‘Star Trek’ Retro Recap: ‘Operation – Annihilate!’

Written by John Edward Betancourt 

​If there’s one unique element that tends to permeate the fabric of older television shows, it’s that sometimes the writer’s room of a particular series latched onto a particular idea and ran with it for weeks at a time. For example, if a particular character goes through a trying time in their fictional lives, someone clearly wonders what would happen if they are pushed a little harder by the universe and just like that we get an impromptu story arc where this poor man or woman are at their wits end as their world comes crashing down around them. And oddly enough, Star Trek was not immune to this style of storytelling, since the season one finale of the series saw Captain James T. Kirk dealing with more heartbreak and sorrow.
 
Which quite frankly, took me by surprise since the man was in essence crushed by having to let Edith Keeler die in ‘The City on the Edge of Forever’, and that seemed like enough suffering for the captain to go through. But in the opening minutes of ‘Operation – Annihilate!’ Kirk is worried sick about his brother and his brother’s family since the colony they live upon has gone dark and it only gets worse from there. For eventually we come to learn that Sam Kirk has passed on and soon after that Sam’s wife also succumbs to the strange illness infecting her world, and it also seems like Jim’s nephew might perish as well. And if that’s not enough for the captain to go through, the story just keeps pouring it on by putting his best friend’s life in danger when Spock is violently attacked by the flying jellyfish that now live on the planet’s surface.
 
If anything, I have to say I was quite amazed with the fact that the writer’s room felt the need to enact the old adage of ‘when it rains, it pours’ for the captain since he keeps getting kicked while he’s down in this story, but there is a rhyme and a reason for making the man go through hell. Because it tests him like never before, and despite the losses and the pain, he still has to command the Enterprise and it is quite fascinating to watch Jim work to balance his grief with his duties as a Starfleet Captain and that honestly provides us with another quality performance from William Shatner as he carefully balances anguish and honor on screen. And kudos also need to go to Leonard Nimoy as well for his performance, since he does an incredible job of working to keep Spock stable through the physical pain he’s experiencing.
 
Yet while it seems as though this particular story is filed with low and sorrowful moments, that’s simply not the case. In fact, there’s a lot to root for in the story, since it actually brings out the best in Kirk and Spock once they recognize the powerful challenge that lies before them. For the jellyfish that lurk planet side have plans to conquer all of the galaxy, adding a sense of urgency to the story and it really is quite impressive to watch these men put their problems aside and work together and accomplish wonders in order to save countless lives. And the fact that they do, makes this an inspiring yet pyrrhic victory to say the least, because while the galaxy is indeed saved from this menace, lives were lost, and a lifeform was wiped out.
 
In the end however, I have to admit that this was a proper way to wrap up the first season of this iconic series. Because in many ways, the challenges that Kirk and his crew face in this episode, speak to the best parts of the franchise. For the need to rise above and find a solution in the face of extreme odds is a common theme present in Trek, as is the great debate of saving life versus taking it and that’s why I loved this episode. For it was moving, and thoughtful and powerful and considering how shaky the first year of this series was, this is the kind of growth one needs to see, storytelling wise, to feel confident that great stories await the audience down the line and I am truly looking forward to diving into season two and enjoying every single second of year two of the five-year mission. Until next time.   

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