Watching Star Trek: TOS for the first time...so many questions

[Bryancd]

In regards to Chekov showing up in season 2, it gets even more confusing with continuity when you fast forward to the movies and Wrath of Khan. Khan tells Chekov that he "never forgets a face", but Khan actually never met Chekov in the episode "Space Seed" as he had not yet been cast for the show.

Walter Koenig is famous for telling fans that he was in the bathroom during that episode to explain his absence.

 

[Riceball]

It takes a little getting used to but I agree. Despite its poor production value it's actually a pretty good show.

I wouldn't say that it had poor production values, while the animation wasn't great it was about par for course for the time, there were a number of other animated shows around that time that had a similar look to them.

 

[Angelus Lupus]

Walter Koenig is famous for telling fans that he was in the bathroom during that episode to explain his absence.

It's the old get-out of "Just because it didn't happen on camera, doesn't mean it didn't happen". Luckily there was never a scene that said Chekov arrived on the ship after Khan was there, so he must have been elsewhere on the ship.

 

[DB537]

In regards to Chekov showing up in season 2, it gets even more confusing with continuity when you fast forward to the movies and Wrath of Khan. Khan tells Chekov that he "never forgets a face", but Khan actually never met Chekov in the episode "Space Seed" as he had not yet been cast for the show.

If you go by Stardate order, Chekov's first appearance is before 'Space Seed' :cool

http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&ved=0CCQQFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.trekbbs.com%2Fshowthread.php%3Ft%3D124510&ei=z38OU63EG5PJkAfl-oDABQ&usg=AFQjCNF7Kpcxp2FlGGRQ7eWWdOfqOxTetg

 

[Michael Bergeron]

I wouldn't say that it had poor production values, while the animation wasn't great it was about par for course for the time, there were a number of other animated shows around that time that had a similar look to them.

Poor production value was par for the course for budget cartoons in the 70's. There are scenes where people are the wrong colour for crying out loud. :lol

I stand by my statement.

Sent from my SGH-I317M using Tapatalk 2

 

[JiminSTLouis]

In regards to Chekov showing up in season 2, it gets even more confusing with continuity when you fast forward to the movies and Wrath of Khan. Khan tells Chekov that he "never forgets a face", but Khan actually never met Chekov in the episode "Space Seed" as he had not yet been cast for the show.

I always justified this (in my own mind) by, just because you didn't see him, doesn't mean he wasn't on the ship. It's a big ship with a large crew. He may have had other duties below decks before becoming a bridge officer. Maybe a botanist.

 

[dbuck]

In 1973 we actually had some NEW STAR TREK and boy oh boy did we welcome that. Pretty decent scripts, too, well known sci fi writers were contributors and even though Chekov wasn't present Walter was a writer for an episode.
Many of the animations were repeated ad nauseum. There were canon issues, equipment changes for the sake of animation, and so on.

It wasn't dumbed down for kids, it was meant to be family entertainment.

It was NEW STAR TREK! I still remember just how much I was looking forward to the show. Even Alan Dean Foster's novelization so were pretty darn good.

 

[SSgt Burton]

I always justified this (in my own mind) by, just because you didn't see him, doesn't mean he wasn't on the ship. It's a big ship with a large crew. He may have had other duties below decks before becoming a bridge officer. Maybe a botanist.

This is what I subscribe to as well. Chekov was not a part of "Bridge crew" until season two.

Real reason the Chekov character was created (from the "suits" side) was to have an actor that would hopefully attract a young female audience who were gaga over Davy Jones from the 60s tv series "The Monkees":

Davy Jones-

"Chekov":

Kevin

 

[Jeyl]

Isn't it odd that even though Chekov wasn't on the show when Khan made his appearance, the Reliant did have a crew member from the Enterprise who was seen in Space Seed? It was Kyle!

 

[Jet Beetle]

If you read "The Eugenics Wars" - their explanation was Khan snuck into Area 51 searching for manuals for the Botany Bay - in a cabinet he finds Chekov's phaser and ID that was taken from him when he was captured in Star Trek 4 The Voyage Home - this is how he knows who Chekov is. lol

 

[Riceball]

If you read "The Eugenics Wars" - their explanation was Khan snuck into Area 51 searching for manuals for the Botany Bay - in a cabinet he finds Chekov's phaser and ID that was taken from him when he was captured in Star Trek 4 The Voyage Home - this is how he knows who Chekov is. lol

But that doesn't really explain how Chekov knew Khan and the details of what happened during "Space Seed", although it does help explain why it took him so long to realized the significance of the name Botany Bay.

 

[Laspector]

The best way to go with the animated show is to just listen to it. The animation is repeated so many times after two episodes you will be sick of the same shots over and over. It's unreal how much they used the same shots again and again and again and again and again and again.

But it had some great stories. I'd just rather have them on audio.

 

[Solo4114]

The best way to go with the animated show is to just listen to it. The animation is repeated so many times after two episodes you will be sick of the same shots over and over. It's unreal how much they used the same shots again and again and again and again and again and again.

But it had some great stories. I'd just rather have them on audio.

That was pretty standard for Filmation at the time. The Flash Gordon series was the same way. Still, I loved it anyway.

 

[dbuck]

The Archie Show was that way as well. Everything Filmation did was repeated ad nauseum.

Actually another irritant popped into my head. Majel Barrett did every female voice other than Uhura, (obviously) and they all sounded the same.

 

[Laspector]

That was pretty standard for Filmation at the time. The Flash Gordon series was the same way. Still, I loved it anyway.

I agree. I was around during those days, all the animation of those shows were constantly repeated. And actually--the animation itself was very well done. The drawings and background paintings were very nice. In those low budget days there was a trade off, either good drawings and less of it, or more drawings that were crappy. Johnny Quest was the same way.

 

[Solo4114]

I agree. I was around during those days, all the animation of those shows were constantly repeated. And actually--the animation itself was very well done. The drawings and background paintings were very nice. In those low budget days there was a trade off, either good drawings and less of it, or more drawings that were crappy. Johnny Quest was the same way.

Yup. Filmation's animation often felt far less stylized and more realistic in the character movements. It was cheap in plenty of other ways, but the character animation, particularly when rapid movement was required, wasn't half bad. That held true right up through the days of He-Man and Blackstar.

 

[Miketastic]

Like any show it took a while to get their footing. They called it the United Space Ship Enterprise for a while, it took a while to figure out what the Federation was.
They also aired the pilot episode several airdates in, adding to the confusion of what Sulu's job is, what uniforms everybody wears.....

Why the heck is that shuttle craft not rescuing those stranded guys......

HAHA Thats right, they also called Star Fleet, " United Space Probe Agency" once or twice. But that could be explained away. Kirk did not want 20th century inhabitant, Captian Christopher, to have too much info about the future. still funny though.

 

[mercerism]

• Is the relationship between Captain Pike and Captain Kirk ever explained? The pilot basically has a different crew (except for Spock), and then Kirk and his team show up, and I didn't catch an explanation of what happened. I've seen the new JJ Trek movies, which shows how Kirk took over for Pike, but I must have missed this in the TV episode...or did I?

No. The relationship is never explained. Spock is the one who has a history with Pike as it is eluded that Pike was his former Captain aboard the Enterprise before Kirk. This was a plot device to reuse the original pilot "The Cage" into the regular series as the episode, "The Menagerie". They just used a stand-in with heavily scarred FX make up who does not utter a single line rather than rehiring Jeffrey Hunter.​

• Why does Uhura's uniform color keep changing? Most episodes she's in red, but I've seen her pop up in green here and there.

This was the earliest Season 1 appearance of Nichelle Nichols and the Lt Uhura character was not yet firmly established.The outfit didn't keep switching. It was only command color for 1 or 2 episodes (with an incorrect Science/Medical insignia if you look closely) in Season 1 but she wore the Communications red permanently for the rest of the series. Just like many TV shows where it takes time to establish characters and some continuity.​

• What's the obsession with pretty women who make the crew lose their minds? I'm not even ten episodes in, and this seems to be recurring theme.

Maybe it's an allusion to the original sin: Eve tempting Adam, or other allegories like the mermaid that takes the sailor to the sea? But look at the beautiful women who made guest appearances on that show dressed in William Ware Theiss's provocative outfits of the time - Barbara Luna, Sherry Jackson, Leslie Parrish...I'd lose my mind too!
​

• Where's Chekov?

Walter Koenig was hired later, as another poster mentioned, to appeal to the young female audience which explains his Beatles haircut. He came while George Takei was taking a break to film "The Green Berets" with John Wayne so they would have another speaking character at the helm. George Takei has said that when he came back to the show he initially felt threatened by Walter Koenig's presence (professional rivalry) but the two became good friends and are still friends to this day.

Before the Chekov character was established it was just a rotating carousel of navigators including Bailey, Reilly, Stiles, unnamed extras,...​

 

[NormanF]

... Reilly...

One, more, time!

The biggest differences you will see are:
1. Kirk is actually a good captain who earned his position and listens to advise.
2. Spock really is calm and logical 98% of the time.
3. Bones is only slightly less edgy on the show.


Sent from my Etch A Sketch.

 

[STpropguy76]

Everytime the Enterprise is drained of its power or evertime they encounter a non-powered, damaged, abandonded or deralect ship and beam over the "Artificial Gravity" is still functional?

That will not be seen until STVl The Undiscovered Country by the Klingons aboard Kronos 1.

I understand why, could you imagine shatner & nimoy with ropes/wires and pullies and stage hands pulling...I mean it was the 60's-70's no CGI Buget.