"Star Trek" And the Children Shall Lead (1968)

User Rating:

5.4/10   

Director:

Marvin J. Chomsky

Writers:

Edward J. Lakso (written by)
Gene Roddenberry (creator)

TV Series:

"Star Trek" (1966)

Original Air Date:

11 October 1968 (Season 3, Episode 4)

Genre:

Adventure | Sci-Fi

Plot:

The Enterprise reaches a Federation colony where the adults have all killed each other but the children play without care.

Plot Keywords:

Federation | Space | Starship | Computer | Vulcan

Cast

William Shatner	...	Captain James T. Kirk
Leonard Nimoy	...	Mr. Spock
DeForest Kelley	...	Dr. McCoy
Craig Hundley	...	Tommy Starnes
James Wellman	...	Professor Starnes
Melvin Belli	...	Gorgan
James Doohan	...	Scott
Majel Barrett	...	Nurse Chapel
Nichelle Nichols	...	Uhura
George Takei	...	Sulu
Walter Koenig	...	Chekov
Pamelyn Ferdin	...	Mary
Melvin Caesar Belli	...	Steve (as Caesar Belli)
Mark Robert Brown	...	Don
Brian Tochi	...	Ray

Runtime:

60 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Argentina:Atp

Filming Locations:

Paramount Studios - 5555 Melrose Avenue, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Paramount Television

Trivia:

The title is based on a passage from Isaiah 11:6: "The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them."

Goofs:

Continuity: The stardates the Enterprise and Professor Starn's scientific team used apparently do not match up. The opening stardate of 5049.5 would have made more sense than the 5029.5 quoted on the captain’s log.

Quotes:

Dr. McCoy: They're crying Jim. I don't know how it happened, but it's good to see.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Zodiac (2007/I)

Contrary to What Many Think, One of the Better Third Season Shows

I've read a number of reviews slamming this episode, but in actuality, it's one of the best thought-out and acted episodes of the third season.

The Enterprise visits a scientific colony and finds all of the adults dead, and their children surprisingly unaffected. After taking the children aboard the ship, they find that the adults realized that a malicious presence was dominating them through their children and that they killed themselves to prevent the presence from taking control. The children then begin to try and take control of the Enterprise with the help of the presence (called Gorgon, and amusingly played by legendary attorney Melvin Belli).

While this episode might have been an utter disaster, it is written (like "Miri") with a decent understanding of how children can resent parents and deal with grief through denial. More interestingly, it is one of the few episodes where Shatner actually underplays, and it works particularly well in his scenes with the children.

All in all, very nicely done.