STAR TREK: THE ORIGINAL SERIES
Season 1, Episode 27

The Alternative Factor

Series: Original Series - (1966-1969)
Season: 1
Episode #: 27
Production #: 6149-20
Original Airdate: 03/30/1967

Writer(s): Don Ingalls
Director(s): Gerd Oswald

Guest Stars
Robert Brown as Lazarus / Anti-Lazarus
Janet MacLachlan as Lt. Charlene Masters
Richard Derr as Commodore Barstow
Arch Whiting as the Assistant Engineer
Christian Patrick as a Transporter Chief
Eddie Paskey as Lt. Leslie

Uncredited Guest Stars
William Blackburn as Lt. Hadley
Vince Calenti as a Security Guard
Frank da Vinci as Lt. Brent
Tom Lupo as a Security Guard
Ron Veto as Lt. Harrison

Stardate: 3087.6

Synopsis

While orbiting what should be a dead planet, the U.S.S. Enterprise experiences a moment of "nonexistence." Starfleet Command fears an enemy invasion and orders Kirk to find out what caused the stellar system disturbance.

On the planet below, Kirk finds a man called Lazarus, who tells Kirk that the effect was caused by his enemy. Lazarus has been chasing him with the aid of a time/space craft and wants the Enterprise's dilithium crystals to continue his search. The captain refuses.

[ Complete Screencap Index ]

When Kirk takes Lazarus aboard the U.S.S. Enterprise, it becomes apparent that there is something strange about their visitor. He has incredible mood swings, one minute sane and rational, the next exhibiting violent rage. He also has a bloody head wound that disappears, then reappears moments later.

Lazarus manages to steal the ship's dilithium and return to the planet. Kirk follows and discovers that Lazarus is two people - one sane and one a madman, with one from an anti-matter universe. The sane Lazarus informs Kirk that the beings can only appear in either universe one at a time. Should both men be in the same place at the same time, both universes would be destroyed. Kirk helps the sane Lazarus trap his counterpart in an intermediate time corridor where they can hurt neither the matter nor anti-matter universe, but where the two will be trapped in fight until the end of time.

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