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DVD Star Trek - The Original Series, Vol. 21, Episodes 41 & 42: I, Mudd/ The Trouble With Tribbles
"I, Mudd" Lovable scoundrel Harry Mudd (Roger C. Carmel) returns following his debut appearance in the first-season episode "Mudd's Women," this time as the leader of a race of helpful (and leggy) androids. Mudd tries to take control of the Enterprise, but soon finds that the androids have plans of their own. This is one of Trek's few purely comic episodes, and it hits a nice level of whimsy as Kirk and the crew fight android efficiency with good old human illogic. "I, Mudd" also sets a benchmark achievement for the Star Trek design crew: It called not just for beautiful women in revealing costumes, but for beautiful twins in revealing costumes. Truly a tough one to top, cheesily foreshadowing the "Fembots" of Austin Powers infamy. --Ali Davis
"The Trouble with Tribbles" It's time to face one of the great questions of the television age: Is "The Trouble with Tribbles" really as good as everyone thinks it is? You bet. While the story might be a little slower than many of us remember, the episode is deservedly beloved for writer David Gerrold's witty, mildly acerbic script, and the way the cast took to heightened comic possibilities against network resistance. (Heavens! Comedy on a science fiction show?) Stanley Adams is delightful as the huckster Cyrano Jones, who gives a trilling furball called a tribble to Uhura (Nichelle Nichols), who brings it aboard the Enterprise and watches it reproduce... and reproduce... and reproduce. Soon, hundreds of tribbles are in every part of the ship, making Captain Kirk (William Shatner), already grouchy about guarding a mere grain shipment from Klingons, even grouchier. There's no question that Gerrold made a major contribution to Trek culture with this show, setting a tone that Star Trek has visited again and again, including the feature film Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home and sundry episodes of The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, and Voyager. --Tom Keogh
Review(s): DVD Star Trek - The Original Series, Vol. 21, Episodes 41 & 42: I, Mudd/ The Trouble With Tribbles
Skip It
The original "Star Trek" series is cheesy at times but often fun and sometimes dramatic. However, 2 episodes per disc is a sure sign that Paramount was milking this series for all that it's worth, because they knew that the loyal "Star Trek" fans would buy every disc - all 40 of them. Paramount has now released the entire series in season boxed sets which, although still pricey, include bonus features and are a better value than these single-disc releases. Skip these discs and buy the boxed sets instead.
This is the best of the best!!!!
These two Star Trek episodes where most likely two of the best ever made. The cast was fantastic and really made there characters shine!!! This is some really enjoyable viewing and will cause fits of uncontrollable laughter. AND... Chekov is really awesome in these two (I love him! :-) LOL)!!! Enjoy!
Comedic space high-jinks, with mixed success
I, Mudd-This episode, which features Harry Mudd and a group of androids, must be one of the toughest to review if only because it is such a bizarre episode. This is one of the few episodes that undeniably means to be campy. None of the actors play this one seriously, and that's for the best given the material. Unfortunately, most of the humor falls completely flat. Nevertheless, I respect the episode for trying something different.
This show certainly helped set the carefree tone that would extend FAR more successfully into the next episode. (2 stars)
The Trouble With Tribbles-The episode with those furry little creatures was the apex of humor on Star Trek. By this point in the show's run, characters were well enough developed for the actors and brain trust to feel comfortable stepping out a bit. And they certainly step out in this one. Thanks to writer Gerrold, the episode actually has a fairly solid dramatic foundation that includes Klingon intrigue, and threats to both the food supply and the Enterprise itself. One could be forgiven for not realizing this though, since the tribbles completely steal the show. Actually the enterprise crew (and Adams as Cerano)for the most part prove quite adept in the comedic roles, and the officious Schallert is a perfect straight man under the circumstances. A Starfleet official is even correct in his desire to reign in Kirk, for once!
Tidbits: The fight scene was supposedly pinched en masse from a prior film. Recognize the Klingon? He was Trelane from The Squire of Gothos, played by William Campbell. (5 stars)
Related DVD's Star Trek - The Original Series, Vol. 21, Episodes 41 & 42: I, Mudd/ The Trouble With Tribbles
"Bread and Circuses" Captain Kirk (William Shatner), Dr. McCoy (DeForest Kelley), and First Officer Spock (Leonard Nimoy) discover that Captain Merik (William Smithers), commander of the long-missing Starfleet vessel S.S. Beagle, has become "First Citizen of the Empire" in a re-creation of ancient Rome on an obscure, unnamed planet. Under orders from the Emperor, Merik forced his own crew to die in gladiator battles and lured other Starfleet personnel to the same fate. Now with Kirk, McCoy, and Spock in hand, the Emperor's barbaric (and televised all over the planet) amusements carry on another day. While the script takes a swipe or two at the sometimes less-than-elevated tastes of global audiences, the episode's most interesting idea is the existence of a... More Info about this DVD Director(s): James Goldstone - Murray Golden - James Komack - Don McDougall - Robert Butler DVD Release Date: Released the 24 April 2001 Usually ships within 24 hours
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"Mirror, Mirror" When their mission to secure a mineral trade ends in failure, a freak ion storm catches Kirk, McCoy, Uhura, and Scotty in mid-beam-up and sends them to a parallel dimension where Federation leaders are as ruthless as the Klingons, and Star Fleet promotions are attained by assassination. They find themselves on an alternate Enterprise, peopled with evil counterparts to the people they know (all attired in glittery, glam-rock uniforms), including most famously an evil, goateed Spock whom Kirk must convince to overthrow the empire. Kirk and his landing party try to fit in with this crew of villains who are threatening with annihilation the planet where the mineral trade went sour, while searching for a way back to their world and fending off assassination... More Info about this DVD Director(s): James Goldstone - Murray Golden - James Komack - Don McDougall - Robert Butler DVD Release Date: Released the 13 February 2001 Usually ships within 24 hours
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A Private Little War-This underrated 'cold war' episode featuring a gorilla-unicorn, is another taught thriller from the second season. In addition to the non-stop action (shootings, Mugatu bites, Klingon intrigue, etc.) we have a well-reasoned ethical debate about the dual perils of intervention and non-intervention by a superpower. Kirk even acknowledges some ambivalence about the arming of the Hill people (think Vietnam) at the end of the show. Other pluses in this episode are the culture of the planet, as well as Nona. Her healing scene with Shatner is pretty racy, even by today's standards. (4 stars)
The Gamesters of Triskelion-This episode, in which the enslaved crew are forced by giant brains to engage in arena combat, was a big step down from prior episodes. In fact, I would... More Info about this DVD Director(s): James Goldstone - Murray Golden - James Komack - Don McDougall - Robert Butler DVD Release Date: Released the 05 June 2001 Usually ships within 24 hours
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Volume 25 of Paramount's complete reissue of Classic Star Trek contains two stories showcasing superior writing and offering plenty of action.
A Piece of the Action remains one of Trek's most popular episodes. In essence, it's a time travel episode, without the time travel, which frees the story from the usual "Don't alter the future" constraints. The hands of Gene L. Coon, who co-wrote this episode, are evident in the colorful writing, and in the banter between the characters. Deliberately, the Iotians are all made to speak using a nonstop stream of 1920s cliches. When Kirk adopts these cliches, and eventually persuades Spock to adopt them, the course is set for maximum comedy.
These two episodes are great summaries of the original series. "The Changeling" is an inexpensive ship-bound script, with a standard defeating-computers-through-logic riff. It still stands better in its own way than the first motion picture, which used the same theme. Ironically, it stands as an example of what happens when one lets personal criteria determine whether or not an encountered culture should survive -- something Star Fleet's Prime Directive is supposed to prevent, and which is no more clearly violated than in the other episode, "The Apple," where Kirk decides that having a computer make you contented nature children is somehow "unnatural" and therefore has to be ended. This episode is noteworthy both for the number of "red shirts" killed (they have to beam down in two groups... More Info about this DVD Director(s): James Goldstone - Murray Golden - James Komack - Don McDougall - Robert Butler DVD Release Date: Released the 13 February 2001 Usually ships within 24 hours
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