The Apple

Star Trek ClassicStardate 3715.0: An Enterprise landing party beams down to an edenic planet, where Kirk discovers that the people living there are still primitive, all progress held in check by an enormous ancient computer known as Vaal, which also demands sacrifices of food by the natives. Vaal detects the Enterprise in orbit and begins to drain it of its power, and Kirk realizes that he will have to destroy Vaal to save the Enterprise, but the surface dwellers’ lifestyles will be changed forever if Vaal is removed.

Order this episode on DVDDownload this episode via Amazon's Unboxwritten by Max Ehrlich
directed by Joseph Pevney
music by Gerald Fried

Cast: William Shatner (Captain James T. Kirk), Leonard Nimoy (Mr. Spock), DeForest Kelley (Dr. Leonard McCoy), James Doohan (Mr. Scott), George Takei (Lt. Sulu), Nichelle Nichols (Lt. Uhura), Keith Andes (Akuta), Celeste Yarnell (Yeoman Martha Landon), David Soul (Makora), Jay Jones (Ensign Mallory), Jerry Daniels (Marple), John Winston (Lt. Kyle), Mal Friedman (Hendorff), Shari Nims (Sayana)

LogBook entry by Earl Green

The Doomsday Machine

Star Trek ClassicStardate 4202.9: The starship Constellation is found in deep space, almost completely destroyed. The only person found aboard is Commodore Matt Decker, in a state of shock and only able to give minimal details of what happened. A gigantic ship/creature suddenly returns, well over ten times the size of the Federation vessels, capable of literally eating entire planets to replenish is colossal energy needs. Kirk is trapped on the unarmed Constellation, while Decker takes command of the Enterprise and plans to exact revenge on the huge alien vessel, no matter what the risk to Kirk’s ship and crew.

Order this episode on DVDDownload this episode via Amazon's Unboxwritten by Norman Spinrad
directed by Marc Daniels
music by Sol Kaplan

Cast: William Shatner (Captain James T. Kirk), Leonard Nimoy (Mr. Spock), DeForest Kelley (Dr. Leonard McCoy), James Doohan (Mr. Scott), George Takei (Lt. Sulu), Nichelle Nichols (Lt. Uhura), William Windom (Commodore Decker), Elizabeth Rogers (Lt. Palmer), John Winston (Lt. Kyle), Richard Compton (Washburn), John Copage (Elliott), Tim Burns (Russ), Jerry Catron (Montgomery)

LogBook entry by Earl Green

Catspaw

Star Trek ClassicStardate 3018.2: When a crewman from a landing party investigating the latest planet visited by the Enterprise returns under some form of exterior control and then dies, Kirk decides to beam down and see for himself what caused the death. What Kirk, Spock and McCoy find on the surface is a house of horrors right out of ancient Earth mythology, right down to three hideous witches delivering a prophecy of doom for the crew. Two aliens are found to be at the heart of the evil activities, and they have no intention of letting Kirk or the Enterprise leave their world…

Order this episode on DVDDownload this episode via Amazon's Unboxwritten by Robert Bloch
directed by Joseph Pevney
music by Gerald Fried

Star TrekCast: William Shatner (Captain James T. Kirk), Leonard Nimoy (Mr. Spock), DeForest Kelley (Dr. Leonard McCoy), James Doohan (Mr. Scott), George Takei (Lt. Sulu), Nichelle Nichols (Lt. Uhura), Antoinette Bower (Sylvia), Theo Marcuse (Korob), Michael Barrier (DeSalle), John Winston (Transporter Chief Kyle), Rhodie Cogan (First Witch), Gail Bonney (Second Witch), MaryEsther Denver (Third Witch), Jimmy Jones (Crewman Jackson)

LogBook entry by Earl Green

I, Mudd

Star Trek ClassicStardate 4513.3: The Enterprise is taken over by Crewman Norman, who turns out to be an android in disguise. He sets the ship on a course back to his home world, a planet populated entirely by androids – and one Harry Mudd, trapped there after a crash-landing. The androids plan to move out beyond their own planet to populate the galaxy with more of their logical, efficient kind, and the Enterprise is their chosen means of transport. Kirk, although understandably suspicious of Harry, must now cooperate with the con-man if the android invasion is to be stopped. And the greatest weapon at the disposal of Kirk, his crew, and Harry is total illogic.

Order this episode on DVDDownload this episode via Amazon's Unboxwritten by Stephen Kandel
directed by Marc Daniels
music by Samuel Matlovsky

Cast: William Shatner (Captain James T. Kirk), Leonard Nimoy (Mr. Spock), DeForest Kelley (Dr. Leonard McCoy), James Doohan (Mr. Scott), George Takei (Lt. Sulu), Nichelle Nichols (Lt. Uhura), Roger C. Carmel (Harry Mudd), Richard Tatro (Norman), Alice Andrece (Alice #1 through #250), Rhae Andrece (Alice #251 through #500), Kay Elliot (Stella Mudd), Mike Howden (Lt. Rowe), Michael Zaslow (Jordan)

LogBook entry by Earl Green

Metamorphosis

Star Trek ClassicStardate 3219.4: Taking Federation Commissioner Hedford back to the Enterprise’s sick bay so McCoy can treat her for a potentially dangerous but curable ailment, the shuttlecraft containing Kirk, Spock, McCoy and Hedford is diverted by a strange energy field to a barren planet, inhabited only by Cochrane, who invented the basis for current warp engine technology decades ago and should be dead by now. Cochrane reveals, however, that an energy creature called the Companion has halted his aging process. The Companion is also concerned about Cochrane’s psychological well-being, and Kirk and the others have been brought to keep Cochrane company – possibly for the rest of their lives.

Order this episode on DVDDownload this episode via Amazon's Unboxwritten by Gene L. Coon
directed by Ralph Serensky
music by George Duning

Cast: William Shatner (Captain James T. Kirk), Leonard Nimoy (Mr. Spock), DeForest Kelley (Dr. Leonard McCoy), James Doohan (Mr. Scott), George Takei (Lt. Sulu), Nichelle Nichols (Lt. Uhura), Glenn Corbett (Zefram Cochrane), Elinor Donahue (Nancy Hedford)

Notes: Zefram Cochrane’s origins are explored further in Star Trek: First Contact, where it is discovered that he also encountered the crew of a later starship Enterprise. Somewhat inexplicably, though perhaps it can be attributed to the Companion’s regenerative effects, that version of Cochrane is played by James Cromwell, who reprises the role in the premiere episode of the Star Trek prequel, Enterprise.

LogBook entry by Earl Green

Journey To Babel

Star Trek ClassicStardate 3842.3: Delegates from several worlds are welcomed aboard for a trip to Babel where a Federation summit will take place, among them Vulcan Ambassador Sarek – Spock’s father, from whom he has been alienated since childhood. Spock’s human mother, Amanda, can’t stop trying to bridge the gap between her husband and son, while Spock and Sarek can’t seem to do anything but continue their rivalry. When a hidden assassin begins to kill some of the delegates, Spock – out of logic, of course – points Sarek out as a potential suspect. But Sarek suffers a heart attack just as an alien ship begins to attack the Enterprise. Kirk is stabbed by the assassin, and Spock must choose between offering some of his blood to save Sarek’s life and assuming command of the Enterprise in the emergency.

Order this episode on DVDDownload this episode via Amazon's Unboxwritten by D.C. Fontana
directed by Joseph Pevney
music by Gerald Fried

Star TrekCast: William Shatner (Captain James T. Kirk), Leonard Nimoy (Mr. Spock), DeForest Kelley (Dr. Leonard McCoy), James Doohan (Mr. Scott), George Takei (Lt. Sulu), Nichelle Nichols (Lt. Uhura), Jane Wyatt (Amanda), Mark Lenard (Sarek), William O’Connell (Thelev), Majel Barrett (Nurse Chapel), John Wheeler (Gav), James K. Mitchell (Josephs), Reggie Nadler (Shras)

Notes: Though Sarek doesn’t appear in any more episodes of Classic Trek (unless one wishes to count Mark Lenard voicing the character in the animated episode Yesteryear), he appears in nearly every Kirk-era Star Trek movie after Star Trek II and makes two guest appearances in Star Trek: The Next Generation (Sarek and Unification Part I). Jane Wyatt reprises the role of Amanda in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home; though Amanda appears in Yesteryear as well, she was voiced by Majel Barrett for that appearance.

LogBook entry by Earl Green

Friday’s Child

Star Trek ClassicStardate 3497.2: The Enterprise rushes to an underdeveloped planet in an attempt to stop Klingon intervention in the somewhat primitive society. The Klingon Krag is trying to convince the planet’s people that an alliance with the Klingon Empire would be beneficial, and when Kirk breaks cultural taboos – not to mention the prime directive – by interfering with a “routine” killing and saving a pregnant woman, it becomes all too easy for Krag to point out that the landing party from the Enterprise have only come to usurp the planet’s ways of life.

Order this episode on DVDDownload this episode via Amazon's Unboxwritten by D.C. Fontana
directed by Joseph Pevney
music by Gerald Fried

Cast: William Shatner (Captain James T. Kirk), Leonard Nimoy (Mr. Spock), DeForest Kelley (Dr. Leonard McCoy), James Doohan (Mr. Scott), George Takei (Lt. Sulu), Nichelle Nichols (Lt. Uhura), Julie Newmar (Eleen), Tige Andrews (Krag), Michael Dante (Maab), Cal Bolder (Keel), Ben Gage (Akaar), Kirk Raymone (Duur), Robert Bralver (Grant)

LogBook entry by Earl Green

The Deadly Years

Star Trek ClassicStardate 3478.2: Conducting a survey of a planet, a landing party from the Enterprise is contaminated with a form of radiation sickness that accelerates aging. With the ship’s entire command crew rapidly aging and slowly losing their ability to perform their routine duties, Commodore Stocker, who is aboard for a trip to his next starbase command, decides he must question their competency and take the captain’s chair as Kirk, Spock and the others face an impending death of old age.

Order this episode on DVDDownload this episode via Amazon's Unboxwritten by David P. Harmon
directed by Joseph Pevney
music by Fred Steiner and Sol Kaplan

Cast: William Shatner (Captain James T. Kirk), Leonard Nimoy (Mr. Spock), DeForest Kelley (Dr. Leonard McCoy), James Doohan (Mr. Scott), George Takei (Lt. Sulu), Nichelle Nichols (Lt. Uhura), Charles Drake (Commodore Stocker), Sarah Marshall (Janet Wallace), Majel Barrett (Christine Chapel), Felix Locher (Mr. Johnson), Carolyn Nelson (Yeoman Atkins), Laura Wood (Mrs. Johnson), Beverly Washburn (Arlene Galway)

LogBook entry by Earl Green

Obsession

Star Trek ClassicStardate 3619.2: While a landing party is conducting a routine survey of a planet, two crewman are killed and one badly injured by a cloudlike being Kirk suddenly believes he has encountered before. It turns out that the creature attacked a ship that Kirk had been stationed on years before and killed most of the crew, and Kirk feels that he should have been able to do more to save his former crewmates. He transfers that guilt to the surviving landing party member, who not only is considered responsible by Kirk, but is also the son of Kirk’s former captain on that previous assignment. Kirk orders the Enterprise to follow the creature through space, determined to kill it – at any cost – before it can take more lives.

Order this episode on DVDDownload this episode via Amazon's Unboxwritten by Art Wallace
directed by Ralph Serensky
music by Sol Kaplan

Cast: William Shatner (Captain James T. Kirk), Leonard Nimoy (Mr. Spock), DeForest Kelley (Dr. Leonard McCoy), James Doohan (Mr. Scott), George Takei (Lt. Sulu), Nichelle Nichols (Lt. Uhura), Stephen Brooks (Ensign Garrovick), Jerry Ayres (Rizzo), Majel Barrett (Nurse Chapel)

LogBook entry by Earl Green

A Wolf In The Fold

Star Trek ClassicStardate 3614.9: After suffering a head injury on the Enterprise, Scotty is talking into shore leave with Kirk and McCoy. On the planet they are visiting, however, a series of grisly murders of local women begins, and all the evidence seems to point to Scotty. Kirk must contend with the overwhelming evidence against Scotty as well as the overzealous local constable, who is ready to have Scotty punished as soon as possible.

Order this episode on DVDDownload this episode via Amazon's Unboxwritten by Robert Bloch
directed by Joseph Pevney
music by Gerald Fried

Cast: William Shatner (Captain James T. Kirk), Leonard Nimoy (Mr. Spock), DeForest Kelley (Dr. Leonard McCoy), James Doohan (Mr. Scott), George Takei (Lt. Sulu), Nichelle Nichols (Lt. Uhura), John Fielder (Hengist), Charles Macauley (Jaris), Pilar Stewart (Sybo), Charles Dierkop (Morla), Joseph Bernard (Tark), Tania Lemani (Kara), John Winston (Transporter Chief Kyle), Virginia Aldridge (Karen Tracy), Judy MocConnell (Yeoman Tankris), Judi Sherven (Nurse)

LogBook entry by Earl Green

The Trouble With Tribbles

Star Trek ClassicStardate 4523.3: The Enterprise is summoned to space station K-7 for security duty when the station’s security forces are considered inadequate to guard a shipment of valuable grain by the standards of Federation agriculture administrator Baris. A shipload of Klingons stops off at the station as well, which has all parties concerned even more about the grain consignment. Kirk orders stepped-up security, but that only results in some of the crew – including Scotty and Chekov – instigating a massive bar brawl with the Klingons. All the while, the seemingly harmless huckster Cyrano Jones is trying to peddle furry tribbles off to anyone with a few credits, and Uhura buys one and takes it back to the Enterprise, not knowing that tribbles do only two things: eat and breed.

Order this episode on DVDDownload this episode via Amazon's Unboxwritten by David Gerrold
directed by Joseph Pevney
music by Jerry Fielding

Cast: William Shatner (Captain James T. Kirk), Leonard Nimoy (Mr. Spock), DeForest Kelley (Dr. Leonard McCoy), James Doohan (Mr. Scott), George Takei (Lt. Sulu), Nichelle Nichols (Lt. Uhura), William Schallert (Nilz Baris), William Campbell (Koloth), Stanley Adams (Cyrano Jones), Whit Bissell (Lurry), Michael Pataki (Korax), Ed Reimers (Admiral Fitzpatrick), Charlie Brill (Arne Darvin), Paul Baxley (Ensign Freeman), David Ross (Guard), Guy Raymond (Trader)

Notes: another side of this episode’s events can be seen in an episode of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine celebrating the original series’ 30th anniversary, Trials And Tribble-ations. Tribbles are also spotted in the bar in Star Trek III: The Search For Spock, but according to the animated series, Kirk and his crew encountered them once more in More Tribbles, More Trouble.

LogBook entry by Earl Green

The Gamesters Of Triskelion

Star Trek ClassicStardate 3211.7: A landing party beaming down to the Enterprise’s latest stop is intercepted by a more powerful, long-range transporter beam, which hijacks Kirk, Uhura and Chekov to the planet Triskelion, where they are immediately handed over to various “trainers” to prepare them for their upcoming duties as gladiators to amuse the powerful rulers of the planet. Spock orders the Enterprise to warp to Triskelion to save the landing party but doesn’t realize that the powers-that-be on the planet may want to lure the Enterprise crew there to provide them with even more entertainment.

Order this episode on DVDDownload this episode via Amazon's Unboxwritten by Margaret Armen
directed by Gene Nelson
music not credited

Cast: William Shatner (Captain James T. Kirk), Leonard Nimoy (Mr. Spock), DeForest Kelley (Dr. Leonard McCoy), James Doohan (Mr. Scott), George Takei (Lt. Sulu), Nichelle Nichols (Lt. Uhura), John Ruskin (Galt), Angelique Pettyjohn (Shahna), Steve Sandor (Lars), Jane Ross (Tamoon), Victoria George (Ensign Jana Haines), Dick Crockett (Andorian Thrall), Mickey Norton (Kloog)

LogBook entry by Earl Green

A Piece Of The Action

Star Trek ClassicStardate 4598.0: The Enterprise encounters a planet recently visited by another starship and discovers that a book on the Chicago mobs of the 1920s accidentally left behind by a crew member of the previous ship has become the basis of the planet’s society structure over 200 years of the planet’s time (the starship having had warp drive). The intelligent but imitative inhabitants show a keen interest in replacing telephones with communicators and replacing tommy guns with phasers when Kirk, Spock and McCoy – along with their standard Starfleet landing party equipment – are captured.

Order this episode on DVDDownload this episode via Amazon's Unboxteleplay by David P. Harmon and Gene L. Coon
story by David P. Harmon
music not credited

Cast: William Shatner (Captain James T. Kirk), Leonard Nimoy (Mr. Spock), DeForest Kelley (Dr. Leonard McCoy), James Doohan (Mr. Scott), George Takei (Lt. Sulu), Nichelle Nichols (Lt. Uhura), Anthony Caruso (Bela), Victor Tayback (Krako), Lee Delano (Kalo), John Harmon (Tepo), Sheldon Collins (Tough Kid), Dyanne Thorne (First Girl), Sharyn Hillyer (Second Girl), Buddy Garion (Hood), Steve Marlo (Zabo)

LogBook entry by Earl Green

The Immunity Syndrome

Star Trek ClassicStardate 4307.1: Spock telepathically receives the collective death cries of the entire all-Vulcan crew of the USS Intrepid, which has just been destroyed by an unknown force. The Enterprise intercepts a gigantic organism, which then surrounds the ship, beginning to cause physical and mental illness among the crew. Kirk, Spock and McCoy surmise that this paradoxically huge single-celled organism may be a “disease,” as its course will soon take it through inhabited star systems. The Enterprise may turn out to be the only “antibody” capable of saving millions from the onslaught of the enormous parasite.

Order this episode on DVDDownload this episode via Amazon's Unboxwritten by Robert Sabaroff
directed by Joseph Pevney
music by Sol Kaplan and Fred Steiner

Cast: William Shatner (Captain James T. Kirk), Leonard Nimoy (Mr. Spock), DeForest Kelley (Dr. Leonard McCoy), James Doohan (Mr. Scott), George Takei (Lt. Sulu), Nichelle Nichols (Lt. Uhura), John Winston (Lt. Kyle), Majel Barrett (Christine Chapel)

LogBook entry by Earl Green

A Private Little War

Star Trek ClassicStardate 4211.4: The Enterprise visits a primitive world where the Klingon Empire has armed one faction of people against another in hopes of eliminating the weaker population and allying the stronger warriors with the Klingons. Spock is seriously injured when he, Kirk and McCoy beam down, and is returned to the Enterprise for treatment as Kirk and McCoy try to make contact with the locals. Kirk is injured by an poisonous indigenous animal, but reaches, with McCoy’s help, his old friend Tyree. Tyree’s mystical wife Nona cures Kirk and then pursues him. Kirk and McCoy, in the meantime, may only be able to resolve the unfair advantage between the planet’s two factions by arming Tyree against his people’s Klingon-backed adversaries.

Order this episode on DVDDownload this episode via Amazon's Unboxteleplay by Gene Roddenberry
story by Jud Crucis
directed by Marc Daniels
music by Gerald Fried

Cast: William Shatner (Captain James T. Kirk), Leonard Nimoy (Mr. Spock), DeForest Kelley (Dr. Leonard McCoy), James Doohan (Mr. Scott), George Takei (Lt. Sulu), Nichelle Nichols (Lt. Uhura), Nancy Kovack (Nona), Michael Witney (Tyree), Ned Romero (Krell), Majel Barrett (Nurse Chapel), Booker Bradshaw (Dr. M’Benga), Arthur Bernard (Apella), Janos Prohaska (The Gumato), Paul Baxley (Patrol Leader), Gary Pillard (Yutan)

LogBook entry by Earl Green