‘Star Trek’ Retro Recap: ‘And the Children Shall Lead’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

​If there is one important lesson that the Writer’s Room of Star Trek should have learned from season two of this series, it would have to be to not mix horror and Trek together. Because there were several episodes during year two of the five-year mission, that tried to inject elements of the supernatural into a story that is grounded in science and logic and the end result was pretty darn messy for certain. But despite those dubious results, no heed was paid to this lesson, since the next episode of this storied franchise reintroduces a horror and science fiction mix, with slightly better results than what we saw in those prior tales.
 
Because while those episodes were an utter disaster, ‘And the Children Shall Lead’ is an inconsistent tale at best. One that initially toys with a poignant idea in regard to death. For a trip to a doomed colony reveals that only the children survived an odd slaughter and there really was a grandiose chance here to dive deep, into how humans who face death on a daily basis would process it alongside everyday people. But instead… all of that took a backseat to a sub plot involving some kind of omnipotent and evil being that wants to rule the galaxy and it is unfortunate that the show once again tried to fuse these two genres together because the first storytelling element we just discussed, would have made for one incredible tale.
 
But instead, we get a Sci-Fi prequel to Children of the Corn. Because the kids that the crew of the Enterprise rescue are somehow best friends with an evil being known as the Gorgan, and it doesn’t take long for them to use mind control powers that he’s taught them, to take over the ship and use fear to keep their agenda going and well, this is where things get messy. Because the fears that are put on display in this tale, aren’t deep rooted or powerful, they’re dumb. They’re everyday fleeting thoughts that somehow manage to paralyze the crew. And to complicate the goofiness of this plot further, these fears are beatable, which means Kirk and Spock should have been able to phaser every last one of these rotten little kids and re-take control of the ship without issue.
 
Yet while there is plenty to nitpick about the plot and the acting, what really hurts this story is that there is nothing dangerous or scary about what happens aboard the ship in the slightest. It’s just a collection of moments that don’t work because spooky stuff doesn’t work on Star Trek. Case and point, having the Gorgan try to be some kind of Biblical or supernatural interpretation of good versus evil. Because we already know deep down, he’s some kind of powerful being grounded in science, so his theatrics fall flat here. And when one realizes that the kids really are never going to up the ante in this tale, and that the Gorgan is basically going to kick back and quarterback this thing from the spiritual sidelines, you more or less tune out of this one and patiently wait for it reach its anticlimactic ending, and that makes this episode slightly frustrating as well.
 
Because thus far season three has been a hodge podge of unique concepts that are poorly executed, and this is another one in that vein. Because adding some proper depth to the Gorgan and giving it a genuine purpose outside of popping up from time to time to spew evil scripture, could have added depth to this character and made him genuinely creepy. Plus, giving the kids some genuinely horrific abilities could have made for some intriguing moments as well. But in the end, this is what we get, and really thus far, with only one real solid story in the stable; it’s obvious the show is just treading water in season three. Which means all we can hope for are some genuine gems as year three rolls along, so that this final season has more to offer than inconsistent storytelling. Until next time.

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