Trek Review: “Charlie X”

This story has always been a so-so one for me.  The tale of Charles Evans, alone since he was three years old, discovered at 17.  But, he was given a power by a race called the Thasians so he could survive.  Couple teen angst with power to change things at will and you have a tale probably better suited for the Twilight Zone episode “It’s a Good Life.”

I almost certainly would have drawn that conclusion in 1966 as I do now.  But, that doesn’t make it a bad episode whatsoever.

The guest star, Robert Walker, Jr., I have always thought that his performance leaves a lot to be desired as Charlie.  Sometimes it feels as if he is going a little too over the top in his interpretation of the role.  It’s not bad, but it leaves a lot to be desired in my opinion.

The story is solid.  Who can fault a script by the legendary D.C. Fontana?  Visually the show is a bit passable, but most bottle shows (that being a story completely on board the ship, to save money) are.  No big visual effects here, nor are any necessary.  This is definitely a story-driven episode.

That music score by Fred Steiner however is the most memorable thing to take away from this show.  Such legendary cues that would be heard several times over in later episodes.

Me, the TV viewer of 1966, would have gobbled up every moment of this show!  It was a much better experience than the previous episode, and more indicative of what this show is about.  What would intrigue me however, is the teaser for next week, and the odd looking uniforms to what I had previously seen.

 

See you next week! 🙂