‘Star Trek’ Retro Recap: ‘The Return of the Archons’

Written by John Edward Betancourt 

​As I begin to close in on the final episodes of season one of Star Trek, I have to admit that I find myself reflecting upon where this journey has taken me thus far. Because this really has been one of the wildest rides I’ve ever enjoyed when it comes to television since year one of this iconic saga has been all over the place storytelling wise. For we’ve seen some brilliant tales, the kind that remind us why we love this saga so, while at the same time… we’ve also revisited some awful stories, the kind that would trend badly on Twitter in this day and age. If anything, this unique voyage back through the stars has proven that creating a new television show is no easy task, and it takes way more time to perfect a series than expected and for proof, look no further than the next episode of this iconic series.
 
Because ‘The Return of the Archons’ was in brief, a supremely weird episode. One that tried to accomplish way too many things over the course of the hour. For this particular tale tries to be a fascinating mystery early on, since we are introduced to a strange community on Beta III, one devoid of personality and charm and one that loves to celebrate violence from dusk ‘till dawn apparently and well, this was all just weird to see on screen. Because while I get this was designed to pique our curiosity and suck us into the story, it’s so off the wall and so outlandish that it does the opposite. In fact, it straight up leaves you uncomfortable and it feels awkward to watch and sadly that only gets worse as the episode rolls on.
 
For this particular tale also offers up zero clues to the audience as to what exactly is going on here, something that could have made these odd events palpable. Instead, we just know that there’s a supreme being named Landru, and he apparently controls all, and while I get that we are supposed to fear him, the curiosity surrounding this being removes any fear from our minds. Because the audience is instead determined to see if the story is going to reveal anything about this being and explain why it is so obsessed with peace and tranquility and well, that’s where this episode fails the viewer. Because it takes way too long to get to those answers and by the time the truth is revealed, it is underwhelming at best.
 
After all, it turns out that Landru is an ancient computer, one programmed to bring harmony to this world and that’s just… eh. I mean come on, you spend all this time building up a society that is brainwashed and loyal to a deity that can control soundwaves and appear at will as a hologram, only to reveal that it’s an angry supercomputer? It just doesn’t work or wow us, especially when one considers that we’ve been introduced to beings that can control time and space with the mere raising of an eyebrow, making this episode nothing more than filler at best and that’s a shame because it had some serious potential story wise.
 
Because this one clearly could have gone deeper into notions of faith and undying devotion in an era where technology and science clearly dominate every aspect of human life, or it could have explored the power of said technology, when we let it control our lives. But instead, we are left with this confusing and weird mess and well, I suppose the only lesson to truly extract from this story is that; when the stories were good in season one of this series, they were shockingly good, and when they were bad, they were supremely bad and this one meets that latter qualification, and it is what it is. Because to paraphrase Jonathan Frakes, you can’t win them all, and I suppose what will make this one easier to let go of, is the sheer fact that the next episode up, is one of the franchise’s finest. So, it’s best I just chalk this one up to growing pains and hit play on the good stuff. Until next time. 

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