Alternative Factor: What did I just watch?

[thew40]

This episode melted my brain. First there's Lazarus, who is lying and telling everyone he's chasing some super-evil anti-life guy. And then he goes in and out of being sane and insane. His beard is constantly changing. His ship looks like something from the Jetsons. There's time travel, holes through space, an anti-matter universe, head wounds that disappear then reappear, crazy negative brawls, and stolen dilithium crystals. Not to the mentioned the universe blinked out of existence like five times!

 

[Yeoman Randi]

Yeah, i hate this one. By the end of it i want to stick knitting needles in my ears and scoop out my eyeballs with a melonballer. It's like, an hour or so out of my life that i'll never get back! Trust me, you are NOT alone in the hate for this one. This is the ONLY TOS ep i can say i hate!

 

[Plomeek Broth]

On a more bizarre note, it is on one of the Fan Collective DVDs.

 

[The Castellan]

This episode melted my brain. First there's Lazarus, who is lying and telling everyone he's chasing some super-evil anti-life guy. And then he goes in and out of being sane and insane. His beard is constantly changing. His ship looks like something from the Jetsons. There's time travel, holes through space, an anti-matter universe, head wounds that disappear then reappear, crazy negative brawls, and stolen dilithium crystals. Not to the mentioned the universe blinked out of existence like five times!

There were two different Lazarus. One from our universe discovered another universe in conjunction to our own, and went mad, not being able to handle there being two of him (Pretty much a Brookings Report mentallity), goes to any means to destroy his other self....and he probably wound up destroying his own people in the process, and blaming his other self for it. The two Lazarus would switch places when insane Lazarus would try to kill the other.

 

[Michael]

This episode melted my brain. First there's Lazarus, who is lying and telling everyone he's chasing some super-evil anti-life guy. And then he goes in and out of being sane and insane. His beard is constantly changing. His ship looks like something from the Jetsons. There's time travel, holes through space, an anti-matter universe, head wounds that disappear then reappear, crazy negative brawls, and stolen dilithium crystals. Not to the mentioned the universe blinked out of existence like five times!

There are a lot of poor aspects associated with The Alternative Factor. The design of Lazarus' ship, however, is definitely not one of them. At least it isn't to me. Also, this rare effects shot is beautiful ...

 

[Agenda]

Yes, but there are a few things I really like.

Such as...the end when he's talking to the sane Lazarus, there's a kind of pathos about it.

And then when he says...

"But what of Lazarus? What of Lazarus?"

That was kinda sad too.

 

[NickInABox]

This episode melted my brain. First there's Lazarus, who is lying and telling everyone he's chasing some super-evil anti-life guy. And then he goes in and out of being sane and insane. His beard is constantly changing. His ship looks like something from the Jetsons. There's time travel, holes through space, an anti-matter universe, head wounds that disappear then reappear, crazy negative brawls, and stolen dilithium crystals. Not to the mentioned the universe blinked out of existence like five times!

You've just watched Stanley Kubrick's wet dream.

 

[A beaker full of death]

High concept sci fi, but the execution was a disaster. It's possible a good editor could turn this into a coherent story. Just possible. How many ledges did the guy fall off, anyway?

 

[Duane]

This episode, although poor, has another redeeming factor. As someone else mentioned on this board, this episode has Season 1 production values, and that's a good thing for a lot of fans.

Interesting comment about how revised editing might improve this episode. I never considered that. Just another project on my project list which will probably never get done, but I hope I can make time for it.

As for the for the comment "you've just watched Stanley Kubrick's wet dream" is very likely going to be the funniest thing I will read today.

 

[thew40]

The thing about it is that I did kinda like the episode. As someone said already, it was high concept sci-fi . . . but executed poorly. I did like Kirk's talk with the "other" Lazarus. I liked Charlene Masters. And yes, I even liked the ship, but it still looks like something from the Jetsons.

But it was all very insane.

And then when he says...

"But what of Lazarus? What of Lazarus?"

That was kinda sad too.

That a was a great scene.

 

[Forbin]

Not from The Jetsons, but from Space Mouse comics:
http://www.toonopedia.com/spmouse.htm

The first time that episode aired, I yelled "It's the Lunar Schooner!!"

 

[startrekrcks]

yes weird rubbish episode from TOS

 

[EnsignHarper]

If it helps, it is not fondly remembered by all involved, either....

Blame John Drew Barrymore

I am sure the whole screw up with JDB not showing up, killed whatever enthusiasm the cast, the production staff...even the studio had for this show.

The best thing that can be said is that it KILLED JBD'S acting career. Forever. And he then had time to sire Drew.

 

[Jonas Grumby]

It frustrates me that this episode seems to have been put together in such a slapdash manner. I think it could have been a truly top-notch episode.

 

[Neutral Zone]

It can't have that exciting as I don't even remember the story (must be an age thing), I'll punish myself later and watch it!

 

[Kegg]

This episode melted my brain. First there's Lazarus, who is lying and telling everyone he's chasing some super-evil anti-life guy. And then he goes in and out of being sane and insane. His beard is constantly changing. His ship looks like something from the Jetsons. There's time travel, holes through space, an anti-matter universe, head wounds that disappear then reappear, crazy negative brawls, and stolen dilithium crystals. Not to the mentioned the universe blinked out of existence like five times!

I know.

This episode rocks.

Or, anyway, it's weird and trippy enough for me to like. Explosives at the door between universes as the twin Lazari fistfight for all eternity.

...that's something, anyway.

 

[M'Sharak]

If it helps, it is not fondly remembered by all involved, either....

Blame John Drew Barrymore

I am sure the whole screw up with JDB not showing up, killed whatever enthusiasm the cast, the production staff...even the studio had for this show.

The best thing that can be said is that it KILLED JBD'S acting career. Forever. And he then had time to sire Drew.

Barrymore would still work intermittently for several years after his non-appearance on Star Trek, but the grievance lodged on behalf of the show's producers resulted in a six-month SAG suspension for Barrymore and this, on top of an earned reputation for flakiness and no-shows started years earlier, was certainly career-crippling.

His failure to appear, as you point out above, had to have thrown the whole shooting and production schedule behind right from the start. In spite of the mess it ended up being, I still enjoy watching this episode.

 

[RandyS]

I'll tell you what you watched. You watched one of TOS' finest hours. Seriously, why does everybody hate this one and like that shitfest City on the Edge of Forever so much? I don't get it.

 

[PhasersOnStun]

Seriously, why does everybody hate this one

I can't speak for everyone, but I can speak for myself. I found it to be extremely shoddily done. A potentially decent concept, ruined by incoherence and bad production. Off the top of my head:
1) The actor playing Lazarus wasn't that great, IMO.
2) Between shots, his beard kept changing (I don't mean between versions of Lazarus, I mean shots)
3) Incomprehensibly, they kept throwing in stock footage of Lazarus falling off the same damn rock, for nearly no reason (I think I even read somewhere it was because they needed to fill time)
4) The story was incredibly badly unveiled. It took the "sane Lazarus" to basically sit Kirk down and do straight exposition to get it out.
5) I felt the negative image effect for the gate between universes was shoddy, even by 1967 standards.

If I were sitting down and watching it, I'm sure I'd have even more to complain about. But I'm with Yeoman Randi, I can watch nearly every episode but this one.

and like that [superbly written excellently produced] City on the Edge of Forever so much?

Again, just speaking for myself:
1) Fully realized plot
2) A tragic choice for James Kirk
3) A wonderfully acted Edith Keeler
4) *Good* special effects by 1967 standards
5) A very uncharacteristically but completely appropriate somber ending
6) Great dialog for nearly all characters—everyone gets a chance to really act and they are up to it. They really pull it off.

YMMV, of course. But those are my thoughts.

 

[docrice]

A somewhat interesting concept of a story, but it's also an episode I hardly ever reach for either (and if I do, it's so I have background noise while I cut my hair or something). As a kid, I never understood this episode. I just remember seeing the photography negative (black-white inverse) as Kirk crossed between dimensions.