The Trouble with Tribbles

TOS Season 2 Episode 15
Air Date: December 29th, 1967

The Trouble with Tribbles is probably considered one of the best episodes of TOS. It involves a cute small creature known as a tribble that feeds and reproduces at an alarming rate. It even created another fan favorite DS9 epsiode Trials and Tribulations.

The Enterprise responds to a distress call from star base K7 in space close to Klingon space. The distress call was a ruse by a federation agricultural representative to protect grain stores. His authority forces Kirk to help. Meanwhile a merchant shows up to the station and sells tribbles to a local merchant and gives one to Uhura.

Klingons show up and want to have shore leave, and given a treaty that was signed in the Federation requires them to grant it. Kirk pairs each Klingon with a security guard. Meanwhile the tribbles start multiplying and they don't seem to like Klingons, a mutual feeling.

The tribbles start getting into everything. The bridge, the food dispensers. On the station even in the grain that Kirk was supposed to protect. Spock realizes that many of the tribbles are dead. When investigating what was killing hte tribbles they get a tribble next to the federation representatives aid where they react like he is a Klingon. They discover that the grain was poisoned which was meant to go to a colony.

As a parting gift, Scotty transported all the tribbles to the Klingon Ship.

The actor that plays the Klingon captain was also the actor that played Trelane in season one.

"Ah, one parsec, sir. Close enough to smell them." - Chekov
"That is illogical, Ensign. Odors cannot travel through the vacuum of space." - Spock
"I was making a little joke, sir." - Chekov
"Extremely little, Ensign." - Spock

"I have never questioned the orders or intelligence of a Federation representatives .... until now" - Kirk

"Does everyone know about this wheat but me?" - Kirk

"Most curious creature, Captain. Its trilling seems to have a tranquilizing effect on the human nervous system. Fortunately, of course, I am... immune to it's effect..." - Spock

"Do you know what you get if you feed a tribble too much?" - McCoy
"A fat tribble." - Kirk

"I didn't mean to say that the Enterprise should be hauling garbage. I meant to say that it should be hauled away AS garbage!" - Korax

"Aye, sir. Before they went into warp, I transported the whole kit 'n' caboodle into their engine room, where they'll be no tribble at all." - Scotty