Cheap Star Trek - The Original Series, Episode 9: Balance Of Terror (Video) (James Goldstone, Murray Golden, James Komack, Don McDougall, Robert Butler, Marc Daniels, John Meredyth Lucas, Leo Penn, John Erman, David Alexander) Price

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Customer Reviews of Star Trek - The Original Series, Episode 9: Balance Of Terror

The wedding of U.S.S. Enterprise crew members Angela Martine (Barbara Baldavin) and Robert Tomlinson (Stephen Mines) is rudely interrupted when the ship learns that Federation Outpost 4 along the Romulan Neutral Zone is under attack. It is soon obliterated and Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner) discovers that three other Federation outposts in the same area have been similarly destroyed. While investigating the carnage, the crew learns that a lone Romulan ship is the guilty culprit. The Enterprise pursues the ship but is at a marked disadvantage because the Romulan ship is employing a cloaking device which makes them impossible to track. As the two ships play a cat-and-mouse game with each other, the Enterprise manages to catch a glimpse of the Romulan bridge and discovers that their mysterious foes resemble Vuclans in their appearance. Lieutenant Andrew Stiles (Paul Comi) instantly becomes hostile toward Mr. Spock (Leonard Nimoy) because he suspects the Vulcan of being a Romulan spy. When the Romulan Commander (Mark Lenard) is forced into a corner, he decides to directly take on the Enterprise. However, he is defeated and destroys his ship when faced with the prospect of capture. A blow also is dealt to the Enterprise when Kirk learns that Tomlinson did not survive the battle. With a heavy-heart, the captain comforts Martine who is devastated by her loss.

"Balance of Terror" is a landmark episode in so many ways. It introduced the Romulans who would become recurring villains for years to come and the concepts of the cloaking device and the neutral zone which would also become important Star Trek staples. It also was definite proof that Star Trek could do action and adventure without compromising any of its progressive ideals. The transplanted battleship-submarine conflict alone would have distinguished "Balance of Terror" as solid entertainment but the way the story took the time out to humanize the combatants while addressing the notion of bigotry elevated the episode into something truly special. Star Trek juggled many balls with this outing and did not drop a single one. In sum, "Balance of Terror" is a rousing episode that still entertains to this day. It easily ranks among the best works Star Trek has produced in any of its incarnations.

The "first" encounter with the Romulans in the series
This is another classic episode of Star Trek and one of my top 5 favorites. It gives us a "first" glimpse at the Federations mortal enemy the Romulans (Romulan Empire) and my goodness they also look like Vulcans!?!?! Well, that is answered in episodes yet to come in upcoming series (The Next Generation).

This begins when a mysterious ship is destroying Federation Outposts and James Kirk and the USS Enterprise soon discover it is their classic enemies the Romulans. What follows is a classic strategic cat and mouse "game" that is like the movie "The Enemy Below" that starred Robert Mitchum as a WWII US Destroyer Captain and Kurt Jergens as a German U-Boat Commander. The Jergens part in this episode is played oustandingly by the late Mark Lenard. You can guess who plays Mitchum's part, why of course James T. Kirk (William Shatner).

Both of these Captains start to have a respect for each others skills and the best line of the episode is when the Romulan Commander tells Kirk, "in another reality we could of been friends". Talk about respect, that says it all dosen't it?

Overall, this is a classic episode and highly recommended to all Star Trek fans.

Best Trek yet
This Romulan battle episode was one of Star Trek's best shows. This episode demonstrates that while science fiction expands the range of possible stories, generally some of the best stories are the most universal. This episode could easily have been transported to the deep, and renamed Das Boot. The basic premise is simple enough, but the story is divided into discrete sections, each of which contains a surprise. I can't think of an episode which more often faded to commercial with actual drama. We are allowed right inside the Captains' minds, so we feel both their uncertainty and fear about encountering each other, and see them reformulating their strategies and estimations of each other as the chess match unfolds.
The episode is further assisted by Mark Leonard's acting (he's even better here than in Journey to Babel) and a dramatic score. The wedding scene also does not detract, since it reminds us that everything is affected by war. Kirk also is at his best here. Over the course of the episode he shows brilliance, compassion, and forgiveness. He also consoles, mediates, accepts criticism, is decisive, and stands up to injustice. Other pluses here include the stance taken on racism, and the fact that the brain trust, even at this early stage in the show, was not afraid to give Kirk a worthy adversary.