Spectre of the Gun
- Episode aired Oct 25, 1968
- TV-PG
- 51m
As punishment for ignoring their warning and trespassing on their planet, the Melkot condemn Capt. Kirk and his landing party to the losing side of a surreal recreation of the 1881 historic ... Read allAs punishment for ignoring their warning and trespassing on their planet, the Melkot condemn Capt. Kirk and his landing party to the losing side of a surreal recreation of the 1881 historic gunfight at the OK Corral.As punishment for ignoring their warning and trespassing on their planet, the Melkot condemn Capt. Kirk and his landing party to the losing side of a surreal recreation of the 1881 historic gunfight at the OK Corral.
- Melkotian
- (voice)
- Rider
- (uncredited)
- 1st Cowboy
- (uncredited)
- Lieutenant Hadley
- (uncredited)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThe original script called for filming on an outdoor location but, due to budget constraints, filming took place in the studio. These constraints also prevented the set designers from building a complete Western town and the concept of pieces of a town drawn from Kirk's mind was developed.
- GoofsAs the Earps and Doc Holliday walk four abreast to the O.K. Corral, their order changes several times, from shot to shot, with no visible change of order by the actors. It starts with Doc Holliday moving from far left to left center to far right, all shots, always four abreast, in a straight line across.
- Quotes
Capt. Kirk: In the late nineteenth century in Arizona, two factions fought for control of the town Tombstone. The Earps - Morgan, Virgil and Wyatt - who were the town marshals, along with Doc Holliday.
Spock: And the Clanton gang. On October 26th, they... had it out.
Chekov: Who won?
Capt. Kirk: The Clantons lost, Mr. Chekov.
Chekov: And we... are... the Clantons?
- Alternate versionsSpecial Enhanced version Digitally Remastered with new exterior shots and remade opening theme song
- ConnectionsFeatured in William Shatner's Star Trek Memories (1995)
When I was younger, my favorite moments in this episode involved Kirk's somewhat comical attempts to communicate 'his reality' to some of the residents of this half-baked town: to the bartender, to the cowardly sheriff Behan, and to the main antagonists themselves, the cold-eyed Earps. But, in my later years, these scenes became the weaker aspects to the story: why was Kirk wasting his time running around trying to convince apparitions of who he really was? Why waste time trying to make peace in the face of a predestined, preordained clash of wills? Make no mistake, minutes after their arrival to this fake Tombstone, the 'landing party' has already deduced that they're trapped in some strange illusion; they're not sure of its exact nature yet, but they realize it's some replay of history, a recreation of reality, but unreal in essence - they know the aliens tapped into Kirk's mind. So Kirk's lame efforts are at odds with the nature of this storyline - the thing's a head trip and those scenes stray from the premise, as if Kirk is trying to make meaningful contact with natives of just another planet, as with most episodes.
To me, the strengths of this episode are the moments when the Trek-makers adhere to the eerie play of shadows premise: the Earps and Doc Holliday are the best sample of this; they're consistently portrayed as some ghostly, almost demonic versions of lethal western characters. I wonder what direction the actors received for their portrayal - probably something like 'act as if you're zombies.' Morgan and Wyatt in particular come across like some bizarre wax figures come to life. The stylized presentation of the 'not quite there' town, as if half of it is trapped in another dimension, remains a trippy excursion into Twilight Zone territory, exemplified by that clock hanging in mid-air where a wall should be; the viewer's mind is also drawn to that clock because we're constantly reminded of how it's closing in on 5:00, the time of our heroes' doom. It's a countdown to doom, quite effective. Oh, and, Chekov is shot and killed in this episode; yes, this is Chekov's final episode...just kidding. Check out the film "Tombstone"(93) for another interpretation of this page of American history.
- Bogmeister
- Jan 19, 2007
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