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Doomsday machine

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A doomsday machine was, according to James T. Kirk , " a weapon built primarily as a bluff. It's never meant to be used. So strong, it could destroy both sides in a war . "

At the time of the discovery of an extragalactic " planet killer " in 2267 , Kirk theorized that the robot weapon was, in fact, that: " a doomsday machine that somebody used in a war uncounted years ago. They don't exist anymore, but the machine is still destroying. "

Following the destruction of the "planet killer", Kirk noted the irony of its destruction, stating: " Way back in the 20th century , the H-bomb was the ultimate weapon, their doomsday machine, and we used something like it to destroy another doomsday machine. Probably the first time such a weapon has ever been used for constructive purposes. " ( TOS : " The Doomsday Machine ")

The captain of the Orion vessel caught by the USS Enterprise breaking the Orion stance of neutrality in 2270 suggested converting the explosive minerals found in the surrounding asteroids into a doomsday bomb capable of destroying both ships. The plan, however, failed, and the Orion crew was apprehended and taken into custody. ( TAS : " The Pirates of Orion ")

The misinformed and paranoid Klingon commander Kruge believed that Project Genesis was the Federation 's attempt at creating an ultimate weapon, and described the Genesis Device as a doomsday weapon. ( Star Trek III: The Search for Spock ) Genesis co-designer David Marcus previously voiced his concern that the device "could be perverted into a dreadful weapon." ( Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan )

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The Doomsday Machine

The Doomsday Machine

  • The USS Enterprise encounters the wrecked USS Constellation and its distraught commodore who's determined to stop the giant planet-destroying robot ship that killed his crew.
  • The U.S.S. Constellation and its crew were destroyed by a giant robot ship which consumes planets for fuel, leaving only a guilt-ridden Commodore Decker aboard the crippled ship. Kirk beams over to begin repairs while Decker beams aboard the Enterprise. After Kirk loses radio contact with the Enterprise, the obsessed Commodore seizes command of the starship, determined to destroy the planet-killer, even at the cost of Kirk's ship and the entire crew. — [email protected]
  • While on patrol, the Enterprise approaches a recently mapped solar system only to find that all but two of its planets have been destroyed. They also find another starship, the USS Constellation, floating in space and apparently abandoned. Beaming aboard the Constellation, they find only one occupant, Kirk's friend and the ship's commander, Commodore Matt Decker, who tells them of his encounter with a huge planet-killing machine. With Kirk attempting to re-start the Constellation's engines, Decker takes command of the Enterprise and, in his irrational state, announces he is going to try and destroy the doomsday machine. — garykmcd
  • Commodore Decker (William Windom) is a madman. While his star-ship, the Constellation, was being attacked by a huge alien killing device, he beamed his people to safety on the surface of a planet, and then the device destroyed the entire planet, leaving the Commodore alone on the ship. Imagine seeing all of your crew killed and you are the only survivor. This is how Kirk and the Enterprise find Decker, insane and alone in the Captain's chair on the Constellation. They beam him back to the Enterprise and Kirk and a small landing party, including Scotty, remain on the Constellation in order to repair it. The Enterprise could have simply escaped, but this giant planet-killer (which looks like a large horn) is on a direct path to Federation space, so somehow, Kirk must destroy it. By studying the tapes of the Constellation, Spock determines that the attacking ship is a robot that was designed by an ancient civilization (from a different galaxy) at the time of war to hunt and destroy enemy planets. By destroying the planets, it generates materials and energy to feed itself. The war has perhaps ended and the civilization faded, yet the robot lives on, killing planets and star systems to sustain itself. It is on a direct course through the most populated areas of the current galaxy. The Commodore, on board the Enterprise now, regains his composure. He tells Spock they must destroy this thing, as it attacks the Enterprise. Lt Palmer (Elizabeth Rogers), the lovely blond communications officer (Uhura is not on duty) loses communication with Captain Kirk on the Constellation, and Decker seizes his chance, and takes control of the Enterprise under the Federation guidelines which state that the ranking officer may assume command. He throws all the power of the Enterprise at the planet killer, he drains the ship's power in a fruitless cause, and now both ships are helpless. Kirk finally makes contact with the Enterprise and tells Spock, orders him, to assume command. Decker finally gives up, but secretly steals a shuttle-craft and tries to explode the planet-killer from the INSIDE. The shuttle is too small, and it is a suicide mission. Decker is destroyed in his insane mission. Kirk and Spock note a minute drop in the device's power after the shuttle-craft hit it. Kirk surmises that the shuttle-craft explosion damaged it, slightly. Meanwhile, Kirk thinks Decker was right, but he wants to use the Warp Core of the constellation, which is a more powerful explosive. Spock and Lt Palmer get Kirk's message to beam Scotty over after the bomb has been set. Scotty says good luck. Kirk must stay on the Constellation in order to turn the detonation switch, after which he will have 10 seconds to beam back. Spock gives the all-clear, Kirk flicks the switch, but the transportation pad on the Enterpise has a short-circuit. Scotty rushes to fix it. Kirk says impatiently "Gentlemen, beam me aboard." Just as the Constellation explodes inside the planet killer and destroys it, the transporter engages, but we don't know if Kirk's molecules survived the explosion. It takes a few moments, but finally, Kirk is aboard.

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Star Trek: The Original Series

“The Doomsday Machine”

4 stars.

Air date: 10/20/1967 Written by Norman Spinrad Directed by Marc Daniels

Review by Jamahl Epsicokhan

Review Text

The Enterprise 's sister ship, the USS Constellation , is found severely damaged and adrift in space. The ship's captain, Commodore Matthew Decker (William Windom) is the only person left of his crew, the remainder of which had been beamed down to a nearby planet for safety. Unfortunately, nothing is safe from the unstoppable device roaming the region, which destroys entire planets, consumes the debris, and then moves on to the next planet. The death of Decker's crew has sent him into an insane obsession to destroy the device, even if it means suicide.

"The Doomsday Machine" sets the standard for all-out TOS tactical space action, with flawless pacing, a terrific score by Sol Kaplan, and lots of boldness. With Kirk and Scotty trying to make repairs to the Constellation , we have a great conflict aboard the Enterprise , where Decker takes command of the ship while Spock and McCoy are initially powerless to stop him from launching a suicide mission. Spock's calm but firm action in the face of this adversity is an absolute joy to watch unfold.

Keeping in tune with the series' social commentary is the low-key allegory on nuclear weapons—which is implicitly present, but never threatens to eclipse the story.

Previous episode: The Apple Next episode: Catspaw

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Comment Section

84 comments on this post.

Man what a great episode. I grew up in the 90s watching Voyager and always heard uninformed people say how the TOS was full of camp and 1960s era goofiness. They were so wrong.

If you can, view the remastered version of this episode. The updated graphics adds amazing visual punch. This is by far Trek at its "man show" best. Guest star William Windom, who has said he knew nothing about Star Trek, turns in a master class performance as the obsessed Ahab-like Commodore Decker out destroy the doomsday device that killed his crew. Windom RULES this episode. He constantly reminds us "I'm in COMMAND here" and he certainly is. The crew's quiet contempt for him reflects exactly how the viewer is urge to see him. The tension is palpable on both ships with malfunctions and pissing contests and a nicely done Decker-vs-redshirt fight scene that just spills testosterone all over floor. The pacing is perfection without a second of filler. A lot of Trekkers have to defend Star Trek to their friends and family. This is one those episodes a non-fan could follow and appreciate.

My personal all time favorite. I cant think anyone from that time playing playing decker like w. Windom. 5 stars.

Absolutely one of TOS' best outings.

todayshorse

Awesome. Never heard of Mr Windom before but a quick google revealed that i had seen him before in other things, as well as 'murder she wrote'. He totally 'out Shatners' Shatner to great effect.

Ben Masters

"If you can, view the remastered version of this episode. The updated graphics adds amazing visual punch." I've taken that recommendation and then some. I have seen through the remastered "Doomsday Machine" quite a few times, first from the standalone second-season remastered release, and then from the 2015 remastered full-series release, and it never ceases to amaze.

For me, the highlight of this episode is Decker's reply to Kirk's question "Where's your crew?" Decker answers with an anguished "The third planet." Now that's acting.

I was saddened to hear of the death of William Windom. Like so many other people from my past, gone now, but not forgotten by taking the role and owning it. So many others are gone now, but it is this episode and the serious respect given to the character that I will remember Mr. Windom for.

One last thought. I agree with the observations on the re-mastered version of the episode. It fixes flaws in the exterior scenes, perspective and proportion and emphasizes the feeling that these are really small ships in the vastness of space and all the weight of the fates millions of people rests on their shoulders.

An absolute favorite ep, and Windom (whom I understand had little use for Shatner) owned not only the role, but the episode as well, a brilliant performance. Some may not know the role was initially written for Robert Ryan, who would have essayed a very different Dekkard. The revised edition DOES do much to improve the effects and correct scale problems, BUT...in so doing they also eliminate, unnecessarily, some very key dialogue between Spock and Dekkard, unfortunate and avoidable, simply cutting out about 10-12 seconds of total special effects (which were somewhat repetitive anyway) would have allowed their exchange to remain.

Absolutely my favorite Star Trek episode. As others have mentioned (not a single negative comment above), this episode gets everything right. Not a single wasted scene, a terrific plot with the 2 ships, Windom's acting, the dialog with Spock/Decker/McCoy, etc. -- it's perfect. The episode does benefit greatly from the character of Decker that Windom brought to life beautifully -- from showing the anguish of his lost crew, to the shock of trying to remember the planet-killer when on the Constellation, to the resignation of his suicide mission on the shuttlecraft. The enhanced graphics make a big difference, the detail of the asteroids (this is subtle - but I liked one asteroid crashing against the Constellation early in the episode). Spock is terrific in this episode with his logic that doesn't become overbearing or condescending. Scotty also pulls off a minor miracle in getting the transporter working. The other thing to not forget is the outstanding soundtrack. Highly recommend purchasing it (comes with Amok Time). The track "Kirk Does It Again" as the Constellation gets set to destroy the robot is a classic -- and one used in a handful of Trek episodes including a derivation of it for 1975's "Jaws". No question 4/4 stars (maybe 4.5/4 stars as I think it is the best Trek episode objectively speaking aside from being my personal favorite).

RandomThoughts

Hello Everyone! After doing a bit of research a few years ago, I found out William Windom was known as "The Crier". It seems if you needed an actor to have a scene with crying, or breaking down, you went and hired him (mostly for Westerns). This heralded one of the most perfect castings we've had in the wide world of Trek. When he says "On the third planet.", it's pitch perfect. And when he later says "Don't you think I know that? There was, but not anymore. They called me. They begged me for help, four hundred of them. I couldn't. I couldn't..." I cannot think of an actor who could have conveyed the anguish he felt at the loss of his crew any more effectively then he did. I really believe he was a great actor. When on the Enterprise, he truly looked like he was someone who was just barely holding it together, using only his will and training to keep from going mad on the bridge. And I believe that takes some talent, especially when you figure he was going from Westerns to imagining himself on the bridge of a Starship. His acting set the stage for the whole episode... Just some random thoughts... RT

I don't know whether this is because I'm watching the remaster, but I found it strange that the transporter beams were yellow in every episode up to this one*, in The Doomsday Machine, the beams turn blue. I wonder what the reason for the change was. *Except Mirror Mirror, which had purple beams in the mirror universe, I assume to differentiate the universes

I think this is one of the two best episodes of Star Trek TOS. (The other one being "The Immunity Syndrome".) A lot of drama, and superb acting. William Windom, in my opinion, gives the best performance of any guest actor on Star Trek TOS.

A nice touch was Windom's playing with the tapes(which Windom has said was inspired by how Humphrey Bogart fiddled with ball bearings when he played Captain Queeg in The Caine Mutiny).

RedSportsCar

What a masterpiece of hour-long drama and action. With the updated effects, it stands up with anything being produced today. Echo the comments previous on Windom's performance... a man barely holding it together, crushed in defeat, loss and shame. Doohan's performance was memorable here too, especially his obvious and constant irritation with the finicky transporter tech. I also love Spock's quiet, grave condolence to Kirk on Deckard's death. Tense, exciting, perfectly paced... it's just great.

Perfection. As a Trek action show, this episode has it all -- thrills, heroism, conflict, amazing guest star, and an allegory about weapons of mass destruction. So very many episodes from various incarnations of Trek have tried and failed to equal this type of story. Despite all of the enhanced special effects of TNG, DS9, VOY, and ENT that allowed them to feature multi-ship battles, this one still beats them all in exemplifying a strength of TOS ship battle episodes: Tactics. We see this in the TOS feature films (i.e. the cat and mouse battle with Reliant in TWOK) as well: Battles tend to unfold through a logical series of strategies that the audience can more or less follow, with great pacing and tension elicited from the filmmaking and acting rather than from the FX shots. Later Treks lost this virtue of strategy: Their battles are just a series of people pushing buttons and talking nonsense as dozens of ships shoot at each other in Star Wars fashion, causing sparks to fly and people to fall out of their chairs. And after age 12, many of us get bored of this schtick, as even the battle with the Borg cube at start of FC is just (now-dated) FX spectacle. And then we get Riker's joystick in Insurrection. Go back to TOS: They were really doing something original and special here so many decades before Trek became more slickly commercialized, to its detriment.

This episode still sticks out in my mind from when I watched it many years ago as a youngster. Have just watched again the remastered edition and have to say that it still ranks as my favourite Star Trek episode. The simple concept of a giant, self sufficient, seemingly invincible, machine capable of consuming planets, created by a race in another galaxy that nobody knows anything about shook me the very first time that I saw the episode and makes us realise just how vulnerable we are in this vast universe.

The only time there is only one security guard assigned to escort someone someplace is when the plot needs the escortee to get away. It's a little too convenient.

One of the great classic episodes of TOS. Love almost everything about this episode. For me there are just a couple blemishes: when Spock endangers the ship by not refusing Decker command even though in his gut he knows what he should do (Kirk would have NEVER allowed it) and when the Doomsday Machine hits the Enterprise a number of times with the same power beam that rips apart entire huge planets and it just weakens the shields (really?). Arena and Balance of Terror are my very favorites but this is right up there with my next group of favorites.

Peter Swinkels

Okay, having complained about TOS a while back I have to admit that a Tomorrow is Yesterday, The City on the Edge of Forever and this episode were pretty good.

I don't understand the positive comments. This episode was pretty bad. The plot went virtually nowhere. Some scenes were painfully drawn out. I was just bored for most of it.

I'm glad to see this episode get four stars. It's a rare treat to see another starship, in this case, the USS Constellation which is found adrift and abandoned except for Commodore Decker (a memorable performance by William Windom) after encountering planet-killer machine of unknown origin. The episode manages to touch on some Cold War themes (in this case nuclear weapons) in a subtle manner that doesn't alienate viewers or get in the way of telling a good story.

William Windom was amazing in this episode. When they first find him, he is in shock, then anguish. Then on the ship he was essentially a bad guy. Then, in the final scene where he is dying, it was an amazing portrayal of fear and suffering by radiation exposure. Windom portrayed these varied aspects incredibly. Everything else in the show is powerfully done. The story is superb and filled with Star Trek technology (all the engineering tools were shown). The ending with the transporter failing repeatedly was maybe the most dramatic in the entire series. I'm not a fan of the new special effects. The ones I've seen on Netflix are not as good as in the original series. Also, when the Constellation explodes inside the planet killer, the new special effects are lame. The original version was much better for that final scene. I wish I could watch Star Trek with the original effects.

@Lennie K The Blu-Ray box set lets you choose between the original effects and the new effects. I personally always watch with the original version effects, they have a certain charm that the CGI stuff lacks.

This is one of the few TOS episodes that remains competitive with the best of modern Trek. There is such a gulf between TOS and every other live action sequel, in terms of how they are presented, written and acted, that TOS really does exist in its own (warp) bubble. Men were far more masculine in the 60s than the whipped, complaining snowflakes of today. It's refreshing to take a trip out with the space cowboys... but only on specific occasions. This is also one of the few TOS episodes that makes me wish modern Trek HAD been like its parent show. I miss the dynamism, the strong characters, who act and talk like contemporary people being the absolute best they can be. The "perfect" 24th century humans are boring by comparison. I would rather aspire to be Kirk than Picard! The Doomsday Machine (what a title!) is intense and exciting throughout, with a gripping sense of dread from the moment Dekker speaks about hell; that speech would never be allowed in today's ultra-PC Trek shows, by the way. Spock handled himself superbly. I wish the idea of the device coming from outside our galaxy had been expanded on as I believe that is unique in all of Trek? I can't really say anything that hasn't already been said about how wonderful the episode is. It's one of Trek's finest hours and remains compelling to this day. No remodulating the tertiary bollock machine, no re-routing a high-bandwidth tachyon pulse through the deflectors. Instead we have Scotty working his arse off to fix a broken ship and coming through at the last moment. One question: did they have some sort of fuel crisis in their day? This is not the first time I've heard Spock talk about someone's ship running out of fuel. How can they only run for seven hours at maximum impulse? Space is quite big. We don't fly planes from New York to Manchester with 70 litres of fuel in the tank - Starfleet needs to work on its logistics! Now for the VFX rant. The special effects were better than usual for the TOS Remaster. I am not sold on the Remastered effects at all; they fail hard in comparison to ENT for example which I believe was being made at the same time. TOS:R retains all the inconsistencies of the original episodes (phaser colours for one thing), looks just as amateurish when phaser blasts are striking the Doomsday Machine, and the Constitution class starships still travel at that weird diagonal angle as if they are strafing in Doom. TOS:R is just an expensive warmover of dated effects and can only be viewed as "good" in comparison to the originals. In the TOS:R trailer one of the VFX blokes actually slips up and says "The Enterprise won't be doing barrel rolls or anything, it's just going to make people's mouths water a little more. A lot more." His self-correction was a warning that the Remaster wasn't going to be special. The main improvement IMO is how much they cleared up the live action scenes. Now they ARE impressive: every episode of TOS looks like it was filmed yesterday. TNG, DS9 and to some extent VOY have that weird, glossy, glowy visual quality inherent to American television shows in the 80s and 90s. A kind of softness, making the special effects seem a blurry and low-res. Funny how the 1960s original show looks sharper and clearer.

One of the very best episodes in TOS, and in all of ST. 4/4

That communications officer never shuts up.

One of my favorite and one of the best, Its a shame windom hated his character.

Hello Everyone! @hifijohn He did? I hadn't read that, but there are many things I haven't read. :) He did do a reprise of his role in a fan-fic story/filmed episode. It was quite a few years ago, so I don't recall the name of the not-for-profit production, but the Enterprise goes back in time (shocked! :) ), and they find him in some way by accident, I think. It seems the Doomsday Machine had a singularity at it's core, or something, and when he went in to commit suicide, it instead sent Decker through space and time. And there he was, on a viewscreen only (as I recall), talking to their version of Captain Kirk. He'd ended up living out his days on "old" Earth. Perhaps, in the end, he didn't feel as bad about it as he had before. Hopefully, anyway. At least, he was nice enough to help them with their ST project. :) Regards... RT

A good one. Windom makes the episode. His exchanges with Nimoy are especially good. The plot is nothing too special, but the presentation and acting (and lack of flirty sexy lady! Yay!) sell it. A winner.

Blake Davis

Saw this as an 9 year old when it came out and it had me on the edge of the bed the whole time. The “machine” was scary as heck! This episode simply outclasses everything else in the original show - this deserved a movie treatment. No surprise it was written by Spinrad. Darn this was scary to a nine year old and I still think it is as I said just better than the others episodes - far better.

Sarjenka's Brother

One of the best episodes of TOS and any Trek. I keep hoping for canonical treatment of the DM again.

Sleeper Agent

A great one for sure. But where was Uhura? =[

By the way, I'm watching TOS for the first time (yeah I know in 2020, sic!) and unfortunately the batch I have only feature the re-mastered versions with CGI. So far I've preferred the original version for every episode (I'm comparing with clips on YT), but "The Doomsday Machine" might very well be the first one which actually looks better with the new graphics. For one, the scale of the ships has been greatly improved.

"The Doomsday Machine" might very well be the first one which actually looks better with the new graphics" Normally I don't get much out of these attempts to retroactively upgrade the effects for old TV and movies like with the Star Wars re-releases. But something about this particular episode seems to really come alive with the remastering, especially for the doomsday machine itself. I just love the color and scale of it. The episode was always a classic but the remastered version is like they took that greatness and perfected it.

This for me is the best episode of the original series and maybe even of Star Trek in general. It kept replaying in my mind for several days after and still when I think about it it gives me goosebumps. I compared the original and the remastered version and this is one of the few where I prefer the remastered. They did an amazing job. Also the music fits perfectly. 5 stars!

@Helmus Couldn't agree with you more. For me, the best episode of the entire Star Trek franchise. Absolute perfection.

@Helmus @Rahul For me - too.

A classic, one of the best of the series. As for the remasters—- seasons 2 and 3 titles with the opera lady singing. Holy crap, I hate how they’ve ramped up the volume of that, especially the last wail. I literally always mute it. It’s comical to me they did that. A new recording I guess? I don’t know, but I think exactly zero percent of Trek’s longevity was due to its title theme song.

Haha, I just realized, I personally occasionally use Windom’s “don’t you think I know that!!!” when I want to be melodramatic. I picked that up 30+ years ago and long since forgot where it came from.

Great episode. but @hifijohn, I don't know why you say Windom hated his character. He reprised it in 2004 for New Voyages, his last credit, according to Wiki the Almighty. Considering how prolific he was, and what a strong performance he put on here, I have trouble with the idea that he hated the character.

PJ Finnerty

Sol Kaplan's dramatic and spectacularly cinematic score is one the elements that makes this episode one of the high-water marks not only of the series, but in the history of television. Has there ever been a more intimate, close-up presentation of the death of a character than what we have in the last minutes of Commodore Decker? City on the Edge of Forever and The Doomsday Machine are as good as 1960s Star Trek ever got, and are as good as as anything that has been done since, right up there with Walter White's I am the one who knocks! Classic.

How did I only now just realize that Captain Decker from The Motion Picture was meant to be Commodore Decker's son? Slap me twice and call me Ishmael. When was the last time Star Trek was brave enough to take a captain off his bridge and replace him with a formidable actor? Chain of Command, maybe? Even when they paired Bakula with the superior Katsulas in the ENT episode "Cogenitor," it wasn't on the bridge of the Enterprise. And Bakula was there in every scene. But to leave Decker there on the bridge, no Kirk in sight - now that took balls. Then again, TPTB must have been very confident in Shatner and Nimoy, in that they risked outshining them on multiple occasions: Montalban (Khan), Ihnat (Garth), Lovsky (T'Pau), Colicos (Kor). Sheer charisma oozing out of every pore. I think only Jean Simmons (Admiral Satie on TNG) ever came close to that level of screen presence. Meanwhile, Voyager had The Rock and George Costanza.

@Mal (or Ishmael) Being the Trek geek I am, I once compiled a list of who I thought were the best guest actors performances to appear (as one-offs) and William Windom's Commodore Matt Decker was right up at the top of the list (with Harris Yulin from "Duet" right behind him). You're right in that this episode took balls. I think a fair bit has been written about Windom and this episode.

@Rahul, who else was on your list of greatest guest characters? I agree, Marritza was amazing, and "Duet" is epic. I think that episode - and two similarly powerful episodes: "Progress" and "Ties of Blood and Water" - work so well because Kira (Nana Visitor) is perfect across from these larger-than-life men. Spock and Kira seemed to have had that in common, no doubt a key advantage in a first officer. They both brought out the best in their superiors.

Too bad Nichelle Nichols was busy performing at a concert to appear in this episode since the communications officer actually has a lot of dialog. I think Lt. Palmer comes off as professional and no-nonsense right out of the gate when compared to some of Lt. Uhura's more subdued exchanges with Captain Kirk or her exaggerated fear when reacting to strange aliens or dangerous situations. Makes me wonder how Nichelle Nichols would have played it for this installment.

Bob (a different one)

Here's an animated gif of Commodore Decker doing his best Captain Queeg impersonation, if anyone is interested: https://i.imgur.com/iszHsC0.gif

I think this episode is a LITTLE overrated - I'd give it 3 stars, perhaps a bit more. There are so many good elements - Decker's neurotic need for revenge after losing his entire crew; Spock's level-headedness (as usual!); the anti-nuclear weapons message; and of course the tense but action-packed development of the story. I thought the machine was too variable in scale (the relative size of shuttle craft and starship entering its maw was horribly inconsistent), and its belching of fire was nonsensical - there should have been something to suggest the 'doomsday' aspect. I do realise though that the contemporary special effects abilities weren't exactly brilliant, and the budget was limited. There were also silly aspects like puffs of smoke as the transporter malfunctioned - what?? On the whole though, while not as good as Mirror, Mirror or The Balance Of Terror, this was a good action episode.

@Tidd I think your criticisms of this episode are pretty weak -- don't mean to be so blunt about it but not sure how else to express it. Yes, occasionally the ship/shuttle in scale don't jive with how big the doomsday machine should be, but when it counts the monstrous size and power of the machine is clearly conveyed. It's not a "belching of fire" either -- that I believe is an effect of the enhanced version (I don't think the original was that way). "there should have been something to suggest the 'doomsday' aspect." I think there's plenty here to suggest the 'doomsday' aspect -- Kirk's theorizing about how it continues to destroy solar systems long after the war between the 2 sides (where one side built it) was long over, and the fact that it has destroyed numerous solar systems just to get to where the Constellation was. Leaves just the right amount for the imagination, which is what good sci-fi should do. I really feel "The Doomsday Machine" is as close to perfection as a Trek episode could be.

@Rahul You’re entitled to your opinion just as I’m entitled to mine! I think it’s a very good episode but there have been at least 3 before it that are even better. However I can see why so many rate it so highly.

wanderer2575

WTF is with all other captains and Starfleet officials being complete mentally-unhinged douchebags in every episode they're in? It gets tiresome quickly. And like the mirror universe, you have to wonder how Starfleet actually managed to progress.

An episode I never get tired of watching. Top five in the the series.

No doubt one of the best. And it had the only fight scene between decker and security that looked good. Asian fight pose. Good exchange of punches. Far different from most trek fights Always remember that great quote"vulcans never bluff"

Neo the Beagle

I still think the Doomsday Machine and Nomad should have had their own series, with a competition to see which could destroy the most planets.

Apparently Will Decker in TMP was supposed to be Commodore Decker's son. It didn’t make it into the script so it’s not canon.

Really good episode, I think it deserves the 4/4 stars. My only complaint is the lack of a more tactical approach when the Enterprise tries, under Commodore's command, to destroy the machine. I mean, they just come in front of it getting shot and they end up firing on it's hull instead of inside? I know the machine wouldn't be destroyed by that, but I would like to see a high rank starfleet officer pulling off something more intelligent and that at least sounded like it could work...

@F Interesting point but I think the Enterprise under Decker's command is meant to show how compromised the Commodore has become after the loss of his crew and damage to the Constellation. Thus his tactics are puerile. He is heading toward suicide and McCoy hasn't had a chance to do a mental evaluation of him. The dynamic between Decker and Spock (and McCoy) is brilliant -- Spock suspects Decker is compromised but is adhering to regulations. Spock was not able to get any of his tactics through to Decker. But also the machine is meant to be pretty much indestructible and we later learn (or have to deduce) that firing anything (phasers, photon torpedoes) into the machine would not have done the trick.

I like this ep more each time I watch it Bill Windom doing his best Captain Ahab What a hoot One of the best of season 1 Robert Ryan in the Decker role? That would have been interesting Check him out in Bad Day at Black Rock Holds his own in a movie with a bunch of heavyweights

Proud Capitalist Pig

I like how the message here seems to be that in order to stop an implacable foe, you have to assume similar traits yourself; it's an old trope but a true one. Commodore Decker becomes a Doomsday Device of his own in order to destroy the machine, but a human one: he's at times irrational, inflexible and argumentative (as Kirk puts it, "a lunatic") but still completely focused and intent on achieving his mission without fail--he becomes a machine. He's even willing to destroy himself to stop the threat -- could we say the same for the Doomsday Device? It's a nice juxtaposition of humanity and technology. William Windom sells Decker's Captain Ahab traits, and his unkempt, disheveled and haggard appearance is a nice touch. Of course, Leonard Nimoy matches Windom and provides a nice counterpoint and character foil to the madness. Spock is at his most perturbed here, which is fun to watch, but he's also as steely and cold as ever. Spock is a machine here, too, when it comes to Starfleet regulations that prevents him from relieving the most senior officer of his command. It finally takes Kirk's impassioned, angry explicit orders to move him to finally take Decker's command away. The story of the device itself is wonderfully basic. Basically, it was built by some people. "Why?" "Unknown, Captain." In a way, that's enough. The dialogue and suppositions among the crew provide almost obvious commentary -- we've built such devices like the hydrogen and atom bombs ourselves, so the precedent is there. But here, all indications are that this machine has outlived its own creators' war itself. It's still completely powerful and destructive, but now technically also pointless. How's that for irony? Still, "Oh, forget about your theories!" is Decker's cry. I like that simplicity. It doesn't matter what's behind the construction of the device. The fact is, it's attacking us and all the nearby planets and must be destroyed. In the end, of course, human ingenuity and near-suicidal tactics on Kirk's part win the day against technology. We are still better at adaptation and strategic thinking then our "smart bombs" are. But this episode serves as a warning to us -- we'd best remember to keep it that way. Best Line: Kirk -- "Worry about your own miracles, Scotty. I'll worry about mine." My Grade: A-

Narissa’s Bath Water

Fans of popular 70’s era sitcoms might remember William Windom’s turn on “All in the Family”, as a bigshot friend of Archie’s who is on the outs with his son. Carroll O’Connor wasn’t often outdone on his own show, but Windom did it and then some.

Wow. I could watch this episode a hundred times and I would still be impressed. It feels like a movie and a good one at that, especially since I’m decidedly not a fan of space-battle-action movies. First of all, the music is outstanding. The episode wouldn’t be the same without this beautifully dark, grim, somber score. Just take the opening scene on the bridge as an example: when the wrecked Constellation appears on the viewscreen and Kirk whispers “Look at that!”, it is ear-piercing in a good sense. When I’m saying it felt like watching a movie, this also concerns the filming… I can’t really pinpoint it, but I think it has something to do with the lighting. I’m not very well versed in this, but the scenes on the Constellation look quite different to what we’re used to from the Enterprise: dimly lit, darkness lingering in the corners, sharp contrasts to more illuminated areas, only single sources of light, shadows on the actors’ faces. It effectively conveys the ghastly atmosphere of the wrecked, abandoned ship. And, of course, the characters. Other reviewers have already said that everyone is at his or her best, and I fully agree; not only the main characters, but all crewmembers alike. I liked the quiet competence of Lt. Palmer and the repair crew, and it was great to see how Sulu embodies the whole dilemma of loyalty vs. authority, not with the few lines he speaks, but simply with his reactions to Spock’s and Decker’s contradicting orders. Of course, the focal point of the episode is Decker’s tragic loss of his ship and crew, and I think he’s indeed one of the most memorable guest characters in TOS, mostly because he is so authentic that it hurts. Just look at the scene when the boarding team finds him – what I found most striking was not his behavior, but the startling contrast between the shocked, dazed man we see and his own voice coming from the ship’s log: calm and steady and confident, it doubles the impression we get from the depths of his trauma. It also becomes obvious that his tragedy strongly affects Kirk: of course because he knows Decker quite well, but there is something else. I think Kirk is only too aware that this might just as well have happened to him, his ship and his crew, and that’s not something he’s keen to contemplate. Decker hasn’t really made an error… of course, sending his crew down to the planet turned out to be a fatal mistake, but he did it for the best, thinking he could save them this way. It’s probably what Kirk would have done in his place, too… and the consequences, the guilt would break him just as they destroyed Decker. It fits that Decker’s last words are: “The commander is responsible for the lives of his crew, and for their deaths. Well, I should have died with mine.” At that moment, once he’s already decided to die, he seems to be his former rational, controlled self… he again sounds like the man we heard making the log entry before the attack of the planet killer. When the shuttlecraft finally disappears, there is a brilliant shot of Kirk: he closes his communicator and for a short moment, we see his fist clench tightly around it. It’s just amazing what this tiny gesture manages to convey: grief, resignation, and most of all, the despair of being helpless and powerless. And it’s nice to see that Spock has apparently made some progress in dealing with the emotional turmoil of humans: he quietly offers his sympathies while it’s Kirk who points out the illogic of Decker’s death (“It’s regrettable that he died for nothing.”). It’s actually a clever inversion of their usual roles. The struggle between Spock, Decker and Kirk for command authority is a great climax and very well written. And there is one thing about it that I probably never might have noticed if I hadn’t recently seen a synchronized version of the episode. It’s the shift in the forms of address which occurs during the escalation of the dispute between Kirk and Decker. At the beginning, they are still on first-name terms, but when Kirk criticizes Decker’s actions, furiously calling him a lunatic, Decker doesn’t know what else to do but to assert his higher rank; he reprimands him and starts calling him “Kirk” and “Captain”, what Kirk reciprocates by calling him “Commodore”. It’s just a detail, but an excellent one. And last but not least, there is an important message concerning weapons of mass destruction. Kirk’s description of the planet killer is unambiguous in its reference to history: “A doomsday machine (…) is a weapon built primarily as a bluff. It's never meant to be used. So strong, it could destroy both sides in a war. Something like the old H-Bomb was supposed to be. That's what I think this is. A doomsday machine that somebody used in a war uncounted years ago. They don't exist anymore, but the machine is still destroying.” I agree with PCP that it’s clever writing that most of the crew’s questions regarding the planet killer remain unanswered. They never find out who built it, and for what purpose. Had it really been used in a war, as Kirk suspects? Or had it initially been built for deterrence and got out of control later, maybe after centuries, when its existence was already forgotten? Both are chilling visions and a warning that no viewer could possibly miss. Here, the doomsday machine may be a face-lifted windsock, albeit an impressive one, but all we know there are more than enough doomsday machines in our world.

@Lannion I watched this episode recently. Thanks for the well written, thoughtful review.

Superb episode. So much to like - it's interesting to see Kirk getting his hands dirty soldering inside a panel - shows he has a practical technical side presumably from his previous roles in his Star Fleet career. I know also that William Windom does a great job, but still can't help loathing the character and almost cheering when he flies into the planet killer. His gloating attitude towards Spock on the bridge makes me feel that he wasn't a very good commander - I always thought beaming the crew to the third planet when they'd just seen the DM slicing up the fourth was absolutely stupid and couldn't imagine Kirk doing such a thing. Kirk/Spock/McCoy/Scotty are all great in this, Sulu too in his reactions, and the only detraction is the absence of Uhura. Fantastic episode.

Trivia= James Doohan loses his traademark Scottish accent when explaining the delayed explosion "thirty seconds later, boom!" is given in his natural Canadian voice.

Best episode of the original series or tied with another perhaps. Here is a good litmus test: can you show this to someone with no background knowledge and reasonably expect the person to like it? (The equivalent in the Doctor Who series is, of course, Blink. Many a Whovian will attest that that is *the* episode for a newbie.) We can quibble over what we would prefer to *add*, but there is nithing wrong here that I would *remove*. Complaints about the VFX are like going back to 1985 and riding a city bus in Columbus, Ohio, and saying that the city should have inested $125,000 more into every bus and that there is no good Wi-fi. You're right, but what's the point of raising these complaints? Well, the one real complaint is TOS's perennial sex problem. Not one woman appears or does squat except a throwaway secretary role by a fill-in. But, that goes the territory, so to speak. What do you expect? The most feminist thing on American TV in the 1960s, no joke, was probably I Love Lucy.

Funny you should mention I Love Lucy, since Lucille Ball and her husband owned Desilu, the production company behind Star Trek.

Gentlemen, I suggest you beam me aboard.

Projekt Kobra

One of the Greatest Five Real Trek's is on...Doomsday Machine. Bar none THE best climax of ANY Trek...but I submit of any TV show...ever. Ive seen this 100 times?....I know EXACTLY how it ends...Im STILL on the edge of my seat as the jumpy transporter continues to fail as Kirk is seconds from blowing up The Planet Killer with a bomb they made out of the wreck of the Constellation. The other 4 Greatest Treks are, Balance Of Terror, City On The Edge Of Forever, Arena, and Spectre Of The Gun..this last one I know would probably not pass the muster of most reviewers...but I love the "Trekkyness", and surreal creepiness of it. Red Shirt Fatalities: 0

Lotsa White Knights in here bemoaning the absence of women in this episode....making sure everyone is aware of their virtue signalling bona fides. It was the 60's. It's a lost, better time. Get over it.

@Derek: ))blemishes: [...] and when the Doomsday Machine hits the Enterprise a number of times with the same power beam that rips apart entire huge planets and it just weakens the shields(( It a matter of TARGETING. Targeting a planet sedately orbiting its primary star is a lot easier than targeting a Star Ship performing constant evasive maneuvers. The Doomsday Machine obviously had a targeting system appropriate for slicing up planets - but not for hitting maneuverable Star Ships. (There's even a line of dialog in which someone speculates that it probably wasn't programmed to go after something as small as a Star Ship.) Thus, the Enterprise only got "glancing blows" - not direct hits.

@Rahul: ))Yes, occasionally the ship/shuttle in scale don't jive with how big the doomsday machine should be(( Does it JIBE better in the remastered version?

Since most have commented on the absolute excellence of this episode (it's really a perfect ep), I'll just add some extra 2 cents: The Doomsday Machine is interesting in context with similar themes of two other season 2 episodes - The Changeling and Obsession. (This episode arguably handles those themes better.) While The Changeling has been aptly compared to TMP, I would argue The Doomsday Machine stylistically bears a lot of similarity to WOK, even though it's a machine villain rather than a man out for revenge. It's high octane, non-stop life and death action. I think it makes sense this is the style Trek perfected. It is also interesting that there were two episodes dealing with runaway AI bent on destroying worlds. One could make the case that Doomsday Machine is a good candidate to watch immediately following The Changeling, which would also help explain the absence of Uhura in this episode. Or does the existence of the Doomsday Machine and TMP pretty much make The Changeling a pointless episode? Comparing to Obsession, we have a captain in both episodes who regrets the actions of the past and lets that regret impair his judgment. I actually think Decker sells it better than Kirk does. It's hard to buy Kirk as a character who obsesses over regrets. Here in Doomsday, we have Kirk almost feeling that even thinking about regret is unprofessional and unsuitable for command. Here we find the Kirk archetype we all know so well - the one who doesn't believe in a no-win scenario.

William Windom - and this is saying a lot - is easily the best-ever actor to grace the set of Star Trek as a guest star. Every nuance of his performance is perfect and tragic.

...and yes the remastered version of this and any episode of TOS are worth watching.. Meticulous stuff.

Just a comment about the Doomsday Machine that really hurt the episode for me. It looks just like a great big Bugle, which was a popular snack at the time.

Doomsday Machine is on a very short list of episodes I’d consider giving a perfect rating to, it’s pretty much flawless. This episode, Balance of Terror, and City on the Edge of Forever are I think the best so far in the series, and honestly I think Doomsday takes it. It’s just riveting. It’s almost annoyingly good as it leaves you with little to talk about other than effusive praise. But you know what? Screw it, praise it is! Exciting, well thought out, extremely well paced, great character work, and what a great ending! I personally love that they left the nature and origins of the machine a mystery, is it a titanic weapon? Or is it a bulldozer accidentally left running? The difference between a tool and a weapon can be a matter of perspective, so maybe it doesn’t matter, but I sort of like the idea that this thing is just a giant backhoe from some cosmic worksite that trundled out of control when some alien joe-six pack split to take a coffee break. 4/4 gaping maws of doom

EventualZen

@Idh2023 > I personally heart that they left the nature and origins of the machine a mystery, is it a titanic weapon? Or is it a bulldozer accidentally left running? I never thought of it that way, I always assumed it was a weapon, thanks for your comment. May be some ultra powerful aliens are playing Sim City or Minecraft with the galaxy. May be they built the Dyson Sphere from TNG's "Relics"?

@eventualzen The episode definitely implies heavily that it is a weapon, and if Spock thinks that, then I’m certainly not gonna dispute it. Perhaps it’s the only remnant of a long forgotten war. The last, sad symbol of hubris from a once great civilization. Which of course works much better from the weapons of mass destruction cautionary message that Doomsday Machine conveys so well. But the fact that we don’t know for sure opens up a lot of room for imagination. I like to think the federation will get a mysterious transmission from outside the galaxy, and after meticulous translation they’ll figure it out: “Do you hate all those extra planets cluttering up your solar system? Sure, we all do! That terraforming project not working out? Uh oh! Got a pesky Oort Cloud blocking those gorgeous galactic views? What a hassle! Better call zxeeplop’s planet removal and asteroid demolition!”

Michael Miller

If they could destroy it by ramming a ship inside it, why couldn't they just fire some guided torpedos into it? Much faster and no wasting a whole starship! And why didn't the machine try to destroy the Constellation as it approached directly in front of it, as it tried with any other ship that did? I thought the whole idea that they had trouble destroying it simply because they couldn't get in front of it was stupid.

What a classic! This is peak TOS, ladies and gentlemen. Plus it’s only improved upon by the remastered effects which do a remarkable job stressing the scale of the titular Doomsday Machine. 4 out of 4 stars

Came across this fantastic analysis of the musical score for this episode -- truly brilliant stuff from the composer Sol Kaplan. One of the most iconic scores in all of Trek and what makes this episode one of the franchise's greatest (*the greatest* for me). The mashup in the final few minutes is well put together. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jx4eo4rb9WU

@R.J. You're clueless. You do realize that the only reason Uhura was portrayed that way was because she was black right?

I like DM as much as the next guy, which is to say it has been my #1 TOS for a long time. Big machines, things getting blasted, is this the prototypical guy episode, or what? It runs on testosterone. It is also the only one I can clearly recall watching on NBC, so it left an impression. For me, some of Windom's performance, such as "There was, but not anymore!" crosses the overacting line. I've heard reports that he went over the top because he didn't want the role in the first place, but I've decided the wild swings and instability work for a character McCoy reports is in shock. Great use of close-ups by Marc Daniels to capture meaningful facial expressions. Everything fits so well. Sol Kaplan's musical score might be the best in TOS. Heck, even Sol is an apropos name. Many great lines of dialogue stand ready for repurposing. Don't you think I know that? We need more power. To blazes with regulations! Vulcans never bluff. What's the matter with that thing? Thirty seconds later, poof! 4 of 4 absolutely pure antiproton beams

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Watch Star Trek TOS “The Doomsday Machine” With The Shuttle Pod Crew In Their Latest Audio Commentary

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| June 14, 2021 | By: Shuttle Pod Crew 46 comments so far

This week we bring you another audio commentary, wherein you, the listener, are invited to watch an episode of Star Trek along with the Shuttle Pod crew, who just won’t shut up and talk over the whole thing. It’s a fun time and an opportunity to listen to the opinionated chit chat of some internet strangers while you watch Star Trek .

This time, Brian, Matt, and Kayla get together to talk about that second season TOS episode where Matt Decker looses his marbles, among other things.

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One of the best hours of television was watching The Doomsday Machine for the first time. Soooo good. Ironically it was one of the last episodes I watched, snuck up at midnight to catch it when nine and it was just fantastic.

I admit I never been a huge fan of this episode and I watched it many times growing up. Liked it, but never in my top TOS episodes, more in the middle somewhere.

But I will say on my grand rewatch of the franchise I recently rewatched it again a few months ago after how many years and I enjoyed it more. And it was the first time I watched the remastered version so maybe that had something to do with it too.

What other TOS episodes did you find yourself changing your opinions of on your rewatch of the series? Were there some you liked better than you had previously, and some that did not hold up as well as you remembered them?

Wow that’s a really deep question! I have to be honest and really think about it to give any real in-depth answers but the shorter version is I can’t think of any episodes I loved in the past I love less today. Rewatching the whole thing, the ones I always loved (and it’s usually the usual suspects for us fans minus a few ones like this episode) I still do. At least nothing that is coming off the top of my head. Maybe a few feel more outdated today but generally still like them.

But the other question, were there some I liked better and I have to say YES! But these are episodes A. I haven’t watched in YEARS B. What I remembered of them were very low in general and C. most were from the third season, which I have avoided almost all of those episodes minus maybe 5 or 6 I do really like. It is easily an awful season but I really wanted to focus on too since I remember so little about those episodes. Some I literally forgot all about. But rewatching a few of them the experience was much better than I remembered. Again NOTHING amazing but I can say I generally enjoyed them more than when I used to watch them from long ago. The ones I can say that mostly about are The Cloud Miners, Spectre of the Gun, The Lights of Zetar, For the World is Hollow and The Empath (but I remember REALLY dreading that one in the past). There are probably a few more too. Again none of these are great lol, just a little better than I remembered. And as said many I just plain forgot in general.

But I will also say TWO of them I completely forgot about, Miri and The Apple just dreadful !!! I completely forgot about Miri but it was SO bad it took me a few days to watch more episodes after that. I’ve seen that episode on some people’s best episodes list and I can not for the life of me wonder how??????????? It’s now my worst TOS episode of all time now. Just sooooooo nonsensical on every level, like Threshold bad for me, but I digress. ;)

I never held this grand nostalgia view of TOS like others do here but I still love the show of course and really happy I rewatched it all…but probably not again for another 20 years. And never again for Miri. ;)

Interestingly for me I recently enjoyed Threshold much more after a rewatch, but I completely agree with you on Miri. For me that and Charlie X are probably the most difficult episodes to watch from TOS.

Huge TOS guy here and yes… There are dog episodes out there for sure. For me the ones that are really hard to watch are The Empath (which has a good overall theme, it’s just not put together well), And the Children Shall Lead, The Way to Eden and yes, Charlie X. And there are a few others. Very little is perfect. The positive takeaway for me is that while there were terrible episodes, there were actually more good ones than bad. And The Doomsday Machine is a top 5 episode for me. I REALLY like it a ton.

“It looks very much like Commodore Decker’s planet killer. And it is pursuing us.”

And the line that I love…. “Blast regulations! Mr. Spock, I order you to take command on my personal authority as Captain of the Enterprise!”

…the theme song when they’re trying to beam Kirk aboard at the end, along with the pacing of that scene…somehow still gets my pulse racing to this day. Definitely in my Top 5 as well. And I don’t know how you feel about the re-masters, ML (I think they’re great), but Doomsday turned out beautifully, imo.

I do like the remasters. They did a pretty damn good job cleaning the negatives and the show looks great. I like the new effects and the new mattes, as well, but as they said in the podcast they new space shots have not aged too well. They still look good but it’s just a victim of time. Like in 1968, they did what they could with the tech they had at their disposal at the time.

I’ve only seen Threshold maybe 2 or 3 times tops and that hasn’t been in years either. So I’m actually looking forward to it and see if anything changes. I will say most of the ‘bad’ episodes across the board in all the shows haven’t been AS bad as I remembered. Yes still stinkers for sure but its been so long since I seen so many of them, they been more interesting to watch minus the TRULY awful ones of course.

And yeah definitely include Miri lol. Man I swear I watched it in the past but I guess when I was a LOT younger because it was at the level where I just wanted to turn it off. And yeah Charlie X is another one I NEVER liked either. In fact ALL the kid episodes in TOS are just awful. The kids just come out so creepy and bad. I hated all of them, Miri definitely at the top of the list.

I agree with you about episodes with characters under 18. (I say characters because the actor playing Charlie, as often happens in film, looked to me like he was 28 or so. Turns out he was 26) Not the best. That trend continued into TNG as well. Fortunately DS9 ended it with how they handled Jake Sisko.

I can’t remember where I saw it, I saw a video that pointed out how the theme music in this episode is really close to Jaws’ theme.

Not just this episode… I believe that cue was used from time to time throughout the run of the show.

The originator is Dvorak’s opening bars of the last movement of his Symphony(9) “From the New World”.

Probably the best episode to be expanded into a theatrical movie

I aways thought that Balance of Terror could be a movie.

“Balance of Terror” as a film woulda been incredible! WOW!

Check out ‘The Enemy Below,’ a 50’s era WW2 film about a submarine battle with Robert Mitchum. It’s what ‘Balance of Terror’ was based on. Very enjoyable movie.

I was going to say that it kinda WAS a movie already, and then reference The Enemy Below. In that, however, the enemy commander survived.

Thanks for the spoilers :P

What’s the shelf life on spoliers, I wonder? Is it more than 60 years?

I’ve heard this a lot over the years. Personally, I just don’t see it. It’s been done already — and I just don’t think the story’s that interesting.

Hmm, funny, I figured the latest ep. would take a granular look at stools.

My brain went immediately to stool samples.

Hi Matt. I posted a comment to your excellent podcast earlier today (over 12 hours ago) but it went into “withheld for review” purgatory and has still not appeared. Don’t know why this sometimes happens.

“The Doomsday Machine” has the strongest display of acting excellence, courtesy of guest William Windom (Commodore Decker), of any TOS episode.

It remains my all-time favorite since watching it during the 1960s original run.

The original series has many, many brilliant scripts; tremendously gifted actors who left indelible imprints on viewers; and such creativity to inspire entire generations. Say what you may about a windsock dipped in concrete by Gene Roddenberry–or that writer Norman Spinrad borrowed too heavily from Moby Dick’s Captain Ahab. “The Doomsday Machine” shows that Starfleet — that human nature — is fallible. The mighty Constitution-class reduced to a battered, near-lifeless metal husk. An entire crew decimated. A decorated starship leader pushed to mental collapse. And our neighborhood in the Milky Way Galaxy faced with a merciless, seemingly unstoppable killing machine.

High drama. Riveting dialogue. Captivating story. Very much one of Trek’s finest hours.

check out TNG novel ‘vendetta’. the DM was created to fight the borg and a relative of guinan takes control of it.

“There was, but not any more!”

I came to have a much higher appreciation of just how good “The Doomsday Machine” is about week ago. That’s when, for the first time in a long time, I watched the episode “Obsession”, which is a far, far, far inferior retread of the same “Moby Dick” story.

True but I found it interesting in that it featured our hero with a flaw. Something that really didn’t happen in the 60’s. Nor did it happen on TNG, either.

Out of all the 79 episodes of TOS, this episode for me always seemed to be the most cinematic episode of Trek. In fact I’d have chosen to do a sequel to this on the big screen rather than Space Seed. Although maybe the concept seemed too close to Star Wars Death Star hence why they didn’t chose to make a movie out of this episode.

always wished The Motion Picture had confirmed Willard Decker to be Matts son.

It’s in the novelization. That makes me feel better about it.

I go back to this one all the time. Epic, iconic.

Interestingly, this is the only ‘Trek episode of all time that my youngest willfully admits is “okay”… at least it used to be before I stopped watching broadcast TV. He was 8 at the time, now ten and still hates everything I like. <shoulder shrug/>.

I highly recommend a lot of Norman Spinrad’s writing. If you read the Void Captain’s Tale, you will see some ideas that were later used in the BSG reboot.

Can’t wait to listen to the TrekMovie A-Team’s thoughts on this episode.

“City on the Edge of Forever” might be #1 in all of Trek, next to “Inner Light” and “The Visitor” but “The Doomsday Machine” ranks high and among them. In a lot of ways, it succeeds because it takes what we know and expect from life aboard the NCC-1701 and it turns it on its head. What would happen if Captain Kirk did everything he could to save his crew and fight a non-reasoning foe and fail miserably? The Constellation is the devastated Enterprise and Decker is a devastated Kirk. And yet. Because of the resourcefulness of Kirk’s crew, and his heroic leadership (no doubt exactly what Decker would have done and in fact, did out of survivor’s guilt), our crew overcomes the same challenge the Constellation did not.

What I especially loved about this episode was watching the lifeless hulk of a ship slowly return to service — and in some parallel way, so does the broken Decker. He realizes he’d be more useful as Planet Smasher Fodder, just as the Constellation ultimately serves in much the same way. Decker is the Constellation as much as Kirk is the Enterprise.

The music, the acting, the dialog. One of my favorite hours of Star Trek across all the fabulous series.

This might be my favorite TOS episode because of William Windom’s performance as Decker. My child brain wasn’t ready to really perceive the depth of his grief, and it was eye-opening. I’m looking forward to watching this alongside the podcast tonight! Also, something I think I’m realizing for the first time is that TMP is a thematic follow-up to this episode in more than just the unofficial father/son connection between the Deckers:

TMP is a thematic follow-up to The Doomsday Machine in that Commodore Decker collides with a threatening cylindrical object to destroy it in an act of grief/revenge/self-sacrifice, whereas his son Captain Decker in TMP merges with a threatening cylindrical object to evolve it in an act of compassion/love/self-actualization. There’s an interesting sort of heritage there regarding the fate of father and son, but with very different outcomes. One tragic, one inspiring as a sort of reply to the original tragedy, like a call and response in orchestral music.

Wow. Talk about roads not taken. THAT would be a pretty interesting Kelvin take. In this case, Kirk is to younger Decker as Pike was to Kirk.

Whoah, that’s a really interesting idea. That could certainly be a way to develop the Kelvin leg of the franchise if they need to move on to a new Enterprise crew. Having Kelvin Kirk take on a Pike roll to a Kelvin Matt Decker could be really really interesting. It’d make a hell of a fan audio drama or something.

On the Inglorious Treksperts podcast, Ashley Miller revealed that he was briefly hired to write the third Kelvin movie and that it was going to be about the Enterprise encountering the Doomsday Machine.

My usual feeling is that I want an original story and not an adaptation, but that in particular would be something I’d LOVE to see.

Have you seen ‘In Harm’s Way’? The New Voyages episode with William Windom? It’s pretty fun.

I haven’t!! I’ve been meaning to jump into that series, and I appreciate the reminder. I’ll try to check that out some time this week. I had no idea Windom had returned for an episode! That’s so cool. I hope the fan film community is able to recover after the Axanar folks messed it up for everyone.

One of my absolute favourite episodes over the years. And it’s probably the main reason I resolutely prefer the classic ‘unenhanced’ versions of the show….as I much prefer the original design and color-scheme of the Doomsday Machine itself, compared to the ‘remastered’ version.

That, and the fact that I found the ‘updated’ effects work on the ‘remasters’ to be distractingly uneven throughout the show overall, while also doing away with some of my favourite ship shots along the way.

So I’ll stick with the old school look of the TOS episodes….especially as I like to look on it as just another ‘alternative’ universe show to ours nowadays, to allow for all it’s now wondrously ‘retro futuristic’ trappings! :)

OK, I’m typing this as I’m listening and watching the original version of “The Doomsday Machine.” This episode has been my favorite since I was like 13 years old. I also love the blu-ray version of the episode (remastered) which has better sound effects when the planet killer is shown in space. At any rate, I loved that you guys talked about the 16mm films that are “out there.” When I was about 17 years old, I belonged to a Star Trek club near Baltimore MD. On one occasion, we had isolated that a fan near us had a 16mm copy of “The Doomsday Machine,” and that turned into a “friday night out” trip to watch this episode. It was awesome – before the days of remaster, large screens, etc., this was one of the best “trek” moments ever! My fav episode on the big screen in 1976!! I did buy a couple of 16mm reels (Court Martial, The Apple) which I still have. While cool, it’s really better in our era to watch the remastered (or original versions) on Blu-Ray. They’re awesome now on the big TV’s where the viewing is “almost” as good as it was back then….

John Kirk. Yes, that’s my real name! Thank You!

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http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Recap/StarTrekS2E6TheDoomsdayMachine

Recap / Star Trek S2 E6 "The Doomsday Machine"

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Original air date: October 20, 1967

The Enterprise is investigating the destruction of several planetary systems when they come across a crippled starship, the U.S.S Constellation . The only person on board is Commodore Matthew Decker, the ship's captain. Through the disturbed captain's rantings and the pre-recorded Captain's Log , Kirk and co. deduce that after the ship was severely damaged, the entire crew was beamed down to a local planet, the captain taking the duty of going down with the ship after seeing to his crew's safety. However, a planet-destroying weapon constructed long ago by a long-dead race destroyed the very planet where the captain thought his crew would be safe, leaving him alive and grieving. While Kirk, Scotty and a small repair crew stay on board the Constellation, Decker is beamed back with McCoy.

Decker isn't taking Survivor Guilt very well and takes command of the Enterprise upon learning that Spock would rather take logical steps than press forward and destroy the planet killer at all costs. Decker recklessly endangers the crew in his attempts to destroy the thing that killed his own crew. When Kirk finds out about this, he is not amused to say the least. He orders Spock to relieve Decker, but the commodore is only finally removed when Spock threatens to arrest him. Spock sends him to sick bay, but instead of going there he attacks his guard and steals a shuttlecraft, intending to shove it down the machine's gullet — with himself inside.

No one is able to save Decker. He doesn't want to be saved. However, Kirk believes he had the right idea to destroy the device. They just need to use something bigger than a shuttlecraft. Hmmm...this junked up starship that no one's using just might do....

The Doomsday Tropes:

  • Abandon Ship : The crew of the Constellation (save for Decker) did this prior to the episode. Unfortunately, not realizing what they were dealing with, they evacuated to a planet that the planet killer then destroyed.
  • Asteroid Thicket : A more justified example than most, as it's the remains of a planet that was recently blasted to pieces . There hasn't been enough time for it to either dissipate or coalesce into a new planetoid.
  • Beard of Sorrow : It's probably been a few days since the destruction of the crew of the Constellation , as Decker has grown some hefty stubble. His unkempt appearance makes him stand out among the clean and neat members of the Enterprise crew.
  • Big Red Button : The button to start the 30 second overload timer is naturally this color.
  • Bottle Episode : All the scenes are filmed on the Enterprise sets, including those on the Constellation (which is of the same class, so of course they'd be designed the same way).
  • There's a downright heartbreaking one when they find Decker. Kirk: Matt, where's your crew? Decker: (can barely speak it) ...On the third planet. Kirk: There is no third planet! Decker: (all but sobbing) DON'T YOU THINK I KNOW THAT? There was ...but not anymore!
  • Casual Danger Dialog : Kirk is still cool, despite being seconds from being blown apart. Kirk: Gentlemen, I suggest you beam me aboard.
  • Catastrophic Countdown : Kirk has 30 seconds to get off the Constellation .
  • Chekhov's Gun : The first damage report Scotty gives is that the impulse engines are the only things on the Constellation that are still in decent condition. He then gets them working enough for Constellation to maneuver.
  • Damage Control : Despite the severe damage to the Constellation , Scotty the Miracle Worker manages to get the ship moving on impulse , raise the Deflector Shields , and recharge a phaser bank. Kirk: If only I had some phasers... Scotty: Phasers? You got 'em. I have one bank recharged. Kirk: Scotty, you just earned your pay for the week.
  • Death Seeker : Decker.
  • If it was designed as a weapon against enemies who lived on Earthlike planets, it makes sense that it would focus its attacks on such worlds rather than waste time on uninhabitable rockballs.
  • Doctor's Orders : Commodore Decker takes advantage of Kirk being stuck on his crippled ship to take command of the Enterprise and avenge his lost crew. Bones tries, but can't relieve him because Decker refuses to submit to an evaluation, and holds Bones and Spock to regulations that allow him to pull rank. Kirk and Spock risk a court martial to finally force Decker to stand down and proceed to sickbay for his evaluation, but it never gets that far as Decker gets away from his security escort and pilots a shuttlecraft into the maw of the machine.
  • Doomsday Device : Obviously, although any theories about the planet killer's actual origin and purpose remain just that.
  • Dull Eyes of Unhappiness : The very first thing we notice about Decker is the "Lord, kill me now!" look in his eyes.
  • Due to the Dead : Me TV (who was showing the episodes in order) reran this episode shortly after the death of William Windom.
  • Explosive Instrumentation : Nothing says "transporter malfunction" like a couple of smoke-plumed explosions.
  • Face Death with Dignity : Decker tries, but he clearly loses it seconds before the end. Kirk does a much better job of it.
  • Feed It a Bomb : And 97.835 megatons of fusion energy make for one hell of a bomb.
  • As an old friend, Kirk calls Decker "Matt" when the damage control party first finds him. After he realizes the risk Decker is causing to the Enterprise , he switches to "Commodore" when telling him to give command back to Spock. Later, starting with "Matt, you'll be killed," he goes back to his friend's first name, begging him not to kamikaze the planet killer.
  • Decker also does this. When he's first found, he calls Kirk "Jim." Later, though, after taking command of the Enterprise , he calls him "Kirk" or "Captain."
  • Forced to Watch : A big part of why Commodore Decker is so traumatized; not only did he beam his crew onto a planet in the machine's path, but he had to listen to them die from his crippled ship. Decker : They called me, they begged me for help, four hundred of them! I couldn't! I-I couldn't! (breaks down in tears)
  • General Ripper : Commodore Decker. His goal is fine, but his methods are suicidal... literally, as it turned out.
  • Generic Doomsday Villain : A giant cone mindlessly bent on planetary destruction spinning around in space like a forgotten land mine.
  • George Lucas Altered Version : The remastered episode holds fairly close to the original scenes in spirit, but includes a few more dynamic shots of the Enterprise as it tries to evade the Planet Killer. The Constellation was also originally rendered as a toy model of the Enterprise with some scorch marks and a bent nacelle, the CGI update includes more detail to the damage with sections of the hull blown off and parts of the skeleton exposed.
  • One of the most decisive aversions of this trope in franchise history. Throughout the episode, as the power struggle between Spock and Decker escalates, the camera routinely highlights a nameless officer in the background observing the conflict, sometimes even cutting to the reactions of the crew members directly. None of them have any dialogue, but their facial expressions speak volumes.
  • When Spock accepts Kirk's order to relieve Decker of duty and assume command of the Enterprise , Decker (knowing that Spock doesn't have the authority to relieve him) resists. But then Spock silently gestures to the security redshirts stationed by the turbolift, and they advance forward — ready to subdue Decker by force if necessary, proving that the crew of the ship is behind Spock and will back his play. Spock could have very easily nerve-pinched Decker if he hadn't cooperated, so Spock is going out of his way to demonstrate how important their support (or lack thereof) is in the power struggle. If he had survived and tried to bring charges against Kirk and Spock, it wouldn't have gone far.
  • Going Down with the Ship : Decker intended to do this. Tragically, however, the planet killer wasn't interested in his ship, so his entire crew was killed while he lived. Decker ends up going down with a shuttlecraft later on.
  • Hand Signals : One of the reasons Decker realizes he is fighting a losing battle asserting his authority on the ship is when Spock just has to make a hand gesture and the bridge's security officers eagerly step forward for the word to drag the Commodore out.
  • Heroic BSoD : Decker is in the midst of one when he's found on board the Constellation . He has another, major one when he makes his suicide run at the planet killer.
  • In the "Star Trek Logs" book version, they do try to fire phasers into the Planet Killer's maw. Problem is the wall of beams it uses to break down and digest what it eats blocks the phasers and makes it impossible to get a clear shot at its interior.
  • One that happens offscreen is Decker's initial decision to have the crew evacuate to a planet. It was cutting up a planet when the Constellation found it, so they should have considered it would continue doing so. Instead, he fails to consider it would go right back to what it was doing before it engaged his ship, and his entire crew is killed as a result.
  • I'm a Doctor, Not a Placeholder : Kirk : Bones, have you ever heard of the Doomsday Machine ? Bones : No, I'm a doctor , not a mechanic.
  • Irrevocable Order : Once the self-destruct on the Constellation is triggered, there's no stopping it (apparently because of the ship's damaged condition, with the engines already on the edge of blowing up without any extra nudge in that direction). This causes some consternation when the Enterprise transporters pick a bad time to go offline.
  • It's Personal : Decker takes the destruction of the crew of the Constellation very personally.
  • Jerkass Has a Point : Decker argues that running to warn Starfleet from the planet killer will allow it to destroy more defenseless planets. Nobody denies this, the problem is that his insistence on attacking the planet killer will get the Enterprise destroyed for nothing.
  • The Juggernaut : The planet killer is indestructible; repeated attacks by the Enterprise can't scratch it.
  • Jurisdiction Friction : Much of the internal conflict of the episode is Commodore Decker asserting command of the Enterprise while Kirk is occupied on the Constellation, all the while making rash and sloppy decisions. While he is technically the ranking officer, and even outranks Kirk, he isn't assigned to the Enterprise and only has provisionary authority on the ship. Decker is shrewd enough to know their only option was for McCoy to deem him mentally unfit, but Spock knows the Rules Lawyer game being played, as without a proper physical and with no one above him to order him to sickbay, McCoy can't make an official declaration. It isn't until they regain communication with Kirk that Decker is ousted and Spock resumes command. If he had survived, he might have been able to file charges through Starfleet, but it's highly unlikely he would have a case.
  • Large Ham : William Windom thought the story was ridiculous and purposely overacted, not realizing he was supposed to be channeling Captain Ahab . Ironically, he wound up giving what is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most memorable performances of his career . He came to appreciate the irony of this in his later life, and he even reprised the role of Decker for Star Trek: New Voyages .
  • Leitmotif : Interestingly enough, the episode's score is based on the technology instead of the characters. The planet killer, the Constellation , even the transporter all have their own themes.
  • Ludicrous Precision : Spock, as usual. Kirk: Am I correct in assuming that a fusion explosion of 97 megatons will result if a starship impulse engine is overloaded? Spock: No, sir. 97.835 megatons.
  • Magic Countdown : The 30 second timer for the impulse engine detonation lasts a little over a minute, giving more time to cut between Kirk, the bridge, and Scotty frantically repairing the transporter.
  • Made of Indestructium : The planet killer's hull is composed of neutronium, which is the super-compressed material that makes up neutron stars (to give an idea of how dense it is, a matchbox-sized amount of neutronium weighs six million tons ). This allows it to easily shrug off everything both the Constellation and the Enterprise throw at it from the outside. Even the self destruct of the Constellation , which does stop the machine, only works because its more vulnerable internal systems are destroyed. The hull isn't scratched.
  • Made of Iron : The Constellation is able to move, maneuver, and attack after some TLC from Scotty, even with one nacelle blown in half and holes all over her structure.
  • Manly Tears : Decker openly weeps for the loss of his entire crew, burying his face in his hands.
  • Mechanical Abomination : The planet killer. Let's see, it's very old, its origins and motives are unknown (Kirk's speculations about it being a doomsday machine notwithstanding), it's virtually indestructible, and is capable of generating a jamming field preventing the Enterprise and Constellation from calling for help. Decker notes they're not even sure whether it's a living organism or a machine. Or both.
  • Mega-Maw Maneuver : Inverted. The Constellation deliberately flies into the planet killer's maw, rather than the other way around.
  • Moby Schtick : One of the earliest examples in Trek , starting a recurring trend. Kirk, Khan, and Picard all fall prey to the vengeance trend started by Decker. However, this particular incident was resolved when Kirk directly ordered Spock to to remove Decker from command before his reckless vindictiveness destroyed the USS Enterprise .
  • My Greatest Failure : Decker sees the death of the Constellation 's crew as a failure on his part, and very nearly puts the Enterprise in the same peril.
  • Nice Job Breaking It, Hero : Decker got his entire crew killed in a well-meaning but poorly thought out attempt to save their lives by beaming them to the nearest planet, that being the next one in the planet killer's path. Had he simply done nothing, most if not all of his crew would still be alive.
  • Off-the-Shelf FX : The show's budget wouldn't stretch to building a model of the Constellation at the same level of detail as the Enterprise (since, unlike the Enterprise , they couldn't spread the cost out by reusing it in other episodes), so the damaged Constellation was represented by a shop-bought Enterprise model with the serial number stickers applied in a different order. Averted in the remastered version, wherein the CGI of the Constellation has quite detailed battle damage.
  • Oh, Crap! : Kirk, thanks to Scotty, manages to get the wrecked USS Constellation to move and fire on the planet killer before it swallows the Enterprise , unfortunately... Kirk : Mister Scott, it worked. Great. (sees the planet killer is now turning towards his ship ) Kirk : I think it's great. Scotty, get us out of here.
  • Ooh, Me Accent's Slipping : Scotty loses his brogue for a sentence when he's telling Kirk how to detonate the Constellation .
  • Orchestral Bombing : Sol Kaplan's dramatic and thrilling score for this episode was so effective, it would be tracked into many later episodes of the show's second season.
  • Outside-Context Problem : An indestructible and implacable mechanical monstrosity which devours worlds for fuel. Safe to say that Starfleet didn't have a plan for that .
  • Planet Looters : The planet killer smashes and eats entire planets for fuel.
  • Playing Sick : Inverted when Decker insists he's competent to command a starship when he is clearly mentally unbalanced. Played straight when he fakes a cough just before slugging Lt. Montgomery while being escorted to sick bay.
  • Plot-Driven Breakdown : The planet killer's first salvo knocks out the Enterprise 's transporter and damages the communications systems, trapping Kirk on the Constellation and preventing him from either assuming command of the situation or finding out what is going on aboard his ship until repairs are made.
  • Precision F-Strike : Contrary to popular belief, never once on the TV series did Bones say "Dammit, Jim, I'm a doctor, not a X!" (In this ep, for example, he says "No, I'm a doctor, not a mechanic.") Laws about swearing on TV were strictly enforced at the time. However, Decker does manage to slip in a "Hell" when comparing the machine to a devil.
  • Roaring Rampage of Revenge : Decker vs. the planet killer.
  • Reverse Polarity : What finally gets the transporter to work properly after malfunctioning for the whole episode is when Spock tells Scotty to try something called "inverse phasing". This is reversing the polarity with help from a thesaurus.
  • Sacrificial Planet : The titular weapon has already annihilated a solar system and all but two planets of another by the time the Enterprise gets on the scene. It's set on a course through the most densely populated section of the galaxy to sustain itself.
  • Scenery Gorn : The damaged USS Constellation .
  • In the real world, a 97-megaton explosion would be much more powerful.
  • Nowhere in the episode is it stated that the planet killer ingests the entire shattered planet, only that it digests the debris for fuel. Once the machine has taken in a sufficient amount of material, it moves on.
  • Decker's stolen shuttlecraft appears much too large in the exterior shots of it approaching the planet killer, especially in comparison to the latter shots of the Constellation . However, if it were shown at an accurate scale, it would be too tiny to be seen clearly.
  • Screw the Rules, I Make Them! : Capt. Kirk finally has to use this trope by invoking his personal authority as ship's captain to get Mr. Spock to resume command of the Enterprise from Commodore Decker, who is doing his Moby Schtick . Of course, Kirk would have liked his chances facing a Board of Inquiry about this move, considering he would be arguing against a Commodore who impetuously attacked an unstoppable Juggernaut when he should have been escaping the planet killer's jamming field to alert Starfleet Command.
  • Self-Destruct Mechanism : Kirk orders Scotty to rig the Constellation 's impulse engines to overload so that the fusion explosion can destroy the planet killer from the inside. It's not hard, as according to Scotty, "The shape the thing's in, it's hard to keep her from blowing."
  • Senseless Sacrifice : Subverted , actually. Decker really shouldn't have had to sacrifice himself to the machine. But the method did end up revealing a weakness they could use to destroy the machine. And really, there would have been no other more satisfying way of rounding up his emotional arc.
  • That said, the Star Trek: The Next Generation novel "Vendetta" was basically a sequel to this episode when the Enterprise -D has to deal with someone discovering an upgraded version of the doomsday machine, which also confirms that the machine was intended as a weapon against the Borg. Later novels would re-introduce the original Doomsday Machine and also feature the discovery of a 'proto-prototype' (a more primitive version of the machine featured here).
  • Shout-Out : William Windom had Decker compulsively twiddle with cassette cartridges in his hand as an homage to Humphrey Bogart , who did the same thing with ball-bearings as Captain Queeg in The Caine Mutiny .
  • Stating the Simple Solution : It was cut for time, but at the end, Spock notes that all Starfleet might have to do if another planet killer appears is to get an asteroid, hollow it out, stuff it full of photon torpedoes, then toss it into the planet killer's path and wait for the boom.
  • Stock Footage : A shot of Scotty tossed around in engineering is recycled from " Tomorrow is Yesterday ". His equipment bag disappears in this shot.
  • Suicide Mission : Decker wants that machine destroyed at any cost, even his own life.
  • Survivor Guilt : Poor Decker has a horrible case of this.
  • Talking Down the Suicidal : Kirk and Spock try to stop Decker from flying into the planet killer's maw. They fail. Spock: Commodore, I must insist that you return to the ship. Decker: You said it yourself, Spock. There is no way to blast through the hull of that machine, so I'm going to take this thing right down its throat. Kirk: This is Kirk. Matt, you'll be killed. Decker: I've been prepared for death ever since I... ever since I killed my crew. Kirk: No one expects you to die for an error in judgment. Decker: The commander is responsible for the lives of his crew, and for their deaths. Well, I should have died with mine. Spock: You cannot succeed, Commodore. Your only logical alternative is to return to the ship. Kirk: Matt. Matt, listen to me. You can't throw your life away like this. Matt, you're a starship commander. That makes you a valuable commodity. We need you, your experience, your judgment! Matt! We're stronger with you than without you!
  • Temporary Substitute : Uhura doesn't appear in this episode, her duties assumed by Lt. Palmer, played by Elizabeth Rogers.
  • Tempting Fate : Lampshaded by Scotty when he points out to Kirk that "a cranky transporter is a pretty finicky piece of machinery to be gambling your life on". So of course it shorts out at the big moment.
  • That Was the Last Entry : Decker's final log entry stated that they were going to investigate the fourth planet of System L-374 breaking up. Kirk: Fourth planet... only two left now.
  • Tuckerization : Washburn, Russ, and Elliott (the damage control party) are named after assistant directors Charlie Washburn, Rusty Meek, and Elliot Schick.
  • Wave-Motion Gun : The planet killer's antiproton particle beam used to slice up planets for consumption and attack the starships.
  • Weapon of Mass Destruction : The planet killer, hence Kirk's reference to "the Doomsday Machine" — an allusion to a popular 1960s term for thermonuclear warheads (or "the H-bomb"), as he himself points out.
  • We Need a Distraction : Kirk uses the Constellation to divert the planet-killer from moving in on the Enterprise .
  • With Due Respect : McCoy is not shy about expressing his feelings when Decker relieves Spock of command. McCoy: You can't let him do this, Spock! Decker: Doctor, you are out of line. McCoy: So are you! (beat) Sir!
  • You Called Me "X"; It Must Be Serious : Spock calls Kirk, not "Captain", but "Jim" when he protests his plan to destroy the machine. Spock: Captain, you're getting dangerously close to the planet killer. Kirk: I intend to get a lot closer. I'm going to ram her right down that thing's throat. Spock: (stands up straight) Jim, you'll be killed, just like Decker.
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Published Mar 4, 2012

"Doomsday" & More With Norman Spinrad, Part 1

star trek tos doomsday machine

Norman Spinrad penned “ The Doomsday Machine ,” one of the original Star Trek’s most memorable episodes, and he also penned “He Walked Among Us,” a script that went unproduced – at Spinrad’s own urging – and then seemingly vanished for 45 years. That teleplay recently made its way back to Spinrad – long a respected, award-winning author -- when a fan asked him to autograph it at a convention. Such recent developments prompted StarTrek.com to reach out to Spinrad, who granted us a detailed, no-nonsense interview about his experiences with Gene Roddenberry and Gene Coon on “The Doomsday Machine” and “He Walked Among Us.” He also talked about his current projects. Part one is down below and visit StarTrek.com again tomorrow for part two.

Let’s go back to 1967. How did you first hook up with Gene Roddenberry and Star Trek ?

Spinrad: I had been working at a literary agency and we were handling the Clarke-Kubrick/2001 project. When I moved to L.A., I was a film critic and I wrote a couple of pieces about what I knew about that, and then I wrote a review of it. I wrote a big feature piece in the Cinema magazine, which was an important critical magazine at the time. I had my problems with 2001. At the same time, Gene Roddenberry was showing his first ( Star Trek ) pilot at science fiction events. I thought it was very good and I made some kind of mention in my Cinema magazine piece, unfavorably comparing 2001 to Gene Roddenberry’s first Star Trek pilot, the one that didn’t sell. I praised that. So, Gene called me up to thank me and to give me the usual pro forma thing: “Well, perhaps you’d like to come in and talk about writing a Star Trek. ” I was re-writing Bug Jack Barron at that time, which was my breakthrough. It was typical L.A. politics, but in this it was true… I said to Gene, “I can’t talk about that now, Gene. I’m a month or so from finishing my work on this novel. Call me back in six weeks.” Having been an agent, I knew that strategy, but I was being sincere. I couldn’t have done it then. So he did call me back in six weeks. I went in and he said, “Look, we’re running out of money. Can you think of something that we can shoot on standing sets, so we don’t have to build anything?” I had an early novelette, which wasn’t very good, which was something like the story of “Doomsday Machine” and something like Moby Dick. So I told him the story and that was it. He liked it and they shot it.

You were on set the whole shoot. That almost never happens, even now…

Spinrad: That was very rare. They usually don’t allow writers on the set. I was 27 years old at the time. It was the first thing I had done. I’d done what he’d asked me to do, in terms of writing the episode to budget, and so I guess he trusted me to be there.

star trek tos doomsday machine

Spinrad: That was the only thing that was disappointing about it. The original idea, which was complicated, is maybe a machine, but it’s maybe an artificial organism, to serve the same purpose. Then you have the question, “When does an artificial organism become a machine and when does a machine become an artificial organism?" The thing I had in my head was not like the thing that they shot. Gene said to me after I finished the script, “Look, can you draw the thing for us, please?” I’m not much of an artist. I paint a little bit now, but I still can’t do it very well. So I really worked on it. I drew the thing. It had complicated tentacle things that had the laser or whatever on the tips. So the thing looked ambiguous; you wondered looking at it, “Is this alive or is it a robot?” Then, when they shot it, they showed me what they’d do it with. I said to Gene, “After I went through all the work on this, this is what you shoot? It looks like a wind sock dipped in cement.” Gene, having been a pilot, said to me, “That’s what it is, it’s a wind sock dipped in cement. We didn’t have any money for anything else.”

For what it’s worth, StarTrek.com readers have referred to the machine as a giant doobie, a giant joint, a giant piece of %&@*, a giant cannoli, a massive lit cigar and a flying eggroll.

Spinrad: I think I called it a giant turnip, but as soon as I saw it I did call it a wind sock dipped in cement.

Going back to you being on set, did Shatner or Nimoy ever say anything to you about this script you’d penned for them?

Spinrad: Sure, but the funniest thing is there’s a sequence in there, dialogue, that goes Spock, Kirk, Spock, Kirk. While I’m on the set I see that William Shatner, in between takes, is sitting somewhere. He’s got the script and penciling out Spock lines, because he had something in contract saying that he had to have the most lines, that Nimoy couldn’t have more lines than he did. So, Marc Daniels, who was the director, starts to shoot this. Five blown takes. I’m there. It’s really an usual honor. You’re not really supposed to stick your nose into this. But I can’t stand it finally. I know what’s wrong. There’s a reaction line from Spock that’s missing. It just can’t work (without it). So I call Marc Daniels over into the corner. I said, “Listen, Marc, the reason you’re having trouble with this is because of the missing Spock line that Shatner took out. I know the whole reason why that is. We can’t put it back in, but maybe you just tell Leonard to grunt. Can you get away with a grunt?” And that’s the way they shot it.

star trek tos doomsday machine

Spinrad: Yes, that’s what Gene said to me. He said, “We want something to shoot on the ship set, and we want something for Robert Ryan.” I didn’t really like Robert Ryan. Some of the dialogue got changed a little bit because it was William Windom and not Robert Ryan. They were different kinds of personae. With Ryan, it was going to push more towards Ahab, a stronger, angrier kind of persona. So, yeah, it was supposed to for Robert Ryan.

If there’s any major criticism of your script, it’s that it resembled Fred Saberhagen’s Berserker series…

Spinrad: You know, I’ve heard that. As shot, it resembled the Berserker series more than what I originally wrote, because what I originally wrote was an organism. It was ambiguous. If it resembled anything, and quite deliberately, it wasn’t Saberhagen’s stuff – I mean, the machine thing was a little bit like that – but what it really was, was Moby Dick. The story, even at the end, if you remember the end of Moby Dick, Ahab goes down with the whale. Well, there it is. The thing is, with Moby Dick, Ahab hasn’t lost his ship to the whale. He’s lost his leg to the whale. So, it’s not guilt; it’s straightforward hate. Well, it’s not exactly a straightforward novel, but that’s the basic notion. So I wasn’t conscious of the Saberhagen stuff when I was doing this, but I certainly was conscious of Moby Dick. And, actually, my unpublished novelette, which was the other genesis of (“The Doomsday Machine”) was written before the Saberhagen stuff.

What did you ultimately think of the episode and did you see the remastered version, with the upgraded FX?

Spinrad: I liked the (original) episode, except for the wind sock. Then, when they were doing the upgraded version, it was obviously much better quality. I talked to the people doing that and they asked me, “Do you want us to do the thing itself the way you had it or should we do it the way they shot it?” I said, “Do it the way I had it,” but they did it the way they shot it. They upgraded it, but they didn’t do that change.

Be sure to visit StarTrek.com again tomorrow for the second half of our exclusive interview.

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The Doomsday Machine Stardate: 4202.9 Original Airdate: 20 Oct, 1967

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Screen Rant

7 classic star trek characters strange new worlds season 3 can debut.

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds has introduced younger versions of several classic Trek characters, but these 7 have yet to make their debut.

  • Strange New Worlds enriches legacy characters, like Uhura & Chapel, without detracting from TOS portrayals.
  • Classic characters like Lt. Scott have made surprising appearances, hinting at more to come in future seasons.
  • Appearances by classic Star Trek characters like Janice Rand & Sybok would expand on their unknown backgrounds.

In its first two seasons, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds debuted updated versions of some of the characters from Star Trek: The Original Series , but several important faces have yet to be introduced. Following the adventures of Captain Christopher Pike (Anson Mount) and the USS Enterprise, Strange New Worlds takes place before Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner) takes over command of the iconic starship. Kirk himself has already made his Strange New Worlds debut, portrayed by Paul Wesley as a young lieutenant aboard the USS Farragut. Lt. Spock (Ethan Peck) also features prominently in Strange New Worlds, after having been introduced in Star Trek: Discovery season 2.

As the timeline of Strange New Worlds moves closer to the events of Star Trek: The Original Series , the opportunity arises for more classic characters to appear. Both Ensign Nyota Uhura (Celia Rose Gooding) and Nurse Christine Chapel (Jess Bush) are regulars on Strange New Worlds and have become much more complex characters than they ever were on TOS . In the Strange New Worlds season 2 finale , Lt. Montgomery "Scotty" Scott (Martin Quinn) made a surprise appearance, as he helped Pike and his crew combat the Gorn. So far, Strange New Worlds has done an excellent job of casting legacy characters, enriching their backstories without detracting from their original portrayals.

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 3 - Everything We Know

7 janice rand, introduced in star trek: the original series season 1, episode 1, "the man trap".

Yeoman Janie Rand (Grace Lee Whitney) appeared in eight episodes of Star Trek: The Original Series season 1, as the personal yeoman to Captain Kirk. Although there was an undercurrent of attraction between Rand and Kirk, they kept their relationship professional. Rand became a valuable and respected member of the Enterprise crew, and she was friends with many of the bridge officers, including Uhura and Sulu. Janice was originally meant to be a more significant character in TOS , but Yeoman Randwas written off the show in season 1. Rand's backstory was never explored, leaving the possibility for a younger version of the character to appear in Strange New Worlds , perhaps as a cadet at Starfleet Academy.

Grace Lee Whitney returned to portray Janice Rand for brief appearances in Star Trek: The Motion Picture, Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, and Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country.

6 Matt Decker

Introduced in star trek: the original series season 2, episode 6, "the doomsday machine".

In Star Trek: The Original Series ' "The Doomsday Machine," Commodore Matt Decker (William Windom) was the commanding officer of the USS Constitution. When the Constitution encountered a robotic planet killer, Decker tried to save his crew members by beaming them to a nearby planet. But after the alien machine destroyed the planet, Decker remained the only surviving member of his crew. Alone on his damaged ship, Decker was then rescued by the Starship Enterprise and later sacrificed himself to destroy the planet killer. During Strange New Worlds , Decker would be Captain of the Constitution, as he commanded the ship for three five-year missions, so he could easily cross paths with Captain Pike and the Enterprise.

Introduced in Star Trek V: The Final Frontier

Spock's half-brother, Sybok (Lawrence Luckinbill) first appeared in Star Trek V: The Final Frontier, in which he became obsessed with finding God and the mythological Vulcan planet of Sha Ka Ree. After realizing the folly of his fanatical search, Sybok sacrifices himself to save Kirk, Spock, and McCoy. Sybok has already been mentioned and briefly glimpsed in Strange New Worlds season 1, episode 7, "The Serene Squall." However, despite a tease that the character would make another appearance, Sybok has yet to officially make his Strange New Worlds debut. "The Serene Squall" reveals that Sybok is currently a prisoner at the Ankeshtan K'Til Vulcan Criminal Rehabilitation Center under the care of Spock's former fiancee, T'Pring (Gia Sandhu).

Sybok, who goes by the pseudonym Xaverius, is married to space pirate Captain Angel (Jesse James Keitel) in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds.

4 Carol Marcus

Introduced in star trek ii: the wrath of khan.

In Star Trek: Strange New Worlds' musical episode , Lt. James Kirk mentioned his on-again/off-again girlfriend Carol, who works as a scientist on Starbase One and is currently pregnant with Kirk's child. The casual mention of Carol Marcus' name suggests that she could make a future appearance in Strange New Worlds , perhaps even as part of a love triangle with Kirk and Lt. La'an Noonien-Singh (Christina Chong). As depicted in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan , Carol (Bibi Besch) and Kirk grew apart when they each prioritized their careers over one another. Their son, David Marcus (Merritt Butrick), followed in his mother's footsteps, becoming a scientist working on Project Genesis until his untimely death in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock .

Who Is Carol? Kirk’s Pregnant Girlfriend In Star Trek Strange New Worlds Explained

3 gary mitchell, introduced in star trek: the original series season 1, episode 3, "where no man has gone before".

In his single appearance on Star Trek: The Original Series , Lt. Commander Gary Mitchell (Gary Lockwood) served as the helmsman on the Starship Enterprise under the command of Captain Kirk. He and Kirk had been friends at Starfleet Academy, and Kirk personally requested Mitchell to be part of his Enterprise crew. In 2265, Mitchell was serving on Kirk's ship when he gained psionic abilities after the Enterprise came into contact with the galactic barrier. As his powers grew stronger, Mitchell grew arrogant and cruel, eventually forcing Kirk to kill his old friend to save everyone else. Although it's unknown where Mitchell served before he joined the Enterprise crew, he and Kirk would already have been friends for several years by the time of Strange New Worlds .

2 Hikaru Sulu

Hikaru Sulu (George Takei) began his career on the USS Enterprise in 2265 as a science division officer before transferring to the command division and becoming the senior helmsman. Sulu served in this position for most of Star Trek: The Original Series, becoming known for his skills as a pilot, although Sulu occasionally took command of the Enterprise when Kirk and Spock were incapacitated. Sulu went on to become Captain of the USS Excelsior and one of Starfleet's most celebrated officers. Sulu should be a cadet at Starfleet Academy during the events of Strange New Worlds, and it would be fascinating to learn more about that period of Sulu's career.

1 Dr. Leonard McCoy

With his prickly personality, questionable bedside manner, and obvious skills as a medical officer, Dr. Leonard "Bones" McCoy (DeForest Kelley) would make a fun addition to the cast of Strange New Worlds (and a Supernatural actor would be a great choice to play him). As the only member of Star Trek: The Original Series' classic trio yet to be introduced, Bones should definitely make an appearance before the end of Strange New Worlds . By the year 2259, during which much of Strange New Worlds takes place, McCoy was already working as a doctor. James Kirk and McCoy were friends before Kirk took over command of the USS Enterprise in 2265, meaning that they should know one another in Strange New Worlds season 3.

While Captain Pike and the current Enterprise crew should remain the stars of Strange New Worlds , it would be fun to see some of the earliest moments of Star Trek's most iconic trio working together.

On Star Trek: The Original Series , McCoy served as the perfect foil for Spock's logical stoicism and Kirk's passionate leadership style. The dynamic between these three characters is a large part of what made TOS such a beloved classic. While Captain Pike and the current Enterprise crew should remain the stars of Strange New Worlds , it would be fun to see some of the earliest moments of Star Trek's most iconic trio working together. Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 3 is in production and, hopefully, some of these classic Star Trek characters will make an appearance.

Star Trek: The Original Series & Star Trek: Strange New Worlds are available to stream on Paramount+.

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  1. The Doomsday Machine ( Star Trek: The Original Series )

    List of episodes. " The Doomsday Machine " is the sixth episode of the second season of the American science fiction television series Star Trek. Written by Norman Spinrad and directed by Marc Daniels, it was first broadcast on October 20, 1967. In the episode, the starship Enterprise fights a powerful planet-killing machine from another galaxy.

  2. "Star Trek" The Doomsday Machine (TV Episode 1967)

    The Doomsday Machine: Directed by Marc Daniels. With William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, William Windom. The USS Enterprise encounters the wrecked USS Constellation and its distraught commodore who's determined to stop the giant planet-destroying robot ship that killed his crew.

  3. The Doomsday Machine (episode)

    The Enterprise discovers a weapon capable of destroying entire planets, and a Starfleet flag officer whose crew was killed by the machine jeopardizes the crew on a crazed mission of revenge. On the USS Enterprise, Lieutenant Palmer receives a faint and garbled distress signal. It is apparently a starship's disaster beacon, but Palmer is unable to make out any words aside from "Constellation ...

  4. Doomsday Machine (part 1 of 7) Star Trek TOS 1966-1968 # ...

    Science fiction/Action adventure/Space. Created by Gene Roddenberry. Starring William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley (Kirk, Spock and Dr. McCoy) - N...

  5. Behind-the-Scenes of The Doomsday Machine

    Looking back at one of TOS' classic episodes. The Star Trek: The Original Series episode "The Doomsday Machine" aired on October 20, 1967 and became a classic. It's the episode that gave us Commodore Matt Decker and that bizarre horn thing known as the Planet Killer.

  6. Planet killer

    Sci-fi. Star Trek. They say there's no devil, Jim, but there is. Right out of hell, I saw it!Commodore Matthew Decker The "planet killer" was an informal name given by Spock in 2267, based on a description given by Commodore Matt Decker, to an automated, self-propelled doomsday machine capable of destroying entire...

  7. "Star Trek" The Doomsday Machine (TV Episode 1967)

    "Star Trek" The Doomsday Machine (TV Episode 1967) cast and crew credits, including actors, actresses, directors, writers and more. Menu. ... Best Episodes - Star Trek TOS a list of 36 titles created 02 Mar 2021 Star Trek TOS: About 30 Good Episodes a list of 32 titles ...

  8. Doomsday machine

    A doomsday machine was, according to James T. Kirk, "a weapon built primarily as a bluff. It's never meant to be used. So strong, it could destroy both sides in a war." At the time of the discovery of an extragalactic "planet killer" in 2267, Kirk theorized that the robot weapon was, in fact, that: "a doomsday machine that somebody used in a war uncounted years ago. They don't exist anymore ...

  9. "Star Trek" The Doomsday Machine (TV Episode 1967)

    The U.S.S. Constellation and its crew were destroyed by a giant robot ship which consumes planets for fuel, leaving only a guilt-ridden Commodore Decker aboard the crippled ship. Kirk beams over to begin repairs while Decker beams aboard the Enterprise. After Kirk loses radio contact with the Enterprise, the obsessed Commodore seizes command of ...

  10. "The Doomsday Machine"

    "The Doomsday Machine" sets the standard for all-out TOS tactical space action, with flawless pacing, a terrific score by Sol Kaplan, and lots of boldness. With Kirk and Scotty trying to make repairs to the Constellation , we have a great conflict aboard the Enterprise , where Decker takes command of the ship while Spock and McCoy are initially ...

  11. In Praise of the Doomsday Machine (and William Windom)

    The Doomsday Machine has to be my favorite Classic Trek episode, I even "modified" a AMT Enterprise model back in the 1970's to look like the Constellation. Magic_Al August 30, 2012 9:48 am

  12. The Best Scene In "Star Trek" History? ("The Doomsday Machine", 1967

    Captain Kirk (William Shatner) is aboard the wrecked starship USS Constellation.....and has aimed it directly into the maw of a renegade war machine headed ...

  13. Watch Star Trek TOS "The Doomsday Machine" With The Shuttle Pod Crew In

    "The Doomsday Machine" has the strongest display of acting excellence, courtesy of guest William Windom (Commodore Decker), of any TOS episode. It remains my all-time favorite since watching ...

  14. The Trek Nation

    Analysis: "The Doomsday Machine" is one of Star Trek's best science fiction stories. Though Norman Spinrad, an acclaimed science fiction writer, received script credit for the episode, it seems ...

  15. Star Trek S2 E6 "The Doomsday Machine" / Recap

    Weapon of Mass Destruction: The planet killer, hence Kirk's reference to "the Doomsday Machine" — an allusion to a popular 1960s term for thermonuclear warheads (or "the H-bomb"), as he himself points out. We Need a Distraction: Kirk uses the Constellation to divert the planet-killer from moving in on the Enterprise.

  16. "Doomsday" & More With Norman Spinrad, Part 1

    Norman Spinrad penned "The Doomsday Machine," one of the original Star Trek's most memorable episodes, and he also penned "He Walked Among Us," a script that went unproduced - at Spinrad's own urging - and then seemingly vanished for 45 years. That teleplay recently made its way back to Spinrad - long a respected, award-winning author -- when a fan asked him to autograph it ...

  17. Doomsday Machine (part 7 of 7) Star Trek TOS 1966-1968

    Science fiction/Action adventure/Space. Created by Gene Roddenberry. Starring William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley (Kirk, Spock and Dr. McCoy) - N...

  18. The Star Trek Transcripts

    The Star Trek Transcripts - The Doomsday Machine. The Doomsday Machine Stardate: 4202.9 Original Airdate: 20 Oct, 1967. [Bridge] (Plenty of security around, and a blonde woman instead of Uhura at communications.) PALMER: The distress call definitely came from one of the solar systems in this sector. KIRK: Can you pinpoint it any closer, Lieutenant?

  19. STAR TREK: "The Doomsday Machine"

    In a desperate attempt to destroy a mindless killing machine, Captain Kirk pilots the USS CONSTELLATION down its throat! Now remastered to 4K/60fps, fresh f...

  20. 7 Classic Star Trek Characters Strange New Worlds Season 3 Can Debut

    In Star Trek: The Original Series' "The Doomsday Machine," Commodore Matt Decker (William Windom) was the commanding officer of the USS Constitution.When the Constitution encountered a robotic planet killer, Decker tried to save his crew members by beaming them to a nearby planet. But after the alien machine destroyed the planet, Decker remained the only surviving member of his crew.

  21. Star Trek TOS

    Star Trek TOS - Original Effects ... Star Trek (8.4/10) is an American science fiction media franchise created by Gene Roddenberry, which began with the eponymous 1960s television series and became a worldwide pop-culture phenomenon. ... Star Trek - 2x06 - The Doomsday Machine.avi download. 350.7M . Star Trek - 2x07 - Wolf in the Fold.avi ...

  22. Star Trek TOS: Doomsday Machine

    The End of the Doomsday Machine - absolutely fantastic digital enhancements!

  23. TrekNews.net on Instagram: "The STAR TREK: THE ORIGINAL SERIES second

    66 likes, 2 comments - treknews on October 20, 2022: "The STAR TREK: THE ORIGINAL SERIES second season episode "The Doomsday Machine" aired for the fir..." TrekNews.net on Instagram: "The STAR TREK: THE ORIGINAL SERIES second season episode "The Doomsday Machine" aired for the first time 55 years ago today.

  24. Star Trek Doomsday Machine (part 6 of 7) TOS 1966-1968) # ...

    Science fiction/Action adventure/Space. Created by Gene Roddenberry. Starring William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley (Kirk, Spock and Dr. McCoy) - N...

  25. Star Trek TOS

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