episode #09 - The Horse Race

Air Date: 11/08/74 / Production #B-511 written by David P. Lewis & Booker Bradshaw Directed by Jack Starrett

This episode featured the return of ape prefect Barlow (John Hoyt), who had appeared in The Gladiators as a somewhat benevolent chimp overseer who staged arena combat for humans to theoretically pacify them. Since then, he had been transferred to a new region and is discontent with his lot in life. Adding to his miseries, he has a bet with General Urko (Mark Lenard) on an upcoming horse race and is sure to lose. In this episode, we also find out that Urko is a horse racing enthusiast; the reason that he's so into this sport is that his horse almost always wins. He is not above sabotaging the race course to ensure his win (it's only a two-horse race in these cases). And, he makes huge bets with the expected losers, usually acquiring their lands. He takes a rare loss at the start of the episode because his horse loses a shoe and this puts him in an especially bad mood. But, the real trouble begins when Galen gets bitten by a scorpion. The son of the local blacksmith (Morgan Woodward) rides a horse to get the cure from the local ape doc. Since riding horses is forbidden to humans, the son is marked for execution (very harsh). The trio of fugitives concoct a plan to get the son cleared by having Virdon, who was raised on a farm, ride Barlow's horse in the next race. But, as expected, Urko is determined to win by any means.
This episode presents one of the many ape laws designed to keep humans in their place - humans are not allowed to ride horses. I thought this may have to do with restricting their mobility, but it's never elaborated on. Barlow only mumbles some things about the inability of humans to ride properly. The penalty for breaking this law is very harsh - so it seems - but later it seems that acquiring a special dispensation from a high lawmaker like Zaius (mentioned here but not seen) is also an easy matter. Somehow, Barlow is able to get special permission for Virdon to ride a horse in the race, even though it's established that this is a big no-no insofar as ape laws go. It's a bit murky. Overall, though, the episode is more entertaining than average. Some of this may be due to director Starrett, who injected action and tension into the storyline. By the final act, it looks like the odds are insurmountable for the heroes; one way or another, it seems, Urko will get his pound of flesh. Starrett also filmed scenes with a lot of energy, including Burke's almost-requisite fight with a gorilla soldier (note how the scene emphasizes the gorilla's animal-like nature). Hoyt is amusing as the supposedly nice chimpanzee prefect; one moment he seems very helpful, the next he's casually speaking of a human's unavoidable death. BoG's Score: 6.5 out of 10

Star Trek TOS actor alert: Hoyt played the doctor in the first Star Trek pilot, The Cage; Woodward appeared in two TOS episodes, Dagger of the Mind and then, in a different role as Capt. Tracey, in The Omega Glory.