TOS S3E22 "The Savage Curtain" Review By AnswerMan

Horrible:Meh:Adequate:Good:Fantastic

This episode is just Fantastic. As I'm watching brand new episodes of Star Trek Discovery as they come out, "The Savage Curtain" makes me realize just how lacking the new Trek is. This episode contains in any given 30 seconds of dialogue more depth than an entire season of new Trek. I have heard this episode ridiculed. The "President Lincoln" episode is used as a demonstration of the kitschy absurdity of TOS. However, I see it completely differently. The crew doesn't meet Lincoln in space. They know from jump that it's not really Lincoln, and explicitly state it. And the fact that the viewer knows this too is what makes it extra creepy. Why is Abraham Lincoln there in front of us when we know he can't be really there? It's great. Because of this knowledge, it's great, unlike Voyager"s episode "The 37's" where they stumble upon Amelia Erhart (the ACTUAL Amelia Erhart) in the Delta quadrant. That's just stupid.



Lincoln is presented as the manifestation of what Kirk believes is the ultimate good. Personally, I think Lincoln is an interesting choice, especially since it's mentioned that he presided over the bloodiest time in American history. It seems like a religious figure would be more appropriate. Jesus Christ, or Buddha perhaps. Or a person like Gandhi or Mother Teresa. Or maybe some perfect fictional character like a Superman or something. But whatever, if Kirk's idea of perfect is Lincoln, I guess it's Lincoln. Spock's idea of a perfectly good person is the legendary Vulcan Surak, and he even becomes emotional upon meeting him, as illogical as this all is.

On the side of evil we have Genghis Khan (KAAAHHHHHNNNN), some WWIII Hitler-type villain, the Klingon Kahless, and ....a witch? The alien orchestrating this mess wants them to battle to the death, so that it can observe and decide which one of the ideologies, good or evil, is preferable. At first, the two sides make an attempt to work together against the real enemy, the alien. But to motivate them, the alien has taken control of the Enterprise, and will destroy it if Kirk and Spock don't participate.  Lincoln states that the war has been forced upon them; history is repeating itself. The two officers decide that battling people that they know don't really exist is not really an ethical problem for them. You know who wins, right?

After it's over, the alien states that other than evil fleeing when confronted, it observed no real difference between good and evil. I would argue that the test is flawed, since the alien constructed it to where only one type of behavior was rewarded. Plus, Surak stuck to his convictions of peace the whole time, and the motivating factors were disparate. Saving their lives and the lives of everyone on the ship is a much stronger reward than the vague idea of "power" that was promised the non-existent evil-doers. However, I think this was meant as a commentary on the barbarity of war. To an outside observer that isn't invested in one side or the other, both would appear just as horrible.

The alien makes good on its promise and returns everything to normal, and an oddly chipper Jim Kirk returns to the bridge smiling. But he states that even though Earth has reached "final peace," the universe still has much to learn from the ideologies of Lincoln and Surak. To me this episode is just hitting on all cylinders. Lincoln is alarming and creepy, yet becomes convincing as we get to know him. He has an interesting exchange where he calls Uhura a "charming negress," after which he immediately realizes is probably offensive. But Uhura states that we've moved beyond where words hurt us. The alien is interesting and properly scary looking. The episode is extremely thought provoking and the dialog is intense. It's just so well done.

Published February 13, 2019