Jane Wyatt, who played Spock’s mother in Star Trek, The Original Series and The Voyage Home, plays Paul Forrester’s (Robert Hays) mother in The Gift. Written by Peggy Goldman, this is the series holiday episode and was first broadcast on 12 December, 1986.

Paul and Scott (Christopher Danie Barnes) receive a letter from Stella, Paul’s mother asking for him to please come home for the holidays. So off they go, only to discover that Stella didn’t send the letter, but it was a gift, because it allows Starman to ease Stella’s issues that she had with her son, and foster a relationship with Scott (who tells Stella he’s in Grade 9, but last week he was in Grade 10).

There are tons of smalltown issues that Paul and Scott encounter even as they learn how much Stella is loved by the citizens for all the things she helps out with. But she and Paul have conflict, caused by his protest of the war, something that runs him into trouble with the local constabulary as well.

Everything comes together as the town unites behind Paul to help give Stella one last Christmas, she’s ill and dying, something Paul recognizes and helps prepare Scott and Stella’s partner, Hal (Jeff Corey).

He’s also able to smooth things out between Stella and the man who Paul appears to be, her son. It’s a gentle episode, that strays a little bit from the episodic formula of the series, but only to hang some lights and tinsel on it.

The System was written by Steven Hollander and debuted on 9 January, 1987.

Paul and Scott end up in the big city, but during a lunch run, Paul is arrested for an outstanding warrant in this city because of a photo Forrester took of a man accused of a crime, Steven Putnam (Bill Duke!) something the suspect said he didn’t do. The real Paul would know where he is, but never revealed it, so now, Paul is being held in contempt, in a prison cell with… Tim Russ?!

While Scott attempts to navigate the legal system and find out how best to help his father, Paul deals with judges, the court, police officers, and fellow prisoners.

And of course, once he’s been arrested, his name pops up in George Fox’s (Michael Cavanaugh) system, which kicks in the ticking clock for the episode, and also makes sure the story follows the formula.

With a lawyer, Jessica (Charlotte Harper) in tow, the father-son duo work to clear Putnam’s name and get clear, once again of George Fox, until next time.

This takes us past the halfway mark of the series, and there’s more to come next week as I continue my journey with Paul and Scott in Starman: The Complete Series which comes as one of the amazing extras on John Carpenter’s Starman part of Sony’s Columbia Classics 4K Ultra HD Collection Volume 4, available now.