One Star Trek Actor Absolutely Hated The Infamous 'Space Hippies' Episode
"Star Trek: The Original Series" called the small screen home from 1966 to 1969, giving audiences numerous memorable characters, moments, and lines in that time. Of its 79 total installments, "Star Trek" fans consider some a cut above the rest as the best episodes of the original series. Meanwhile, a handful have become recognized among the science fiction series' weakest links. Season 3's "The Way to Eden" — an episode centered on a group of "space hippies" attempting to take over the USS Enterprise to find the mythical planet of Eden — is among these disliked installments.
Of course, this sentiment isn't just held by "Star Trek" fans. One of the original series' most prominent cast members also felt that "The Way to Eden" is one of the program's worst episodes. In her and James D. Denney's book "The Longest Trek: My Tour of the Galaxy," Janice Rand actor Grace Lee Whitney expressed her distaste for the episode. She referred to it as a "clinker," citing it and "Spock's Brain" from the same season as paling in comparison to others, especially those written by Harlan Ellison such as "The City on the Edge of Forever."
So, why have Whitney and numerous "Star Trek" fans given "The Way to Eden" a hard time? Here are some of the standout reasons for its negative reputation.
The Way to Eden remains pretty unpopular decades later
"The Way to Eden" made its small-screen debut in February 1969, and decades later, in the age of the Internet, it is still being lambasted by "Star Trek" fans. In a thread by Redditor u/Kayfim20, several folks chimed in to offer critiques of this infamous episode.
"This episode feels like a middle aged adult in 1967s interpretation of the counter culture," commented u/rebuilt2150, claiming that the minds behind the episode missed the mark in attempting to adapt the then-modern hippie culture through a "Star Trek" lens. A now-deleted Reddit user felt similarly, noting that writing of "The Way to Eden" fails to make anyone on-screen look good. u/AllOverThere also compared it to "Spock's Brain," noting that the third year of "Star Trek" is all around pretty weak.
Surprisingly, a few of the thread's commenters expressed less harsh feelings toward "The Way to Eden." u/Software_Samurai looks at it as a product of its time, while u/tjareth found Deborah Downey's work in the episode worthy of a watch alone. "I enjoy this episode for how silly it is – I too am glad it exists. The musical bicycle wheel is excellent," wrote u/WildW in quite an outlier of a comment. u/2HBA1 also offered up a comment in support of "The Way to Eden" in all of its '60s sci-fi silliness.
With some positivity headed its way, perhaps the majority opinion on "The Way to Eden" will sway down the road. For now, though, it's still widely considered one of the worst "Star Trek" episodes out there.