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Bread and Circuses (episode)

Revision as of 16:26, 30 March 2010 by Jbshryne (talk | contribs) (→‎Continuity)
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Kirk, Spock and McCoy are captured on an Earth-like planet that possesses a 20th-century civilization with a twist: a Roman-style imperial system. They learn they are not the only Earthmen who have had to deal with it as they may.

Summary

This episode or film summary is incompleteThis episode summary has been identified as lacking essential detail, and as such needs attention. Feel free to edit this page to assist with this expansion.
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When the USS Enterprise discovers the empty wreckage of the SS Beagle – a merchant ship that has been missing for six years - drifting near the planet 892-IV, Kirk, Spock and McCoy beam down to the planet's surface to investigate. There they find a group of runaway slaves – "sun worshipers" called the "Children of the Sun" who are trying to escape being captured by the local police. Kirk, Spock and McCoy are captured by the group and taken before their leader Septimus. Septimus explains that the Children of the Sun follow teachings of peace and brotherhood, but are persecuted by the authorities for their religious beliefs. Flavius Maximus, a former gladiator, suggests they kill the landing party, but Septimus decides that they pose no threat. Kirk begins looking through magazines and realizes that the culture of 892-IV bears remarkable resemblance to Earth's ancient Rome, but blended with the technological advancements of the 20th century. He also notices that Merikus, First Citizen of Rome, is very similar to Captain R.M. Merik of the Beagle, and decides that they must be the same person. Kirk explains to the Children of the Sun that they are searching for survivors of the Beagle, and Flavius offers to lead them into the city.

The group is spotted and captured by the police, and taken to the city where they meet Merik, who takes them to Proconsul of the Empire, Claudius Marcus. Merik explains that Marcus knows the real origins of both himself and the landing party. He explains that the Beagle was wrecked six years ago, at which point he was forced to beam down all of his crew. His crew was given the option of integrated into the planet's society or be forced to fight in televised Roman-like gladitorial competitions for the entertainment of the inhabitants of 892-IV. Kirk is now prevailed upon to have his crew beam down under the same terms. He refuses, but Marcus' guards threaten to shoot them all. Kirk contacts the Enterprise but tells Scotty Condition Green; the party is endangered – but he is not to attempt a rescue. Marik and Marcus know what the signal means and Marcus says that Kirk will watch his men die unless he complies.

Kirk is forced to watch as Spock and McCoy are condemned to fight Flavius and another gladiator in the arena. Spock holds his own against his opponent, but McCoy is severely outmatched, only surviving because Flavius is reluctant to kill him. Flavius is whipped to encourage him to attack, whereupon he gives McCoy some fighting tips so they can make it "look real". Spock overpowers his opponent and then breaks the rules by saving McCoy's life, and both men are sent back to their cell. Through the conversation they have there, McCoy realizes that Spock is insecure about his ability to hide his emotions. Meanwhile, Marcus meets with Kirk and reveals that he will be executed unless he calls the Enterprise. Kirk still refuses and Marcus says that he will find some way to get the crew down to the planet regardless. He seemingly leaves Kirk alone until a woman Drusilla begins seducing him.

Back on the Enterprise, they have intercepted the broadcasts announcing Kirk's execution. Scotty refuses to disobey orders and mount a rescue, but he reasons that if they disrupt the city's power, they wouldn't go through with the execution because it couldn't be broadcast. Kirk wakes up after Drusilla is gone and Marcus informs him that she was a courtesy to a civilized man, not an attempt at interrogation. They proceed to the execution. Flavius interrupts before Kirk can be skewered and is shot, and Kirk manages to escape when the Enterprise disrupts the power supply in the Roman city. Kirk attempts to rescue his crewmates, but is intercepted by the Romans, who have to attack using swords to avoid friendly fire. During the fighting, Marik signals the Enterprise, but is then stabbed by Marcus. Marick still manages to toss the commuicator to Kirk, and the three are beamed back to the Enterprise.

Back aboard, Spock muses about how similar the ancient Earth Romans and the ones they observed on the planet are, but is confused because the ancient Romans never had a cult of sun worshippers like the Children of the Sun. Uhura, who has been monitoring the radio frequencies of the planet, tells them that the "sun worshipers" were actually worshiping the "Son of God" – Jesus Christ.

Log entries

  • Captain's log, stardate 4040.7. On the surface of planet IV, system 892, the landing party has won the confidence of what obviously is a group of runaway slaves. They dwell in caves not far from a large city, wear rags, live under primitive conditions. But they are creatures of a heavily industrialized 20th century-type planet very much like Earth, an amazing example of Hodgkin's Law of Parallel Planetary Development. But on this Earth, Rome never fell. A world ruled by emperors who can trace their line back 2,000 years, to their own Julius and Augustus Caesars.
  • Captain's log, stardate 4040.9. Uniformed police like those of Earth, a great city like Rome with automobiles. Astonishing similarities to 20th Century Earth, down to the fine carbon steel in the bars.
  • Ship's log, stardate 4041.2. Chief Engineer Scott recording. Captain Kirk and his landing party have checked in, but they have used the code term Condition Green, which means they're in trouble. But it also prohibits my taking any action.
  • Enterprise log, Engineer Scott reporting. All banks in readiness for disruption of power sources on the planet's surface.
  • Captain's log, stardate 4041.7. Note commendation, Engineering Officer Scott. Despite enormous temptation and strong personal feelings, he obeyed the Prime Directive. His temporary blackout of the city below resulted in no interference with the society and yet saved the lives of myself and the landing party.

Memorable Quotes

"Once, just once, I'd like to be able to land someplace and say, 'Behold! I am the archangel Gabriel!'"
"I fail to see the humor in that situation, Doctor."
"Naturally, you could hardly claim to be an angel with those pointed ears, Mr. Spock; but say you landed someplace with a pitchfork?"

- McCoy and Spock


"Where do you come from? What do you call those?"
"I call them 'ears'."
"You trying to be funny?"
"Never."

- Flavius and Spock


"Fight, you pointed-eared freak!"
"You tell him, buster! Of all the stupid, illogical questions... I ever heard in my life!"

- Achilles and McCoy


"I know why you're not afraid to die, Spock. You're more afraid of living. Each day you stay alive is just one more day you might slip, and let your human half peek out. That's it, isn't it? Insecurity? Why you wouldn't know what to do with a genuine warm decent feeling."
"Really, Doctor?"

- McCoy and Spock


File:Empire tv.jpg

"You bring this network's ratings down and we'll do a special on you!"

"You bring this network's ratings down and we'll do a special on you!"

- Guard, to Flavius


"I've been in some strange worlds, strange customs. Perhaps this is considered torture here."

- Kirk skirts the Prime Directive while talking to Drusilla

Background information

Production timeline

Story and script

  • Gene Roddenberry and Gene L. Coon wrote this episode's teleplay from a story by playwright and television writer John Kneubuhl. However, Roddenberry and Coon received sole writing credit for the episode.
  • The title, "Bread and Circuses" refers to the practice in ancient Rome of providing free grain and entertainment in the Colosseum to pacify the unemployed Roman masses. Many of them were impoverished farmers who had lost their land due to the consolidation of senatorial estates that tended to swallow up smaller farms in the area. Also, Nero, the Emperor (not the Romulan), famously said "give them bread...and games!". (citation needed • edit)
  • The episode parodies the television industry in several ways. Fake applause and catcalls are used to simulate a studio audience, and the race for high television ratings is lampooned several times. The TV station manager threatens the now-pacifist runaway slave that he had better fight convincingly: "You bring this network's ratings down, Flavius, and we'll do a special on you!" Later, the Proconsul sneers at Kirk about the captain's impending death, to be televised from the arena, by telling Kirk that "You're centuries beyond anything as crude as... television." Kirk replies, "I've heard it was... similar," an oblique reference to the series' own ratings difficulties. Comic relief is in the scene where McCoy and Spock heckle each other on the TV Stage during the gladiatorial duels.

Production

  • The caves where the Children of the Son hide out are one of the most-used locations in television and movies. In addition to being the entrance to the Batcave, they are also seen in Invasion of the Body Snatchers, Kung Fu and various police and western shows. They are located right below the famous Hollywood sign.
  • One of the shots of the planetary capital (in the opening of Act II) is of the Great Dome at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, whose words can be read (somewhat) above the pillars. The next shot shows the Legion of Honor on the Left Bank in Paris; its motto honneur et patrie is not Latin but French.
  • This is one of only two TOS episodes featuring dialog in act one before the title of the episode appears on-screen. The other episode is "A Private Little War".
  • Several sequences from this episode made the blooper reel:
  • Jack Perkins had a line which was supposed to read, "If they refuse to move out on cue, skewer them" but instead said, "Screw them!".
  • Ted Cassidy appeared out of nowhere dressed as Injun Joe from his work on The New Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and carried Shatner off just before he was going to machine-gun the lock of Spock and McCoy's cell. While he was being carried, Shatner yelled out "Hey, I don't know about you, but this is not the way it should work! I want you to know!"
  • As the police closed in on the landing party after they escape their cell, one of the extras slipped and fell; this is the reason there is a quick cut before the policemen reach the main corridor.

Cast

Sets and Props

Claudius Marcus - coat of arms

Claudius Marcus' insignia

  • Proconsul Marcus' insignia is not a Roman symbol (a legionary eagle or a fasces), but rather the coat of arms of the English playwright William Shakespeare.
  • The automatic weapons that the Roman guards wield are Danish Madsen m/50 submachine guns.

Continuity

  • This is the only TOS episode in which it is explicitly stated that planetary natives are speaking in English, as Spock points out that it is the language of the Roman Empire on this planet. (This was perhaps done to make the characters' misinterpretation of "Son Worshipers" as "Sun Worshipers" more plausible, as "Son" and "Sun" would likely not be homophones in another language.) The main languages of the real Roman Empire were Latin and Greek.
  • Two different characters have the same name in this one episode: the primary Claudius Marcus is the proconsul, while his namesake is mentioned as the gladiator who slew William B. Harrison, the last of the barbarians.

Apocrypha

  • The Roman planet is revisited in the novel The Captains' Honor set 100 years after the encounter by the original Enterprise crew. The novel details how the alternate Rome conquered their world and explains that, 100 years after the events of "Bread and Circuses", the Romans have now achieved space flight, technological par with the Federation.

Video and DVD releases

Links and References

Starring

Also Starring

And

Guest Star

Co-Starring

And

Featuring

And

Uncredited Co-Stars

References

19th century; 20th century; 2262; 2263; 892 system (star system 892); 892-IV; amplitude modulation; angel; antimatter nacelle; archangel; atmosphere; barbarian; Beagle, SS; bull; butcher; Caesar, Augustus; Caesar, Julius; carbon monoxide; carbon steel; Children of the Sun; City Arena; Class 4 stardrive vessel; class M; coat of arms; Condition Green; despotism; Empire; First Citizen; frequency modulation; First Citizen; fish; flight officer; Gabriel; garum; gladiator; hobgoblin; Hodgkin's Law of Parallel Planetary Development; hydrocarbon; internal combustion engine; iridium; Jupiter; Jupiter 8; landing party; Lord of the Games; Mars; Mars Toothpaste; Merikus; meteor; Name the Winner; Neptune; Neptune Bath Salts; nitrogen; ore; oxygen; parsec; pitchfork; Praetorian Guard; Prime Directive; Proconsul; Procedure Q; province; pyscho-stimulator test; roast kid; Roman; Rome; senator; slave; smog; Space Academy; sparrow; star sector; Starfleet regulations; survey vessel; sword; television; video; World War I; World War II; World War III

External link

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