Review

This exciting and fast paced story could have been as good as Balance of Terror were it not for a few bad choices in terms of aesthetics and plotting. The most annoying detail is that we're introduced to yet another god-like alien race: the Metrons. How many of these are there in the Star Trek universe? The second most annoying detail is the one-dimensional way in which the Gorn are presented. Unlike the Romulans, the Gorn are pretty much just sneering, growling, hissing monsters and don't really have much depth to them beyond the surface. A better episode would have allowed the conflict between Kirk and his Gorn counterpart to emerge organically rather than using the super lame super aliens to set up the duel. Likewise a better episode would have fleshed out our Gorn characters a bit more. I like the idea that they probably thought they were merely acting in self defense, but something more nuanced would have been more interesting.

Another problem with the Gorn is that their physical deficiencies in terms of agility were blown quite a bit out of proportion to what is realistic. For a creature that has evolved bipedalism, the Gorn captain's level of clumsiness was highly exaggerated. But who knows, maybe this Gorn was arthritic or something. Unfortunately arthritis doesn't quite explain the scene where the Gorn pins Kirk with a rock, goes to deliver a deathblow to Kirk, and then conveniently decides to stop and move the rock off of Kirk which allows Kirk to escape before the Gorn can resume his attempt to deliver the deathblow. But who knows, maybe the Gorn captain was stupid as well as arthritic...

One detail I enjoyed quite a bit was Kirk's bamboo cannon. While the bamboo cannon was well within the bounds of realistic science, don't try it at home kids, because there are many risks associated with trying to slap together something like that. Firstly, Kirk's bamboo shaft must have been unusually strong because most ordinary bamboo shafts used in this way would shatter in all directions from the explosion rather than directing most of the explosive force at the diamond projectile as intended. Likewise, Kirk's charcoal must have been some pretty potent stuff, unlike what you'll find for use in grilling steaks. In short, Kirk got pretty lucky. If the materials he found weren't sufficiently well suited for this little science project, his bamboo cannon easily could have injured or killed him instead of his opponent. That said, the Metrons picked this planet for the duel for a reason and I find it hard to believe the bamboo cannon wasn't within the bounds of their imagination.

Kirk showing mercy on the Gorn at the end was a great detail and nicely demonstrates the spirit of Star Trek. If we didn't have the Metrons getting in the way of the plot, a better ending could have depicted Kirk showing mercy on the Gorn at the end as a means to open diplomatic negotiations regarding the status of Cestus III. I imagine the Gorn would be compelled to cede the world to the Federation as some sort of penance for their ruthless surprise attack. The Federation would in turn be prohibited from making any further incursions into territory claimed by the Gorn. Unfortunately that much better ending full of space politics and treaty negotiations isn't at all what we got. What we got instead was a bunch of vague philosophizing about humanity's promise and potential. Nevertheless it's not a bad story though. Certainly one of the better ones so far.