Operation - Annihilate! and AotI

[Garnfellow]

I caught the first part of this TOS episode the other night and was surprised how little I remembered from this first couple of acts. I've probably seen all these episodes a dozen times each but it amazes me how some details have faded. Stray observations:

• Everyone remembers the gimmicky deus ex machina (Vulcans have an extra eyelid!) but this episode is Dark as F.
• Kirk's brother (played by Shatner) and sister-in-law die!
• Spock's research shows a wave (well, line) of space madness moving across entire star systems, destroying each civilization it touches. (Sound familiar?)
• Alien parasites are the source of the madness, taking over the inhabitants of infected worlds and forcing them to do their bidding.
• The parasites are "making us build starships!" to take carry them to new worlds
• The parasites look really stupid but there's some scary body horror here: they insinuate themselves into the nervous system of their hosts. I'm reminded of the cruciforms from Hyperion.

Altogether, an Agent would absolutely be activated if this threat emerged in the Third Imperium.

Imagine an AotI coda to the TOS episode. Spock has been cured through sunshine! We can save the entire colony! Kirk, Spock, and McCoy arrive on the bridge ready to implement their plan. But Agent Sulu informs them he has already glassed the entire planet. Oh, and he's activated the Enterprise's own self-destruct mechanism. Just to be sure. For the empire!

 

[whartung]

But Agent Sulu informs them he has already glassed the entire planet. Oh, and he's activated the Enterprise's own self-destruct mechanism. Just to be sure. For the empire!

I know this is contrived, anecdotal, and without context, but honestly, none of this makes me want to read AotI.

 

[whulorigan]

Actually, the TOS episode has another commonality with AotI:

When Kirk is with Spock and McCoy in the briefing room, he mentions to Bones that it is more than just trying to save Spock and his nephew, that his command responsibilities are clear: He cannot let this spread beyond this colony, even if it means destroying over a million people down there. That's why Kirk says "I am putting you two on the hot-seat with me - I want that third alternative!"

 

[Garnfellow]

Actually, the TOS episode has another commonality with AotI:

Yes! This is another Dark as F aspect of this episode.

 

[ShawnDriscoll]

I caught the first part of this TOS episode the other night and was surprised how little I remembered from this first couple of acts. I've probably seen all these episodes a dozen times each but it amazes me how some details have faded. Stray observations:

• Everyone remembers the gimmicky deus ex machina (Vulcans have an extra eyelid!) but this episode is Dark as F.
• Kirk's brother (played by Shatner) and sister-in-law die!
• Spock's research shows a wave (well, line) of space madness moving across entire star systems, destroying each civilization it touches. (Sound familiar?)
• Alien parasites are the source of the madness, taking over the inhabitants of infected worlds and forcing them to do their bidding.
• The parasites are "making us build starships!" to take carry them to new worlds
• The parasites look really stupid but there's some scary body horror here: they insinuate themselves into the nervous system of their hosts. I'm reminded of the cruciforms from Hyperion.

TOS was a horror show of the week for sure.