Arena : TOS Episode 18 Production 19 Original Air Date 1/19/1967 Stardate 3045.6

Arena - Star Trek TV Episode [ Synopsis | Editorial Reviews ]
Production # 19 Episode # 18
Air Date: 1/19/1967
Stardate: 3045.6

The U.S.S. Enterprise is in pursuit of an unknown alien ship which has destroyed a Starfleet base on Cestus III. In an uncharted area of space, both the alien ship and the Enterprise are caught by an advanced race called Metrons. The Metrons are angry at the two ships for trespassing into their space and believe that physical combat is the answer to finding justice.

They transport Kirk and the alien captain, a lizard-like creature called a Gorn, to an uninhabited asteroid to fight to the death. The Metrons promise that the victor and his ship will be set free, while the loser will be destroyed, along with his ship and crew.

The Gorn informs Kirk that the base on Cestus III was destroyed because it was believed to be a hostile intrusion on Gorn space. The Gorn is seven feet tall and much stronger than a human, with an extremely aggressive nature, but Kirk has the advantage of speed and agility that his opponent lacks. Kirk manages to keep out of the Gorn's way long enough to mix local minerals into gunpowder, which he uses in a primitive cannon to wound the Gorn captain.

When Kirk refuses to kill the Gorn, the Metrons decide that there may be some hope for the human species after all. Both captains and their ships are set free.

Volume 10 of Paramount's DVD series of original Star Trek episodes includes "Arena," based on a script by Trek producer Gene L. Coon, the other indispensable figure (besides Gene Roddenberry) in making Star Trek what it was. After writing what he believed was an original teleplay about a one-on-one battle between Captain Kirk (William Shatner) and the reptilian commander of an enemy vessel, Coon realized he had probably been subconsciously inspired by a similar short story written by Fredric Brown (who was promptly credited and paid). The concept of a human-and-alien duel to the death in primitive terrain, however, was slightly ubiquitous in the 1960s (see "Fun and Games," a masterpiece from the original The Outer Limits TV show), and was revisited in the '80s via the Arnold Schwarzenegger feature, Predator. But under Coon's guidance and direction by Joseph Pevney, "Arena" stands on its own as a particularly strong story of what battle does to one's humanity. Shatner is in great form for this one.

Also in this volume is a minor episode, "The Alternative Factor," in which Kirk encounters two versions of a fellow named Lazarus (Robert Brown), one from our own dimension and the other from an antimatter cosmos. The latter Lazarus intends to create an opening between worlds, potentially causing an intergalactic Armageddon. Though directed by Gerd Oswald, an interesting feature filmmaker from Hollywood, "The Alternative Factor" has to work a little too hard to make its point. Still, it isn't boring, and the theme certainly fits that long-standing Star Trek obsession with dualities. --Tom Keogh