Didn't they fire phasers and destroy Balok's bouy?
Production Order Group Viewing 2018
- Thread starter Archivist13
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Didn't they fire phasers and destroy Balok's bouy?
Nah, I've been here all week.
(But, yes, I think it is.)
Someone remind me: is the "high winds prevented the shuttlecraft from landing" explanation some verrrry early headcanon (it's been around forever), or is it mentioned or hinted at in the ep? I haven't rewatched yet.
I added the winds in my headcanon to explain the lack of shuttle suggestion. Everyone knows the winds are too rough for shuttles, so It's not even mentioned. Doesn't make perfect sense because, in real life, we tend to repeat the most obvious answer and stated that they won't work or we wish they would work, etc... Plus high winds across the entire planet? Oh, ok.
I'm pretty sure Rand's hair is a wig but I always loved the basket weave she has.
My mother, not a science fiction fan by any means, was going through a difficult time as a store manager when I watched this episode (for the umpteenth time even then). Spock's speech to Kirk about how he must appear perfect and complete in front of the crew or else the crew would lose confidence really struck home with her. Management 101 from Star Trek.
Nice detail about the portable heaters duplicating and becoming inoperative. Explains why they didn't have heaters. Those tents, though, were pathetic. And no sleeping bags? I've got thermal sleeping bags now. Doesn't matter if those duplicate or not. In fact, the landing party would be better off if they did duplicate. Beam down a bunch of blankets! How about some proper tents made to withstand such harsh conditions?
How about beaming down "a hundred pounds of that thermoconcrete. You know, the kind we use to build emergency shelters out of. It's mostly silicone." Sounds like that stuff would have been great to use to build an emergency shelter.
Or how about using hand phasers to boar through the rocks and make a cave big enough to sit in. One side would be exposed to the elements but the other sides protected. Cover the entrance with those worthless tents and be set for the night. Big enough cave could even have room for rocks to heat with phasers. Rocks would provide heat longer.
Were the temperatures in F or C? It's not K because Kelvin is not given in degrees. There is no below 0 in Kelvin.
Rand will need long term counseling. Assaulted by her commanding officer and yet continues to work with the same commanding officer. No charges filed because the commanding officer was split in two and not responsible for his actions. I think the strain will get to her and she'll eventually transfer off the ship.
Hooray Ferrell! Maybe we finally have a permanent navigator? Thought we were going to start rotating helmsmen but Sulu was saved!
I love the green wrap around shirt Kirk wears. Convenient that there was an alternate to help us distinguish between good and evil Kirks. Also convenient that the transporter tech left before Kirk beamed up. He came back and saw evil Kirk and thought it was the Captain.
Kirk's log entry where he states that " Unknown to any of us during this time, a duplicate of me, some strange alter ego, had been created by the transporter malfunction." Kirk must go back after the fact and record log entries. Must have been made before Spock recorded the captain's log later in the episode.
LOL at the inactive main view screen when good and evil Kirk are arguing on the bridge.
Gotta love the 60s writing. We've already discussed Spock refer to "One of your Earth emotions..." as if emotions are planet specific. This week he refers to the role of good and evil as "Earth terms." Because, you know, good and evil are only terms used on Earth. Only Earth people express "compassion, love, tenderness." Later Spock refers to himself as having a human half and alien half. Why is the Vulcan half his alien half? Why not say Vulcan half and alien half? For a Vulcan, Spock is still using dialog from a human or Earth-centric point of view.
Base cycle for phasers is stunning force. This setting is still strong enough to blow a hole in the side of a wall and damage sensitive equipment.
Stun the mad dog! Don't try to hold it while someone else uses a hypo to knock it out. Stun it!
I'm pretty sure Rand's hair is a wig but I always loved the basket weave she has.
My mother, not a science fiction fan by any means, was going through a difficult time as a store manager when I watched this episode (for the umpteenth time even then). Spock's speech to Kirk about how he must appear perfect and complete in front of the crew or else the crew would lose confidence really struck home with her. Management 101 from Star Trek.
Nice detail about the portable heaters duplicating and becoming inoperative. Explains why they didn't have heaters. Those tents, though, were pathetic. And no sleeping bags? I've got thermal sleeping bags now. Doesn't matter if those duplicate or not. In fact, the landing party would be better off if they did duplicate. Beam down a bunch of blankets! How about some proper tents made to withstand such harsh conditions?
How about beaming down "a hundred pounds of that thermoconcrete. You know, the kind we use to build emergency shelters out of. It's mostly silicone." Sounds like that stuff would have been great to use to build an emergency shelter.
Or how about using hand phasers to boar through the rocks and make a cave big enough to sit in. One side would be exposed to the elements but the other sides protected. Cover the entrance with those worthless tents and be set for the night. Big enough cave could even have room for rocks to heat with phasers. Rocks would provide heat longer.
Were the temperatures in F or C? It's not K because Kelvin is not given in degrees. There is no below 0 in Kelvin.
Rand will need long term counseling. Assaulted by her commanding officer and yet continues to work with the same commanding officer. No charges filed because the commanding officer was split in two and not responsible for his actions. I think the strain will get to her and she'll eventually transfer off the ship.
Hooray Ferrell! Maybe we finally have a permanent navigator? Thought we were going to start rotating helmsmen but Sulu was saved!
I love the green wrap around shirt Kirk wears. Convenient that there was an alternate to help us distinguish between good and evil Kirks. Also convenient that the transporter tech left before Kirk beamed up. He came back and saw evil Kirk and thought it was the Captain.
Kirk's log entry where he states that " Unknown to any of us during this time, a duplicate of me, some strange alter ego, had been created by the transporter malfunction." Kirk must go back after the fact and record log entries. Must have been made before Spock recorded the captain's log later in the episode.
LOL at the inactive main view screen when good and evil Kirk are arguing on the bridge.
Gotta love the 60s writing. We've already discussed Spock refer to "One of your Earth emotions..." as if emotions are planet specific. This week he refers to the role of good and evil as "Earth terms." Because, you know, good and evil are only terms used on Earth. Only Earth people express "compassion, love, tenderness." Later Spock refers to himself as having a human half and alien half. Why is the Vulcan half his alien half? Why not say Vulcan half and alien half? For a Vulcan, Spock is still using dialog from a human or Earth-centric point of view.
Base cycle for phasers is stunning force. This setting is still strong enough to blow a hole in the side of a wall and damage sensitive equipment.
Stun the mad dog! Don't try to hold it while someone else uses a hypo to knock it out. Stun it!
I read somewhere that GR added the 'B' plot to the episode about Sulu et al freezing to death on the planet over the objections of the writer. Maybe thats why its not that well thought out - eg why not use a shuttle or beam down blankets or beam them up just before they froze to death?
I'm sure the real world reason is no one decided yet the Enterprise had shuttlecraft. But this is a good in-universe explanation.
From http://memory-alpha.wikia.com/wiki/The_Enemy_Within_(episode) citing a video interview with Richard Matheson:
The subplot of Sulu and three other crewmembers stranded on the planet was not present in Matheson's original script, and was added in staff re-writes. Matheson did not like the idea, as he had an aversion to B-stories in general, believing they slowed stories down. He explained, "My script stayed entirely with Bill [Shatner] having this trouble of his two selves, on the ship [....] They added a whole subplot about people down on the planet, ready to freeze to death, because they have [a] transporter functioning problem [....] I stuck entirely with Bill." [2]
There are only two surviving memos about Matheson’s first draft story outline (a Justman and a Roddenberry memo), and neither mentions the crew being stuck on the planet. But that doesn’t mean this wasn’t there.
There is a John D.F. Black memo about the second draft story outline where Black complains that Matheson doesn’t give this story element enough attention, but it doesn’t establish that this dimension of the story was new at that point, or that it had been requested by the producers.
Without a copy of Matheson’s initial story outline, it’s Impossible to know for sure. Everyone’s favorite Saturn Award winner asserts that the stranded crew was added at the script stage at the producers’ behest, but the evidence already mentioned proves this is false.
Maybe @Greg Cox has seen Matheson's earliest story outline?
Matheson did complain about the B-story being forced on him by the producers, in interviews much later on, but was he just remembering Black’s request that this element of the story be expanded? Without more information, it’s impossible to say for sure.
Yeah, somebody said earlier.
Ba dump bump.Nah, I've been here all week.
I think the B plot helps sell the A plot. Without the landing party in peril, what is there for Kirk to agonize over command wise?
This transporter thing is interesting. Does it always take 2 to operate? Guess not since the tech left before Kirk beamed up. Maybe it's specialized equipment and if you are not a certain tech rating you cannot operate it by yourself. Seems like so far we always see 2 people operating the transporter.
Is there only one transporter or are there others? If there are others, are they independent operating stations or just multiple controls and pads tied into one centralized transporter mechanism. If this transporter was faulty, why not just use a different one? Either they only have one transporter room or they are all tied in to the same transporter mechanism.
Those controls must have some strong resistance to push. Scotty has to use 2 hands.
6 pads for just over 200 people (per Pike in The Cage). That's a long time to wait if a bunch of people want to disembark at once.
This transporter thing is interesting. Does it always take 2 to operate? Guess not since the tech left before Kirk beamed up. Maybe it's specialized equipment and if you are not a certain tech rating you cannot operate it by yourself. Seems like so far we always see 2 people operating the transporter.
Is there only one transporter or are there others? If there are others, are they independent operating stations or just multiple controls and pads tied into one centralized transporter mechanism. If this transporter was faulty, why not just use a different one? Either they only have one transporter room or they are all tied in to the same transporter mechanism.
Those controls must have some strong resistance to push. Scotty has to use 2 hands.
6 pads for just over 200 people (per Pike in The Cage). That's a long time to wait if a bunch of people want to disembark at once.
These are great ideas. It's even more surprising given that Spock apparently led the training course in survival procedures. Guess he's not an expert in everything...
Several of these early episodes have Kirk recording his log in retrospect. This episode really mixes up the past and present tense though. I hope they'll settle on a format soon.Even more confusingly, Spock's log entry (near the end of the episode) gives a Stardate that would place it BEFORE the previous two from Kirk! Interestingly, the log entries do not contradict each other:
- Captain's Log, stardate 1673.1. Something has happened to me. Somehow, in being duplicated, I have lost my strength of will. Decisions are becoming more and more difficult.
- Captain's Log, stardate 1673.1. Entry made by Second Officer Spock. Captain Kirk retains command of this vessel, but his force of will rapidly fading. Condition of landing party critical. Transporter unit still under repair.
Gotta love that minimalist screensaver design!
Much easier on the eyes than the trippy colourful one we saw in WNMHGB too...That phaser which did the damage was being held by Evilkirk - we don't know what setting he had it on, but I wouldn't be surprised if it was something slightly higher than "base cycle".
They were quite reluctant to stun Evilkirk though, which is why (I guess) Spock used the nerve pinch. Maybe they have no way of knowing what the stun shot will do to a half-man transporter abomination of nature?
Having two guys operate the transporter really sells it as a piece of delicate machinery that require specialised training to use and it's something I will be sorry to see go if the extras budget gets slashed later on down the line. Maybe routine transporter operations are technically safe enough with one operator, but it's always useful to have an extra set of hands in case something goes wrong?
So far the only different Transporter Room Kirk's ship that we've seen is in WNMHGB, which was located off a different stretch of corridor to the usual series one, but there's no way to tell if that one is still around. Plus, the crew always make reference to THE Transporter Room, indicating a singular station. If there are other Transporter Rooms on board, I would speculate that they are not in an active condition. Maybe transporter beams are rough on the hardware, necessitating regular maintenance and swapping from one room to another at different times of the month?
In any case, the big mechanical tube that Evilkirk phasers a hole in would seem to be essential to ALL transporter operations, since it is in the Engine Room and presumably draws power directly from the main engines. Either way, Sulu is screwed...
This episode also features several curious production choices. One is the total absence of delta badges on the uniforms in the early scenes. Apparently someone just forgot to reattach them after the nightly dry cleaning?
The other is an editing issue. The scene where Kirk & Spock first meet the evil dog should have come AFTER the attack on Rand. As it stands Kirk sends the (apparently McCoy pranked) Spock away, then he chases after his first officer to visit Scotty, then Kirk goes BACK to his cabin to wait for Spock to come and accuse him of rape, which can only have happened when Kirk was in the Transporter Room full of witnesses!
The scene should really have gone AFTER the attack on Rand, when Spock deduces that there is an imposter on board. Apparently the editor didn't feel it was as dramatic a commercial break, so he switched things around.
Source:
http://www.orionpressfanzines.com/articles/enemywithin.htm
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Second Officer Spock???
This one has more boners than I remembered!
This one has more boners than I remembered!
I expect they have multiple transporter rooms but only one in use at any one time, all operating off the same circuits. That said, when the console itself stops working, they don't suggest moving over the the next room so maybe not. They also have a cargo transporter. In an emergency, I suppose they could fire up multiple rooms to beam crew out, although shuttles and escape pods would be more sensible .
It would be pretty dangerous for a Starship to have only one transporter room and no shuttle craft.
Let's wait until Dagger of the Mind. I may be wrong .
Another issue I have with "The Enemy Within" is that Rand is forced to explain herself in front of Kirk after the rape attempt.
Is that what happened in the 60s, a victim had to stand in front of the accused saying what happened without her mother or any other advocate with men looking on - two being the accused best friends?
Is that what happens now to a rape victim - I hope not?
Obviously Rand was attacked by someone (so she wasn't making up the charge) and I know accusing the captain is a serious situation but you'd think she's have legal counsel at least if not Chapel to assist her.
Is that what happened in the 60s, a victim had to stand in front of the accused saying what happened without her mother or any other advocate with men looking on - two being the accused best friends?
Is that what happens now to a rape victim - I hope not?
Obviously Rand was attacked by someone (so she wasn't making up the charge) and I know accusing the captain is a serious situation but you'd think she's have legal counsel at least if not Chapel to assist her.
This is pretty much what happened to the actress and she was fired , so there's your answer!
Within the concept of the episode, they could have taken DNA from under her nails.
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