Star Trek: The Animated Series (TV Series) Albatross (1974) User Reviews

Plagued by the Past...

[Xstal · 7/10 · 28 February 2022]

The Doctor's being held for past crimes, accused of a plague in past times, pointing their root fingers, be careful of splinters, he's trapped waiting trial and confined.

The good Doctor has to stand trial accused of mass deaths due to a plague caused by him 19 years previously.

Actually Pretty Decent

[Samuel-Shovel · 6/10 · 28 January 2019]

In "Albatross", after delivering medical supplies to a distant Federation contact, Dr. McCoy is placed under arrest for causing an epidemic 19 years ago that wiped at a sister planet. His sloppy medical practices allegedly caused thousands to die. The Enterprise heads to the planet to investigate as Bones sits in a jail cell. After finding a local to testify on McCoy's behalf, the entire crew (besides Spock) plus the witness comes down with the plague. Spock must spring McCoy from the clink in order to find an antidote in time and clear Bones' good name.

This is one of the highlights of the series. It's got a good story and actual stakes on the line. We meet a new alien race with a swift justice system. Besides the abysmal animation and the corny ending, this episode is fairly well done.

You Can't Get a Break

[Hitchcoc · 6/10 · 1 April 2017]

Leonard McCoy helps one race, only to cause problems for another. Circumvention is necessary or he may face death or imprisonment for good. The simplistic nature of these cartoon entries makes it hard to attend to them. The animation is very weak, with little movement. The story lines don't seem very interesting, and the solutions seem to be a little too easy. Imagine an animated effort with some heart and effort.

Surprisingly good.

[planktonrules · 7/10 · 18 April 2015]

"Albatross" is a surprisingly good episode of "Star Trek the Animated Series". Now I am NOT saying it's well-animated. No, as usual the animation really sucks as the characters move in a very robotic fashion and the quality of many (but not all) of the drawings is suspect. But the story itself is MUCH closer to the style of the original "Star Trek"--something severely lacking in many of the cartoons. Many feel like they are more designed for kids and not for Trek-lovers--which was probably the case back in 1974. This one, on the other hand, could have been hashed out into a decent script for a live-action show.

As for the show, Dr. McCoy helps a race of beings on a far off planet. For his troubles, he is arrested--and charged with killing off a race on a nearby planet 19 years ago! So, it's like the old saying "No good deed goes unpunished" and McCoy and his BFFs need to reconstruct events to determine if McCoy's vaccinations of these people long ago led to a plague (Jenny McCarthy, take note).

Overall, not great because of the craptastic animation. But tolerable because of the good script.

Major logical flaws

[cashbacher · 5/10 · 25 March 2020]

As the episode starts, it appears that the Enterprise has successfully completed its mission to deliver medical supplies to the planet Dramia. However, after the leaders thank the Enterprise crew, they present Captain Kirk with an arrest warrant for Dr. McCoy for the crime of mass murder. Nineteen years earlier, McCoy had supervised a vaccination program on the planet Dramia II, but once he left the planet, a plague killed all inhabitants. Since the warrant is legal, McCoy is taken into custody. With no other options, Kirk takes the Enterprise to Dramia II in an attempt to seek evidence regarding the source of the plague. They find a survivor and when they talk with him, they learn that he was off-planet when the plague started, and Dr. McCoy saved his life. The plague affects humans as well, although Spock is immune. Using broad interpretations of the law, Spock manages to free McCoy and he is able to find a cure. The episode ends with all charges dropped and peace is maintained between the Federation and Dramia. The potential for introducing a plague when a new species visits a planet is a very real issue. Furthermore, that plague may not kill the natives, but be in the form of microbes that out-compete the native flora and fauna. The problem with this episode is that a plague that killed all the intelligent creatures on a planet would be big galactic news. It is impossible that such an event would be kept from the Federation for nineteen years and there would be a strong move to learn the cause. Finally, the cure was simple to find once the proper approach was taken. Way too easy, even for the miracle workers of the Enterprise.