STAR TREK
The Immunity Syndrome

From Wikipedia:

"The Immunity Syndrome" is a second season episode of Star Trek: The Original Series first broadcast January 19, 1968 and repeated June 7, 1968. It is episode #47, production #48, written by Robert Sabaroff and directed by Joseph Pevney.

Overview: The crew of the Enterprise encounters an energy-draining space creature.

More here.

Long ago, back when I was a wild undergrad at the University of Texas, the center of my posse's social activities was at my buddy Shane's place, which he shared with two other good friends. We were all big Star Trek fans, often watching the show on VHS while we intoxicated ourselves in various ways, gabbing through, analyzing whatever episode was on, laughing at the goofy stuff.

One day, Shane had to head back to Houston to take care of some shit. I can't remember what he actually had to deal with, girlfriend issues, family issues maybe, but he wasn't excited about the trip. There was a calendar up on the "art wall" my pals had established in the kitchen, on which they inscribed a hand written blurb of some sort for each passing day, usually pretty funny. After Shane had been gone a day or two, one of us noticed that he had written something new on the calendar: "Tell Doctor McCoy he should have wished me luck," a quote from "The Immunity Syndrome." Knowing the episode, we all laughed. Then we got a little nervous on Shane's behalf. Spock said this as he was headed for certain death.

No, seriously. We got a bit worried. What the fuck was Shane having to deal with back in Houston?

Fortunately for Shane, and us, everything turned out alright in the end. But reflecting on this moment years later, it became very clear to me that, for a time, for our group of friends, Star Trek had become cultural capital, our own mythology, our own heightened narrative. It is very appropriate that Shane chose to quote "The Immunity Syndrome" because it is very likely the most mythic of all Star Trek episodes.

Indeed, I'll even go out on a limb and say that this is one is my absolute favorite, forever burned in my brain alongside Jason and the golden fleece, alongside Moses and the burning bush, Jesus on the cross, Arthur and Excalibur, Davey Crockett at the Alamo, General Patton and his Third Army blazing across Nazi occupied Europe, and on and on.

For starters, "The Immunity Syndrome" is all about the Enterprise and its crew. No guest stars, no personalities interfering with the regular cast dynamic. Pure Trek. Everybody does their thing, and does it much better than usual. Uhura, as usual chained to her communications station, is unusually compelling opening and closing hailing frequencies. Chekov doesn't have many lines, but makes the ones he has count: "Captain, the stars are...gone!!!" Scotty is in hog heaven, dealing with scientific and engineering absurdities on the fly and under intense pressure.

Spock and McCoy raise their ongoing feud to a sublime level, alternately bickering and showing one another love and respect, eventually competing to be chosen for a suicide mission.

And Kirk is just flawless.

In short, "The Immunity Syndrome" showcases the undiluted essence of the Star Trek cast. Their perfect form. The gods of my mythology.

But it isn't simply perfect characterization that makes "The Immunity Syndrome" so great. The story is as good as its characters. Like most good episodes, it begins with a bang. On the way home from a mission which has exhausted the entire Enterprise crew, Spock is suddenly disturbed by the psychic death throes of hundreds of fellow Vulcans light years away. Very quickly, Star Fleet orders the Enterprise to investigate these deaths, despite the Captain's protestations that his crew is too tired to be of any use.

The story rattles along at the breakneck pace that distinguishes episodes like "City on the Edge of Forever" and "The Doomsday Machine," and the Enterprise soon enough discovers what most likely is causing all the trouble, an eleven thousand mile long space amoeba that drains energy from human bodies and warp engines alike. This is, quite literally, epic in scope.

So they're already exhausted, and their unfathomable enemy makes them more exhausted. McCoy responds by hopping everybody up on stimulants. Imagine going to fight God while high on meth. I can't tell you how much I love this episode.

And there is a veritable Easter basket full of small goodies here. So many quotable quotes that it's not worth trying to figure out the best for quoting here. Spock, who usually knows everything, ominously asserts, again and again, that he know nothing about the creature they face. The special effects are far better than usual. Lots of good pain moments. Good briefing room scene. Lieutenant Kyle gets some bridge time. And on and on.

Like I said, this is my favorite. I just can't say enough about it. So I might as well shut up: Go treat yourself.


Antibodies.

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