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"The Trouble with Tribbles" was the 42nd episode of Star Trek: The Original Series, the 13th episode of the show's second season, first aired on 29 December 1967. The episode was written by David Gerrold, directed by Joseph Pevney and novelized in Star Trek 3 by James Blish. It was adapted as the third book in the fotonovels series in December 1977. It was also adapted as the third book in the Little Golden Books series in July 2019.
Contents
Description[]
- Fotonovel teaser
- When Lt. Uhura's adorable pet tribble shows an incredible capacity to breed, it and its thousands and thousands of offspring take over practically every available inch of space on the Starship Enterprise.
- And with each passing day, the Enterprise begins to more closely resemble a maternity ward than a spaceship.
- What at first is considered a minor inconvenience soon becomes a galactic crisis as Captain Kirk and his crew discover... The Trouble with Tribbles.
Summary[]
Log entries[]
- Captain's log, stardate 4523.2.
- Our path is taking us into a quadrant of the galaxy that has been under dispute between the Klingons and the Federation since initial contact. The Battle of Donatu V was fought near here 23 solar years ago. The results were inconclusive. We are presently approaching Deep Space Station K-7 which is now within sensor range. (fotonovel)
- Captain's log, stardate 4523.3.
- Deep Space Station K-7 has issued a priority one call. More than an emergency, it signals near or total disaster. We can only assume the Klingons have attacked the station. We're going in armed for battle. (episode and fotonovel)
- Captain's log, stardate 4524.2.
- A Klingon warship is hovering only a hundred kilometers from Deep Space Station K-7, while its captain waits in the station manager's office. Their intentions are unknown. (episode)
- Captain's log, stardate 4524.2.
- A Klingon warship is hovering only a hundred kilometers from Deep Space Station K-7, while its captain waits in the station manager's office. Spock and I are beaming down. (fotonovel)
- Captain's Log, stardate 4525.6.
- A small disturbance between the Klingon crew and members of the Enterprise crew has broken out aboard Space Station K-7. I am forced to cancel shore leave for both ships. (episode and fotonovel)
References[]
Characters[]
Episode characters[]
- Nilz Baris • Pavel Chekov • Fitzpatrick (Admiral) • Jerry Freeman • David Galloway • Gralmek • Bill Hadley • Cyrano Jones • James T. Kirk • Koloth, son of Lasshar • Korax • Roger Lemli • Ryan Leslie • John Lurry • Walt Mathison • Leonard McCoy • Wade Moody • Montgomery Scott • Spock • Nyota Uhura • Vinci • tribbles • unnamed Humans • unnamed Starfleet personnel (Starfleet personnel) • unnamed 2260s USS Enterprise personnel (USS Enterprise personnel)
- Referenced only
- John Burke • Peter the Great
Novelization characters[]
- Nilz Baris • Pavel Chekov • Jerry Freeman • Gralmek • Cyrano Jones • James T. Kirk • Koloth, son of Lasshar • Korax • John Lurry • Leonard McCoy • Montgomery Scott • Spock • Nyota Uhura • tribbles
Little Golden Books characters[]
- Nilz Baris • Pavel Chekov • Gralmek • Cyrano Jones • James T. Kirk • Korax • John Lurry • Leonard McCoy • Montgomery Scott • Spock • Nyota Uhura • tribbles • unnamed 2260s USS Enterprise personnel
Starships and vehicles[]
Locations[]
- Referenced only
- Sherman's Planet (the galaxy's Beta Quadrant) • Canada, Russia (Earth, Sol system, sector 001, (the galaxy's Alpha Quadrant)
Shipboard areas[]
Races and cultures[]
Technology and weapons[]
- intercom • medical tricorder • sensors • starship • viewscreen • transporter • tricorder
Materials and substances[]
- atmosphere • blood • gas • oxygen
Lifeforms[]
- quadrotriticale • triticale • Regulan bloodworm • tribble
States and organizations[]
Ranks and titles[]
- admiral • assistant • bureaucrat • captain • chief engineer • chief medical officer • commander • commanding officer • communications officer • doctor • engineer • Federation Starfleet ranks • Federation Starfleet ranks (2260s) • first officer • lieutenant • lieutenant commander • helmsman • medical practitioner • navigator • officer • scientist • science officer • second officer • tactical officer • Undersecretary for Agriculture
Other references[]
- Argilian flame gem • chicken sandwich • coffee • credit • distress call • Earther • Organian Peace Treaty • Sirian glow water • system locator • anatomy • arm • beaming • birthrate • Bones • boot • captain's log • captain's log, USS Enterprise, 2268 • clothing • dress • finger • five-year mission • government • homeworld • humanoid • jumpsuit • language • lifeform • log entry • logic • matter • memory • ear • nation-state • orbit • pants • planet • population • quadrant • races and cultures • rank • regulation • sandwich • space • star • star system • stardate • Starfleet uniform • Starfleet uniform (2260s) • technology • title • treaty • tunic • uniform • universe • virus • weapon
Chronology[]
- stardate 4523.3, 2267 (2260s chronology, 2264–2270 Enterprise voyages)
- Enterprise travels to K-7.
Appendices[]
Related media[]
- TAS episode: "More Tribbles, More Troubles"
- DS9 episode: "Trials and Tribble-ations"
- "Nobody Knows the Tribbles I've Seen"
- DS9 reference: The Magic of Tribbles
Adaptations[]
Novelized in Star Trek 3.
Novelized in Star Trek 3 reprint.
Novelized in Star Trek 3 reprint.
Novelized in Star Trek 3 reprint.
Novelized in Star Trek 3 reprint.
German language novelization translation in Spock Läuft Amok.
German language novelization translation in Spock Läuft Amok.
Italian language novelization translation in La Pista Delle Stelle 3.
Novelization collected in The Star Trek Reader.
German language novelization translation collected in Der große Sammelband.
Novelization collected in The Classic Episodes 2.
Novelization collected in The Classic Episodes.
Little Golden Books adaptation cover.
Video releases[]
VHS cover.
VHS cover.
VHS cover.
VHS cover.
VHS cover.
VHS release with "Let That Be Your Last Battlefield".
VHS release with "I, Mudd".
VHS release with "I, Mudd".
VHS release with "Journey to Babel" and "Bread and Circuses".
Laserdisc release with "The Tholian Web".
DVD release with "I, Mudd".
Blu-ray release with "The Cage, "Errand of Mercy", "Space Seed" and "Where No Man Has Gone Before".
Background[]
- This episode was the first to be novelized, then later adapted as both a fotonovel and a Little Golden Book.
- Kirk mistakenly guesses an over-fed tribble results in a "fat" one. In TAS episode: "More Tribbles, More Troubles", this becomes the end result.
- The novelization in James Blish's Star Trek 3 makes a number of changes:
- An introduction on tribbles is added
- The briefing room scene is removed
- Spican flame gems and Antarean glow water become Argilian flame gems and Sirian glow water.
- The brawl between the Klingons and the Enterprise crewmen is removed along with the lineup
- Scotty's closing line "they'll be no tribble at all" is replaced with "all their tribbles will be big ones."
- The Little Golden Books adaptation was released in hardcover as "Too Many Tribbles!" It retold the story in 24 pages, omitting Koloth and the political background of the story. Many of the tribbles were colored pink in the artwork, as in their depiction in TAS episode: "More Tribbles, More Troubles".
Images[]
Episode images[]
A mountain of tribbles
Pavel Chekov arguing about vodka.
Enterprise.
Koloth.
Baris.
Jones.
Freeman.
Fitzpatrick
Phaser diagram.
Lurry.
Chekov and Uhura meet Cyrano.
Adaptation images[]
Connections[]
Timeline[]
| published order | ||
|---|---|---|
| Previous episode: I, Mudd |
TOS episode produced | Next episode: Bread and Circuses |
| Previous episode: Wolf in the Fold |
TOS episode aired | Next episode: The Gamesters of Triskelion |
| Previous story: first in book |
Star Trek 3
|
Next story: The Last Gunfight |
| chronological order | ||
| Previous Adventure: Beneath the Skin pages 12-19 |
Memory Beta Chronology | Next Adventure: Trials and Tribble-ations |
| Previous Adventure: The Galactic Whirlpool |
Next Adventure: Trials and Tribble-ations | |
| Previous Adventure: The Galactic Whirlpool |
Voyages of the USS Enterprise (NCC-1701) (2264 to 2270) |
Next Adventure: Beneath the Skin |
External links[]
- The Trouble with Tribbles article at Memory Alpha, the wiki for canon Star Trek.
- The Trouble with Tribbles article at Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
