Rating: 
Summary: Gangster & aliens
Review: "A Piece of the Action" occurs on a planet in which an alien society have based their entire lifestyle on a book left behind by a previous starship. The book is "Chicago Mobs of the 1920's". Great fun in this episode. Watch Kirk drive a car. Listen to Spock talk like a gangster.
"By Any Other Name" is probable one of the most scariest episodes I can remember. Kirk watches helplessly as his ship is taken over by aliens & his crew is reduced to cubical shapes.
Rating:
Summary: Sopranos in Space
Review: A Piece of the Action was always one of my favorite episodes. Until you see these on DVD, you don't realize how much got cut out in order to cram in more commercials. These are actually well-thought out masterpieces of television history that didn't deserve to be hacked to pieces like that. William Shatner did a superlative acting job here, as did guest star Vic Taybeck. By Any Other Name was almost as good. My favorite scene is where Scotty gets the one Kelvan drunk, takes his "turn people into styrofoam blocks" doohickey, and passes out cold in the doorway of his quarters.
Rating:
Summary: Sopranos in Space
Review: A Piece of the Action was always one of my favorite episodes. Until you see these on DVD, you don't realize how much got cut out in order to cram in more commercials. These are actually well-thought out masterpieces of television history that didn't deserve to be hacked to pieces like that. William Shatner did a superlative acting job here, as did guest star Vic Taybeck. By Any Other Name was almost as good. My favorite scene is where Scotty gets the one Kelvan drunk, takes his "turn people into styrofoam blocks" doohickey, and passes out cold in the doorway of his quarters.
Rating: 
Summary: One classic and one solid show, with hints of trouble ahead
Review: A Piece of the Action-This gangster episode, and Tribbles, were the two Trek comedies that really worked. While I wouldn't exactly call the humor here subtle, it is intertwined in a fairly traditional action plot. We are able to enjoy Kirk and Spock's thuggishness for its own sake while simultaneously staying focused on the plot, for the simple reason that their behavior is called for by the story, rather than being a gimmick. The idea of a highly impressionable alien race who's cultural evolution could depend so thoroughly on a random event (the leaving behind of the book) is an interesting one as well. This episode is also helped by strong guest acting, most notably from Tayback. (4.5 stars) By Any Other Name-An average episode, this one sees the enterprise crew reduced to salt (Styrofoam?) crystals for future use by the colonization-bent Kelvans. As others have pointed out, this is an interesting episode in that it has two tones. The events of the first half are frightening (although not as eerily stylized as 3rd season shows), as Kirk seems powerless to prevent the Kelvans' cold blooded homicide and control of the Enterprise. The ominous sense that anything goes is augmented by the surprising turn of having a female crew member killed. The tone changes dramatically in the second half of the show though, as the remaining crew exploit the Kelvans' newfound emotions, with entertaining results. These scenes are not just entertaining, but also insightful; it reminds the viewer that much of our own (only semi-successful) acculturation is devoted to reigning in our emotions. But one wonders whether the blend of the dark and the comic seen here was for the best; it still worked here to some extent, but the episode's schism is somewhat jarring, and we're not quite as able to go along with the blend as we were in say Friday's Child, or A Private Little War. Why? Because a growing lack of introspection was beginning to border on cynicism. Did this gradual moral drift taint the show? Certainly the shows were becoming more calloused, a process that would accelerate in season 3. Season 3 certainly had other problems, but I believe some of the roots of future problems can be found, ironically enough, even in some of the strong episodes from season 2. But back to By Any Other Name. Other pluses include Kirk's willingness to forgive even a defeated and cruel foe. And don't forget the lovely Kelinda. (3 stars)
Rating:
Summary: One classic and one solid show, with hints of trouble ahead
Review: A Piece of the Action-This gangster episode, and Tribbles, were the two Trek comedies that really worked. While I wouldn't exactly call the humor here subtle, it is intertwined in a fairly traditional action plot. We are able to enjoy Kirk and Spock's thuggishness for its own sake while simultaneously staying focused on the plot, for the simple reason that their behavior is called for by the story, rather than being a gimmick. The idea of a highly impressionable alien race who's cultural evolution could depend so thoroughly on a random event (the leaving behind of the book) is an interesting one as well. This episode is also helped by strong guest acting, most notably from Tayback. (4.5 stars) By Any Other Name-An average episode, this one sees the enterprise crew reduced to salt (Styrofoam?) crystals for future use by the colonization-bent Kelvans. As others have pointed out, this is an interesting episode in that it has two tones. The events of the first half are frightening (although not as eerily stylized as 3rd season shows), as Kirk seems powerless to prevent the Kelvans' cold blooded homicide and control of the Enterprise. The ominous sense that anything goes is augmented by the surprising turn of having a female crew member killed. The tone changes dramatically in the second half of the show though, as the remaining crew exploit the Kelvans' newfound emotions, with entertaining results. These scenes are not just entertaining, but also insightful; it reminds the viewer that much of our own (only semi-successful) acculturation is devoted to reigning in our emotions. But one wonders whether the blend of the dark and the comic seen here was for the best; it still worked here to some extent, but the episode's schism is somewhat jarring, and we're not quite as able to go along with the blend as we were in say Friday's Child, or A Private Little War. Why? Because a growing lack of introspection was beginning to border on cynicism. Did this gradual moral drift taint the show? Certainly the shows were becoming more calloused, a process that would accelerate in season 3. Season 3 certainly had other problems, but I believe some of the roots of future problems can be found, ironically enough, even in some of the strong episodes from season 2. But back to By Any Other Name. Other pluses include Kirk's willingness to forgive even a defeated and cruel foe. And don't forget the lovely Kelinda. (3 stars)
Rating:
Summary: Another great pair from TOS
Review: Another pairing of great if mismatched episodes. I guess the idea was to pool dissimilar episodes rather than the episodes which seem like slight variations on a single idea (like sending the crew to planets ruled by modern day versions of Nazi Germany or Imperial Rome). In "A Piece of the Action", the crew journeys to Iotia, a planet whose inhabitants prove incredibly resourceful and adaptive. Based upon a single book on 1920's Gangsters left behind by a previous starship, the Iotians have modeled their entire culture to resemble Jazz-era Chicago - Tommyguns, mob-molls, hits and all. Landing on Iotia to open contact, Kirk and crew find themselves in the middle of a gang war. The episode is funny without being too campy (forgetting that this is the story requiring the heroes to sneak around a Paramount backlot in period costume). Kirk struggles to unite the warring gangs for the good of the planet without taking sides and without becoming another hit. The last shot is classic - leaving open the possibility that the Iotians may one day demand a piece of the Starfleet's action. In "By any other name", the Enterprise is hijacked by the Kelvan - an advanced race of beings from the Andromeda galaxy. Having been marooned when their ship was crippled by the energy barrier at the rim of our galaxy (the same barrier that has made appearances in "Where no man has gone before", "Is there no truth in Beauty" and the fifth Trek film), the Kelvan took on the shape of human beings. Their actual forms - immense being with many tentacles and huge brains - would have trouble managing turbolifts. Once past the barrier, the Kelvan use their advance technology to reduce much of the crew into small styrofoam boxes, and otherwise keep the remaining crew in submission. Their mission is to reach their home galaxy and return to ours with a massive invasion force. This is a great episode, combining some subtle wit and quick thinking with some matchless direction. In one excellent cut, Scott, Spock and Kirk weigh their options enroute to the bridge. With the Kelvan homecoming a possible harbinger of invasion, the crew realizes that more than their own lives are stake. Yet, against the Kelvan technology, only a single plan is available and suicidal at that. "The Kelvan will be stopped here", Spock intones gravely "and so will we." Kirk is about to respond in fury - there's got to be something else we can do - when the door opens. None of the nex-gen episodes can touch that moment. Get this DVD.
Rating:
Summary: Another great pair from TOS
Review: Another pairing of great if mismatched episodes. I guess the idea was to pool dissimilar episodes rather than the episodes which seem like slight variations on a single idea (like sending the crew to planets ruled by modern day versions of Nazi Germany or Imperial Rome). In "A Piece of the Action", the crew journeys to Iotia, a planet whose inhabitants prove incredibly resourceful and adaptive. Based upon a single book on 1920's Gangsters left behind by a previous starship, the Iotians have modeled their entire culture to resemble Jazz-era Chicago - Tommyguns, mob-molls, hits and all. Landing on Iotia to open contact, Kirk and crew find themselves in the middle of a gang war. The episode is funny without being too campy (forgetting that this is the story requiring the heroes to sneak around a Paramount backlot in period costume). Kirk struggles to unite the warring gangs for the good of the planet without taking sides and without becoming another hit. The last shot is classic - leaving open the possibility that the Iotians may one day demand a piece of the Starfleet's action. In "By any other name", the Enterprise is hijacked by the Kelvan - an advanced race of beings from the Andromeda galaxy. Having been marooned when their ship was crippled by the energy barrier at the rim of our galaxy (the same barrier that has made appearances in "Where no man has gone before", "Is there no truth in Beauty" and the fifth Trek film), the Kelvan took on the shape of human beings. Their actual forms - immense being with many tentacles and huge brains - would have trouble managing turbolifts. Once past the barrier, the Kelvan use their advance technology to reduce much of the crew into small styrofoam boxes, and otherwise keep the remaining crew in submission. Their mission is to reach their home galaxy and return to ours with a massive invasion force. This is a great episode, combining some subtle wit and quick thinking with some matchless direction. In one excellent cut, Scott, Spock and Kirk weigh their options enroute to the bridge. With the Kelvan homecoming a possible harbinger of invasion, the crew realizes that more than their own lives are stake. Yet, against the Kelvan technology, only a single plan is available and suicidal at that. "The Kelvan will be stopped here", Spock intones gravely "and so will we." Kirk is about to respond in fury - there's got to be something else we can do - when the door opens. None of the nex-gen episodes can touch that moment. Get this DVD.
Rating:
Summary: Sometimes the Star Trek universe is a very funny place
Review: Comedy is the telling commonality for the two Star Trek episodes included on Volume 25 of the DVD series. "A Piece of the Action" has the Enterprise visiting Sigma Iotia II, where a hundred years early the USS Horizon visited. Apparently this was before the Prime Directive, because one of the Horizon crew left behind a book: "Chicago Mobs of the Twenties." Now, once you get past the fact that (a) someone was toting a book into Deep Space and (b) it happened to be that particular book, you can really enjoy this one. Bela Oxymy wants the Federation to supply his gangsters with weapons so he can take over the planet, taking down Krako and the other bosses. My favorite part is when Kirk makes up a very complicated card game to play with the gangsters holding him hostage and Spock has to admit having never calculated the odds on the rarest of possible hands. Then there is also the bit where they try to drive an automobile. In the end, Kirk decides if you cannot fight them, join them. "A Piece of the Action" may well be the second funniest Star Trek episode, after "The Trouble With Tribbles," of course. In "By Any Other Name" a group of Kelvans take ove the Enterprise using advanced technological weapons that allow them to reduce the crew to small blocks of chemicals until only Kirk, Spock, McCoy and Scotty are left. Rojan, the leader of the Kelvans, wants to modify the Enterprise so his group can get back to the Andromeda Galaxy in only 300 years, at which point his descendants will inform their government that the Milky Way is suitable for conquest. Fortunately, the Kelvans have assumed human form, which means they are now susceptible to sensory inputs, a fact that Kirk and the others seek to exploit. Scott introduces one Kelvan to liquor (the "green" type), McCoy slips them stimulants, and Kirk hits on Kelinda, while Spock helps Rojan experience the wonderful world of jealousy. It is rather surprising that "By Any Other Name" goes the comic route, but it does get pretty funny. You know, it is important to have fun when you are out trekking around the universe on a five-year mission.
Rating:
Summary: Sometimes the Star Trek universe is a very funny place
Review: Comedy is the telling commonality for the two Star Trek episodes included on Volume 25 of the DVD series. "A Piece of the Action" has the Enterprise visiting Sigma Iotia II, where a hundred years early the USS Horizon visited. Apparently this was before the Prime Directive, because one of the Horizon crew left behind a book: "Chicago Mobs of the Twenties." Now, once you get past the fact that (a) someone was toting a book into Deep Space and (b) it happened to be that particular book, you can really enjoy this one. Bela Oxymy wants the Federation to supply his gangsters with weapons so he can take over the planet, taking down Krako and the other bosses. My favorite part is when Kirk makes up a very complicated card game to play with the gangsters holding him hostage and Spock has to admit having never calculated the odds on the rarest of possible hands. Then there is also the bit where they try to drive an automobile. In the end, Kirk decides if you cannot fight them, join them. "A Piece of the Action" may well be the second funniest Star Trek episode, after "The Trouble With Tribbles," of course. In "By Any Other Name" a group of Kelvans take ove the Enterprise using advanced technological weapons that allow them to reduce the crew to small blocks of chemicals until only Kirk, Spock, McCoy and Scotty are left. Rojan, the leader of the Kelvans, wants to modify the Enterprise so his group can get back to the Andromeda Galaxy in only 300 years, at which point his descendants will inform their government that the Milky Way is suitable for conquest. Fortunately, the Kelvans have assumed human form, which means they are now susceptible to sensory inputs, a fact that Kirk and the others seek to exploit. Scott introduces one Kelvan to liquor (the "green" type), McCoy slips them stimulants, and Kirk hits on Kelinda, while Spock helps Rojan experience the wonderful world of jealousy. It is rather surprising that "By Any Other Name" goes the comic route, but it does get pretty funny. You know, it is important to have fun when you are out trekking around the universe on a five-year mission.
Rating:
Summary: Sometimes the Star Trek universe is a very funny place
Review: Comedy is the telling commonality for the two Star Trek episodes included on Volume 25 of the DVD series. "A Piece of the Action" has the Enterprise visiting Sigma Iotia II, where a hundred years early the USS Horizon visited. Apparently this was before the Prime Directive, because one of the Horizon crew left behind a book: "Chicago Mobs of the Twenties." Now, once you get past the fact that (a) someone was toting a book into Deep Space and (b) it happened to be that particular book, you can really enjoy this one. Bela Oxymy wants the Federation to supply his gangsters with weapons so he can take over the planet, taking down Krako and the other bosses. My favorite part is when Kirk makes up a very complicated card game to play with the gangsters holding him hostage and Spock has to admit having never calculated the odds on the rarest of possible hands. Then there is also the bit where they try to drive an automobile. In the end, Kirk decides if you cannot fight them, join them. "A Piece of the Action" may well be the second funniest Star Trek episode, after "The Trouble With Tribbles," of course. In "By Any Other Name" a group of Kelvans take ove the Enterprise using advanced technological weapons that allow them to reduce the crew to small blocks of chemicals until only Kirk, Spock, McCoy and Scotty are left. Rojan, the leader of the Kelvans, wants to modify the Enterprise so his group can get back to the Andromeda Galaxy in only 300 years, at which point his descendants will inform their government that the Milky Way is suitable for conquest. Fortunately, the Kelvans have assumed human form, which means they are now susceptible to sensory inputs, a fact that Kirk and the others seek to exploit. Scott introduces one Kelvan to liquor (the "green" type), McCoy slips them stimulants, and Kirk hits on Kelinda, while Spock helps Rojan experience the wonderful world of jealousy. It is rather surprising that "By Any Other Name" goes the comic route, but it does get pretty funny. You know, it is important to have fun when you are out trekking around the universe on a five-year mission.
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