Whenever I see an iconic actor working outside the role that made him iconic, I always end up focusing almost exclusively on the actor and their differences from the more familiar surroundings, instead of focusing on the current show itself. This episode, with the appearance of William Shatner, just a few years prior to his seminal role in Star Trek, is no exception. In this case, that's actually an unwanted distraction because this is a very well done and impassioned episode of R66. While Shatner is actually very good in the role, the one considerable flaw I see is that, in manner, speech, and dress, he hardly looks as though he could be the son of a grizzled lobster fisherman. He frankly looks more the part of a Palm or Newport Beach trust fund ne'er-do-well. Superficialities aside, this is a tough, sad story, well written, directed and acted. Back to Shatner for a moment, it's very interesting to see him in his many pre-Trek roles. Growing up, I saw him almost exclusively in the context of Kirk, indulging all too often in his scene-stealing, ham acting kitsch that made him as infamous as famous. His prior roles though, such as this one show him to ... (surprise !) ... be a very good actor. Although, to be fair, he did have a significant number of restrained, well crafted performances on Trek, which are often overlooked. As long as he tones down his oddball staccato speech patterns and strange jerky movements, like in these roles, he's actually a pleasure to watch, instead of just being funny to watch.
