The Deadly Years, TOS 2
Kirk, Spock, McCoy, Scotty and a Female Redshirt catch a space disease that causes rapid aging. Chekov doesn’t (because he was scared at the time of infection — hence the cure, much like for the hiccups, is shouting “boo” at the afflicted.) As the obscenely bad makeup gets worse and worse we see our heroes getting older. Kirk is forgetful, McCoy is grouchy, Scotty is just tired. A visiting Commodore puts Kirk on trial to relieve him of his command (third time by my count.) But even with his youth and intellect, he can’t controll a Starship with his “desk mentality!!!” Luckily the cure comes just in time for Kirk to save the ship from Romulans (but not the Redshirt from disease — even though she was clearly the youngest-looking of the infected.) A fun episode — though, I must admit, a little dark and heavy at times.
Plus, Kirk dusts off the old “Corbomite Manuever” and effectively scares away those pesky, trigger-happy Romulans!
It has always bothered me how some of these adventures are never referenced in the feature films (except, of course, for Khan).
In THE WRATH OF KHAN, for instance, Kirk is depressed about aging and worried about becoming irrelevant to Starfleet. You figure just once he would have said to McCoy, “This reminds me of the time you and I and Spock got that radiation disease that turned us into Grumpy Old Men for a few days. Can’t we just cook up some more of that adrenalin meth that you shot us up with and make me 30 again?”
Anyway, these are great little reviews you’ve done here. I’m on my own Star Trek Project lately, and it’s fun to read these after each episode. So…thanks!
Comment by Mike Tank — December 12, 2011 @ 9:43 am