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Star Trek Review: THE CORBOMITE MANEUVER
Director Joseph Sargent's, THE CORBOMITE MANEUVER, is a clever, thought
provoking Sci-Fi episode, that includes some elements of; "The
Wizard of Oz". Sargent's other directing credits include: "Colossus-The
Forbin Project".
The alien Balok's vessel, the Fesarius, is a gigantic ship, composed
of numerous collected spheres. Shots of the Enterprise, dwarfed by the
huge Fesarius, are impressive.
When we first see Balok on a view screen, we see a spooky, grim-faced
alien. We later learn that this is a dummy, and not the real Balok.
The late Ted Cassidy, Lurch, on TV's The Addams Family, provided the
voice for the false Balok.
My favorite scene is the one in which Kirk, threatened with the destruction
of the Enterprise, bluffs Balok with a made up story about the substance,
"Corbomite". He tells Balok that Corbomite, in the hull of
the Enterprise, will cause any destructive beams fired at it to bounce
off and destroy the attacker.
Child actor, Clint Howard ("Gentle Ben") is engaging as the
"real" Balok. The late Vic Perrin provide the voice for the
"real" Balok. He was best known as, "The Control Voice"
on "The Outer Limits". The grown up Howard showed up recently
in the short lived CBS Sci-Fi series, "Space Rangers", and
also played a criminal on a "Seinfeld" episode.
"THE CORBOMITE MANEUVER" should be fairly watchable for most
Sci-Fi viewers. "Wizard of Oz" fans may appreciate the episode's
twist ending.
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