“The Return of the Archons” is a surprisingly good episode – if you can get past a few glaring faults. There’s some solid commentary about humanity, compelling performances from both Kirk and Spock, and a sufficiently captivating mystery. But there is, of course, a very jarring, and almost inexplicable setting and a sloppy, uneven narrative. They are enough to lose viewers before they give the episode a chance. And perhaps the most intriguing plot device is simply left hanging, begging for further exploration. The result is an episode with a lot of very strong fundamental elements that simply cannot manage to form into a cohesive story.

The episode begins with Sulu and another Enterprise officer on an alien planet that looks a remarkably like a western-styled studio backlot. They are even dressed in late 18th-century attire. To make things even more confusing, they are chased by two figures who are cloaked and hooded – and carrying what seem to be wooden staffs. Just as Sulu is transported off of the planet, he is zapped by one of the figures and he then begins behaving as though he had been brainwashed.

Brainwashing, cloaked figures, western attire and setting, sci-fi episode. It’s a hodgepodge of elements to throw at an audience within the opening minutes of the episode and it illustrates the mismatched nature of the episode which will go on to explore themes such as rebellion, creativity, freedom, and the cost of creating a safe and secure society – and yet leave a slew of plot threads unresolved.

Chief among the unresolved plot threads is a concept known as the “red hour.” After beaming down to the planet with McCoy, Spock and a couple of others, Kirk learns that the town is fast approaching this “festival,” called the “red hour,” from a handful of citizen who are behaved so serenely, that they might as well be moving in slow motion. When “red hour” strikes, the entire town is thrust into chaos by its inhabitants which seem to act on every possible negative emotion – from aggression, to lust, to violence.

And this presents an interesting concept: is the twelve hours of anarchy and chaos the cost of having a perfectly serene society the rest of the time? Does humanity require an outlet of negative emotion in order to behave as a civilized society? And if so, is this the right way to go about it?

Unfortunately, the episode never really confronts any of these ideas and questions. Instead, the mystery of Landru, the all powerful leader of the society, takes precedent. And as Kirk and Spock try to unravel the mysteries, and as various crew members, (including McCoy) are brainwashed, a very palpable sense of danger is created. And as Kirk and Spock finally deduce that Landru is a computer who was programmed with the knowledge – but not the compassion and soul – of a human, we confront the other major themes of the episode: from the need to fight for individual freedoms to the cost of a “serene” society (i.e. giving up those individual freedoms).

Unfortunately, a number of inconsistencies in terms of the brainwashing technique, as well as the way Landru chooses to wield power, threaten to undermine the rest of the story. As a case in point, the whole concept of “archons” is hardly explored by the episode. We do learn that there was once a Starfleet ship that had crashed on the planet years before, and that the crew of the ship were called “archons” by the locals – and that the resistance refers to Kirk and his crew as archons. But little else about the “archons” is said.

Because of the very compelling themes raised by the episode, this particular installment is, generally, ahead of the curve. But with a number of outright gaffes and inconsistencies, “The Return of the Archons” just isn’t good enough to be considered a true classic.

Filed under: Original Series