Arena

[Durandal_1707]

http://sfdebris.com/videos/startrek/s019.php

-4:39 from the end: What is Captain Pike doing there?

[DNJimerson]

Sean Kinney, the actor, played DePaul in two episodes, after having played the injured Pike in The Menagerie.

[ChiggyvonRichthofen]

I don't quite agree with Chuck on this one, or at least I can't get totally on board with his reasoning. Jumping on youtube and making fun of the cheesy fight scene is fine, but it isn't a legitimate critique of the entire episode. I feel like people who are willing to look at a work analytically within its historical context will recognize its merits, and the essence of the story is as good as its ever been. This type of story has become a major cliche in Trek, but Arena deserves recognition for being one of the earliest and best instances of it. The twist has been spoiled because the concepts here have been copied multiple times, but if anything that's to the episode's credit rather than its detriment.

With that said, I can see detracting a point or two for the Gorn fight, but that couldn't have looked too good in the 60s either. I take it in the spirit of campy fun, but it is the low point in a generally high quality episode.

One other thing I appreciate about this episode is that it's one of the few instances where the weaponry in Trek actually feels somewhat advanced. There's a nice sense of distance in both the Gorn ambush and the ship to ship combat scenes, and of course some powerful weaponry that never seems to show up in the other series.

Finally, like many advanced alien species, the Metrons are kind of jerks, which is another thing that could potentially be counted against it.

[Madner Kami]

One other thing I appreciate about this episode is that it's one of the few instances where the weaponry in Trek actually feels somewhat advanced. There's a nice sense of distance in both the Gorn ambush and the ship to ship combat scenes, and of course some powerful weaponry that never seems to show up in the other series.

I actually had a hearty laugh because of that detail. This outpost is supposedly not a military one, yet it is run by Starfleet, has bunker-like structures, an armory and in that armory you not only just find weaponry, but an actual mortar that can apparently blow a hill up. Take note of how the r̶e̶d̶s̶h̶i̶r̶t̶ blueshirt points out, that the hill is 1200 yards away, about a kilometer or 0.68 milles and considers that "a little bit close". A regular grenade fired from a mortar similar to the one used in the episode in reality, lobs a grenade that has a lethal radius of about 50m. As someone on a video on YouTube once poignantly remarked, "so this can only be considered a small tactical nuke". Not military my ass. The Gorn had very good reason to shoot first and ask questions later.

[Shuboy07]

I just have to say that Star Trek commercial with Shatner and the Gorn was so much better than the game it was advertising.

[Rocketboy1313]

How in the world was THIS not remade with the Chris Pine crew?
3/3 new movies have the main bad guy wanting REVENGE for ever more tenuous reasons.

Couldn't make one of them a giant lizard?
Couldn't make one of those battles be a contrived boxing match sponsored by condescending space gods?

The one failing of this episode is the weak effects and fighting. And that is a big part of it. Fixing those short comings is one of the best reasons to do a remake.

[ChiggyvonRichthofen]

One other thing I appreciate about this episode is that it's one of the few instances where the weaponry in Trek actually feels somewhat advanced. There's a nice sense of distance in both the Gorn ambush and the ship to ship combat scenes, and of course some powerful weaponry that never seems to show up in the other series.

I actually had a hearty laugh because of that detail. This outpost is supposedly not a military one, yet it is run by Starfleet, has bunker-like structures, an armory and in that armory you not only just find weaponry, but an actual mortar that can apparently blow a hill up. Take note of how the r̶e̶d̶s̶h̶i̶r̶t̶ blueshirt points out, that the hill is 1200 yards away, about a kilometer or 0.68 milles and considers that "a little bit close". A regular grenade fired from a mortar similar to the one used in the episode in reality, lobs a grenade that has a lethal radius of about 50m. As someone on a video on YouTube once poignantly remarked, "so this can only be considered a small tactical nuke". Not military my ass. The Gorn had very good reason to shoot first and ask questions later.

And yet during the Dominion War in the second half of the 24th century they run around like they're fighting in World War II (if that). This and other early TOS episodes also seem to have the only Trek writers who realize that ships at this technological level are not going to be dogfighting within a few hundred/thousand meters of each other.

Which is sort of what I was getting at- Arena deserves credit because its well-conceived. Even the infamous Gorn fight, the idea of speed vs. power isn't bad. I guess it depends just how inclined you are to overlook the sfx and choreography. Of all the TOS episodes that are actually well-written, this is probably the worst offender in terms of letting things down a bit with corniness (the very best, like Balance of Terror or The Doomsday Machine, hold up much better).

As for how justified the Gorn are, I'm with Chuck on that one. Kirk coming to understand the Gorn somewhat and avoid some possible trouble down the road by sparing him is commendable, but the Gorn simply obliterating the colony and trying to lure the Enterprise there as well is just totally out of line by Earth standards. They obviously had the ability to communicate since they sent the false message, but their first instinct was to kill.

[Karha of Honor]

http://sfdebris.com/videos/startrek/s019.php

-4:39 from the end: What is Captain Pike doing there?

Fuck me i was so excited. I was expedcting this...

https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/44796-arena

[Darth Wedgius]

http://sfdebris.com/videos/startrek/s019.php

-4:39 from the end: What is Captain Pike doing there?

Between space anomalies, alternate universes, clones, android duplicates, shape-shifters, transporter accidents, and time travel, you have plenty of alternatives to pick from.

[PerrySimm]

Was there some huge cultural moment like Dalekmania around this episode at the time it aired? I'm not really seeing a "9", but it is a fairly strong episode. I don't have any problem making allowances for the technicals of having to shoot a fight with close-ups and a bad lizard suit. It was the surface mineral deposits that broke my immersion.

I actually care more about this episode because of the shout-outs from DS9. The whole time Kirk is on the colony planet, I'm looking past them, checking the fields for where the baseball league might have put the grandstands.