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Sorry, but Star Trek has tricked you into thinking this Original Series episode actually had a happy ending. “A Piece of the Action” is rightfully remembered as a quintessential Star Trek episode, and a testament to the importance of the Prime Directive. In 1998, Marvel Comics published a follow-up to the episode in Star Trek Unlimited #10, showing that the Iotians still have a ways to go.
“A Piece of Reaction,” appearing in Star Trek Unlimited #10, was written by Michael A. Martin and Andy Mangels and drawn by Ron Randall. Captain Picard takes the Enterprise to Sigma Iotia II. A century prior, Kirk visited the planet, discovering a society built around the mobsters of the 1920s. The Iotians contact the Federation, desiring membership, but it is just a ruse on the part of their leadership: Admiral Sonny, who met Kirk when he visited the planet. Nursing a grudge against the Federation, Sonny steals the Enterprise, intending to use it as a tool of conquest.
“A Piece of the Action” Is One of Star Trek’s Best Episodes
“A Piece of the Action” Is the Best Example of a Star Trek Trope
The classic Star Trek television show regularly sent Captain Kirk and the crew of the Enterprise to planets that closely resembled various Earth cultures. The ship encountered societies patterned after the Wild West, Nazi Germany and ancient Rome. This was done to take advantage of the props and costumes the studio already had, as a cost-saving measure. While easy on Star Trek’s budget, explaining how these distant planets had such Earth-like cultures stretched credibility. Some were merely illusions created by powerful aliens, and others just happened to develop the way they did, with no explanation.
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“A Piece of the Action” is easily the best of these episodes. Airing during Star Trek’s second season, “A Piece of the Action” kicked off with the Enterprise receiving a hail from a planet that had not been visited by humans for over a century. During the prior visit, by a ship called the Horizon, a careless crewmember left behind a book titled Chicago Mobs of the 1920s. The Iotians, who were highly imitative, went on to create an entire society around the book. Leaders were “bosses” who packed “heaters” and ruthlessly murdered their opponents.
The Horizon crew, while not intending malice, condemned Iotian society to a grim fate.
The episode drives home just how important the Prime Directive is to the Star Trek franchise. The Prime Directive, or General Order One, prohibits Federation and Starfleet personnel from interfering in the development of pre-warp or non-aligned civilizations. While there are instances where the Prime Directive can be limiting, it is still a sound policy, giving Starfleet a moral high ground in galactic affairs. When the Horizon visited Sigma Iotia II, in the 22nd century, the Prime Directive was not in place. The Horizon crew, while not intending malice, condemned Iotian society to a grim fate.
“A Piece of the Action” Shows Why the Prime Directive Is Important
Its Follow-Up is One of Star Trek’s Bleakest Fates
“A Piece of Reaction” picks up where “A Piece of the Action” left off. At the end of the latter, Doctor McCoy accidentally left his communicator behind on Sigma Iotia II. Kirk cracked a joke about what McCoy did, but as seen in “A Piece of Reaction,” it was nothing to laugh about. Thanks to McCoy’s carelessness, the Iotians gained Federation-level technology, but did not have the moral grounding of Starfleet officers. Admiral Sonny saw an opportunity in Captain Picard’s Enterprise, a chance to even the score against what he perceived was an injustice.
Quentin Tarantino’s aborted Star Trek film allegedly was also a follow-up to “A Piece of the Action.”
Admiral Sonny’s motivations in “A Piece of Reaction” are also a testament to the power of the Prime Directive. Sonny appeared as a child in “A Piece of the Action,” helping Kirk. Kirk promised Sonny a cut, but never followed up. As a result, Sonny grew up feeling cheated by Kirk. Sonny saw Kirk as a liar. Even though Kirk did not intend to cheat Sonny, the child still saw it as a slight. Kirk reasoned the Prime Directive had already been broken, so making a deal with a native of the planet was no big deal.
With the Prime Directive now firmly in place, Starfleet saw Iotia as a potential danger zone, necessitating the need to cut it off from the rest of the galaxy.
“A Piece of the Action” established the Iotians mimicked other cultures, and the merest bit of contamination could have dire results, leading Starfleet to quarantine the planet after Kirk’s visit. With the Prime Directive now firmly in place, Starfleet saw Iotia as a potential danger zone, necessitating the need to cut it off from the rest of the galaxy. “A Piece of Reaction” revealed that Starfleet had not been back to Iotia since McCoy left the communicator behind. Admiral Sonny’s actions in the story seem to prove Starfleet was correct in their assumptions.
Sorry, But the Iotians Did Not Get a Happy Ending in the Star Trek Franchise
Will the Iotians Ever Take Their Place in the Star Trek Galaxy?
Star Trek comics and novels regularly do follow-ups to classic episodes, and since “A Piece of the Action” is highly regarded, it should come as no surprise Marvel published a sequel. What separates “A Piece of Reaction” from other follow-ups is its darkness. Sonny mistakenly believed Kirk cheated him, and held a grudge for a century. The communicator McCoy left behind gave the planet a massive technological boost, but it was too much too quick, and nearly caused an intergalactic incident. The Iotians did not get a happy ending, and Star Trek tricked you into thinking so.
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