Star Trek – The Way to Eden

★ February 21, 1969 Season 3 Episode 20

If you want to see where we are…and you missed a few…HERE is a list of the episodes in my index located at the top of my blog. 

This show was written by Gene Roddenberry, Arthur Heinemann, and D.C. Fontana

Not a strong episode or particularly a good one. This is one of the weakest episodes of the series. Now if you are looking for a product of it’s times episode…this is the one for you! Interstellar Hippies + Enterprise is basically what it is. 

The Enterprise intercepts a stolen spacecraft as it heads into Romulan space. Those aboard are flying it in such a reckless manner that it explodes just as they are beamed out. Once aboard the Enterprise, we see that they are a bunch of space hippies. They intend to set up a new colony on Eden; a perfect planet they believe they will find. Kirk is unimpressed and plans to take them to the nearest star base…the only reason they aren’t thrown in the brig is that one of them is the son of an ambassador.

They soon start causing trouble; trying to incite younger crew members to join them and generally being obstructive. Spock seems to have an understanding with them and agrees to use the ship’s computer to help them find the planet they seek. The group is given medical scans which reveal that its leader Dr Sevrin is the carrier of a deadly disease; he is quarantined but soon after his followers release him and take over auxiliary control. From here they shut off bridge controls and take the Enterprise to their Eden in Romulan territory. 

The planet, while as beautiful as all of them imagined, also has a very deadly side.

From IMDB:

Uhura does not appear in this episode. Lieutenant Palmer, who fills in, makes her second and final TOS appearance after The Doomsday Machine (1967).

The space hippie protest “Herbert, Herbert, Herbert!” is a gag, referring to both Star Trek four time director Herb Wallerstein, and long time Executive in Charge of Production Herbert F. Solow. (Spock tells Kirk that the reference to Herbert is “somewhat uncomplimentary” and that “Herbert was a minor official, notorious for his rigid and limited patterns of thought.”)

For the scene in which Spock plays his Vulcan harp for Adam (the last time he plays the instrument on the series), the background music for Uhura’s song from Charlie X (1966) is recycled.

James Doohan (Scotty) stated that this was his least favorite episode.

Charles Napier wrote some of the songs Adam sings.

Walter Koenig was highly critical of the writing for “The Way to Eden”. In particular he felt Chekov was written as too authoritative, rigid and by the book, a complete contrast from his usual and intended characterization.

Dr. Sevrin is based on Timothy Leary, a controversial psychology professor who advocated LSD as a therapeutic drug.

This episode was originally entitled “Joanna.” The character of Irina was originally to be Joanna McCoy, daughter of Dr. McCoy, and love interest for Captain Kirk, but that original script was rejected. The character of Joanna was planned to later appear in the fourth season, but Star Trek was canceled at the end of the third season.

In this episode, for the first time, Chekov’s first and middle names are spoken/revealed, Pavel Andreivich.

In some scenes, William Shatner can be seen to be wearing a corset.

Nurse Chapel’s collapse, as well as the collapse of other crew members in the corridor, is reused footage from Spock’s Brain (1968). This is why the lights go out in sickbay during that shot, while they are functioning normally elsewhere on the ship.

Dr. McCoy does have a number of salt shakers in his arsenal of “medical equipment” (as well as boat anchors) but the spinning hand scanner was a special prop made by the prop department to go with the medical tricorder. It did nothing but spin.

A brief shot of the surface of Eden is reused footage of the lakeside from Shore Leave (1966). A shot of the surface of Gamma Trianguli VI from The Apple (1967) is also recycled and used in the same scene.

Star Trek V: The Final Frontier (1989) recycles many elements of “The Way to Eden,” including Spock’s desire to find Eden.

Skip Homeier also starred in Patterns of Force (1968) as Melakon.

In the original version of the episode, the spacecraft Aurora is a Tholian ship with AMT model kit nacelles added to it. It is shown in the preview trailer without the nacelles. For the remastered version, a new design was created.

Summary

The Enterprise intercepts a stolen spacecraft heading directly for Romulan space. Its occupants are six space-age hippies who refuse to accept authority and are unconventional in their thinking. Led by the renowned Dr. Sevrin, they are in search of paradise – the mythical planet Eden. Kirk cannot relate but Spock does and agrees to help locate the planet. Spock also concludes that Sevrin is insane. For Chekov, it’s a chance to re-unite with Irina, with whom he was in love while they were students at the Academy. When the travelers manage to take control of the Enterprise, they realize their dream and arrive on Eden, which has surprises of its own.

CAST

William Shatner … Captain James Tiberius ‘Jim’ Kirk
Leonard Nimoy … Mister Spock
DeForest Kelley … Dr. McCoy
Skip Homeier … Sevrin
Charles Napier … Adam
Mary Linda Rapelye … Irina (as Mary-Linda Rapelye)
James Doohan … Scott
Walter Koenig … Chekov
George Takei … Sulu
Majel Barrett … Nurse Chapel
Victor Brandt … Tongo Rad
Elizabeth Rogers … Lt. Palmer
Deborah Downey … Girl #1
Phyllis Douglas … Girl #2