We’re almost with our Star Trek anniversary celebration (and we’re posting our weekly Wednesday post late for only the second time in six years). So far, we’ve looked at our some of our favorite episodes, a frightening monster or two, and a few highlights for some crew members who weren’t always in the spotlight.
While the crew of the Enterprise may have been boldly going into the depths of space, they certainly managed, on more than a few occasions, to either make their way back to Earth or stumble across some fairly Earth-like worlds. This week’s post remembers those times when Enterprise found out that there’s no place like home.
- Miri
Somewhere out in the vastness of our universe is an exact duplicate of Earth, and the crew of the Enterprise have managed to discover it. They also discover a world ravaged by disease, and the only survivors are 300-year-old children. The children are disinclined to trust the newly arrived “grups.”
- City on the Edge of Forever
A time portal operated by the Guardian of Forever sends Kirk, McCoy, and Spock back to Depression-era New York City. Captain Kirk uses his time wisely to fall in love with the woman who’s providing food, shelter, and money to Spock and himself (because, Kirk). There’s no Hollywood ending here, and it’s arguably the finest episode of the original series.
- Tomorrow is Yesterday
The gravitational effects of a “black star” manifest to slingshot the Enterprise back to 1968, where it is forced to rescue the USAF F-104 pilot who’d been scrambled to track a UFO. Concerns about an altered timeline drive the plot forward.
- A Piece of the Action
The crew of the Enterprise discovers that 1920s era Chicago is alive and well on planet Sigma Iotia II. How did this happen? The disappearance of a ship 100 years earlier may have had something to do with it.
- Assignment: Earth
Once again, a gravitational slingshot returns the Enterprise to Earth circa 1968. While there, the actions of the human-looking, but very powerful, alien Gary 7 confuse Kirk and Spock. Is Gary 7 there to help? Or is he going to destroy Earth? The episode was meant to launch a new TV series Assignment: Earth, and comic books written after the end of The Original Series have linked this episode and “Tomorrow is Yesterday.”
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