do so, they will return home and it will be as if nothing happened.

Kirk and Spock go back in time to Depression era New York. There Kirk meets and falls in love with Edith Keeler, as played by Joan Collins. Keeler runs a soup kitchen and believes in helping her fellow human being. As the story goes along, Spock finds out that Keeler in the lynchpin...she dies in an auto accident (she's hit by a truck), thus creating the future he and Kirk now. If Keeler doesn't die, her movement keeps the U.S. from entering the second world war until it's too late and Hitler has the bomb.

Kirk is now faced with a choice--sacrifice the universe he knows or the woman he loves.

For all the times that Kirk romances the alien girl of the week and how cliched it can be, the romance with Edith Keeler is anything but. There are those who say Shatner can't act but to those critics I say--watch this episode. The man can do it and his performance here is nothing short of superb. As are the performances of everyone in the cast. Again, watch the scene in which Keeler dies. Kirk must stop McCoy from saving her and the look on Shatner's face as he has to let the woman Kirk loves die is heartbreaking. It also features some great dialogue as McCoy asks if Kirk knew what he was doing and Spock replies, "He knows, Doctor. He knows."

As I've said before, this episode really transcends the genre and is more than just a Star Trek episode. It's a story grounded on a science-fiction premise (traveelling in time) but as with all good Trek, it's about more than that. It's about the characters, who all shine through here. At this point, Star Trek is humming on all cylinders with the cast firmly in touch with who these characters are. Shatner, Nimoy and DeForest Kelley all deliver solid, amazing peformances and Joan Collins is well cast as well.

The scene where Keeler dies is heart wrenching and horrifying. It was made in the time when less is more...we don't see the wreck but instead hear it and see character's reactions to it. It's far more effective than showing the wreck and its results on screen.

(In an interesting bit of trivia....I notice that Kirk has to sacrifice a lot this first season...first his best friend to start the series and now he has to let the woman he loves die.)

It ends with the (then) risque line of Kirk saying "Let's get the hell out of here" as the crew beams up.

The one nitpick you could have is that this is clearly an epiosde that is driven by character over plot. Kirk has to sacrifice Keller but we get no resolution to what brought them to the planet to start with--the time waves that are affecting the whole universe. I guess we can assume the Guardian was malfunctioning or something and its now somehow fixed, but we're not given any answers. Much in the same way another episode from this list did with "Mirror, Mirror." Once Kirk and company escape the mirror universe, we never find out what happened with the Halkans and, in fact, Kirk orders the ship out of orbit at episode's end. So, I guess they completed the mission..but we're not sure.

Again, this is not one of those things that really matters that much. But when you watch these things a million times over the years, these things tend to jump out at you on the thousandth or so viewing...

"City on the Edge of Forever" is a true classic---not only of Star Trek but all of TV drama. And it's place as one of the most reverred and respected episodes in the Star Trek canon is well deserved. If you are looking for a good way to see why Trek has endured for 40 years, this episode is worth viewing or viewing again.

Labels: Star Trek

posted by Michael Hickerson at 9/07/2006 09:14:00 AM | |
Wednesday, September 06, 2006
Star Trek's Top Ten #3: The Doomsday Machine
In the argument over whether or not it's a good idea to upgrade the original series effects, "The Doomsday Machine" is one episode that quickly comes up as a reason for such an upgrade.

And I'll give you that upgrading some of the model shots and battles between the Enterprise, the Constellation and the titular Doomsday Machine might, I say might visually make this more pleasing.

But if you're only watching "The Doomsday Machine" for the effects, you're really missing the entire point of the episode.

What we've got here in Moby Dick in space. Replace Captain Ahab with Commodore Matt Decker and the whale with a huge, planet killing machine that has to be stopped before it destroys most of the colonized heart of the Fedearation and you've got "The Doomsday Machine." And while the effects are questionable at times, they are not the heart and soul of this story. What is the heart and soul is the characters and the conflicts.

William Windom turns in one of the best guest-star turns not only of the original series but Star Trek as a whole. His Commodore Matt Decker is a good man pushed too far. Decker's entire crew is killed by the Doomsday Machine when his ship is crippled. Decker, thinking he's saving their lives has them beamed down to a planet that the Doomsday Machine promptly destroys. Decker's guilt and horror at this sends him over the edge, into obsession and almost crippling depression. We watch Decker go from a man who can barely put into words the horror of what he saw to calm and assured, taking command of the Enterprise in the heat of battle when Spock won't do what he wants. Windom delivers a performance for the ages and his acting elevates the crew around him to new heights. Say what you will about Shatner's acting, the man can do it when he wants to--and it shows here. It will also show in another episode that I'll discuss in the coming days.

"The Doomsday Machine" is an episode where we examine the consequences of command. Decker loses his sanity and then his life to the planet killer. But unlike other contemporaries of Kirk who went mad with power, Decker hasn't followed that path. He's made the same decisions Kirk or any other commander would only to have them blow up in his face in unexpected ways. He's a tragic figure and when he dies in the third act, we really do feel a moment of regret and sadness for him.

"The Doomsday Machine" also emphasizes the insular nature of the Enterprise crew and their loyalty to Kirk. Spock is forced by regulations to give up command even though he knows Decker shouldn't be anywhere near the center seat. McCoy tries to help but can't produce the documentary evidence that Decker is suffering from a mental trauma. In the end, Kirk forces the issue when he orders Spock to take command of the Enterprise on his (Kirk's) personal authority. Forget your killer space battles, the scene that unfolds as Decker states he doesn't recognize Spock's authority to relieve him is as tense and real as any battle unfolding on the vast backdrop of space.

This episode is enhanced by a terrific musical score by Sol Kaplan. It's easy to forget how effective this music is since a lot of it got recycled time and again in lots of space battle after this one. But here with the cues timed precisely with what is unfolding on screen, the music enhances and already great episode of Star Trek.

I suppose I'd be remiss is not pointing out the obvious technical errors. Most of these are due to the scale of ships in the story. Many will point out that the shuttle craft and the Constellation are the same size as they're seen entering the Doomsday Machine. It's a huge mistake and one that I'm sure will be corrected when we get the new edition whenever it airs. That said, I couldn't care less about it. The effects are not what drives this story. It's the solid story, the well defined characters and the superlative muscical score that make "The Doomsday Machine" one of the best outings not only of the original series but of all of Star Trek.

Labels: Star Trek

posted by Michael Hickerson at 9/06/2006 07:55:00 AM | |