All of Clint Howard’s Star Trek appearances ranked from worst to best
Balok – Star Trek: The Original Series
The original series’ The Corbomite Maneuver was intended as the second episode right after the pilot, but due to the complexity of the special effects, it was delayed, eventually being the tenth episode in the run order. It would’ve made sense as the second episode, however, as it was basically a manifesto for Star Trek, introducing what is arguably the primary theme of the show, that you can make peace with even the most intractable of enemies, as long as you can talk with them.
The episode involves a tense stand-off with Balok, an intimidating-looking alien in an even more intimidating ship representing the “First Federation.” When The Enterprise is caught in Balok’s ship’s tractor beam, Kirk orders the Enterprise’s impulse engines to maximum, hoping that the strain will damage Balok’s ship. The strategy works, and Uhura reports that she’s intercepted a message from Balok, reporting that his life support systems are failing.
When Kirk, McCoy, and a red shirt beam over to render assistance, they find that the intimidating-looking alien they saw on the Enterprise’s viewscreen is a dummy; the real Balok is… a baby with big eyebrows.
The Corbomite Maneuver would be in the top five of original series episodes if it weren’t for the final ten minutes where we meet the real Balok. Seeing Balok appearing as a cordial child-like creature was intended to diffuse the tension of the episode, but it worked too well, Balok is just silly looking; I don’t think cringing laughter was the reaction they were going for. To be a Star Trek fan, one must accept a certain amount of camp silliness, but the shift from high drama to sci-fi camp is almost as painful as Balok’s laugh.
And that’s not to mention Kirk being a passive-aggressive jerk about leaving the red shirt with Balok as a cultural exchange, so that Balok may learn about “human fallibility,” or the nagging feeling that the message would’ve been better served if they’d made peace with the scary Balok. But still, the thought of the Enterprise being menaced by a six-year-old was pretty funny and probably relatable to a lot of parents.