Obsession
- Episode aired Dec 15, 1967
- TV-PG
- 50m
IMDb RATING
7.2/10
3.3K
YOUR RATING
Capt. Kirk obsessively hunts for a mysterious cloud creature he encountered in his youth.Capt. Kirk obsessively hunts for a mysterious cloud creature he encountered in his youth.Capt. Kirk obsessively hunts for a mysterious cloud creature he encountered in his youth.
Bill Blackburn
- Lieutenant Hadley
- (uncredited)
John Blower
- Crewman Swenson
- (uncredited)
Frank da Vinci
- Security Guard
- (uncredited)
Jeannie Malone
- Yeoman
- (uncredited)
Eddie Paskey
- Lieutenant Leslie
- (uncredited)
Basil Poledouris
- Security Officer
- (uncredited)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThe ship which Kirk served on for his first deep space mission is disclosed to be the USS Farragut, and was named after David Glasgow Farragut, a flag officer of the United States Navy during the American Civil War. He was the first rear admiral, vice-admiral, and admiral in the United States Navy and is credited for uttering the phrase, "Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead!"*, disregarding all danger while charging into enemy waters off the Alabama Coast. -This is an abridged version. He said "Damn the torpedoes. Four bells, Captain Drayton, go ahead. Jouett, full speed."*
- GoofsEnsign Garrovick states that less than one ounce of antimatter is more powerful than 10,000 cobalt bombs but the actual energy yield is only about 1.2 megatons TNT. The implication that a cobalt bomb releases more energy than a "regular" nuclear weapon is incorrect; a cobalt bomb is just an ordinary thermonuclear weapon "salted" with cobalt to produce long-lived Co-60 in its fallout.
- Alternate versionsSpecial Enhanced version Digitally Remastered with new exterior shots and remade opening theme song
- ConnectionsFeatured in Bring Back... Star Trek (2009)
- SoundtracksTheme
Music credited to Alexander Courage, although it strongly resembles the main title music for 'Hollow Triumph (1948)' by Sol Kaplan
Sung by Loulie Jean Norman
Featured review
"I need your advice." "Then I need a drink."
Kirk encounters a mysterious cloud-like entity which he had previously dealt with approximately a decade ago (when he was a lieutenant on a different starship). Harboring an inordinate amount of guilt since the resulting tragedy, Kirk truly obsesses over understanding, and ultimately defeating this entity. This he does despite knowing that the Enterprise *needs* to transport some perishable medication to another planet in a timely manner.
'Obsession' is a decent episode with an interesting "antagonist" and a heavy psychological approach. It really does oblige the viewer (and the ever-logical Mr. Spock) to think about human idiosyncrasies, namely the tendency to *fixate* on a certain thing, to the possible detriment of other things. In the end, Kirk is going to have to learn to stop blaming himself. And, in the same position in the current time frame, is a young ensign (Stephen Brooks, 'Days of Our Lives') who also hesitated at a critical moment, and feels shameful about it.
Shatner is in fine form, doing some of his finer acting on the series to date, and Majel Barrett likewise has one of her best moments so far as *Chapel* uses some psychology on the ensign to get him to *eat* something.
In the end, it's typically entertaining watching Spock attempting to understand human frailties such as irrationality; he and Bones do express concern over Kirks' behavior, until it becomes clear that the Enterprise *will* have to do something about this creature.
This wasn't up there with the truly great episodes for this viewer, but it's certainly a good, thought-provoking one.
Seven out of 10.
'Obsession' is a decent episode with an interesting "antagonist" and a heavy psychological approach. It really does oblige the viewer (and the ever-logical Mr. Spock) to think about human idiosyncrasies, namely the tendency to *fixate* on a certain thing, to the possible detriment of other things. In the end, Kirk is going to have to learn to stop blaming himself. And, in the same position in the current time frame, is a young ensign (Stephen Brooks, 'Days of Our Lives') who also hesitated at a critical moment, and feels shameful about it.
Shatner is in fine form, doing some of his finer acting on the series to date, and Majel Barrett likewise has one of her best moments so far as *Chapel* uses some psychology on the ensign to get him to *eat* something.
In the end, it's typically entertaining watching Spock attempting to understand human frailties such as irrationality; he and Bones do express concern over Kirks' behavior, until it becomes clear that the Enterprise *will* have to do something about this creature.
This wasn't up there with the truly great episodes for this viewer, but it's certainly a good, thought-provoking one.
Seven out of 10.
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- Hey_Sweden
- Sep 30, 2023
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