In theory, that's a solid episode. Straight from the TOS playbook. And the "color effect" is quite entertaining. In theory, it's quite exciting and suspenseful since time is of the essence. Plus, McCoy's fate is worthwhile to discuss. Of course they don't bother to but it's the old tale of (benevolent) actions, (unwanted) actions and whether to stand or evade trial. And almost as if no episode could live without, one crew member (McCoy) is imprisoned and the others must try to get him free (and figure out whether that amounts to evading from justice). In the end, that's of course not really discussed. All parties involved that McCoy's release was just and had its merits.
However, the episode drags. It's quite boring tbh. Perhaps we have watched too many episodes like this ...
Review by Andrew BloomVIP 9BlockedParent2017-08-01T03:48:08Z
[8.3/10] Another good episode. This one benefitted from having a clear narrative progression from beginning to end. The Dramians arresting McCoy and accusing him of starting a plague that ravaged on of their worlds 19 years ago makes for a nice inciting incident, and gives Kirk good motivation to protect one of his best friends. We get more of the decisive, kind of a dick version of Kirk who was more prominent on TOS which has its charms
That comes into play with this ploy against the Dramian who tries to sneak onto The Enterprise. The adventures on Dramia II are sufficiently interesting, with the last plague survivor who’s willing to exonerate Kirk and the other Dramian’s surprise that Enterprise crewmembers would go so far to save Dramian lives. The plague affecting the crew is another solid plot obstacle, and any time Spock has to take command (because the Captain is ill, captured, crazy, or just chasing a few intergalactic skirts) is a plus in my book.
His daring rescue of McCoy includes some of their great contentious banter, and while their using the surviving Dramian to create a cure for the plague is a little convenient, it’s nicely Trek. On the whole, it’s a tightly-written episode that, while still dealing with some of the halting qualities of its animation, felt more fluid and well-paced than the average TAS installment.