Alpha approaches a system with two planets whose orbits keep them on opposite side of their sun. As the first of the planets comes into range, it is determined that it is inhabited. Alpha tries to open communications with it's people to no avail. The Bethans are igoring the signals.
	High above Betha is the massive battle cruiser Satazius, which leaves orbit on a course for Alpha. The Bethans monitor Alpha as they prepare for battle. The moonbase's defensive screens are deactivated, all communication systems are rendered inoperable. And every
Eagle is prevented from launching. The Satazius lands in near proximity to the base as Koenig and his command staff watch it's actions closely. The Satazius raises it's missile launchers, aims, and fires... right over Alpha! It's target is the planet Delta on the opposite side
	of the sun. After realizing that Alpha was not the target of the alien craft, Koenig races to the window to track the missiles with his monoculars. He watches them impact on Delta. Victor realizes that the Moon is being used as a mobile gun platform in a war
between these two worlds! Delta retaliates with a volley of missiles trying to take out the Bethan gun ship. Since they were not able to get a precise location, the missiles are scattered, and coming in frighteningly close to Alpha, until one finally strikes the Satazius.
	Finally, the attack is over. The Eagles are now able to launch, and Koenig has Alan check out the Satazius. He reports that it appears completely knocked out and doubts that there could be any survivers, that is, until an escape pod launches and heads for Alpha.
Koenig decides that the only way to learn what is going on around them is to let the surviver of the gunship in. The pod is lowered into one of the underground hangars and it's pilot is greeted at the air lock by the Commander and a few of his security force. The Bethan Captain
	removes her helmet and demands sanctuary. Koenig refuses on the grounds that she is the one who endangered Alpha, by putting them in the middle of the two planets' war. She tells him that Delta will send a gunship to the Moon check out the source of the missiles, and
will find Alpha. If Koenig provides Dione with sanctuary, Betha will help to protect the base. If he sends her back to her crippled ship, Betha will destroy Alpha. If they want to survive they will need her help. The Deltan gunship arrives and starts firing missiles at Betha.
	Betha, naturally, returns fire until the Deltan gunship is destroyed... almost taking Alpha along with it. Koenig has to do something to insure the safety of Alpha. He tells Dione that she can stay if she will help him organize a cease-fire. She agrees to help, but since nothing
like it had ever been attempted before, she does not know if it will work. Dione arranges a three-way communications link between Alpha and the two planets. A tentative agreement is reached, but if anything goes wrong, Alpha will pay the price. Koenig just hopes that
	it will give them enough time to get out of range of the two planets before it breaks down. Dione is escorted to Sandra's quarters, and placed under guard. She teleports to her escape pod and takes off for the Satazius, which was not so badly damaged as we were lead to
believe. Dione rejoins her crew and resumes her attack on the, now, unsuspecting Delta. Koenig tries to tell Talos (the leader of that planet), that he was fooled by Dione's ruse, and did not break his word given in the cease-fire agreement. Talos says that if Koenig gives him the
	exact coordinates of the Satazius he will not destroy Alpha. Dione, who monitored the conversation, tells Koenig that if he does give Talos her location she will destroy Alpha. Koenig tells her that he wants to come out to her ship to talk. She accuses him of trying to
desert his command. He grabs Alan's stun gun, and tells the command staff that he is going out to the ship, and not to try to stop him. Victor cuts communications to the Satazius, and Koenig tells them that he has a plan and he needed to make it look convincing.
	Victor restores communication to the Satazius and Koenig tells Dione he is coming out to her ship. She tells him she will not let him aboard, but he tells her that since he took her in, she owed it to him. Koenig stays in contact with Dione as the moonbuggy approaches her
vessel. She tells him to head back, as there are missiles on their way from Delta, and he could be killed out on the lunar surface, but she still will not take him in. He tells her that if she will stop firing at Delta he will turn back. She refuses. He tells her that she only has herself to
	blame. She suspects a trap, and orders the Moonbuggy destroyed, but it is too late. It has passed beneath the range of her ships weapons. The helmet falls from the spacesuit filled with explosives, just before it collides with the Satazius, destroying it for good.
Back on Alpha, John wonders what it might have been like to live on Betha. Helena asks him if he feels regret about not going to the planet. He says that he was only curious. She tells him that she would rather wander through space than live in a constant state of war.

This Episode

Random Thoughts

One of the first things that comes to my mind about this episode, is the fact that we never learn what the war between Betha and Delta is really about. The only explanation we have is that Betha struck the first blow as a "preemptive strike" beacuse Delta has "always been unreasonable". Perhaps that explains why this is often considered the "battle of the sexes" episode. It is an "unending" struggle, with equally matched opponents, fighting because they cannot understand one another.

Here's a topic: If this was written as a battle of the sexes analogy, what is Bob Kellet saying about men and women? Discuss amongst yourselves... The Bethans (women) seem to be more motivated (first strike), cunning (the plan to make their ship appear unusable), deceptive (the ability to make others believe their plan), and manipulative (Dione getting Koenig to play his part in her plan). The Deltans (men) seem to want to sleep (I was beginning to wonder if Talos had eyes), get revenge, and have an unfair advantage (the gunship, in orbit, Talos asked for during the cease-fire talks). Does that seem a fair assessment?

I always thought the dress Dione wears when she boards the Satazius was very attractive, but seemed a little inappropriate for someone going into battle.

Dione (Caroline Mortimer) always reminds me of Diana Rigg (as Emma Peel in The Avengers) when she arrives at Alpha in her black (leather?) outfit.

I think Barbara Bain does a great job with Helena acting just a little jealous throughout this episode. Without overplaying it, she adds a nice sense of her feelings for Koenig. But I have to wonder what happened when she delivered the line "...the damage, the casualties, we can't take much more!"

This episode contains one of the few appearances of a matte painting in Space: 1999. I am a little surprised at the industrial look of Betha. It is a bit of a departure from the more elegant "alien" landscapes they usually use.

Before I close I have to say that I love the design of the Satazius. It is just a cool ship. Oh yeah, and be on the look out for it's control panels to resurface later on in the series.

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