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Recap / Star Trek S2 E26 "Assignment: Earth"

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Original air date: March 29, 1968

The Enterprise goes back in time to visit the year 1968 to observe and report. Amazingly, they discover a transporter beam signal, something that didn't exist in 20th Century Earth. They intercept and beam aboard a humanoid called Gary Seven and his black cat, Isis. Mr. Seven soon escapes, sending a few Redshirts to la-la land. (No one dies in this episode. In fact, they all have blissful smiles on their faces as they're incapacitated.) As he beams down to Earth, Kirk and Spock follow to make sure he doesn't pollute the time stream since his excuse of being from a planet they never heard of and being there as an agent of protection seems far fetched.

Who is Gary Seven, and why is he so insistent on getting to McKinley Rocket Base?

Assignment: Tropes:

• And the Adventure Continues : Kirk and Spock refer to interesting experiences Roberta and Gary will have once NBC green lights their (never realized) series.
• As You Know : Gary Seven explains to his computer (and thereby the audience) what his mission is; the computer already knows, but insists on a demonstration that he knows, as proof that he's who he says he is.
• Cat Girl : In human form, Isis wears her hair to vaguely look like cat ears.
• Crapsack Only by Comparison : Gary Seven disgustedly describes the 20th century world of the episode's original audience as "primitive" and comments "It's incredible that people can exist like this."
• Curse Cut Short : Roberta stops a computer before it can say where her star shaped mark is located . (Granted, the computer probably would've used medically acceptable terminology for whatever part of the anatomy her mark was on.)
• Distant Sequel : The events of this episode go completely unremarked in canon for the next fifty-four real-life years (and fifty-six years in universe) before the presence of Supervisors on late-20th/early-21st century Earth becomes a major plot point in season two of Star Trek: Picard . Furthermore, the Supervisors are revealed to have been recruited by the Traveler's species.
• Early-Installment Weirdness : While time travel is possible in subsequent Star Trek works, it's never again done so easily by a Starfleet crew, and the Temporal Prime Directive would have made a mission like this unlikely.
• Exact Time to Failure : Gary says that it's necessary to detonate the platform while it's at least a hundred miles up (it ends up being detonated at 104 miles). Possibly justified in that the nation it was about to fall on could more easily go along with sweeping the incident under the rug if it happened "in space" rather than "in our airspace".
• Field Trip to the Past : It's a time travel story. Gary must convince the people of Earth to be excellent to each other by not blowing each other up.
• Forcefield Door : Gary is kept locked in by one, until he opens it with a pen that's remarkably like a sonic screwdriver .
• Good Versus Good : Kirk and Gary Seven spend the episode butting heads because, what with the risk of totally derailing the course of history, Kirk simply can't take Gary's alibi at face value.
• Hammer and Sickle Removed for Your Protection : The U.S. is putting a nuclear warhead into orbit in response to a similar act of aggression by another power. Which power is never specified, but we all know who they're talking about, don't we? Later on, the malfunctioning warhead is headed for "the heart of the Euro-Asian continent." Look at a map from 1968, and you'll see there's pretty much only one country in that vicinity.
• Impersonating an Officer : Gary creates a batch of fake ID cards with various police and intelligence credentials. When he realizes that he's let Roberta Lincoln see more than she should, he covers himself by claiming to be a CIA agent.
• Informed Ability : The computer reports that despite her erratic behavior, Roberta possesses high IQ but we never actually get to see that.
• Intelligible Unintelligible : Gary Seven responds to Isis's mewing as if it were intelligible speech.
• Gary Seven regularly holds and pets his cat Isis. He is on Earth to save it from nuclear arms race in space and saves Captain Kirk from being killed by Roberta.
• Spock is shown petting Isis, who seems to adore the attention. Spock has an even harder time hiding his affection for her than he did with the Tribbles! Spock is presented a positive character in the series.
• Mundanization : Again with the modern day Earth!
• No Communities Were Harmed : The fictional McKinley Rocket Base stands in for the real-life Kennedy Space Center.
• No Endor Holocaust : In two ways. Not only does the nuclear explosion have no consequences (compared to the crippling electromagnetic pulse and cloud of fallout that would happen in Real Life ) but somehow it defuses tensions in the Cold War instead of ramping them up.
• No-Sell : One of the first indications that Gary Seven is not a normal human is when Spock's nerve pinch has no effect on him.
• Orbital Bombardment : The U.S. puts a nuclear warhead platform in orbit. During the episode it falls out of orbit and drops toward an enemy country: it will go off on impact.
• Poorly Disguised Pilot : This was meant to be a half hour show conceptualized by Roddenberry. It was written way back when Star Trek 's first season was still in production. It never got off the ground, but why waste a good story? It's actually pretty obvious they barely rewrote an existing script to feature the Enterprise crew, since they only play a very limited role and have no effect on events whatsoever.
• Punk in the Trunk : Gary hides from security in the trunk of a car.
• Recurring Extra : Lieutenant Leslie (Eddie Paskey) wears simultaneously his usual red shirt, a yellow shirt and an engineering suit. Lieutenant Hadley (William Blackburn) is also a NASA technician.
• Right-Hand Cat : Isis seems a bit nicer than Sylvia from "Catspaw". She's a sweetheart as cats go, as long as you don't harm Gary.
• Scare 'Em Straight : Gary Seven's plan is to sabotage an orbital nuclear weapon platform so that it malfunctions and almost starts World War III in order to scare governments out of deploying such weapons.
• Secret History : Suggested by the closing scene, in which Kirk notes that the Enterprise's history records for the current date describe a "never generally revealed" detonation of a nuclear-armed warhead platform exactly 104 miles above the Earth.
• Self-Destruct Mechanism : The missile carrying the orbital nuclear warhead platform has a self destruct device to destroy it in case it goes off course. Gary Seven deactivates it as part of his plan to scare the Earth governments into not using such weapons.
• Shout-Out : East 68th Street is also the street that was home to the main characters from I Love Lucy . (Recall that Star Trek was produced by Desilu Studios .)
• The '60s : Like, man, can you dig Roberta's groovy threads? (Dig 'em? I wanna bury 'em!)
• Special Guest : Robert Lansing is the only actor in the entire run of the series to warrant a "Special Guest Star" credit in the first act.
• The establishing shot of downtown Manhattan used to open the second act is also seen in numerous episodes of The Man from U.N.C.L.E. throughout that series.
• A closeup of Scotty behind the transporter station is recycled from " The Enemy Within ". James Doohan looks noticeably thinner, and has a different hairstyle in this shot.
• Recycled footage of the Enterprise orbiting Earth (without clouds) is taken from " Miri ".
• A shot of crewmembers on a corridor, listening to Kirk's speech on the intercom is recycled footage from " The Corbomite Maneuver ". The same shot appears in " Balance of Terror " and " The Menagerie, Part I " as well.
• A large amount of NASA stock footage is used in the episode. The Saturn V stock footage is of the SA 500f dummy and of Apollos 4 and 6.
• The Stoic : Gary Seven is never anything less than brusque and completely focused.
• Swiss-Army Weapon : In addition to being able to stun or kill others, Gary's servo can also disable force fields.
• Sword of Damocles : The U.S. is about to launch an orbital nuclear warhead platform. Gary Seven's mission is to make it malfunction to scare other nations into not using them.
• Time Police : Gary Seven implies he works for them. He's explicitly trying to preserve history by saving the rocket launch and knows humans and Vulcans will meet at some point.
• Transplanted Humans : Gary Seven claims to come from Earth in the 20th century, but he's been on an advanced alien world for an unspecified amount of time and they've apparently done some work on him since he's physically completely flawless.
• Voluntary Shapeshifting : Is Isis a cat who can turn into a woman or a woman who can turn into a cat? Or something else ?!
• The Worf Effect : Gary Seven is shown to be resistant to the Vulcan neck pinch, something very few Trek characters can lay claim to.
• You Already Changed the Past : At the end of the episode, Kirk checks the Enterprise 's historical records and finds a mention of the orbital platform being destroyed exactly as it was, suggesting that not only Gary Seven's mission but also the delays caused by Kirk's interference were already part of history.
• Star Trek S2 E25 "Bread and Circuses"
• Recap/Star Trek: The Original Series
• Star Trek S3 E1 "Spock's Brain"

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Memory Beta, non-canon Star Trek Wiki

A friendly reminder regarding spoilers ! At present the expanded Trek universe is in a period of major upheaval with the continuations of Discovery and Prodigy , the advent of new eras in gaming with the Star Trek Adventures RPG , Star Trek: Infinite and Star Trek Online , as well as other post-57th Anniversary publications such as the ongoing IDW Star Trek comic and spin-off Star Trek: Defiant . Therefore, please be courteous to other users who may not be aware of current developments by using the {{ spoiler }}, {{ spoilers }} OR {{ majorspoiler }} tags when adding new information from sources less than six months old (even if it is minor info). Also, please do not include details in the summary bar when editing pages and do not anticipate making additions relating to sources not yet in release. THANK YOU

• Memory Beta pages needing citation
• Memory Beta articles sourced from short stories
• Time travellers
• 1932 births
• Humans (20th century)
• Humans (21st century)
• View history
• 1.1 Assignment: Earth
• 1.2 Assignment: Eternity
• 1.3 Eugenics Wars
• 1.4 Future events
• 2 Physical health and description
• 3.1 Connections
• 3.2 Background
• 3.3.1 Appearances
• 3.4 External link

Biography [ ]

Howell was called in by the Aegis five days after his 35th birthday by a man . He given his the assignment of protecting Earth and to safeguard its history. He was given the name Gary Seven and partnered up with Isis . ( TOS - Year Five - Weaker Than Man comic : " Issue 17 ")

Assignment: Earth [ ]

Seven took on many assignments for Aegis. In 1206 , he was an advisor and friend to Genghis Khan about conquering the world. In 1588 , he helped the British defeat the Spanish Armada. In 1914 , Seven stood by as Gavrilo Princip carried out his assassination of Archduke Ferdinand. ( TOS - Year Five - Weaker Than Man comic : " Issue 17 ")

Seven was sent back to Earth in 1968 to complete the work of Agent 201 and Agent 347 , who were killed in an automobile accident. Before reaching Earth, his transporter beam was intercepted by the USS Enterprise , who were orbiting Earth on a research mission. Seven managed to escape to the agents's New York City apartment .

With assistance from his aides Roberta Lincoln and Isis , and in spite of hindrance from Captain James T. Kirk , Seven managed to stop mankind from launching into a nuclear war. ( TOS episode : " Assignment: Earth ")

Upon returning to headquarters however, Seven furiously confronted Isis about her earlier falsehood, having seen the incontrovertible evidence that 201 and 347 had already completed their mission prior to their demise. Isis noted that the mission had been necessary to introduce Seven to Kirk before informing of Aegis' true agenda: to freeze the societal development of the Milky Way galaxy by making the consonant Tholian Assembly the sole power. ( TOS - Year Five - Weaker Than Man comic : " Issue 17 ")

Assignment: Eternity [ ]

One of the many assassination attempts on the life of Mao Tse-Tung was averted at the Great Wall of China by Seven and Lincoln. ( TOS novel : Assignment: Eternity )

The two agents were responsible for preventing Professor Tepesch from brainwashing John F. Kennedy and Jacqueline Kennedy , as well as apprehending the Watergate burglars in Washington, DC . ( TOS novel : Assignment: Eternity )

They also aided a pair of British intelligence operatives in defeating cybernauts . ( TOS novel : Assignment: Eternity )

Seven and Lincoln watched the television footage of Neil Armstrong stepping onto Luna on 20 July , 1969 , which Seven helped enable.( TOS novel : Assignment: Eternity )

In 1969 , Seven once shared a "joint" of cannabis with Jimi Hendrix at the Woodstock music festival. ( TOS novel : Assignment: Eternity ; TOS - Year Five - Weaker Than Man comic : " Issue 17 ")

In the 1970s , the incident at the Three Mile Island nuclear facility was lessened by their intervention, as was an incident that involved the crashing to Earth of Skylab . ( TOS novel : Assignment: Eternity )

They joined Carl Kolchak [ citation needed ] in 1974 in gaining possession of plans by the Pentagon to build an android called Questor . ( TOS novel : Assignment: Eternity )

In 1989, Seven and Lincoln prevented an alien incident from causing a planetwide panic as a unknown extraterrestrial landed in the USSR, as reported by TASS. TASS also reported that the USSR lost 20-30 Hind-24 gunship/assault helicopters fighting the lone UFO. [ citation needed ]

On stardate 6021.4 in 2269 , Seven created a wormhole that brought the Enterprise from Federation space into Romulan space. Seven ended up stuck on a planet used as the base of operations for Agent 146 (a.k.a. Septos ) with James T. Kirk , Hikaru Sulu and Pavel Chekov and without other assistance. Later, assistance was found in the form of Seven's associate, the tiger-like, rhinoceros-like Osiris . ( TOS novel : Assignment: Eternity )

Romulan agent Commander Dellas killed Septos, and then Osiris, before Seven could stop her. When Dellas later attempted to kill Spock at the Khitomer Conference in 2293 , Seven sent her into the past with his servo. Seven told Kirk he knew Dellas as she was the only Romulan who covered her face at the Conference. ( TOS novel : Assignment: Eternity )

Seven later returned the Enterprise to Federation space. ( TOS novel : Assignment: Eternity )

Eugenics Wars [ ]

Seven once assisted the scientists later dramatized in the 1973 film The Andromeda Strain.

On 13 March , 1974 , Seven discovered that nearly six Russian geneticists and biochemists had gone missing since 1973 .

The next day, Seven hired a "today only" secretary to cover Lincoln's duties. This woman was called Allison and was not privy to the true work done by the agents.

By 18 May , Seven had infiltrated Sarina Kaur 's Chrysalis Project , but gotten caught and locked in an animal cage. When Kaur activated Seven's servo, Lincoln answered the hail, blowing both their covers. Later that day, Seven escaped the cage and destroyed Chrysalis. Kaur refused to leave and so died with her project.

On 19 May , Seven took Khan Noonien Singh to his new foster parents, Prabhot Singh and Sharan Singh .

On 1 November , 1984 , Seven took Khan away from the riots caused by Indira Gandhi 's assassination, after which Khan told Seven he owed Seven a debt. Seven returned Khan back to India two days later, but recruited Khan for a mission on 2 December of that year to the Da Vinci Research Base in Antarctica to visit Wilson Evergreen . Evergreen resented the visit and attacked Khan, who stabbed him to death in response. After Evergreen got up unharmed (being Akharin , aka Flint ), he was told by Seven that his research had been modified by his sponsors to create, and not close, holes in the ozone layer .

On 10 October , 1986 , Seven and Khan infiltrated Vladimir Lenin 's tomb in Moscow , but Seven was captured by the guards. Khan then rescued him, repaying his debt. That evening, Lincoln mentioned Seven's friend, Robert McCall .

After Khan began his visions of world domination on 4 December , 1984 , Seven encrypted the collected and encrypted data on Chrysalis held by the Beta 5 computer , though this later proved futile. In the 1990s , through Roberta Lincoln, Seven had advanced technical data funneled to Project F at Area 51 in order for them to complete the creation of the DY-100 transport. This was partly because Seven intended to use the craft as a means of sending the last remnants of humanity to a new world in case he failed to stop World War III. Furthermore, he was heavily involved in the shadowy conflict of the Eugenics Wars that was being waged by the various genetically engineered supermen from the Chrysalis Project which included Khan Noonien Singh. He used information and intelligence sent to him by Isis, who was disguised as Khan's advisor Ament, to force the various supermen to fight against one another, thus destroying each one of them in turn except for Khan himself. With Khan the last survivor and the world against him, Singh intended to use his Morning Star satellite weapon to destroy the Earth's ozone layer and exterminate the entire human race as a result. However, Seven had Roberta Lincoln steal the DY-100 prototype and used it to exile Khan and his followers from the planet in exchange for the deactivation of Morning Star. Though Khan agreed and had his followers board the SS Botany Bay , Joaquin Weiss , his bodyguard , resisted and threw a dagger at Roberta Lincoln. However, Isis turned to her human form and jumped in the way of the blade, thus sacrificing her life for Lincoln. This left Gary Seven greatly saddened and bitter, as he believed that he should have left all the genetically engineered children of Chrysalis to die with the project instead of saving them. Though Khan offered the life of Joaquin, Seven refused to take another being's life and instead allowed Khan to depart the planet. This saw the end of the Eugenics Wars in the year 1996 . ( TOS novel : The Rise and Fall of Khan Noonien Singh, Volume 2 )

Afterwards, Roberta Lincoln asked if they had unleashed Khan on the Universe, to which Seven replied that the cosmos had survived things far worse than Khan Noonien Singh. He later informed his protégé that he was leaving and intended for her to be his replacement to guard the planet Earth. At the time, a mist of purple light unveiled a tomcat that Gary Seven revealed was Roberta's partner, Ramses . He later departed the planet in order to get time to mourn the death of Isis, whom he believed deserved better than the grim death she had received. ( TOS - The Eugenics Wars novel : The Rise and Fall of Khan Noonien Singh, Volume 2 )

Future events [ ]

On 11 September , 2001 , Seven prevented Shaun Christopher from boarding one of the planes which crashed into the World Trade Center in New York City . As a result, Christopher survived to command the first manned mission to Saturn aboard USS Lewis & Clark in 2020 , a pivotal event in the history of human space travel. ( TOS short story : " Assignment: One ")

Seven later used his time-travel abilities to visit the 23rd century . He journeyed to the starship Enterprise over the planet Sycorax on stardate 7004.2 where he gave his own opinion about the UFP 's debate over the entry of the genetically engineered inhabitants of the Paragon Colony . Seven explained to James T. Kirk the dangers of genetically enhanced beings and his belief that it was not DNA that decided a person's values but their teachings and morals. Afterwards, he once more departed into a purple mist for parts unknown. His words had a great impact on Captain Kirk, who decided that the Paragon Colony would not be admitted into the Federation but instead face a quarantine, and that they would gain protection but would otherwise be isolated from the rest of the Federation. ( TOS - The Eugenics Wars novel : The Rise and Fall of Khan Noonien Singh, Volume 2 )

Back in the 21st century, Seven and Isis were secretly aboard the T'Plana-Hath during Earth's first contact with the Vulcans. Seven and Mestral witnessed the launch of Friendship One from the control center in New York City in the year 2067. ( TOS - Year Five - Weaker Than Man comic : " Issue 17 "; TNG novel : Hearts and Minds )

In 2270 , Seven and Isis had begun manipulating the Tholians , providing them with the technology necessary to overcome the United Federation of Planets . ( TOS - Year Five - The Wine-Dark Deep comics : " Issue 7 ", " Issue 8 ")

After the Enterprise had left I'Qos , Seven beamed aboard, sabotaging the ship to force an evacuation as he confronted Kirk. Though Kirk proved the better fighter, Seven pulled out a hidden blaster to force his surrender. Before Seven could force Kirk to crash the vessel, Spock managed to beam aboard, the two managing to force Seven to retreat. ( TOS - Year Five - The Wine-Dark Deep comics : " Issue 11 ", " Issue 12 ")

Continuing to sow chaos across the Federation, Seven manipulated Harry Mudd , the Originalist front runner for presidency , to drop out of the race and suggested that Renei , far more passionate about the cause's xenophobia, run in his stead. ( TOS - Year Five - Weaker Than Man comics : " Issue 14 ", " Issue 15 ")

Isis was later sent to unleash a plague on Proxima Centauri only to be killed by Hikaru Sulu and Pavel Chekov , her absence having a detrimental affect on Seven's sanity. After the Enterprise had stumbled onto a Tholian stasis tower on Vulcan , Spock was sent back in time and changed Vulcan history. With the trap not ready to be sprung, Seven beamed aboard the Enterprise and advised the crew what to do, though swearing that he would his revenge. ( TOS - Year Five - Experienced in Loss comic : " Issue 21 ")

Following the completion of the Enterprise 's five-year mission , the Tholians begun their invasion. Seeing potential in Spock, Seven abducted him and showed him the chaos that the Federation would cause over the next nine centuries. Unconvinced by Seven's dogma, Spock beamed away and reported his coordinates to Kirk. When the captain arrived, Seven realized that Isis had kept him in line with Aegis' rules and he could end Kirk's legacy by killing him in the past. ( TOS - Year Five - Experienced in Loss comics : " Issue 22 ", " Issue 23 ")

Using his servo , Seven travelled back to Kirk first taking command of the Enterprise only to be met by the Kirk of 2270. Stunned, Seven travelled ever further back to key moments in Kirk's life only for Kirk to always beat him there. At wit's end, Seven travelled to the USS Kelvin in 2233 where Kirk was again waiting for him. After the two briefly came to blows, they found common ground in the sense of purpose they derived from their respective missions. When Seven agreed to stand down, Kirk brought him to the moment of their confrontation in 2270. At Kirk's advice, Seven approached the younger Kirk and gave the captain his servo , telling him exactly what to do. In the aftermath, Seven surrendered himself to Starfleet Medical in the hopes that they could undo his body's forced homeostasis and allow him to live a normal, human life. Though he was held in stasis at the time of the Presidential election, Leonard McCoy was confident that Seven would be living a normal life on Earth within a year's time. ( TOS - Year Five - Experienced in Loss comic : " Issue 24 ")

Physical health and description [ ]

Having a textbook intelligence quotient of almost 200, Seven was at the peak of human , non- augmented performance. He was able to tolerate and resist a Vulcan nerve pinch . ( TOS episode : " Assignment: Earth ")

Seven was the result of genetic engineering and augmentation by the Aegis . ( TOS - The Eugenics Wars novel : The Eugenics Wars: The Rise and Fall of Khan Noonien Singh, Volume 1 )

Seven stated that many Vulcanoids were recruited from across the galaxy into his organization. ( TOS novel : Assignment: Eternity )

Even in later years, his vitals matched those taken more than twenty years earlier, by Doctor McCoy . Fluent in many domestic and extra-terrestrial dialects, Gary was able to comprehend and reply (in English mostly) to Isis , and later Osiris .

Appendices [ ]

Connections [ ], background [ ].

The writers of his episodic appearance showed Gary Seven's knowledge of extraterrestrial events, as evident when he recognizes Spock as a Vulcan , stating aloud that Humans and Vulcans have yet to meet, in 1968 . Later sources established that Gary's Aegis masters extend their operations throughout time , meaning that their time travelers would have foreknowledge of the eventual first contact at Bozeman , Montana in the 21st century .

Appearances and references [ ]

Appearances [ ], external link [ ].

• Gary Seven article at Memory Alpha , the wiki for canon Star Trek .
• 1 ISS Enterprise (NCC-1701)
• 3 The Chase

Origins & Analysis

Welcome to the web's only complete reference to Assignment: Earth (Æ) .

This episode of the original Star Trek was intended to spin off into a series of its own.

Thanks to everyone who has written in. Your comments are always appreciated. This site first appeared on the net in 1998 – this is the seventh major revision – and its growth is due, in part, to those people who wrote in and said, "Hey, did you know…?" Well, no, no I didn't, but now I do, and thanks for your help. If you have info, please feel free to @ me.

– Scott Dutton

The Original Pilot Script : November 14, 1966

Gene Roddenberry developed the first version of Æ as he worked on Star Trek 's first season, and pitched it to Desilu in a 47-page script.

Gary Seven is a man sent back in time from the 24th century, the only Earth man to ever survive the transit. His goal is to defeat the Omegans, a race of shape-changing aliens who have sent agents back in time to change Earth's history so they can defeat Earth in the future. Harth and Isis would be the primary Omegan antagonists. Roberta Hornblower is described as she appeared in the final episode, but as a 20 year old.

Seven's cover in the 1960s is The -7- Agency, a private investigations firm. We meet Roberta as she enters the office looking for Mister Seven. The gadgets from the final episode are here, including the servo, and a pair of working x-ray glasses. She sits down at the typewriter to leave him a note. Roberta had nearly been killed by a falling chunk of a building, and had been pushed out of the way by a woman who instead died. The woman looked very much like her, and Roberta found Seven's address on her body.

Seven and Roberta meet and come into conflict with Isis and Harth, setting up the series' premise. After their initial adventure together involving going back in time to reset a mishap and Roberta transporting instantly around to different locations, Seven tells Roberta he needs an assistant.

The Series Proposal : December 5, 1967

While developing the script, they also generated a 13-page series proposal.

Now conceived of as a Star Trek spin-off pilot, the new Æ had Roddenberry and Wallace selling themselves as individuals respected in the business who were teaming up for the series. They made the clear distinction that while futuristic like Trek , Æ would be set against modern-day 1968.

One of Roddenberry's strengths and benefits was to go to specialised individuals and organisations (like NASA) and ask them, "What if?" By going outside entertainment circles, he gave his work a depth and credibility that became a model for a better-informed process.

Some of the connecting-the-dots promotion of the series' ideas to already known commercial quantities is a bit funny to read now. Having done enough creative briefs and seeing the tell-tale signs in this proposal, I get the feeling studio execs have the same thought processes as other businessmen.

The First-Draft Trek Script : December 4–20, 1967

In the middle of Star Trek 's second season, Roddenberry and writer Art Wallace reworked the Æ premise:

"Assignment: Earth is interesting in a sense," Wallace points out, "because I had gone to Paramount and pitched a series idea to them. They had said that Gene Roddenberry had come up with a very similar idea. So I saw Gene and we decided to pool the idea, which was about a man from tomorrow who takes care of the present on Earth. That was intended to be the pilot, although it was never made into a series. It was a good pilot and it's a shame, because I think if they had done it as a series with just Gary Seven, it would have been a very successful show." Source: Captain's Logs: The Unauthorized Complete Trek Voyages.

There were some differences from the final episode in this version:

No black cat! Isis – either human or feline – is nowhere to be seen.

Gary Seven's transporter beam came from even farther across the galaxy than it did in the episode.

After Seven was confined in the Enterprise brig, he revealed his mission to Dr. McCoy, turning the tables on Bones by asking him to think like a doctor, not a mechanic.

Roberta London, recruited by Mr. Seven, was beamed up to the Enterprise for interrogation. The frightened Roberta was soothed by Uhura, who reassured her that she was still among Earth people.

About 30–50 per cent of the Seven-Lincoln-Isis story is not developed yet. It feels much more like a Trek episode with Seven and Lincoln as guest stars, instead of the back-door pilot it became. A lot of re-writing was done over the holidays by Art Wallace to deliver the episode we know.

The Final-Draft Trek Script : January 1, 1968

Notable changes from the final-draft script to the produced episode include:

The supplemental Captain's log which immediately follows Seven's capture where Kirk describes "A man in a 20th-century business suit. What is he? Not even Spock's…etc." was not in this script.

In the briefing room, a line by Spock is cut:

Spock: Medi-scanners indicate it is a cat, Captain. Female… as we've seen, remarkably intelligent…

McCoy was to enter the briefing room scene earlier, with Kirk showing impatience with him to report.

Just before the Beta 5 says, "In response to nuclear warhead…" an exchange between Seven and the Beta 5 is cut:

Seven: Computer, how much longer? Beta 5: Useless questions will only prolong search. Seven: Are you a one-relay machine? Clear a circuit; describe present mission of agents 201 and 347.

Immediately following Seven saying, "That's the same kind of nonsense that almost destroyed planet Omicron IV," a line has been cut:

Seven: Balance of power won't work. The other side will launch still more, they'll end up with the sky full of H-bombs waiting for just one mistake.

The scene where we first see Roberta Lincoln was scripted to include Kirk and Spock in the background, following her. In the episode we see Roberta make a comedic entrance, and Kirk and Spock travel the same sidewalk a few minutes later.

When Seven poses as a CIA agent to Roberta, some of the dialogue was softened to make it a more friendly exchange. Originally, it was to be more combative, as it was in the first part of this scene.

After Seven transports out from his vault, the scene with Kirk, Spock and Roberta has been restructured. The three were scripted to come into Seven's private office together, they weren't aware of the vault transporter, and it was Spock who found the map of McKinley Base. In the episode, Kirk rushes into the office alone, sees the vault close before he can reach it, and brings the map back out to Spock and Roberta in the outer office.

During the scene with Sergeant Lipton phoning in the security check on Seven, Isis was scripted to be following Seven. Knowing cats, this was most likely impossible to accomplish on set, and so Seven carried Isis and the unscripted line for Seven to put down the cat was necessary to have her under foot to finish the scene as written.

Seven and Isis on the gantry arm is unscripted, though what they're doing is detailed. As written, Seven and Isis walk out of the elevator in one scene, and in the next Seven is removing the panel. Perhaps Wallace did not describe the exact environment because he knew that it would depend on matching the stock footage supplied by NASA with the sets that Desilu would build in response, and that happened after the scripting process was completed.

The cigar box Roberta uses to konk Seven in the back of the head was originally scripted to be a heavy art object. Given Teri Garr whacked Robert Lansing with the small padded box hard enough for the actor to see stars, it's probably just as well.

The call from Scotty to Kirk about all powers being on alert was scripted for Spock earlier in the scene.

Roberta was to lower the servo on her own, rather than having Seven intervene. As shot, the scene works better, building trust between Seven and Kirk.

Roberta's plea to Kirk, "He's telling the truth." was to have another piece:

Roberta: A woman feels things about a man. Spock: A point against him, Captain. They are usually 100 per cent wrong.

Probably a good idea to have excised all that.

Kirk says, "Spock, if you can't handle it I'm going to have to trust him." As scripted:

Kirk (agony): Spock, it's all mankind at stake. No man should have to make this decision.

During the wrap-up, a whole piece of the scene was removed:

Kirk (glancing at Roberta): One other thing is needed to maintain history as it is supposed to go, Mr. Seven. A permanent secretary. (indicates) Our historical records indicate that one Roberta Lincoln resided at this address many years. Roberta: 'Resided'? Now wait just one minute, friend… Seven: Living here will be no threat to your 20th century moral code, Miss Lincoln… Seven: It's a separate adjoining apartment which was leased for Agent 201… You'd find it quite luxurious…

Much of this happens while Roberta is looking at the human Isis, and as such, it probably didn't work because everyone else's attention was on Roberta and they would have seen Isis too.

After the "Simply my cat, Miss Lincoln" gag, Roberta's living arrangement dialogue continues:

Seven: Can you use the apartment? It would be convenient for the new agents to have a secretary nearby. Seven (to Kirk): I expect to be replaced shortly. Your record tapes showed other names listed at this address. (waits, then frowning) They did, didn't they, Captain? Kirk: I'm afraid we can't tell you everything we've learned, Mr. Seven. (glancing at Roberta, back at Seven) It might change history if you knew too much.

The line Spock says about "interesting experiences in store for Seven and Lincoln" is absent from the script, and was most likely used to replace the longer explanation for a quicker and cleaner wrap up, and perhaps to leave things more open ended for how Æ might eventually be produced.

"Assignment: Earth" aired as the last episode of Star Trek 's second season. It failed to generate interest, and the series never materialised.

Roads Untaken : 2013

Adam Riggio Ï is a writer/philosopher, and he created a series of posts for his blog on his version of an Æ series. Fascinating stuff.

Available as a PDF above.

The episode has been released as part of the numerous video series by Paramount/CBS. The remastered version can also be purchased as a download through iTunes Ï and Amazon Ï . The trailer is below.

The first servo appears to be the original prop. The antennae are curved and the knurled rings are flush with the barrel. It has a chromed finish.

The second is a typical replica made for the collectors' market. The antennae are straight and the knurled rings are raised.

The last is from the Star Trek Experience in Las Vegas, and is a third version of the servo.

Map and IDs

Courtesy of Michael Davis, fantastic re-creations of the map to McKinley Rocket Base and Gary Seven's IDs. (For personal use only.)

Roberta's Dress

Roberta Lincoln's distinctive dress was a sore spot for actress Teri Garr. The dress' hemline started out being more modest, but the powers-that-be kept that hem rising until it was almost a micro skirt instead of a mini.

"This dress was important since it was worn by the Roberta Lincoln character, who was intended to be the co-star of a new television series. The mid Sixties are reflected visually whenever Roberta appears. The colours and material [William Ware] Theiss used for this dress, although mildly psychedelic, are really quite mainstream for the time." Source: The Star Trek Sketchbook: The Original Series .

Set Blueprints

This started out as me wanting to re-create the set plans for the episode and it quickly got out of hand. The script called for an attached apartment Roberta would live in, so that was next. And with Seven and Isis remaining on Earth, they'd need more space.

Available as a PDF above, with layer control to focus on different details.

Behind-the-Scenes Info

Adaptations

James Blish adapted the episode as one of the stories included in the Star Trek 3 anthology. In his version, the Trek characters dominate. When I came to do mine, I went in the opposite direction, writing the story from Seven, Isis, and Lincoln's point of view, leaving out the Trek crew's scenes which didn't include the Æ characters.

Both are available as ebooks above in ePUB (iBooks, etc.) and KF8/MOBI (Kindle) formats.

The original series episodes were adapted into short story form by noted science fiction author James Blish ( Cities in Flight , etc.), with Æ appearing in the third volume.

The three novels have been authored by Greg Cox. While one might hope for an Æ project that isn't tied to Trek , we'll take what we can get. Assignment: Eternity is fun and involved, and we get to see a possible outcome for the team of Seven and Lincoln.

The Eugenics Wars pair open in 1974. Gary Seven watches with growing concern as the children of a top secret human genetic engineering project called Chrysalis grow to adulthood. In particular, he focuses on a brilliant youth named Khan Noonien Singh. Can Khan's dark destiny be averted, or is Earth doomed to fight a global battle for supremacy?

The Strange New Worlds series is an annual collection of fan fiction. Each of these volumes contains a story with Gary Seven as a major or supporting character.

Beginning in the 1980s, DC Comics held the licence to publish Star Trek comic books. Previous publishers included Gold Key and Marvel Comics. However, DC produced a consistent, high-quality product, and the books remain fan favourites.

To celebrate the 50th issue of Star Trek , they decided to bring back Gary Seven. An interesting story, it adds some new elements to his tale.

The trade paperback collects Star Trek 22–24 with Harry Mudd, and 49–50 with Gary Seven and Isis.

Veteran comic book artist and writer John Byrne Ï produced a five-issue mini series (also collected in trade paperback) which showed his version of what an independent Æ series might have been like.

Alternate Credits

These credits sequences were made by Andy Patterson Ï and friends, and are ideas for a non- Trek opening for Æ . They combine episode footage with new pieces.

Video Vignette

This video – with Roberta Lincoln and the Beta Five desk cube – was made by The Outer Rim Ï (formerly Star Trek Anthology).

It has been a number of months since Miss Roberta Lincoln has been working for Agent Gary Seven. Her duties have tended to consist of 90 per cent boredom, 10 per cent chaos. In this vignette, we get a glimpse of that 90 per cent, but all of that is about to change…

Mego Action Figures

These fantastic custom figures were made by James "Captain Dunsel" Brady and are featured on his Mego Madhouse Ï website.

Playmates Action Figures

Here's another set of nicely-done custom figures. Seven, Lincoln, Isis and the Beta 5 done in the style of the Playmates line by customiser Matthew Hackley Ï . And check out the Sixties orange shag carpet.

These photos and info come courtesy of James Sawyer's A Piece of the Action Ï blog.

CBS commissioned Juan Ortiz Ï to create an original print for each Star Trek episode.

Trading Cards

Robert Lansing

Robert Lansing had already established himself as a stage, movie and television actor in leading roles when Gene Roddenberry asked him to appear in this back-door pilot. In the interview below, he speaks about his Assignment: Earth experience, and the bio goes into detail on his entire career.

Join the Robert Lansing group on facebook Ï . Ï , created and maintained by Paige Schoolcraft. -->Lansing also has IMDB Ï and Wikipedia Ï entries.

1989 Interview

Approached by Gene Roddenberry to guest star as Gary Seven in "Assignment: Earth," Robert Lansing at first refused. "At the time," he confides, "Gene was a good friend, but I was a New York snob actor, come out to Hollywood. Many folks in my self-perceived position didn't do Star Trek because it was considered a kid's show, or a young show at any rate. Gene said, 'I'm writing this for you and we can play with it. It might be a series.' He said, 'Well, you don't have to, but just do this one thing for me.' So, I did. It was a damn good script and a lot of fun. "What Gene had done," Lansing continues, "was to go to futurists and scientists and ask them what advanced societies out in space might do towards more primitive societies like ours. "One of the futurists said that they would probably kidnap children from various planets, take them to their superior civilisation, raise them, teach and enlighten them, and then put them back as adults to lead their worlds in more peaceful ways. That was the idea behind Gary Seven. "The fun with that show," he discloses, "was working with the cats." With obvious pleasure, Lansing confesses that whenever he meets fans, he always asks them, "What was the name of my cat?" "We had three black cats. That was because in those days, the theory was that you couldn't train cats. Cats would have a certain propensity: One would like somebody, would want to follow them around, so that day, you would release the cat that would probably do what you wanted it to do. One of the cats took a great liking to me. It was always loose on the set when I was working, so it happened that the stuff on the rocket gantry was all ad lib. I would say something like, 'Isis, come on, you're getting in the way. You know, there is a bit of a hurry. This is not the time to be jealous.' We added meows in later." Not a practical joker himself, Lansing confirms that the Star Trek set was still full of fun and pranks. "William Shatner and I would get mixed up and start 'camping' a scene," he remembers. "We did plenty of outtakes." Of his fellow guest, Teri Garr, Lansing recalls, "She hadn't had much experience then, but she had this kooky personality that certainly worked. Gene saw that very early on and dressed her for it and worked her with it. "She had a terrible time with this bit where she had to hit me with a box and knock me out. It was a small box and it was padded, just a box. She was so nervous that finally I said, 'Teri, hit me.' And she gave me such a clobber that she nearly did knock me out. Gene said it didn't look right and we had to do it again. "I was never asked to do another episode. That was my Star Trek swan song. "It turned out, though, that I'm better remembered for Star Trek than any of the Broadway plays I've done," he says with a bemused smile. Source: Starlog 149. The full interview can be read by clicking on the thumbnail above.

The following biography was written by Jeanne DeVore Ï , who was kind enough to grant me permission to reprint it here. It was written as a tribute and to help raise money for cancer research Ï .

Robert Lansing was born Robert Howell Brown on June 5, 1928, in San Diego, California, and died October 23rd, 1994 in New York of the cancer he had been suffering from for some time. His career spanned more than a generation, in film, on stage, and on television.

Born at the dawn of the Great Depression, Robert Lansing's early years were spent traveling around the country with his salesman father. When he was nine, he snuck under a loose flap into a visiting tent show in Texas and fell in love with the make-believe world of the theatre. Determined to become an actor, he volunteered for his grammar-school play, and immediately began driving himself with total commitment.

Back in California a few years later, he kept polishing the dream, appearing in every amateur theatrical he could. He dropped out of high school to enlist in the army, served his two years, and started hitchhiking from Los Angeles to Broadway.

Stopping in Fort Wayne, Indiana to visit an aunt, he became an actor with a local civic theatre group, a radio announcer, and a teen-age husband. Two years later, the Lansings took off for New York. Using his GI Bill benefits, Robert enrolled at the American Theatre Wing's dramatic school.

These were lean years, as he struggled to make a living. He and his first wife divorced, and he married actress Emily McLaughlin (best known as nurse Jessie Brewer in General Hospital ).

Soon after, their fortunes changed. Cast as the psychiatrist in Tennessee Williams' Suddenly Last Summer , Robert Lansing was named one of that season's two best off-Broadway actors (the other was George C. Scott). That success led to his first Hollywood TV part in Alcoa Presents .

His first Broadway role was in 1948 in Stalag 17 , and his first feature film was 1959's The 4-D Man . His career encompassed all genres, though he was well-known to science fiction fans through his appearances in cult films like Empire of the Ants , and his appearance as Gary Seven in the Star Trek episode "Assignment: Earth."

Lansing's television work won him critical acclaim, if not financial success. Of his role as Detective Steve Carella in the series 87th Precinct (based on the books), author Ed McBain was reported as saying, "He is Carella." And his replacement as the lead in the series 12 O'Clock High caused a great deal of furor. TV Guide critic Cleveland Amory, who liked to refer to himself as a curmudgeon, wrote, "Make no mistake about it. Robert Lansing is magnificent."

Robert Lansing's final television role was that of Police Captain Paul Blaisdell, on the series Kung Fu: The Legend Continues . Executive Producer Michael Sloan, who had been friends with Lansing since both men worked together on Sloan's series The Equalizer in the 80s, wrote the part expressly for Lansing, who had already been diagnosed with the cancer which would eventually kill him. Despite failing health, Lansing appeared in almost two dozen episodes during the series' first two seasons. But eventually, the strain became too much. The final episode of the second season "wrote out" the character of Blaisdell, though left the door open for his return, should Lansing's health rally. As it was, the episode "Retribution," filmed in February of 1994, was Lansing's final appearance. It aired a month after Lansing's death and was dedicated to his memory.

Robert Lansing was survived by his wife, Anne, and two children from previous marriages: Robert Frederick Orin Lansing and Alyiki Lansing West.

Biographical information source: "The General Died at Dusk," Jerry D Lewis, TV Guide , May 15, 1965. The full interview can be read by clicking on the thumbnail above.

Teri Garr started off as a dancer, but it was this early acting appearance as Roberta Lincoln that set her on her future path.

After Assignment: Earth , Teri Garr went on to become a star. Her films include Young Frankenstein , Close Encounters of the Third Kind and Tootsie . She also played Phoebe's mom on Friends . In 2002, she went public with her battle with multiple sclerosis.

Garr's IMDB Ï and Wikipedia Ï entries.

1991 Interview

In a 1991 interview, Teri Garr expressed a negative opinion of her Star Trek experience:

Teri Garr appeared in "Assignment: Earth". However, Garr responds, "I have nothing to say about it. I did that years ago and I mostly denied I ever did it." She does admit that she would have been in the TV series that the episode was a pilot for, but it didn't sell. "Thank god," she says with genuine relief. "Otherwise, all I would get would be Star Trek questions for the rest of my natural life – and probably my unnatural life. You ever see those people who are Star Trek fans? The same people who go to swap meets." How about Marc Daniels, who directed that episode? "He's dead. I liked Gene Roddenberry, but I don't remember those people. I really don't want to talk about Star Trek . That's what I told them about this interview. If it's a science fiction magazine, they're going to ask me about this stuff I don't—" She breaks off abruptly. So much for that line of inquiry. Source: Starlog 173.

2005 Autobiography

In her 2005 autobiography, Garr took a more neutral position:

And then I got my first big break as an actress. A friend in my acting class told me that they were casting a guest role on Star Trek .… This role was supposed to spin off into its own series – Assignment: Earth . It was going to be tough to get an audition – all the big agents were clamouring to get their clients seen, and my agent wasn't in that league.… Luckily my friend from acting class had an in and helped me get through the door. I never thought I would get the part because I was still really just a dancer.… I had no real credibility as an actress.… Then I read the script and saw that in the first scene my character was flustered because she was late. I thought: Well, I'm always late. I can do late. After I did the reading they asked me to come in for a screen test. I'd never had a screen test before! They cut my hair short and put me in front of a camera. They had me turn in a circle very slowly. Then they asked me easy questions.… I was overjoyed to be having a screen test. I didn't dare hope I'd get any further, but the next thing I knew, they were calling me to appear on set. I was dizzy with joy – and that dizziness helped me get into character. …Had the spin-off succeeded, I would have continued on as an earthling agent, working to preserve humanity.… But it was not to be. Source: Speedbumps: Flooring It Through Hollywood .

April Tatro

A number of Trek -related sites – including this one – previously identified Victoria Vetri as the human version of Isis. Turns out we were mistaken. Thanks to the folks at The Trek Files podcast Ï , we now know that contortionist/actress April Tatro played Isis.

Of her cameo in “Assignment: Earth,” she said, “I’d never had so much attention in all my life.”

In addition to her role on Trek , Tatro appeared in Laugh-In , Wonder Woman , Big Top Pee Wee , as well as other films and TV shows.

Tatro's IMDB Ï entry.

Courtesy of collector William McCullars Ï , an NBC press release dating from the original broadcast names Sambo as the cat who played Isis.

According to Robert Lansing:

"We had three black cats. That was because in those days, the theory was that you couldn't train cats. Cats would have a certain propensity: One would like somebody, would want to follow them around, so that day, you would release the cat that would probably do what you wanted it to do. One of the cats took a great liking to me. It was always loose on the set when I was working, so it happened that the stuff on the rocket gantry was all ad lib. I would say something like, 'Isis, come on, you're getting in the way. You know, there is a bit of a hurry. This is not the time to be jealous.' We added meows in later." Source: Starlog 149. The full interview can be read by clicking on the thumbnail in the Robert Lansing section.

I think it's safe to say that it was Sambo he developed the working relationship with.

Roddenberry's 1970s Pilots

In between the original Star Trek series and Star Trek Phase II (which would become Star Trek - The Motion Picture in 1979), Roddenberry tried to sell three concepts as ongoing series: Genesis II/Planet Earth , The Questor Tapes and Spectre . All three had their merits.

Sources: Some materials courtesy of John Fraraccio and Frank Stone.

Assignment: Earth , Star Trek and all prominent characters are © & ® CBS Studios Inc. Ï All Rights Reserved. Beta Five source render © Geoffrey Edwards Ï . Design and original material © Scott Dutton Ï , who is in no way affiliated with CBS Studios Inc., but would consider any offers.

In 1968, at the end of the second season of Star Trek the Original Series, Gene Roddenberry, seeing the writing on the wall when the show was about to be canceled (before the famed letter writing campaign that brought it back for a third season) wrote an episode finale called Assignment: Earth that he hoped would be a spin off for a new series of the same name. It was ingeniously centered around a character that the crew of the Enterprise comes in contact with who is essentially James Bond from outer space.

The character, played by Robert Lansing, was called Gary Seven. (It took me years to see the correlation with 007 -- I know...it really it did. I wonder if it was subconscious on Roddenberry's part. Surely not. It seems too obvious now.) At any rate, Seven was a human whose ancestors had been plucked from Earth thousands of years ago, brought to another planet to train for generations until this time in Earth history. The product of all this training was Supervisor 194 -- codename Gary Seven. And as he said, he was here at "the most critical time in Earth's history." He was here to help us poor dumb humans from blowing ourselves up and such.

Mr. Seven had a black cat named Isis, his companion,we find out is more than she seems. Also, In her first TV appearance, a young Teri Garr as his, 60's youth point of view, nice to look at, bit of a comedic foil, assistant. And a whole arsenal of gadgets and devices that the Star Trek episode cleverly displays within the confines of a single episode. In fact the episode cleverly and efficiently introduces all the key players and premise of this new show while leaving the viewer wanting the answers to many more intriguing unanswered questions.

Among these gadgets was a powerful computer with artificial intelligence known as the Beta5 computer (voiced by Barbara Babcock -- who also did the growls and meows for Isis the cat). There was a little green cube that was a tie in device to this computer when he was away from it that seems to be the worlds first PDA or Blackberry. A far out hidden wall safe bank vault served as his transporter device to go carry out missions. And I think the coolest device of all -- a Servo. The Servo looked like a silver fountain pen but was really a catch all device for anything he might need in any given circumstance. James Bond had Q to make and introduce the latest gadget to him that he ironically just happened to have a use for in every James Bond movie. The servo, we see in the Star Trek episode is a weapon that can be set on a groovy neutralizing effect that sedated victims. It could do all variations in between and up to a setting of kill. It was also demonstrated to be a lock pick and it was inferred to be a remote control for other devices too. In the recent Star Trek novels that have utilized the Gary Seven character it is extrapolated (and really a logical progression/assumption) that it was also a communication device, a flashlight, and it activated Seven's transporter to retrieve him when the mission was done. It was a major cool spy gadget. I want one when Master Replicas comes out with it.

This show was primed perfectly for the 60's. It was the height of the fascination with all things Bond; with gadgets and gadgetry. Admittedly and unapologetically there was a certain amount of chauvinism, style and sensibility that I think would have worked to make this show unique just in this time period. Also in the 60's the imagination of things to come and the understanding of technology (or lack of knowledge of what was possible) of the times that could have really made this show unique. I really think this show would have worked best in the 60's. Although if Paramount wants to update it I hope they consider doing it in a retro 60's type of way.

Now we come to why this site exist.

Late one night in Feb (05) I was up at 3:00 in the morning. It was the middle of the work week, I was beat and still couldn't sleep. I got up as to not wake the woman with my stirrings and went in and sat at the computer. I typed Gary Seven into Google for whatever reason. I noticed lot's of references and sites discussing the character. I had long thought, along with my brothers and friends what a cool episode that was and what a cool show it could have been had it been picked up. As I sat there sleepy eyed at 3:00 in the morning I thought all the things outlined above. The 60's was really the only time it could have been done right,...sensibilities of the time...all things Bond...cool gadgets...and then it hit me like a bolt of lightning.

"What a cool theme song it would have had!"

That really was the impetus. Having kind of been a student of TV themes and movie music...I thought "Wow." "Who would have written it?" "Dave Grusin (Baretta, theme)?" "John Williams (Lost in Space, Time Tunnel, themes and killer incidental music...check out those old Lost in Space sometime)?" "Stu Phillips (The Monkees, incidental music, Battlestar Galactica theme)?" "Gerry Goldsmith(Twilight Zone, incidental music)?" "Elmer Bernstein (Magnificent 7, Ghostbusters)?" I knew that given the times and the subject matter it would have been super cool. Let's face it...the theme song and opening credits of some shows have elevated TV shows in the minds of viewers and vaulted them to legendary cult status. A mediocre show can be made fun and faddish by a good opening theme. A good show is made a classic by a great opening theme. I'm convinced that's why I watched some shows as a kid that I hated like Cagney and Lacey. I wanted to hear Ernie Watts multiple sax lines of that show's theme. It's always to me, about the theme song.

I would have watched The Incredible Hulk anyway because I was a Marvel Comics fan and a fan of Bill Bixby, however it just wouldn't have been the same show without Joe Harnell's sad piano theme called "The Lonely Man" at the end of each show.

This to me this is crucial. The music.

For the next few days I was consumed by this notion of a theme song for a show that never was. Ideas just came popping through my head all day at work. "What would this song have sounded like?" I decided, "I'll write one myself."

For the next three days I wrote one theme song a day. I actually have four versions but settled on just two. The first was more of an espionage "Man From Uncle", "Mission Impossible" style theme. Seven was slick looking, to the point; a cool customer in a suit and tie. I tried to write something appropriate to that approach to the show. That cold war feel. This version's credits would have been very straight forward, with pictures of armies and bombs, explosions, action sequences with perhaps some of the above mentioned soldiers, and of course all the gizmos Seven has at his disposal.

Then I thought, since it was apparent to me they were trying to sell Lansing's as a cool looking playboy type towards the end of the Assignment: Earth episode with his groovy red turtle neck and white sweater then I'd write another theme that was more jazzy or playboyish. In this version the opening credits might show Seven and Roberta in a casino (for some reason if you're a spy you have to go to a casino at least once) with a rolling roulette wheel and drinks flowing, maybe show Teri Garr on the slope of a ski resort, more action sequences and again scenes of all the gizmos Seven has at his disposal.

These are my two approaches to a theme as they might have sounded with the show going in two slightly different directions. In each case I tried to write something that sounded appropriate of the genre and something that might come out of 1968.

Star Trek is a registered trademark of Paramount Pictures. This website is for entertainment and review purposes only. No copyright infringement is intended and no profit is being made.

No part of this site may be reproduced in any form without permission. Please DO NOT link directly to ANY file

This site was created, designed and is maintained by Supervisor194.com. Questions and comments are welcome!

Copyright � 2006 Andy Patterson All rights reserved.

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‘Star Trek’ Mystery Solved – Isis Actress From “Assignment: Earth” Identified

| March 12, 2019 | By: Anthony Pascale 50 comments so far

Once again our friends at Roddenberry Entertainment have unearthed a piece of Star Trek history. Today’s episode of Larry Nemecek’s The Trek Files solves a casting mystery that dates back to Star Trek: The Original Series .

A Star Trek mystery

One of the memorable performers from the second season finale of  Star Trek: The Original series had no lines and shared billing with a cat, but is still enduring to this day. That season finale, titled “Assignment: Earth,” was a sort of backdoor pilot from Gene Roddenberry as a backup plan in case  Star Trek didn’t get a third season. It was a time travel show, with the Enterprise traveling back to 1968, the year the second season was on the air. The focus of the episode was on the mysterious character Gary Seven, trained by aliens to save the Earth from itself. Gary’s constant companion was a shapeshifting pet cat named Isis. While Isis seemed to speak telepathically with Gary Seven, the actress who played Isis in her human form never spoke. As such, she was one of many extras who was never credited, leaving her identity a bit of a mystery.

Kirk, Gary Seven and his cat Isis in “Assignment: Earth”

For years Playboy pinup and actress Victoria Vetri was associated with the role, even garnering her a page on Memory Alpha, the Star Trek wiki. TrekMovie even did an article about Vetri back in 2010 when she ran into some legal trouble. However, in 2018 the actress and model revealed she was never part of Star Trek , and her credit was subsequently  removed from Memory Alpha , leaving the identity of the performer as “unknown.”  Star Trek history knew the name of one of the cats who played Isis (Sambo), but the name of the human actress remained a mystery. Until today.

Isis in her human form in “Assignment: Earth”

Isis Identified

Combing through Gene Roddenberry’s archive of documents from  Star Trek: The Original Series , the team from The Trek Files  came upon documents for “Assignment: Earth.” These documents regarding production details for the episode could finally solve this mystery of the Isis actress. The standard actors call sheet for  January 5th – the one day Isis was on set in her human form – includes a listing for a performer to be on set 10:00 AM, but only lists that performer as “1 Female (New)” under “Atmosphere and Standins.”

Actor call sheet for “Assignment: Earth” doesn’t give the name for the “new” actress due on set at 10:00 am

However, the “Extra Talent Call Sheet” for that day was the key. Along with other familiar “Standing” background extra actors such as Eddie Paskey , there is a listing for “1 Cat Girl” to be on set at 10:00 AM. Importantly, it includes the performer’s name as April Tatro. Tatro herself was contacted by The Trek Files and confirmed she played Isis in human form for “Assignment: Earth.” According to the sheet, Tatro was budgeted to be paid the standard rate for all the extras of $29.15 for the day, plus the cost for time for being fitted with her costume and body makeup. An additional production report unearthed by The Trek Files  shows her adjusted rate of $84.51.

Extra Call Sheet for “Assignment Earth” identifies actress who played Isis as April Tatro

April Tatro worked mostly as a contortionist , performing on stage and on television. Just months after her work on Star Trek she appeared again on NBC, on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson . Tatro also appeared on Laugh-In,   Fernwood Tonight and The Gong Show . Her career on television ran through to 2001, appearing again as a contortionist on an episode of  Malcolm in the Middle. 

April Tatro in a 1997 episode of the sitcom Ellen

Isis actress April Tatro interviewed by Trek Files

Larry Nemecek had a chance to speak to April Tatro about her time working on Star Trek’s  “Assignment: Earth” on the episode of The Trek Files released today. Nemecek tells TrekMovie: “This week’s episode is one of those  that makes the whole concept of The Trek Files worthwhile. We’re going to be solving a Star Trek mystery.”

Larry Nemecek with April Tatro (The Trek Files)

On the podcast, Tatro talked about her fitting for her rather skimpy costume, saying, “I’d never had so much attention in all my life.” Speaking of attention, Tatro also reveals that Star Trek star William Shatner asked her out. Even though she was engaged to be married in just two weeks, she accepted the offer and went out to lunch with Shatner.

Get all the details by listening to the podcast available on iTunes , or you can warp on over to podcasts.roddenberry.com .

You can download the “Assignment: Earth” production documents on Google Drive . For more on April Tatro in “Assignment: Earth” and other Trek Files head on over to the program’s hub on Facebook.

https://www.facebook.com/TheTrekFiles/posts/1160454300795482?__xts__[0]=68.ARCOlXil2QMrfyaDUduPfK_bOIGeEgtr2uOMjEkRnVUQGdNKOeJLJ4uJAEI274s9z-Id1wIHUG_QjP3q_koO392RjThcoBezZT3cXLSgbQo9Q9zzStM69KXlQFSNxN4KR6dtBPRsGjptIp9k5nKAiEEtBEX7qIVlgvuLTDCTXdcTVYgiBVFq1voodX47e9nM10_xXSyZbog3Xc1SeLxpN6SO3LgY-xyRGi6H90aA2yk_KerqmivkQo6f6ohIWfR_tHMavxCrGNRozXUksDRU6pQMLT5WZ6lSIKdHYv2SrUvS_xeYZTpUqf6M2xWZbLI7ikfUEcUkYOS9oS8cPTsfe7og5GdwaOebB6yW8-_4N2YVHA4TUQg4zeeYIGwfn6asii1EgHWU8dXVG2ELDn5gW1s2EkyUOYyOrrMLSjSny_H5EI0hPrqf53gx9wiXo392QXI66vYFIJgt_IXNn2dA&__tn__=-R

Keep up with all our coverage of Star Trek history at TrekMovie.com .

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“Tatro also reveals that Star Trek star William Shatner asked her out. Even though she was engaged to be married in just two weeks, she accepted the offer and went out to lunch with Shatner.”

Of course, Shatner was married as well. But lunch seems innocent.

His marriage was already over at that point; papers may not have been yet been signed, but it was done.

WOW WOW WOW! What an incredible find. Larry Nemecek is truly the Jeffrey Burton Russell of Trekdom.

That is really good.

Very neat trivia. Shatner, you Rascal! :)

Oh, cool! It’s so amazing that we’re still learning new things about TOS after all the time. I mean, it’s not as if there haven’t been innumerable books and articles published about the show already. :-)

Corylea TOS has a gold mine of information we don’t know yet.

That is a incredibly cool trivia! What a neat find! It’s stuff like this that makes me proud to be a Trek fan, that we love the show so much and want to know every possible bit of information about it. I should start to listen to Larry’s podcast!

What a cool bit of trivia. Good work Detective Nemecek.

So odd that this has taken this long to come out. For years I fought the notion that it was Victoria Vetri. I never understood that. Didn’t look like her to me.

Again, a really cool bit of trivia to know here.

And now that I’ve seen her contortionist video it seems they cast well….an actress as, or more, flexible than a cat.

What ever happened to starships time traveling to the past all willy nilly for “historical research” anyway?

So there was some inner Kirk in Shatner himself :))

He did this for a lot of the women. The bellydancer from Wolf in the Fold has an account in her book of her being shocked when he came to pick her up without his toupee. He was married as well.

What a great find. Great story!

Oh. Pondering if the aliens who sent Gary Seven could be the Red Angels in Discovery? Or if there’s some connection between those aliens and the ones behind the Red Angels.

Maybe Gary Seven is the Red Angel!

spock said the red angel was human and female

Larry, thanks for this Trek Files episode that reveals the true identity of Isis. I see the article mentions that in 2018 Victoria Vetri denied being Isis. I would like to point out that way back in 2012, I revealed that Vetri was not Isis in my self-published comic, 3-D Pete’s Star Babe Invasion Comics, issue 3. I corresponded with her while she was in prison! I tried to let the Trek world know, but no one would listen! Anyway, thanks for the scoop! Mike Fisher Instagram: galacticfishproductions

What a great discovery, especially since “Assignment: Earth” is one of my favorite episodes! Listening to the podcast, Miss Tatro sounds like such a kind person. :}

Any relation to the late Richard Tatro, who played Norman in “I, Mudd?”

The same question occurred to me. Can somebody call her back and ask her?

Or composer Duane Tatro, who scored episodes of Quinn Martin’s superb ’60s TV series, THE INVADERS?

This is a strange synchronicity. I was just thinking about Gary Seven yesterday. I had an image of the British actor Chiwetel Ejiofor playing him on the new Philippa georgiou section 31 series. Interesting coincidence.

His semblance to Robert Lansing is indeed quite uncanny. :P

This is amazing — what a find!

You know there are whole pages dedicated to the watch Gary Seven wore (evidently was a Rolex – I’d never even noticed or thought about it) http://www.rolexmagazine.com/2008/11/start-trek-rolex-gmt-master-at-nasa.html https://www.rolexforums.com/showthread.php?t=83222 http://rolexdiamond.blogspot.com/2011/07/ https://forums.watchuseek.com/f2/watches-star-trek-4674575-2.html

There’s even a crazy guy who wrote and recorded music and put together opening credits for what an Assignment: Earth show might have been like…. http://supervisor194.com/

All forms of minutia the internet and fandom feed into and off of, but I’m still very surprised this bit of information never came out.

Fascinating!

All those wasted years she could have been on the convention circuit! She’s a legit Star Trek legend!

I was thinking that. Hopefully she’ll get a lot of bookings now.

Did she not realize what a big deal this is? Who knows, maybe not. She has to have known what Star Trek became.

What a neat story. She looks good today.

Shatner took her to lunch? I wonder if that worked out to be an entry for his captain’s log!

What, nobody has a comment for my double entendre??

oooooh, nasty, man! How much you wanna bet he buttered her muffin at lunch?

Very cool. Nice detective work, Roddenberry Entertainment.

She really was perfect for that role…such supernatural feline grace ! Old Cat-Man .

You call that a skimpy outfit? Even with the stricter rules of the times, there were women on Star Trek who wore more revealing costumes than that.

What a great story! She looks wonderful today and as many said here, it’s nice to learn new things about TOS all these years later. The question that was never answered: Is she a woman, is she a cat, ot a shapeshifter? GREAT article, thanks :)

Interesting bit of Trek hisstory. I wonder why there was so much pussy-footing around this casting issue for years. Though, it was classy of Tatro not to pounce on the false attribution.

I see what you did there :)

Oh come on., She’s didn’t want to come off like a clawed.

Gary Seven is one of the intriguing corners of TOS that has never been explored on screen beyond the one episode. I wonder if the Discovery team is sniffing around story possibilities for ol’ Gary and Isis.

I hope not.

I would have felt that way too until I saw how elegantly they revisited The Cage. Probably they won’t touch Gary Seven as he would not have shown up in the Discovery timeline yet.

TOS, Fernwood tonight AND the Gong Show!

sorry that english not my first language.

my feeling are, as usual, mr shatner was a very naughty rascal!

Now identified, instant elevation to iconic role.

Yep….

https://www.vidoevo.com/video/MXlwbDVWcWuRpWVhlZEU/april-tatro-show My friend, Jim found this video on YouTube of April Tatro performing on the Gong Show. And as Chuck Barris notes, she’s from my home town of Astoria, Oregon.

dang she missed out on so many star trek conventions…

I’m surprised that Marc Cushman missed that detail when he researched his very thorough and complete ‘These Are The Voyages’ volumes.

• Cast & crew
• User reviews

Where No Man Has Gone Before

• Episode aired Sep 22, 1966

The flight recorder of the 200-year-old U.S.S. Valiant relays a tale of terror--a magnetic storm at the edge of the galaxy. The flight recorder of the 200-year-old U.S.S. Valiant relays a tale of terror--a magnetic storm at the edge of the galaxy. The flight recorder of the 200-year-old U.S.S. Valiant relays a tale of terror--a magnetic storm at the edge of the galaxy.

• James Goldstone
• Samuel A. Peeples
• Gene Roddenberry
• William Shatner
• Leonard Nimoy
• Gary Lockwood
• 65 User reviews
• 10 Critic reviews

• Captain James Tiberius 'Jim' Kirk

• Mister Spock

• Lt. Cmdr. Gary Mitchell

• Dr. Elizabeth Dehner

• Yeoman Smith

• Lt. Lee Kelso

• Doctor Piper
• Lieutenant Hadley
• (uncredited)
• Bridge Crewmember
• Sciences Crewman
• Operations Division Lieutenant

• Lieutenant Leslie
• All cast & crew
• Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

Did you know

• Trivia The change in Gary and Elizabeth's eyes was accomplished by Gary Lockwood and Sally Kellerman wearing sparkly contact lenses. They consisted of tinfoil sandwiched between two lenses which covered the entire eye. Wearing the lenses was difficult for Lockwood. He could only see through the lenses by looking down while pointing his head up. Lockwood was able to use this look to convey Mitchell's arrogant attitude. The lenses were made over a weekend by Los Angeles optician John Roberts, who was hired by Associate Producer Robert H. Justman. Justman felt obligated to try wearing them before asking any actors to do so and managed to for several hours. He found them to be incredibly uncomfortable, but as long as they were only worn for brief periods, they were safe.
• Goofs Gary Mitchell makes Captain Kirk's "headstone" which reads: "James R. Kirk." In all other Trek references, his name is "James Tiberius Kirk".

[last lines]

Capt. Kirk : Captain's Log, stardate 1313.8: add to official losses Doctor Elizabeth Dehner - be it noted she gave her life in performance of her duty; Lieutenant Commander Gary Mitchell, same notation.

Capt. Kirk : I want his service record to end that way; he didn't ask for what happened to him.

Spock : I felt for him, too.

Capt. Kirk : [amazed] I believe there's some hope for you after all, Mr. Spock.

• Alternate versions The original version of the pilot, produced to convince NBC to buy "Star Trek" as a series, runs approximately 5 minutes longer and has a different introduction, several additional lines of dialogue and reaction shots, transitional introductions a la Quinn Martin ("Act I", "Act II", etc.), and different opening and closing credits. This has never been shown on television, but has circulated among "Star Trek" fans worldwide. It has been unofficially released on public domain videos, and was released on the 2009 Blu-Ray set of the original series (in the Season 3 collection)
• Connections Edited into Star Trek: Catspaw (1967)
• Soundtracks Star Trek Theme Composed and conducted by Alexander Courage

User reviews 65

• Apr 24, 2014
• September 22, 1966 (United States)
• United States
• Official Facebook
• RKO Studios - 780 N. Gower Street, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA
• Desilu Productions
• Norway Corporation
• See more company credits at IMDbPro

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• Runtime 50 minutes

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Legendary “Star Trek” Episode Revived in Recent “Discovery” Installment

F ans of “Star Trek: Discovery” witnessed a nostalgic throwback to a notable episode from “The Original Series” titled “Mirror, Mirror.” In the absence of malevolent counterparts featuring signature goatees or revealing uniforms, the newest “Discovery” episode still carries echoes of “Mirror, Mirror.” Characters Moll (Eve Harlow) and L’ak (Elias Toufexis) encounter a wormhole that pulls Captain Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green) and Book (David Ajala) into a multidimensional space. Here, they encounter a damaged Starfleet vessel with “ISS Enterprise” emblazoned across its hull, a clear nod to the legendary starship commanded by James T. Kirk.

However, this is not Kirk’s Enterprise but a ship from the Mirror Universe, an intriguing detail Captain Burnham clarifies for the audience. Despite not elaborating on how the ship arrived from the Mirror Universe and became marooned, “Discovery” leverages this setup to delve further into the lore established in “Mirror, Mirror.”

The exploration of the ISS Enterprise by Burnham and Book reveals that a Mirror Universe version of the character Saru (Doug Jones) emerged from slavery to become a significant figure on the ship, which ties back to his character development seen in “Discovery” Season 3. This narrative choice reinforces the concept that the Mirror Universe’s inherent evil cannot overshadow the persistent idealism that is fundamental to “Star Trek.”

Viewers can catch new episodes of “Star Trek: Discovery” streaming on Paramount+ every Thursday.

FAQ about “Star Trek: Discovery” and the “Mirror, Mirror” Episode

• What is the significance of the “Mirror, Mirror” episode? “Mirror, Mirror” is an iconic episode from “Star Trek: The Original Series” where some characters encounter their evil counterparts in an alternate “Mirror Universe.” It introduced a significant and often revisited concept in the Star Trek franchise.
• How does “Star Trek: Discovery” tie into the “Mirror, Mirror” episode? In “Star Trek: Discovery,” there are multiple references and connections to the “Mirror Universe,” and the latest episode revives this connection by featuring the ISS Enterprise.
• Who is Saru in “Star Trek: Discovery”? Saru, played by Doug Jones, is a Kelpian Starfleet officer in “Discovery.” The latest episode touches upon the storyline of Saru’s counterpart in the “Mirror Universe.”
• Where can I watch new episodes of “Star Trek: Discovery”? New episodes of “Star Trek: Discovery” are available for streaming on Paramount+ every Thursday.

The recent “Discovery” episode pays homage to the acclaimed “Mirror, Mirror” installment from “The Original Series,” blending the timeless themes of the Star Trek franchise with fresh narratives. By featuring the storied ISS Enterprise and revisiting the Mirror Universe, “Discovery” not only caters to long-time Trekkies who appreciate the deeper layers of the franchise’s lore but also keeps the Star Trek spirit of exploration and idealism alive in its ongoing storytelling.

Screen Rant

Star trek: discovery season 5, episode 5 ending explained.

Star Trek: Discovery season 5, episode 5 contains two major reveals about the Mirror Universe and the Breen. We break down what the ending means.

Warning: SPOILERS for Star Trek: Discovery Season 5, Episode 5 - "Mirrors"

• Star Trek: Discovery's next clue is hidden aboard the Mirror Universe's ISS Enterprise trapped in interdimensional space.
• L'ak is a Breen with a blood bounty on his head, and his backstory with Moll is revealed.
• The USS Discovery crew, led by Commander Rayner, helps save Burnham and Book and bring the ISS Enterprise into the Prime Universe, but Moll and L'ak escape.

Star Trek: Discovery season 5, episode 5, "Mirrors," ends with Captain Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green) and the USS Discovery's crew grappling with jaw-dropping reveals about the Mirror Universe's ISS Enterprise, L'ak's (Elias Toufexis) species, and the next clue in the hunt for the Progenitors' treasure. Written by Johanna Lee and Carlos Cisco and directed by Jen McGowan, the thrilling "Mirrors" sends Burnham and Cleveland Booker (David Ajala) into interdimensional space after Moll (Eve Harlow) and L'ak and the third Progenitors' clue , but they found a lot more than they bargained for.

In Star Trek: Discovery s eason 5, episode 5, Captain Burnham, Cleveland Booker, Moll, and L'ak are all trapped aboard the derelict ISS Enterprise after Burnham's shuttle and L'ak's ship are destroyed by interdimensional space, a dangerous region between Star Trek 's Prime and Mirror Universes . Michael ingeniously uses the Enterprise's tractor beam to send a distress signal to the USS Discovery, where Commander Rayner (Callum Keith Rennie) and the bridge crew find a way to keep the aperture of the interdimensional space wormhole open to fly the ISS Enterprise through. However, L'ak and Moll make their escape, leaving Burnham, Book, and the Starfleet heroes to grapple with the third clue to the Progenitors' treasure, and what they learned and found in the wormhole.

The ISS Enterprise's first and only previous appearance was in Star Trek: The Original Series season 2's "Mirror, Mirror", which introduced the Mirror Universe.

Star Trek: Discovery Season 5 Returning Cast & New Character Guide

Captain kirk's mirror universe iss enterprise now belongs to 32nd century starfleet, it's been a long road for the iss enterprise.

The Mirror Universe's ISS Enterprise becomes the property of the 32nd century's Starfleet and United Federation of Planets at the end of Star Trek: Discovery season 5, episode 5, "Mirrors." Captain Burnham assigned Lt. Commanders Kayla Detmer (Emily Coutts) and Joann Owosekun (Oyin Oladejo) - who don't actually appear in the episode - to fly the ISS Enterprise back to Federation HQ to be put into "storage". However, the acquisition of a major historical find like a 23rd-century Constitution Class starship filled with Terran Empire technology from the Mirror Universe is bound to be of interest to Dr. Kovich (David Cronenberg).

After the Temporal Wars, crossing over between the Mirror Universe and Star Trek 's Prime universe is now impossible, but the ISS Enteprise was trapped in interdimensional space for centuries, which crossing over could still happen.

Star Trek: Discovery season 5, episode 5's ISS Enterprise scenes were filmed on the USS Enterprise sets of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds . Discovery season 5's production took place at the end of 2022, after Strange New Worlds season 2 had wrapped in June and long before Strange New Worlds season 3 filming started in December 2023. The USS Enterprise's bridge, medical bay, transporter room, and hallways were redressed to turn the starship into its Mirror Universe counterpart.

Commander Michael Burnham previously came aboard Captain Christopher Pike's (Anson Mount) USS Enterprise in Star Trek: Discovery season 2.

Star Trek: Discovery's Mirror Universe Revelations

We found out what happened to mirror spock and mirror saru.

Star Trek: Discovery season 5, episode 5's ISS Enterprise appearance answered some big questions about the events of the Mirror Universe after Star Trek: The Original Series ' "Mirror, Mirror." Cleveland Booker learned from the plaque where the Enterprise's missing crew left their story behind that the Terran High Chancellor was assassinated after making reforms. This refers to the Mirror Universe's Spock (Leonard Nimoy), who was urged by the Prime Universe's Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner) to make reforms to prevent the inevitable collapse of the Terran Empire, which happened anyway.

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine 's Mirror Universe episodes revealed that the Terran Empire, weakened by Spock's reforms, was conquered by the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance.

Refugees led by a Kelpien slave-turned-rebel leader - Saru (Doug Jones) - used the ISS Enterprise to flee the Mirror Universe for the Prime Universe in the 23rd century, but the starship was trapped in interdimensional space. The Enterprise's crew eventually used the ship's shuttles and escape pods to abandon the starship in an effort to make it to the Prime Universe. Some did make it through, including the ISS Enterprise's junior science officer, Dr. Cho , who later joined Starfleet and became a branch Admiral in the 24th century.

Jinaal Bix redacted the names of the scientists who found the Progenitors' technology, including Dr. Cho.

Moll & L'ak Escaped Discovery With A Breen Bounty On Their Heads

L'ak is the nephew of the breen primarch.

Star Trek: Discovery season 5, episode 5 revealed the backstory of Moll and L'ak, including the revelation that L'ak is Breen . Years before Star Trek: Discovery season 5, Moll was a courier who sold latinum to the Breen Imperium, where she met L'ak, the nephew of the Breen's Primarch Ruhn (Tony Nappo), who had fallen out of favor and was working in the shuttle bay. Moll and L'ak fell in love , and L'ak committed a crime against the Breen by consorting with "a lesser being" and removing his helmet to show Moll his true face. Confronted by his uncle, L'ak shot the Primarch and fled with Moll.

Moll and L'ak used one of the ISS Enterprise's remaining warp pods to flee capture.

Moll and L'ak both have an Erigah, a Breen blood bounty, on their heads, and they hope that finding the Progenitors' treasure and selling it to the Breen will buy their freedom. Neither Moll and L'ak want the Federation's help offered by Captain Burnham, and they would "rather die" than be separated in a Federation prison. L'ak was injured in a brawl with Burnham, but instead of seeking medical attention from the USS Discovery, Moll and L'ak used one of the ISS Enterprise's remaining warp pods to flee capture. However, this time, Moll and L'ak left behind a warp trail Discovery can follow.

Cleveland Booker Tries To Connect With Moll

Booker's mentor was moll's absentee father.

Cleveland Booker has personal reasons to connect with and save Moll. Moll's real name is Malinne Booker, and she is the daughter of Book's late mentor, Cleveland Booker IV . Moll's father abandoned her and her mother to become a courier and raise the funds needed to move his family to a new home in the Gamma Quadrant. However, Booker IV's dangerous life as a courier and dealings with criminal organizations like the Emerald Chain made him keep his distance from Malinne, who blamed him for leaving her behind.

Moll doesn't want Cleveland Booker in her life.

Moll became a courier like her father to do what he didn't and earn enough latinum to move to the Gamma Quadrant, but Moll's entire world shifted when she fell in love with L'ak and the Breen placed a blood bounty on their head s. Moll doesn't want Cleveland Booker in her life , but she relents when she has the chance to kill the man who took her father's name. Whether Moll will ever come to see Book as the "only family" she has left, the way Book sees her, remains to be seen.

Commander Rayner Got The Best Out Of USS Discovery's Crew

Citrus mash for everyone.

Captain Burnham left Commander Rayner at the conn of the USS Discovery while she and Book went on their away mission, despite Rayner's reservations about leading Burnham's crew. However, Rayner was impressed that Burnhum learned Kellerun literature to connect with her new First Officer. This knowledge was the key to Rayner saving Burnham from interdimensional space. Burnham used the ISS Enterprise's tractor beam to send a signal the Kellerun commander would understand.

Rayner gained a new appreciation for Discovery's crew and how to work with them as his own crew.

Commander Rayner placed his trust in the USS Discovery's crew to "science" a way to open the wormhole's aperture and pull the ISS Enterprise into the Prime Universe. Commander Paul Stamets (Anthony Rapp). Lt. Sylvia Tilly (Mary Wiseman), Ensign Adira Tal (Blu del Barrio), Lt. Commander Gen Rhys (Patrick Kwok-Choon), Lt. Christopher (Orville Cummings), Lt. Linus (David Benjamin Tomlinson), Lt. Naya (Victoria Sawal), Lt. Commander Asha (Christina Dixon), and Lt. Gallo (Natalie Liconti) all rose to the occasion and found a way to save Burnham and Book. In turn, Rayner gained a new appreciation for Discovery's crew and how to work with them as his own crew.

Dr. Culber Reaches Out To Tilly

Culber has questions science can't answer.

The USS Discovery's counselor, Dr. Hugh Culber (Wilson Cruz), needs a counselor of his own. Culber continues to deal with the unimaginable experience of Trill scientist Jinaal Bix occupying his mind and body in Star Trek: Discovery season 5, episode 3, "Jinaal." Being taken over by a Trill has left Culber with existential questions, and he hopes finding the Progenitors' technology will provide him with the answers he seeks.

Hugh finds a sympathetic ear in Lt. Sylvia Tilly.

Unfortunately for Hugh, he doesn't believe he can share his feelings with his husband, Commander Paul Stamets because Paul is a man of science, and Culber's questions are ineffable. Hugh finds a sympathetic ear in Lt. Sylvia Tilly, but the answers Dr. Culber seeks are tied to what the USS Discovery finds when they locate the Progenitors' treasure - or so Hugh hopes. Culber, who has already died and been resurrected, may find himself in a new scenario that has pivotal life-or-death decisions in Star Trek: Discovery season 5.

Dr. Hugh Culber's dilemma in Star Trek: Discovery season 5 is a rare attempt by Star Trek to address spiritual questions.

Where Star Trek: Discovery's Next Progenitors' Treasure Clue Leads

The next clue involves water.

Captain Burnham acquired the third clue from Moll and L'ak, which is a vial of water contained within a piece of the Progenitors' treasure map. Burnham is waiting for Commander Stamets to conduct a chemical analysis of the water, which will reveal where the USS Discovery must go next for the 4th clue . However, Michael told Book that Dr. Cho, the former Terran scientist who became a Starfleet Admiral, went back to the ISS Enterprise in interdimensional space and hid her clue to the Progenitors' technology there.

Michael also told Book she saw him in the past during Star Trek: Discovery season 5, episode 4, "Face the Strange's" time loops, and that they were happy back then.

Burnham and Book mused over the lessons attached to each clue. On Trill, finding Jinaal's clue was dependent on Burnham and Booker proving they value lifeforms other than their own. On Lyrek for the first clue, the lesson was the importance of cultural context. Michael surmised that the lesson Dr. Cho left behind with her clue on the ISS Enterprise was to have the hope to shape your own future in Star Trek: Discovery season 5 as the search for the Progenitors' treasure and the answers to life, itself, continues.

New episodes of Star Trek: Discovery season 5 stream Thursdays on Paramount+

Star Trek Advertised Enterprise By Having A Klingon Knock Out A Hater

"Star Trek: Enterprise" debuted on September 26, 2001 , the sixth official "Star Trek" series since the debut of Gene Roddenberry's original in 1966. "Enterprise" came right at the end of a massive "Star Trek" renaissance that saw the 1987 debut of the massively successful "Star Trek: The Next Generation," the 1993 debut of "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine," the 1995 debut of "Star Trek: Voyager," and the release of "Star Trek: Generations," "Star Trek: First Contact," and "Star Trek: Insurrection" in theaters. The glut of "Star Trek" was a dream for TV programmers who would often schedule entire blocks of the franchise merely to puff up their docket. Personally, this author recalls a time when "NextGen," "DS9," and the original series would run back-to-back-to-back on certain weeknights.

The Sci-Fi Channel, now called Syfy, also leaned heavily on "Star Trek" when it launched back in 1992. "Star Trek" reruns became part of the nascent cable station's bread and butter, ensuring that audiences would have access to the franchise almost 24 hours a day. Indeed, there was a time in the late 1990s when it seemed that sci-fi channels and Viacom-associated TV affiliates played almost nothing but "Star Trek." The property perhaps stood on the precipice of being overexposed.

It was in that spirit that Space, the CTV Sci-Fi channel in Canada, chose to advertise the then-upcoming "Enterprise" with a "Star Trek"-hating fanboy whining about how there was just too much "Star Trek" in the world. A sixth series, the protagonist of the commercial said, was one toke over the line, as there weren't enough Trekkies in the world to justify the overwhelming volume. Cleverly, the whiner is socked in the face by a Trekkie dressed in full Klingon regalia.

The ad sees an angry young man wearing a "NO MORE STAR TREK" t-shirt and carrying a clipboard knocking on the door of a suburban home. An old woman answers and the angry hater requests that she sign his petition, asking Space to stop running so much "Star Trek." The old woman listens politely as the bitter young man complains that Space is already running four "Star Trek" shows in a row, and that the only audience for such a thing is comprised of basement-dwelling nerds. "They wear stupid costumes," he raves, "go to conventions, and call themselves 'Captain' and stuff! It's gotta stop!"

The old woman says that she won't sign his petition, but that her adult son, Gary, will. She calls Gary, and he emerges from the house dressed as a Klingon, complete with forehead makeup and a long wig . Gary immediately punches the hater in the face, causing him to fall backward. "P'takh!," he yells, a common Klingon insult. Gary's mom then turns to him and yells, in Klingon, that he fights without honor and that he must return to his quarters.

The announcer then implores audiences to get ready for more "Star Trek," as "Enterprise" debuts in a few days.

Despite the 1990s glut of "Star Trek," many sci-fi fans felt like a cat in a sunbeam. This was a time when they could remain comforted at all hours, happy to be warmed by their favorite space opera. Was Space showing too much "Star Trek?" For many, there was no such thing. Whining about "Star Trek" would only invite punches to the face by angry Klingons.

Too much Star Trek?

Modern Trekkies have been similarly spoiled by a second "Star Trek" renaissance. When CBS All Access launched in 2017, it debuted "Star Trek: Discovery," the first "Star Trek" TV series since the cancelation of "Enterprise" in 2005. "Discovery" was merely a statement of intent by Paramount to put all of its eggs in the "Star Trek" basket. In the next four years, the streaming service (eventually called Paramount+) debuted "Star Trek: Short Treks," "Star Trek: Picard," "Star Trek: Lower Decks," "Star Trek: Prodigy," and "Star Trek: Strange New Worlds."

There was a brief window when all six of these shows seemed to be in production simultaneously, and Paramount announced plans for even more "Star Trek" shows. One can imagine an advertisement for Paramount+ wherein a "Star Trek"-hating nerd tried to start an online petition declaring that there was too much "Star Trek" in the world, only to be punched out by Jet Reno (Tig Notaro). Despite the number of "Star Trek" shows, however, seasons had been reduced from their '90s heyday of 26 episodes to a streaming standard of 10-13. Ultimately, the number of raw "Trek" hours was about the same as in the 1990s.

Of course, a hater didn't need to take out "Enterprise" or the Second "Star Trek" Renaissance. The former suffered from poor ratings in a post-9/11 world  and was canceled after four seasons. More recently, the streaming model has proven difficult to make profitable, and Paramount can no longer afford to make as much "Star Trek" as it did, which has led to it canceling most of its shows (as of this writing, "Strange New Worlds" and the upcoming "Starfleet Academy" are the only ones with a definite future ).

Sad to say, that guy in the "NO MORE STAR TREK" t-shirt got his way.

Robert Lansing

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Lansing filmed his scenes between Tuesday 2 January 1968 and Wednesday 10 January 1968 at Desilu Stage 9 , Stage 10 , Paramount Stage 5 and on location at the Paramount lot.

Nonetheless, Lansing was the star of three other series during the 1960s: 87th Precinct in 1961, Twelve O'Clock High in 1964, and The Man Who Never Was (which was produced and directed by John Newland ) in 1966. Of those three, Twelve O'Clock High was the most successful, lasting three seasons (compared to the one season of the other two). However, Lansing left the show after only one year. This series also co-starred fellow Original Series guest actors Sally Kellerman , Lou Antonio , Frank Overton , and Bert Remsen . Just after Twelve O'Clock High , Lansing shot a pilot for a series called The Long Hunt of April Savage which was created by Sam Rolfe and produced by Gene Roddenberry . The unsold pilot also featured Charles Dierkop .

Lansing also made guest appearances in a number of shows, including Bonanza , Gunsmoke , Ironside , Law & Order , The Mod Squad (with Clarence Williams III and Tige Andrews ), Murder, She Wrote , Simon & Simon , Thriller , The Twilight Zone (with Mariette Hartley ), and The Virginian .

In 1983, he starred in Automan . In 1985, he again became part of a regular cast in a TV series, this time as a co-star, on The Equalizer . He remained with this show until its end in 1989. Keith Szarabajka co-starred in this series. Both Lansing and Szarabajka also co-starred in the 1988 Equalizer TV movie called Memories of Manon , which also featured Anthony Zerbe and Mark Margolis .

In 1959, Lansing co-starred with fellow Original Series guest star Lee Meriwether in the science fiction film 4D Man . Guy Raymond also starred in this film. Lansing and Meriwether co-starred again in Namu, the Killer Whale (1966). In 1963, he had a supporting role in the war drama A Gathering of Eagles , which featured Louise Fletcher in an uncredited role. The following year, he appeared in the romantic comedy Under the Yum Yum Tree , which also featured Gloria Calomee and Bill Erwin . In 1971, he co-starred with fellow Original Series alumni Kim Darby , Hal Baylor , and Don Keefer in The Grissom Gang , and in 1977, he co-starred with Joan Collins and Robert Pine in Empire of the Ants . Lansing's other film credits include An Eye for an Eye (1966, with Paul Fix and Clint Howard ), Namu, the Killer Whale (1966, with John Anderson and Lee Meriwether, and featuring a score by Samuel Matlovsky ), and Bittersweet Love (1976, with Gail Strickland ).

Lansing also appeared in a number of made-for-TV movies and specials, including Killer by Night (1972, with Theodore Bikel and Jason Wingreen ), The Astronaut (1972, with Monte Markham , James B. Sikking , and Paul Kent , and written by Harve Bennett ), Crime Club (1975, with David Clennon ), The Deadly Triangle (1977, with Diana Muldaur ), and Bionic Showdown: The Six Million Dollar Man and the Bionic Woman (1989, with Jeff Yagher ).

In his later years, Lansing served as president of The Players, the New York City theatrical and literary club on Gramercy Park, where his portrait still hangs. In 1993, he became a recurring cast member on Kung Fu: The Legend Continues . Sadly, his role only lasted until the following year, when he died of cancer at the age of 66.

Lansing was married to Emily McLaughlin, who married Jeffrey Hunter after she and Lansing divorced.

Further reading [ ]

• "From the Files of Gary Seven", Peter Bloch-Hansen, Starlog , issue 149, December 1989, pp. 23-26, 36

External links [ ]

• Robert Lansing at the Internet Movie Database
• Robert Lansing at Wikipedia
• 2 ISS Enterprise (NCC-1701)

Every Episode of Star Trek: Picard Season 2, Ranked

Star Trek: Picard Season 2 was a varied and emotionally heavy season, and here's how critics and fans ranked each episode in the time-travel saga.

This article contains a brief mention of suicide.

The return of Jean-Luc Picard to the Star Trek universe was always meant to be a three-season affair. The second season was filmed during the height of the pandemic, and went through many iterations under the direction of three executive producers. In more ways than one, it was a tonal shift from the seasons on either side of it. How critics and fans ranked every episode of Star Trek: Picard Season 2 shows how challenging and contentious the middle chapter of this saga was. The story explored time travel, introduced an alternate timeline, and was bookended by a massively important moment in Starfleet's present.

Picard Season 2 was an emotionally heavy season with a clear political point of view and a sense of fun that comes with setting sci-fi characters in the contemporaneous present. In both the special features of The Complete Star Trek: Picard home release and the making-of book Star Trek: Picard: The Art and Making of the Series , the challenges in making this season are laid bare. With Rotten Tomatoes representing the critics and IMDB's user ratings representing the audience, each episode of Star Trek: Picard Season 2 is ranked based on the story it told and the impact it had on both the characters and audience.

10 The Picard Season 2 Premiere Was Full of Promise

Star trek: picard season 2, episode 1 "the star gazer", star trek theory: picard retconned the divisive enterprise series finale.

Of all Star Trek: Picard 's ten sophomore episodes, "The Star Gazer" ranks the highest among its peers in Season 2 . It's a fantastic beginning to the story, which both ties up loose ends from Season 1 and sets the characters on a new adventure. Most importantly, however, it brings Starfleet back into the fold in a big way. Picard delivers a Starfleet Academy commencement address, and he is then summoned to the USS Stargazer to answer a plea for help.

The episode sends off Soji, an ambassador for her synthetic siblings on the galactic stage. Dr. Agnes Jurati is with her, but quickly beams aboard the Stargazer, commanded by (her ex) Captain Cristobal Rios. Raffi, Elnor and Laris return, the first two also in Starfleet and the latter still with Jean-Luc but yearning for something more. It ends with the return of Q who, at the last moment, whisks Picard away from certain death.

9 Picard Season 2 Almost Took Place in an Alternate Timeline

Star trek: picard season 2, episode 2, "penance".

The first two episodes of Star Trek: Picard Season 2 debuted the same day, so it makes sense they are ranked close together. The strange new world this episode introduces may be why some viewers became disillusioned with the rest of the season's 21st Century setting. Executive Producer Terry Matalas said on Inglorious Treksperts that this episode mostly came from the Season 1 showrunner Michael Chabon before he left to adapt one of his novels for Paramount.

The characters were meant to spend more time in this alternate timeline , which reveres Adam Soong, one of many Brent Spiner lookalikes related to the creation of Data. The Earth is ravaged by climate change and seems very similar to the xenophobic Mirror Universe. Picard, Raffi, Seven of Nine, Elnor, Jurati and Rios have to bust a Borg Queen out of prison so that they can time travel and fix the past. Still, it might have been fun to spend more time in this evil, alternate future.

8 Season 2 Teamed Picard Up With a Character Tying TOS to TNG

Star trek: picard season 2, episode 5, "fly me to the moon".

Actor Orla Brady played Laris, who is absent from the season save for the first and final episodes. However, she returned to the cast as Talinn, the Romulan successor to Gary Seven from The Original Series . The character known as a "Watcher" was introduced as a potential spinoff from Gene Roddenberry for NBC. While it didn't take off, it did create an interesting bit of Star Trek lore. While Gary Seven was a human with access to advanced alien technology, Talinn is a Romulan tasked with protecting the timeline on Earth.

Laris is primarily responsible for the safety of Renée Picard, ancestor of Jean-Luc and the woman who discovers "a sentient microbe" on Europa that helps fix climate change. It's also the episode where the other political storyline (Rios and the present-day "Butterflies" being persecuted by ICE for helping undocumented migrants) are broken out of custody in a fun action sequence. It's also the episode where Agnes is injected with Borg nanoprobes by the queen, setting up the next episode in the Star Trek: Picard Season 2 ranked list.

7 A Gala, a Sassy Borg Queen and a Musical Number Shook Up Picard Season 2

Star trek: picard season 2, episode 6, "two of one", 'keep being noisy': picard star provides star trek: legacy update.

This version of the Borg Queen was played by Annie Wersching , who passed away in January 2023 from cancer. Great throughout the series, this episode features the Borg Queen and Jurati sharing a mind. As the Borg Queen tries to take over her body (reliant on emotional responses for control), the two make a great inside woman as they help Team Picard sneak into a gala. Allison Pill also does a rendition of the great Pat Benatar song, "Shadows of the Night."

"Two of One" doesn't just refer to the Borg-ified Jurati, either. This episode features Jean-Luc have a touching heart-to-heart conversation with his ancestor Renée. They are also two of a kind. Picard also faces off with Adam Soong, though he runs the Admiral down with his car. Because of his synthetic body, Rios, Raffi and his friends take him to Dr. Teresa Ramirez, leader of the Butterflies and physician who doesn't ask a lot of questions.

6 Picard Season 2 Does 'Star Trek: The Voyage Home'

Star trek: picard season 2 episode 3, "assimilation".

The third episode of Picard Season 2 is ranked high because it continued the breakneck pace established by the first two episodes. Team Picard time travels to the past with the help of the Borg queen, presenting the third new locale for the series: the 21st Century . However, this is where the bulk of the season takes place, much like Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home was mostly set in the then-contemporaneous present.

A lot happened in this episode. Seven of Nine and Raffi try to blend in to the 21st Century and scan for a person using technology too advanced for the time. Rios is meant to help, but he's injured and ends up in a clinic with Dr. Teresa Ramirez and her son Ricardo, who are eventually arrested by ICE. Agnes and Picard try to outwit the Borg Queen. However, the most important moment in the episode was the death of Elnor. Fatally wounded by Seven of Nine's alternate timeline husband, his death devastates Raffi.

5 Guinan Brought the Return of an Old Friend With a New Face

Star trek: picard season 2 episode 4, "watcher".

Whoopi Goldberg's affable bartender Guinan returned in the Picard Season 2 premiere , but the character returned in a big way played by Ito Aghayere. The first episode established that Guinan, an ageless El Aurian, can alter her appearance to older or younger as she sees fit. Picard has to convince her to help him save humanity, even though she doesn't think Earthlings are worth the effort.

This is the episode which focuses most heavily on the immigration story in Season 2, with Rios in ICE custody trying to explain why he has no identification. As Seven of Nine and Raffi try to find him, they discover how migrants can fall through the cracks of the system. This plays out while juxtaposed with Guinan's condemnation of humanity. However, Picard is able to make a plea based on what he knows of where humanity can go in the future, in a very Roddenberry-esque Star Trek moment.

4 Picard and Guinan Find Mercy and Vulcans from Agent Wells

Star trek: picard season 2 episode 8, "mercy", star trek's wil wheaton wants a crusher brothers spinoff series.

Introduced at the end of the previous episode, Jay Karnes makes his return to Star Trek . Having previously played a time agent in Star Trek: Voyager , in Picard Season 2, he plays FBI Agent Wells, who is a firm believer in alien activity and arrests both Guinan and Picard based on video footage he has of the latter transporting onto the street. He questions them both, threatening the mission and the timeline. It's revealed that he had a pre- First Contact Vulcan encounter as a child . He ultimately lets Picard and Guinan go, seemingly fired for bringing them in at all.

Meanwhile, the Borg Queen has control of Agnes, and Seven of Nine and Raffi have to try to find and capture her. They find her consuming metals from car batteries, which is toxic to Agnes, but is what the Borg Queen needs to assimilate more people. She doesn't kill Seven or Raffi, proving Agnes still has some measure of control. Borg Jurati then goes to Adam Soong, convincing him to help her steal La Sirena and strand Team Picard in the 21st Century.

3 Season 2 Brought Picard Face-to-Face With His Greatest Fear and Regret

Star trek: picard season 2 episode 7, "monsters".

This episode is ranked one of the lowest by Picard viewers, and it's understandable. Not a lot happens in the episode, despite the introduction of James Callis as a hallucination of a therapist and Picard's father . This episode dives deeply into the memories of guilt and the mystery of what happened to Jean-Luc's mother. It's emotionally heavy and does somewhat lag on the breathless urgency of trying to find Agnes and stop Adam Soong.

Still, this is an emotionally powerful episode that recontextualizes what viewers have been seeing about Picard's past. His father is revealed to not be the abusive villain fans thought. Picard's mother is not a victimized woman trying to be free, but rather someone suffering from mental illness or injury. It's a traumatic, frightening event and (with help of Watcher Talinn and some sci-fi telepathic technology), Picard works through it.

2 The New Borg Were the Best Thing Picard Season 2 Brought to Star Trek

Star trek: picard season 2 episode 10, "farewell".

While the finale of Picard Season 2, "Farewell" is mostly about denouement, outside of the last mission to ensure that Adam Soong doesn't kill Renée Picard. Talinn sacrifices herself. Rios decides to stay behind in the 21st Century. Wesley Crusher returns as a Watcher , and Q and Picard have a final heart-to-heart chat, just before he sends them all back to the proper future. He's even able to resurrect Elnor since he had a little power left over because Rios stayed behind.

The best part of the finale was the reveal that Agnes Jurati was the Borg Queen from the first episode of Picard Season 2. With the alternate timeline Borg Queen, she created a new kind of collective. People choose to join the Borg, and even retain some measure of individuality . These new Borg agree to stand guard against a rupture in spacetime through which an unknown threat has yet to emerge. They become provisional members of the Federation, continuing the Star Trek tradition of old enemies, eventually becoming allies.

1 Star Trek's Most Emotionally Heavy Episode Is About Picard's Guilt

Star trek: picard season 2 episode, "hide and seek".

The penultimate episode of Star Trek: Picard Season 2 is a massive episode, both for its action and its emotional weight. There is a big battle at Chateau Picard where the new Jurati Borg assimilate mercenaries hired by Adam Soong. They try to kill Picard and his friends, but Agnes eventually convinces the Queen to try a different way than she had in the past, since in every timeline assimilation and violence leads to the Borg's destruction.

Most importantly, this episode reveals how Picard's mother died and why Jean-Luc felt so much guilt for it. His father locked her in a room to stop her from hurting herself. Jean-Luc unlocked the door and went to lie with his mother and comfort her. After he fell asleep, she took her own life. As much as Picard Season 2 was about fixing the past, outsmarting the Borg and other Star Trek things, Picard's revelation was the true mission . He had to forgive himself by letting go of the guilt that kept him at arm's length from people and preparing him to be a father.

The complete Star Trek: Picard is available to own on Blu-ray, DVD, digital and streams on Paramount+ .

Star Trek: Picard

Star Trek: Picard Season 2 pits the iconic Admiral against his greatest nemesis Q for a time-travel adventure that exposes Jean-Luc's deepest secret.

'Star Trek: Discovery' Season 5's Captain Rayner Ran His Ship Like a Pirate

Callum Keith Rennie also discusses coming into 'Discovery's final season, getting into prosthetics, and how much he has in common with Rayner.

The Big Picture

• Callum Keith Rennie's Captain Rayner brings conflict and depth to Star Trek: Discovery 's final season.
• Rennie discusses his experience on Star Trek: Discovery , praising the supportive cast and crew, despite the initial challenges of joining an established series for its last season.
• In Season 5, Episode 4 "Face the Strange," Burnham and Rayner must work together within a time bubble to save the universe.

As Captain Michael Burnham ( Sonequa Martin-Green ) embarks on one last adventure with her crew, Star Trek: Discovery Season 5 is bringing a few new characters along for the ride. Chief among those newcomers is the blunt, war-worn Captain Rayner. Played by Battlestar Galactica alum Callum Keith Rennie , Rayner is Burnham's new second in command on the Discovery , taking over after Saru ( Doug Jones ) took a different position at Starfleet.

Having lived through The Burn, Rayner doesn't have time for niceties and butts heads with Burnham almost immediately — so naturally, she takes it upon herself to give him a second chance when Starfleet is ready to cut him loose. Last week's episode saw him, rightfully, put in his place a bit as Tilly ( Mary Wiseman ) attempted to help him connect with the crew, much to his chagrin. In Season 5 Episode 4, "Face the Strange," Rayner and Burnham are thrown into a time bubble, forcing them to work together if they ever want to get back to the correct timeline and prevent the universe from being destroyed.

Ahead of the episode, I sat down with Rennie to dig into Rayner's backstory, what we can expect from him in the rest of the season, and what it will take for Rayner to truly connect with the crew of Discovery . During our conversation, we also discussed Rennie's history with sci-fi, what it was like joining Discovery for the show's final season, and what he's taking away from the whole experience.

Star Trek: Discovery

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Taking place almost a decade before Captain Kirk's Enterprise, the USS Discovery charts a course to uncover new worlds and life forms.

Rennie is no stranger to science fiction, having had roles in such series as The Umbrella Academy , Jessica Jones, and Battlestar Galactica. As Battlestar Galactica was the series that turned me into a sci-fi fan, and perhaps Rennie's most recognizable role, I had to ask him about being a part of such massive and beloved franchises within the genre. "It's amazing," he said. For Rennie, even though Battlestar was also a reboot of a classic series , the show's success was a lot less predictable than the mainstay that is Star Trek . He explained, "Like, say Battlestar , when I started on that I had no idea where that one was gonna go. Discovery was already very established , but I actually didn't let any of that into my [head], because I went, “That's not gonna help.” So, I didn’t. Now, I'm feeling the world of it. Now, I'm sensing what the world of Discovery is and how many people love it, and how it fits. "

Discovery also isn't his first experience with Star Trek , "I watched the original. That was my thing, and that was it," Rennie told me. While he may have missed some of the series' in between, saying, "There's big chunks of time where I just didn't watch a lot of TV, so I missed all of the other stuff," he'll always make time for The Original Series when he comes across it, "even if the old Star Trek comes on, I'll still watch it because that was my Star Trek . Jim Kirk, and all of that. "

While we've gotten a pretty good sense of who Rayner is in these first four episodes, most of his backstory remains a mystery. Rennie revealed that "some backstory comes up in a few episodes." Part of his gruff exterior will be explained as we'll "get a sense of why he's maybe got a chip on his shoulder and has some unprocessed resentments about a bunch of things that maybe have played out in his work in a negative way."

Rennie Calls 'Star Trek: Discovery's Latest Episode "Amazing"

"Face the Strange," is such a classic Star Trek episode, employing the ever-entertaining sci-fi trope of sticking our main characters in a time loop, both to put an obstacle in their path as well as to bring them face to face with some of their own demons. For Rennie, the episode really put the science in science fiction. "It was like, 'Whoa! What's happening? I don't get it.' There's just so much science stuff and talk, so much jumping about to places and history and stuff." But he had high praise for his fellow castmates as well as the crew behind the camera." Lee [Rose] being the director, you're in great hands. Being in scenes with Sonequa, you know that you're gonna be in it , and it was great. I watched it again last night, and there’s just an amazing amount of stuff in there. It was just an amazing episode. "

In this episode, Burnham and Rayner are tossed back in time to the first season of Discovery , bringing them both face to face with the version of Burnham who's fresh off her own demotion in Starfleet . Throughout the episode, it becomes quite clear that Burnham and Rayner have a lot more in common than either of them might have realized. When asked if this experience might put them more on equal footing, Rennie confirmed that "he's learned an understanding of the crew." He went on to point out that we haven't seen the relationship that Rayner had with his own crew.

He explained: "We're not on the Antares talking about his crew, which I think is an important part that we missed, where you go, 'How did I see my people on my particular ship? And how well did I know them?' No one's asking me how well I knew everybody because I did, but if I've only been there a brief time, you're only gonna have facts." He admits that it is important for Rayner to connect past the surface level. "Through that particular episode, you learn and go, 'Yes, it is good to know what people are up to and where they're from,' because in that particular instance, it saved us. So, I learned a thing, and I give a, 'Yes. Got it. Thank you.'"

Rayner Will Have to Shorten the Distance Between Himself and the Discovery Crew

While it doesn't sound like we'll be getting any flashbacks to Rayner's time on the Antares Rennie believes that he'd spent a similar amount of time with that crew as Michael has with hers. "We didn't get to inhabit that, I get to make it up in my own mind," he said. "But for me, it was more like a pirate ship that I had. " While Rayner comes off as the more stubborn, stick-to-the-mission Captain between him and Burnham, Rennie doesn't think he was quite so strict on his own ship. He said:

"That's the way I perceived it. It wasn't some rigid, completely stoic, boss fest, but a little bit of a wild card ship. We're gonna go into things that nobody else wants to go into, or knows how to deal with, but we would. "

While the walls around Rayner are still pretty high, Rennie explained that we will see him "shorten the distance" he's put between himself and the crew of the Discovery. "There's a great bit, there's an episode where Burnham leaves me again to take control of the ship. There's an interaction with everybody in a certain way because they don't like me yet. [Laughs] And I need some help a little bit, but I've created a distance, and I have to shorten that distance between everybody." He went on to say there are plenty of "fun dynamics" to look forward to and Rayner's insistence on keeping everyone at arm's length will likely come back to bite him.

Star Trek has quite a long list of original alien species created for the franchise, and Rayner just happens to be a Kellerun, a race that hasn't been seen since Deep Space Nine . In classic Trek fashion, Kelleruns appear mostly human with the most visible difference being the shape of the ears. As he follows in the footsteps of the likes of Leonard Nimoy and any actor who has ever played a Vulcan or a Romulan, I asked Rennie about getting into prosthetics for the role. "Those guys are great. Rocky [Faulkner] was great, Nicola [Bendrey] was great." While it was certainly an extra step the process was brief enough that it didn't bother him to come to set a bit earlier than usual. "That was probably an hour, and I really didn't think about that enough to go, 'Oh, that's right. I have to get up earlier.' But I think we got it down to an hour and a bit for just the ears because there’s a lot of stuff on them."

Despite the agonizing wait of sitting in front of a mirror for an hour, Rennie noted that Faulkner and Bendrey made the make-up experience as fun as it could possibly have been. He said: "I don't love just sitting there looking at myself for an hour, but there's music and great company and coffee, and it became a really sweet part of the day, and then another sweet part of the day where I download. " It wasn't his first time getting into prosthetics, but his previous experience had been brief. After playing Rayner across an entire season, Rennie admitted by the end, removing the glue actually started to feel like you'd expect pulling costume glue off your ears to feel. "There was a point near the end where the glue-on, glue-off became quite painful for a while."

The Support of the Cast and the Fans Are Highlights of Rennie's 'Star Trek' Experience

While this is Rennie's first season on the show, it's the final bow for Star Trek: Discovery . When asked what he'd be taking away from this experience, he had nothing but high praise for the cast and crew. As a newcomer on a well-established show, jumping into the fifth season had a bit of a learning curve. "I found that coming into the show was difficult for me because it was unlike a show that I'd been on before. It was already very well established." He went on to say:

"I pat myself on the back because I made it through, and there was this wonderful group energy that helped me do that. The good naturedness of the show was something that I maybe haven't worked on. There was a wholehearted goodness about it, which was quite nice, which overlapped into how people treated each other and mutual respect. Also, I kind of blocked out all Star Treks in my mind, so I'm there not thinking of Star Trek history. I'm just doing scene-to-scene and working on this stuff, and then it finishes, and then I forget that there's an incredible vast following of the show that somehow you are now part of it like that. All of that, this is all relatively new to me."

As a new addition to an already established group, I pointed out that it seemed as though Rennie's experience mirrored that of his characters, and he agreed. "I'm excited for people to see the season. And then, coming into it playing, “I don't want to be liked. It doesn't matter if I'm liked. I'm there to do my job, like Rayner, and I'm doing it. And then there's the after-effect of an incredible fan base that seems to be very supportive ."

You can watch our full conversation in the player above, and catch the latest episode of Star Trek: Discovery now on Paramount+.

'Star Trek: Discovery' Season 5 Review: One Hell of a Final Ride

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