Star Trek (1966) 1.10

The Corbomite Maneuver

The Enterprise encounters a large, spinning, multi-colored cube while mapping unknown parts of space.  The cube blocks the Enterprise from proceeding further. All attempts to navigate around the cube are similarly blocked.

The cube approaches the Enterprise and emits harmful radiation. The Enterprise opens fire on the cube, destroying it. The Enterprise is recovering from the encounter with the cube when the Fesorius, a ship much larger than the cube or the Enterprise, approaches. A transmission from the the Fesorius reveals that the cube was a buoy and that the Enterprise will be destroyed in 10 minutes because they destroyed the buoy.

Captain Kirk tries reasoning with Balok, the commander of the other vessel. Kirk explains why they destroyed the cube and the danger it presented to the Enterprise and its crew. Nothing seems to move Balok and the countdown continues. Kirk decides to bluff. He claims that the Enterprise is coated with Corbomite, a substance that will destroy any attacker that attempts to destroy the Enterprise.

The countdown reaches zero but the Enterprise is not destroyed. A smaller vessel emerges from the large vessel. It starts to drag the Enterprise. The strain of dragging the Enterprise eventually proves to be too much for the alien vessel and the Enterprise breaks free.

The alien vessel seems to be in distress. Kirk, McCoy, and Lieutenant Bailey (who was working on the bridge and cracked under the pressure during the 10 minute countdown) beam over to the alien vessel. There they meet Balok, who looks like a human child and proves to be not as unforgiving or implacable as he first seemed. Lieutenant Bailey volunteers to stay with Balok and keep him company.

Thoughts

I'm positive that I have seen this episode before but I didn't recall very much about it.

This was one of the earliest episodes to be produced even though it was the 10th one to be aired. 

Lieutenant Bailey does not appear in any other episodes of Star Trek but some of his backstory is fleshed out in novels.

I found the twist at the end to be a bit much. This is a middling episode in my mind. I was okay with it until Kirk and the others beamed over to Balok's ship. The last few minutes wrapped thing up too quickly for me. I would have preferred it if they had discovered that Balok was dead and never got an explanation as to why he did what he did. It could have ended with Kirk recording a captain's log in which he wonders what Balok really wanted.