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Published Jan 7, 2019

6 Things to Know about "The Omega Glory"

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The Star Trek: The Original Series episode " The Omega Glory " debuted on March 1, 1968. In it, Captain Ronald Tracey (Morgan Woodward) breaches the Prime Directive when he uses Federation technology to save a primitive tribe, the Kohms, from a brutal group called the Yangs. This is also the episode in which Kirk famously recites the preamble to the United States Constitution.

StarTrek.com is pleased to share 6 Things to Know about "The Omega Glory" :

Roddenberry Wrote It

Series creator Gene Roddenberry wrote the episode, which aired as the 23rd hour of TOS 's second season.

Dagger of the Glory?

Morgan Woodward had the distinction of portraying two wild-eyed, emotionally volatile TOS characters: Dr. Simon Van Gelder in “ Dagger of the Mind ” and Captain Ronald Tracey in “The Omega Glory." The actor, who is now in his 90s, told StarTrek.com in 2015, " Star Trek is a cult, and any time you’ve got a cult, it continues and continues. It just keeps going. The (conventions and autograph) shows I’ve gone to, most of the people want me to sign pictures from Star Trek . I sign pictures from Dallas and the westerns and Cool Hand Luke , too. The Man with No Eyes from Cool Hand Luke is still very, very popular, and that’s 50 years, too. But it’s mostly Star Trek that people want me to sign pictures of, and I get that."

Our Favorite Exchange of Dialogue

Spock : "Does our involvement here also constitute a violation of the Prime Directive?"

Kirk: "We merely showed them the... meaning of what they were fighting for. Liberty and freedom have to be more than just words. Gentlemen, the fighting is over here. I suggest we leave them to discover their history... and their liberty."

Almost a Pilot

According to the Star Trek Compendium , drafts of "The Omega Glory," " Mudd's Women " and " Where No Man Has Gone Before " were among the scripts considered to serve in 1965 as the second Trek pilot. Ultimately, "Where No Man Has Gone Before" got the nod, and the rest is history.

Star Trek Will Return

When this episode aired, it did so amidst doubts that NBC would renew the show for a third season. But the fans won out, thanks to the letter-writing campaign spearheaded by Bjo and John Trimble. During the closing credits of "The Omega Glory," NBC revealed that Trek would be back for a third season, and the network implored fans to stop sending any further letters.

Leslie Lives!

Lt. Leslie died in " Obsession ," the episode that aired a week before "The Omega Glory." Yet, there Leslie was, arresting Captain Tracey in "The Omega Glory." So, someone beat Spock to coming back from the dead.

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Review – “The Omega Glory” Remastered

| July 3, 2007 | By: Jeff Bond 51 comments so far

“Omega Glory” winds up as somewhat of an afterthought at the end of season two, ironically butted up against “Assignment: Earth,” itself a pilot for a Trek spin-off series. But while I have cringed along with everyone else at the story’s ridiculous denouement and the revelation that the blonde aliens on the planet are heroic Americans fighting for their land, I’ve always found the bulk of “Omega Glory” to be a fun, exciting outing of classic Trek . This is the episode excerpted on The Tom Snyder Show , which showed the teaser of the Enterprise discovering the U.S.S. Exeter in orbit around planet Omega IV and Kirk, Spock, McCoy and an expendable beaming aboard the ship and finding it abandoned—and just like Tom Snyder, I was hooked as a teen by this opening. In fact, the opening beats of the episode provide everything you’d want from a classic episode. Any time we see more of Starfleet, and in particular another starship, I’m hooked—even though it’s the simplest, cheapest trick in the book to stand the actors on the SAME SETS and have them act like it’s another ship. Another brilliant Trek gimmick is those uniforms lying around filled with what looks like crushed quartz crystals. McCoy’s revelation (“…the crew never left!”) and the idea that all those uniforms contain desiccated human bodies, well, ick is all I can say—it’s almost as good as reducing the crew to Styrofoam dodecahedrons in “By Any Other Name.”

The climactic fight scene couldn’t be more standard, but the combination of Woodward’s bullheaded refusal to go down quietly, the typical villain’s move of turning a primitive culture’s superstitions against them, and Spock’s atypical use of Vulcan hypnosis, make for an exciting scene. It’s only at its literally flag-waving ending that the story sheds all its inherent entertainment value and just turns ridiculous.

With its well-designed Kohm village exteriors, stark film noir interior lighting and interesting footage of the Exeter set dressings, “Omega Glory” has always looked good with the exception of the Yang’s bushy wigs. The new transfer makes a good thing look even better, at least after the initial Exeter and beamdown sequences, which suffer from a little of the drab brown caste that “Friday’s Child” exhibits. I’m partial to the original angle of the Enterprise approach to the Exeter in orbit—for all its technical shortcomings, there was a linear “we are here and that’s what we’re looking at right over there” graphic quality to the reuse of prior miniature elements and the new shots of the ships from the side, while obviously far more ambitious in terms of movement and execution, lack a little of the drama of the originals (the pull-in on the Exeter’s primary hull and its registry numbers is nice and well-suited to the dramatic musical sting used there, although bulletin boards all over the net are afire with arguments about the registry number). Sulu’s first magnification of the Exeter is interesting in that we see the ship as a small blip in orbit instead of the stock shot from the original episode, but this subtlety works against the big music cue here. It makes sense to make Omega IV more Earth-like but that IS starting to drain the variety and color from a lot of these episodes; too bad it’s so hard to reconcile the blue sky location footage with the magenta planet footage from the original because it could have been seen as after-effects from the planet’s war.

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Recap / Star Trek S2 E23 "The Omega Glory"

Edit locked.

Original air date: March 1, 1968

The Enterprise discovers its sister ship the Exeter in orbit around Omega IV, not responding to hails. Kirk, Spock, Bones and Redshirt Galloway beam straight on over without taking any isolation precautions, and find that the entire crew of the Exeter has been reduced to dust and uniforms. An Apocalyptic Log left behind tells them that if they are hearing this, they are doomed. They are now infected with the same virus that killed the crew and the only possible hope of surviving is to beam down to Omega IV. Kirk and co. beam down in search of a cure and find Ronald Tracey, the former captain of the Exeter , ruling among the Kohms, who are at war with the Yangs.

Tracey has developed a taste for power and immortality, and he's not going to let petty things like the Prime Directive , basic morals or a certain charismatic Starfleet captain stand in his way.

The Omega Tropes:

• An Aesop : At the end of the episode, Kirk asserts that the Yangs have as much of a right to liberty as the Kohms. When they protest that idea, Kirk roars with authority, "They must apply to everyone, or they mean nothing!" They back down, leaving Kirk to explain to Spock why this lesson was necessary to give.
• Alien Non-Interference Clause : Kirk gives a very clear summation of the Prime Directive, and is shocked to find that Tracey has abandoned it.
• All for Nothing : That's what Tracey finds out when Dr. McCoy tells him that the extreme lifespan of the natives is a product of natural evolution and there is no serum to isolate.
• All Hail the Great God Mickey! : A nuclear war destroyed civilization and the survivors' descendants are divided into Yangs (Yanks) and Kohms (Communists), the Yangs worship the Constitution without understanding its real meaning.
• All There in the Manual : In the shooting script, the main characters mention the Yangs and Kohms are too close to human to be a coincidence. They speculate they're a remnant of the early space program, setting up the ending where Kirk realizes the Yangs still have a copy of the Constitution. It's not hard to see echoes of the Joseph McCarthy era in Kirk lecturing Americans who have lost their way on what the nation's founding principles mean. But the scene was cut (possibly because it clashes with the timeline), and most viewers just rolled their eyes at the coincidence of an alien planet independently developing the US Constitution.
• Apocalyptic Log : The Exeter 's Chief Medical Officer leaves one, which cuts off as he screams in pain and collapses. "If you've come aboard this ship...you're dead men. Don't go back to your own ship. You have one chance. Get down there. Get down there fast. Captain Tracey is—" (screams and collapses)
• The idea that Kirk, Spock and McCoy can safely return to the Enterprise because they've been immunised to the virus is ludicrous, because they would still carry said virus and can still kill the crew with it- all they'd truly have done is become asymptomatic carriers, a la Typhoid Mary. Either the entire crew would have had to spend time on the planet as well (and then never interact with any non-crew or Omegian ever again), or the landing party would need to be isolated on their return until the virus was removed or expunged from their system.
• The notion that the apparent immortality of the natives is due to natural evolution is undermined by the revelation that the natives are in fact human and descendants of human colonisers, and on a rewatch Bones inadvertently implies that healthy living and good medical care are all that is needed for humans to live just as long themselves earlier in the episode.
• Ax-Crazy : Literally. When the phaser doesn't work, Tracey comes after Kirk with an ax.
• Bat Deduction : Kirk and Spock realise that the natives are descended from Americans and Chinese astronauts because they think "Yangs" must derive from "Yanks" and "Yankees" while "Kohm" must come from "Communists". They are proven right within seconds as the Yangs bring in an American flag, but this was pure guesswork (and arguably goes against McCoy's earlier insistence that the natives live long lives due to natural evolution and inherent traits), and really the scene would make far more sense if they just deduced this after the flag had been introduced.
• Big Damn Heroes : Sulu and two Redshirts who don't have time to die beam down in the nick of time.
• Bizarre Alien Biology : Tracey tries to use the fact that Vulcan hearts are not located in the chest as a way of convincing the Yangs that Spock is a demon.
• Boring, but Practical : Starfleet Captain Tracey believes that the Omega IV natives' natural immunity to disease explains their abnormally long lifespans, and that the immunizing agents in the planet's ecosystem can function as a Fountain of Youth for the rest of the Federation. Dr. McCoy runs his own tests, and scornfully says the agents might "cure the common cold" , but if people want to live longer, they'll get better results from eating healthy and exercising regularly.
• Cargo Cult : The Constitution and the American Flag are holy relics to be worshiped, while "freedom" is a holy word that Cloud William says should not be spoken by others.
• Deadpan Snarker : Spock is so deadpan in this episode, it's hard to tell if he's being snarky or serious.
• Does This Remind You of Anything? : Yangs = Yankees, Kohms = Communists. It's even pointed out In-Universe .
• Dramatic Ammo Depletion : Tracey has Kirk at phaser-point, ready to kill him. He pulls the trigger — and the phaser is out of power.
• Eagleland : The entire episode is built on this trope, culminating with Kirk reading the Constitution aloud.
• Early-Installment Weirdness : If the Yangs and Kohms are descended from an early Earth colonization effort of American and Chinese astronauts, and the current generation is centuries old (along with parents who are even older), then this would mean that Star Trek would have to be set much further into the future than merely the twenty third century. At least a thousand years for it to be plausible.
• The Extremist Was Right : Unintentional, but had Gene Roddenberry been more familiar with growing developments in genetic science even in the 60s, he'd have learnt that harvesting immortality from the DNA of the Yangs and the Kohms was totally possible once the right technology had been developed (as it almost certainly will be by the time we're a space-faring civilisation), and thus Tracey was correct in thinking it could be given to the rest of humanity.
• Forgets to Eat : A comely Kohm lady reminds a hard at work Bones he has to eat.
• A God Am I : The mere prospect of immortality has given Tracey one hell of a Messiah complex.
• Go Mad from the Revelation : After Tracey learns all his evil deeds are All for Nothing , you can see him snap at the news and proceeds to threaten Kirk for weapons for a pointless fight on a planet they now can leave any time they want to.
• The Good Guys Always Win : Lampshaded - The natives fully believe this, which is the reason they order a Duel to the Death . A very annoyed McCoy remarks that evil tends to triumph unless good is very, very careful.
• The Guards Must Be Crazy : Averted. McCoy thinks his guard is not paying attention and starts to reach for a communicator. As his hand gets near the guard's very large sword stops him. He then acts like he was just reaching for a drink.
• Hypocritical Heartwarming : Tracey tells the natives Spock literally has no heart (which they "confirm" by listening to his chest) and insists that he's a demon. Immediately McCoy , who ordinarily has no compunctions about joking that Spock resembles one, jumps in to say Spock isn't evil and just has his heart in a different place.
• Immortality Immorality : Tracey is willing to kill for the immortality he believes he will have on this planet, only for Bones to tell him that it's an evolutionary trait of the natives. All the atmosphere did was eradicate one virus.
• Inexplicable Cultural Ties : The only plausible explanation for this planet's culture is to have it be yet another alternate Earth (like the ones in " Miri " and " Bread and Circuses "). Having the Yangs and Kohms be a Lost Colony would have worked if only the show wasn't established to be set in the 23rd century. This doesn't allow for the fact that the inhabitants are hundreds of years old (with parents almost double the age).
• Jail Break : The concrete is old and weak.
• Kill Him Already! : After Kirk gets hold of the knife and forces Tracy to surrender by holding it to his throat. Cloud William tells him, "Kill him. It is written. Good must destroy evil." Kirk declines, and fully takes control of the situation as Sulu and two security guards beam down.
• Kneel Before Frodo : After Kirk wins the fight against Tracy, Cloud William kneels to him, thinking him divine. Kirk tells him to stand up.
• Large Ham : Kirk orders a large one in his impassioned speech on the rights of man.
• Meaningless Meaningful Words : Kirk recognized what Cloud William was supposed to be saying when he saluted the flag but after countless generations, the language had become corrupted, the words becoming mere ritual , and losing all meaning. Cloud William: "Ay plegli ianectu flaggen, tupep like for stahn—" Kirk: "And to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."
• New Powers as the Plot Demands : Spock being able to mentally compel someone to do what he wants, without touching them; the only other episodes in which he used similar powers were " By Any Other Name " and " A Taste of Armageddon ".
• Pint-Sized Powerhouse : Rather average-built Jim Kirk (played by 5'9" plus lifts William Shatner) successfully wrestles two much larger men, Captain Tracey (6'3" Morgan Woodward) and Cloud William (6'2" and very heavily-built Roy Jenson), although Downplayed as he struggles to actually defeat either of them and actually stalemates or loses the majority of his fights in the episode.
• Punctuated! For! Emphasis! : The way Cloud William pronounces the word "freedom". But it also comes out sounding like Hulk Speak . Cloud William: "Free-Dom?"
• Really 700 Years Old : The Kohms/Yangs are a species of very long-lived folk, due to the planet having had a massive biological war in the past, leaving the survivors to adapt to many lingering poisons and thus lengthening their lives through sheer immunity genetics. To impress Kirk, Tracey calls over a seemingly-young soldier who tells Kirk he's over four-hundred in Earth years. ("His father is well over a thousand ," adds Tracey.) Tracey assumes this is due to some youth potion, but to his regret, it is not.
• Redshirt : Galloway survives the expedition to the Exeter , but is later murdered by Tracey to prevent him warning the Enterprise about what Tracey's up to.
• Sacred Scripture : The "Worship Words", which are based on the Pledge of Allegiance and the preamble of the Constitution.
• Send in the Search Team : How the episode begins.
• Shoot the Messenger : After Kirk and company tell him that his crimes were All for Nothing , part of the reason Tracey goes literally Axe-Crazy on Kirk has got to be for telling him that bad news.
• Skeleton Crew : The crew of the Exeter has been completely dehydrated to dust due to a virus.
• Sole Survivor : Captain Tracey, after his entire crew is killed by the Omega IV virus.
• Space Western : Both visually and in terms of the story, it resembles the genre, with the Yangs playing the role of the antagonistic Indians.
• Stock Footage : The shot of Sulu manning the helm station with an empty captain's chair in the background in mid-Act One is recycled from " Arena ".
• Suddenly Shouting : Kirk briefly loses it when he has to spell it out to Captain Tracey that there is no serum to the extreme longevity that Tracey killed thousands to procure. It probably doesn't help his composure any that Tracey has just shot Spock and may have killed him. Tracey: You've isolated the serum? Kirk: THERE'S NO SERUM! THERE ARE NO MIRACLES! THERE'S NO IMMORTALITY HERE! ALL THIS IS FOR NOTHING!
• Tattered Flag : The one at the end held by the Yangs.
• Trial by Combat : It is written that good always overcomes evil, so Tracey and Kirk have to prove who's right by fighting over a knife stuck in the floor. Kirk wins, but spares Tracey's life. McCoy points out how this could have gone pear-shaped. McCoy : Spock, I've found that evil usually triumphs unless good is very, very careful.
• Yellow Peril : The Kohms, obviously.
• What Happened to the Mouse? : So did they recover the Exeter ? With the spaceframe perfectly intact, surely she could be decontaminated and re-crewed.
• Wrong Line of Work : Captain Tracey is a starship captain, but his knowledge of medical science is limited, and he when he learns of the inhabitants' long life-spans, he assumes that it's some form of a fountain of youth and/or immortality (obsession and madness only exacerbated this). The moment a trained medical professional comes along and properly examines all the clues, the outlandish claim is instantly dismissed. McCoy : Leave medicine to medical men, captain; you've found no fountain of youth! People [here] live longer lives because it's natural for them to!
• Zerg Rush : Tracey says that the Yangs overpowered them with sheer numbers, and that despite draining four phasers they just kept coming.
• Star Trek S2 E22 "By Any Other Name"
• Recap/Star Trek: The Original Series
• Star Trek S2 E24 "The Ultimate Computer"

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Star Trek: Who Are The Yangs?

The Yangs and their role in the Yang-Kohm War offer a compelling glimpse into the rich tapestry of civilizations within the Star Trek universe.

Among the myriad races that have graced the Star Trek narrative, the Yangs hold a unique and captivating place. Hailing from a remote corner of the galaxy, the Yangs made a lasting impression through their unforgettable appearance in the original series episode "The Omega Glory."

Star Trek , renowned for its exploration of diverse worlds and species, has continually fascinated fans with the rich array of societies encountered by the intrepid crews of various starships. Yet, even amidst this vast tapestry of beings, the Yangs stand as a compelling and thought-provoking species deserving of any fan’s attention.

RELATED: Star Trek: Best Episodes From Each Series

The Yangs, Explained

The Yangs, a human-like species featured in Star Trek , hail from the planet Omega IV. Unlike Earth, Omega IV's development took a tumultuous turn. In Earth's history, democracy triumphed over authoritarianism, leading to the advancement of human civilization. In contrast, Omega IV experienced a devastating conflict that left the planet in a state of perpetual warfare, with the Yangs and the Kohms locked in an unending struggle for dominance.

The origin of the Yangs can be traced back to Earth's distant past. Like many races in the Star Trek universe , they share a common ancestry with humans. However, over the millennia, the Yangs and their counterparts, the Kohms, diverged culturally and technologically due to their planet's turbulent history.

The Yangs, deeply influenced by their history, developed a society rooted in the values of freedom and democracy. They revered the United States Constitution, considering it sacred. Their society was organized into tribal groups who wielded immense influence and authority. The Yangs were known for their fierce independence and a willingness to fight for their ideals.

The Yang-Kohm War

The tumultuous history of Omega IV, marked by the catastrophic Yang-Kohm War, forms a crucial backdrop for the events unfolding in "The Omega Glory." What began as a standoff between two factions, the Yangs and Kohms, escalated into a devastating conflict characterized by open biological warfare. The war's arsenal included a sinister virus capable of disassembling the human body at the molecular level, leaving behind nothing but dehydrated crystals, a macabre testament to the horrors of their struggle.

The Kohms, initially known as "Communists," emerged as victors in this grim confrontation, while the Yangs, originally referred to as "Yankees," found themselves on the losing side. Survivors of this harrowing war adapted to their toxic environment, acquiring an astonishingly extended lifespan, stretching beyond a millennium. This newfound longevity became a hallmark of their existence.

The consequences of the war were profound. The Yangs, driven from their once-thriving cities, were forced to adopt a lifestyle reminiscent of Earth's native Americans as they sought survival in the unforgiving wilderness. By the 23rd century, Omega IV had regressed to an Iron Age level of civilization. The Yangs, clad in tribal attire, made their homes in the rugged hills and mountains that surrounded the remnants of their once-great cities. Meanwhile, the Kohms, whose attire bore a resemblance to Earth's Mongolians, inhabited the ruins, marking the stark division between the two factions.

With the Yangs' determination to reclaim their ancestral cities from the Kohms, the stage was set for a profound clash of cultures and ideals, a conflict that would resonate deeply in the hearts of Star Trek fans.

Star Trek TOS: ‘The Omega Glory’

"The Omega Glory" is the twenty-third episode of the original Star Trek series, airing during its second season. Written by Gene Roddenberry and directed by Vincent McEveety, the episode originally aired on March 1, 1968. The episode features the iconic crew of the USS Enterprise, including Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner), Mr. Spock (Leonard Nimoy), and Dr. Leonard "Bones" McCoy (DeForest Kelley).

The episode begins with the Enterprise responding to a distress call from Omega IV, where they discover the centuries-old conflict between the Yangs and the Kohms. As the Federation Starship Enterprise approaches Omega IV, a mysterious discovery awaits them in the form of the USS Exeter, ominously orbiting the planet. Captain Kirk, First Officer Spock, Dr. McCoy, and Lt. Galloway embark on a mission to investigate the eerie silence aboard the Exeter. What they find is chilling – a deserted ship adorned with uniforms stained by a crystalline substance that, upon closer examination, is revealed to be human remains. The ship's logs offer a grim revelation: the Exeter's crew succumbed to a deadly infectious disease, one that has now infected the landing party. The only chance for survival is to beam down to the perilous planet below.

Upon reaching Omega IV's surface, the landing party encounters Captain Ron Tracey, the sole survivor of the Exeter's catastrophe. Tracey's survival, it seems, is no mere stroke of luck. He reveals that remaining on the planet grants immunity to the deadly disease. Yet, there's a twist: Tracey has aligned himself with the Kohms in their protracted conflict against the Yangs.

Intrigue deepens as Spock investigates the battlefield , uncovering evidence of Tracey's violation of the Prime Directive. Kirk's attempts to contact the Enterprise are thwarted, and it becomes evident that Tracey is willing to go to great lengths to protect his newfound allies. He orders McCoy to probe the secret of the natives' extraordinary longevity, while Kirk and Spock find themselves imprisoned alongside two Yang prisoners.

With cunning resourcefulness, Kirk initiates an escape plan, only to be betrayed by the untrusting Yang. As the trio regroups, Spock crafts a makeshift communicator, but Tracey's paranoia leads to its destruction. In a desperate bid to ensure his own survival, Tracey's sanity begins to unravel, culminating in an attempt to force Kirk into arming the Kohms.

Fortune takes a turn when Yang warriors intervene. The group is brought to their village, where Kirk encounters a familiar face – Cloud William, his former cellmate. During a profound ceremony celebrating the Yangs' triumph, Kirk and Spock draw a parallel between "Yang" and "Kohm" with "Yankee" and "Communist," hinting at the planet's history paralleling Earth's, albeit marred by a devastating biological war.

The revelation unfolds as William produces an ancient American flag and recites the Pledge of Allegiance in a garbled accent, leaving Kirk to complete it. Tracey, desperate to save himself, denounces Kirk and Spock, labeling them as fallen angels. The climax arrives as Kirk suggests a trial by combat between himself and Tracey, leading to a telepathic intervention from Spock, who activates a communicator, alerting the Enterprise.

Sulu and a security team arrive, taking Tracey into custody. As the dust settles, Cloud William, now in awe of Kirk , presents a version of the American Constitution. Kirk seizes the moment to rebuke the Yangs for forgetting its essence, and emphasizes that these words must apply universally. William, though not fully comprehending, solemnly swears to uphold these principles.

As the landing party departs, Kirk pays silent tribute to the flag, leaving viewers with a poignant reminder that the values of freedom and democracy should endure, even when the setting is a distant planet in the far reaches of the cosmos. The Yangs, their tumultuous history, and their pivotal role in the Yang-Kohm War are a meaningful representation of the diverse tapestry of civilizations within the Star Trek universe.

MORE: Star Trek: Unluckiest Characters

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How the Original ‘Star Trek’ Addressed the War in Vietnam

By: Roy Wenzl

Updated: November 3, 2021 | Original: September 7, 2018

When the TV show “ Star Trek ” first aired in the late 1960s, the program was nowhere near the blockbuster money machine of syndication and sequels it later became. Ratings were low. Only the sci-fi geeks cared. 

But in the 1970s, fans watching reruns helped helped breathe new life into the franchise—in part, because they appreciated how the show took risks, sometimes wading into the most divisive issues of the day.

Like the war in Vietnam .

The show's creator, Gene Roddenberry , says that setting the drama in space gave him the distance to address hot-button cultural topics. “It seemed to me that perhaps if I wanted to talk about sex, religion, politics, make some comments against Vietnam, and so on..." he said, "that if I had similar situations involving these subjects happening on other planets to little green people—indeed it might get by. And it did.” 

Killing Off the Pacifist

In early episodes, Roddenberry and the show’s other creators appeared to be more or less supporting America's interventionist role in the world, says cultural historian and author H. Bruce Franklin, history professor emeritus at Rutgers University and author of four books on the Vietnam war. Franklin also guest curated the '90s exhibit “Star Trek in the Sixties" at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum. 

On April 6, 1967, for example, producers aired “City on the Edge of Forever,” in which Enterprise captain James T. Kirk stops his medical officer Dr. Leonard “Bones” McCoy from saving the life of Edith, a prominent peace activist. His reason? Because if she lives, she will prevent the U.S. from getting into World War II in time to stop the Nazis . It’s an episode where Kirk goes back in time to try and correct the timeline—while also falling in love with the woman who needs to die to correct it.

The episode’s Vietnam War subtext came to the fore in the script-revision process, says Franklin. While the original script focused on the tragedy of doomed love, with no reference to Edith's peace activism, the revised script shifts the story focus. In it, first officer Spock speculates that if Edith were to live, she might spread her pacifist ideas, slowing America’s entry into World War II and thus altering its outcome.

In the episode as it aired in 1967, Spock’s speculation became a major plot point whose subtext was the growing anti-war movement of the time. Asked 25 years later whether show runners intended the episode to contain contemporaneous anti-Vietnam-war references, producer Robert Justman replied, "Of course we did."

The Center Seat: 55 Years of Star Trek premieres Friday, November 5 at 10/9c on The HISTORY ® Channel

Support for Containing Communism

In “A Private Little War” (aired Feb. 2, 1968), the Enterprise crew discovers that their Klingon enemies have been arming one tribe on a primitive planet with flintlock muskets. After Kirk gives muskets to the other tribe, claiming it will create a balance of power, doctor McCoy strenuously objects. This excerpt from an episode transcript echoes the Cold War superpower tensions that led to America’s containment policy—and ultimate involvement—in Southeast Asia. Kirk even makes a direct reference to the Vietnam War:

MCCOY: I don't have a solution! But furnishing them firearms is certainly not the answer!

KIRK: Bones, do you remember the 20th-century brush wars on the Asian continent? Two giant powers involved, much like the Klingons and ourselves. Neither side felt they could pull out.

MCCOY: Yes, I remember. It went on bloody year after bloody year.

KIRK: What would you have suggested—that one side arm its friends with an overpowering weapon? Mankind would never have lived to travel space if they had. No. The only solution is what happened back then: balance of power.

“It’s what the U.S. was trying to do in Vietnam,” says Franklin, referring to the American efforts to limit Soviet expansion and deter a nuclear showdown between Cold War superpowers.

READ MORE: 8 Ways the Original 'Star Trek' Made History

As the Nation Soured, So Did the Show’s Creators

By early 1968, American public opinion about the war underwent a significant shift.

In February of that year, North Vietnam shocked the U.S. with the Tet Offensive , a massive surprise attack on American and South Vietnamese strongholds. A month later, American soldiers committed atrocities against Vietnamese civilians in the My Lai massacre . The takeaways were tough: The war was increasingly unwinnable. The U.S. government had been lying about that fact as it sent more young men to fight. And Yankees weren't always the good guys.

Around the same time, the show creators seemed to undergo their own radical shift. Case in point: “The Omega Glory,” episode 23 in the series’ second season, which is blatantly anti-war. To make his point, Roddenberry puts the Enterprise crew on a planet with two bitterly warring tribes, the Yangs and Kohms, with subtexts about biological warfare and the immorality of outside interference. If those names weren't obvious enough, the Yangs (Yanks) have somehow in their history obtained an exact copy of the original U.S. Constitution , and revere it as a sacred text—though they don’t understand it.

In the climactic scene, Kirk holds up the Constitution before the chief of the victorious warring faction, declaring that the document and its principles of basic human rights were written for all people, even one's enemies.

But while Kirk was touting America's ideological superiority, Franklin says, declaring that Communists (or Kohms) deserved the Constitution’s protections was a dangerous risk to take on television at that moment in history.

More than a decade after U.S. Senator Joseph McCarthy convened 1954 Senate hearings to identify and condemn anyone believed to have Communist sympathies, tens of millions of patriotic Americans still regarded Communists not only as enemies, but as toxic carriers of an ideological disease: "red fever." And even though mass anti-war protests had broken out around the country by 1968—questioning why young U.S. men were being sent across the world to fight and die to stave off Communism—there were still plenty who thought those protesters disgraced the most heroic, generous and decent nation on the planet.

The episode aired just days after the Tet Offensive ended, leaving nearly 4,000 American soldiers dead in only a month of fighting. Roddenberry’s message was timely.

“The Omega Glory” could have ruined Roddenberry, who was already pushing the show upstream against terrible ratings and pressure from NBC executives. By 1968, “Star Trek” was losing $15,000 an episode, the equivalent of $500,000 per episode today, says Marc Cushman, author of These Are the Voyages , a history of the show.

“Later on, when it became hugely successful, ‘Star Trek’ became an enormous industry, with a whole different set of values than what they had in the beginning,” says Franklin. “But in the beginning, they tried to say something.”

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The Omega Glory Stardate: Unknown Original Airdate: 1 Mar, 1968

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Cloud William

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Cloud William was an inhabitant of the planet Omega IV . He was a chief , as had been his father .

In 2268 , he was the chief of the Yangs , the guardian of the Holies, and the speaker of the Holy Words (a version of the United States Constitution ). The Yangs were at war with the Kohms , who were being helped by Captain Ronald Tracey in violation of the Prime Directive .

After attempting to kill USS Enterprise Captain James T. Kirk when they were imprisoned together, Cloud William escaped and led a successful Yang attack on the last Kohm village . After he had accepted that Kirk and not Tracey was telling the truth about their origin, Kirk informed him about the true meaning of the Constitution with its values of liberty and freedom applied to all people. Cloud William did not fully understand, but swore to follow Kirk's words and began studying the documents together with his people.

Cloud William's full title was "Chief. Also son of chief. Guardian of the Holies, Speaker of the Holy Words, Leader of Warriors ." ( TOS : " The Omega Glory ")

• 1 Abdullah bin al-Hussein

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Star Trek - The Original Series, Episode 54: The Omega Glory [VHS]

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VHS TAPE - NEW - IN THE ORIGINAL SHRINK WRAP - SHIPPED DAILY FROM PLANO TEXAS VIA USPS MEDIA MAIL. EPISODE 54: THE OMEGA GLORY

The script by series creator Gene Roddenberry is one of his not-so-subtle allegories for the state of the world in the 1960s, specifically our own cold war between nuclear superpowers. So bluntly drawn is Roddenberry's parallel between Omega IV and 20th-century Earth that this is one of the few Star Trek episodes that risks becoming completely absurd after a point. William Shatner (Captain Kirk) takes the biggest risk of all with a passionate, lengthy speech of the sort pranksters like comic actor Kevin Dunn are wont to imitate today. But the fact is that Shatner pulls off such chancy material very well, and certainly does so here. --Tom Keogh

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• Is Discontinued By Manufacturer ‏ : ‎ Yes
• Product Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 7.5 x 4.25 x 1 inches; 3.49 ounces
• Run time ‏ : ‎ 46 minutes
• Release date ‏ : ‎ April 15, 1994
• Date First Available ‏ : ‎ February 9, 2007
• Actors ‏ : ‎ Star Trek Original Series
• Studio ‏ : ‎ Paramount
• ASIN ‏ : ‎ 6300213587

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The Star Trek DS9 And TOS Episodes That Influenced Strange New Worlds' Darkest Episode

In the "Star Trek: Strange New Worlds" episode "Under the Cloak of War" (July 27, 2023) , a Klingon ambassador named Dak'Rah (Robert Wisdom) comes to visit the U.S.S. Enterprise on a diplomatic mission. "Strange New Worlds" takes place immediately after the Klingon War, and several of the ship's crew remember the conflict vividly, expressing prejudice and consternation to see a Klingon on board. Captain Pike (Anson Mount) reminds his officers to keep an open mind, but Dr. M'Benga (Babs Olusanmokun) cannot. 

Through flashbacks, audiences learn the horrible wartime conditions that both Dr. M'Benga and Nurse Chapel (Jess Bush) served under, and they were bleak. There weren't enough medical supplies to go around, and Dr. M'Benga had taken to storing injured soldiers inside a transporter pattern buffer, hoping to rematerialize them when more could be done. He also secretly develops a rare and dangerous steroid called Protocol 12 which temporarily increases strength and stamina but also robs one of their ability to discern right from wrong. The drug turns people into berzerk killing machines. 

Dak'Rah was present at the same battle Dr. M'Benga barely survived, and the doctor resents the Klingon's attempts at diplomatic contrition, knowing of the blood on his hands. Later, it will be revealed that Dr. M'Benga has an even darker secret and that more violence happened during the war than he initially communicated. War, the episode argues, will break everyone and everything. 

This is in keeping with Trek's usual attitudes toward war, often depicted as humanity's ultimate failing. 

In a new interview with TrekMovie , "Cloak" director Jeff Byrd pointed to other bleak, war-themed episodes of "Star Trek" as precedent, showing that the franchise has a dim view of armed conflict and that anytime it happens, morals decay. 

A Private Little War

The TrekMovie interviewer was astute enough to recognize the two episodes in question. The first was the "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine" episode "The Siege of AR-558" (November 16, 1998), and the other was the original series episode "A Private Little War" (February 2, 1968) . 

"A Private Little War," often referred to by Trekkies as "the Vietnam War episode" featured a peaceful, primitive planet that inexplicably started fighting each other with flintlock rifles, a technology centuries beyond their capabilities. Kirk (William Shatner) finds that the locals have been given the weapons by a Klingon named Krell (Ned Romero), a cruel interloper who wants to perpetuate a primitive Civil War for his own nefarious purposes. Kirk faces a moral dilemma. He can provide more weapons to the losing side of the Civil War, giving them a better chance for survival, but forcing him to actively perpetuate the conflict. Or he can step out and let one side be killed. 

Byrd summed it up, saying: 

"Yes, the one where they are selling the weapons and keep upgrading. So a lot of those were brought into this script-wise and then realized by me on set visually." 

"The Siege of AR-558," meanwhile, is an out-and-out combat episode of "Deep Space Nine." At that point in the series, the Federation had been at war with the Dominion for over a year, and capturing communications relays was key to winning. Sisko (Avery Brooks) managed to fend off an attacking Dominion force, but lost many Federation officers in the process. The episode if violent and bleak. Everyone is injured and horrified. War is Hell. Davy Perez, the writer of "Under the Cloak of War," knew both "Private" and "Siege" when he penned the episode.

The Siege of AR-558

"The Siege of AR-558" also features a scene wherein Ensign Nog (Aron Eisenberg) has his foot blown off . Medicine in "Star Trek" is advanced enough to easily grown him a new one, but Nog still has to face horrible trauma. Byrd also noted other war movies outside of "Star Trek" that influenced the battle scenes in "Under the Cloak of War." 

"Obviously, there are comparisons in here to ' Apocalypse Now' and there is a little ' Hamburger Hill' in there, and even some ' Born on the Fourth of July .' We discussed, on set, a lot of little Easter eggs [you would see] if you're looking really closely at certain little moments. We wanted to make sure that we got some iconic moments and framing and different things of these iconic war films so that it feels familiar but it's in a different time.

It's notable that the three films Byrd cited are all about the Vietnam War, the infamously messy quagmire that killed about 3.8 million people and achieved very little. That war was surrounded by lies and deceit, and the American soldiers knew it. Vietnam was proof that the United States war machine was an ignoble enterprise that cost billions and murdered the poor. It's no coincidence that the notoriously pacifistic "Star Trek" was created in the shadow of Vietnam. In a very real, living sense, "Star Trek" exists as a direct refutation of combat-forward thinking. Gene Roddenberry looked at the horrors of war and envisioned a future when it would be futile. 

Very occasionally, "Star Trek" has to depict war, however, to remind audiences of how horrible it is. 

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The Enemy Within

• Episode aired Oct 6, 1966

A transporter malfunction splits Captain Kirk into two halves: one meek and indecisive, the other violent and ill tempered. The remaining crew members stranded on the planet cannot be beamed... Read all A transporter malfunction splits Captain Kirk into two halves: one meek and indecisive, the other violent and ill tempered. The remaining crew members stranded on the planet cannot be beamed up to the ship until a problem is fixed. A transporter malfunction splits Captain Kirk into two halves: one meek and indecisive, the other violent and ill tempered. The remaining crew members stranded on the planet cannot be beamed up to the ship until a problem is fixed.

• Richard Matheson
• Gene Roddenberry
• William Shatner
• Leonard Nimoy
• DeForest Kelley
• 45 User reviews
• 14 Critic reviews

• Captain James Tiberius 'Jim' Kirk

• Mister Spock

• Yeoman Rand

• (as Edward Madden)

• Lieutenant Nyota Uhura
• (uncredited)

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• Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

Did you know

• Trivia The original script called for Spock to karate chop Kirk to subdue him. Leonard Nimoy felt that this would be an uncharacteristically violent act for a peace-loving species like the Vulcans so he came up with a pincer-like grasp on the neck that has since become known as the Vulcan Nerve Pinch and become one of the character's most famous gimmicks.
• Goofs During the showdown between Good Kirk and Evil Kirk on the bridge, Evil Kirk's scratch marks are suddenly shown on the right cheek instead of the left as they had been throughout the episode.

Lt. Cmdr. Leonard 'Bones' McCoy, M.D. : He's dead, Jim.

• Alternate versions Special Enhanced version Digitally Remastered with new exterior shots and remade opening theme song
• Connections Featured in Star Trek Logs: An MTV Big Picture Special Edition (1991)
• Soundtracks Theme From Star Trek Written by and credited to Alexander Courage

User reviews 45

• Mar 30, 2009
• October 6, 1966 (United States)
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• Runtime 50 minutes

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