TV.com

Star Trek

The Galileo Seven

Season 1, Episode 16, Aired 1/5/67

Next
Episode Previous
Episode

EDIT

Episode Summary

Spock commands a stranded away team when their shuttlecraft is stranded on a planet with hostile natives.

8.2

EPISODE RATING: Great

179 votes

Your Rating: 10

"Perfect"
Your Rating: 9.5

"Superb"
Your Rating: 9

"Superb"
Your Rating: 8.5

"Great"
Your Rating: 8

"Great"
Your Rating: 7.5

"Good"
Your Rating: 7

"Good"
Your Rating: 6.5

"Fair"
Your Rating: 6

"Fair"
Your Rating: 5.5

"Mediocre"
Your Rating: 5

"Mediocre"
Your Rating: 4.5

"Poor"
Your Rating: 4

"Poor"
Your Rating: 3.5

"Bad"
Your Rating: 3

"Bad"
Your Rating: 2.5

"Terrible"
Your Rating: 2

"Terrible"
Your Rating: 1.5

"Abysmal"
Your Rating: 1

"Abysmal"

Rate It

Watch Online

Cast & Crew

See All EDIT

Leonard Nimoy

Mr. Spock
William Shatner

Captain James Tiberius Kirk
DeForest Kelley

Dr. Leonard Horatio "Bones" McCoy

Fan Episode Reviews (10)

See All

Fine story and pacing, one of the essential installments for seeing the development of the Spock character.

8.4

"Great"

By Mac-Ale, Nov 02, 2010 Report Abuse

A stuttlecraft is lost on a savage planet because of radiation from a great quasar.

There are some minor things that bother me with this episode, most importantly as far as the series, it makes little sense that the chief surgeon and head engineer would be sent along with the first officer to investigate a space phenomenon - especially as Boma is well-written as a foil for Spock. But no matter, this story has a lot of good things happening.

First of all, it's good drama - there is a tension about the Enterprise searching for the shuttle and having to soon be on its way, the creatures on the planet are mysterious and menacing (if rather cheesy looking), the fear amongst the shuttle crew is generally realistic. Most scenes are important and contribute to the whole tale. Most critical (and interesting), Spock is in a writers' transition here. He has plenty of logic and rationale, but he is hardly "unemotional", he gets very angry and sarcastic. This contrasts to later portrayals such as "Journey to Babel". The human nature issues are great, Boma vs. Spock, Kirk's concern for his crew, Scotty's admiration for Spock's final gamble in orbit. Sadly, the yeoman gets a poor set of lines, mostly, "what if the creatures are still out there?", "I got a bump on my head", and "it's getting hot" (as the shuttle is smoking up a storm).

As usual for the series, "Star Trek" is good science fiction when it is good at telling a decent, old-fashioned one hour story. The rest is usually unimportant.moreless

DO YOU AGREE?
1 0
Disaster strikes when Spock leads a team aboard the shuttle Galileo to study a quasar and the shuttle crashes on a planet.

9.0

"Superb"

By Celedorian, Sep 10, 2010 Report Abuse

This is a very special "Spock" episode that is well written and features incredible acting by Leonard Nimoy (Spock). It also introduces the shuttlecraft; a wonderful model was constructed and used for the exterior shots of the shuttle in space, a full size exterior mockup was built for the cast to interact with on the planet's surface, and an interior set was built as well. While the shuttle would be used in future episodes (which would help pay for it,) it would never again be used as well as it is here. Overall, the tight script and great special effects add up to one of Star Trek's finest episodes; easily a classic.moreless

DO YOU AGREE?
0 0
Investigating a quasar, Mr. Spock leads an away team to examine the phenomenon, but the shuttlecraft crashes on a barren planet, stranding the passengers and leaving them to be stalked by giant creatures. A top-notch episode...moreless

10

"Perfect"

By Jay-Spacedust, Oct 30, 2008 Report Abuse

I was surprised to see that this episode seems to split the vote somewhat, as in my opinion, it is classic 'Star Trek'. I really like the story, and it stands as one of my first season favourites.

In what is quite a rarity in the series, Captain Kirk takes somewhat of a backseat in the story, with his only real role being battling against Commissioner Ferris, who is pressing for the Enterprise to leave the scene to reach an important rendezvous.
The story belongs to Spock, and really shows up his 'logical' and at times angering and stubborn nature. I like the dynamics between the various passengers and had two of the crewmen not conveniently (!) been killed by the creatures (reducing the weight for the Galileo to take off), I wondered if Spock would have chosen himself to stay behind.

Apparently, Yeoman Rand was originally supposed to be one of the members of the shuttlecraft, but after Grace Lee Whitney was dropped from the series, the character was adapted into another crewmember, Yeoman Mears. (By the way, I do agree with a couple of other reviews that she has very "girly lines" "I bumped my head", "It's getting hot in here", etc.).

It is possible to pick small holes in the story, but I think that can be said with many 'Trek' episodes, especially in The Original Series.

In some ways, this is like a space-age version of the classic 'Flight of the Phoenix' (1965, based upon the 1964 novel). I find the episode exciting and dramatic in equal measure, and the climax really has you on the edge of your seat. All-in-all, an excellent episode.moreless

DO YOU AGREE?
0 0
Spock has command as his crew crash lands on a planet with giant barbarians.

10

"Perfect"

By marvelfan89, Aug 25, 2008 Report Abuse

(Spoilers)

Galileo Seven is probably one of the more recognized Star Trek episodes in my opinion. This is due to a variety of reasons: Spock's First command is a giant failure (he loses two crewmen by his own bad decision making) and after his Vulcan logic fails Spock resorts to human emotions throughout the episode.

The Enterprise is set to deliver vaccines to Marcus 3 but for whatever reason make a pit stop (my first Amazing Race reference lol) at Murasaki 12. In hindsight this might have been Kirk's fault for letting Spock and others go but Spock's handling while in first command though are a bigger disaster.

For instance when Spock and company land on the planet known as Taurus 2 they are eventually attacked by giant barbarians for a lack of a better word. The first scout Latimer is killed by a spear through the back (shown in graphic fashion which for this time on TV was very violent). Spock adhering to his "logical" form of non-violence tries to evade the barbarians seeking more to annoy them hoping them to go away. This is hilarious. Clearly if logic was a factor as the other crewman have said included the next victim ,Gaetano, then actually the next "logical" step would be to wipe out the threat.

Spock's "logic" seems to be more relied on his upbringings as a Vulcan thus portraying an adherence to a human quality- that is the human behavior to be molded by the actions of others. Other areas of Spock's irrationality is his decision to say to he will pick one of the crewman to stay behind. See the ship the Galileo is stuck in the planet with fuel gone for the most part. Spock saying he would logically pick someone to die has no logic, once again a human trait is displayed here that is desperation and a lack of hope in sacrificing someone so others can leave. No matter how many times Spock could think over this decision there be no "logical" candidate.

For me I love it because it shows Spock's human qualities something of which the writers at the beginning (with the exception of the Pilot "The Cage") was something they didn't want to pursue (even though by the last season we would see more of Spock's human emotion).

Anyhow, continuing on Spock's failure of logic and his human emotions coming out (he decides not to give one of the dead crewman a proper burial even though that would be the "logical" thing to do), it is Scotty who comes to the rescue. Fans are used to seeing Scotty make up excuses on the show like he can't get the warp engines going or something like that but it is Scotty who comes up with the plans to leave the planet by redirecting the phaser power to engines.

So that's why I love this episode. I think for those who sort of saw Spock as a hypocrite or as a guy who despite his alleged logical attributes here is the real Spock coming out in a way with his human emotions coupled with bad decision making which are a human trait. Besides that this episode had decent action scenes, story, and special effects (for the time)moreless

DO YOU AGREE?
2 1
I for one do not believe in angels

8.0

"Great"

By amazingwebhead, Nov 08, 2007 Report Abuse

Out of all the episodes of original Trek, this is one that has stuck in my mind the most, and even though a lot of the plot is mediocre, what I remember and admire about this outing is its wonderful analysis of Spock. This is also one of the few episodes where I feel the tacky low-budget nature of the effects and props really do hinder the story.

When you can ignore the silly monsters and terrible space shots of the Galileo however, what you have is a very introspective look at our first officer, contrasted against our own psyche: It's probably Spock's worst nightmare to be enclosed in an extremely small space with six humans, but as a viewer, you don't get much better intelligent character analysis. Full of characteristic dialogue and tense drama, 'The Galileo Seven' is a highly important meditation on conflict between the heart and the brain; emotion and logic. What's tragic about it though is that all this wonderful writing is stuffed inside some uninspired 'trapped on a monster planet' story. So even though there is plenty of tension and conflict both aboard the Enterprise and the Galileo, the episodes plot fails to deliver any such suspense at least until the last ten minutes.

So where does all this character conflict occur? Well a small portion is created between Kirk and the ever-so-timely commissioner Ferris. The rest -and majority- comes from the Galileo six, against Spock. Upon closer inspection, both conflicts share common ground. Both Spock and the commissioner are the machines, who follow the rules and set about the problems logically. Then we have Kirk, and the Galileo six who argue against this approach, pleading for some emotional balance. What 'The Galileo Seven' goes on to explore is that neither is inherently correct, and that both need other. This is wonderfully brought to full climax during the episode's final scenes where both stories eventually clash together in terms of both plot and of character decisions: Kirk is forced to abide by logic and as a result Spock is forced to take an emotional approach to fix the problem.

The majority of the episode however is spent analysing Spock himself, with very little of Kirk, and it's about time too. Crawford and Bar-David skilfully exploit the situation that Spock has found himself in: trapped on a planet, in command of six other officers. As has been the case in other situations where Spock has been in temporary command, his personality traits are heightened and his logic becomes ruling. Most poignantly expressing this shift in character is the scene where Boma asks Spock to lead a burial service for a deceased crew member; obviously Spock sees no logic in halting work in order to commit to an irrational ceremony. The rest of the crew witness this and become upset at Spock's obvious disregard for loss of life.

There are many more scenes where these conflicts are developed, and as the episode goes on, I for one actually found myself being sympathetic towards Spock and resenting the irrational and over-emotional behaviour of some of the humans. Indeed even though Spock is continuously accused of being cold-hearted, distant and too focused on logic, there are many cases when the exact opposite becomes apparent: when the other members gang up on Spock, mocking his leadership and disregarding his advice; and when Spock argues that they must scare the creatures away rather than kill them. Both these examples show that even we humans can be cold, through our obsession with emotion. In the end, 'The Galileo Seven' eventually shows us one thing regarding our Vulcan in command. Spock's command style makes him a very good choice for command, but ultimately it is his lack of heart and emotion that stops him for being a good leader, at least of humans. This essentially paints him in tragic shade, developing his character into one that does all he can in the ways he knows best, but one who also cannot find the right balance between his heart and mind to reach where pure logic cannot take him. This is partly why I believe the Kirk and Spock dynamic to be so interesting. These two characters work well with each other because like Good and Evil Kirk in 'The Enemy Within', both need each other in order to succeed and survive as they are. Again, the episode's final few scenes where both characters make decisions against their nature goes to show that not only do they rely on each other, but they have also learned from the other. The focus of the story however is on Spock, and in the end, he shows more of what he has learned from his Captain than he ever had before.moreless

DO YOU AGREE?
2 2

Write a Review

Trivia, Notes, Quotes and Allusions

See All

Trivia
ADD TRIVIA
- In the remastered version, we see a view from the rear of the Galileo shuttle as the clam shell doors are opening, the Columbus shuttle is shown to the right rear of the shuttle bay. When the Galileo exits the rear of the Enterprise, the view in to the shuttle bay shows it empty. Edit
- When Spock tells Mears and McCoy to return to the shuttlecraft when the aliens are first nearby he says, "Doctor McCoy, you and Yeoman Mears return to the ship. Assist, uh, Mr Scott in any way possible." Such a speech disfluency, called a linguistic filler (uh, er, and um in English; there is a variety of them for each language), seems out of place for Spock, even under the stress of the situation. Furthermore, he would be much more likely to employ such a filler from his native tongue. Edit
- For some reason, Yeoman Mears doesn't attend the burial. Edit
Notes
ADD NOTES
- The shuttlecraft was built by workers at AMT corporation with the work supervised by automotive designer George Winfield, who would later go on to construct the full-sized vehicles featured in the film Blade Runner. AMT built the shuttle craft in exchange for the rights to sell the model kits of it. Edit
- Writer Shimon Wincelberg is credited as S. Bar-David. Edit
Quotes
ADD QUOTES
- Spock: Gentlemen, I suggest we move outside to examine the hull in the event we've overlooked any minor damage. Boma: (after Spock exits the shuttlecraft) If any minor damage was overlooked, it was when they put his head together. McCoy: Not his head, Mr. Boma, his heart. His heart. Edit
- Boma: You mean a burn up? Spock: That is the usual end of a decaying orbit. Yeoman Mears: I don't want to die here! Spock: Infinitely preferable to the kind of death we would be granted on the planet's surface. Boma: (sarcastically) I admire your ability to make so measured a choice. Edit
- McCoy: Respect is a rational process. Didn't it ever occur to you that they might react emotionally...with anger? Spock: Doctor, I am not responsible for their unpredictability. McCoy: They were perfectly predictable, to anyone with feeling. Edit
Allusions
- Help by adding allusions to this episode. Add allusions

Show Forums

Add a Topic See All

Last Activity

Replies

Top 5 Fight Scenes With Captain Kirk
11/29/11

2
A question about "The Cage". Pilot episode of the show...
11/09/11

16
Captain Kirk's Top 5 Adversaries????
10/13/11

2
Trying to remember which episode....
09/24/11

4
The five best episodes of Trek, TOS!!
09/24/11

41

Watch Star Trek Full Episodes

See All

go

Netflix

Subscription

iTunes

Buy

Turnabout Intruder

S 3 : Ep 24

Aired 6/3/69
go

Netflix

Subscription

iTunes

Buy

All Our Yesterdays

S 3 : Ep 23

Aired 3/14/69
go

Netflix

Subscription

iTunes

Buy

The Savage Curtain

S 3 : Ep 22

Aired 3/7/69
go

Netflix

Subscription

iTunes

Buy

The Cloud Minders

S 3 : Ep 21

Aired 2/28/69

Related Shows

Star Trek: Enterprise
Available Episodes: 98

Source: UPN
Star Trek: The Next Generation
Available Episodes: 177

Source: Paramount Television
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Available Episodes: 175

Source: Paramount Television
Star Trek: Remastered
Available Episodes: 80

Source: CBS
Star Trek: Voyager
Available Episodes: 170

Source: UPN