Is there a term for this kind of Star Trek Episode?

[MithrandirOlorin]

Once I watched a handful of episodes of the Original Star Trek with my Dad, and we observed how most of this set of episodes happened to follow a similar pattern where Kirk is unable to get a quick response from Starfleet so has to make a decision to act in a way that could prove controversial, but then after things are resolved they finally get a response from Starfleet giving him permission to do what he already did.

[Nealithi]

Looking up Balance of Terror on TV Tropes I got both Irony and Subspace Ansible. Here is the link to the second entry.

https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/ ... aceAnsible

[hammerofglass]

I think it's called "we didn't want to spend the next three episodes doing hearings".

[TGLS]

I think it's called "we didn't want to spend the next three episodes doing hearings".

I think that also goes by "the magic reset button" in some circles.

[Frustration]

I suspect drumming up drama by implying a serious danger, than revealing that it was never more than a paper tiger, is so common that there isn't a need for a term for it.

Perhaps just 'Paper Tiger', in which a danger exists only notionally? It's not as specific as what you're describing, where delays in communication make the characters believe there's a threat where there technically isn't, but... it's closer than the alternatives I can think of.

[Madner Kami]

I suspect drumming up drama by implying a serious danger, than revealing that it was never more than a paper tiger, is so common that there isn't a need for a term for it.

Isn't that exactly what a trope is?

[BridgeConsoleMasher]

I suspect drumming up drama by implying a serious danger, than revealing that it was never more than a paper tiger, is so common that there isn't a need for a term for it.

Isn't that exactly what a trope is?

I mainly took a trope for something that happens in the story as a part of the narrative that doesn’t follow with what practically happens in real life.