After the Enterprise people are sold to one of the providers, Galt tells them that since they are now full-fledged thralls, any further disobedient acts will be punished by death. Yet a short time later they try to escape again, and Galt just lets them off with another warning.
This has to be considered one of the series' worst episodes, although I do like the fact that it's one of the few in which Uhura is actually given something to do.
On stardate 3259.2 Spock says that the away team has been missing for nearly two hours. But the away team was captured on stardate 3211.7. Does that mean that 47.5 stardates equal les than two hours?
Also, Shahna seems to have no idea what "born" means, but then in her next line she refers to "She who bore me."
When Kirk and company discover that their phasers don't work, a close-up shows a light in the 'nozzle' going on and off (almost as if this was to tell the special effects guys when to draw in the little colored lines), so does this mean the providers can stop the energy from leaving the phaser?
Kirk says that this sun is a trinary (three stars), but that it is a long way from the Enterprise. Actually multiple star systems are very common in our galaxy, so the Enterprise must be in a very unique part of our galaxy if there are no nearby trinary systems.
I guess Spock isn't in a rush to find the captain. When following the trail he orders warp 2. (Or maybe he's afraid that they might lose the trail at a faster speed?)
Galt says that accepting punishment is less painful than the collar, but then says that Kirk will be a practice target and expects Kirk to die.
The bottle that contains the nourishing liquid looks like a stretched out Coke bottle.
So what do the Providers do with Quatloos? Go down to the local 7-11 and buy a Slurpee? (Oh, no! Brain freeze!)
Kirk ducking under the Andorian's knife didn't seem like a good tactic. The Andorian could have stabbed him in the back very easily.
If some of these Thralls had been born on this planet or at least spent a long time there, then why do we see them all wearing distinctive species outfits instead of one generic type of outfit?
I think the quatloos are just for the sake of playing the game, the same reason people play for peanuts in pick-up poker games.
Galt tells Kirk that their former titles mean nothing now. Yet he continues to address him as "Captain".
After Kirk agrees to take Uhura's punishment, Galt implies that he will be killed. I know that there are many thralls about as enforcers, but Chekov still holds his weapon. One would think that a hothead like Chekov would risk his life and jump in to defend his captain, but instead he allows himself to be led aside and he calmly puts aside his weapon and sits down.
When Galt explains the notion of "practice target" (a thrall that was slow in obeying), he says they will all in turn move upon him and strike him. After Uhura refuses and Kirk claims responsibility, Kirk is supposed to be the "practice target". Yet only Kloog strikes Kirk (with a whip), and Kirk is allowed to fight back! Good thing too, cause whaddya know, Kirk wins.
During the break in this fight, Kirk says that his opponent is "pretty fast with that whip". Uh, no, actually he isn't at all.
What is the point of those harnesses they wear while fighting? They don't seem to do anything.
As Kirk moves toward Shahna to kiss her goodbye before beaming up, we see his back. I believe we see one of his prosthetic "whipping scars" (partially underneath his harness strap) wiggle as he moves. Well the wiggle is definitely there, the question is whether it is a "scar" or if he is carrying a very long slug on his back.
Kirk and company beam up without their phasers and communicators. You'd think this is a prime directive violation of some kind, as this will be a learning society (as in "A Piece of the Action").
Since the Providers were able to deactivate the Enterprise equipment, and showed themselves to be technologically advanced to the Federation, I don't think that's a big concern.
Anyone interested in hearing all the musical Enterprise themes of the second season, watch this episode. Every time the scene returns to the Enterprise (often) another one is played. In fact, they run out and one has to be played twice.
That's true. I like this ep. It's so cheesy, in a fun TOS way. Much better than Metamorphosis...
Have any books been written involving Triskelion?
Maybe Quatloos are like Raleigh coupons, and may be redeemed for lovely prizes.
I always thought it was quadloos, with a d.
The original name of the planet was pentathlon, which might have been just too blatant. Triskelion is a less familiar word. It's a Celtic symbol, 3 bent arms joined in the center, holding swords.
I think the Providers let the thralls go free but then started betting on how their society develops.
I thought it was quatroons.
According to the "Star Trek Encyclopedia"
it's
QUATLOO (S)
Shanya...what can you say about this gorgeous hunk of woman except....."WOW!"?
NIT: When the Providers give their permission to remove the collars, Galt keeps his on.
Does he like being treated like a slave?
It's a good thing there's no union on this planet, otherwise, things would get pretty ugly...I can hear it now...."We're going on strike because the Providers treat us like cattle!"
Maybe Galt was afraid his head would fall off?
John, some slave masters are a little bit... strange. Maybe his collar is a matter of status to him
It's mentioned in the episode that the Gamesters had gathered individuals from various places in the galaxy....REALLY? Where's the Vulcans, the Romulans, the Klingons, the Gorns, the Tholians, the....oh, you get the idea.
I would've LOVED to seen Kirk kick those other alien butts too.
Not to mention the Changelings, Kazon, Borg... ;-)
Good thing there wasn't a female Gamester...she would've said to the male Gamesters, "You only love me for my brains."
Once again the creators deprive us of a gorgeous female's anatomy...why isn't Shanya showing her navel? The women on Gamma Trianguli get to in "The Apple", Uhura gets to in "Mirror, Mirror"
C'mon guys, get with it! If you want babes in your story, make them look like BABES!!!!!
I don't think Angelique Pettyjohn would've been embarrassed to show off her bod....after all, she's an XXX Movie actress.
(Whooo....just the thought of that would've made things REAL interesting, now wouldn't it?)
Whenever Kirk, Uhura & Chekov are moved from one area to the next, you hear a "boing" noise....it's the same sound that was used in "The Squire of Gothos"....is Trelane somewhere in the area? (Just kidding)
MISSED OPPORTUNITY:
The creators missed an opportunity to re-use Uhura's 2-piece outfit from "Mirror, Mirror" in this episode....I mean, it would've made sense seeing that Uhura was "going to spend the rest of her life" on this planet...she wouldn't need the micro-miniskirt....but would still keep the briefs that are 2 sizes too small for her.
During the final fight that will determine the fate of the Enterprise crew, Uhura seems to have her mind on something else. Her facial expressions make it seem like she doesn't care what happens.
When speaking to the Providers, Kirk leans against their container and tells the Providers they are murderers. Then, for no apparent reason, Kirk makes a weird facial expression and backs off but...then the conversation continues like nothing happened.
The Alternative Prop
The dome of the Gamesters was previously the bubble top of Lazurus’ ship from The Alternative Factor.
The Alternative Character
Joseph Ruskin, who plays Gault in this episode, also played Tumek in The House of Quark(DS9) and Looking for par'Mach in All the Wrong Places(DS9), Odo's barely seen Cardassian informant in Improbable Cause(DS9), and Tuvok's Vulcan Master mentor in Gravity(TOS).
Oh no, Luigi, was that another of Voyager's time travel episodes? Oh, wait, sorry.... thats just a typo, right?
It was in the flashback scenes showing Tuvok's youth.
Oh man! That would just about fit, wouldn't it?!
Fit with what?
I think Merat is referring to the fact you called "Gravity" a TOS episode.
Why didn't Kirk bring Shanya along and educate her on the Enterprise? They re-educated Uhura just fine.
(Maybe Kirk was afraid he'd never get any work done with that voluptuous babe aboard...Kirk probably would be taking cold showers every 5 minutes with her around!)
Rene, right. And when Luigi said "It was in the flashback scenes showing Tuvok's youth." I realized that Tuvok would have been a child in the TOS era Sorry I wasn't clear.
Oh, wow, I didn't even notice that mistake. Why didn't ya say so? Yes, Gravity was the fifth season Voyager episode in which Tuvok, Paris and Doc fell into a subspace sinkhole, and a girl named Nass (Lori Petty) had the hots for Tuvok. And yes, Tuvok was born in 2264, so he was two (Earth years) old during TOS's first season.
Tuvok was born in 1964??? 8-o
First of all, I must correct myself...after watching the DVD closer, I saw that Galt does remove his collar.
Add the yellow alien girl to "Chekov's love interest"....he gets kinky with her later...he puts her in bondage! (Just kidding)
SCARY MOMENT: Uhura almost raped.
When Kirk gets whipped for Uhura, Shanya offers Kirk a drink...it looks suspiciously like grape juice.
The Andorian has some blue makeup missing on his neck & his torso when his shirt raises.
GREAT MOMENTS:
There are a lot of great shots of the Enterprise in this episode.
I love the way Kirk rips off his collar near the end.
GREAT LINE: "Daniel...as I recall, had only his faith...but I welcome your company" Spock to McCoy just before they attempted to beam down.
MISSED OPPORTUNITIES:
Chekov ties up his drill thrall...the possibilities are endless here.
Shanya should've been the one to whip Kirk....he may have wanted to stay
They SHOULD HAVE shown Uhura kick her drill thrall in the crotch for his rape attempt.
When Uhura was being raped, Kirk SHOULD HAVE yelled, "Hands off, she's mine!"
NIT: When Kirk is yelling "What are you doing to Uhura"? he's reaching thru the bars...however,BEFORE the scene fades to black, he lowers his arm. (Shatner quit acting before he was supposed to)
GREAT CAMERA ANGLE: The overhead view of Kirk talking to the Providers.
CONTROVERSIAL SCENE: Uhura (an African-American woman) is given a Caucasian man for "selection"...something that was taboo in 1968.
Sometime after the first conflict, Shanya no longer wears her gloves.
GREAT LINE: "Are you willing to admit that we can do something you can't?" Kirk to Providers about training the Thralls.
FUNNY THOUGHTS
Shanya's hair isn't the only thing that bounces when she jogs. Whoo Whoo!
If Kirk lost the final fight would that mean that the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise would become the crew of the B.D.S.M. Enterprise?
Another observation: Kirk reaches into Shanya's panties to get the key!!!!!!! Kinda makes ya' wish you was Kirk...don't it?
Uhura wasn't African-American. "Taboo" and "controversial" are too strong words. I don't recall ever hearing mentioning it before.
Nichelle Nichols is, Anonymister.
"GREAT LINE: "Are you willing to admit that we can do something you can't?" Kirk to Providers about training the Thralls."
No, it's a terrible line. It goes against the Prime Directive. (When would Starfleet ever train primitive people from a primitive planet?)
You have a valid point...but do the Providers know about the Prime Directive? That's what makes the line good...Kirk is toying with the Providers...taking advantage of their ignorance of Starfleet. So his statement was purely rhetorical. (IMHO)
True...I guess you could take it that way. But of course, how then do we explain Kirk's offer to the Organians (to educate their young, feed their hungry, etc...)...
I would call that "humanitarian aid"...something the USA does to underdeveloped countries. I THINK that is the only exception to the Prime Directive.
But then again....since when has Kirk obeyed the Prime Directive?
Would the Prime Directive apply?
Andorians were a part of the Federation & the Providers kidnapped at least one Andorian.
Also would this be considered a Natural Civilization?
Kirk didn't think the natives of Vaal lived in a natural civilization, so there's no reason he'd think Triskelion was, therefore, he could interfere all he wanted. Depending on the amount of contact with humans and the Federation, my guess is no matter how advanced or primitive a civilization is, the Prime Directive wouldn't be broken, because they would know about the existence of superior alien races (ie the Federation). Actually, wouldn't the Prime Directive be more of a promise not to give advanced weapons and technology to a race not ready for it, as well as usurping a normal, peaceful government?
I cannot help but wonder if Kirk logged the fact that he was willing to gamble his ship's crew to the Providers.....if Adm. Fitzpatrick found that log & read it, I WOULD NOT BE HAPPY! 
Heck, if I was on board the Enterprise and heard my captain gamble my freedom to the Providers, I would not be happy.
Shanya must have a "glass jaw"...one light tap on the chin from Kirk and Shanya is out like a light.
What's wrong with Uhura's voice? During the "rape scene", she screams...but it sounds more like a wounded kitten mewing. (I've heard of a "sex kitten", but this is ridiculous!)
Uhura screams a lot better in "Arena"
Phil noted the rest interval during the torture scene...the reason it happens is that the musicians are playing the duel music from "Amok Time" and it came to the slow part of the music...therefore the creators entered in a "rest interval" for the torture scene.
Speaking of which, the ogre guy doesn't use the net when the torture resumes.
Also, sometime in the show Shanya finds her gloves and has them on again.
When Kirk and Shayna are doing their 2 mile run, Galt tells them to return to their quarters. However, they entered the abandoned city set from the rear, and left from the front. Unless they were running in a circle...
Scotty is off by a full dozen. He comments that the star system (don't remember the name) must be more than 2 dozen light years away. Spock says it's 11.6 something light years. 11.6 isn't even one dozen, much less 2 dozen.
NANJAO: This is the closest that they actually come to using the infamous misquote "Beam me up, Scotty". Kirk says, "Scotty, beam us up".
Why wouldn't they be running in a circle?
Who put the disembodied brains inside the plastic dome in the first place?
What did they do with the bodies?
Where are those plastic fake brains now, and how much are they?
In "Charlie X" Kirk tells Charlie, there's no right way to hit a woman. (He'd swatted Rand on the fanny). Here, he hits Shahna to knock her out--not very convincingly. I guess he would say he wasn't hitting her the right way.
:V Is that the emoticon for tongue-in-cheek?
ScottN, I assume you are not counting movie dialogue in the assertion that the closest Kirk ever came to saying, "Beam me up, Scotty" is in this episode. In the movie St4: The Voyage Home, the scene in Golden Gate Park (after rescuing Chekov) where Gillian tells Kirk the frequency of the whales' homing tags, Kirk says thanks, THEN says into his communicator, "Scotty, beam me up". It's not a "Beam me up, Scotty", but it's THE closest I've found in all of Trekdom.
No, I was talking series only.
I think that's why the line is in the movie, so as to pay homage the "infamous misquote". However, isn't the entire quote "Beam me up, Scotty ... there's no intelligent life on this planet"? (suitable for bumper stickers)
VANISHING BODIES!!!
During the last fight, Kloog, Lars & the Andorian are eliminated by Kirk...sometime after Galt tells Shanya to try & finish Kirk off, the bodies of Kloog, Lars & the Andorian are gone! Who moved them and when?
NANJAO:
Until I got the DVD for this episode, I always thought that Shanya's hair was a silvery color...but it ain't....it's a light green color!
Fun line: "Cheek-oof!" Tamoon to Chekov
The Gamesters said that Kirk's opponents must be killed in order for him to win...yet, the Gamesters allow Shayna to surrender. It musta been her boobs. They didn't want to miss lookin' at them.
Various references assume Tamoon is an Andorian, but her antennae must be hidden inside her hair. How does this fit in with Andorians using their antennae to express emotion in "Shadows of P'Jem"?
I wonder if anybody has done any fanfic on the implications.
Not that Tamoon is my favorite character, but it might be interesting to speculate on why an Andorian would hide her antennae inside her hair.
For those who want to know what Quatloos are, here's a list:
Answers the Gamesters of Triskelion gave when Kirk asked them, "What are Quadloos?"
http://scifi.about.com/blquadloos.htm?terms=triskelion
I was interested in Luigi's comments about--
The Alternative Character
Joseph Ruskin, who plays Gault in this episode, also played Tumek in The House of Quark(DS9) and Looking for par'Mach in All the Wrong Places(DS9), Odo's barely seen Cardassian informant in Improbable Cause(DS9), and Tuvok's Vulcan Master mentor in Gravity(TOS).
Anybody want to do a crossover fanfic where Galt, Tumek, the informant and the Vulcan Master are really the same person?
NANJAO: John Galt is a character in Ayn Rand's "Atlas Shrugged". I wonder if the scriptwriter was thinking of him?
How did Galt get to be chosen for his position, anyway? Is he the one who removed the disembodied brains from their bodies and put them inside their plastic dome?
"You have been vended."
"You mean sold."
"Okay, you have been sold. What's your point?" 
I just thought it was sorta funny.
But it brings up another point.
Did Galt kidnap Kirk & Co.? So he sold them to the Providers? So Galt has machines/power the Providers don't have? What if he decides he has enough quadloos and doesn't want to kidnap anybody else? What's he going to do now that the thralls are freed and he doesn't have to kidnap anybody else?
Oh, well. Maybe somebody did fanfic about it?
Since the episode was originally meant to have Sulu instead of Chekov on Triskelion, I expect that the part of Ensign Jana Haines - the relief navigator who fills in at Spock's library computer - was supposed to be Chekov. It was a good idea to include a woman in a traditionally male role, and not have her (as far as I remember) act scared or stup1d.
CONTINUITY ERROR: During the "Training Interval", Galt orders an African-American man into the arena for "Practice Target". After Uhura refuses to attack, they decide to use her. Kirk intercedes & takes her place...during this scene, the camera pulls back....and the African-American man is GONE! (This happened in "Errand of Mercy" as well)
where exacty in "Errand Of Mercy"? i think i missed that bit!
BTY people - lots of excellent oberservations by everyone. im impressed.
Ajmal---If you watch "Errand of Mercy", watch the Klingons who charge into the Kor's office just before the weapons turned super-hot. These same Klingons disappear after the Organians complete their transformation.
I believe they back up, never to be seen again. Obviously they didn't believe that that day was a good day to die! Cowards!
When speaking to the Providers, Kirk leans against their container and tells the Providers they are murderers. Then, for no apparent reason, Kirk makes a weird facial expression and backs off but...then the conversation continues like nothing happened.
This was when Kirk said the Providers didn't have the spirit to really wager, and he was backing off to see their reaction. Or maybe because he surprised himself with his improvisational skill.
Anyway, seems like Kirk didn't have much choice but to wager his crew. If he hadn't come up with that challenge, the Providers would have rather speedily enslaved them anyway.
In the Chekov/Tamoon scene ("Cheek-oov...it is a nice name"), it looks like there's the shadow of a boom mike behind Chekov.
At one point, Kirk tells Shanya about the "other worlds" in space. I guess the Prime Directive was an option rather than a rule!
Well probably the directive doesn't apply in this case since the master civilization of the planet is more advanced than the Federation.
And besides, just how much does Kirk give away in revealing that the lights in the sky are other worlds? It's something I would imagine most civilizations would figure out on their own. More importantly, the Prime Directive forbids interference with the normal development of a planet's society. I don't think anyone can say that the Triskelion society was in any form, fashion or manner developing. I'd say it was fairly stagnate. Most of all, the mere presence of the Kirk and his crew would be in violation of the Prime Directive, I would think. But they had no choice in the matter.
And the very fact that they were brought there from light years across the galaxy demonstrates that the planet already had knowledge of other worlds.
However, Shana was born on Triskelion, and she acted like Kirk was the first person to tell her that there's life 'on a mere flicker of light'.
Who's to say that the Thralls didn't have some kind of religious beliefs that made them think the stars were elements of Heaven, or whatever passed for such a place? Instead of the souls of her parents looking down at her, as she was always led to believe, Kirk's now telling her those are worlds the size of Triskelion, thus interfering with their beliefs.
According to "Bread & Circuses" the Prime Directive prohibits people from Starfleet from mentioning that there are other worlds & advanced civilizations.
I seriously doubt that the Federation or Starfleet would consider a world made up of interstellar kidnappees & descendants of interstellar kidnappees to qualify as a Naturally Developing Civilization.
Besides the Providers controlled the Thralls, they did the kidnapping, and they knew about interstellar civilizations, already. Just because Shanna was too dense to know about other civilizations is no reason to expect that the other descendents of kidnappees were that stup¡d.
And looking at previous posts I see we had this argument about the Prime Directive way back in June of 2001. Sheesh!
We'll see you back here in June, 2005, then, KAM!
I still don't understand why the type of society is important. The original Prime Directive doesn't mention that the society must be a natural, evolving one; it only states that certain facts mustn't be revealed and that no involvement should take place. That's all.
Maybe Kirk could argue in court about the intent and purpose of the prime directive, and that it reasonably applies only to naturally evolving societies, but it shouldn't be used beforedhand as argument to lightly break one of the most important rules (not that kirk was ever short of reasons to break it - see phils list for kirks 10 reasons to break the prime directive in the guide.)
Wasn't there mention of a viable, evolving culture being part of the prime directive in "The Apple"?
From what I recall, it was Kirk and McCoy's "interpretation" of the Prime Directive. Spock disagreed with it. And frankly, in that episode, I always think Spock is right when I watch it.
In The Masterpiece Society it is said that the Prime Directive didn't apply because the colony was made up of humans. That colony was not a part of the Federation.
Personally I think it would be ridiculous if the Prime Directive only said that human societies were exempt, more likely it would apply to colonies of other member races of the Federation as well. One of the members of this society was Andorian & chances are there were probably more as well, not to mention other possible races from the Federation.
However even if you don't accept that argument. Kirk, Chekov & Uhura are human and they were forcibly made a part of this society. Therefore they are interfering in their own society now.
Also don't you think that the various kidnapped aliens would have told their children about coming from different planets? Just because Shana didn't know doesn't mean that others didn't. We still have people on this planet who believe the Earth is flat despite all evidence to the contrary.
Doesn't Kirk's interpretation of the Prime Directive seem really self-serving? The Prime Directive requires Starfleet personnel never to interfere with another culture, for good or ill, no matter what they think of it. No exceptions are made based on a Starfleet officer's estimation of how viable or not a culture is, nor are non-Federation humans exempt from its protection (Lord knows there are tons of them). I don't know if the same applies to civilians, but it might, since that can become a huge loophole.
Angel One (NextGen) had such a loophole.
According to the IMDB, Bert LaRue did the voice of Provider 1...yet his name is not mentioned in the end credits.
My sources have Bob Johnson as the voice of Provider #1. Not Bert(Bart) LaRue.
The IMDb lists Robert C. Johnson as Provider 3 and Bart La Rue as Provider 1 (no listing given for Provider 2). Johnson is also listed as the voice of "First Talosian" in "The Cage," if that helps.
tvtome.com lists Walker Edmiston as Provider 2. It also lists him as the voice of "Space Central" (I assume that means Vulcan Space Central) in "Amok Time." Curiously, he is also listed as playing a character named 'Spock' in The Big Valley.
Interestingly, for those of you who even owned that big poster of the cutaway diagram of the Enterprise-D, it listed the listed the captain of the Enterprise-B (the poster was produced before ST Generations as Captain Robert Johnson.
Also in the episode "The Deadly Years", The old man was named Robert Johnson.
Luigi, my 1996 cutaway poster says "Captain Tomas Johnson jr." Are there several different versions? And why did they change this?
Stephen mentioned last year that he's seen various references listing Tamoon as an Andorian, but that doesn't make sense. Tammon's skin looks flesh-colored or yellowish at times not blue, her hair is pink, not white, and she has no visible antennae. That tells me she's not even close to that species.
And John A. Lang notes that he always thought Shahna's hair was silver, when in fact it's green. I always thought this, too, until they started broadcasting good copies of the show.
It's for that reason, also, that I never understood why Elaan referred to Ambassador Petri as 'a green pig', when his skin always looked blue on my old tv's, but now I see that he really is green-skinned.
I remember reading an interview of Angelique Pettyjohn where she revealed that those were real tears she was crying at the end of the episode.
Seems the cast were informed during the making of this episode that the series had been cancelled, and it saddened her very much because she thought it was a good show. That's why she could say with feeling that she'd remember him (Kirk, but in reality, probably Shatner).
Seems unlikely. "Gamesters" is a 2nd season episode. However, there were cancellation rumors running around, so they could have been reacting to one of them.
Yeah, I've heard a version of the same story except with that detail added. Apparently, TOS was very, very close to goned at several points in the latter half of Season Two.
It seemed unprofessional for Kirk to take advantage of the innocent Shana. She just didn't understand the effect she had on men. She was very innocent.
Not if you have seen some of the pictures she was selling at some of the conventions.
Security! Security! Somebody's trying to include reality here! Das ist verbooten!
TRIVIA: From what I read, Angelique Pettyjohn wore the Shanya outfit at Star Trek Conventions when she went to them.
STTNG note:
At one point McCoy asks Spock: "Can people survive that long as disassembled molecules?"
In which Spock replies, "I have never heard of the possiblity, but it'd be a fascinating study" (or something like that)
This study would become reality in "Relics" in which Scotty survived well over 50 years as disassembled molecules aboard the Jenolen.
A-HA! Bingo! Now we have a definite nit for "Enterprise": Chosen Realm, in which Archer is beamed away but we don't see him materialise, so we weren't sure if he was in suspension or did intraship beaming. We knew it would be a nit for intraship beaming, as it was dangerous in TOS - now we know the alternative was also theoretical in TOS, therefore WE HAVE A NIT, Houston!!
Waitaminute. For how long was he suspended in this episode? Chosen Realm would only be a nit if Archer was held longer.
In any case, the discovery that intraship beaming was dangerous could have occured after Chosen Realm... much like we discovered the danger of baby seats in the front of an airbag-equipped vehicle after several accidents.
Yeah, when Archer discovered his pancreas was now in his left foot. ;)
Not every intraship transport has to result in a tragic consequence in order for it to be a danger... just like not every infant dies when secured in the front seat of an airbag-equipped car involved in an accident.
It's repeated use that usually demonstrates a statistically probable danger.
Look at it another way... car manufacturers are constantly recalling vehicles to fix a dangerous design problem. Now, even though each of the recalled vehicles has the same design flaw, not all of them have erupted in flames by turning the ignition.
Most of them were Ford's wern't they?