tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12380553.post4833858588707840362..comments2024-03-27T10:27:59.266-04:00Comments on John Kenneth Muir's Reflections on Cult Movies and Classic TV: Star Trek 50th Anniversary Blogging: "For the World is Hollow and I Have Touched the Sky" (November 8, 1968)John Kenneth Muirhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15629979615332893780noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12380553.post-16395717737404506502018-09-15T00:15:20.764-04:002018-09-15T00:15:20.764-04:00I was surprised at how bad Kelley was at the roman...I was surprised at how bad Kelley was at the romance aspects of this episode. I never bought the idea that he even liked Natira, and when they kissed, he looked like he'd never kissed a woman before in his life. (If SPOCK acted like he had no idea how to romance a woman, that would make sense, but no, Spock always does a great job at the romantic stuff on the few occasions when he's given the opportunity.) Maybe we know why McCoy's wife divorced him....<br /><br />Sure, some of that was the script -- love at first sight is always hard to believe -- but Shatner has made us believe in his romantic entanglements many times, and Nimoy did it as recently as "The Enterprise Incident." Given how good Kelley usually is as McCoy, I was surprised to find that he's awkward as all hell when given a chance to do leading-man stuff. I guess romancing the space babes must be harder than it looks. :-)<br />Coryleahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16961220703672521166noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12380553.post-50651703844102828502017-05-23T18:36:28.169-04:002017-05-23T18:36:28.169-04:00John,
Very accurate summation of this episode. N...John,<br /><br />Very accurate summation of this episode. Not one of the greats, but it does have its moments. Jon Lormer's performance as the old man who speaks the title is particularly memorable.<br /><br />DeForest Kelley used to call this his favorite episode, because, in his words: "For once, I get the girl!"<br /><br />I probably won't be the only person to point this out, but Joanna was the original title of the script that was eventually rejected and re-written to become "The Way to Eden." The premise was that McCoy's daughter would board the Enterprise and be romanced by Kirk, setting up an interesting dynamic between the Captain and Chief Medical Officer.<br /><br />The Gold Key Star Trek comics issue #40 also had a story featuring Joanna. At the time, the writer on these books was clearly well-versed in Star Trek mythology, and made several references to episodes of the show, with appearances from The Guardian of Forever, The Companion, Harry Mudd and Koloth from "The Trouble with Tribbles."<br /><br />SteveAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13101722769411384962noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12380553.post-28974935518874524762017-05-23T18:35:51.660-04:002017-05-23T18:35:51.660-04:00Of course, the contrivances of plot overwhelm what...Of course, the contrivances of plot overwhelm what actually does work in "For the World is Hollow ... " I don't find it so spectacularly bizarre that a man who knows he hasn't long to live might fall in love when he's motivated to set aside his restraints and let his emotions involve him for once.<br /><br />But the plot is too involving to really accommodate the presence of a love story at the same time, and that's what's really wrong here. The story needs to go places it can't go while focusing on the McCoy/Natira love story. The Oracle isn't such a mad idea on a multigenerational ship where the original society's governors knew some kind of ongoing structure would have to replace them for untold generations. The story is really about what happens when a society forgets its links to its origins and its reasons for its doctrines and mores over time, so that it enforces rigidity and conformity without knowing why. But that story germ gets lost here in a sea of competing ideas and story arcs, unfortunately.<br /><br />There is growth in Natira's character, though, and I think that bodes well for the future of the Yonadans. She is dismayed at the pain McCoy experiences over the Oracle's punishment of Kirk and Spock, and she is overwhelmed but capable of absorbing the implications of the Oracle being revealed to be a computer whose programming flaws must be righted. She is an interesting character. What's wrong here is that the story doesn't allow McCoy himself to reveal much about himself. We learn more about Natira, who is changed by this experience, than we do about McCoy, who seems unchanged once he's cured. THAT is what goes wrong in the story. Both Kirk and Spock have emerged changed by the love stories in which they've been involved, but this episode doesn't give enough story time to present us a McCoy whose experiences have changed him.Sherinoreply@blogger.com