Television Review: Obsession (Star Trek, S1X18, 1967)

Obsession (S02E18)

Airdate: December 15th 1967

Written by: Art Wallace
Directed by: Ralph Senensky

Running Time: 50 minutes

The enduring strength of Star Trek as a franchise lies in its capacity to revisit core thematic ideas through divergent narrative lenses, a flexibility that allowed it to thrive even in its formative years. Nowhere is this more evident than in Season 2 of The Original Series, which produced two episodes explicitly channeling Herman Melville’s Moby-Dick within weeks of one another: The Doomsday Machine and Obsession. Both episodes, though separated by mere weeks in their original broadcast, demonstrate how the show’s writers could adapt a singular literary archetype—the obsessive pursuit of an unstoppable force—into distinct stories with unique tonal and philosophical emphases. While The Doomsday Machine leaned into Cold War-era anxieties about nuclear annihilation, Obsession delves into the psychological scars of guilt, redemption, and the tension between emotion and rationality. This dual exploration underscores Star Trek’s early ingenuity in repurposing classical narratives to interrogate contemporary human dilemmas.

Set against the backdrop of Argus X, a planet rich in the vital resource tritanium, “Obsession” opens with a harrowing encounter between a Starfleet survey team and a lethal, cloud-like entity composed of dikironium. The creature’s modus operandi—draining the red blood cells of its victims—proves both scientifically baffling and viscerally horrifying. Ensign Rizzo’s (Jerry Eyeres) cryptic death, which leaves Captain Kirk unsettled by its echoes of a past trauma, sets the stage for a spiraling chain of events. When a subsequent survey team, led by the inexperienced Ensign Garrovick (Stephen Brooks), suffers similar losses, Kirk’s personal connection to the crisis is revealed: Eleven years prior, as a junior officer aboard the USS Farragut, he witnessed a near-identical disaster. The Farragut’s captain, Garrovick’s father, perished after Kirk hesitated to fire phasers at the creature—a moment of paralysis that haunts him. Determined not to repeat history, Kirk defies orders to abandon orbit and deliver medical supplies to Theta VII, risking Starfleet discipline and the safety of his crew. The dikironium cloud, seemingly invulnerable to conventional weaponry, soon infiltrates the Enterprise, forcing Kirk and Garrovick into a desperate gambit. The resolution hinges on Spock’s scientific acumen: his copper-based blood proves irresistible to the creature, allowing time to develop trap to destroy it. In doing so, both Kirks—veteran and novice—exorcise their shared demons, redeeming their perceived failures through collective action.

Written by Art Wallace, a scribe best known for his work on the gothic soap opera Dark Shadows, the episode’s script adheres to Gene Roddenberry’s directive to craft a “Space Moby Dick” narrative. Yet Wallace infuses the premise with a distinctly psychological focus, diverging from the militaristic paranoia of The Doomsday Machine. Here, the Enterprise is not a battleground for ideological conflict but a crucible for personal reckoning. Kirk’s obsession, though ostensibly rationalised as a duty to protect his crew, is rooted in survivor’s guilt—a stark contrast to the overtly vengeful monomania of Commodore Decker in The Doomsday Machine. Garrovick’s inclusion further complicates this dynamic, positioning him as a younger avatar of Kirk’s younger self: both men grapple with the weight of a single moment’s hesitation, their self-worth tied to the belief that they could have altered outcomes beyond their control. Wallace’s script ultimately subverts this fatalistic worldview, suggesting that guilt is a futile burden when events are shaped by forces beyond human comprehension. The creature’s destruction is achieved not through impulsive heroism but through Spock’s clinical analysis and the collaborative efforts of the crew—a testament to the supremacy of logic over raw emotion.

Ralph Senensky’s direction navigates the episode’s budgetary constraints with commendable efficiency. The dikironium cloud achieves an eerie, otherworldly aesthetic that aligns with the story’s gothic undertones. The Enterprise’s bridge scenes maintain a tense, claustrophobic atmosphere, amplifying the stakes of Kirk’s unilateral decisions. However, the production is not without its flaws. A glaring continuity error arises with Lieutenant Leslie (Edie Paskey), whose apparent demise at the creature’s hands is contradicted in later episodes due to a deleted scene explaining his survival—a casualty of scheduling pressures that inadvertently undermines the narrative’s internal consistency.

William Shatner delivers a standout performance, balancing Kirk’s steely resolve with palpable vulnerability. His portrayal of obsession is less bombastic than in episodes like “The Enemy Within” and more introspective, conveying the toll of decades at sea (or in space) on a man haunted by his past. Stephen Brooks, as Garrovick, adeptly mirrors Kirk’s anguish, though his character’s arc is somewhat truncated, leaving his growth feeling less fully realized. The episode’s emotional core, however, lies in the interplay between Kirk, Spock, and McCoy. Their debates—between logic and empathy, action and analysis—anchor the story in timeless philosophical questions.

Obsession is not a flawless episode. Its pacing occasionally falters, particularly in the first act, where exposition-heavy scenes dilute the urgency of the threat. Garrovick’s character, though thematically significant, lacks the depth to fully resonate as Kirk’s mirror. Moreover, the resolution’s reliance on Spock’s biology feels contrived, a narrative convenience that underscores the limitations of 1960s sci-fi storytelling. Yet these flaws are eclipsed by the episode’s thematic ambition and emotional resonance. By refracting Moby-Dick’s existential themes through the lens of Starfleet protocol and interpersonal drama, Obsession exemplifies Star Trek’s early ability to marry pulp adventure with introspective storytelling.

RATING: 7/10 (+++)

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