star trek royal fizzbin

OBJECTIVE OF FIZZBIN : The objective of Fizzbin is to have the best hand.

Number of players: 2 or more players, materials:  1 standard 52 card deck, type of game :  vying card game, audience:  adults, overview of fizzbin.

Fizzbin is a game originating in Star Trek. Although rules were not specified, the fandom has created rules associated with the game. Fizzbin is a game of luck. Each player is dealt the cards. This will determine their scoring. The player with the best hand wins the game!

The dealer will shuffle the deck of cards and deal out cards face up to each player. This is done in a clockwise direction, beginning with the dealer. Each player should receive six playing cards, except the player to the right of the dealer, who will receive seven cards.

The game is ready to begin!

This game is fast. After all the cards have been dealt, the player with the best hand wins the game. This is a game of luck, and there is little any players can do to change it. If a player receives three Jacks, they are immediately disqualified.

Half Fizzbin- any two matching cards. The higher ranking of the card, the higher ranking of the hand.

Three Quarter Fizzbin- a Half Fizzbin, a King, and a two

Full Fizzbin- two pairs of cards and two unmatched cards

Shralk- the third Jack that a player holds. This leads to disqualification.

Royal Fizzbin- Two pairs of face cards and two unmatched cards

The hands are ranked in the following order, from low to high: Shralk, Half Fizzbin, Three Quarter Fizzbin, Full Fizzbin, and Royal Fizzbin

END OF GAME

The game comes to an end almost as soon as it begins. After the cards have been dealt to each player, they will evaluate their hands. The player with the highest-ranking hand will win the game!

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What is the card game Fizzbin

• The game uses one standard 52 card deck. From the initial rule set it does not appear there is a relative ranking amongst the cards found in that deck.
• The game can be played by a varying number of players, from 2 to 5 or more.
• The dealer deals out the cards one at a time to the players, in a clockwise direction. However, the dealer starts each rotation dealing a card to himself first and then continues in a clockwise rotation around the table. Each player will eventually receive six total cards, normally all face-down, except the player to the dealer's immediate right (or dealer's opponent if two are playing) who will receive seven cards total, instead.
• The cards are usually dealt, one-at-a-time to the players face-up up. However, the second card dealt to each player is dealt face-down on any Tuesday.
• The dealer continues to deal the cards out the players one by one, until each player has six total cards (seven for the player at dealer's right).
• Due to certain gameplay elements, on rare occasions, some players may receive more cards than others, so those players will continue to receive additional cards while other players will not.
• The apparent object of the game is to have the best hand at the end of the game, which can occur in several ways. Once all cards have been dealt, the player with the best hand is the winner, aside from any players who may have received a "shralk" which results in immediate disqualification of that player (who must drop from the hand). Alternatively, if any player is found to have been dealt a "Royal Fizzbin" at any time, the hand immediately ends, with that player set as the winner.
• The last and final card dealt to each player is the Kronk, except for the player to the dealer's right who gets one additional card after each player has received the Kronk.
• Two Jacks dealt to any specific player is a special combination called a "Half-Fizzbin". It is presumed (and probable), that this should include any two of a kind, but this is never specifically mentioned in the brief game description as shown during the episode.
• If a player is dealt a third Jack, this is considered a "shralk" and that player is considered disqualified (and must drop) from the hand, unless the game is being played at night (in the dark) on a Tuesday, in which the player is not required to drop from the hand.
• If a player with a "half-fizzbin" next is dealt a King, that player will receives one additional card dealt to him, as long as it's day time, if however it is night (dark), a card is still dealt to that player, however that card is immediately returned to top of the remaining deck, and thus does not count as part of that player's hand.

• Any player having a "half-fizzbin", attempts to improve his hand by being certain other specifically ranked cards. In the daytime, the player wants to obtain a King and a deuce (two), while at night (when it is dark) he wants to obtain a Queen and four.
• A royal fizzbin is the highest ranked hand and will always win the game for the player receiving it.
• Although in the basic description, a Half-Fizzbin is described as two Jacks, it is probable that any two identically ranked cards would similarly be considered a half-fizzbin.
• A Half-Fizzbin might be any matched pair of cards (i.e. two Jacks).
• Three Quarters Fizzbin might be any Half Fizzbin with the player also receiving a King and a two in the daytime or a Queen and a four in the nighttime.
• A Full Fizzbin might be defined as a hand consisting of two different pairs and two other unmatched cards.
• Based on the definition of a Full Fizzbin, a Royal Fizzbin would consist of two pairs, with both pairs required to consist of Royalty Cards (Aces, Kings, Queens, and Jacks). As specified by the Captain in the episode, the odds of receiving a Royal Fizzbin should be astronomically rare.
• A shralk consists of any three cards of the same rank. This is the lowest rank and can never win a hand of Fizzbin. A player receiving this combination must drop from the hand. If all players but one drop in this way, the last remaining player is the winner.
• Other hands which do not consist of any variety of Fizzbin can be ranked based on the ranking of the cards within the hand (using the traditional rank of a standard deck (shown from highest to lowest); Ace, King, Queen, Jack, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2.
• A Royal Fizzbin beats a Full Fizzbin which beats a Three Quarters Fizzbin which beats a Half-Fizzbin which beats any other hand. Amongst hands of the same type, the ranking of the cards which make up the pairs would determine which is the highest.
• Some players also add additional special combinations to increase the number of comparable hands in the game.
• Some players start with a base set of rules and then, during the course of the game introduce new rules. This might be in the form of a player receiving a certain combination (such as a full or royal fizzbin), or the winner of a certain number of hands having the opportunity to add a new and custom rule to the game.
• Sometimes the game, like the rules in the original episode are not fully known to some or most of the players, and those players must attempt to determine the rules of the game during gameplay.

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Fizzbin was a card game that Captain James T. Kirk invented to distract a group of Iotians who were holding his landing party captive. Kirk stated that the game had originated from Beta Antares IV .

Making the game's rules very complex, Kirk managed to distract the guards long enough so that he, Spock and Doctor Leonard McCoy were able to escape. ( TOS episode : " A Piece of the Action ")

Kirk once again played fizzbin, with territorial boss Bonehead Malone . This was stolen from rival hood Sharky, whom in turn stole from Bela Oxmyx . The crimelord sought to overthrow the Oxmyx Syndicate and Lieutenant Governor Jojo Krako , with transtator technology as his power balance. Malone lost his collateral (using a deck of marked cards)-his hand being a " black hole ". Kirk's hand was a " supernova "-winning the communicator left behind from the last visit. Thus, no further contamination from the accidental Prime Directive breach, and erasing the timeline of Iotia being destroyed from inter-dimensional experiments. ( TOS video game : 25th Anniversary )

By the 2370s , fizzbin had become a real game. In 2373 , Quark offered to teach Odo how to play. ( DS9 episode : " The Ascent ")

In 2385 , Ambassador Alexander Rozhenko traveled on the USS Aventine to rendezvous with the IKS Bortas . He had played Fizzbin with the Aventines' first officer , Commander Sam Bowers , and asked Captain Kromm of the Bortas if he played, to which Kromm replied, "Fizzbin? No. A child's game is unworthy of a warrior ." ( PRM novel : Fire with Fire )

Quark and Ro Laren played fizzbin in 2386 . ( DS9 novel : The Long Mirage )

In 2409 , "Attempt to play a game of Fizzbin" is a duty officer assignment in the development category on Starfleet vessels. ( ST video game : Star Trek Online )

External links [ ]

• Fizzbin article at Memory Alpha , the wiki for canon Star Trek .
• 1 Achilles class
• 2 Ferengi Rules of Acquisition
• 3 Odyssey class

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Description

Fizzbin is a parody card game released for multiple systems.

Based upon the Star Trek episode "A Piece of the Action", Fizzbin is a parody card game designed to have unnecessarily complicated rules that vary upon the time of day, and even the day of the week. Consisting of several pages of convoluted rules, the best hand is the Royal Fizzbin, which consists of a king and a two (or a queen and a four at night), and any of two pairs of aces, jacks, or sevens. The next best hand is the Full Fizzbin, the Three-Quarters Fizzbin, and the Half-Fizzbin, which consists of any pair of jacks, sevens, or aces. Any three or four of a kind is known as the Shronk, and means the player automatically loses.

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Contributors to this Entry

Game added by hoeksmas .

Commodore 64 added by Giorgos Papanatsidis .

Game added November 18, 2019. Last modified August 14, 2023.

Fizzbin was a card game said to originate from Beta Antares IV . It was used by Captain Kirk to free himself and his first officer, Spock, from captivity at the hands of a group of Iotians who had mimicked early 20th century Earth-style gangsters.

While Kirk was explaining the extremely convoluted rules of the game to his captors, he used a supposedly very rare hand of fizzbin, the "kronk", as a distraction to knock the captors unconscious. McCoy and Spock then escaped back to the USS Enterprise. (TOS: "A Piece of the Action")

In 2373, Quark offered to teach the game to Odo. (DS9: "The Ascent")

Approximate rules [ edit ]

The rules for fizzbin were intended to be complex, so that Kirk could lull his audience into lowering their defenses long enough to be overwhelmed.

• The game can be played with a standard Earth deck of cards, despite the slightly differing deck on Beta Antares IV .
• Each player gets six cards, except for the player on the dealer's right, who gets seven.
• The second card is turned up, except on Tuesdays.
• Two jacks are a "half-fizzbin".
• If you have a half-fizzbin:
• The top hand is a "royal fizzbin", but the odds of getting one are said to be "astronomical".
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• Appeared on Star Trek: 1968
• Developer: Captain James T. Kirk
• Platform: Card Game

Fizzbin is a poker-like card came that Captain Kirk created on the spot to confuse some mob bosses. Each player gets six cards, except for the player on the dealer’s right, who gets seven. Rules change depending on day and time, with king and two being good during the day, and a queen and four during the night.

While being nonsense, Kirk presumably developed a full game as it’s played during the time of Deep Space Nine. Some fan rules exist online, but as you can expect, the game is very random.

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• Rules discussion on Board Game Geek

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A Piece of the Action (episode)

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Returning to a planet last visited by an Earth ship 100 years earlier, the Enterprise finds a planet that has based its culture on the Chicago gangsters of the 1920s.

• 1.2 Act One
• 1.3 Act Two
• 1.4 Act Three
• 1.5 Act Four
• 2 Log entries
• 3 Memorable quotes
• 4.1 Production timeline
• 4.2 Story and production
• 4.3 Continuity
• 4.4 Performers
• 4.5 Props and settings
• 4.6 Syndication cuts
• 4.7 Remastered information
• 4.8 Video and DVD releases
• 4.9 Apocrypha
• 4.10 Reception
• 5.1 Starring
• 5.2 Also starring
• 5.3 Guest star
• 5.4 Co-starring
• 5.5 Featuring
• 5.6 Uncredited co-stars
• 5.7 References
• 5.8 External links

Summary [ ]

" Put your hands over your head, or you ain't gonna have a head to put your hands over. "

The USS Enterprise arrives at Sigma Iotia II . This remote planet had been visited by the Horizon in 2168 , before the establishment of the non-interference directive . The Horizon was lost shortly after leaving Sigma Iotia II and Starfleet only managed to receive her radio reports nearly a century later, as the Horizon was only equipped with conventional radio.

After planetfall, Uhura informs Captain Kirk that she is in contact with an Iotian named Bela Okmyx who describes himself as " Boss ". Okmyx invites Kirk to come down to the planet's surface saying that a "reception committee" will be waiting for him upon arrival. Since the Horizon 's visit was before the Federation's Prime Directive against non-interference, Kirk, Spock and McCoy are concerned about what effects the Horizon 's crew may have had on the Iotian culture which was just beginning industrialization at the time and have a knack for imitation. The three beam down to find a culture resembling that of Chicago in the 1920s . They are immediately greeted by two men dressed as gangsters who threaten them with Tommy guns .

Act One [ ]

The landing party surrenders its standard phasers and communicators and are asking questions of the gunmen when a drive-by shooting occurs. One of the gunmen is killed; the other refers to the "hit" being committed by someone named Krako . Kirk, Spock, and McCoy are taken to Okmyx's office, where they learn that Okmyx is one of a dozen or so "Bosses" and that he has the largest territory on Iotia. The office contains a book (referred to as "The Book") published in the year 1992 titled Chicago Mobs of the Twenties . Okmyx informs Kirk, Spock, and McCoy that "The Book" was left by the crew of the Horizon , and the landing party correctly deduces that the entire Iotian culture has been formed by "This Book". Okmyx refers to the landing party as "Feds" and tells them he wants the Enterprise to furnish him with " heaters " so he can wipe out all of the other bosses and take total control of the planet. Kirk refuses and Okmyx gives him just eight hours to provide the weapons or die.

Act Two [ ]

Okmyx has the landing party taken to a warehouse under guard. He then takes one of the confiscated communicators and contacts the Enterprise . He threatens to kill the landing party unless the ship provides him with one hundred phasers (which he calls " heaters ") and troops to show him how to use them.

An angry Jojo Krako

In the warehouse the gunmen are playing cards on a makeshift table while the landing party speculates while sitting in the background about the future of the Iotian society. Spock reasons that, although Okmyx's methods may seem deplorable, his ultimate goal is what the Enterprise crew must also work for: Iotia's society must become united or it will break down completely into anarchy. Kirk feels that since a Federation vessel contaminated the culture , it's the Enterprise 's responsibility to set things right from this mess the planet's inhabitants are currently in. He distracts one of the gunmen named Kalo with a nonsensical and nonexistent card game supposedly from Beta Antares IV called " Fizzbin " which he makes up on the spot, enabling the landing party to overpower the gunmen and escape. Kirk grabs one of the mobster's Tommy gun and instructs Spock and McCoy to find the local radio station, contact the ship, and have themselves beamed aboard.

Kirk goes off by himself planning on abducting Okmyx and bringing him back to the Enterprise . He is promptly greeted by a new gunman, named Zabo , and is forced to take a ride. Kirk is taken to the office of Jojo Krako, another boss who wants to be in control of the planet. Kirk again refuses to "come across with the heaters" for Krako and is confined to a small room.

Spock uses AM radio to talk to Uhura

Spock and McCoy find the radio station. Spock incapacitated the station's operator with a Vulcan nerve pinch and they manage to contact Lieutenant Uhura and return to the ship. Shortly after, Okmyx contacts the ship through the communicator he stole and informs Spock that Krako has kidnapped Kirk. He offers to assist in getting Kirk back if Spock and McCoy will return to his office. Spock finds it difficult to trust Okmyx but decides to rather than use blatant force.

Using wire from a radio, Kirk rigs a trip line across the doorway and then yells out for help. He knocks out two gunmen and escapes with a machine gun.

In the transporter room , Spock instructs Scott to set one of the ship's phaser banks to a strong stun setting. He and McCoy then beam down to Okmyx's office where they are again met by armed hoods.

Act Three [ ]

Kirk and Spock fire phasers on the mob

Okmyx again takes them prisoner, but Kirk arrives and turns the tables. Kirk and Spock dress in the clothes of Kalo and one of Okmyx's henchmen, commandeer a car and set out to "put the bag" on Krako. They are assisted by a small boy who demands "a piece of the action" in exchange for creating a diversion. The boy poses as Kirk's son and pretends to be injured, so Kirk and Spock can incapacitate the guards. They break into Krako's headquarters and appear to be in control until Krako's men gain the upper hand.

Kirk cools his heels while in control of the mob

Act Four [ ]

Kirk tells Krako that the Federation is taking over and arranges, via an indirect order to Scotty, to have Krako beamed up to the Enterprise to show him what he's up against. They overpower Krako's men in the process and then head back to Okmyx's office where Kirk has Scott locate and transport the other Bosses including Krako. Tepo is successfully transported, though, before more are located, an argument arises and Tepo casts doubt and supposes there aren't more people than just the three "Feds" he sees.

Soon, on the street below, Krako's men try a hit on Okmyx's territory in an attempt to rescue Krako and a gunfight ensues in the street below. The landing party loses their guns once again, and Kirk has the ship fire its phasers on wide stun in the surrounding area to demonstrate their power. The mobsters are now convinced and agree to Federation control with Okmyx as the top boss and Krako as his lieutenant. They call the new structure a syndicate.

Back aboard ship, Spock has concerns about Kirk's solution of having the Federation take a 40% cut of the planet's annual "action". Kirk explains that the money will go back into the planetary treasury to help the Federation guide the Iotians into a more ethical society. Spock has his doubts as to the logic behind Kirk's plan.

McCoy is concerned because he seems to have left his communicator behind somewhere in Okmyx's office. Kirk and Spock speculate that with that kind of technology, such as the communicator's transtator in the hands of the Iotians and with their gift for imitation, the Iotians may one day want a piece of the Federation's action.

Log entries [ ]

• Ship's log, USS Enterprise (NCC-1701)

Memorable quotes [ ]

" Okay, you three, let's see you petrified. " " Sir, would you mind explaining that statement, please? " " I want to see you turn to stone. Put your hands over your head, or you ain't going to have no head to put your hands over. "

" I got the biggest in the world. You know, there's one thing wrong with having the biggest. There's always some punk trying to cut you out. "

" I’m gonna give you just eight hours to get me the things I want. If I don’t have those tools by then, I’m gonna call up your ship and have them pick you up… in a box! "

" No, I don't think you're stupid, Mister Krako. I just think your behavior is arrested. " " I haven't been arrested in my whole life! "

"Nobody helps nobody but himself." "Sir, you are employing a double negative."

" The most co-operative man in this world is a dead man. And if you don't keep your mouth shut, you're going to be co-operating. "

" Logic and practical information do not seem to apply here. " " You admit that? " " To deny the facts would be illogical, Doctor. "

" Captain, you’re an excellent starship commander. But as a taxi driver, you leave much to be desired. " " It was that bad? "

" You mind your place, mister, or you'll be wearing concrete galoshes. " " You mean cement overshoes? " " Uh… Aye. "

" Are you afraid of cars? " " Not at all, Captain. It's your driving that alarms me. "

" Mother! "

" I would advise yas to keep dialin', Okmyx. "

" Do you really think it’s that serious?!" " Serious?! Serious, Bones? It upsets the whole percentage." " How do you mean?" " Well, in a few years, the Iotians may demand…a piece of OUR action!"

Background information [ ]

Production timeline [ ].

• Series proposal " Star Trek is... ": 11 March 1964 – Mentions story idea "President Capone"
• Story outline "Chicago II" by George Clayton Johnson : April 1966
• Story outline "The Expatriates" by David P. Harmon : 8 August 1967
• First draft teleplay: 16 August 1967
• Second draft teleplay: 5 September 1967
• First draft teleplay "Mission into Chaos" by Gene L. Coon : 28 September 1967
• Revised first draft "A Piece of the Action": early- October 1967 , 25 October 1967
• Final draft teleplay by John Meredyth Lucas : 30 October 1967
• Additional revisions: 31 October 1967 , 2 November 1967 , 7 November 1967
• Day 1 – 2 November 1967 , Thursday – Desilu Stage 10 : Int. Bela's office
• Day 2 – 3 November 1967 , Friday – Desilu Stage 10 : Int. Bela's office , Warehouse
• Day 3 – 6 November 1967 , Monday – Paramount McFadden Street backlot: Ext. Bela's headquarters , City square
• Day 4 – 7 November 1967 , Tuesday – Paramount Boston Street backlot: Ext. Krako's headquarters ; Desilu Stage 11 : Int. Radio broadcasting room
• Day 5 – 8 November 1967 , Wednesday – Desilu Stage 11 : Int. Krako's headquarters , Krako's office
• Day 6 – 9 November 1967 , Thursday – Desilu Stage 9 : Int. Bridge , Turbolift , Transporter room
• Original airdate: 12 January 1968
• Rerun airdate: 30 August 1968
• First UK airdate (on BBC1 ): 7 September 1970
• First UK airdate (on ITV ): 26 December 1982
• Remastered airdate: 28 April 2007

Story and production [ ]

• Gene Roddenberry jotted down the idea for this episode – a one-sentence synopsis titled "President Capone" – on the very first page of his very first Star Trek series proposal in 1964.
• Early in the first season , George Clayton Johnson wrote an outline based on this premise, called "The Syndicate". Roddenberry liked it, and hired Johnson to develop it further. Johnson wrote a treatment entitled "Chicago II". However, as he got occupied with developing and writing " The Man Trap ", this concept was forgotten. During the second season, then-producer Gene L. Coon discovered the treatment, and decided to use it, as he felt that, after the success of " The Trouble with Tribbles ", the series needed more comedy-themed episodes. [1]
• David P. Harmon and Coon's first draft script, entitled "Mission into Chaos" featured the Romulans trying to exploit the borderline planet Dana Iotia II, which the Federation wants to industrialize. Much to the crew's surprise, the planet is ruled by gangster bosses, based on the book Chicago Mobs of the Twenties . Kirk has to negotiate with Bela Okmyx and the other crime bosses, outsmarting the two Romulan agents, Rorek and Ramo, who try to lure Bela with sending him weapons and troops. At the end, the Iotians agreed to make a treaty, and send an ambassador to the Federation. But since every boss had a vote, they all "naturally" voted for themselves, and hence, they are all beamed aboard the Enterprise to be escorted to the diplomatic talks. [2]
• No stardate is actually logged in the episode. A stardate of 4598.0 appeared in Bjo Trimble 's Star Trek Concordance , apparently using an earlier script version, and the fotonovel provides a closing stardate 4598.7.
• The scene when Kirk puts his feet up on Krako's table and declares that now the Federation is "taking over the whole ball of wax" is reminiscent of a similar scene in Mervyn LeRoy 's classic gangster film, Little Caesar .
• This is the only episode of Star Trek: The Original Series to end in a freeze-frame.

Continuity [ ]

USS Horizon model

• The Star Trek Encyclopedia  (2nd ed., p. 195) refers to the Horizon as the Daedalus -class USS Horizon , which was later seen as a model in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine .
• This episode marks the only time in the entire Star Trek franchise that Kirk calls McCoy by his full nickname: "Sawbones."
• This is also the only episode in which the ship's phasers are set to stun . In " The Ultimate Computer ", Kirk has them set at 1/100th power.

Mayweather's hardbound copy of Chicago Gangs

• In a homage to this episode, a hard-bound copy of a book beginning with the title Chicago Gangs can be briefly glimpsed on a bookshelf in Travis Mayweather 's quarters on board the ECS Horizon in the Star Trek: Enterprise episode " Horizon ".
• This is the first episode in which a site-to-site transport is performed – although due to the events of Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home , it is not the first time from a historical perspective.
• According to the production report for the Star Trek: Enterprise episode " The Communicator ", that episode explored a premise hinted at in this episode when Dr. McCoy confessed to leaving behind his communicator on Sigma Iotia II. "The Communicator" picked up on this idea, with a far more serious tone, after Lt. Reed loses his communicator on a pre-warp planet, but he and Archer go back to retrieve it, but things do not go well. [3] (X)
• Before it was decided they would focus on the events of " The Trouble with Tribbles ", the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine writing staff toyed with the idea of the Deep Space Nine crew visiting Sigma Iotia II and finding they had all imitated the Enterprise crew and wore their uniforms . The idea even was used in The Worlds of the Federation where the Iotians were shown to have recreated much of Original Series era Federation technology of using only their understanding of the transtator. The story was to be both a comedy and a social commentary on the Trekkie phenomenon; however, it was agreed that revisiting the famous "The Trouble with Tribbles" would be more memorable. The original idea was followed up in the final issue of the Star Trek Unlimited comic book series, " A Piece of Reaction ", instead.
• Apparently Kirk and Spock failed to learn the dangers of stepping into the path of motor cars from their experience in " The City on the Edge of Forever " as they have a couple of near misses on the roads in this episode. Indeed, although the Iotian city does not look too different from 1930s New York, Kirk, McCoy and Spock act as though they've never encountered such a place outside of history books; while McCoy's time outside in New York while sane was limited, Kirk and Spock had spent a number of days in 1930s New York.

Performers [ ]

• George Takei ( Sulu ) does not appear in this episode.
• This episode contains Walter Koenig 's smallest speaking part in The Original Series , with only one line of dialogue, " Approaching Sigma Iotia II, Captain. "
• William Blackburn 's character, Hadley , is given his name in this episode. It is also the only episode in which Hadley is referred to by name.

Props and settings [ ]

• The landing party wears their number-one type phasers on their right hips, hanging vertically from their belts, emitter tubes downward. This placement is unique to this episode.
• The street seen throughout this episode is on the Paramount lot and can be seen in many television series. The steps leading up to Okmyx' headquarters were used in the Judd Hirsch series Dear John .
• The car that Kirk drove to "put the bag on Krako" had a V-12 engine, as a V-12 emblem is seen on the radiator. It was a Cadillac , probably a 1931 model. [4] Note the winged radiator cap, which Cadillacs of that vintage had. It is a nod to Chicago crime boss, Al "Scarface" Capone, who had a 1928 V-12 Cadillac. Incidentally, this represents the only time that a member of the crew ever operated any kind of land vehicle during the course of The Original Series .
• In the Star Trek: The Original Series Sketchbook (p. 133), a book on the costumes and art direction of the original series, Herb Solow shows a yellow costume for "Marlys" that he says no one can identify. It is, in fact, the costume Marlys Burdette wore in this episode.
• All of Okmyx's henchmen wear felt fedora hats (although Okmyx wears no hat). Krako and all of his henchmen wear straw boater hats, and all the minor bosses that Kirk has beamed to Bela's office wear bowler hats.

Syndication cuts [ ]

Although this episode officially received no syndication cuts, many local television stations were known to cut small segments at the end of scenes bordering a commercial break. The most common of these was the scene in which Kirk is captured by Krako's men who tell him, " This can either be a taxi or a hearse " before driving Kirk away. Television stations would often omit the last minute of this scene, showing Kirk sitting in the car driving away, and end the scene with Kirk simply saying " I'm beginning to get the idea ". ( The Star Trek Compendium )

Remastered information [ ]

The remastered version of "A Piece of the Action" aired in many North American markets during the weekend of 28 April 2007 . While the episode required very few new effects, the planet Sigma Iotia II was given a CGI-makeover, now a more Earth-like planet. Aside from orbital establishing shots, new phaser effects were created depicting the block-wide stun implemented from the Enterprise , replacing the more "cartoonish" aspects of the original.

Video and DVD releases [ ]

• Original US Betamax release: 1986
• UK VHS release (two-episode tapes, CIC Video ): Volume 26 , catalog number VHR 2361, 4 June 1990
• US VHS release: 15 April 1994
• UK re-release (three-episode tapes, CIC Video): Volume 2.7, 23 June 1997
• Original US DVD release (single-disc): Volume 25, 19 June 2001
• As part of the TOS Season 2 DVD collection
• As part of the TOS-R Season 2 DVD collection

Apocrypha [ ]

• Bantam Books published a series of novelizations called Star Trek Fotonovels which took photographic stills from actual episodes and arranged word balloons and text over them, to create a comic book formatted story. The eighth installment was an adaptation of this episode which contained a foreword written by Anthony Caruso in the character of Bela Okmyx . He mentions that he was elected president of the planet in a landslide and that he made Jojo Krako his vice president. The arrangement worked out well, he said, as he hadn't heard from Krako since.
• The plot for the Star Trek: 25th Anniversary Nintendo game has the Enterprise thrown outside of known space entering the Sigma Iotia system. When they finally get back, they find that McCoy leaving his communicator behind was responsible for the incident and they go back in time to retrieve it from the gangsters.
• In Shane Johnson 's reference book The Worlds of the Federation , in the entry on Iotia, the planet is referred to as being known indigenously as "Okmyx." Johnson also explains that the Iotians's discovery of McCoy's communicator led them to abandon their mobster culture and seize on the opportunity it presented; he adds that the next ship to orbit the planet (which he does not identify) found what, at first, appeared to be a Federation starbase, complete with uniformed personnel and communications on Star Fleet channels. He concludes, drawing this detail from the "Star System Data" booklet that accompanied the first Star Trek Maps , that Sigma Iotia II was subsequently declared a Federation Protectorate, with a cultural rating of E+ on the "Richter Scale of Cultures," and that though no quarantine was imposed, an orbital customs facility was eventually constructed, through which visiting personnel had to be cleared before they were permitted to beam to the surface.
• The events of the episode are recapped in the comic " ... Let's Kill All the Lawyers! when Bela Okmyx was one of the witnesses at James T. Kirk 's trial. Okmyx revealed at Kirk's trial that the captain's cut of Iotia's "action" was still being skimmed for him. Okmyx also returned Leonard McCoy's communicator (which the doctor had left behind on Iotia), saying that the Iotians didn't do anything with the device and just put it away for safekeeping.
• In DC's second Star Trek series Bela Okmyx is called to testify in the Trial of James Kirk in the issue " ... Let's Kill All the Lawyers! ".
• The Star Trek: Picard novel Rogue Elements depicts the Iotians as maintaining their cultural fixation with the culture of Chicago gangs even into the late 24th century . In that novel, Cristóbal Rios deals with an Iotian gang, and even purchases La Sirena from them.

Reception [ ]

• The book Star Trek 101 (p. 19), by Terry J. Erdmann and Paula M. Block , lists this episode as one of "Ten Essential Episodes" from the original Star Trek series.

Links and references [ ]

Starring [ ].

• William Shatner as Capt. Kirk

Also starring [ ]

• Leonard Nimoy as Mr. Spock
• DeForest Kelley as Dr. McCoy

Guest star [ ]

• Anthony Caruso as Bela

Co-starring [ ]

• Victor Tayback as Krako
• Lee Delano as Kalo
• James Doohan as Scott
• Nichelle Nichols as Uhura
• Walter Koenig as Chekov

Featuring [ ]

• John Harmon as Tepo
• Sheldon Collins as Tough Kid
• Dyanne Thorne as First Girl
• Sharyn Hillyer as Second Girl
• Buddy Garion as Hood
• Steve Marlo as Zabo

Uncredited co-stars [ ]

• Benjie Bancroft as Iotian passerby
• William Blackburn as Hadley
• John Blower as Swenson
• Nick Borgani as Iotian gang leader
• Marlys Burdette as Krako's gun moll
• Christie as Hood
• Conde as Hood
• Tony Dante as Krako's hood
• Frank da Vinci as Brent
• James Doohan as the Announcer (voice)
• Roger Holloway as Roger Lemli
• Jay Jones as Mirt
• Jeannie Malone as Yeoman
• Jim Michael as Bela's hood
• McIntosh as Hood
• Clark Ross as Iotian passerby
• Bela's gun moll
• Bela's hood 5 and 6 , plus three more
• Bosses 1 , 2 , and 4
• Krako's hoods 2 , 3 , and 4
• Northside pedestrians
• Southside pedestrians
• Radio engineer
• Woman with baby

References [ ]

1992 ; 2168 ; .45 automatic ; advisor ; alternative ; amplitude modulation ; anarchy ; Angelo's Delicatessen ; apple ; arrest ; audio ; authority ; baby blue ; baby carriage ; bag ; Bang Bang ; beans ; beef ; behavior ; Bela's office ; Bela's place ; Beta Antares IV ; Beta Antares IV natives ; Bible ; billiards ; blade ; block ; blotter ; blower ; blue ; blueprint ; boater ; bolt ; book ; boss ; bowler hat ; box ; broad ; broadcast ; brooding ; bugged ; Buick Master Six ; building ; business ; " business is business "; businessman ; buster ; button ; Cadillac ; Cadillac Series 353 ; Cadillac V-12 ; Cadillac V-16 ; car ; card game ; cart ; cement ; Chamey's Auto Repair ; Chicago ; Chicago Mobs of the Twenties ; chicken ; choice ; chopper ; Cirl the Knife ; citizen ; cloche hat ; clutch ; cold-blooded ; communicator ; computer ; concrete ; confusion ; contact ; contamination ; contract ; conventional radio ; coordinates ; criminal organization (aka gang or mobs ); cue ; culture ; darts ; dartboard ; date ; deal ; dealer ; device ; dialing ; dilemma ; distill ; dope ; double-barreled shotgun ; double negative ; dozen ; driving ; ear ; Earth ; E.B. Green Portraits ; Economy Bus Lines ; emotional state ; ethical system ; evidence ; evolution ; eye ; face ; fact ; Federation law ; Federation of Planets ("Fed"); fedora ; feet ; firearm (aka gun or hardware); fireplug ; fizzbin ; flivver ; flop ; foot ; frequency ; friend ; gear ; galoshes (aka overshoes ); gangster ; garage ; gears ; " give the word "; goods ; government ; guest ; gun moll ; hand ; head ; hearse ; heater ; hello ; " hit "; home ; Horizon ; hostage ; hostility ; hour ; ice ; ice cream ; ice cream sandwich ; idea ; ignition ; industrialization ; information ; intelligence ; intersection ; Iotian ; Iotian language ; Jailbreakers, The ; job ; key ; kidnapping ; king ; kronk ; language banks ; laundry ; letter ; lieutenant ; logic ; machine gun ; material ; microphone ; Milky Way Galaxy ; minute ; money ; month ; moral inversion ; mouth ; name ; neighbor ; neutronium ; night ; No parking sign ; Northside Territory ; " no sweat "; non-interference directive ; odds ; office ; " on the level "; order ; pattycake ; peanut ; pedal ; percentage ; penny-ante operator ; percentages ; petrified ; phaser ; phaser bank ; phone ; phone call ; picture ; " piece of the action "; piecework factory ; place ; planetary treasury ; " play a hunch "; " play ball "; player ; playing cards ; postage due ; prisoner ; problem ; profit ; punk ; queen ; question ; radio report ; radio set ; radio station (aka official station ); radius ; reception committee ; Request Time ; result ; right ; right of petition ; roof ; Sawbones ; scrag ; Sigma Iotia ; Sigma Iotia II ; site-to-site transport ; society ; sociological computer ; sound ; Southside Territory ; sralk ; standard orbit ; Starfleet Command ; starship ; starter ; stone ; story ; street ; street light ; Studebaker Standard Six ; solution ; subspace communication ; surface ; sweat ; switch ; syndicate ; taxi ; taxi driver ; telephone ; Tepo's mother ; territory ; textbook ; thing ; Thompson submachine gun ; title ; tool ; toy ; transporter ; transporter room ; transtator ; trick ; troops ; truce ; truck ; Tuesday ; Vulcan neck pinch ; US Mail ; walking ; warehouse ; weapon ; week ; wheel ; " whole ball of wax "; window ; year ; yellow

External links [ ]

• " A Piece of the Action " at Memory Beta , the wiki for licensed Star Trek works
• " A Piece of the Action " at Wikipedia
• " A Piece of the Action " at MissionLogPodcast.com , a Roddenberry Star Trek podcast
• 2 USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-G)
• 3 Star Trek: The Next Generation

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Star Trek (TV Series)

A piece of the action (1968).

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Trek Geeks #146: A Piece of the Action

A royal fizzbin.

It’s one of the all-time great comedic episodes of Star Trek and the perfect send off in to Convention Week!

Tomorrow, we’re on our way to Star Trek Las Vegas but today we’re detouring at Sigma Iotia II to collect “A Piece of the Action.”

One of the things that Star Trek has always done well is injecting levity after a few serious episodes and this is perhaps the best of them. We’ll look at what makes this episode so much fun, as well as some of our favorite moments.

Plus, we’ll give you all the latest breaking news on STLV. There’s ONE DAY left before the convention kicks off, and new guests are still being added!

And don’t forget about the amazing FanGeeks Party 2018 hosted by us on the one and only Las Vegas Strip! Our good friend, Lew Halboth from FanSets is going to stop by to tell you about all of the amazing pins that people will win at this year’s party!

It’s Episode 146 of Your Independent Star Trek Podcast, and it’s a kick in the head, pally.

Direct Download Link :  http://traffic.libsyn.com/trekgeeks/TGP_Episode146.mp3

FIVE YEAR MISSION

We can’t possibly thank FIVE YEAR MISSION enough. We are truly grateful to them for allowing us to use their music for every episode of Trek Geeks. You really should check them out–they’re writing and recording one original song for each episode of the classic Star Trek series from the 1960’s.

YEAR 4 IS HERE! Get the brand-new album from Five Year Mission RIGHT NOW at  FiveYearMission.net

While you’re at it, you should also pick up Year 1, Year 2, Year 3, The Trouble with Tribbles, and of course, Spock’s Brain!

Please show them some support and download all their music!

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http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Recap/StarTrekS2E17APieceOfTheAction

Recap / Star Trek S2 E17 "A Piece of the Action"

Edit locked.

Original air date: January 12, 1968

The Enterprise receives a 100-year-old radio transmission from the U.S.S Horizon on the planet Sigma Iotia II and investigates. The person they first contact is "Boss" Oxmyx. Kirk, Bones and Spock beam down to Iotia to find a world very much like 1920s Chicago , only with people not even trying to hide the fact that they're carrying submachine guns. Apparently, shoving one in somebody's face is their way of saying "Hi".

A Piece of the Tropes:

• Are You Sure You Can Drive This Thing? : Kirk drives one of the 1920s-model automobiles based on his and Spock's vague recollections of how such vehicles work. Naturally, he's fairly clumsy. Spock: Captain, you are an excellent starship commander but as a taxi driver you leave much to be desired. Kirk: It was that bad? Spock: [ Nods ]
• Badass Fingersnap : One snap of Oxmyx's fingers and his mooks step forward with heaters aimed at Kirk's head.
• The Bad Guy Wins : Oxmyx and Krako become Top Boss and Lieutenant for the entire planet. Spock brings this up at the end of the episode as one of the flaws in Kirk's strategy, but Kirk suggests that the Federation's "cut" from the Iotian syndicate can go towards teaching the natives better ways.
• Bizarre Alien Psychology : The Iotians likely come as close to this trope as TOS ever got. They take mimicry of other cultures to extremes far beyond anything humans have done, even with the inspiration being so obviously detrimental to themselves to the point that everyone in their society wants to get shot at for no appreciable gain.
• Blunt Metaphors Trauma : The Starfleet heroes have a hard time understanding the gangster slang that the natives use, though Kirk does adjust to it quite nicely while putting on a "mafia" act.
• Brick Joke : Becomes one in DC Comics ' Star Trek : Remember McCoy's communicator? Oxmyx returns it intact, figuring McCoy wouldn't like him or the other Iotians messing with it. He also brings in Kirk's "piece of the action," several briefcases filled with money.
• Calvin Ball : To distract the guards holding them, Kirk comes up with an extremely complex card game, "fizzbin". Naturally, the rules are bizarre, and, while the guard doesn't catch it, the audience can hear that Kirk contradicts his own rules at least once. Kirk: ...but the odds of getting a royal fizzbin are astro— Spock, what are the odds of getting a royal fizzbin? Spock: I have never computed them, Captain.
• Cargo Cult : The Iotians use Chicago Mobs of the Twenties as a means for modelling their entire society, treating it as their Bible, with all due reverence. Presumably justified as, after having come into contact with a successful advanced alien culture, they aimed to copy that culture and said book was the best they had available.
• Chain of Deals : Star Trek 25th Anniversary for the NES has a segment based on this episode and was structured this way. In the actual episode, Kirk and company refuse a deal to give them phasers. They're trying to undo a mistake that was made by giving them advanced tech, after all!
• Chekhov's Gun : With an actual gun—Spock tells Scotty to keep the ship's phasers on stun (perhaps the only time they do that). Kirk then has Scotty fire them to stop a shootout and show everyone what they're dealing with.
• Dartboard of Hate : Krako has one of Oxmyx. Of course, he cheats at darts.
• Death from Above : This is one of the few shown cases of orbital bombardment in Star Trek, though it is not death from above, just stunning (yes, even the Federation's starships have a stun setting on the phasers).
• Distressed Dude : To the point of parody; Kirk, Bones and Spock manage to get kidnapped three times each, and Kirk's mostly just annoyed by the whole thing.
• The Don : Several Dons. In the end Kirk is the biggest Don on the planet — and he makes clear that he's really only an enforcer for the real mob, the Federation.
• Dramatic Gun Cock : As Kirk and Spock confront Krako, Krako's men get the drop on them this way. Spock: Captain, I believe that perhaps it would be wise to do as he says. I just heard the sound of... Kirk: The sound of a machine gun bolt being pulled back .
• Dress-Up Episode : Kirk and Spock dress up in 1920s clothes in order to blend in with the citizens on the Planet of Hats .
• Drives Like Crazy : Kirk is an awesome Starship Captain, but a lousy driver.
• Forgotten Phlebotinum : Who knew that the ship's phasers could be set on stun? This incredibly useful feature had never appeared before and would never be used again across the entire franchise for 53 years and counting!
• Freeze-Frame Ending : This is the only episode of the series to end in a freeze-frame.
• Gangland Drive-By : The crew land on a planet who based their society on 1920s gangsters, complete with period weapons and vehicles. Minutes after beaming down, a drive-by takes place right in front of them.
• Gangster Land : This planet's hat.
• Giving Radio to the Romans : That's what started this mess!
• Giving Up on Logic : Even Mr. Spock (gasp!) gives up logic because he's observed that normal rules do not apply on this planet. Spock: I would advise youse to keep dialin', Oxmyx.
• Glasses Pull : Oxmyx does this a few times, such as when Spock mentions their encounter with Krako's men.
• Gunboat Diplomacy : "The Federation's takin' over whether you like it or not!"
• Had the Silly Thing in Reverse : Kirk puts the car in reverse before managing to make it go forward every time he tries to drive.
• Haven't You Seen X Before? : After a brief shootout between Krako's and Oxmyx's mooks . McCoy : That man's dead back there! Kalo: Yeah? We ain't playing for peanuts. What's the matter, you guys never saw a hit before?
• Here We Go Again! : Bones accidentally leaves his communicator behind.
• The Iotians as a whole, are extremely intelligent, adaptable people who are imitative by nature. Their actions are more based on the "teachings" of the book, rather than pure malice.
• I Lied : When Oxmyx tricks Spock and Bones into beaming back down and recaptures them : Spock: Mr. Oxmyx, I understood that we had an arrangement, a truce. Oxmyx: I was hoping you'd think that, dummy.
• Indy Ploy : Pretty much all of Kirk's plan to end the Iotian gang war, especially fizzbin , gets made up as he goes along. The Enterprise doesn't even have information as to what exactly the Horizon did to contaminate the planet before they get there, so they're going in blind. Luckily, Kirk's plan turns out to be Crazy Enough to Work .
• I Want My Mommy! : Tepo, one of the minor bosses, whimpers "Mother" when he's beamed into Oxmyx's office.
• Large Ham : Kirk has way too much fun playing gangster. And then there's Krako, who seems to have No Indoor Voice .
• Let Me Get This Straight... : After Oxmyx spells out his plans to Kirk. Kirk: Now let me get this straight. You want us to supply you with arms and assistants so you can carry out an aggression against your neighbors? Oxmyx: What aggression? I gotta make some hits. I want you to help me hit 'em! That's all!
• Locking MacGyver in the Store Cupboard : Kirk manages to escape using some wires from a radio, a bed sheet and a waste basket.
• Mugged for Disguise : Kirk and Spock steal the clothes from two of Oxmyx's flunkies, leading to the above picture.
• Mundanization : Kirk, McCoy , and Spock are beamed down in the middle of a world of crosswalks and fireplugs.
• Not Distracted by the Sexy : Kirk mostly just seems annoyed at the beautiful woman told to give him a massage.
• Offered the Crown : At the end, Oxmyx wants Kirk to be the top boss. Kirk declines and makes Oxmyx the top boss , with Krako as his Number Two .
• Oh, Crap! : Bones is troubled by the fact that he's left his communicator with the Iotians. Spock agrees with his concerns, but Kirk shrugs it off as no big deal and reasons that studying it will probably help their growth. "Prime Directive, Shrime Directive" basically.
• Oh, No... Not Again! : Krako's Number Two , when he wakes up after Kirk knocked him out for the second time.
• O.O.C. Is Serious Business : Spock admits that logic and practical knowledge can't help here. Spock: Logic and practical information do not seem to apply here. McCoy : You admit that? Spock: To deny the facts would be illogical, Doctor.
• Parrot Expo-WHAT? : When Kirk tries to explain to Oxmyx that his planet is on the far reaches of the galaxy. Oxmyx: Toward the edge of what ?
• Planet of Hats : The former poster child for this trope. The Iotians' "hat" seems to be extreme imitativeness, and in this case they're imitating a book called Chicago Mobs of the 20s . Incidentally, if you look closely, you'll notice the three gangs pictured wear three different kinds of hats. Oxmyx's gang all wear fedoras. Krako's gang all wear boaters. Mirt's gang all wear bowlers.
• Protection Racket : How the gangs seem to operate, pretty much to the level of rudimentary government. People pay their "percentages" and expect protection and services in return. One woman is shown complaining to Oxmyx's men about a faulty street-light, claiming "a girl ain't safe".
• Puppet King : Kirk claims that the Federation wants to control the planet through one of the natives. "The planet is bein' taken over, but we don't wanna come in here and, uh, use our muscle, you know what I mean? That ain't, uh, subtle. So what we do is we help one guy take over the planet. He pulls the strings and then we pull his !"
• Red Oni, Blue Oni : Krako and Oxmyx, respectively. Oxmyx prefers to calmly discuss things with Kirk (though with aggressive undertones), while Krako (as mentioned above) has No Indoor Voice and a very short temper.
• Stab the Picture : Jojo Krako (one of the planet's gang bosses) has a dartboard on the wall of his office with a picture of a hated rival gang leader, Bela Okmyx, on it. The picture has red circles on Okmyx's head and chest to act as targets for when Jojo throws darts at it.
• Straw Vulcan : Not this time for Spock who recognizes that other methods are necessary on this screwy planet: Spock: It would seem that logic does not apply here. McCoy : You admit that? Spock: To deny the obvious would be illogical.
• Stupidest Thing I've Ever Heard : One of Oxmyx's men demeans Spock's question whether he is pointing a large gun at him. Spock: Sir, does everyone here carry firearms? Kalo: I never heard such stupid questions in my life.
• The Syndicate : Part of Kirk's solution for the mess is forcing the Iotian mobs to form one (the idea being that they'll learn to work together instead of constantly fighting each other), kept together by the threat of the Federation intervening . Oxmyx: Okay. A syndicate makes sense to me. I'm a peaceful man at heart, but I'm sick and tired of all these hits. I hit Krako, Krako hits Tepo, Tepo hits me. There's too many bosses. We can't get anything done. Now I was thinking if there was just one, maybe somebody like you, as the top boss, then we can get things done. Kirk: Hey, Bela, no, no, no. The Federation can't get connected with a small-time operation like this. No, I was thinking, Bela, you would be the top boss. Krako, you'd be his lieutenant. The rest of you, I don't want any trouble from the rest of you because you'll have to answer to the Federation. We'll be back every year to collect our cut.
• Take a Third Option : Unable to reverse the cultural contamination that altered the Iotians, and unwilling to provide technology — weapons that Oxmyx or Krako want to finish their Mob War once and for all — Kirk decides to keep the existing power structure in place by imposing the Federation as the biggest Operation taking over the planet's divided Syndicates. With the plan to have the Federation's "piece of the action" paid back into Sigma Iota's development (by future Federation expeditions to the planet) into a more law-abiding peaceful culture.
• Telephone Teleport : Sorta. Oxmyx's phone has no teleporting abilities, but Scotty uses it to locate the other bosses and beam them to Oxmyx's office.
• Timeline-Altering MacGuffin : Chicago Mobs of the Twenties , copyright 1992. (It must have sounded more impressive in January of 1968.)
• Trip Trap : Kirk places a wire from a dismantled radio above the ground across the door, starts yelling and two guards come rushing in and trip.
• We Need a Distraction : Will this Street Urchin do? He can even give us a Title Drop !
• What Happened to the Mouse? : The kid Kirk promised a piece of the action to never gets his payment.

Video Example(s):

Kirk drives a car.

Captain Kirk has to drive a car on a gangster-themed planet.

Example of: Are You Sure You Can Drive This Thing?

• Star Trek S2 E16 "The Gamesters of Triskelion"
• Recap/Star Trek: The Original Series
• Star Trek S2 E18 "The Immunity Syndrome"

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"Captain Kirk: Yes, but what you're after is a Royal Fizzbin, but the odds in getting a Royal Fizzbin are astronomical. Spock, what are the odds in getting a royal fizzbin? / Mr. Spock: I have never computed them, Captain." ~ Star Trek, A Piece of the Action, 1968

In the iconic television series Star Trek, Fizzbin is a card game said to originate from the planet Beta Antares IV. Captain James T. Kirk invents this game as a diversionary tactic to free himself, his first officer, Spock, and his chief medical officer, Leonard McCoy, from captivity at the hands of a group of Iotians who have mimicked early 20th century Earth-style gangsters and are fond of card games. While Kirk is explaining the extremely convoluted rules of the game to his captors, he used what he called the last card, the "kronk," as a distraction to knock the captors unconscious. 🃏

Fizzbin is a fictional card game created by  James T. Kirk  in the  Original Series  episode " A Piece of the Action ". While being held hostage on Sigma Iota II with  Spock  and  Leonard McCoy , he spontaneously invented a confusing card game to distract the henchmen guarding them.

The rules were intentionally complex. Each player gets six cards, except for the player on the dealer's right, who gets seven. Simultaneously, the first and second card are turned up, except on Tuesdays, when the first card alone is turned up. Kirk dealt the henchman two like cards (jacks), which are a "half-fizzbin". When the henchman said he needs another jack, Kirk warned that a third jack is a "shralk" and is grounds for disqualification. With a half-fizzbin, one wants a king and a deuce, except at night, when one wants a queen and a four.

At this point, Kirk dealt a third jack, but to keep the ruse going, he ignored the disqualification rule he had just made up. He explained that, had a king been dealt instead of a jack, the player would get another card, except when it is dark, in which case he'd have to give it back. The top hand is a "royal fizzbin", consisting of a king, a two, a jack, a six, two queens and two aces during the day, and a queen, a four, an ace, an eight, two kings, and two jacks at night; however, the odds against getting one are c. 1,022 to 1.

Kirk called the last card a "kronk", which is two like cards and either a king, queen, jack, ace, two, four, six, or eight (time of day applicable), and then purposely dealt a card such that it fell on the floor. As the henchman being taught reached down, Spock  nerve-pinched  him while Kirk and McCoy attacked the other guards, allowing the three to escape!

If you'd like to see this classic scene, click the Fizzbin cheat sheet!

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• Fizzbin , a game played by fans at cons (based on the made-up (yet canon!) card game in the Star Trek universe)
• Fizzbin , a TOS fan
• Fizzbin , a Star Trek: TOS zine by Jackie D.
• Fizbin , a Star Trek: TOS zine by Mary Ann Sibley
• Fizbin , a Star Trek: TOS story by Eleanor Locke
• Fizzbin , a Star Trek: TOS correspondence club zine
• Fizzbin: The Equicon Quiz Book , published by Equicon
• Fizzbin: History & Rules , a Star Trek: TOS resource zine
• International Fizzbin Society , a Star Trek , Pern , Darkover , Tolkien fan club that published Beta Antares Four and The Iotian Times
• Disambiguation

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6 comments:

I suppose how boring Swedonia was would depend how much time was given to Kirk sleeping with the blonde... ;)

Thank you, Juliette. That was hilarious.

Juliette, that was my thought as well! Ben

The entire episode is worth watching just to hear Kirk say "Spocko" :)

The only episode where the looked super sharp the hats the suits

Swedonia! Rhymes with Freedonia from the Marx Brothers' movie, Duck Soup! Which if you haven't seen, I can't recommend enough! But then, I pretty recommend almost all their movies barring Love Happy, which I haven't seen but it's almost universally disliked. Also, love that whole idea of Swedonia, the buxom blonde, and so on! Vic Tayback, who played Jojo Krako was of course Mel from Mel's Diner from Alice, where I saw him first. He does play 'heavies' well. I loved this as a kid, and still enjoy it immensely. A bit goofy of course, but also fascinating and so many good bits of interaction between members of the main cast, and them with the mobsters. It's a gold mine for some of their best lines. Spock alone makes this one a gem.

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