THE USS ENTERPRISE VS A GIANT ONE CELLED AMOEBA

 Episode Title:  The Immunity Syndrome

Air Date: 1/19/1968

Written by Robert Sabaroff

Directed by Joseph Pevney

Cast: William Shatner as Captain James T. Kirk    Leonard Nimoy as Commander Spock             DeForest Kelley as Dr. Leonard H. McCoy AKA “Bones”              James Doohan  as Lieutenant Commander Montgomery Scott AKA “Scotty”        Nichelle Nichols as Lieutenant Nyota Uhura                 John Winston as Lieutenant Kyle                        Eddie Paskey as Lieutenant  Leslie                 Frank Da Vinci as Lieutenant Brent       Bill Blackburn as Lieutenant Hadley           Majel Barrett as Nurse Christine Chapel      Walter Koenig as Ensign Pavel Chekov                Jeannie Malone as unnamed Yeoman   Bob Johnson as Starbase 6 Commander         

Ships: USS Enterprise NCC-1701, Galileo NCC-1701/7

Planets:  none

My Spoiler filled summary and review: The Enterprise is heading toward Starbase 6 after long mission that has left the crew in a state of exhaustion.  In his captain’s log Kirk notes that the entire crew is looking to get down to the planet that Starbase 6 orbits.  After receiving a garbled message from the Starbase 6 Commander mentioning the USS Intrepid, Mr. Spock begins to uncharacteristically freak out and declare that the entire crew of the Intrepid has died.  Kirk orders Spock down to sickbay to get evaluated. 

Mr. Spock having a space attack!!

While Spock is gone they are able to reestablish contact and the Enterprise is ordered to investigate the Gamma 7A system.  Kirk actually tries to get out of it (which I found odd) pleading for his exhausted crew and asking another ship be sent.  The Starbase 6 Commander notes that they already sent another ship, the Intrepid, and they haven’t heard anything from her sense.  As the Enterprise heads to the Gamma 7A system Ensign Chekov reports that the sensors show no life readings in the system of a billion inhabitants.  It is starting to look as if Mr. Spock’s proclamation was not far off at all.

Meanwhile, Spock is examined by Dr. McCoy in sickbay, where he explains that the Intrepid’s entire crew were Vulcans and the combined shock and terror in the minds of 400 Vulcans dying at once reached out to him. McCoy is amazed because up until now he had been under the impression that Spock had to be in direct contact in order to make a mental connection.  The trade insults about how humans and Vulcans view death and McCoy sent him back to duty.

Spock returns to the bridge just and Lt. Uhura announces she has lost contact with Starbase 6. More importantly the Enterprise comes across something that they can only describe as “a rip in space.”   It is a dark blob of matter that seems to block out the stars.  Like a black hole it is so strong that not even light can escape from it.  Suddenly, half the crew is struck with sickness and/or faints.  Kirk asks Spock if he can explain what this thing is.  Spock says he can’t and he tells Kirk he also cannot speculate what it is either as he has no information on it.   Kirk keeps asking his senior officers for some answers but they all keep coming up with nothing causing Kirk to nearly have a breakdown of his own.  He and Spock try to at least eliminate what this thing is not and Kirk has Chekov launch a sensor probe into the void. The probe transmits a piercing, high-pitched noise before contact with it is lost.

You can always count on McCoy to visit you with the good drugs!

Since this a crew that boldly goes Kirk orders the ship into the zone, and as they enter, the piercing sound returns and all the stars disappear from the main view screen. This causes them to freak out a bit but I don't really understand their surprise.  They knew going into this thing that it blocked the light of stars it seems odd that they are now surprised after going inside that they can't see those very stars.  Dr. McCoy then reports that the crew is getting worse, and Scotty reports a loss of power.  Spock notes whatever this thing is it is draining all forms of energy from both the ship and the crew.  It now appears certain that this is what lead to the death of both the Gamma 7A system and the USS Intrepid.

A rip in space!

              The Enterprise is being pulled further into black space.  The ship and crew continue to lose energy.  McCoy keeps everyone awake with stimulants so they can have a functioning crew.  Kirk orders a full reverse but that appears to make the ship accelerate closer to the center of the mass.  Scotty and the Captain brainstorm that the laws of physics must work differently down here and Kirk orders the ship to accelerate and that seems to slow them down. 

The Enterprise in the dark!

Kirk holds a meeting with his senior officers and he decides they are going to make a break away.  They are going to divert all available power into a massive forward thrust, in the hope of breaking free of the zone.  Spock approves of the plan but notes the Intrepid would have tried the same thing.  Spock does believe that they have one clear advantage and that is the all Vulcan crew could accept they were dying because it was illogical. However the escapee attempt only ends in massive failure.

Yes, we are fighting a giant amoeba!

Despite the disappointment of not escaping they did make an interesting discovery.  The thing at the center of the mass is a gigantic amoeba.   Kirk launches a sensor probe into it, which reveals that the object is indeed made of protoplasm, and is alive. McCoy thinks they should a shuttle craft into it to both gather the data needed to destroy it and learn about this new life form.  McCoy, who is clearly excited about this prospect, volunteers himself for the job.   Spock insists that he is better qualified and this angers McCoy.  Kirk is forced to choose between to friends realizing whoever he picks is likely to die.

After a good deal of soul searching Kirk decides Spock is the one to go.  After some more verbal boxing with Dr. McCoy, Spock pilots a shuttle through the creature's outer membrane and makes his way toward the nucleus.   When he reports back he has number of things to say.  First he wants everyone to know that Dr. McCoy could not have possibly survived what he had to do. (Because you know Vulcans are unemotional and never gloat or anything like that.) The second thing is much more important and my favorite part of the episode.  He reports that the giant amoeba is about to enter mitosis.  What is worse than a giant amoeba that eats enter solar systems?  Two giant amoebas that eat solar systems.  Kirk’s reaction to the idea of two is quite amusing.  Spock suggests a method to destroy it but that part of the message is lost.   It doesn’t matter because Kirk, being a master strategist, just figures it out after joking with McCoy about how they would be the invaders in a universe full of those things.  Then Kirk thinks of antibodies which in turn causes him to think of antimatter that wonderful substance that he used to kill an evil cloud last week.  Kirk has his plan. 

Spock taking the job McCoy wanted!

Kirk takes the Enterprise into the creature's body, and orders Scotty to prepare another antimatter bomb, just like the one they made last week, with a timer set for a seven-minute delay. The bomb is fired into the cell's nucleus and the Enterprise backs out, snagging Spock’s shuttle craft with a tractor beam.  

The Enterprise stands victorious again.

Additional thoughts: There is this meme that went around the internet back when Game of Thrones was very popular prior to their infamous end.  In the meme it showed fans of various franchises reactions to the idea of visiting their fantasy worlds.  Each fan reaction is expressed positively to the idea of going to these fictional places, except the Game of Thrones fans.  They know their world is messed up and they want no part of it.  I have to think that maybe we Star Trek fans should take the same attitude to our franchise.      

On second thought I don't want to visit the 23rd century!

Why is that you ask?  Isn’t Star Trek the peace-loving pacifistic future where diversity is loved and not scorned? It is but it is also a place, where in the space of a single year the Doomsday Machine showed up and wiped out an entire solar system, the Nomad probe exterminated life on a number of planets, and now a giant amoeba is also destroying an entire solar system.  The causalities run into the hundreds of billions.  This would be like if the space of the same year France, Brazil, and India were complete destroyed and their entire populations killed.  You think 2020 was bad? Be glad you don’t live in the late 2260s.  Later franchises that take place in the 24^th century or 32^nd century should view the 23^rd with horror.         

There is one particularly scary part about this threat.  Like the Doomsday Machine they don’t know where it came from, but what they speculate is it came from a larger celled universe.  They thought the Doomsday Machine originated in a nearby galaxy and they didn’t expect ever to see another one.   If this big cell just dropped in their universe from a larger celled universe this would mean that the bigger universe's cells can accidently come down on us at any time.  I would lose sleep over this if I was living in the universe of Star Trek.   

On a lighter note, I think this is one of the best Spock/McCoy spats I have seen in a while.  McCoy makes big plans to save the ship in which he might killed while doing it, only to have Spock snag it away with the Captain’s permission.  Spock always seems to come out ahead their spats.  

  

Lt. Leslie is back, it has only been a week since the loss of his dear twin brother.  You would think they would assign him some time off.  Well work can be therapeutic. Also it looks like Lt. Kyle has left transporter room and is now a fully trained helmsman!  Congrats to Lt. Kyle. 

FINAL  GRADE 5 of 5