Journey to Babel

"Journey to Babel"

"Journey to Babel" is an episode of Star Trek: The Original Series. It is episode #39, production #44 and was first broadcast on November 17, 1967 during the second season. It was repeated on July 5, 1968. It was written by D. C. Fontana and directed by Joseph Pevney.

It features the first appearance of Sarek and Amanda, the parents of Mr. Spock.

Overview: The Enterprise must transport dignitaries to a peace conference, with an assassin on the loose.

Plot

On stardate 3842.3, the starship USS Enterprise, under the command of Captain James T. Kirk is transporting Federation ambassadors to the Babel Conference to discuss the admission to the Federation of the Coridan system. The system is a prime source of dilithium crystals but is also underpopulated and unprotected. Mining rights are disputed by many warring species who have strong reasons for keeping Coridan out of the Federation.

Ambassador Sarek from Vulcan boards with his human wife Amanda who Captain Kirk learns, to his surprise, are Mr. Spock's parents. Kirk is also taken aback by how coldly Sarek views his own son, apparently because Spock chose to devote his life to Starfleet instead of Vulcan science, against Sarek's wishes.

Formal negotiations are to take place on a neutral planet called Babel, but preliminary diplomacy begins aboard the Enterprise. The issue is a controversial one and the Tellarite ambassador, Gav, demands to know Sarek's position. Pushed to responding, Sarek transparently implies that the Tellarites want to keep Coridan out of the Federation so they can continue to plunder the dilithium. Gav takes offense at this allegation and the confrontation briefly becomes physical before Kirk breaks it up, warning all parties to keep order on his ship.

Meanwhile, Uhura has detected an encoded transmission beamed from the Enterprise to a fast-moving vessel at the extreme edge of sensor range. Shortly after, the Tellarite ambassador Gav is found murdered (presumably by the Vulcan method of Tal-Shaya), making Sarek a suspect. During questioning, Sarek suffers a cardiovascular malfunction, and is rushed to sick bay, where McCoy determines that he will require immediate surgery. Since there is a shortage of his blood type, which is relatively rare among Vulcans, Spock volunteers to donate his own blood for the operation, using an experimental stimulant to increase blood production.

Meanwhile, a member of the Andorian delegation, Thelev, attacks and stabs Captain Kirk. Kirk is seriously wounded and taken to sickbay and Thelev is imprisoned in the brig. In accordance with regulations, despite the objections of McCoy and Amanda, Spock halts his participation in Sarek's procedure and assumes command of the Enterprise, as the situation is too critical to leave in the command of a less experienced officer.

Kirk recovers long enough to pretend that he is well, and with the grudging support of McCoy, returns to the bridge to relieve Spock and order him to return to sickbay. As Uhura picks up another encoded transmission from the Enterprise and traces the source to the brig, Kirk decides to stay in command in his weakened state. When Thelev is searched, it is discovered that his antennae are fake and conceal a small transceiver: Thelev is not an Andorian at all but had been surgically altered to look like one.

The unidentified vessel now closes in to attack the Enterprise, moving at extreme speed; far faster than the Enterprise can lock weapons on it. Kirk orders Thelev to the bridge and questions him about his and the attacking ship's motives, though Thelev is evasive. The ongoing attack damages the Enterprise and Kirk decides to try a ruse, shutting down internal power to make the Enterprise appear crippled. This lures the attacker to slowly approach and the Enterprise damages it with a surprise phaser counterattack. The disabled ship self-destructs, and Thelev reveals that both he and the ship were on suicide missions; he then collapses and dies from a delayed-action poison.

Kirk returns to sickbay for further care and finds Spock and Sarek both alert, the surgery having been an apparent success. Spock speculates that Thelev and the attacking ship were of Orion origin and the speed and power of the latter were consistent with a suicide mission, with all energy dedicated to attack and none for defense. Thelev's mission aboard the Enterprise, Kirk and Spock presume, was to sow distrust among the Federation members and weaken the Enterprise (by killing Kirk) prior to the attack. In support of the Orion origin theory (the issue is unproven by the end of the episode, though it is suggested that an autopsy of Thelev will confirm it) is the knowledge that Orion has been raiding Coridan for dilithium and would profit greatly selling the valuable mineral to both sides in a Federation civil war. Amanda asks Sarek to thank Spock for saving his life, but Sarek simply shrugs, saying that it was only logical. Amanda becomes angered at the Vulcan ways, Spock noting her temper and asks Sarek why he married her. When Sarek replies "it seemed the logical thing to do," Amanda realizes they were actually joking with her. McCoy loses patience with the discussion and takes advantage of his medical authority over his patients to order everyone to be silent, then beams at finally getting "the last word".

40th Anniversary Remastering

This episode was remastered and first aired February 3, 2007 as part of the 40th anniversary remastering of the Original Series. It was preceded a week earlier by "For the World Is Hollow and I Have Touched the Sky" and followed a week later by "The Doomsday Machine". Aside from remastered video and audio, and the all-CGI animation of the USS Enterprise that is standard among the revisions, specific changes to this episode also include:

• Vulcan has been reworked with more realistic features, and more closely resembles its appearance in Enterprise.
• There is a new sequence for the arrival of the shuttlecraft bringing Sarek aboard, particularly of the arrival in the hangar deck. Crew are visible in observation galleries.
• The Orion ship is better detailed but retains the spinning effect; upon its destruction, there is a more realistic dispersal pattern for the debris. There is an action shot of the phaser aim changing to try to hit the Orion ship as it moves away.

Series continuity

It is revealed that as a child Spock had a pet sehlat, a Vulcan animal described here as "a large teddy bear with six-inch fangs". The creature in question (named I-Chaya) is seen in the animated series episode "Yesteryear". A sehlat is also seen in the Enterprise episode "The Forge".

Amanda discloses that Spock (and Sarek) has a Vulcan last name. She says that most humans find it unpronouncable. When pressed by Doctor McCoy, she admits she can say it only "after a fashion, and with much practice."

See also

• Babel One, an episode of Star Trek: Enterprise.

External links

• Template:StarTrek.com link
• Journey to Babel at IMDb
• Template:TV.com episode
• Journey to Babel at Memory Alpha
• Remastered comparison screenshots