The Paradise Syndrome

TOS Season 3 Episode 3
Air Date: October 4th, 1968

Plot

Kirk, Spock and McCoy beam down to a planet that is very similar to earth environmentally. They end up in a beautiful forest and find an obelisk with unrecognized writing. They also observe what appears to be a native american settlement. Spock even says they are native american which would make me believe they could have become the Maquis. The reason the Enterprise is in the system is to divert an asteroid from hitting the planet.

Kirk checks out the obelisk again and falls through a trap door and triggers a computer underneath it. Spock and McCoy can't find Kirk so they are forced to beam up to the Enterprise to go divert the asteroid before it is too late. Kirk wakes up but can't remember who he is.

Kirk stumbles on the village where some of the girls think he is a god. He is brought before the village elders where they doubt him. Then a young boy is brought in, recently drown and Kirk uses CPR to revive him, making all the elders now believe. They take the medicine bag from Salish and give it to Kirk. This also means that Miramanee is now betrothed to Kirk.

Meanwhile, the Enterprise arrives at the asteroid and tries to deflect it but they can't get it to deflect enough. Spock orders to move in front of the asteroid and use phasers to break it up. He does damage but not enough and he wore out the warp engines. Spock starts analyzing the obelisk writings during their 60 day trip back to the planet Kirk is on using impulse power, just 4 hours ahead of the asteroid.

Over the 60 days Kirk becomes settled into his new life, with a new name Kirok, and is now scheduled to be joined with Miramanee. Salish's jealousy leads him to attack Kirok where he learns that Kirok can bleed. Kirok beats Salish but doesn't kill him, and he threatens to tell everyone. Kirok then finds out that Miramanee is pregnant with his child.

Kirok was prophesied to arrive and use the obelisk to stop the wind, lightning and darken sky. Kirok admits that he doesn't know how to get into the obelisk but he goes and tries. When he fails, the villagers start throwing stones at him.

Spock discovers that the obelisk was left by a super race called the Preservers who save primitive races and even seed some planets. McCoy concludes that the obelisk must be used to deflect asteroids. They transport down which scares the natives away.

Kirok and Miramanee are unconscious when McCoy arrives and McCoy is able to stabilize them. Spock uses the Vulcan mind meld to help Kirok remember he is Kirk. Spock tells Kirk that the obelisk is owned using a series of tones and words, and Kirk realizes his communicator plus the words "Kirk to Enterprise" was what opened the obelisk. It worked and Spock was able to fire the obelisk and divert the asteroid.

After all is saved, Kirk goes to Miramanee and finds out that she won't survive. Even though Kirk's memories are back, his love for Miramanee didn't wean.

Commentary

Yet another episode where someone comments that the planet is almost exactly like earth and asks what are the odds. Spock always says "Astronomical" but the question is, what is the odds of three planets, or six?

Many native american stereotypes are used in this episode. from uniforms to how they live. It isn't any different then other shows of the time.

Spock and McCoy make a realization that the Preservers are an advanced race that seeded and protected the galaxy, which explains why there are so many humanoid life forms across the galaxy. This is a theme that gets revisited in TNG and it will be interesting if it is the Preservers that they discover there.

Quotes

"It's unbelievable. Growth, exactly like that of Earth, on a planet half a galaxy away. What are the odds of such duplication?" - Kirk

"Astronomical, Captain." - Spock

"That Vulcan won't be satisfied till these panels are a puddle of lead!" - Scotty

"Well, your Vulcan metabolism is so low it can hardly be measured, and as for the pressure, that green ice-water you call blood..." - McCoy