Star Trek (TV Series) The Return of the Archons (1967) User Reviews

You are not of the body...

[kenhower · 7/10 · 6 July 2006]

This is the word of Landru! "You will be absorbed...your individuality will merge into the unity of good."

This episode always makes me wonder if this was the inspiration for the BORG. The planet has 1 ruler/leader, who's name is Landru. But he is really just a computer. This was a common theme in the original Star Trek...computers gone awry. In the episode all citizens must become "of the body". If they aren't "of the body", they are pointed out, or busted by those of the body. Once "assimilated", all citizens feel joy, peace and contentment. The BORG obviously take this concept to another level, but the similarities are very apparent.

In the projection of Landru...he says "you are an infection" to Kirk and crew. Very Borg like indeed.

Self-defense, conflicting Prime Directives and how to outsmart an omnipotent power

[mstomaso · 7/10 · 16 April 2007]

Return of the Archons is one of those episodes of TOS which, whether you like it or not, sticks with you. It is one of the franchises first attempts to deal with dystopian subjects and takes place almost entirely on a planet inhabited by people whose lives are regulated in all respects by the mysterious force known as Landru. Sulu sets this up by becoming the first member of the crew to become absorbed by 'the body'. He is transported back to the ship in the same state of idiotic bliss as the inhabitants of the planet, and begins babbling the praises of Landru. Takei's acting makes this opening scene very memorable and sets a disturbing tone.

The Archons were crew members of the USS Archon, a federation ship which arrived at this planet long ago. Today, the Archons live only as a legend of resistance to Landru and 'The Body' - his regulated, brain-washed society. The story is well written and smartly conceived. Within the first 20 minutes, the episode gives us a taste of the body's folk-lore, language, and regulatory systems.

This episode incorporates some comic elements early on - mostly the typical human vs vulcan theme - but the humor dies down as the bridge crew begins to understand the threat they are facing. Landru sees all, is beginning to absorb all, and is pulling the ship out of its orbit. Kirk, Spock and a small landing party must violate the prime directive to save their ship and the catatonic society they have encountered. But they frankly don't even know where to start.

Better Hurry - it's almost The Red Hour

[Bogmeister · 7/10 · 14 July 2006]

Some rather deep and sophisticated concepts were presented in this episode, quite sophisticated even for this show; the drawback was an unexciting narrative, even a drab pace. The Enterprise had already arrived at a planet before the episode begins, on one of those investigative searches for a lost Federation ship from a century prior. The planet's inhabitants all seem to be in a perpetual state of vapid, almost mindless contentment, walking about in a happy daze on the streets of a pleasant town. Well, perpetual until the big clock strikes a certain hour - then everyone goes crazy raping & pillaging (I wonder who cleans up these messes afterward?). The people here are no more than wind up toys, following the telepathic command of a hidden ruler named Landru. It's one of those 'group-mind' premises prevalent in sf, especially in the sixties. There are no real individuals left, only a 'body' composed of many cells, each pretty much the same as the next one. This proposes that when free will becomes too intoxicating and mankind nearly destroys itself (i.e. self-induced holocaust), then something may step in to regulate our will to avoid extinction - a cosmic Gandhi turned benign dictator, if you will.

However, as with every body, there appear certain strains or viruses attacking from within. The rebels here work in groups of 3 and are apparently resistant to the absorption techniques imposed by Landru. It's interesting that these rebels are all old men, perhaps having developed some immunity over time, but they're not so much into rebelling as crying for some saviors to come - like the 'Archons' from a 100 years ago. Kirk has to coerce these guys into helping him find this mysterious Landru, while avoiding being absorbed. My favorite scene lets actor Kelley show what a good actor he really was after McCoy gets absorbed into the body. No one else was able to capture that self-satisfied contentment as well as he did and it was all the more unsettling when, after pointing an accusatory finger, he attacked Kirk in rage ("You're NOT of the BODY!") - I tell you, you can't pay for better entertainment sometimes. The 4th act, unfortunately, is anti-climactic, with a pat use of anti-machine logic by Kirk to get some circuits sputtering (see later episodes such as "The Ultimate Computer" and "The Changeling"). I did appreciate the guest turn by actor Thatcher who appears late in the episode - I'll always remember him from the best Sinbad movie.

Now we come to the real crux of this story - the complete disregard of the Prime Directive, that supposedly unyielding law which governs the ethics of the Federation. It states that such Federation envoys as the Enterprise crew may never interfere with or change another culture. Well, maybe it wasn't a COMPLETE disregard: Spock does remind Kirk of the directive towards the 4th act. Kirk dismisses this law with a couple of sentences, that it only refers to a growing culture, which this isn't. Oh, really? Perhaps now we understand the attraction of going off into space as a starship captain - you get to play God on occasion. Not a bad way to spend one's time - as Kirk would do again; remember "The Apple" and, very soon, "A Taste of Armageddon"?

Curious episode that works in odd way

[mlraymond · 7/10 · 20 October 2009]

Return of the Archons is one of the Star Trek episodes I didn't much care for years ago, but has grown on me.The characters and themes seem close to the edge of outright silliness at times, but somehow, it works. The sense of a genuinely strange society, that the Enterprise crew have stumbled onto, is conveyed well. Seeing Captain Kirk dressed as if he were on his way to the gunfight at the OK Corral is odd enough to be memorable, along with the medieval dungeon they find themselves in, the hooded robes and staffs of the Lawgivers, and the obscure lingo about the Body, etc.

It's certainly imaginative and creatively done for a low budget TV show. Charles Macaulay, as the mysterious, seemingly benevolent Landru has such a marvelous voice and presence that I wish his character could have had more screen time.

One of the most oddly memorable scenes is that that of their host Reger showing the landing party to their quarters, and the following scene of them waking the next day, with Kirk sleeping standing up in a blanket, and Spock lying on his back in a bunk bed. The incongruity of the solemn Spock sleeping in a bunk bed is an image that tends to stay with me.

"Your individuality will merge into the unity of the Good".

[classicsoncall · 9/10 · 24 October 2010]

Back when I was watching these Star Trek episodes as reruns in the Seventies, I would never have considered the political and societal implications of an episode like 'The Return of the Archons'. For anyone watching these shows as a youth, the stories seem primed purely for entertainment. The same could be said for an earlier series, my all time favorite, The Twilight Zone. Yet in many of his stories, Rod Serling took a definite stand against the encroaching authority of the state, and both subtle and not so subtle intrusions against individual freedom and liberty. Perhaps his strongest statement in that regard was the TZ second season episode 'The Obsolete Man', and to a lesser extent, 'Eye of the Beholder', even though that latter one is generally remembered for representing something entirely different.

I have no idea what Gene Roddenberry's political leanings might have been, but one gets a strong hint with 'The Archons'. The summary line quoted above, when studied for it's deeper subtext, contains the ultimate promise of the uber-Socialist. One's freedom and individuality, as demonstrated by the spirit of Landru, is a machine's concept of perfection, one of peace and harmony, but sadly no soul. Although the conundrum presented by Captain Kirk to the machine logic of Landru is a bit awkward, it isn't hard to demonstrate that lacking a freedom of choice, there is no creativity, and ultimately, no life. At least no life that can express joy at it's own existence, only those distractions brought on by a manufactured 'Red Hour', or as I came to the conclusion while watching, a Mardi Gras on steroids.

There's also Roddenberry's intriguing symbolism of 'the three', those elder statesmen if you will, who were immune to 'absorption'. The idea I take away here is that only the oldest residents of Beta III were able to remember the way things used to be prior to the arrival of the first starship, the Archons, a hundred years earlier. In that context, Reger (Harry Townes), Hacom (Morgan Farley) and Marplon (Torin Thatcher) were the last line of defense before The Enterprise arrived to keep alive the traditions of the past. They were among the last remaining citizens who understood that 'freedom is never a gift'.

I could probably go on and on with this subject, the seed of a college thesis is at the core of this story. However I'd like to wrap up with another reference to Rod Serling and his own unique vision. There was a fourth season TZ episode entitled 'The New Exhibit'. In that one, a museum caretaker brings home a murderers row of wax dummies representing infamous killers in history. Near the end of the story he admonishes one of his figures for killing a guest who came to his home. The name of the murderer using a garrote - it was Landru!

Population Control...

[Xstal · 6/10 · 16 February 2022]

Landru has a process he performs, to make sure everybody follows all his norms, keeping them compliant, no opposition or defiance, only room for those who are willing to conform.

Investigating the culture of Beta III the crew soon find themselves embroiled in a conflict with the societies leader Landru as they fail to comply with his mandate.

Classic Trek Episode With Deep Roots In American Literature

[Dan1863Sickles · 8/10 · 24 October 2018]

So many fantastic reviews for this episode, but with all the talk about computers and the science fiction themes it's interesting that no one has commented on the moody and atmospheric way it draws on classic American literature.

Think of Shirley Jackson's story "The Lottery" the next time you watch this episode. Notice the sharp contrast between the outwardly virtuous small town life and the mindless violence the people throw themselves into with wild abandon whenever the Red Hour comes around. Think of Hawthorne's THE SCARLET LETTER. (Or even his short stories "Young Goodman Brown" and "The Minister's Black Veil.") The townspeople are all suspicious of outsiders, and pretend to fear their immoral ways, yet beneath the bland facade (like the black veil of the minister) they're all concealing some really unspeakable goings on.

I first saw this episode as a little kid, and what really struck me was not the computer stuff at the end but the haunting atmosphere at the beginning -- the New England accents, the string ties, the brutal violence under the fatuous hospitality. This is a very American episode of Star Trek, with roots that go all the way back to Plymouth Rock!

Quite a mix of sophisticated thinking and comic book resolution

[sheenarocks · 6/10 · 25 May 2007]

This is a rather strange episode of Star Trek. It could have possibly been a great one. Someone above mentions how the Red Hour aspect of the story is never explained. I suspect that this is because something was either left out or cut out of the final script. It is a very interesting idea, that the content, happy folks of this society must periodically have "Festival" which... Blows off steam? Keeps the pressure cooker from boiling over with joy? I suspect it was something like this, something explained in the original script and a very interesting and deep concept for the show.

Another thing not explained (or perhaps I missed this) is the "hollow tube" weapon. When it is discovered that this weapon is just that, a hollow tube with no mechanical parts, it appears this is another little detail that was left out of the final script--why and what then caused it to kill and control? Another tantalizing plot device, like the Red Hour, that could have, if given the time (i.e., longer than 60 minutes), made for a very exciting and well-thought out episode.

Unfortunately, the ending is one of those human versus computer things where, of course, Kirk wins out while reasoning with the evil computer, causing it to destroy itself. A common and really ridiculous plot device that was perhaps changed in the final script also.

In all, not a bad ST episode but it could have been much better.

The will of Landru

[bkoganbing · 8/10 · 3 August 2013]

One of my favorite of the Star Trek prime episodes is this one. A great lesson to be learned when humankind thinks it has found the perfect society and seeks nothing else.

This story has Lieutenant Sulu getting beamed back aboard the Enterprise in a rather dreamy like state like he was a member of some cult. When a larger away team led by William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy go down they find a society frozen in time and completely submerged in a philosophy of peace and non-violence. Except of course for the 'festival' when ones baser impulses get to run amuck.

The people on Beta III as this planet is known to Star Fleet are held in thrall by the will of an ancient philosopher named Landru. And before Landru died he found a way to see his teachings were carried out. What it involved was nothing less than the stamping out of individuality.

Back when I saw this episode in its first run I was taking Far Eastern history in college and we learned about Confucius and his influence on Chinese culture. He did not speak in fortune cookie aphorisms as those old Charlie Chan films would have you believe. But he did have a lot of wise things to say and we in the west could profit by some of it. So great was his influence that it guided the culture. And so great was the respect he was held in that it was thought in that society all wisdom began and ended with him. I don't think Confucius himself ever thought so and he certainly did not have the advance technology that Landru had and built 6000 years earlier for his planet.

Only with individuality comes new ideas, bad and good and over time we find out what the good is. A great lesson taught to us by Gene Roddenberry, courtesy of Star Trek.

Sure it's stupid and often makes no sense, but I still enjoyed the episode

[planktonrules · 7/10 · 6 December 2006]

The idea of a planet where everyone is "absorbed" and become like one giant group of cooperative zombies is pretty cool, so the basic concept isn't bad. And the idea that this Landrew character is sort of like "Big Brother" and watches and controls everything is also pretty exciting. However, the execution of the episode isn't all that great--particularly the whole "red hour" segment. At the red hour, every one of the very peaceful and placid people of the planet become raving maniacs and run amok--this NEVER was explained and didn't fit into the plot at all. I really think they added it because someone thought the episode was dull and thought "let's add a cleaned-up version of an orgy to keep the viewers awake". Well, it just irritated me. And, overall, the episode was very watchable but far from memorable. The show just needed more fun and energy.

Pulling Back the Curtain

[Samuel-Shovel · 8/10 · 23 April 2018]

In "The Return of the Archons", the Enterprise is searching a galaxy for a ship that went missing in this section of space long ago. They scout an inhabited planet where all of the people act extremely odd and in a trance-like manner. Some of the crew begins to succumb to this manner. It seems that all subjects are under the control of the great Landru. With the help of a revolutionary underground unit, the crew attempts to break the spell of Landru and give these subjects their freedom back.

I can't quite put my finger on why, but I really enjoyed this episode. Everything about it has this strange opaqueness to it, like we never really get the full picture. This layer of mystery really makes the episode interesting. The odd, old-timey culture this planet has adopted, the weird style of speech that the inhabitants use, the spooky monks, the "Wizard of Oz"-like Landru pulling the strings behind the curtain, I love it all. Now, whether this mission violates the Prime Directive is a whole other can of worms I don't feel like going into...

My favorite character from this episode is Lindstrom, who just seems like an absolute dolt. He gets very upset about the festival, not understanding the cultural significance and the power of Landru. He also at one point tries to shoot a project, thinking he can kill Landru.

I thought Jon Lormer as Tamar absolutely steals the show in the few scenes he is given. He's a great character actor.

The final reveal of the computer program running a Utopian society is something that is going to be topical for a long time. As AI continues to improve and we rely more on the power of computers, these kind of ethical questions regarding how much power to give to machines will become more relevant. Currently, AI is not good at sophisticated decision-making when it encounters variables and situations it is not programmed to deal with. The writers of Star Trek tap into this notion within this episode and it all still makes sense 50 years later. I find that incredible!

Social repression and trends

[Blueghost · 28 May 2009]

Like the other reviewer said, the Red Hour is nigh. The author of the episode shows the audience a skewed view of societal controls through repression and the extraction of the human soul by allowing ceremony and ritual, however harmful, to establish an unhealthy norm.

Without elaborating on specifics, and in this way revealing possible spoilers, I'll say that Kirk once again uses his guile and wits to baffle yet another integrated circuit board cranium.

Here again we witness some innovation by the production crew to use period costume to revive and re-energize the sense of an alien world. The viewer is given some tangibility with the props and sets, but the theme and more "alien" aspects of this episode are presented when the deeper impetus of the story is revealed.

A commentary on everything from drunken rioting at sporting events to other like group behavior that people think justified because "everyone else is doing it". Yet another bit of profundity from the creative minds at Desilu Studios.

Enjoy.

Star Trek: The Original Series - The Return of the Archons

[Scarecrow-88 · 7/10 · 9 September 2016]

Beta 3 has a zombie like society, lost in "peace and tranquility", faces devoid of "evil and corrupt misbehavior" (only tolerated once a year during the "red hour" which is twelve hours of hellish anarchy, hedonism, riot, and violence), dressed in suits, robes, dresses, and the like similar to the old west or a temple, with this "leader" named Landru dictating a society that is all "good", intolerable to anything that would undermine his command. Kirk, Bones, Spock, and other members of their landing party try to avoid being "absorbed" (indoctrinated through a machine that applies an influence over those deemed a threat to the standards Landru set up for his society), looking to confront Landru and "rescue" the "body" (the name of those who make up Landru's "ideal" society). There are those (an underground) who look to the skies for the return of the "archons"…a race that would "guide them". With a heat beam from the surface of the planet caused by "Landru" (Spock contemplates how Landru functions like a computer, with robed security holding canes that fire rays that kill or influence the will of the leader on those considered "evil", bewildered by Kirk's defiance of them, "correcting after a gap of "reflection" or computing the information new to them) which functions like a tractor beam hooked on the Enterprise causing them to pull towards the Earth, Kirk will need to find Landru and destroy him. Landru is a figure from 6000 years ago who seems to function as a type of projection that doesn't hear Kirk or answer his questions. Soon Kirk and Spock will confront *what* Landru really is. The Prime Directive makes its appearance here and Kirk must go up against it, seeing a society without the freedom to function as a creative people, beholden to an enslavement that forces them all to abide to the will of a leader without the opportunity to oppose him (or it, in the case of a "law" that governs through mental control). Kirk and Spock once again must avoid mind control or potential slavery, which includes possible death, by examining the behavior of the society and the leader that guides them. The dilemma of the Enterprise, with Scotty in command, as the beam is pulling them to their doom, and Kirk on the surface with his landing party against a "body" that will turn you in if you are not just like them (Kirk worrying about both those above, orbiting the planet, and those alongside him, shows the pangs of being the captain exploring the great unknowns and encountering societies of all types), produces plenty of tension. Harry Townes and Torin Thatcher are members of the underground who help Kirk and Spock, but when guidance from Landru might disappear (or their actions uncovered by Landru) their tune changes. The red hour is unhinged!

One of the worst episodes

[intp · 2/10 · 8 June 2014]

Gah, this was a terrible episode. Like the earlier episode, "The Enemy Within", this played out like a bad Twilight Zone episode. For the record, I liked "Twilight Zone" as a series overall, but there was an astonishing mix of good and bad episodes in that series, with some major "gimmick" episodes that relied critically on one 'big twist'. That worked out a bit better for an anthology series like TZ that was in a half-hour time slot; but much less so for a 'serious' show like Star Trek, where the 50 minutes just drag on painfully.

The premise is that the crew find themselves trapped on a peculiar world where some unseen master ("Landru", who turns out to be a computer) forces everyone to act "happy" and not ask questions. Kirk and company's mission is to figure out how to disable the mysterious master, free the natives, and escape.

The main theme is incredibly simplistic: a computer lacks "soul", so it would make a poor ruler. Well, yeah, obviously, if one is talking about a 'computer' in the conventional sense; but this assumes that a true AI is not possible, which may or may not be the case.

This episode had some really strange elements. Whereas most of the time the people act zombie-like and complacent, there is the strange periodic "Festival" where everyone runs around berserk, seemingly engaging in wanton sex and violence (the sex of course was only suggested)- what the heck was that about? Was it just to procreate the species? The odd implication is that such excesses are a 'natural' part of humans which need to be indulged in every so often, which I don't really buy.

Basically, one can just watch the first few minutes, then fast forward to the end, to get the gist of the episode, without having to endure the painfully boring bulk of it. That's all I plan to do if I ever feel compelled to review this episode again for the sake of completeness. The entire middle part is mostly superfluous nonsense.

(MAJOR SPOILER FOLLOWS)

Even the ending was incredibly cheesy, hardly worth watching. Kirk basically just "outwits" the computer and "talks it into" destroying itself. Talk about lousy programming (of the computer) and weak writing (of the script).

Imagine How Boring This Planet Is

[Hitchcoc · 6/10 · 28 April 2014]

The story opens with Sulu and one of those expendables exploring what appears to be sort of an old Western town (that's probably where the set came from). They are pursued by guys in monk's cloaks. They cower in a doorway as one of these guys shoots Sulu with a bamboo pole. He immediately starts grinning as Kirk simultaneously beams him up. The next part of the show has them trying to rescue the other guy. Sulu is under house arrest. The kicker is that this planet is full of benevolent (to a fault) people who walk around in a giddy daze, greeting each other. But at the "Red Hour" everyone goes berserk. There is murder and rape and all manner of violence. If you are lucky enough to survive you hop up, dust yourself off, and head for home or wherever. This a world dominated by an an entity called Landru (didn't he used to coach the Dallas Cowboys? Just kidding). He can inflict great pain on those who defy him. It is up to Kirk and Spock to figure out who he is and what to do. This is another episode where a computer somehow wields great power. It won't be the last.

Sulu and Bones get brainwashed will Kirk and Spock be next?

[Tweekums · 8/10 · 4 June 2015]

In the opening scene Sulu and another crewmember are investigating the mystery of the Archon, a ship that disappeared a century ago, in a town that is reminiscent of the late nineteenth century but there is something odd about the people; they act more like automata than human beings. The two officers are cornered by robed men and Sulu is touched by their staffs just as he beams out; back on the Enterprise he starts to behave like the inhabitants of the planet. To find out what happened Kirk leads a full away mission to the planet and discover a strange society were almost everybody has been absorbed into 'The Body' by a leader known as Landru and those who for whatever reason haven't been absorbed are in danger of being killed in the interest of 'the greater good'. If Kirk and his team are to avoid being absorbed they will have to discover the truth behind Landru.

This is a fine episode takes us into a rather disturbing society; outwardly it looks almost Utopian but it quickly emerges that the minority who haven't been absorbed live in fear of being discovered by those who have; the latter behaving like brainwashed religious zealots. The society's uniformity isn't totally boring though; every so often they have 'Festival' when they are released from control and run wild. There is a greater than usual sense of threat as the opening shows a major character being effected rather than just killing of some red-shirt we have never seen before and Sulu is only the first to be effected. The ultimate discovery about the true nature and defeat of Landru are a little disappointing now but I suspect it would have seemed better when this first aired in 1967. Overall a good episode set on an interesting world.

Lotus eaters...BORG...the Purge...Matrix

[maddou02 · 7/10 · 2 September 2020]

A lot to contemplate. Elements from each story exist.

Landru help me, help me, help me, ...

[rcaliendo-424-345328 · 9/10 · 8 July 2020]

Considering the drabness of the setting, on the surface, this episode does not look like one I would normally care for. But, on the contrary, this is actually one of my favorites of TOS.

To me, at least, this episode represented some of the best qualities of TOS, the studying of subjects with heavy philosophical implications, but doing so as well-crafted entertainment. The thinly-veiled reference to and argument against socialist/communist societies is fully on display, whereby all must live to serve "the body" ("the party") with total conformity (loyalty) and complete lack of individuality. Kirk pointing out that "the body is dying" because it does not innovate and grow (qualities only possible through the allowance and recognition of at least some individual initiative) is astonishingly prescient by ST in retrospect. Who could possibly know at that time (1967) that the most powerful totalitarian regime in history would collapse under the weight of its own similar failings just a short 24 years later ?

Simultaneously, the argument against, and warning about, what would come to be known as artificial intelligence (AI) serves as a parallel philosophical point; this would be revisited on several occasions in ST and was a favorite plot point of writers of the era in general whom, apparently grew up on sci-fi stories centered around technology run amok.

Only two things bothered me from a critical standpoint. First, the purpose of The Red Hour is never explained, which makes me wonder if it was even necessary as a plot point. Of course, it seems fairly obvious that it serves as a temporary emotional release for the population from their trance-like placidity. It may even serve as the sole means to allow them to procreate. Again though, without delving into its purpose, what is the reason for even having it in the story ?

Second, the climax is a let-down. We're supposed to buy into the idea of this incredibly capable and complex machine, that can control minds, neutralize starships, and weapons and kill, if needed has a nervous breakdown and self-immolates after a quick grade school debate with Kirk and Spock? That part is ridiculous and speaks to, either a lack of imagination by the writers, or, more likely another example of the machine-will-replace-man paranoia that was highly prevalent in shows like this at the time.

Again though, this fear did and still does merit a certain amount of credibility and exhibit prescience as proven over the previous decades by close-call nuclear exchanges caused by computer errors and the Y2K (remember that ?) scare at the turn of the century.

You are not Of The Body!

[Hey_Sweden · 7/10 · 26 February 2022]

The Enterprise crew land on Beta III, a planet with citizens that behave and speak rather strangely. They all express a rather vacant bliss, but let off steam when "celebrating" something called "Festival". It turns out that many of them are being controlled by an entity named Landru (Charles Macaulay, "Blacula"), which aims to keep the people brainwashed. Despite the best efforts of Landru and his minions the Lawgivers (one of them played by a young Sid Haig of "House of 1000 Corpses"), Kirk is quick to inject some real spirit and defiance into this rather timid citizenry.

'The Return of the Archons' does take a while to grab hold, with plenty of odd behavior & dialogue to start, but strengthens as the plot becomes more clear. It's really a good hook for a story: how does one inject some actual *humanity* into this bland environment, where most individuals act like zombies? And therein lies the theme of individuality and free will versus mindless obedience and conformism. The episode does begin in a rush, with Sulu and a man named O'Neil (Sean Morgan) already on the planet and feeling threatened. It's amusing to watch as Sulu and later Bones succumb to the machinations of this Landru and start spouting cheery sayings like "Blessed be the body, and health to all of its parts".

Ultimately, the revelation is not really unexpected (there are hints of where this is going early on), but it does once again reflect on a theme often visited in sci-fi. (This viewer would mention it if it wouldn't constitute a spoiler.). All in all, the episode is intelligent and provocative if not as memorable as this series was capable of being.

Directed by Joseph Pevney, 'The Return of the Archons' also guest stars Harry Townes (a veteran of episodic TV), Torin Thatcher ("The 7th Voyage of Sinbad"), Brioni Farrell ("The Student Nurses"), and Jon Lormer ("Creepshow").

Seven out of 10.

"You will be Absorbed"

[XweAponX · 10/10 · 23 April 2013]

This episode spot-on delivers a fist to the face of Religious EXTREMISM. And I hope, it broke some noses in the process.

Speaking of "socks in the nose", Mister Spock "S'ocks" The great character actor Sid Haig right in the nose! And then he gives Sid the Vulcan Nerve-Pinch! But it is hard to see which one of the robed lawgivers was Sid. Sid was the lawgiver who killed "Tamar" (Who was also the fellow from "for the world is hollow and I have touched the sky") with a long empty tube.

Extremism is not limited to any particular religion, it can infect any of the worlds great religions. And much like The "Chronicles of Riddick" - If an extremist cannot convert you, they will probably try to kill you.

The idea that the absolute truth is only available to those who believe in one particular religion, is folly and fallacy, and maybe apostasy. And just like the planet Beta III in this episode, we see what happens to a society when all creative incentive is forbidden to the membership and only allowed to the leadership - The society which is based on the religion becomes stagnant.

This difficult-to-watch Star Trek Original Series episode shows how such a society will look, the membership, while outwardly proclaiming peace and Joy, have neither. They are tightly controlled, and Law is upheld by Fear Alone.

Taken one step further, the leadership of this stagnation is a machine! And so we have here the very first Computer-Confounding of James T Kirk's career. He becomes an expert in the destruction of computers using illogic, up to and including V'Ger. So maybe this is not as funny as they way he did it in "I, Mudd" - But the process he uses is very much the same. "HelpmeHelpmeHelpme!", as Landru's last words said.

On a Side-Note, Jon Lormer, who plays the Illusion "Dr Haskins" in "The Cage/The Menagerie" is "Tamar" - The First casualty of this episode at the hands of "Landru" (Charles Macaulay).

Also look for Karl/Christopher Held, Who played the law student "David Gideon" on one whole season of Perry Mason.

Ladru knows this is my Favorite Star Trek episode.

[thejcowboy22 · 7/10 · 13 February 2017]

One of my great joys as a child of the sixties was to watch Star Trek on Friday nights at Mark Strauss' Baldwin Harbor Home on their RCA color Television set. The "STANDARD" precept for the Star Trek show is "The Prime Directive". This is the guiding principle of the United Federation Of Planets which prohibits Starfleet personnel from interfering with the internal development of alien civilizations. This particularly applies to alien worlds which are below the threshold of technological scientific and cultural development. The Star Ship "Enterprise" travels to Beta III in hopes of learning the fate of the missing Archon ship 100 years earlier that landed there with their crew. Crew members of the Starship Enterprise, Sulu (George Takai) and O'Neil (Sean Morgan) were sent, beamed down to the planet for reconnaissance to find information, answers about the Archon crew. Sulu returned aboard the "Enterprise" in some what of a trance to the crew's disbelief. The Captain James T. Kirk decides to send down a second landing party including himself to find out what happened to Crewman O'Neil. Upon their arrival wearing local garb the planet resembles an old 19th century western town. The crew of the enterprise is startled as the locals walk slowly as if they were floating by. One of the locals Bilar approached the crew and says, "Joy to you friends." Captain Kirk obliges by repeating, "Joy To You." Bilar adds..." You be strangers? Come for festival are ya? Got a place to sleep it off yet? Go around to Reger's house. He's got rooms, but you'll have to hurry it's almost red hour." The confused crew couldn't comprehend those bizarre statements. Then the huge clock in the town square strikes six and the Zombie like residents turn into wild savages starting fires, screaming and throwing rocks through store front windows as the startled crew heads for the aforementioned hotel of Reger. As they head inside the establishment for safety there stands Reger's accompanied by Tula (Brioni Farrell) and an agitated Tamar Jon Lormer who is questioning the loyalty of these new visitors. Reger and Tula are the exceptions in this world of order. Reger asks if they are from the Valley or are they Archons. Kirk replies, "What if we are?" Meanwhile an aggravated Crewman Lindstrom (Carl Held) complains to Reger as his Daughter was caught in the fracas of the Red hour. Reger replies by saying "It's the will of Landru." Tamar was skeptical and realized the crew is not of the body. A perturbed Tamar runs out of the lobby into the street and summons two men in hooded robes and long tubes. They enter but Tula in defense gets zapped by the henchman. Falls to the floor and Dr. McCoy (DeForest Kelly) says, "He's dead." An image appears and it's a man in a robe from a time past. It's Landru played by Charles Macaulay who tells the startled crew that they are invading the body and must be absorbed and if they refuse they will be obliterated. Landru did not personally respond because Spock (Leonard Nimoy) tells the Captain (William Shatner) that it's only a projection. Meanwhile up in orbit Scotty, (James Doohan) the ships engineer, tells the Captain that there's a tractor beam hitting the ship and pulling the Enterprise slowly into Beta III atmosphere. Back on the planet the crew fights the henchman and escape the tubes and now head for safety elsewhere provide by Reger but the locals under the direction of Landru Grab wood, clubs and Stones as they attack the crew . Luckily armed with Phazers they use the wide field beam on stun and knock out the attackers. The crew heads for cover in another building free from Landru until they notice crewman O'Neil among the attackers . Rendered unconscious by the phazer, the crew takes him along against Reger's wishes. Reger explains that you can't take him because he was already absorbed Landru will use him as tracking devise and find us. Doctor McCoy give comatose crewman a sedative as Reger explains the world they entered is controlled by Landru for 6000 years. Linstrom complains,"This is simply ridiculous, A bunch of stone aged characters running around in robes?" and Spock replies,"And apparently commanding powers far beyond our comprehension. Not simple,not ridiculous. Very very dangerous." As usual the crew of the Enterprise is in a very dicey situation with Landru and the ship drifting into the planet. I particularly liked this story. Some classic quotes come to mind, for example when Spock and the Captain Kirk are fighting the robes and Spock instead of using his famous Vulcan neck pinch. He give a right cross to the jaw of the recipient. Kirk looks over in amazement and says "Isn't that a bit old fashioned?" The teleplay by Gene Roddenberry and written by Boris Sobelman cleverly transcribing the man against computer genre. One of four instances throughout the Star Trek series. The final confrontation with Captain Kirk and First Officer Spock against the machine is sheer genius. Defining what a living growing culture consists of. Baffling the mighty computer/ Landru and how to disable the machine with out weapons or punches thrown and applying the Prime Directive. I personally enjoyed the epilogue as Spock blushes as the Captain tells him that he would have made an excellent computer. Conversely you see helmsman Sulu return to normal and back at the helm. Warp factor ONE! Time to say "Good Night" to the Strauss Family head back to Elmont and my ugly black and white television.

It is the will of Landru

[jameselliot-1 · 10/10 · 25 August 2018]

The big technical disconnect that no one on the production team caught starts right away. Sulu is immediately absorbed by Landru the god like figure running this city when a Lawgiver points his staff at his face. But everyone else, such as McCoy, has to be taken to a special room to be brainwashed. Why couldnt the Lawgivers just point their tubes at the Enterprise landing party also? I did like the Twilight Zone-ish feel of the late 19th century US town and the strange way the derby wearing man spoke. The morning after the Festival of rioting and sexual assaults should have resulted in bodies lying in the street. If this was filmed now, they'd show that.

If I were you, I'd look for another job, Roddenberry

[Otoboke · 6/10 · 2 February 2008]

Roddenberry strikes again, somehow the person we have to thank for this entire franchise manages time after time to riddle his inputs to the show with American Propaganda Nonsense and 'Return of the Archons' is amongst the biggest of such examples.

So let me get what I enjoyed about the episode out of the way. Firstly I appreciated the main cast's performances, specifically from Kelley who actually manages to make these zombie hippie-commies seem interesting. Indeed one of the episode's few redeeming scenes comes mid-way when McCoy is left to sit in the background like an oblivious child until he suspects Kirk and Spock's whispering. I also thought Roddenberry's dialogue was good enough throughout, it's just a shame that they are constantly blabbering on about how a different society is unacceptable.

So naturally now I'm going to go on about what I disliked about 'Return of the Archons'. Firstly the whole 'festival' thing, although a very feasible concept, I felt was very poorly produced. The end result ends up coming off as completely absurd, wacky and unconvincing. It's dramatic and pleasing to watch just for the sheer insanity of it all, but when you take it in context of how seriously the script seems to take itself, you have to realise how poor it is implemented here. Half way through the episode however I found myself craving some more of this anarchy in place of the extremely dull and repetitive plot which moves along frustratingly slowly, heading for a conclusion that doesn't pay off at all.

The final scenes involving Kirk defeating and outsmarting the computer lacks conviction, focus and is simply unconvincing. Never does Kirk or Spock justify how lack of creativity destroys the 'body'. In fact I could come up with a thousand reasons as to justify the exact opposite. Don't you think if creativity was necessary to keeping the 'body' alive that Landrau would have programmed such rules for the computer to enforce? Essentially the whole episode boils down to a message that any society different from that of 1960's America is unacceptable- how could anything be better than the great Democracy? Specifically however, this is a blatant attack on Communism, stinking of cold-war propaganda that I am actually ashamed Trek and Roddenberry actually thought was intelligent or justified; the sheer ignorant and biased nature of the scripts political and philosophical themes is totally unnecessary and unpleasant; this is something that I never could or would associate with any respectable production of Star Trek.

Furthermore the society that is presented here is ridiculous in itself, with little grey to be seen between the black and white. Instead of real characters posing a threat to the Enterprise crew, what we get is a bunch of chess pieces and nothing more; mere placeholders for personal ideals and ideas about another society that the writer clearly has no grasp of. According to 'Return of the Archons', people who serve the 'body' are nothing more than zombies, walking around speaking about peace all day. So who then made the houses, harvests the food and maintains the cities on this planet? Indeed if there is no creativity in such a society, who came up with the idea for the festival? Who designed the roads, the buildings, and the clothing which seems to be an apparent fashion rather than a uniform? So in this respect, if this is indeed a warning against the great evil of communism, then it's clearly nothing more than biased capitalist propaganda at best. Never does it discuss the pros and cons of both societies. Instead the Enterprise crew is portrayed as ignorant fools, rushing in to meld things the way they want it.

Sure there is oppression present, and sure creativity should be allowed if not encouraged, but the problem with the script is that it forces such ideals down your throat and uses them –unjustly- to condemn a form of society that is unified and spiritual. The problem with Landau's society isn't that it's a strong community and the problem doesn't lie in the people's nature- it lies in the obvious dictatorship of Landau, something similar to Communist Russia of the time, I admit, but not something inherent to a society that serves a 'body'.

The end of the episode comes to a frustrating halt with the final discussion between Kirk and Spock on the bridge. Kirk is actually pleased that domestic quarrels have begun arising in the city and laughs it off, dismissing Spock's only intelligent line of dialogue in the episode. Oh yes, quarrelling is human alright, but so is discrimination, war, injustice, corruption and greed. Where will Kirk be when such circumstances arise? Well it's doubtful he'll be there to clean up what he naively encouraged.

When it comes down to it, 'Return of the Archons' has definite potential, but it lacks the detail and discussion that such heavy topics require. So instead of being a coherent and solid piece of thoughtful science fiction, we end up with simple misguided writing with little to no intelligent discussion to justify its claims. As a piece of TV it fails also thanks to it's sluggish pace, dodgy acting from supporting cast and a distinct lack of any significance to main character development or Trek lore. There are some exciting moments here and there and a few good performances that help redeem some points but when it comes down to whether the episode works or not, 'Return of the Archons' just doesn't cut it; A real low-point for Trek.

Weird.

[BA_Harrison · 3/10 · 23 May 2022]

"Of course... it had to be," says Captain Kirk when he discovers that omnipotent being Landru is actually a computer. Indeed it did, James -- it's not the first time in Star Trek that a machine has been revealed to be the leader of a group of humans, and I doubt it'll be the last.

After Sulu is 'brainwashed' into a state of peace and tranquility while investigating planet Beta III, Kirk leads a landing party to discover what happened. What he finds is a society of humans who have been absorbed into a collective called 'the body' by their mysterious leader Landru. After the landing party is captured, and McCoy is absorbed, Kirk and Spock attempt to free everyone, including his own men, from Landru's control.

The Return of the Archons is one hell of a strange episode, one that takes a good while to get a grasp of what is happening and why. Even when the story becomes clearer, there are things that just don't make sense, such as the 6-o'clock craziness that grips the people of Beta III, or the robed guards' electronic sounding voices. It all feels like the product of someone under the influence of class-A drugs (it was the '60s, after all). In a rather trite ending, Kirk uses logic and reasoning to blow Landru's circuits.

Kirk and Travolta once did a movie in 1975.

[fedor8 · 17 May 2022]

An episode which clearly benefited from Season 1's more decent budget. (That budget would be later decreased from season to season.) Great outdoors scenes. A very moody episode with a real sense of mystery. Not much sense or logic in this episode though, not too many things add up, and not much is explained. Very vague overall, which isn't necessarily bad. Though I would have liked to have at least an inkling of an explanation why the cult's zombies were forced to act out with violence and depravity on a regular basis when the clock struck 12. Bread and circuses and violence as opposed to just bread and circuses?

But it's the overall mood, the effective direction, and great use of music that make this one of the best episodes - if a bit too "simple" (i.e. Message-free) for the average "socially aware" Trekkie.

The most strikingly stupid scene is by far when one of the key resistance movement members suddenly panics, deciding not to help the crew fight Landru and his tyranny. Instead, the man starts shouting for help from Landru, his enemy!... A very silly scene indeed, almost Pythonesque.

Speaking of Python, not quite as goofy but still silly is the "Confuse-a-cat Ltd" conversation between Kirk/Spock and Landru's computer. It is very reminiscent of some of the dialogues with the robot probe in "The Changeling" episode. The Landru computer doesn't converse like a computer at all - it is way too emotional - plus the crew defeat it far too easily merely by contradicting it. Death by contradiction, a ploy used by ST's crew several times. Confuse-a-computer Ltd, the company that destroys computers and robots by messing with (their) logic: this shtick was also used in "I, Mudd". In fact, it may be a sci-fi cliche much older than "Star Trek", perhaps borrowed from the vast vault of sci-fi pulp novels, comic-books and stories published between the 30s and the 50s.