Gaffes

Chekov reports that Bele's ship is "out there" while at his station at the helm. The camera shot from behind the helm shows Kirk and crew looking at the display screen appears, Hadley rather than Chekov is at the navigation station. When they cut back to a shot from the front angle as before to show the crew's faces, Chekov is back in his seat and Hadley is in Sulu's position at the helm.

When Kirk agrees to let Bele see Lokai in Sickbay, he calls for Mr. Spock to go with them and Spock is seen entering the turbolift behind the captain. However, when they arrive in Sickbay, Spock is not with them nor is he seen during that lengthy scene, but when Kirk returns to the bridge, Spock is again with him when the turbolift doors open onto the bridge.

When Lokai is talking to four crew members in the briefing room, while Spock is listening outside the door, you can distinctly hear Chekov speaking in response. When the camera moves into the room, you see Sulu and three others....but no Chekov.

Captain Kirk calls a red alert, the klaxon is heard and the red light is flashing. When Bele appears, the alert is no longer heard, though the red light is still shown. After the commercial break, the red alert can be heard again, even although the "emergency" is over. The second time a red alert is called in this episode, the alarm stops sounding during the dramatic events unfolding on the bridge; after the issue is resolved, the alarm resumes blaring until Kirk tells Uhura to cancel it.

Uhura is on the intercom informing Captain Kirk about "intergalactic treaty". But it's mentioned several times that the Federation has never left its own galaxy. In fact, the plots of Where No Man Has Gone Before (1966)(#1.3) & Star Trek V : L'Ultime Frontière (1989) are about going to the edge of the galaxy. Further, the series plot of Star Trek: Voyager (1995) is that it would take 75 years to go from one end of the galaxy to the other. It's presumably a slip of the tongue (or the script-writers' pens) for 'intra-galactic treaty'.

In Sickbay, Lokai says, "I'm from the planet Cheron." Kirk replies, "That's in the southernmost part of the galaxy, in an uncharted quarter. What are you doing so far from home?" If it's uncharted, how would Kirk know where it was and how far from it is from their present location? The Federation could know of many planets and star system from other travellers, without having charts of the regions.

The actors' natural skin color is visible around their eyes and the insides of their mouths, making the black and white "skin color" obviously make-up. However, all humans (and presumably other species of humanoids) have the same colors of epithelia, around the eyes, mouths and internal tissues, whatever their superficial skin colors.

Cheron is supposed to be a long long distance away, from "the southernmost part of the galaxy, in an uncharted quarter." However, the Enterprise manages to cover all of this distance in less than one hour. The great distances that Starfleet vessels have difficulty crossing are across the plane of the galaxy. Moving to the 'north' or 'south' of the plane of the galaxy is a much smaller distance.

Although the shuttle-craft is stolen from Starbase 4, its side clearly reads: "U.S.S. Enterprise NCC-1701/7" (archive footage from The Galileo Seven (1967)). In the digitally enhanced version, the number has been changed to SB4-0314/2. However, the name "Galileo" is still visible, in red.

A large string/wire is clearly visible supporting the shuttle model as it enters the Enterprise hanger bay. This is corrected in the digitally enhanced version.

Bele comes charging out of the turbo-lift while chasing Lokai, and knocks a passing crewman to the floor. The crewman clearly braces himself to take the impact, rather than flinching away.

Bele states that he's been in pursuit of Lokai for 50,000 years ("of your terrestrial years.") One would think that within that time, he'd find that whatever method he was using to apprehend Lokai was ineffective, and would be forced to look for another alternative. Based on his behavior aboard the Enterprise (before he gained control by force) it seems as though his approach was to gain custody of Lokai diplomatically.

Several shots of the main viewer from the rear of the bridge are recycled and Hadley in Chekov's position, but we hear Chekov's voice and see him in the close-up.

When Bele is blowing up the controls on the bridge, a bright light effect with varying colours can be seen. The shot changes to the crew's faces, nearby, but the light is now a constant.

When Bele is chasing Lokai around the ship, there is a shot which shows Lokai holding a rope that is attached to the camera dolly, evidently as a means to keep him a set distance from the camera. Bele can also be seen holding the rope in his own chase closeup, though it is less obvious.

Galaxies, and universes, do not have a "south".

Even though Lokai is ostensibly a prisoner aboard the Enterprise, there is no guard assigned to sickbay to ensure that he doesn't once again try to commandeer a shuttle craft.

Similarly, both Lokai and Bele are given the run of the ship at all times, even though it is known they are mortal enemies. The computer should not allow both beings to access the bridge.

The self-destruct code procedure is ridiculously long and cumbersome. Bele could have easily fried the self-destruct computer during the code procedure, and later did so in his second take-over of the ship.

Although Bele's ship is invisible, the Enterprise's sensors can detect it at all times, so it is completely illogical that Capt. Kirk wouldn't have ordered the firing of phasers or photon torpedoes or both before the ship collided with the Enterprise. For all Capt. Kirk knows, the ship may actually be a missile or other dangerous weapon of some sort. To allow it to come into contact with the Enterprise's shields without attempting to slow it down or destroy it makes absolutely no sense.

Following the mission on Ariannus, when the bridge crew can't set course for Starbase 4, Bele explains that the directional control and self-destruct circuits have been burned out, and that he "did it like this" -- demonstrating his technique with a lot of noise and a light show.

It is inconceivable that he could have carried out his initial sabotage, on a crowded bridge, with no one noticing.

One of the key points to this plot is Kirk not knowing how to handle Bele and Lokai as he is unsure which of them is telling the truth. However, Spock's Vulcan mind meld may have solved this issue. It was never mentioned.

After Bele has seized the ship for a second time, burned out the self-destruct system, and the vessel is now approaching Cheron, Kirk simply asks him to give control back, to which Bele replies "Why not." This makes no sense, since Bele now has everything he wants and no reason to relinquish control back to Kirk.

Kirk exercises very poor leadership in allowing Bele and Lokai free run of the Enterprise, especially after Bele's attempt to take over the bridge, forcing Kirk to engage the self-destruct sequence to regain control of the ship.