"Dagger of the Mind"
The second installment in this week's leg of The Trektastic Voyage is an episode I'd never seen before in all my years of Trek love, "Dagger of the Mind." It's an admittedly strange episode, and it suffers from being one of the show's early episodes as well as having what I personally think is a rather uncertain plot.
The Enterprise is delivering medical supplies to the penal rehabilitation colony on Tantalus V. A large container is beamed aboard before the Enterprise prepares to depart, and the Tantalus V colony soon alerts Kirk that an inmate has escaped and may be aboard the Enterprise. The inmate was in fact hiding in the container, and makes it to the bridge before being subdued by Spock. The inmate is in fact Dr. Simon Van Gelder, who claims through bouts of strained dementia that he is in fact the director of the Tantalus V colony. Kirk has already beamed down to meet with Dr. Adams, a renowned researcher in the field of criminal rehabilitation, taking with him another typically sexy Enterprise crewmember. Spock warns Kirk to be cautious, as both Spock and McCoy believe Van Gelder is not completely insane. Kirk and his assistant, Dr. Helen Noel, are introduced to the neural neutralizer, a device that enables its operator to erase a person's mind and then effectively reprogram it. After being tortured by the neutralizer at Adams's hands, Kirk escapes its thrall. Spock beams down after Dr. Noel disables the colony's security field, and Adams is killed accidentally by his own device.
"Dagger of the Mind" is a weak story filled with untapped potential. Even worse is the strange characterization of Kirk, Spock, and McCoy. Kirk seems arrogant and even childish in his treatment of an errant crewmember in the teaser, as well as in his attitude towards McCoy and Adams. Kirk almost seems as if he's proud that he's visited these colonies before, and that he hopes to be more right than his trusted advisor and CMO, McCoy. Kirk is also out of character when it comes to his treatment of Noel, with whom he shared what seems to have been a rather ridiculous lapse in command judgment: he apparently hit on her or vice versa at an Enterprise Christmas party! Such treatment of Kirk would not be seen again, nor the contradictory nature of Spock's severe appearance but impish, mischevious attitude towards his captain's love life.
"Dagger of the Mind" has a few good moments, most of them belonging to Morgan Woodward's Van Gelder. Woodward plays tortured and struggling to be heard in ways few actors could. He would return later to play the mad Commodore Tracy, who betrays his oath as a Starfleet officer and The Prime Directive in Season Three's "The Omega Glory," a parallel development tale similar to "Miri." The episode does also manage to show Captain Kirk's mental power, as he's never really permanently swayed by the neutralizer. The only real contribution to the Star Trek lore is the introduction of the Vulcan Mind Meld, which is a huge aspect of Vulcan culture and an integral part of Spock's character. This key element of Trek mythology is the only thing saving this episode from mediocrity.
The episode's title card.
The sexy Dr. Helen Noel, yet another reason Trek made its fans wish it was a future that would one day come true.
A Star Trek first: the introduction of The Vulcan Mind Meld. Spock seems affected by the emotions coursing into his own mind from Van Gelder's, and its a shame that the writers didn't explore this idea later on in the episode or in another.
Insert constipation joke here: Kirk's agony as the neural neutralizer batters his formidable mind.
The Enterprise is delivering medical supplies to the penal rehabilitation colony on Tantalus V. A large container is beamed aboard before the Enterprise prepares to depart, and the Tantalus V colony soon alerts Kirk that an inmate has escaped and may be aboard the Enterprise. The inmate was in fact hiding in the container, and makes it to the bridge before being subdued by Spock. The inmate is in fact Dr. Simon Van Gelder, who claims through bouts of strained dementia that he is in fact the director of the Tantalus V colony. Kirk has already beamed down to meet with Dr. Adams, a renowned researcher in the field of criminal rehabilitation, taking with him another typically sexy Enterprise crewmember. Spock warns Kirk to be cautious, as both Spock and McCoy believe Van Gelder is not completely insane. Kirk and his assistant, Dr. Helen Noel, are introduced to the neural neutralizer, a device that enables its operator to erase a person's mind and then effectively reprogram it. After being tortured by the neutralizer at Adams's hands, Kirk escapes its thrall. Spock beams down after Dr. Noel disables the colony's security field, and Adams is killed accidentally by his own device.
"Dagger of the Mind" is a weak story filled with untapped potential. Even worse is the strange characterization of Kirk, Spock, and McCoy. Kirk seems arrogant and even childish in his treatment of an errant crewmember in the teaser, as well as in his attitude towards McCoy and Adams. Kirk almost seems as if he's proud that he's visited these colonies before, and that he hopes to be more right than his trusted advisor and CMO, McCoy. Kirk is also out of character when it comes to his treatment of Noel, with whom he shared what seems to have been a rather ridiculous lapse in command judgment: he apparently hit on her or vice versa at an Enterprise Christmas party! Such treatment of Kirk would not be seen again, nor the contradictory nature of Spock's severe appearance but impish, mischevious attitude towards his captain's love life.
"Dagger of the Mind" has a few good moments, most of them belonging to Morgan Woodward's Van Gelder. Woodward plays tortured and struggling to be heard in ways few actors could. He would return later to play the mad Commodore Tracy, who betrays his oath as a Starfleet officer and The Prime Directive in Season Three's "The Omega Glory," a parallel development tale similar to "Miri." The episode does also manage to show Captain Kirk's mental power, as he's never really permanently swayed by the neutralizer. The only real contribution to the Star Trek lore is the introduction of the Vulcan Mind Meld, which is a huge aspect of Vulcan culture and an integral part of Spock's character. This key element of Trek mythology is the only thing saving this episode from mediocrity.
The episode's title card.
The sexy Dr. Helen Noel, yet another reason Trek made its fans wish it was a future that would one day come true.
A Star Trek first: the introduction of The Vulcan Mind Meld. Spock seems affected by the emotions coursing into his own mind from Van Gelder's, and its a shame that the writers didn't explore this idea later on in the episode or in another.
Insert constipation joke here: Kirk's agony as the neural neutralizer batters his formidable mind.
posted by Christopher at 6:07 PM
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