"Star Trek" The Galileo Seven (1967)

User Rating:

7.6/10   

Director:

Robert Gist

Writers:

Oliver Crawford (teleplay) and
Shimon Wincelberg (teleplay) ...

TV Series:

"Star Trek" (1966)

Original Air Date:

5 January 1967 (Season 1, Episode 16)

Genre:

Adventure | Sci-Fi

Plot:

The Galileo, under Spock's command, crash-lands on a hostile planet. As the Enterprise races against time to find the shuttlecraft, Spock's strictly logical leadership clashes with the fear and resentment of his crew.

Plot Keywords:

Federation | Space | Starship | Computer | Vulcan

Cast

William Shatner	...	Captain James T. Kirk
Leonard Nimoy	...	Mr. Spock
Don Marshall	...	Boma
DeForest Kelley	...	Dr. McCoy
James Doohan	...	Scott
George Takei	...	Sulu
Nichelle Nichols	...	Uhura
John Crawford	...	Commissioner Ferris
Peter Marko	...	Gaetano
Phyllis Douglas	...	Yeoman Mears
Rees Vaughn	...	Latimer
Grant Woods	...	Kelowitz
Robert 'Big Buck' Maffei	...	Creature (as Buck Maffei)
David L. Ross	...	Transporter Chief (as David Ross)

Runtime:

50 min | Argentina:60 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Argentina:Atp | Canada:PG (video rating)

Filming Locations:

Desilu Studios - 9336 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA

Company:

Desilu Productions

Trivia:

The shuttle craft was built by AMT in exchange for them gaining the rights to make the toy version.

Goofs:

Factual errors: When Scotty is putting electricity on the hull of the shuttle, there is no need to avoid contact for the people in the shuttle with the hull (Faraday cage).

Quotes:

Scott: What a mess.
Spock: Picturesque descriptions will not mend broken circuits, Mr. Scott.

Mixed review

I have mixed feelings about this episode. While its plot is a little absurd and thin, it doesn't defy scientific credibility as much as many episodes of the later series in the franchise do.

Spock's relationship with the crew and his command abilities are challenged and nicely established as he commands a shuttlecraft on what should have been a routine exploratory mission (why bring along the chief engineer and chief medical officer, we will never know). The shuttle crash-lands on a class m planet in a quasar system with all communication and sensor use completely inhibited. Giant prehistoric people in a band-level society inhabit this planet and they are not pleased by the arrival of the Galileo 7. And Kirk has an annoyed bureaucrat who is late for an appointment on board the Enterprise. There is some interesting an surprisingly well-informed anthropological discourse in this episode but unfortunately the most interesting character introduced, Crewman Boma(Don Marshall) - apparently a social scientist- is inconsistently characterized.

The plot is really a vehicle for character development in this case. It's about Spock, Spock's relationship with the crew, Spock's relationship with Kirk, and with McCoy. In some ways, a defining moment for the series. And the entire cast is up to the challenge. For me, this is the main appeal of the episode.