10 Classic Star Trek: The Original Series Episodes Nobody Remembers Today

Star Trek: The Original Series is one of the most groundbreaking shows in TV history, but these 10 classic episodes are all but forgotten today. Gene Roddenberry’s vision for an idyllic future for humanity really struck a chord back in the late 1960s, and the franchise has only grown in the decades since. The original adventures on the final frontier continue to inspire new generations of dreamers.

Across the show’s 80-episode run, Star Trek: The Original Series delivered more than a few stories that redefined what was possible on the small screen. With their heady sci-fi concepts and philosophical moral dilemmas, the best of TOS represents some of TV’s strongest writing from the period. Unfortunately, a lot of great episodes are frequently overlooked.

Because there are so many must-see installments of TOS, it is pretty easy to let a few slip through the cracks. Sometimes they are overshadowed by more popular episodes, and other times they are simply misunderstood masterpieces that have aged like fine wine. No matter why these classic episodes are forgotten, it’s a real shame that they don’t get the praise they deserve.

While some of the episodes on this list could be called flawed, there is a charm that cannot be denied. For all of its grandiosity and vision, Star Trek: The Original Series is still a cheesy ’60s sci-fi show at heart, and many episodes reflect that fact. What it really comes down to is entertainment value, and every one of these overlooked gems from TOS is guaranteed to keep you glued to your seat.

10

“Dagger Of The Mind” – Season 1 Episode 9

Sandwiched between some of the show’s greatest episodes, season 1, episode 9, “Dagger of the Mind” is one entry that gets missed by new fans. Kirk and the Enterprise crew investigate a penal colony where a doctor is using an experimental treatment on his patients’ brains. The episode is noteworthy because it features the first appearance of the Vulcan mind meld.

“Dagger of the Mind” asks some pretty tough questions about the notion of justice, and puts some sizable cracks in the utopian image of humanity’s future. Later episodes of the franchise would return to the topic of criminal justice and reform, but the early TOS installment does it best. Even if the episode is a bit unbalanced, the whole is better than the sum of its parts.

9

“The Conscience Of The King” – Season 1 Episode 13

There was a theatrical and literary quality to The Original Series and never was that more clear than in “The Conscience of the King.” A performer in a traveling Shakespeare troupe bears a striking resemblance to a notorious mass murderer, and Kirk invites him aboard the Enterprise to investigate. The episode is steeped in Shakespearean drama, and it’s the first time Star Trek felt like a thriller.

Kirk’s passion for cracking the case is at odds with his duties as captain, and the tension is palpable. One of TOS‘ greatest strengths was its ability to evolve, and season 1, episode 13, is unlike anything else in the first season. It eschews science fiction, but doesn’t feel too removed from what the franchise stands for. Rich storytelling takes center stage, and “The Conscience of the King” does The Bard justice.

8

“Court Martial” – Season 1 Episode 20

“Court Martial” is often overlooked because it came mere weeks after the release of “The Menagerie”, which also features courtroom drama. In the episode, Kirk is charged with cowardice when one of his officers is left to die during a research mission. It offers a closer look at the structure of Starfleet, and digs a bit deeper into Kirk’s meritorious past. Though it’s ultimately a bottle story, it has a nice twist.

The mystery builds with pretty effective suspense, and the audience is left to guess how things are going to play out. The supporting cast really shines, and the episode effectively uses characters like Spock to get to the bottom of things. The 20th episode of season 1 is a prime example of how TOS takes classic storytelling structures and makes them unique.

7

“The Apple” – Season 2 Episode 5

Star Trek is all about exploring “strange new worlds” and season 2, episode 5, “The Apple” sure serves up one of the strangest of all. The Enterprise discovers a planet inhabited by humanoids who serve a mysterious entity known only as Vaal, but something isn’t quite right about the so-called god. “The Apple” illustrates how the Star Trek lore was somewhat flexible during the TOS era.

The Prime Directive is tossed out the window and the characters act somewhat unlike themselves, but it’s such a fun sci-fi story it deserves to be considered a classic. The vibrant colors and interesting effects are a time capsule to the 1960s, and the episode represents the charming side of the beloved show.

6

“Catspaw” – Season 2 Episode 7

Star Trek has never really done holiday specials, but “Catspaw” can be considered the franchise’s only Halloween episode. Kirk, Spock, and McCoy beam down to a planet that is inhabited by two magicians who conjure up a spooky world that’s like something from a haunted house. Season 2, episode 7 isn’t good per se, but there’s no denying that “Catspaw” is compelling.

It’s so absurd and wacky that viewers can’t help but be entertained, and it’s one of the few times the series is truly unrestrained. It’s perfect to watch around Halloween, and really embraces the spirit of the holiday. It does tie back to sci-fi in the end, though that’s about the only part of the forgotten classic episode that makes any sense.

5

“Obsession” – Season 2 Episode 13

The Star Trek franchise would return to the Moby Dick analogy in The Wrath of Khan years later, but “Obsession” did it first. When a deadly cloud kills some of his crew, Kirk becomes obsessed with destroying the creature even if it puts his ship in jeopardy. Star Trek is always best when the characters’ human side comes through, and the episode features Kirk at his most vulnerable.

Even in the TOS era, writers were deconstructing the show’s somewhat idealistic view of humanity and its emotional advancements in the future. Season 2, episode 13, is a gripping drama about the rigors of command, and it portrays the show’s almost perfect captain as anything but. The hidden gem has only gotten better now that more than a half-century has passed.

4

“Bread And Circuses” – Season 2 Episode 25

Usually overlooked in favor of TOS‘ other episode involving planets with ancient human cultures, “Bread and Circuses” is so much more. The Enterprise discovers a planet that models itself after ancient Rome, but they utilize modern technology. What starts as a simple historical story blossoms into a biting critique of the TV industry.

Kirk and his crew are forced to compete in a deadly game show, one of the earliest appearances of that well-worn sci-fi concept. Considering the fact that it was released decades before the rise of reality TV, season 2, episode 25, is one of Star Trek‘s most prescient moments. Though the episode doesn’t fully live up to its clever concept, it’s still a real classic that’s deserving of a second look.

3

“Specter Of The Gun” – Season 3 Episode 6

Gene Roddenberry always described Star Trek as a space western, and season 3, episode 6, “Specter of the Gun” took that concept literally. Trapped on a strange planet with only primitive weapons, Kirk and company are forced to reenact the showdown at the OK Corral. Instead of making the story a simple historical with the Enterprise crew in the Old West, there’s a surreal quality to the episode.

“Specter of the Gun” feels a lot like an episode of The Twilight Zone, with its dreamlike imagery and subtle scares. However, it still feels like Star Trek because it places rational characters in a largely irrational situation. Season 3 of Star Trek: The Original Series is often written off wholesale, but there are more than a few legitimate classics in the show’s final outing. “Specter of the Gun” is one such episode.

2

“Let That Be Your Last Battlefield” – Season 3 Episode 15

Though Star Trek is beloved for its heady themes that comment on contemporary issues, The Original Series wasn’t always very subtle with its messaging. In “Let That Be Your Last Battlefield”, the Enterprise gets caught in a war between two alien races that look almost exactly alike. The whole purpose of the episode is to point out how absurd racism and bigotry can be.

The two-toned alien designs are iconic, but the episode itself is largely forgotten. However, it is a stellar platform for the performance of Frank Gorshin, who steals the show as the episode’s villain. It was a pretty risky movie to take on racism so overtly in the 1960s, but season 3, episode 15, pulls no punches. It’s one of the show’s all-time great episodes, even if its a forgotten gem.

1

“All Our Yesterdays” – Season 3 Episode 23

The penultimate episode of the entire series is without a doubt the show’s most underrated, and it’s shocking how little attention “All Our Yesterdays” receives from fans. While evacuating a dying planet, the Enterprise crew enter a time portal that sends them to various points in history. Time travel is nothing new in Star Trek, but season 3, episode 23, puts some clever twists on the concept.

Spock regresses to his barbaric origins, and it allows Leonard Nimoy to shed his stoic personality for a while. It’s a pretty clever concept all around, and shows how Star Trek: The Original Series was pushing the boundaries of science fiction while still remaining familiar and accessible. Because it comes so late in the series, “All Our Yesterdays” is sadly overlooked.

Release Date

1966 – 1969-00-00

Showrunner

Gene Roddenberry