In this episode, the Enterprise is carrying ambassadors from several Federation races to a conference on a planetoid called Babel to decide the fate of a planet called Coridan requesting membership in the Federation.\u00a0 The first scene involves the arrival by shuttle craft of the Vulcan ambassador Sarek and his human wife Amanda (played by Jane Wyatt who was the mother in the popular television series, \u201cFather Knows Best\u201d).\u00a0 As it turns out they are also Spock\u2019s father and mother.\u00a0 We find out that Sarek and Spock have not been on good terms since Spock decided to join Starfleet instead of the Vulcan Academy as his father had desired.<\/p>\n
Sarek is involved in an altercation that turns physical with the Tellarite ambassador over the illegal Tellarite mining of dilithium in the Coridan system.\u00a0 Later, when the ambassador turns up dead, Sarek is the prime suspect.\u00a0 Meanwhile an unidentified starship of incredible speed begins following the Enterprise.<\/p>\n
While being interrogated by Kirk over the murder of the Tellarite Sarek reveals that he could not have been the killer because he is too weakened by a heart condition.\u00a0 Suddenly Sarek is stricken by a major heart attack and McCoy thinks that surgery will be necessary.\u00a0 But the Enterprise lacks sufficient supplies of Sarek\u2019s rare blood type to safely allow the surgery.\u00a0 Spock volunteers to undergo treatment with a drug that will supplement his body\u2019s ability to produce new blood and will thus be able to produce sufficient blood for the operation.<\/p>\n
Kirk is attacked by a member of the Andorian delegation named Thelev.\u00a0 Kirk subdues him but only after sustaining a serious knife wound to the lung.\u00a0 Kirk is taken to sick bay and Spock assumes command which in his mind makes it impossible for him to provide the blood transfusion needed for Sarek\u2019s life-saving surgery.\u00a0 When Amanda hears of Spock\u2019s decision, she begs him to put another officer in charge and save his father\u2019s life.\u00a0 When Spock refuses on the grounds of duty, Amanda slaps Spock in the face and runs away from her son.<\/p>\n
When McCoy tells Kirk, what Spock has decided Kirk tells McCoy that despite his critical injury he will go up to the bridge and pretend that he is recovered in order to force Spock to assist in the surgery.\u00a0 Once Spock leaves the bridge Kirk will call Scotty to relieve him.\u00a0 McCoy reluctantly agrees to the plan because Sarek is so close to death.\u00a0 And it works.\u00a0 Kirk fools Spock and McCoy escorts the Vulcan back to sick bay.<\/p>\n
But just as Kirk prepares to call for his relief the mystery ship begins offensive posturing toward the Enterprise.\u00a0 Simultaneously, Uhura detects communication between the enemy ship and the Andorian, Thelev in the ship\u2019s brig.\u00a0 Although Kirk is in obvious pain, he maintains command and calls for the Andorian prisoner to be brought to the bridge while he directs Chekov and the helmsman battling the enemy ship.\u00a0 The ship is so fast that the Enterprise\u2019s weapons systems are too slow to track it.\u00a0 Finally, with shields already failing Kirk is forced to make a desperate ploy.\u00a0 He deactivates the ship power systems to lure the ship in close and disables it with phasers at point blank range.\u00a0 The ship self-destructs rather than be captured and the prisoner Thelev reveals that he also has a suicide plan and succumbs to poison before medical aid can be brought.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile during the attack McCoy is attempting to perform delicate heart surgery to save Sarek\u2019s life while the operating area is convulsed by the weapons concussions and power fails some of his most important surgical instruments. \u00a0At one point, Sarek\u2019s heart stops and McCoy is forced to use a manual device to resuscitate him.\u00a0 Spock is also in grave danger from the equipment malfunctions occurring.\u00a0 But by the end of the attack McCoy was able to successfully repair Sarek\u2019s heart.<\/p>\n
Now Kirk staggers back to sick bay after allowing Chekov to relieve him.\u00a0 When Spock regains consciousness, he informs Kirk that he believes that the alien ship and Thelev were actually Orions.\u00a0 Thelev was surgically altered to appear Andorian and the Orions wanted to destroy the Enterprise and start a war and then sell pirated dilithium crystals to both sides.<\/p>\n
Amanda appears and tells her husband to thank her son for saving his life.\u00a0 Sarek counters that it would be illogical to thank Spock for doing the logical thing.\u00a0 Amanda becomes outraged and disparages Vulcan logic.\u00a0 Spock notes that his mother seems very irrational.\u00a0 He asks his father why he married her.\u00a0 Sarek replies that it seemed the logical thing to do at the time.<\/p>\n
But now McCoy steps in and tells all his convalescing patients to calm down and stop talking.\u00a0 After a few warnings, they fall silent and McCoy breaks into a big smile and says, \u201cWell what do you know, I finally got the last word.\u201d<\/p>\n
This is not such a bad episode.\u00a0 The Spock family stuff is mostly amusing and the ridiculous fake aliens are, of course, ridiculous.\u00a0 They even have a couple of dwarfs painted copper that are supposed to be something or other.<\/p>\n
Jane Wyatt relating scenes from Spock\u2019s childhood and trying to reconcile her husband and son has some charm.\u00a0 On the story side of the ledger this earns a 7.<\/p>\n
On the Shatner mockery side, we have the scene with Kirk battling the knife-wielding Thelev.\u00a0 At one point, when they are wrestling, Shatner does some kind of sideways jump where his legs collide with a wall and part of Thelev.\u00a0 It looks extremely uncoordinated and ineffectual.\u00a0 And after he is stabbed, he contorts and writhes in Shatnerian agony.\u00a0 So altogether I\u2019ll give this a 7 \/\/ 7.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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