Star Trek Continues (TV Series) The White Iris (2015) User Reviews

Another very good episode

[alpierce-86112 · 7/10 · 30 May 2015]

This episode started a little shaky plot-wise, however as the story developed, it became a very satisfying entry in the series. As usual, the production values are outstanding, and the cast is seemingly getting into the "flow" of things. Vic Mignona continues to impress me with his Shatneresque portrayal of Kirk. Todd Haberkorn as Spock has also grown into the role well. I was also very impressed with Chuck Huber's McCoy.

In this story, Kirk is dealing with his guilt over past "failures", and not very well! The inclusion of characters from past TOS episodes was done very well, and pulled at a few heartstrings along the way. I look forward to more excellent episodes from this dedicated cast and crew!

Really Between 7 and 8 on the Rating

[michael-04313 · 8/10 · 11 March 2020]

This was a nice easy going episode, a little slow and repetitive, but with meaning. Things to note were the lamp in the U.S.S. Farragut's medical bay look a lot like the one's seen in the "The Cage" Enterprise bridge, nice little detail. McCoy's actor seems a little bit too gruff for my liking, he's not country boy enough like Deforest Kelley but he nails the cantankerous attitude. I loved the ending with Kirk and his unborn daughter, it was quite emotional. Finally when McCoy says his heart was holding on because of one more lady, to have the next scene zoom out from the Enterprise registry was wonderful!

Not brilliant, but very good.

Canon

[thefinswin · 10/10 · 1 June 2015]

I cannot stop talking about Star Trek Continues! I feel like I'm a kid again. Every episode I wait in anticipation for each as if they are a major summer movie release. "The White Iris" is no different. Quick somebody give these guys a weekly show! This group of people get together and...ENERGIZE...Star Trek happens. Vic Mignogna has put together industry professionals along with talented amateurs who really know and love Star Trek to make this colossal labor of love. Don't want to give anything away so I'll leave it at this. TOS is back and I pray it doesn't go away any time soon. If you like the original series you will like this. Rod Roddenberry (Gene Roddenberry's son) says his dad would consider these episodes canon. That is quite an endorsement.

Good But Not Great

[StuOz · 15 April 2021]

Captain Kirk must deal with his memories of the past.

The strength of this hour is Vic Mignogna's amazing acting as Kirk. He really sells the fact that these women are appearing all over the place on the Enterprise. And, as always, we have the amazing match ups to the old series.

On the negative side, the later section of the hour employs technology later used in Star Trek The Next Generation and this took me out of my "1960s zone" for a while. Also, as Original Series episode - City On The Edge Of Forever - is just so highly regarded by me, I am not totally comfortable with the episode being played around with.

But all things considered, The White Iris is good.

The senior senior Trekker writes

[XweAponX · 10/10 · 8 August 2023]

Or rather, narrates again.

I have to say each time I watch this episode I am more and more impressed, Vic not only plays Captain Kirk, he dabbled with some of the music, and he writes most of these stories.

The fact that he was involved in writing this episode reveals a huge knowledge of Star Trek. He knows details about each of the five women that are clouding Kirks memory in this episode.

Details that we have mostly forgotten... Well, details about one of them are an untold story, because it takes place with a character from one of his earlier ships, The ship from "obsession". And that was another interesting thing to add to this story, it's just another untold story of Kirk. But each of these women have had a profound effect on Kirks psyche.

We forget that Kirk got extremely lucky in "The Paradise Syndrome" with "Miramani"- but he also got lucky with Deela in "wink of an eye"- but it is even more blatant in Paradise. And the level of that is shown in this episode, because we all know that Miramani was carrying Kirk's child.

And this episode is basically built around a character never really born. Of all of the five girls that Kirk has to interact with to get his memory back, the one that has the key to his secret password was the one that never existed as a person.

In reality that is, she does exist in Kirks mind to a very large degree. And the ironic thing here is that he never knew it.

This also brings back memories of another forgotten "woman" Rayna- and she was also "not real" in a certain sense, although to Kirk, she was very real.

This also gives us another look at the original enterprise "Holodeck", which would have been revealed had there ever been a fourth season of the original series. So in effect, this is the first "holodeck episode", unless you count the first episode where Apollo comes back.

The story happening in the background with the planet applying for Federation membership, that's not really the important story here.

A Kirk-centric very emotionally driven episode

[DoctorThotcer · 5/10 · 27 October 2019]

This is one of those episode that, as a child watching the original series, I would have hated, but as an adult I can appreciate the emotional poignancy of many of the scenes and somewhat forgive the lack of monsters and explosions.

It sets up rather nicely with many creepy and interesting moments, but it does rather start to test the patience a little as any logic leaves us towards the end, in particular the scenes in the holodeck, which make little to no sense unless the holodeck is a mind reading omnipotent being.

The scene with the child is so poignant one almost forgives these small failings, almost, that is, until we get to the frankly bonkers scene with Spock and McCoy staring wistfully at a Van Gogh.

However, this kind of episode was a staple of the original series, so perhaps this is an homage to those. You know, the ones that as kids we always found boring because nothing very exciting or sci-fi happens, but your parents liked it.

Btw, as a Brit, that accent, oof.

Kirk's brain gets a bit scrambled...and the series takes a bit of a tumble.

[planktonrules · 4/10 · 11 November 2019]

I am a big Star Trek fan...big enough to have gone to conventions and even the Trek cruise. So, it's not surprising that I have been watching episodes of the series "Star Trek Continues"--further adventures of the original Enterprise and its crew.

Unlike some Trekkies who think EVERY Trek show and movie is perfect (there are, believe it or not, many fans who LOVE "Star Trek V"...I kid you not), I am willing to try to be objective and say when I disliked something in the Trek universe. "The White Iris" is a very weak episode....and it's sad, since the previous episodes were terrific (particularly episode #3). In fact, it's the weakest of the four episodes I've so far watched.

As Kirk and the landing party are on the surface of a planet going through negotiates for them joining the Federation, Kirk is bashed over the head by one of the locals! It seems he was no fan of the treaty...or perhaps he just thought Kirk was a jerk. Regardless, the blow is nearly fatal and after McCoy saves Kirk's life, Kirk begins seeing ghosts...loved ones he lost over the years....and folks the Captain blames himself for losing.

This episode is very touchy feely. It also includes a lot of time in the holodeck--something I never particularly loved about "Star Trek: The Next Generation" episodes. If you like Kirk getting in touch with his feelings, then you'll probably love "The White Iris"....I just thought it was a major step back for the series.

good series, bad story, bad episode

[annyard1960 · 3/10 · 9 June 2015]

I'm a big fan of the "Star Trek Continues" people, and their previous episodes were quite good to excellent. Unfortunately, this 4th episode does not please.

My opinion is, most every aspect of this episode was good... except the story. Unlike some other reviewers, I did not feel this story fit the spirit of StarTrek. The story problems also forced the actors/characters to act and behave in ways that just didn't seem consistent with the characters we know and love. I believe this wasn't the actors' fault, because they were forced to say and do things that simply didn't match what we know about these iconic characters.

I'm such a fan of these people and the job they do on relative pennies of production budget, I was tempted to artificially boost my rating above what is deserved. Instead, I chose to give an objective rating that ignored everything else. Since everything but story was good, perhaps one could argue 3/10 is too low a rating. However, sometimes one weak link can cause massive destruction, and this is what happened here.

Keep up the good work, StarTrekContinues, but be much more careful and selective with the stories you choose.

A Senior Trekker writes....................

[celineduchain · 5/10 · 9 February 2022]

The White Iris is a beautiful and sensitive episode which attempts to cast new light upon Captain Kirk's sometimes questionable relationships with women. A daring story device has him suffer a brain injury and then begin to hallucinate the presence of four women from his past and a mystery child. He has to reach a resolution with each of them in order to find healing and thereby remember a particular password that is essential to the plot.

In order to follow the story, it is probably necessary to have some familiarity with the Original Series, particularly those episodes in which Kirk's encounters ended tragically, those romances with women that he appeared to truly care about. The standard of writing on the Original Series varied considerably and while some of the best episodes such as City on the Edge of Forever, were extremely moving, the demands of television writing at the time did not allow for emotional consequences. Whatever rollercoaster the crew was put through each week.

Here the Captain gets to re-examine his relationships with the women he lost (as opposed to those the just walked away from), the unborn child of one of them and the loneliness his chosen life has left him with. Trekkers, especially older ones, will blink away a tear and TV Science Fiction fans will be delighted to see none other than the Sixth Incarnation of Dr Who, Colin Baker as the planetary leader, Amphidamas.

Following a legal case by the studio, effectively shutting down all fan-made productions, these full-length episodes were hastily concluded in 2017. The creator, Vic Mignogna, subsequently became embroiled in a series of personal law-suits concerning his behaviour towards female cast-mates. Claims and counter claims abounded and, as of 2022, no effective conclusion has yet been reached.

WHATEVER THE REAL NARRATIVE BEHIND THEIR FALL FROM GRACE, THIS PARTICULAR GROUP OF STORIES REPRESENTS SOME OF THE BEST STAR TREK FICTION EVER BROUGHT TO LIFE. So many people, including Marina Sirtis and John de Lance, stars of the Next Generation, gave their time and enthusiasm, and some very dedicated people behind the scenes captured both the look and the feel of the original.

In true Roddenberry fashion, the "message" episodes covered such subjects as: inter-cultural marriage, child abuse, human (or alien) trafficking and the promotion of women to positions of high office. Actually Senior Trekker thinks that last one was a dud but does this really seem like the oeuvre of a man who disrespects women?

Best watch for yourself.