Unless I am mistaken, contrary to what The Firm's 1987 hit Star Trekkin' would have us believe, the crew of The Enterprise ARE capable of finding reverse: while trying to evade a mysterious spinning cube that blocks the ship's path, it appears that The Enterprise is going backwards, before Kirk decides to blast the object with the ship's phasers. This course of action attracts the Fesarius, the massive spheroid flagship of the "First Federation", whose alien commander Balok informs The Enterprise that the object was a space buoy, the destruction of which is seen as an act of hostility. In retaliation, Balok gives Kirk a ten minute countdown, after which he will destroy The Enterprise.
To prevent this from happening, Kirk plays a poker style bluff -- the Corbomite Maneuver -- the captain claiming that his ship has the ability to turn any attack against its aggressor with equal force. Will his deception successfully fool Balok?
Man, this one is hard going. Set almost entirely on the bridge of The Enterprise, it mostly comprises of The Enterprise standing still while Kirk talks to Balok, first trying to convince the alien of his good intentions and then trying to fool it into thinking that an attack would be a grave mistake. All of this is very dull. The supposed exciting highlight sees the Enterprise trying to shake itself loose while being towed by a space-tug piloted by Balok, Kirk's ploy eventually draining the alien's craft of power. The incredibly daft final act has Kirk, Bones, and crewman Bailey (Anthony D. Call) beam aboard Balok's ship to try and help its commander only to find that the alien (played by child actor Clint Howard) has merely been having fun testing them. At the end, Bailey agrees to remain with Balok so that they can learn about each other's culture, despite the man being on the verge of a nervous breakdown less than an hour earlier.
To prevent this from happening, Kirk plays a poker style bluff -- the Corbomite Maneuver -- the captain claiming that his ship has the ability to turn any attack against its aggressor with equal force. Will his deception successfully fool Balok?
Man, this one is hard going. Set almost entirely on the bridge of The Enterprise, it mostly comprises of The Enterprise standing still while Kirk talks to Balok, first trying to convince the alien of his good intentions and then trying to fool it into thinking that an attack would be a grave mistake. All of this is very dull. The supposed exciting highlight sees the Enterprise trying to shake itself loose while being towed by a space-tug piloted by Balok, Kirk's ploy eventually draining the alien's craft of power. The incredibly daft final act has Kirk, Bones, and crewman Bailey (Anthony D. Call) beam aboard Balok's ship to try and help its commander only to find that the alien (played by child actor Clint Howard) has merely been having fun testing them. At the end, Bailey agrees to remain with Balok so that they can learn about each other's culture, despite the man being on the verge of a nervous breakdown less than an hour earlier.