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startreksteve's review against another edition
1.0
Very poor, just a rehash of the original script in loads of versions
iffer's review against another edition
2.0
I can't really recommend this. Shrug. If you're a Star Trek completionist, then maybe you should read this. If you're interested in the original teleplay, read the final draft in this book and skip the rest. Otherwise, you should probably pass.
I understand Harlan Ellison's desire to set the record straight about how he was belittled and dragged through the muck, as well as his teleplay being gutted. However, I don't think very many people want to listen to literally 2+ hours (~33% of the audiobook) of Harlan Ellis ranting. On one hand, I don't want to tone police; on the other hand, he sounds like a textbook bitter white man and it's repetitive and redundant.
After that third of the book follow several versions of the teleplay. While it's interesting to read/hear how the story evolved, I also don't think many people want to read the same story multiple times with each version getting longer.
Then the third and last part of the book is people complimenting Harlan Ellis and the script.
I understand Harlan Ellison's desire to set the record straight about how he was belittled and dragged through the muck, as well as his teleplay being gutted. However, I don't think very many people want to listen to literally 2+ hours (~33% of the audiobook) of Harlan Ellis ranting. On one hand, I don't want to tone police; on the other hand, he sounds like a textbook bitter white man and it's repetitive and redundant.
After that third of the book follow several versions of the teleplay. While it's interesting to read/hear how the story evolved, I also don't think many people want to read the same story multiple times with each version getting longer.
Then the third and last part of the book is people complimenting Harlan Ellis and the script.
bev_reads_mysteries's review
4.0
I love these fotonovels from the Classic Trek. I would like to own all of them.
so64's review against another edition
5.0
So somewhat of a confession: I was never really a big Star Trek fan growing up. Sure, I loved science fiction. But Star Trek never really interested me. It always felt somewhat antiquated as franchise. The characters, regardless of which version of Star Trek one is referring to, always felt lacking. Flat. Uninteresting. Dull. And I understand that the moral quandaries proposed by Star Trek is the chief draw of the show. And while the moral quandaries can be interesting, they began to lose their luster and spell when one realizes that the characters would not only do the right thing, but they would never truly struggle over it. Sure they may have a brief discussion, but there would not be any immediate ramifications nor would relationships break down over it.
Even then, I would tolerate watching episodes of The Next Generation and avoid The Original series due to how corny TOS could be at times. If TNG felt dull, TOS felt corny. Kirk had no depth beyond womanizer; Spock no depth beyond an emotionless logical being; and the rest no depth beyond whatever their assignment was. And while TNG had some fairly interesting plots, TOS plots did not feel all that intricate. Except for a select few episodes, TOS episodes felt basic at times and the characters felt more like a vehicle for the chosen theme or moral. At first, I thought it merely a difference in time or generation; Star Trek was made in the 1960s and it does feel its age. Yet after reading this book, I feel vindicated that it is not due to me being young or not getting it; it is the nature of the show.
This book not only contains the original script for City on The Edge of Forever as written by Ellison, but also details Ellison work on Star Trek, including his feud with Roddenberry. Now while this section does feel like a screed, it does illuminate how Roddenberry's ideas could be limiting to writers. Stating that there could be no arguments among the crew not only ignores that people differ in thought and can be passionate about what they believe, it limits character development and potential. Good characters have conflict with one another because they are passionate, because they care deeply about what they believe. Ellison understood this; Roddenberry did not. And you can see this in Ellison’s screenplay: Kirk, knowing that this Keeler has to die, yet finding himself unable to stop Beckwith saving her. Kirk fighting with Spock, in spite of knowing that if she lives, the future is changed irrevocably. All because he grew to love her. That was the kind of poignancy I felt was lacking in Star Trek. And while the filmed script does include some of these ideas, it does not explore them like Ellison’s script does.
In short, a very illuminating excursion into the process of writing for a major television show.
Even then, I would tolerate watching episodes of The Next Generation and avoid The Original series due to how corny TOS could be at times. If TNG felt dull, TOS felt corny. Kirk had no depth beyond womanizer; Spock no depth beyond an emotionless logical being; and the rest no depth beyond whatever their assignment was. And while TNG had some fairly interesting plots, TOS plots did not feel all that intricate. Except for a select few episodes, TOS episodes felt basic at times and the characters felt more like a vehicle for the chosen theme or moral. At first, I thought it merely a difference in time or generation; Star Trek was made in the 1960s and it does feel its age. Yet after reading this book, I feel vindicated that it is not due to me being young or not getting it; it is the nature of the show.
This book not only contains the original script for City on The Edge of Forever as written by Ellison, but also details Ellison work on Star Trek, including his feud with Roddenberry. Now while this section does feel like a screed, it does illuminate how Roddenberry's ideas could be limiting to writers. Stating that there could be no arguments among the crew not only ignores that people differ in thought and can be passionate about what they believe, it limits character development and potential. Good characters have conflict with one another because they are passionate, because they care deeply about what they believe. Ellison understood this; Roddenberry did not. And you can see this in Ellison’s screenplay: Kirk, knowing that this Keeler has to die, yet finding himself unable to stop Beckwith saving her. Kirk fighting with Spock, in spite of knowing that if she lives, the future is changed irrevocably. All because he grew to love her. That was the kind of poignancy I felt was lacking in Star Trek. And while the filmed script does include some of these ideas, it does not explore them like Ellison’s script does.
In short, a very illuminating excursion into the process of writing for a major television show.
dankeohane's review against another edition
2.0
I was looking forward to this, having seen the Star trek episode in question quite often, and this gets two stars (would do two and a half if I could) for the chance to see the progression of the original treatment through final script of Ellison's version, but the first part of the book is the author railing against the injustices done to him and his script (for almost a hundred pages, which granted are a number of newer and older essays combined), to the point I just flipped through these pages because I was honestly tired of the unrestrained anger and bitterness so prevelant throughout. I think Harlen Ellison was a brilliant writer, but there's a level of curmudgeon-ish that can be endearing, and a level that's tiring. This is the latter. It's his book, he can rail all he wants, but I grew tired of it and jumped into the script. Personally, even after skimming the beginning essays, and ST creator Roddenberry's reputation for being a hard a**, I could understand why the script was eventually changed. There were some small details which would have been good to keep, but personally (and it's just my taste), I think the final, aired version was better in many ways (keeping in mind the limits of filming a 45 minute TV show). That's probably sacrilege in many camps, but it's my review and I'm allowed. :)
gatun's review
4.0
The City on the Edge of Forever is ranked among the top episodes of the original Star Trek series. It was written by renowned science fiction author Harlan Ellison. But what was filmed and aired was not what Ellison wrote. He spent the next thirty years fighting with Gene Roddenberry, the creator of Star Trek, and the legions of fans who held Rodenberry in deity-like devotion to tell the story of what happened to his version.
The audiobook is broken into sections. It includes an introductory essay by Ellison, the two different “treatments” the script went through, the script itself, the revised script and an afterwards written by Peter David, D.C. Fontana, David Gerrold, DeForest Kelley, Walter Koenig, Leonard Nimoy, Melinda Snodgrass and George Takei.
Harlan’s introductory essay is filled with vitriol. Since he narrates this section himself, it comes through loud but not clear. I had a hard time understanding everything that was said. Mr. Ellison’s emotion makes his speech unclear. Personally I feel this would have been better handled by a professional narrator.
The treatments of the script are interesting. It is a winding road that takes us through the offices of Roddenberry and the TV executives. Each had their own perspective on what the story should look like. Ellison’s objections to the changes were overruled and ignored. When he tried to publicly discuss his dissatisfaction with the changed script, he was vilified by Roddenberry.
The scripts, teleplays, differ greatly from what was aired. Listening to the teleplays as they were intended to be done is amazing. Several of the concepts/plot points were eliminated because either Rodenberry or the network execs were offended with them. SPOILER ALERT: One of these eliminated concepts shows up in a later episode where the Enterprise in an alternate universe is a pirate ship END SPOILER ALERT. Another concept that the network found offensive shows up in a Star Trek: Voyager episode if I remember correctly. All in all Ellison’s original teleplay was wonderful and elegant. What the public saw was considered one of the best episodes of the series. But if you have only ever had hamburger steak, you do not know how fantastic prime rib can be.
The narration and performance of the audio book is good. The only part I really had issue with was the previously mentioned parts narrated by the author himself. Everything else was clear and easy to understand. There are several narrators, male and female, some with direct connections to the Star Trek franchise. They all do a good job. This is a must for Star Trek fans.
Review first posted at https://audiobookreviewer.com/reviews/the-city-on-the-edge-of-forever-by-harlan-ellison/ . I received a free copy of the audio in exchange for an honest review.
The audiobook is broken into sections. It includes an introductory essay by Ellison, the two different “treatments” the script went through, the script itself, the revised script and an afterwards written by Peter David, D.C. Fontana, David Gerrold, DeForest Kelley, Walter Koenig, Leonard Nimoy, Melinda Snodgrass and George Takei.
Harlan’s introductory essay is filled with vitriol. Since he narrates this section himself, it comes through loud but not clear. I had a hard time understanding everything that was said. Mr. Ellison’s emotion makes his speech unclear. Personally I feel this would have been better handled by a professional narrator.
The treatments of the script are interesting. It is a winding road that takes us through the offices of Roddenberry and the TV executives. Each had their own perspective on what the story should look like. Ellison’s objections to the changes were overruled and ignored. When he tried to publicly discuss his dissatisfaction with the changed script, he was vilified by Roddenberry.
The scripts, teleplays, differ greatly from what was aired. Listening to the teleplays as they were intended to be done is amazing. Several of the concepts/plot points were eliminated because either Rodenberry or the network execs were offended with them. SPOILER ALERT: One of these eliminated concepts shows up in a later episode where the Enterprise in an alternate universe is a pirate ship END SPOILER ALERT. Another concept that the network found offensive shows up in a Star Trek: Voyager episode if I remember correctly. All in all Ellison’s original teleplay was wonderful and elegant. What the public saw was considered one of the best episodes of the series. But if you have only ever had hamburger steak, you do not know how fantastic prime rib can be.
The narration and performance of the audio book is good. The only part I really had issue with was the previously mentioned parts narrated by the author himself. Everything else was clear and easy to understand. There are several narrators, male and female, some with direct connections to the Star Trek franchise. They all do a good job. This is a must for Star Trek fans.
Review first posted at https://audiobookreviewer.com/reviews/the-city-on-the-edge-of-forever-by-harlan-ellison/ . I received a free copy of the audio in exchange for an honest review.
llysenw's review against another edition
3.0
This was really interesting but more for the technical aspects than the writing itself. Okay, the story is very good, but it's simply not the best thing EVAR as many of the contributors go on and on about. It's more a story of a 30 year grudge match between Ellison and Roddenberry which, while interesting, does little but reinforce attitudes and information that's already well known. Both have valid points (though, tbh, I'd score it a win for Ellison on points).
What I found most interesting about the script part is how the progression from story idea to outline to final script works. The idea really doesn't have a whole lot to it and is quite short. From there, the story is fleshed out and details are added, and changes are made for one reason or another. And to see whether when certain changes are put in place, it materially affects the story.
The afterwords were also interesting because they weren't all sycophantic. Walter Koenig writes that Ellison can be a bastard but he's also right about this. I also learned Koenig is a very good writer.
What I found most interesting about the script part is how the progression from story idea to outline to final script works. The idea really doesn't have a whole lot to it and is quite short. From there, the story is fleshed out and details are added, and changes are made for one reason or another. And to see whether when certain changes are put in place, it materially affects the story.
The afterwords were also interesting because they weren't all sycophantic. Walter Koenig writes that Ellison can be a bastard but he's also right about this. I also learned Koenig is a very good writer.
psteve's review against another edition
4.0
I was dubious about this book and about Ellison's original screenplay for the Star Trek episode. I remember first seeing that episode when it was first broadcast in 67, and it is certainly one of the best. And reading this book, the long diatribes by Ellison, didn't really warm me to reading the screenplay; I thought he was too hard on Roddenberry and others. But the screenplay showed me otherwise; it's a smart, moving story that would have been somewhat different from other Star Trek episodes, but wouldn't have been that much of a stretch. I haven't read Ellison in a long time, and nor have I read many screenplays, but this is well worth the reading.
pepgiraffe's review against another edition
2.0
There is nothing I can say that would add to what others have said except that the author comes off as completely unhinged. I borrowed the book from the library because I wanted to read the original script. The first 25% of the book is a screed that I could have skipped. On the other hand, had I been looking for a screed, this is up there.
bdplume's review
2.0
The format just doesn’t do justice to the great episode of television it’s adapting. The first half of it read like it was adapted by someone who saw the episode once on an airplane.