Shore Leave
- FIRST SHOWN (US)
- 29 December 1966
- ON
- NBC
- STARDATE
- 3025.3
- DIRECTED BY
- Robert Sparr
- PRODUCTION NO.
- 17
WRITTEN BYWritten by Theodore Sturgeon
The weary crew take shore leave on an idyllic, unspoilt planet, but strange things start to appear, beginning with a large white rabbit in a hurry.
Red alert: the full plot, ending included. Haven't watched yet?REVEAL SYNOPSIS
After a long mission, the exhausted Enterprise crew find a beautiful planet in the Omicron Delta region that seems perfect for rest. On the surface, McCoy sees a large white rabbit hurrying past, followed by a girl chasing it, straight out of Alice in Wonderland. Soon the landing party face stranger sights: Kirk meets Finnegan, the prankster who tormented him at the Academy, and Ruth, a woman he once loved. Sulu finds an antique pistol, Yeoman Tonia Barrows is menaced by Don Juan, and a samurai attacks. Meanwhile a power drain cuts the landing party off from the ship, and the danger becomes real when McCoy is apparently killed by a charging knight. Spock and Kirk realise the planet is turning their thoughts into reality. Finally a gentle Caretaker appears and explains that the world is an amusement park, built for its makers' recreation. McCoy is restored, and Kirk lets the crew enjoy their leave.
- 01The first of two scripts by science fiction author Theodore Sturgeon. The other is “Amok Time” in the second season.
- 02Filmed on location at Africa USA, an animal preserve, where Roddenberry sat at a typewriter under a tree, rewriting pages during the shoot.
- 03Yeoman Barrows was originally written as Janice Rand. William Shatner hoped to wrestle the tiger used on location, but was talked out of it.