2.17 — “A Piece of the Action”

2.17 — “A Piece of the Action”

Plot: The Enterprise flooshes to Sigma Iotia II after receiving an old radio signal from the USS Horizon, which visited the planet just before being lost at space 100 years ago. This was before Starfleet had either instantaneous interstellar communication or a little something called the Non-Interference Directive, prohibiting contact that would interfere “with the normal evolution of the planet.” It seems a member of the Horizon left behind a copy of a tome called Chicago Mobs of the 1920s, and the Iotian culture is highly imitative. When Kirk, Spock, and McCoy beam down they are waylaid by snappy-dressed gangsters brandishing tommy guns. Soon they are caught between crime bosses in the chaos of an intercity gang war. It’s too late to not screw up the Iotians, but additional interference could do more harm than good. What will Kirk do to remedy the situation?

Thoughts: This is mostly a silly episode (Hollywood gangster patois! Fizzbin!) that hits a number of serious points. The episode also caused me to learn the meaning of the term Runyonesque.

“A Piece of the Action” gives us the most cogent, articulate statement of the yet-to-be-named prime directive we’ve seen so far, combined with a tongue-in-cheek but cogent illustration of why it is important, much better done than the garble-blather we got in “The Apple.” While the episode is played for laughs, McCoy asks a serious question: “So we’re going down to recontaminate them?” Kirk’s in a tough spot. The impulse to try to sort things out is natural, but may be futile. Meanwhile, it’s apparent that playing god with a comparatively primitive society is no joke, full of moral hazard. I found myself wondering how much danger the crew was really in, considering their technological advantage. Kirk is clearly having fun with the situation, not worrying overmuch about the ship.

In another important milestone, this is the first episode in which the ship’s transporter is used for site-to-site transport, without transporting the third party up to the Enterprise first. At this point, you might be thinking, holy $%&^ that thing is overpowered and dangerous! Plus, we have the second time, following “Tomorrow is Yesterday,” that a planetary native is beamed aboard the Enterprise without his or her consent.

For all that, “A Piece of the Action” is really fun, and a kick to watch. It’s the seriousness of the premise makes the humor possible. I do hope we can get back at some point to the serious side of Star Trek, but I have no problem with the tone of this episode. I could listen to Spock saying ‘Sir, you are employing a double negative” all day. Plus, they look great in those suits, don’t they?

Fizzbin is a gift to genre fiction. A version of it turns up in Robert Asprin’s Myth series under the name “Dragon Poker.” Great scene.

4 out of 5 fancy heaters.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Piece_of_the_Action_(Star_Trek:_The_Original_Series)