Albatross
- FIRST SHOWN (US)
- 28 September 1974
- ON
- NBC
- STARDATE
- 5275.6
- DIRECTED BY
- Bill Reed
- PRODUCTION NO.
- 22019
WRITTEN BYWritten by Dario Finelli
Directed by Bill Reed. Wikipedia notes that the first four episodes of season two erroneously credit season one director Hal Sutherland on screen.
A mercy mission to the planet Dramia goes wrong when Dr McCoy is arrested for a mass murder the Dramians say he committed nineteen years earlier.
Red alert: the full plot, ending included. Haven't watched yet?REVEAL SYNOPSIS
The Enterprise arrives at Dramia with a cargo of medical supplies, only for the authorities to arrest Dr McCoy. Nineteen years earlier he led an inoculation programme on the neighbouring world of Dramia II, which was soon followed by a plague that killed most of its people, and the Dramians blame him for it. Kirk investigates Dramia II, where he finds a survivor, Kol-Tai, willing to speak up for McCoy, and the crew notice an aurora nearby. On the way back Kol-Tai falls ill, and the plague spreads through the crew, turning their skin from blue to green. Only Spock, protected by his Vulcan physiology, is spared. With Kirk close to death, Spock breaks McCoy out of jail with a nerve pinch. The aurora proves to be the true cause of the plague, and McCoy produces a cure using Saurian virus antibodies, saving the crew, clearing his name and giving the Dramians a way to protect themselves.
- 01Christine Chapel's final appearance in the animated series. She would not be seen again until Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979).
- 02James Doohan voices both the Supreme Prefect of Dramia and the plague survivor Kol-Tai, as well as Scotty.
- 03Alan Dean Foster adapted the episode as a story in Star Trek Log Six (1976).