‘Star Trek’ Retro Recap: ‘Is There in Truth No Beauty?’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

At this point in our journey through season three of Star Trek, it is outright safe to say that year three of the five-year mission has been woefully inconsistent. Because we’ve been settling in to watch one conflicted story after another, the kind that are trying desperately to accomplish way too much storytelling wise. Which is a shame since some quality plot threads are being overshadowed by some oddly goofy ones. But thankfully it would seem that the Writer’s Room of this storied series came to a similar realization after the first four episodes left for production. Because the next episode of this series, takes the time to resurrect two key storytelling elements that helped us to fall in love with this franchise in the first place.
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Because Trek is always at its best when it shows us strange new worlds and explores the human condition along the way and that’s really all you find in ‘Is There in Truth No Beauty?’ For in this tale, the crew of the Starship Enterprise is on a mission to reunite a unique ambassador with his people and said diplomat is where the strange part comes into play. For Ambassador Kollos is a Medusan, a species of aliens so outlandish in their physical form, that the mere sight of them can drive a man to madness and aboard the Enterprise, the only people that can interact with him ‘face to face’ are Commander Spock and a brilliant telepath named Miranda Jones and well, the introduction of this being is just a true treat. For he really is something alien and wonderful and it feels right to see that back on the show.

As for an exploration of the human condition, well that is handled by the aforementioned Doctor Jones. Because she is an ambitious telepath, one that will stop at nothing to accomplish as many firsts as possible. And while that makes it seem as though we are going to explore how ambition can be a negative behavior since it can cause more harm than good, what truly allows for Miranda’s journey to shine is the sheer fact that she is actually blind, and her ‘ambition’ is related to something far deeper. For she serves as an allegory as to how differently abled individuals are often viewed as less capable in our modern world, and there is something quite inspiring about seeing her rise to the occasion despite her affliction and it is also quite wonderful to see the ship’s crew treat her as an equal, often.

But, what would an episode of Star Trek be without a little conflict to drive the story and that’s present here as well. For an associate of Doctor Jones is also aboard for this journey, and it just so happens that Mister Lawrence Marvick is in love with Miranda and since she is only dedicated to the Ambassador, he feels the need to harm this alien and in doing so… sees Kollos’ true form. Which drives him mad and motivates him to push the Enterprise toward Warp 10, which strands the ship well outside of the galaxy. And in order to get home, Spock has to risk his life by merging minds with the Ambassador and while it works, it brings Spock within an inch of his death since he too sees Kollos and that gives Miranda a chance to do a wonderful deed by saving Spock’s life. Which of course she does and of course, the crew completes their mission.

If anything, this is just a return to form for the series. Because everything here feels right and it works, and you’re enthralled with every single second that unfolds on the screen and that is supremely refreshing for certain. Because this is the type of polished episode that everyone expected season three to feature on a regular basis. Plus, as an added treat, this episode features another appearance by Diana Muldaur, and she does another incredible job as a guest star here, since her portrayal of Miranda Jones is sublime for certain and without her gravitas some of these scenes likely would not have worked. Either way, it was just delightful to watch a pure episode of this series once again and hopefully this is the beginning of a hot streak of quality episodes at last, so that the series closes out with a bang and not a whimper. Until next time.

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