Plato's Stepchildren by: Meyer Dolinsky and directed by: David Alexander

 

“Plato’s Stepchildren” is written by: Meyer Dolinsky and is directed by: David Alexander.  It was filmed under production code 67, was the 10^th episode of Star Trek Season 3, the 65^th episode of Star Trek, and was broadcast on November 22, 1968.

 

“Plato’s Stepchildren” is one of those episodes of Star Trek that is among the most famous for one event: this is the one where Kirk and Uhura kiss.  Mythologized as the first interracial kiss on television, although that is a much debated event in television history with a quick glance on Wikipedia including interracial kisses in previous episodes of Star Trek, a kiss on The Ed Sullivan Show, Sea Hunt, Adventures in Paradise, I Spy, and Movin’ With Nancy as earlier examples, “Plato’s Stepchildren” doesn’t actually have much going for it beyond the kiss, and even the kiss is a bit of a mess.  This should not underplay the importance of an interracial kiss specifically between a white man and a black woman especially for 1968 even with the problems with the kiss and the sequence it is a part of.  The premise of the episode is another race of godlike aliens this time with psychic powers and a love of Greek philosopher Plato hold the Enterprise in the orbit of their planet because their leader is injured and dying.  Of course, Kirk, Spock, and McCoy beam down to help and in repayment the leader Parmen, played by Liam Sullivan, captures them, wishes to make McCoy one of them, and keep Kirk and Spock for entertainment, expanding that to Uhura and Nurse Chapel.  One of the biggest issues with this episode is that the premise is one that we have seen before done to death at this point in Star Trek and author Meyer Dolinsky doesn’t actually do anything with the premise.  Usually when we do godlike aliens what can make or break the episode is actually the setting and society being explored, but Dolinsky doesn’t do anything with the setting or philosophies of Plato outside of glib mentions of philosopher kings and the aesthetic of a pop cultural ancient Greece.  The episode is also largely limited by being shot on studio sets that look far too closely to studio sets: the walls lack windows and there isn’t even an attempt to suggest an outside world while director David Alexander makes this seem far too flat.

 

The climax of the episode is where “Plato’s Stepchildren” falls down in what it’s trying to do.  Parmen and company force Kirk, Spock, Uhura, and Chapel to perform, dominating their minds with their psychic powers.  Spock is forced to sing, everyone prances around, and then we get to the kisses.  Chapel kisses Spock and Majel Barrett gets an admittedly nice character moment of professing her love for Spock in what has been one of the few undercurrents for her character, and Uhura kisses Kirk.  Nichelle Nichols gets a small confession of respect and admiration to Kirk before her kiss and Nichols performs it well, but the fact that the kiss is non-consensual adds the layer of discomfort.  Props should still be given to Nichols and Shatner for according to their recollections forcing the kiss to be kept in, but it’s actually what happens after that stops any goodwill that the episode was building.  Kirk and Spock are forced to pick up instruments of torture including a whip and a heated poker and threaten Uhura and Chapel.  This scene feels genuinely out of place, while Platonians have been callous and detached throughout the episode, this type of cruelty doesn’t feel in line with their tastes of amusement or really anywhere in the philosophy of Plato.  Yes, the idea is that Plato’s philosophies are being warped by his stepchildren, but there isn’t any examination of that philosophy before this moment.  Now, the episode isn’t actually all bad.  William Shatner gets a great line about the Federation being a place where “shape, size, or color makes no difference” and Dolinsky includes the main character to not have psychic powers be Alexander, a dwarf played by Michael Dunn.  Alexander is still a minority character in a 1960s television show, but he is allowed his own desires and rejects the society he is a part of the join the Federation.  He gets a happy ending and Dunn’s performance genuinely seems like he is being given a deeper characterization and respect from the rest of the cast and crew.

 

Overall, “Plato’s Stepchildren” is an episode that honestly feels like a first draft, at least in terms of the way its ideas are implemented.  It’s basically an outline of an average episode of Star Trek implemented with added torture bringing down the genuine attempt at progressive ideas.  While not an episode that has nothing to enjoy about it, it just doesn’t do enough with its premise and adds to the problem because of the shock value conflict at the climax.  The performances are at least interesting to watch and there is some attempt at characterization, but this is an episode remembered for one thing, and then forgotten about because of how uninteresting it actually is.  4/10.