tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1867678243594042401.post3193906586079744460..comments2024-01-18T02:11:31.995-05:00Comments on GLENN GREENBERG'S GRUMBLINGS: STAR TREK THROUGH FRESH EYES, PART TWOGlenn Greenberghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13080935309485100122noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1867678243594042401.post-58854724839685574442011-03-25T20:46:15.533-04:002011-03-25T20:46:15.533-04:00Oh, and make sure to get her a copy of D'AULAI...Oh, and make sure to get her a copy of D'AULAIRE'S NORSE GODS AND GIANTS. It's just a wee hair lesser than the Greek mythology book and it gave me my first real grounding on the Norse legends (Thor comics do not count). And when you do get it for her, make sure to consult the guide in the back for proper pronunciation of the names. I mean, how often do you run into names like "Utgardsloki" and get it right the first time out?Bunche (pop culture ronin)https://www.blogger.com/profile/11831085937894725459noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1867678243594042401.post-16052815252258606552011-03-25T15:38:55.104-04:002011-03-25T15:38:55.104-04:00Love your responses, Bunche! I'll address the...Love your responses, Bunche! I'll address them point by point--<br /><br />1) Rest easy, my friend! Maddie already has a copy of D'AULAIRE'S BOOK OF GREEK MYTHS. She loves it.<br /><br />2) Please note that only MADDIE listed "I, Mudd" as a favorite, so take it up with her. I certainly have always liked Harry Mudd and I enjoyed both of the episodes in which he appeared, but I wouldn't rate either of them as among the very best of the seasons in which they aired. I think Maddie got a kick out of the pot belly, the handlebar mustache, and the larger than life performance by Roger C. Carmel. Interestingly, she prefers "I, Mudd" over "Mudd's Women."<br /><br />3) I knew you'd get the MST3K reference. I simply couldn't resist.<br /><br />4) Amen, brother. <br /><br />5) For each season, I've gone through every episode with her and asked her what she thought. For some episodes, including the ones you mention above, she simply didn't have much to say. I think "Metamorphosis" was a little over her head, "The Gamesters of Triskelion" sort of left her cold, she liked "A Piece of the Action" but wouldn't rank it among her very favorites, she didn't fully understand "Patterns of Force" because she doesn't know a lot about Nazis yet (though she did laugh out loud at Kirk's reaction when Spock tells him that he'd make a very convincing one), and "Assignment: Earth" just didn't grab her--and she didn't like Roberta Lincoln's sense of fashion. <br /><br />6. I totally get where you're coming from. In the case of "Bread and Circuses," that always came off to me, for the most part, as a satire about the television industry, so I've been more willing to suspend my disbelief with that one.<br /><br />7. There are some moments in "The Omega Glory" that I think are pretty good, and that prevents the episode from being a complete write-off. The first act or two are actually fairly strong. Then it goes into the crapper. I'm just kind of neutral on "Catspaw." It doesn't thrill me, it doesn't offend me.Glenn Greenberghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13080935309485100122noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1867678243594042401.post-5896711162966284632011-03-25T08:10:30.421-04:002011-03-25T08:10:30.421-04:00I love reading what Maddie has to say about all of...I love reading what Maddie has to say about all of this. Brings me right back to my own days of total TREK immersion on Channel 11, staring when I was around eight. (I remember seeing the show during the tail end of its NBC run because my mom was a huge fan, but it wasn't until Channel 11 that I was able to watch it and grasp it for myself.) And now, some notes:<br /><br />1. If Maddie is into Greek mythology — which most intelligent people tend to be, and good on you for encouraging her interest — I hope she has a copy of D'AULAIRE'S BOOK OF GREEK MYTHS, a book that to me holds more value than The Bible. If she doesn't have it, GET IT IMMEDIATELY. BUNCHE HAS SPOKEN!<br /><br />2. I hate, Hate, HATE Harry Mudd. I can tolerate "Mudd's Women" for its serious tone, but "I, Mudd" has turned me off since childhood. I just can't stomach the character.<br /><br />3. "George Takei REALLY acting." Nice nod to MST3K!<br /><br />4. I'd forgotten how this was the season that really put Spock on the map. Christ, I love him! And I guarantee you that I'll be a goddamned mess when Leonard Nimoy inevitably passes on... (I'm not a guy who's afriad to say "dies," but in this case...)<br /><br />5. What, no Maddie commentary on "Metamorphosis," "The Gamesters of Triskelion," "A Piece of the Action," "Patterns of Force," or "Assignment Earth?"<br /><br />6. One of the things that drives me insane about this season is the inordinate number of worlds that the Enterprise encounters that have indigenous populations whose cultures are identical to or based upon aspects of Earth history. I've always been particularly vexed by that trope as seen in "Bread and Circuses," thanks to that crap about parallel cultural development; I can buy that to a certain extent, but to the degree found here? Uh, NO.<br /><br />7. How in hell can you not consider "The Omega Glory" a stinker? The whole KOhms and Yangs thing was incredibly ham-handed, and do NOT get me started on the "Ee'd Plebnista." (Although Shatner's signature performance of that "big reveal" is downright hilarious.) Also, "Catspaw" has been in my personal Bottom Ten since I was a kid. Appalling. No, worse than appalling, thanks to it being written by the guy who have us PSYCHO. There was simply no excuse, and those shitty puppets at the end...PTUI! PTUI!!!Bunche (pop culture ronin)https://www.blogger.com/profile/11831085937894725459noreply@blogger.com