grenade to subdue the Earps before the shootout and is surprised when the gas fails to work. The time of the shootout draws near; a defiant Kirk and the landing party suddenly find themselves at the O.K. Corral, with the Earps approaching. Spock realizes from the failure of the gas grenade and the "death" of Chekov that the world they are in does not conform to the laws of reality and persuades the others that as long as they are convinced of that they cannot be harmed. Kirk has Spock mind-meld with the rest of the team to imbue them with absolute conviction. Thus, when the Earps and Holliday open fire, their bullets pass harmlessly through. Kirk beats Wyatt Earp in a fistfight and disarms him, but when given the chance to kill him in revenge for Chekov, he instead throws his weapon away. The crew find themselves, along with a still-living Chekov, on the Enterprise bridge (Chekov having survived only because his mind was on Sylvia and not dwelling on the fact that he could be killed). The Melkotians make contact, inquire about Kirk's refusal to kill, and finally welcome the Enterprise to approach their planet. Production In Star Trek 3, author James Blish's novelization of this episode was called "The Last Gunfight". The show was the last episode to air on NBC at 10 p.m. on Fridays. DeForest Kelley had played Morgan Earp in the 1957 film, Gunfight at the O.K. Corral. As money was not available for a full set, director Vincent McEveety was asked to use a stylized Western street of false building fronts and no sides. Reception Zack Handlen of The A.V. Club gave the episode a 'B+' rating, marking it down for loose writing but praising its impressive final showdown and "weird, arrhythmic vibe working for the show for once". In 2012, The A.V. Club ranked this episode as one of top ten "must see" episodes of the original series. In 2012, Christian Science Monitor ranked this the ninth best episode of the original Star Trek. Keith R.A. DeCandido of Tor.com initially criticizes the episode for its historical inaccuracies, but then praises it on a philosophical level, noting that Kirk and company never fight when provoked, do not kill for revenge, and ignore the initial warning in favor of carrying out their directives to seek out new life. In 2016, The Hollywood Reporter ranked